THE HANGOVER REPORT – Eliya Smith’s layered, baffling new play GRIEF CAMP basks in the lingering quality of loss and sadness

Maaike Laanstra-Corn in Atlantic Theater Company’s production of “Grief Camp” by Eliya Smith at the Linda Gross Theater (photo by Ahron R. Foster).

Earlier this week, Eliya Smith’s Grief Camp opened at the Linda Gross Theater courtesy of Atlantic Theater Company. Better late than never, the production arrives Off-Broadway a few months after its originally slated opening date as a result of the well-publicized labor negotiations that temporarily halted the Atlantic’s planned winter/spring offerings. In short, Smith’s new play tells the story of a group of teenagers who are sent to a “grief camp” — these recuperative places actually do exist — in order to mend from traumatic losses (the details of these losses are only vaguely touched upon by the play).

The playwright writes in a style that seems intentionally opaque, as if to manifest the often mysterious nature of grief in the aftermath of loss. Although layered and occasionally haunting, Grief Camp is likely to leave many in the audiences who come see it frustrated by their inability to fully grasp the happenings onstage (e.g., there’s one scene involving the random consumption of snacks by the entire cast that completely eluded me, and still does). To add to the confusion, the play frequently toggles between multiple time periods in the same camp — at times, some of the actors play grief counsellors, other times they play their counceled younger selves (which may suggest the lingering quality of grief and sadness) — with nary a hint of warning.

Les Waters’ production does well to give Grief Camp its full justice, providing the play both specificity (kudos to Louisa Thompson’s realistic bunkhouse set design and Oana Botez’s spot-on costume design) and room for its poetic if at times baffling flights of fancy. The cast is largely excellent, playing troubled teenagers with candor and convincing detail, particularly when it comes to indicating the inarticulate depth of their loss vis-à-vis the mundanity of day-to-day camp activities. Perhaps the most compelling performance is given by Maaike Laanstra-Corn as a quirky budding theater kid, whose escapes into her imagination may just be the most tangible thing about this compellingly elusive play.

RECOMMENDED

GRIEF CAMP
Off-Broadway, Play
Atlantic Theater Company
1 hour, 30 minutes (without an intermission)
Through May 11

Categories: Off-Broadway, Theater

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