theater - first night review: human troubles @ the new marigny theatre

A ward to the wise: The cast of Human Troubles at The New Marigny Theatre

​First Night Review: Human Troubles @ The New Marigny Theatre
Review by Todd Perley

Set in the fictional (???) hospital called “Orleans Parish Psych Ward for Poor Mutherfuckers,” (and I’d like to place a bid on the neon sign telling us this), Mariana Santiago’s new, one-act play follows the...ahem...“recovery” of four patients treated by a staff of caregivers who all suspiciously resemble each other.

Dora (Liz Johnston-Dupre) has been committed for a three-day evaluation after a suicide attempt. She is smart, but depressed. Her intelligence is not recognized because depressed people are clearly stupid in the eyes of this cut-rate facility. She just wants to get this 72 hours behind her, but becomes embroiled in the neuroses of her fellow inmates.

It’s difficult to call this musical comedy a satire since its examination of America’s lackluster mental health care seems awfully close to how many of these facilities are actually run. We immediately sympathize with Dora as she voices her distaste for the facility and her new comrades, and her displeasure is only more ‘proof’ of her diagnosis of crazy.

Through absurdly short and dismissive one-on-one sessions with the shrink, neglect from the nurse (“If they want me to care about you, they’re gonna have to pay me $2 an hour more”), and pointless art therapy classes, none of our inmates does much recovering.

The lack of character arcs is in itself a damning commentary—people leave very much the way they came in. Except perhaps for Dora, who may or may not survive the ordeal due to death threats from the Jesus freak, appropriately named Christian.

Santiago’s play does not indulge in the hubris to propose a solution to the dilemma; rather, she holds a mirror to the problem, and then laughs at it. Laughter is, after all, the best medicine.

- Human Troubles plays at New Marigny Theatre January 2nd–5th - click here for more info and ticketing
​- READ OUR INTERVIEW WITH MARIANA SANTIAGO
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