By Juan A. Ramirez, arts & entertainment columnist
Not many people would feel comfortable standing on a stage and directly challenging an audience to reconsider what they believe in without letting them off the hook. Luckily, Tyrone, the foul-mouthed star of âHand to God,â is a hand puppet with no such reservations.
Without ever batting a glued-on eye, he forces everyone around him to confront their inner demons in a SpeakEasy Stage production that opened earlier this month and stars a recent Northeastern graduate and two former teachers.
Originally produced Off-Broadway in 2011 before a Tony-nominated Broadway premiere in 2015, Robert Askinsâ play takes place in a Texan church youth group and tells the story of Jason, a young boy whose father recently died. After his mother, a church volunteer, asks him to perform in a puppet show, he falls victim to demonic possession when his hand puppet, Tyrone, takes an evil life of its own. It would appear, however, that Tyrone and Jasonâs minds are not that far apart.
âAll five of the characters in this play are coming from places of profound loneliness and sorrow. Theyâre all really broken people looking for connection and that fact alone makes for great pathos, but also great humor,â director David R. Gammons said. âSeeing people who are that desperate can be moving, but it can be absolutely hilarious. The lengths that people go to when theyâre desperate and the stakes are high, it can be hilarious.â
The cast features Northeastern 2016 alum Dario Ladani Sanchez as Timmy, a troublemaking teen, and Marianna Bassham as Margery, Jasonâs beleaguered mother. Aside from their work in the Boston theatre scene, Gammons and Bassham have both worked with Sanchez at Northeastern. Bassham taught him last fall and Gammons directed him in the âAlien vs. Predatorâ piece that took over Ryder Hall in April.
âThere was potential for awkwardness but I think having that personal relationship with Marianna beforehand actually made it a little bit easier to shake out,â Sanchez said of playing opposite his former teacher, with whom his character begins a relationship. âBecause there was that inherent awkwardness in the scene, there was less expectation around becoming so comfortable so quickly, and it actually became easier to get comfortable.â
The relationship he speaks of is one of many points of contention within the brazenly irreverent production, one which constantly matches comedy and tragedy, sex and hatred and right and wrong to hilarious effect.
âWhile it certainly satirizes religion, itâs not mean-spirited,â Gammons said. âYes, itâs an absurd and over-the-top play. And yes, it asks a lot of deep questions about faith, religion, right and wrong and good and evil. It doesnât make a mockery of religion, which makes it accessible.â
Tyroneâs doesnât let his misguided goal of helping Jason gain confidence stop him from joyfully destroying everyone elseâs lives, profanely calling out charactersâ insecurities, doubts and secrets.
âWhat is the formula for comedy? Pain equals comedy?â Bassham asked. âWatching somebody go through something awful can be funny and if weâre identifying with it, all the better. Itâs so liberating playing somebody whose behavior in response to their unhappiness is completely inappropriate and outrageous.â
Though the characters have their core beliefs undoubtedly shaken and Tyrone rampages on against his Godly nemesis, Bassham considers the work to be more an exploration of how we view and use religion.
âThe playwright had been a preacher and comes from a religious upbringing and is now kind of working it out in response to that,â she said. âI wouldnât say itâs just anti-religion but it asks these questions about good and evil and the roles they play for regular people on a day-to-day basis.â
âHand to Godâ is in performance at the Calderwood Pavilion at the Boston Center for the Arts through Feb. 4.
Photo courtesy Glenn Perry Photography