Clarkston
Despite the underpinning themes of American colonialism and the westward landgrab vs modern America, this is a suprisingly intimate play, although as it is written by Samuel D Hunter who wrote The Whale I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. Jake, a well to do liberal arts graduate has been following the westward trail towards the Pacific taken by his ancestor, but he washes up 300 miles short in the small town of Clarkston and gets a night job in Costco where he meets Chris. Chris is trying to get into a writing course, but has an addict mum to worry about. So that’s the set up, which doesn’t sound particularly promising but this ends up being a surprisingly tender play about people trying to find connection and make the best of their lives, despite the challenges they face. It’s a bit clunky with the amount of exposition, but the central performances are excellent and I found myself drawn into the lives and concerns of the young men. Joe Lo...