Abuse survivors living in a group home would seem unlikely to inspire a comedy as sweet and touching and funny as Julie Marie Myatt’s The Rescued, but the Road Theatre Company’s latest World Premiere proves an utterly charming if still-a-bit-in-need-of-a polish gem.

(Major spoilers ahead.)

 Clues that Jason, Harold, Buster, Candice, Darrell, and Lola aren’t quite the abuse survivors you hear about on the news are sprinkled in from the get-go, though how soon you pick up on them will depend on how willing you are to see beyond Mary Jane Miller’s character-perfect costumes (Harold and Buster dressed like granddads, Candice rocking a curve-clinging pick shift) and see who they actually are.

Harold recalls to fellow old-timer Buster having been taken away from his mother early on (“I was the runt, you know.”) Buster may not know exactly who his father was, but it’s clear that Dad was a fighter and so is his son. (“It’s in my blood.”) And both old codgers have learned to fend for themselves despite what most of us take for granted. (“I’d never even heard of a pillow. A stroke on my head. Much less a bone.”)

In other words, Myatt’s six characters, while every bit as human in their feelings, hopes, wants, and dreams as you or I are different from us in a way that becomes obvious fairly early on as they chitchat, quarrel, and cavort in the grassy back yard that is Sarah B. Brown’s set, properties designer Megan Moran’s chew toys scattered about.

 Not only does The Rescued offer frequent laughs and occasional tears, it provides an insightful look at the long-term effects of abuse, ranging from bursts of rage to gratitude at having left it behind to a desire to escape and hide, and though the eyes through which we see said abuse may not be entirely like our own, the emotions they express are universal.

 What works less well is having two of the characters belong to a genus other than canus, and not just because lines like Candice’s “He used to try and chase me, but one quick swat on the nose, and he went running” are too easily overlooked (I’m guessing I’m not the only one whose head they whooshed over), but because inter-species romances (and there are two of them) run contrary to animal nature.

Emotions that crescendo into occasional barks or out-of-breath panting are a neat, non-scripted addition by ace director Marya Mazor, who ensures that the “people” (as Jason, Darrell, and the others refer to themselves) we see are as recognizably real as you and I.

 A deliberately diverse cast deliver all around delightful performances, from J.D. Hall’s warm and wise Harold to Leandro Cano’s great big mensch of a Spanish-accented Buster to Patrick Joseph Rieger’s testosterone-fueled dynamo of a Jason to Meeghan Holaway’s sexy seductress of a Candice to Kacie Rogers’ frightened waif of a Lola, with special snaps to Rieger’s guitar-accompanied rock vocals with Baby It’s You star Holaway and Motown The Musical-ready Rogers showing off their own splendid pipes.

 Most winning of all is L.A. newcomer Rahul Rai’s irresistible, irrepressible chatterbox of a Darrell, whose joie-de-vivre is as infectious as it is poignant given the “perfect row of fifteen little cigarette burn circles” he’s got hidden under his nerdy plaid shirt.

 Derrick McDaniel lights Brown’s set with radiant sunlight, with additional kudos due David B. Marling’s sound design (tracks by The Main Ingredient, Roberta Flack, and The Carpenters never overpower live vocals under Michelle Gillette’s expert musical direction) and Bjørn Johnson’s fight direction.

The Rescued is produced by Katie Witkowski, Amy Stoch, and stage manager Maurie Gonzalez. Susie Lever is assistant director and assistant stage manager.

Though too slight a play to equal Julie Marie Myatt’s previous Road hits John Is A Father and Birder or her magnificent The Happy Ones, The Rescued is never less than charming. It may need a couple of genus tweaks, but it had me in its paw me from start to finish.

The Road Theatre, NoHo Senior Arts Colony, 10747 Magnolia Blvd., North Hollywood.
www.RoadTheatre.org

–Steven Stanley
September 21, 2018
Photos: Brian M. Cole

Tags: Julie Marie Myatt, Los Angeles Theater Review, The Road Theatre Company