Ayano by Chris Collins

Kazumi Aihara and Carlo Mancasola - Photos by Jenny Graham

By Joe Straw

My partner and I spoke about this production quite a bit comprising hours of discussions. Her perspective, an all-together different assessment was valid, while I had seen it from a completely different angle. Our assessments were not even in the same realm. What are we to make of this?

Black Bough Production presents the World Premiere of Ayano written by Chris Collins and directed by Kiff Scholl at The Other Space in Hollywood through August 7, 2022.

Ayano (Kazumi Aihara) has had little success as an actor.  She is a Japanese transplant. She works as a waitress to make ends meet and all she has to show for it is a cramped and messy Hollywood apartment she shares with her unemployed and abusive husband, Charlie (Carlo Mancasola) an Afghanistan veteran who was wounded in that war.

Ayano is also in debt to her eyeballs.

Still, despite her problems, her dreams are right around the corner.  

Tom (Gabriel Pranter) visiting, in a pre-celebratory birthday visit, speaks to his brother Charlie about his relationship with his wife Ayano and how he is not too enamored with her.  Charlie, sipping sake, says his past troubled relationship of abuse, alcohol, and extra-marital affairs are now behind him. Charlie has spent $500.00 on a birthday gift but Tom tells him she is not worth it.  He tells Charlie to take it back. 

The one constant in Charlie’s life is his rosary beads given to him by his mother for protection. But, throughout, he is never seen in meditation or prayer. Although he is not now gainfully employed, there is a rumor that his old job is moving to Las Vegas. So Charlie is essentially relying on the practical word without prayer and/or divine intervention. For him it may be a recipe for disaster.     

In the meantime, the celebration continues, among the effluvium of brotherly bodies, and in a sloppy apartment Tom offers Charlie a few 100-dollar bills to make up for the rest of the rent.  They go off and to buy Ayano a birthday cake because today is her birthday and are going to pick up a friend from the military Carl (John-Peter Cruz).  He is the man who saved Charlie’s life in Afghanistan.  

Bara Kim and Kazumi Aihara

Julie (Bara Kim) a Chinese American woman and convivial friend praises Ayano about her acting skills and beauty for reasons only known to her own being. Perhaps it’s to raise their spirits, as they are both actors.  But as sincere as she may be, her undertones suggest she is looking out for her own best interest.

Julie’s boyfriend is Tom, Charlie’s brother, and they wait for the boys to come back to celebrate. But, there’s trouble brewing. Ayano confesses that she has maxed out her husband’s credit card to pay for a show she produced with an outside friend Peter (Glenn Ratcliffe) but the contract he had with her was not a co-production deal but a loan that needed to be paid back. It was a reprehensible deal taking advantage of an immigrant without a complete grasp of the English language on a contract.

(Most actors never read the fine print to anything.)

Now Ayano has been trying to pay Peter back and started making payments on the credit card but because her husband Charlie is no longer working and things have gotten really rough.

Hiro Matsunga and Kazumi Aihara

With these thoughts in her mind, Ayano sees her dead father (Hiro Matsunaga) visiting her as she falls into a trance or severe daydream.  He is rebuking her for not doing the right thing, staying in Japan, and taking care of things in order to pursue a frivolous thespian dream.

Ayano tells Julie that he died a few months earlier and she did not have the resources to go to Japan for his farewell.

And just when things can’t get any worse Peter comes knocking at her door looking for his Hollywood ending.

Chris Collins, the playwright, takes us into the lives of the characters with deep character flaws and differing goals in life. We see the dark side of every character in this play, characters that circumambulate their adversary without communicating exactly what they want until it is too late. Lust, jealousy, adultery, and crimes of passion are only a few components to this play that steers itself into the sleazy underbelly of self-interest. This play cries out for even a small scene between Peter and Charlie so the ending becomes much more dramatic. There are some winning moments in the play and in retrospect, having lengthy discussion after viewing is a hallmark of an accomplished play.  

