David (Babak Tafti) and Tally (Jodi Balfour) experience a unique first date in Lowcountry (photo by Ahron R. Foster)
LOWCOUNTRY
Atlantic Theater Company, Linda Gross Theater
336 West 20th St. between Eighth & Ninth Aves.
Tuesday – Sunday through July 13, $56.50-$111.50
866-811-4111
atlantictheater.org
Abby Rosebrock’s Lowcountry begins with a lengthy, laborious phone call but ends with a sudden, unexpected explosion. In between, the narrative builds with a pair of unpredictable characters playing a unique game of cat and mouse as Rosebrock and director Jo Bonney slowly lay out breadcrumbs, teasing the audience with key details that emerge at a confounding pace.
It’s 2024, and David (Babak Tafti), a thirtysomething adoptee born in a foreign country, is preparing for what appears to be his first date in many moons. He lives in Moncks Corner, a small town near Charleston, South Carolina, and works at a Waffle House as he tries to put his life back together. “I need to be there for my child,” he declares while talking over the phone to his sponsor, Paul (Keith Kupferer). David is boiling pasta and readying his plain, style-less studio apartment — consisting of a cramped kitchen, a bathroom, a coffee table on an oval rug, an armchair, a bookcase, and unmatched lamps. A brown curtain hangs precariously to hide his bed but it keeps falling down. Paul owns the place and has agreed to let David stay there as long as he follows the rules of his program, which is centered around David not having women in his apartment, not meeting them in parks, and being honest about why he cannot have sex with them.
David, who does not have to wear a GPS cuff anymore, has been divorced for about a year and is fighting for joint custody of his son, Jacob, who is almost eight; Paul, a grandfather, is helping David with his court case. It’s been months since David has seen or spoken with Jacob, instead finding comfort in listening over and over again to voice messages Jacob left him. The protracted, drawn-out phone conversation — which supplies lots of info but keeps the audience at an unfortunate distance — concludes with Paul telling David, “Now when I say text me, you text me the truth” and David responding, “I don’t lie anymore.” Yet nearly everything he’s said to Paul is a lie, a trait that will continue during his date.
He is making dinner for Tally (Jodi Balfour), a woman he met on Tinder who lives in Los Angeles but is visiting her father in the home where she grew up. Shortly after she enters, part of the curtain falls down again, causing David embarrassment. He has trouble fixing it, so she insists she give it a go. “I have a curtain like that!” she proclaims proudly. David is hesitant to let her try, but she ultimately does it without a problem.
Jodi Balfour makes an exciting off-Broadway debut in Lowcountry at the Atlantic (photo by Ahron R. Foster)
It’s an extremely effective scene, depicting David’s intense nervousness and overwhelming worries, matching his ordinary brown and tan unappealing wardrobe, while showing Tally to be a spontaneous, enthusiastic free spirit, enhanced by her low-cut, sexy blue skirt and platform heels. (The costumes are by Sarah Laux and set by Arnulfo Maldonado.) Over spaghetti and wine, they discuss Shakespeare, warlords, porn, confessing, and their deepest fears. “I’m very self-righteous but I have no follow-through,” Tally admits. David asks, “You think it makes me a sociopath that I never cry?”
Every time the subject turns to David’s addiction, he goes out of his way to change the topic, despite her intent curiosity. Meanwhile, she has various secrets of her own that she is not about to share, at least not initially. As the evening continues, the bed seems to be creeping closer and closer.
Rosebrock (Blue Ridge, Different Animals) and Tony nominee Bonney (Cost of Living, Father Comes Home from the Wars) walk that dangerous fine line between manipulation and employing sharp techniques as they release critical plot details little by little, which quickly goes from tantalizing to frustrating. At several points I found myself thinking, “Oh, just tell us already!”
Tafti (Small Mouth Sounds, Othello) manages to make the audience feel some compassion for David, even after the major revelations that explain why he is where he is. It’s a challenging role, and Tafti is up to it. But the show belongs to Balfour; in her off-Broadway debut, the South African actress, best known for Bomb Girls, For All Mankind, and Ted Lasso, she is mesmerizing as Tally, fully embodying this self-demeaning, complex woman who is more than she seems. Balfour commands the audience’s attention, from how she sits in a chair to how she takes off her shoes and drinks wine. It’s a bravura performance that saves the play from getting too caught up in itself, breathing exciting life into the story.
Despite some narrative issues, the ninety-minute Lowcountry ends up being a compelling work with a memorable conclusion that will leave audiences surprised by their reaction to it.
[Mark Rifkin is a Brooklyn-born, Manhattan-based writer and editor; you can follow him on Substack here.]