IN A WORD at the Cherry Lane Theater - How do Parents Cope with Having a Missing Child

The most painful & life changing event for any parent is to lose a child or for a child to go missing.  Lauren Yee (b Amer 1996) is a young & gifted playwright.   In one word I would describe her play as astounding.   Lee's One ACT 3 & only 3 actors play conveys the agony, guilt, resentment & horror of losing one's child.  Fiona (Tyne Rafaeli) is the mother of Trystan whom she & her husband Guy (Jose Perez) adopted at age two having struggled to conceive.  Perez was very compelling as the wearisome husband & indulgent father.  The play begins with a frenetic Fiona searching for something inside her apartment.  Guy returns & asks if she's ready to go to dinner.    Fiona keeps Guy at bay as she has continued to confine herself from engaging with Guy or life since Trystan's disappearance.  The clever construct of the play engrosses us in the couples' lives before Trystan went missing at 8, the calamitous aftermath & its mystery. The skillful playwright reveals how each dealt with their son & how each is faring.  Trystan (Justin Mark; in multiple roles) disappears at age 8, the day school photos were taken.  Right under your nose your child can disappear, a haunting refrain that mounts the tension & intrigue.  Trystan was a difficult, precocious child somewhere on the autistic spectrum.  Fiona frustrations with her son's tantrums & inappropriate behavior are understandable.  She's a teacher & was allowed to keep him in her classroom until it no longer was feasible.  Regardless, Fiona opposes Trystan's placement into a special classroom.  Picture day shit hits the fan.  Fiona is finally forced to take a leave of absence & Trystan home after he soiled himself.  On the drive she stops at a gas station, not for fuel but for a brief respite.  She hears the click of the car but he's gone  when she reaches the car.  Justin Mark plays the detective assigned the case.  He informs Fiona as he hands her the files, the case is now closed.  Mark also portrays the school principal, Guy's best friend & a random man.  Fiona argues with the detective, the school, her husband & son.  She is stuck in a painful purgatory driven by guilt; unable to move forward. "Tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow creeps in this petty pace from day to day." (WS)  This is a powerful & moving play, well crafted & cunningly staged.  IN A WORD has been awarded the Will Glickman Playwright Award.   Ms Yee has worked under commission for Lincoln Center & Goodman Theaters.   I recommend seeing IN A WORD and suggest keeping an eye on this brilliant young playwright, Lauren Yee.