OREM – New Kid written by Dennis Foon is a play about Nick and her family as they move from Homeland to Utah. This story tackles how difficult it can be for kids to attend a new school in a new place, understand different social structures and norms, for a family to fit in, to learn in a new language, and to make friends. It also shows how sometimes kids can lead the way in building bridges between cultures. These actors, these designers, and the director have put together a strong piece that is relevant and entertaining for the entire family.
The show starts pretty much as soon as you enter the theatre space. Two characters – Mench and Mug – played by Abby Fillmore and Morgan Miller Luke, are playing games and speaking in the foreign language used in the play that is spoken in this fictional Utah. Both actors are talking and working with the audience to get them to learn and interact within the language. Nick, played by Lillian Sampson, comes out shortly after Mench and Mug, and speaks English with the audience. This effective tool to help audience members enter the world as soon as they sit down also expresses Nick’s distress at not understanding.
I was especially impressed with all the characters’ use of a fake language in this production. Abby Fillmore, Morgan Miller Luke, Lillian Sampson, and swing Tyler McCabe all did an excellent job. It was gibberish, but the way they use it feels real. It flows naturally, has nuance, and has moments that are funny and offensive that the audience, who don’t speak this language, can understand. Kudos to the actors for rehearsing this so much that it really became authentic.
All of these actors are adults playing children, and this can be a very tricky thing. At times, as adults acting on stage, we tend to flatten them. We forget that they are more than these 2D caricatures we paint of them because it has been a while since being a kid ourselves. I do appreciate that in this production there were many moments when the child characters came to life. These moments come especially in the more serious beats in the production – when Mench and Nick are developing a relationship, when Mench is defending Nick from Mug, and conversation over a meal with Mench, Nick, and the Mother. Some of the sillier parts – listening to the AirPods at the beginning, the scenes playing ball, and the moments in the classroom seemed to become more caricaturized.
New Kid plays at UVU through October 25. | Photos: UVU
I really appreciated the simple set design by Cameron McBride. This is an easily transportable set that also easily showed where these characters were with a simple transition. I do feel that this set had not been rehearsed very often as some scene changes did not happen – pieces were left on in some scenes and taken off in others. This lent to a slight lack in clarity of where things are happening. The sound design by Hannah Michels helps this story to feel current without feeling distracting. I appreciated the addition of KPop Demon Hunters – this helped to not only age the characters, but also to give it a more contemporary feel.
Scott Savage, the director, does an excellent job with this production. Having seen many TYA (Theatre for Young Audience) productions, I have seen a fair number that blow them off, or have low energy because they are “for kids.” This was not the case with this production, and all involved should be commended.
The blocking of this production expertly communicates the story. This is especially needed because most of the show is in a language the audience cannot understand. Each stage picture or action makes it very clear how the actors feel about each other and what is going on. One example of the important blocking is when the relationship between the three young girls begins to change. Mug has changed into a more antagonist and Mench and mostly Nick are her opposition. There is a very specific moment when Mench stands in between the two showing this switch – it was clear and to the point. Another moment is when characters stand to sing the song for Utah. I loved this moment; it was clear that the Mug and Mench were doing a daily ritual that left Nick on the outside. The relationships between characters were clear because of how they moved around the stage.
These actors were given the assignment by Savage to attend an upper level language class for a language they did not speak. This was to help the actors understand what it was like to be in a space where they did not understand what was going on. As an audience member (and educator), I could see that this helped guide their processes on stage and I loved it. I saw Mug and Mench speaking and acting out their words when talking to their new classmate. I saw them finding ways to put emphasis on words to help with understanding. I was really impressed by this assignment and its results.
New Kid is theatre for young audiences, but it is also a great production for the whole family. It is strongly executed and performed, and at only 40 minutes with no intermission it is great for those with a short attention span. More than all of that, it gives us a chance to feel and maybe get a small understanding of what it feels like to feel on the outside for a brief moment. This is a wonderful (and free!) evening and activity for families; head to your local library, check out a book, and see a great show!
