Joseph, an Obie Award-winning playwright and a finalist for the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, uses the metaphor of origami to explore how people deal with the life experiences that leave marks on our human hearts—both the kind that hurt as well as those that give us hope. People start as blank sheets of paper and with each life experience, a new fold occurs, and then another and another. With each fold, we begin to transform into something beyond what any of us may have imagined possible.
In Animals Out of Paper, the lives of three human beings, each isolated in their own way, are brought together through their connection to the art of origami. We meet Ilana, a world-famous origami artist who has become a recluse—creatively and emotionally numb after a series of losses in her life. Andy, a socially awkward math teacher and an avid fan of Ilana, has tracked her down to request a favor: Would she mentor a student of his? Suresh, the teenage student, is an origami prodigy who has been struggling with the loss of his mother after she was killed by a hit-and-run driver. Each has become disconnected from life, and sometimes withdrawing from the world feels like the easiest choice to protect oneself from pain. Connecting with others takes courage and exposes the possibility of being hurt. As this nuanced and genuinely human story unfolds, each character is faced with multiple opportunities to open up to or close off from each other. The choices each make are humorously and movingly rendered in this captivating production directed by Julie Beckman.
This production also offers a unique chance for audiences to experience how different choices can shape the characters through its use of double-casting. There is a Purple cast and an Orange cast, and according to the producers, each set of actors bring the play to life in distinctly different yet poignantly parallel ways. In the Purple cast (which I had the pleasure of seeing), Joyce Thi Brew is wonderful as Ilana. She manages to capture the tough shell that Ilana is hiding behind, while bringing out the humor of her messy life, and revealing the vulnerability of a woman who does not want to be hurt again. Laurence Hughes as Andy is delightfully awkward and his adoration of Ilana is so earnestly sincere that it’s easy to root for him. And Tanish Telukunta brings an easy-going confidence with surprising depth to his portrayal of Suresh. The story takes some interesting turns that are well-supported by the chemistry that these actors have created with each other. I look forward to seeing the show a second time with the Orange cast featuring Duygu Erdogan Monson as Ilana, Daniel Christensen as Andy, and Akul Sood as Suresh.
Seattle audiences also have the singular opportunity of seeing Joseph’s companion play to Animals Out of Paper. Written in 2021, Letters of Suresh follows Suresh’s continued journey in life. What happens to him is revealed through a series of letters spanning years and oceans, as four individuals share and discover their desire for connection and the possibility of second chances.
