Gruesome Playground Injuries

 Gruesome Playground Injuries
Lucille Lortel Theatre
November 26, 2025

Photo courtesy of Gruesome Playground Injuries

Rajiv Joseph’s Gruesome Playground Injuries had its Off-Broadway premiere in 2011.  It is now experiencing another Off-Broadway production at the Lucille Lortel Theatre, featuring two awe-inspiring actors who deliver enthralling performances.  Director Neil Pepe beautifully paces this non-sequential plot line, giving the audience a chance to connect the events and process the action.  Playwright Rajiv Joseph skillfully weaves touching scenes of caring and connection between his two characters, generating questions and intrigue.  This causes the audience to fully invest and hang onto every word. 

Doug (played by Nicholas Braun) first meets Kayleen (played by Kara Young) in the school nurse’s office.   They are eight years old.  Kayleen is there because she threw up.  Doug, in full Evil Knevel mode, rode his bicycle off the roof of the school.  His head is bloody and bandaged.  Kayleen asks to see his wound, then she asks to touch it.  We meet them over and over in the nurse’s office and various hospital emergency rooms through their adolescence, teen years, and adult lives.  Doug sprains his ankle at the school dance, loses his eye in a fireworks accident, and gets struck by lightning.  He asks Kayleen to touch his wound every time.  Since their first meeting, Doug has believed that she has the power to heal him.  Unfortunately, Doug is unable to reach inside Kayleen and heal the pain she carries.  

Kara Young & Nicholas Braun
Photo courtesy of Gruesome Playground Injuries

Nicholas Braun is daring, gullible, and winsome as Doug.  He tells Kayleen that his mother says he is
accident prone.  Kayleen says he’s just stupid for doing crazy things.  Mr. Braun exudes the mettle and gumption that makes it fully believable that Doug would courageously and recklessly jump into activities that cause him severe injury.  He and Kara Young develop an innate bond.  From the minute they lay eyes on one another in the first scene, when they are eight years old, they are viscerally connected.  As they get older, Kayleen continually pushes Doug away.  Ms. Young plays these moments with a compelling subtext and clear back story.  Kayleen’s dialogue offers glimpses into her turmoil.  The emotional weight is obvious.  The complex details of her past experiences are intrinsically understood.  This is the strength of Ms. Young’s performance.  While her physicality in each scene is lively and energetic, she persistently carries emotional baggage, which leers its ugly head at unexpected times.

Gruesome Playground Injuries is playing at the Lucille Lortel Theatre through December 28.  Don’t miss it!  

Domenick Danza

Archduke

 Archduke
Roundabout at Laura Pels
Harold and Miriam Steinberg Center for Theatre
November 1, 2025

Photo courtesy of Roundabout Theatre Company

In his new play, Archduke, Rajiv Joseph takes a microscopic look at a crucial moment in world history.  The action is intellectually engaging and emotionally riveting.  His characters are all driven by strong, definitive urgency.  Their choice seems simple, yet they are constantly circling with questions.  Director Darko Tresnjak allows the rhythm in Mr. Joseph’s writing to soar, revealing the conflict and building the tension.  The characters continually poke at one another, giving each cast member equal opportunity to establish themselves while illuminating the laughs.  

The year is 1914.  Dragutin “Apis” Dimitrijevic, better known as The Captain (played by Patrick Page), is recruiting young men for a deadly mission.  He needs six men who desire meaning in their lives.  He only finds three: Gavrilo (played by Jake Berne), Nedeljko (played by Jason Sanchez), and Trifko (played by Adrien Rolet).  They are sent to him by a doctor who has diagnosed them with consumption.  They are lungers and have very little time left to live.  They are easily manipulated into The Captain’s murderous plan, including taking cyanide when the deed is done.  They are to board a train to Sarajevo, then kill the Archduke Franz Ferdianand and his wife, Duchess of Hohenberg.  That is, if they do not stop off for a sandwich along the way. 

Jake Berne, Adrien Rolet, & Jason Sanchez
Rehearsal photo courtesy of Roundabout Theatre Company

Jake Berne portrays Gavrilo’s meekness and intellectual curiosity the moment he enters at the top of the show.  In a short time, Jason Sanchez arrives as Nedeljko, who is brawnier and rougher.  They test and challenge one another, both knowing what is at stake if they falter.  They are equally matched, and it is through this persistent confrontation that the audience understands them.  They develop a palpable bond that is put to yet another test when Trifko shows up.  Adrien Rolet is militant and demanding in this role.  He is questioned to his breaking point by Gavrilo and Nedeljko.  These three actors are captivating.  They make bold choices that reveal their characters’ grit and gusto, which thrusts the action forward. 

Patrick Page takes command as The Captain in scene two.  He manipulates the three young men, playing on their weakness.  He fabricates a story about who caused their consumption, then identifies this as the enemy.  He tells tall tales of his bravery in the fight against that enemy.  Mr. Page works every tactic as the three recruits question every detail of his plan, compete for his attention, and defend their integrity. 

The Full Cast
Rehearsal photo courtesy of Roundabout Theatre Company

Kristine Nielson is mysterious and witty as Sladjana, The Captain’s cook.  She feeds the young men to get them on The Captain’s side, then disciplines them for their juvenile behavior.  As Mr. Page uses masculine force to show power, Ms. Neilson is like a cat, silently making her way into the minds of the recruits.  She is sly and has an agenda of her own.  She uses her signature comic timing to effectively embody this role.

