Who hasn’t been tripped up by the slip of a finger while texting with family or been infuriated with ducking autocorrect? Who hasn’t had their message misunderstood because tone and attitude can’t be conveyed via modern communication methods? Who hasn’t mistakenly wished for the death of their grandfather in a text chain with a sibling and then found themselves exploring options for doing so?
That’s the crux of Matt Schatz’s The Burdens, a darkly comic two-hander now running at The 222 in Healdsburg through June 1.
Jane (Lizzie Calogero) and Mordy (Brady Morales-Woolery) are siblings who, like most families these days, communicate almost exclusively via text, email, and voicemail. Jane is a high-powered attorney living in New Jersey. Mordy is a musician trying to make it in Hollywood but working as a pharmacist’s assistant. While separated by distance, they are joined by their mutual loathing of their abusive grandfather ‘Zad Zad’.
During one text session, Jane wonders if their grandfather really appreciates what his daughter, their mother, does for him. Mordy responds that he hopes he does, except that he hits the letter “i” after “d” instead of “o”. The problem is, Jane quickly agrees. And she thinks they should do something about it. What follows is a series of texts, emails, and voicemails as they debate, plan, and eventually attempt to execute (literally) their plan…