TO THINE OWN SELF BE TRUE
REVIEW: THE ABSOLUTE BRIGHTNESS OF LEONARD PELKEY
BY RYAN M. LUEVANO
L.A. welcomes The Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey written by and starring James Lecesne, the writer of the Academy Award-winning film Trevor. This critically acclaimed off-Broadway hit is a fictional mystery based on his young adult novel, Absolute Brightness, surrounding the disappearance and death of Leonard Pelkey, a 14-year-old boy with a zest for life and flamboyant personality. As the play develops, the audience learns about the missing Leonard from his friends and family and how he affected them. This play sheds light on the powerful bonds of the human spirit that are available if we simply take the time to build them in our lives. There should be more plays like this—it’s an imaginative and thoughtful work that provokes humanity in the best kind of way.
James Lecesne as Chuck. Photo Credit: Matthew Murphy.
A one-man show is no easy task—how can a single person sustain a drama, much less a profound whodunit like this one? Yet from the moment Mr. Lecesne enters the stage as Chuck DeSantis, a small New Jersey detective, and with his first line, “Right off I know that feeling, you know that feeling? That feeling that tells you something ain’t right.” the audience is captivated. The entire opening evokes a film noir mystery reminiscent of Detective Mark McPherson in Otto Preminger’s 1944 noir film classic Laura. Of course Lecesne doesn’t stop there as he goes on to take the roles of seven other characters in 
the play including: the owner of a hair salon, a teenage girl, a old watch shopkeeper, and a teenage video gamer among others. Lecesne seamlessly goes from one character to the next, sometimes taking a 360-spin to signify characters having conversations with each other—he’s a master chameleon that brings these people to life down to the arthritis in their ageing bones.
The Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey has a fantastic visual team as the scenic design by Jo Winiarski, lighting design by Matt Richards, projection design by Aaron Rhyne, original animation and photography by Matthew Sandager, and costumes by Paul Marlow combine to create a minimalist stimulating visual palette evocative of a Pixar film. The direction by Tony Speciale is focused and exact, bringing to light all the central moments in the story while playing on the strengths of Lecesne’s conversational style.
James Lecesne. Photo Credit: Matthew Murphy.
In the case of The Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey solving the mystery is not the be-all, end-all: once we solve the crime, the story continues and the central theme is revealed. This story’s about overcoming the fear to be ourselves, to be the best person we can be and always strive to 
share ourselves with the world. Leonard was true to his final breath, the boy who wore a red beret, make-up on his face and multi-colored flip-flops glued to his sneakers—and maybe it was his relentless honesty got him into trouble. The Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey is a theater experience not to be missed—Lecesne is a master storyteller that will undoubtedly brighten your day. This show plays through Sunday, January 31, 2016 at the Kirk Douglas Theatre. Tickets priced from $25 are available at absolutebrightnessplay.com or by calling (213) 972-4488.
