Lydia

The Mark Taper Forum in Downtown LA is known for it's ground-breaking theatrical productions. It's the primary reason my family has been season ticket holders for many years. So it was with delight that we experienced the Taper's production of Lydia this past Saturday night. Set in El Paso, Texas in the 1970's, Lydia is the complex story of an immigrant family wrestling with shifting societal realities around them and secrets long buried within. Written by Octavio Solis and first produced in Denver in 2008, I believe this is the play's first production in Los Angeles, with much of the original cast intact. It is, in all respects, a gripping piece of work.

Perhaps most extraordinary is the stunning performance of Onahoua Rodriguez in the pivotal role of Ceci. The play opens to a darkened stage on which Ceci, dressed in a nightgown, delivers a haunting, poetic monologue that leads the audience to believe we are perhaps witnessing a dream. However, when the lights come up on the Flores' home, Ceci collapses onto a mattress in the living room, dissolving into an entirely different creature racked with perpetual convulsions and an inability to communicate in the "normal" ways. The transformation is breathtaking and it's at this moment we begin to realize that Ceci is actually a brain-damaged accident victim. As the story unfolds, we gradually learn that Ceci and her condition form the center of the Flores family and the secrets they keep.

Throughout the play, Ceci transitions between her external, damaged persona and the lyrical, lucid girl within with astonishing ease and power. Throughout the evening, my fascination with her ability to play both roles so seamlessly never ebbed. It was a truly unique and inspired performance.

The status quo is toppled with the arrival of Lydia, a young immigrant employed by Ceci's mother as a live-in housekeeper and played by Stephanie Beatriz. As the play unfolds, we learn that Ceci is far more cognizant of the world around her than she appears to be and Lydia can, indeed, communicate with her in ways that nobody seems to understand. While the entire seven-member cast is excellent, it is Onahoua's Ceci who captivates. After more than two hours with only a brief intermission, I found myself wishing there was more to this rich story as the lights faded on the final scene.

While this production is now closed, I'm certain others will spring up soon. I urge you to take one in when they do.