Claire and Mira have been together for twenty-some years, and the relationship is beginning to fray around the edges a bit. Veterinarian Claire comes home each night, puts the briefcase down, and pushes away housewife Mira who is trying desperately to rekindle the flames of romance and overcome “bed death.” If you’ve been married for 20 years or so, you probably know the drill. Meanwhile, their 18-year-old son Peter, obsessed with food, sex and motorcycles, is desperate to lose his virginity to his new girlfriend Paige, who also manages to get him wondering about his biological father.

Do you think the basic outline sounds a bit like last year’s hit movie, “The Kids are All Right?” Let’s be honest: if you’ve seen the movie you won’t be able to help yourself thinking that way once the play starts, which makes the opening few minutes a bit awkward as you try to match up what you’re seeing on stage to what you saw in the movie. It’s an unfair comparison, because in spite of the similarities the stories and characters are different. Just stop comparing, and let “The Gene Pool” stand on its own – which it’s quite capable of doing.

(The two works appear to be unrelated. Playwright Christi Stewart-Brown wrote the play nearly 20 years ago, and Lisa Cholodenko wrote the first draft of the film in 2004, based in part on her own life, she said here.)

Mira (Amelia Meckler), Peter (Kyle Johnson), and Claire (Colleen Carey) in The Gene Pool (Photo by Michael Brunk / nwlens.com)

Written by Christi Stewart-Brown, who is a four-time Helen Hayes Award nominee, and capably directed and produced by Roy Arauz, (assisted by Teresa Widner)” The Gene Pool “presents a family facing the common inflection point of a child becoming an adult at the same time that the parents are facing the reality of the choices they’ve made as adults themselves. Choice of partners and careers often come to the forefront when children begin to leave the nest, and those conflicts get played out here in a realistic, funny and entertaining way.

The play could not work unless you believe that Mira and Claire are a real couple and not just playing one, and Colleen Carey as Claire and Amelia Meckler as Mira both bring the characters to life in a way that convinces us. You feel Mira’s pain when she discovers why Claire has been so distant lately, and you understand Claire’s unfilled needs that created the conflict.

Kyle Johnson owns the role of their son, Peter. You can nearly feel the hormones bouncing around as he confronts his budding sexuality, and ultimately his need to identify and come face to face with his sperm donor father Harold, played by Bruce Erickson. After all, this is a story of self-discovery and crossroads, so the story wouldn’t be complete without father and son dealing with the choice that Harold made 18 years earlier.

Peter’s girlfriend Paige (Zandi Carlson) is the role that stirs the pot. This story is primarily about Peter and his moms, so we don’t get a chance to learn much about Paige. However, Carlson sets the right tone in a key role, and rides a mean motorcycle.

“The Gene Pool” is a great reminder that we’re all just trying to find our way. Be supportive of those you love, be forgiving of the inevitable missteps they’ll make, and celebrate being human.

Notes:

– This is Nate Dewey’s debut as a lighting designer and he can take some pride in a job well done. The motorcycle stage is key to the story, and it works out because the lighting is well executed.

– It’s admirable that the moms are so cool with Peter’s looming loss of his virginity that they rush out to buy condoms and wrap them up as a gift, but it doesn’t ring quite true to me. This is the fault of the story and not the actors, yet even though the issue comes with some truly funny moments and great lines (Mira: “Poor guy. Peter’s peter petered out and performed poorly.”), I could never quite shake my feeling that it wouldn’t quite happen that way. Aren’t parents generally conflicted in this situation, even if ultimately supportive? Perhaps the point is that the moms are extremely devoted to their son and will do anything for his happiness?

– A key scene between Mira and Claire is made a bit distracting by having Peter and Paige silently interacting with each other on the motorcycle stage. We care only about the moms at this moment as they talk to each other, so why give the other characters something to do?

– This is a great neighborhood for an evening out. Park and have dinner nearby, see the play, and then have drinks somewhere afterwards, all within a 3-block radius.

Show Details

WHEN
June 3-19, 2011. Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00 pm; Thursday, June 9 at 8:00 pm; Sunday, June 19 at 2:00 pm

WHERE

Annex Theatre, 1100 East Pike Street, 2nd floor, Seattle.

TICKETS

General $15 advance/$18 at the door; Senior (60+) and Under 25: $12 advance/$15 at the door. RUSH: $10 rush tickets will be sold 5 minutes prior to showtime, depending on availability. Cash/check only. Buy advance tickets here.

More info here.