SALT LAKE CITY — The TwoFifteen Project is putting on a show called 1222 Randall Ave. at the Fringe. Written by Max Huftalin, and directed by Emilio Casillas, it is definitely worth the wait. And I did wait nearly 15 minutes after start time for the lights to come up.
Show closes August 6, 2017.
This is the story of young lovers moving into an apartment on 1222 Randall Ave. There are a few love triangles throughout the show that made me want to scream in joy or angst based on who kisses or doesn’t kiss who. Four years pass with a plethora of adult drama and end with moving out and the last single finally hooking up. The script was extremely well-written with plenty of laughs and true feelings stated. Huftalin did fine work of creating story arcs and climaxes. Usually with so many characters it is hard to keep track of names, but Huftalin wrote in plenty of dialogue including who was who that even for this show under 45 minutes it was very easy to keep track.
Casillas’s directing was full of engaging movements and blocking. The apartment was realistically set up with a few furniture items such as a couch, chair, table, and lamp. The roommates were comfortable with each other onstage, inviting me into their lives, such as the way they sat on the couch with one girl playing with the others’ hair on her lap.
At the beginning of each scene was a clever introduction to what time had passed, such as the 1st year written on the back of the couch, or year 4 written on the back of the moving man’s shirt. But I wish that actor had kept his back to the audience longer so I could have more easily caught it.
At first some of the actors tried yelling their lines over the audience laughter so the words were lost in the noise, but they soon got the hang of it. One of the best moments was when Dillon, played by Sydney Shoell, “talked” though her shorts to her roommate to cheer her up. Did I mention this show is for a mature audience?
Overall, 1222 Randall Ave. show was enjoyable, though not too deep. It was very engaging, however, and I would recommend a visit to see it.
