NY Fringe Festival Review: Viral

VIRAL
Presented by: Gideon Productions, LLC
Writer: Mac Rogers
Director: Jordana Williams

Summary:
There’s a fine line between love and hate, and I found it with Viral.

There is a lot not to like in Mac Rogers’ play about a group of sick whackos who want to film a woman’s suicide because they get aroused sexually by watching a person’s last minutes.

Colin (Kent Meister) and his girlfriend Geena (Rebecca Comtois) have set up a website with veiled information about assisting someone who wants to commit suicide. After months of waiting, they get a hit from Meredith (a really terrific Amy Lynn Stewart) and she agrees to come to the couple’s ratty apartment to die on camera (while they watch by remote video while having sex). Geena’s brother, Jarvis (Matthew Trumbull), who lives with the couple and who shares their sexual inclination, can score the pills that will put her to sleep quickly and painlessly.

Colin has a vision for an elegant film and hopes sleazy film industry acquaintance Snow (Jonathan Pereira) will distribute the film as a service to others with the same death watching fetish can enjoy it. Snuff films are available, of course, but this is different, the three insist. “Those people are animals!” they agree, differentiating.

What Colin didn’t envision is that Meredith and Geena would hit it off and that the woman who has given up on life would give the woman he abuses and degrades new strength to take control of her life. Meanwhile, Jarvis, who goes off to masturbate as often as others take smoking breaks, is turned on by a living Meredith practicing taking her pills.

The play enraged me for its total lack of respect for life and decency. The threesome talks about an “exit strategy” for the body while Meredith sits in the room. Colin cautions Geena about becoming too friendly with Meredith because he doesn’t want her to give her “any reason to stay alive.” When Meredith has a moment of hesitation about going through with it, Colin physically blocks her exit because she represents only a film opportunity and money to him.

In fact, no one ever asks meredith why she has come to the point of feeling life isn’t worth living. In a moving monologue, Meredith does share some of her despair, and Geena defends her right to choose not to commit suicide, but no one ever offers any hope or help.

I wanted to run up there and hug Meredith and tell her she’s precious and so is her life and that no matter how many times she had failed, there always is hope in Christ. I wanted to slap Geena and tell her to stand up for herself and get away from the abusive boyfriend who was turning her brain to jelly. I wanted to tell Colin that he was a sick wimp and I wanted to tell Jarvis that if he used his hands for something more constructive, for once, like a job, he could stop depending on his sister to support him.

And then I realized what a good play this is despite my hatred of its disgusting subject matter. These characters had become like real people to me, and isn’t that a mark of good theater? So I loved the writer's ability in spite of myself.

Highlights:
•Stewart's full-ranging interpretation of the character

Lowlights:
•Really not fun subject matter

Christians might also like to know:
Besides all of the stuff mentioned above…
• Lord’s name taken in vain

Fringe Tassels Awarded: 3.0
VENUE #16: The SoHo Playhouse
The run has ended

--Lauren Yarger