The Counter, a moving two-hander about loneliness, is the current offering at TheaterWorks. The intimate setting is ideal for Meghan Kennedy’s play, and this is the kind of production we’ve come to expect from the Hartford theatre company. And it is presented with its customary polish under Artistic Director Rob Ruggiero.
Set in a small diner in upstate New York, The Counter charts the relationship between owner Katie (Justis Bolding) and her regular morning customer, Paul (a wonderful Tim Dekay). Katie has moved to town after a mysterious break-up two years prior that she doesn’t want to discuss. Paul is a retired firefighter who masks his jovial blue collar façade with issues of his own. After many “coffee talks” over several mornings, Paul feels comfortable enough to ask Katie to expand their friendship and really talk, including “tough talk” if necessary. When Katie agrees, the two, who seemed to have nothing in common, come to realize nothing could be further from the truth.
Although for the running time of The Counter (75 minutes, no intermission), Katie and Paul are the central characters, there is a third character who makes an appearance in this two-hander. Peggy (Erika Rolfsrud) arrives late into the action for one brief scene. She’s plays an old friend of Paul’s and her scene, while short, is key and acts as a catalyst for everything that follows. The acting is uniformly good throughout, especially by Dekay who imbues Paul’s inner turmoil with enormous pathos. Dekay was a standout in TheaterWorks’ potent “Fever Dreams” last season, playing a far different role from this carefully measured performance.
The setting, by Tijana Bjelajac, is perfectly appointed right down to the half-filled ketchup bottles and bottomless coffee mugs. The diner’s main picture window reflects images that recall Edward Hopper’s haunting paintings about lonely people in public places. Matthew Richards’ lighting is used expressively for the scene changes as well as for that effective pin spot in the play’s closing moments.
A few caveats. It does seem odd that the entire café is run by one person (not even a short order cook?), and though it covers several days, the actors make no costume changes. I appreciate not slowing down the pace, but even the addition of a tee shirt or apron would suggest a basic passage of time. In all, The Counter isn’t a play for the ages and is modest in scope with familiar ambitions. But it’s a satisfying work, well-acted and directed, and exactly as long as it needs to be.
The Counter continues at TheaterWorks, 233 Pearl Street, Hartford, Connecticut, where it has been extended now through March 22. For further information or ticket reservations, call the theatre box office at: 860.527.7838 or visit: www.twhartford.org.
Tom Holehan is one of the founders of the Connecticut Critics Circle, a frequent contributor to WPKN Radio’s “State of the Arts” program and the Stratford Crier, and is former Artistic Director of Stratford’s Square One Theatre Company. He welcomes comments at: tholehan@yahoo.com. His reviews and other theatre information can be found on the Connecticut Critics Circle website: www.ctcritics.org.
