Kendall Feaver’s emotionally-charged play is not for the faint of heart – it is a gut punch that leaves you both breathless, and reliving the scenes for days.
'The Almighty Sometimes' centres around a young woman named Anna, who has been living most of her life heavily medicated, for an unnamed mental health condition. Convinced that the drugs have stunted her creativity, Anna stops taking her pills, to the horror of her taut single mother, Renee.
While there are only two other characters – Anna’s new boyfriend and her psychiatrist – it is the relationship between mother and child that anchors the play. Have the best decisions been made, what defines mental illness, and how much care is too much? These questions and more are deftly and compassionately explored.
But 'The Almighty Sometimes' is also – thankfully – a comedy. There are parts which are laugh-out-loud funny. These scenes are needed to lighten the emotional tension, and also give the characters depth.
The actors are astonishing. Melissa Kahraman as Anna is an absolute stand-out. It never seems like she’s acting, or remembering rehearsed lines, she quite simply is Anna. Roles depicting mental illness can come across as simplistic, one dimensional or caricatures, but this is never the case with Kahraman. She plays Anna as a complex individual with nuance, hope and flaws.
A wonderful contrast to Anna is her boyfriend Oliver. Vulnerable where Anna is tough, shy where she is outrageous, appreciative of familial care where she is suffocated, Oliver is introduced to Anna’s world of wonder, before being overwhelmed. His journey and decisions diverge from Renee’s in a powerful demonstration of love and limits. Will Bartolo, in his debut with the company, is one to watch.
This is an important play, examining important and difficult themes. Go and see it, but be prepared to be haunted by it for days to come.
