The life-and-death struggle to overcome an addiction–in this case, an eating disorder–is powerfully dramatized in Catalyst, a new play by April Morrow which is on tap at the 2015 Hollywood Fringe Festival. Morrow, who not only wrote and directed Catalyst but stars in it, was anorexic and suicidal at fifteen. She was sent to a Christian psychiatric institution whose doctors, therapists and, above all, fellow addicts, helped her to realize that recovery was possible. As she says in the play, “No one said it was easy; they said it was worth it!”
Catalyst began as narrative piece that Morrow read for a Loft Ensemble invited audience. Encouraged by the positive feedback, she turned her story into a full-length play which was produced by Loft Ensemble at its downtown venue in 2014. Now the piece has been re-mounted at the Hollywood Fringe, with Morrow heading a superb 11-person cast which includes Christopher Marcos as Ed, the sinister embodiment of her personal demon, the dark force that keeps pushing her closer and closer toward self-destruction. Without uttering a single word, the bare-chested, wild-haired Marcos effectively uses mime to suggest how deep is his hold over this tormented young woman (called Sara in the play).
As for Morrow, her lead performance is nothing but astonishing throughout, one that is as moving and charismatic as it is authentic. She gives us a Sara who tries to use her intelligence and sarcasm to hide her problems from the world, only to be confronted and challenged by her peers–-especially the other four patients in her ward. As performed by Marissa Galloway, Madylin Sweeten, April Sheets and Lauren Sperling, these hip, irreverent and tough-minded gals chip away at Sara’s protective armor as best they can (considering they’re a step or two away from self-destruction themselves).
Joining them in their attack on Sara’s denial of reality are two valiant therapists (Jon Tosetti and Alex Tracy). Also in the mix are an Irish house-mother (Barbara Ann Howard) and a no-nonsense administrator (Louisa Dienst).
Morrow adds some surprising touches to her realistic portrait of a modern rehab clinic: sudden bursts of song and dance. Not only do they come as a welcome change of pace and mood, the tunes are sung and danced skillfully, even artfully. This isn’t to say, though, that Catalyst turns soft and sentimental as it unfolds over the course of its 80 minutes. On the contrary, the play shows just how tough it is to kick a deep-seated addiction. Sara, for example, must literally kill Ed to do it. But do it she does and in that victory is the hope of being able to live a normal, fulfilled life.
