‘Tribes,’ at the Unicorn Theatre, aims at your heart and your head

The Unicorn Theatre’s affecting production of Nina Raine’s caustically funny and poignant “Tribes” delivers what all critics (and presumably most theatergoers) crave — a play that is utterly unique.

Indeed, Raine employs no recognizable templates in her family drama, although there were moments on opening night when I flashed on John Osborne’s “Look Back in Anger.” Raine, who is British, has gift for writing cerebral, cutting dialogue, of which there is plenty in this show. But she also demonstrates a refined sensitivity when depicting quiet, intimate moments.

Her play’s singularity stems from its subject (deafness) and its themes (the power of language). It’s a love story — a young man named Billy who was born deaf and a young woman named Sylvia who was born to deaf parents and is now losing her hearing meet and fall in love — but it’s more than that.

Billy is the only deaf member of a middle-class family of educated egomaniacs. His parents, Christopher and Beth, are writers. His sister Ruth is an aspiring opera singer. His brother Daniel, also a writer, seeks recognition as an academic. And then there’s Billy, the only member of the clan without any self-aggrandizing ambitions, who relies on lip-reading as he tries to keep up with the raucous dinner-table debates and the intricacies of family politics.

His life changes when he meets Sylvia, who introduces him to the deaf community and teaches him sign language. He becomes so proficient at this new way of communication that he lands a job as an interpreter for the courts and becomes the only one of Christopher and Beth’s young-adult children to actually cut the umbilical cord and leave home.

The Unicorn production, directed by Theodore Swetz, features beautifully realized performances by David Fritts and Jan Rogge, whose timing, as usual is superb. Fritts is fun to watch as the verbally abusive intellectual who criticizes people and literature with equal ferocity while indulging himself by learning Chinese from an online course. Rogge strikes an impressive balance between compassion and defensiveness as a woman who seeks success as a novelist but who nonetheless loves her children deeply.

Jake Walker impressively handles the challenging role of Daniel, who falls into rapid decline after Billy leaves home. He may be schizophrenic — he hears voices in his head — and a stammer that he once conquered returns. The love between Daniel and Billy is palpable. As Ruth, Green delivers most of the character’s lines with carefully calibrated deadpan humor while capturing her desperation to prove herself — at anything.

What’s most remarkable about this cast is the presence of Paul Ososki as Billy and Lisa Lehnen as Sylvia. Both are making their professional debuts, and despite limited experience hold their own with their seasoned fellow players. Ososki, a charismatic performer capable of telling nuance, is deaf. Lehnen, who performs with impressive clarity, is a professional sign-language interpreter.

They play the poignant love story well and make the characters easy to root for. Billy’s new-found independence makes him realize how maddening it has been living in a family who never bothered to learn sign language — Christopher believes such a concession would make Billy part of a ghettoized special-needs minority. Ultimately, Billy blows his top and announces to his parents and siblings that he will no longer speak to them except by signing. With Sylvia translating, he unloads a lifetime of frustration. Ososki is riveting.

Lehnen in some ways has a more difficult role. As Sylvia deals with the reality of diminishing hearing, Lehnen makes the character’s conflicted feelings of fear, anger and envy crystal clear.

Much of the signed dialogue is translated for viewers with projected surtitles. The physical production is generally impressive, although Gary Mosby’s set doesn’t allow for over-stuffed bookshelves, which you would certainly expect from this family.

The timing seemed a slightly off on opening night. Some of the humor didn’t pack the punch it should have. And the moments of pathos were a bit too muted.

Even so, in many ways this is a remarkable production. The play will make you consider the limitations of language and the ways we communicate — and it captures the pain of isolation vividly

This story was originally published June 7, 2015 at 2:43 PM with the headline "‘Tribes,’ at the Unicorn Theatre, aims at your heart and your head."