One hopes by the second week actors start using what works for them and settling in on the roles, but there were problems, not anything that can’t be resolved, but problems under the guidance of Kiff Scholl’s direction. Portions of the film Shane are used as a backdrop in this production.  We get the idea that maybe this film moved Ayano to move to the United States but Ayano pay little regard to this and other Japanese films. Love plays an important part in this play, it makes the characters do bad things, but the characters don’t move seamlessly to heir objectives. The through line is not clear and one can’t get a grasp of what the director was trying to convey.  Scholl was responsible of the scenic design.

Kazumi Aihara (Ayano) presented another persona during the curtain call, which surprised me. Gone was the façade of Ayano and standing before me was a person that was completely different, one that was pleasant, and someone who could have filled the role of Ayano with no problems.  However, there were problems with this performance starting with the opening audition scene.   First and foremost, her dialogue was lost to the first row of seats in this small theatre. Ayano is a woman who wants her career, wants to keep her marriage, and does everything in her power to keep the first, but somehow manages to sabotage the second. Ayano’s relationship with her father must be stronger. The heliotropic effect of waking into the light can’t be treated as an everyday occurrence. What is she conveying when she comes out of her trance speaking Japanese?

John-Peter Cruz (Carl) presents a fascinating character.  Decidedly in the moment even when he is alone on the couch with Ayano deflecting her subtle advances. He soothes the dramatic edges and helps others when he is asked. He is remarkable the moment he enters the apartment to the moment he leaves.

Bara Kim (Julie) seems to be the Ayano’s best friend later she turns on her, working to secure a better world for herself. Julie plays many sides of the fence hoping for the best outcome. Removing the dress scene did not work in that it questions her motivations and her relationship to her boyfriend and her other love affair.   

Carlo Mancasola is Ayano’s husband Charlie. Their relationship is lost and it has gotten worse since he lost his job. He has no faith in his wife and listens to his brother when trying to figure out what to do about their marital relationship. He has to figure out what he wants and how he’s going to get there. And then, he needs to build the moments that lead him into committing a heinous crime. Love is a strong component for this character.  He can’t be bad throughout. Loving her would be the better choice so the end becomes that much more dramatic. People do odd and even dangerous things in the name of love. Still, there is some very good work here.

Hiro Matsunga (father) does some excellent work but even a ghostly figure has an objective, and that wasn’t very clear in the play.  What does he want from his daughter? Is he doing enough to get what he wants?  Headstrong in his ways he must find the humanity in the father and daughter relationship, and that relationship must be strong. He’s telling her something, warning her, sheltering her, or beckoning her into the afterlife, one doesn’t know.

Tom, played by Gabriel Pranter has his Iago moments. But, to what end?  One really didn’t get a sense of this character, his makeup, his long hair and beard, unkempt, or his job.  Why was he placing a wedge between his brother and his wife? The moments between him and his brother need clarification and the conflict needs to be clearer.

Glenn Ratcliffe has his moments as Peter.  This is a tough character because he comes off as sleazy throughout with his opprobrious behavior.  He says it’s not about the money but he has a hard time telling her what it is about.  There must be other ways to project love to give life to this unsympathetic character. At one point he turns his back and cries.  If he really loved Ayano he would find a way to show her that he really cared. Ratcliffe’s Scottish heritage had his accent stronger in the second part of the play.  One would suggest using it, or making it stronger throughout the play.

Other members of the crew are as follows:

Shon Leblanc – Costume Design

Azra king-Abadi – Lighting Design

Bill Froggatt – Sound Design

Christopher Jerabek – Projection Design

Philip Sokoloff – Publicity

Angelica Diaz Estevez – Production Stage Manager

Run! And take someone who thinks about the other side.

THE OTHER SPACE @ THE ACTORS COMPANY

916-A N. FORMOSA AVE.

WEST HOLLYWOOD, CA 90046