Salt Lake Acting Company’s (SLAC) “The Roommate” is the Utah premiere, and the New York Times calls it one of the “42 plays you must see across the US this fall.”
“The Roommate” is playing now through Oct. 26, and it’s riddled with good coffee and good conversation. Dee-Dee Darby-Duffin (Sharon) and Annette Wright (Robyn) are the leading ladies who guide the show. Written by playwright Jen Silverman, they describe the show as “a story about how we keep discovering who we are and what we need as we age and how vital and powerful and dangerous it is, in a good way, to listen to your instincts instead of listening to the voices that are telling us societally and culturally what we should be and how we should age.” Upon meeting each other, it’s apparent the difference between the two characters. Though they grow to understand each other and even become a new version of themselves.
“I think it’s a relationship play,” Wright said. “It’s really about relationships and about where we both are in life and how we add to each other’s lives. We come from different places. We have very different backgrounds, but somehow we strike this friendship.”
The characters Sharon and Robyn are almost from two different planets. Sharon is a recent empty-nester and naive about the world outside the bubble of small-town Iowa. Robyn is a con artist of sorts, running away from her past. Though both have their secret weapons that make this relationship work.
“You got me high, so now we’re friends.”
Darby-Duffin described the dynamic as a “rebirth.” “I think [Sharon] thought that she would find a friend and maybe someone to talk to,” Darby-Duffin added. “But she finds so much more than that. She finds a bit of herself that had been lost, or maybe she just didn’t know it was there.”
Darby-Duffin said she’s always played characters who are more grounded, but this time it was the opposite. This was also true for Wright. “Robyn’s a little bit rough around the edges. She’s lived in the Bronx, she’s lived all over,” Wright said. “She’s had sort of a wild life and been exposed to a lot of things. And so for me, that’s a little different, but I’m so enjoying her, because she is confident.” This is Wright’s first time on the SLAC stage, but for Darby-Duffin it was a return to familiarity. They had only just met at the beginning of the rehearsal process, but their chemistry on stage felt as though they had known each other their entire lives.
Both actresses explained the hard feat of a two-person show and learning the part within a month of rehearsals. “I know people think that, oh, it’s only two people in the show, so it should be easier,” Darby-Duffin said. “It’s actually tougher than I thought, and tougher than I think other people think that it is, but it’s so worth it.”
Throughout the process, they struggled at the beginning, finding the fun because they were so caught in learning the lines and technical aspects of the show. Though, Wright said she continued looking forward to the fun that was going to come. And it did.
We grow together
As an audience member, it was a treat to see how they responded to each other’s quirks and differences. It felt as though we were sitting in on a real conversation playing out right in front of us. My favorite moments were when they let the dead silence live long enough to leave a comedic effect in the air. It was natural and felt genuine. I’ve never seen a show that had this level of human understanding.
Audiences need to see this show. For a moment of fun and laughter, but most importantly, the experience of understanding female relationships. “I hope that women, no matter what age they are, will see a bit of themselves in it. I hope they will take really gritty, good things for yourself, and know that they can do those things,” Darby-Duffin said. “I hope that men will come and see it and see the beauty of female relationships and how we build friendships, and how it’s easy to do.”
This production of “The Roommate” will run now through Oct. 26. Find your tickets here.
