Life is a continuing series of events. Are they random or interconnected? The dog runs out of the yard and the kid chases after it. In the case of four-year-old Danny, his dog runs out into the street, Danny follows it and gets killed by a passing car driven by a 17-year-old eight months ago. These are the events leading up to the opening of David Lindsay-Abaire's Pulitzer Prize winning play, Rabbit Hole, currently on North Coast Rep's stage in Solana Beach.
How would we deal with a tragedy of this magnitude? The parents, Howie and Becca (Brendan Ford and Jo Anne Glover), each grieve in quite different ways. The play is a study in the dynamics that take place. Add to the mix Izzy (Jessa Watson), Becca's sister, and her mom, Nat (Sandra Ellis-Troy). All look at the death from their own perspectives.
Izzy, pregnant by her current lover, tries to be compassionate. She is facing the problems that are life-changing. Nat reflects when she lost Becca's brother. This is not an easy play to watch, especially if you have experienced the death of a family member.
The playwright gives the audience the reflections of five people of different relationships to the child. There are the happy memories as Mom and Becca finally put away Danny's toys and mementos. There are bits of humor throughout the play. The scene with Becca and Jason (Ryan Kidd) is the most touching. Kidd handles one of the most difficult scenes as the driver of the car meeting with the mother of the child he killed. He and Glover are totally believable here in this scene of compassion.
Director Stephen Elson has taken a very difficult topic and a brilliant script and provided his audience with fine performances. Marty Burnett created a home so well appointed, we're ready to move in. (But, then, we expect all of his sets to be perfection.) Matt Novotny's lighting is crisp and clean, enhancing the set. Sound designer Chris Luessmann accents some of the moments quite nicely.
