ELEVATOR RETURNS TO L.A.

REVIEW: ELEVATOR

BY RYAN LUÉVANO

Award-winning filmmaker and playwright Michael Leoni’s hit play Elevator returns to L.A. for a limited run at The Coast Playhouse. The premise is simple: seven strangers are trapped in an elevator. However, what ensues is a stimulating experience that will keep you on the edge of your seat. In both presentation and writing. Elevator bridges the elements of film and theatre into a piece that strikes a fine blend of both worlds.

William Stanford Davis, and Kristina St. Peter. Photo Credit: Michele Young.

Writer Michael Leoni also acts as the director, and although having the writer also serve as the director is risky, in this case the risk is worth the reward. Leoni’s direction of Elevator is contemporary, meticulous and wholly entertaining—he knows how to garner the best results from his cast and the theatrical elements at hand. The set design that spills into the theatre’s lobby establishes the tone for the piece before show begins. David Goldstein’s elevator set (and lighting) is more just an elevator—it’s intricate, and modern—featuring colored backlit panels which create dynamic vignettes throughout.

What makes Elevator unique is the added perspective of hearing what the characters are thinking throughout the play. This technique is fully exploited in the opening sequence as all the characters are introduced almost exclusively through their inner thoughts, making for an engaging opening. Other rare effects are the integration of slow motion, and time-lapsed film techniques with live actors on stage—these are some of the remarkable moments in the show that boldly take us in to pseudo-cinematic territory. Additionally, Leoni’s dramatic pacing of this play is spot on—a delicate balance of tension and release.

(l-r): Deborah Vancelette, Devon Werkheiser, Karsen Rigby, David Abed, William Stanford Davis, Kristina St. Peter and Erica Katzin. Photo Credit: Michele Young.

On the surface you have seven strangers—a CEO woman, a businessman, an office temp, the “hot girl”, a musician, a maintenance man, and a goth girl—struggling to get out of an elevator, though at the heart of the play there are two underlining messages. The first asks audiences to look beyond stereotypes before judging people, for as this play proves: people are not what they seem. Second, the play makes us look inward to realize the facades that we may be putting on daily that either reinforce a stereotype or conceal our true identity. These notions, although at times overly moralizing, do surface in the course of the play providing lots of merit to the cursory ‘trapped in an elevator’ plot device.

Whether intentional or not, the acting ensemble consists of film/television actors who often surpass two-dimensional dramatizations offering colorful portrayals of their characters—while collectively proving that the whole is indeed greater than the sum of its parts. Deborah Vancelette (CEO Woman) is one of the first members introduced—her jaded and bitter objectivity permeates in everything she does, always sassy and hilarious. David Abed (Business Man) is the jerk that everyone loves to hate; the epitome of a larger than life douche-bag, he’s a laugh riot. Devon Werkheiser (Musician) and Erica Katzin (Temp) have the opportunity to showcase their vocal talents stopping the show with their stellar musical performances. Karsen Rigby (Hot Girl) remains tethered to her simple character, never letting down for a second as the hottest girl in the room.

(l-r): Devon Werkheiser, Deborah Vancelette, David Abed, Karsen Rigby, Kristina St. Peter, William Stanford Davis, and Erica Katzin. Photo Credit: Michele Young.

It’s no surprise that this show was as hit at the 2010 Hollywood Fringe Festival. Much like its thesis, Elevator defies expectations with a solid evening of theater. Elevator runs from March 25 through December 31, 2017 at The Coast Playhouse in West Hollywood. For more information or to purchase tickets visit plays411.com/elevator or call (323) 960-7787.