Paulanne Simmons
The Road Ahead Leads to Surprises
The Road Ahead
Inspired by The Twilight Zone, Barbara Kahn has written and directed The Road Ahead, a play that takes a young, gay couple on a journey of self-discovery. With a certain mysterious woman as the Guide (Steph Van Vlack) they are able to set their marriage and their lives back on the right track. Jazmine (Kristen Gabrielle) and Sasha (Jenna Levere) are on a road trip they hope will help them heal the rifts in their marriage when they find themselves hopelessly lost. Gertie (Sasha’s whimsical name for their GPS) starts making weird comments and then dies out altogether. Before they can figure out what to do, the Guide appears and tells them they are going to read the stories of their lives. Sasha’s grandmother, Bubby (Van Vlack), it turns out, was an Ashkenazi Jew who was in love with another woman before marrying her husband. They came to America and built a life for themselves. But Bubby never forgot her first love. Jazmine’s grandmother was a slave named Sary (Sania Hyatt), who fell in love with her underground railroad guide, Lydia (Lisa Monde). Again, this relationship ends in separation, and Sary ends up marrying a good man, but not the love of her life. Finally Jazmine and Sasha remember how they first met at a theatre years ago. Having seen how their grandmothers were never able to stay with those they loved helps them understand how fortunate they are. The mood of the play, whether it’s light or poignant, is enhanced by Alicia Svigais’s original music. The music helps bring us from the real world to the world of dreams. The Road Ahead is a sweet story with a generous message. Kahn could have made it a bit stronger if she had been more specific about the nature of Jazmine and Sasha’s marital problems and related those problems to the lessons they learned through their Guide. We live in cynical times. It’s a good thing we still have plays like The Road Ahead to remind us of what’s really important in life. |
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