Last Friday, the Brandeis theater season started off with a bang-or should I say, a boom? With the premiere performance of Jackie Theoharis' '14 senior project and two subsequent performances the same weekend, Brandeisians got a taste of what they can expect from our performing arts community this year. Presented by the Theater Arts department, Theoharis chose the production Tick, Tick... BOOM!, which she was able to reproduce through a special copyright arrangement with Music Theatre International.

Tick, Tick... BOOM! was staged in Spingold Theater Center's Laurie Theater, a popular venue for performances that are just in between the smaller, more intimate Masters of Fine Arts program productions, and the larger, all-out performances put on by Brandeis Theater Company and the Undergraduate Theater Collective. This three-actor musical was, however, quite different from the dance and theater productions I've seen in Laurie-the entirety of the one-act-long Tick, Tick...BOOM! was accompanied by a live four-piece band: a keyboard, drum set, electric guitar and electric bass added a rock vibe to the show. 

The packed premiere performance opened up to a barren stage, save for a black upright piano and matching stool, on which the main character, Jon, played by Jared Walsh, a local actor, was sitting. Lights slowly brightening, Jon rose from his seated position behind the piano, where he was hunched over, frustrated. Jon's 30th birthday was approaching fast, and as a musical playwright and composer whose work had reached a standstill, he was anxious that his life was starting to pass him by. 

Jon's bright and charming long-time girlfriend, Susan, played by Theoharis, who also officially produced the show, and his up-and-coming businessman best friend Michael, played by Ben Oehlkers '12, rounded out the three-person cast. The musical follows Jon and Susan through the struggles of partnership as Susan-a dancer whose career prospects are progressing much faster than Jon's-longs for a home in New England and a quiet family life away from their current cramped New York City apartment. All the while, Michael, a force of reason and example of determination and young self-made money, tries to encourage Jon to keep his options open by applying for a job in the business world. 

Throughout the production, Jon's stress mounts until he reaches a personal and professional breaking point-and the music really starts to heat up. 

Perhaps my favorite moment of the production was actually the pinnacle of a fight between Jon and Susan; Susan was ready to settle down, and Jon was still absorbed in his efforts to write the next big hit musical. With just the two on the stage, they burst into a musical number called "Therapy," yelling at each other and riding out the most emotionally violent flairs of their love through song. The song was obviously well rehearsed; the two were extremely expressive with their movements, and maintained a high quality of vocal performance, even at a loud, aggressive volume. Throughout the song, they weren't much more than about 10 feet apart from each other-a spatial intimacy that added to the high-pressure mood of the music. 

Overall, each of the actors performed very well, moving within the personalities of their characters and acting out of personal empathy for the problems they were faced with in each role. Theoharis and Oehlkers, who each played, for brief moments, a slew of supporting roles-Jon's parents, cast members in Jon's musical and even customers at a grocery store-showcased a wide range of emotion and compassion in their performances. Their quick clothing changes, all casual attire, except Michael's signature startch suit, were just as speedy and precise as their character transformations. Walsh, whose character was largely emotionally stagnant and not as dynamic as the others, still did an incredible job performing in a way that conveyed the angst Jon felt. 

By the end of the performance, Jon's musical dreams became a reality: his first show has been performed, and his musical idol attended, along with all his closest friends and family. The closing scene shows the three actors together, with renewed chemistry, huddled around a cake and singing "Happy Birthday" to Jon. 

The quiet light from the birthday candle was the brightest point in the theater, and reflected the way that something small-say, a production with a cast of only three-can turn into something big, bright and memorable.
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