Photo by Meg Moore/megpix.com; Kathryn Van Meter as Trudy.

Presented by Merrimack Repertory Theatre
Written by Jane Wagner
Directed by Courtney Sale
Featuring Kathryn Van Meter

October 2-20, 2024
Nancy L. Donahue Theatre at Liberty Hall
50 E. Merrimack St.
Lowell, MA

Online Playbill

Run Time: approx. 2 hours 25 minutes including one 15-minute intermission

Please note the following content advisories: Adult Language, Death by Suicide, Suicide Ideation, Drug Use, Sexual Violence

Review by Craig Idlebrook

LOWELL, Mass. — There is a tightrope act-feel to a one-person show, as audiences can become painfully aware there is nowhere for the performer to hide, or even catch a breath. Flubbed lines, low energy, or a lack of connection to the source material can lead to a long night for both actor and audience.

Luckily for the audience of Merrimack Repertory Theater’s The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe, Kathryn Van Meter (Trudy) deftly dodges all potential pitfalls of a solo performer. She works hand-in-hand within the exquisite source material provided by playwright Jane Wagner for us to see the interconnectedness between an off-kilter woman living on the streets and the universe.

Trudy first appears as a person one might listen to politely before quickly crossing the street to get away from. She quickly shares what seemingly are delusions of communicating with space aliens and inhabiting the lives of others. Trudy says she was once a successful business executive until she realized the immorality of a marketing campaign to sell snack food to people who didn’t have enough to eat. After this epiphany, she says she checked out of reality, and since has been communicating with aliens who are studying intelligent life throughout the universe. She also unwittingly tunes into the brainwaves of other women, and her life is interrupted as she lives the scenes of others. She shares flashes of insight and wisdom, and by the end we are the ones questioning whether reality is worth it.

Photo by Meg Moore/megpix.com: Kathryn Van Meter.

Too often, if a play shows a few cracks in the first act, those cracks will widen into gulfs by the second. This play is the rare exception. While I knew something of the source material, originally written by Jane Wagner for her life partner Lily Tomlin, I didn’t realize the first act is built to be purposely head-scratching and disjointing, leaving one wondering if Trudy truly had insight or is just the person you find yourself stuck talking to at a party. In a less accomplished production, that vibe of audience confusion could plant the seeds for self-doubt for the performer and director. This confusion is somewhat aided by the sometimes dated feel of the source material.

However, Van Meter and director Courtney Sale help craft action and pace that keep the audience engaged and connected, enough so that when things truly come into focus towards the end of the second act, it makes the journey worth it. Van Meter trusts the material, connects with the audience, and, most importantly, fully inhabits each character. She is a chameleon on stage. Sometimes, her performance reminded me of some of the better, more manic performances of Angelina Jolie; other times, she was more like the dry, disjointed wit of Natasha Lyonne. At the climax of the second act, she pours herself into each beat of dialogue so fully that it is easy to forget that she is just one performer on stage.

Van Meter is assisted in this task by an imaginative and effective set design by Scenic Designer Adam Baacke. The set is almost entirely made up of models of giant Post-it Notes. They form a halo around Trudy and provide a platform for her to climb, bounce off of, or lean against. In the second act, the set shifts and they seem to encumber Trudy, creating a barricade between ourselves and our connection to others. The whole thing would be soul-crushing, except that Trudy is unflappable in the face of heartache and puzzlement. She reminds us that all we can do is go on and realize life likely won’t make a lot of sense, at least until we stop trying to understand it.

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