The strong message of the play is to take action that gives your life meaning.  Since the recruits are all dying of consumption, they easily fall for that ruse.  It is not until they are on the train to Sarajevo to assassinate the Archduke, and inevitably start World War I, that they ask themselves another question that gives them pause.  Mr. Joseph examines this historic moment by simply asking an alternative question. 

Archduke is playing at Roundabout Theatre Company’s Laura Pels Theatre through December 21.  It is a brilliant production.  It will make you think, but more importantly, it will make you question. 

Domenick Danza

Dakar 2000

 Dakar 2000
Manhattan Theatre Club
New York City Center Stage I
March 6, 2025 

Photo courtesy of Manhattan Theatre Club

The Manhattan Theatre Club production of Dakar 2000 is a one hour and twenty-minute roller coaster ride of truth and lies.  Playwright Rajiv Joseph has written an impeccable two-hander.  His characters quickly intertwine and are unable to separate.  The events of their three-day connection changes the course of more than just their lives, and leave one of them with more questions than answers.

When Boubs, a Peace Corp volunteer (played by Abubakr Ali), crashes his jeep on the road to a small village outside Dakar, he knows he is in trouble.  He was transporting supplies without the proper authorization.  He is taken to the main office to meet Dina (played by Mia Barron).  She is concerned about his well-being, yet continually grills him on the details.  She is charmed by his naivete and impressed by his ability to lie his way out of a bad situation.  To help prevent his being sent back home, she gives him a file of paperwork to fill out with a list signatures and fingerprints to gather.  This will make it look like she requisitioned the transportation of supplies prior to his accident.  He gratefully takes the file and gets right to work.  He meets up with her two days later.  After they share personal stories, she asks him to meet her at a hotel in Dakar on New Years Eve, with the implication of a more intimate encounter.  At the hotel, Dina sets Boubs up on a mission with a questionable outcome. 

Abubakr Ali as Boubs
Photo courtesy of Manhattan Theatre Club

Abubakr Ali is charismatic, gullible, and suave as Boubs.  He opens the show alone on stage.  It is present day.  He tells a few stories, then admits most of them are lies.  This sets the tone for the rest of the story.  His character is confident and grounded.  When he then takes the narrative back to Dakar in the year 2000, he is a fast-talking twenty-five year old, immature and silly.  This transition is smooth and impressive.  The audience is fully on his side, even though, since he already told us, we know he lies.  

Dina Barron & Abubakr Ali
Photo courtesy of Manhattan  Theatre Club

Mia Barron is sharp and slick as Dina.  During her initial interrogation with Boubs, she carefully listens and observes.  She glibly weaves her way into Boubs’ trust.  The audience is very aware that she is also lying, but doesn’t know how much or why.  We are more aware of the dangers than he is, yet we are equally manipulated into full involvement.  Ms. Barrow is skillfully in control of the action.  She is the only one who knows where it will lead, and we stay connected to her with the hope of finding out. 

Director May Adrales paces this piece so the rhythms in the dialogue drive the intent.  The audience is fully engaged from the moment it starts, and becomes riveted as the action unfolds.  The theme and culminating message are strongly related to present day political occurrences. 

Dakar 2000 is playing at Manhattan Theatre Club’s New York City Center Stage I through March 23.  You must see it! 

Domenick Danza

Describe the Night

Describe the Night

Atlantic Theater Company

Linda Gross Theater

November 24, 2017

Photo courtesy of Atlantic Theater Company

The New York premier of Rajiv Joseph’s play Describe the Night is presently in previews at Atlantic Theater Company.  It explores the phenomenon of how perception can become reality, and how facts can easily be replaced by fabrications that become acceptable truths.  Mr. Joseph’s writing is luminous and engaging.  The action of the play spans the years from 1920 through 2010.  It follows the events connected by Isaac Babel, considered one of Russia’s greatest writers of his time, and Nicolai Yezhov, who was closely associated with Stalin and became the chief of the Soviet Police from 1936-38.  Their fabricated truths are linked to the plane crash in 2010 that killed the President, First Lady, and virtually every top member of Poland’s government and military.

Danny Burstein & Zach Grenier
Photo courtesy of Atlantic Theater Company

In 1920 Isaac Babel (played by Danny Burstein) meets Nicolai Yezhov (played by Zach Grenier).  They are both Soviet Soldiers.  Isaac is writing in his journal, describing the night, and teaches Nikolai how easy it is to tell a believable lie.  Fast forward to the plane crash of 2010, where Mariya, a journalist (played by Nadia Bowers), urgently needs to rent a car to flee the Soviet Police investigation of the events leading up to the crash.  Feliks, the car rental agent (played by Stephen Stocking), gives her his truck to escape unnoticed.  He passes on to her an old journal that was given to him by one of the victims of the plane crash before she died.  This is the journal belonging to Isaac Babel.  The play goes back and forth in time and follows the hand to hand journey of this journal, covered in truth, lies, perceptions, and falsities, from its start in 1920 until it gets into the hands of Vova (played by Max Gordon Moore), the man from St. Petersburg, who is on his way to be one of the most powerful men in the world.

Max Gordon Moore & Nadia Bowers
Photo courtesy of Atlantic Theater Company

The cast is superb in bringing clarity and life to the brilliant writing of Mr. Joseph’s play.  Every scene is driven by characters who are rich and real.  Danny Burstein and Zach Grenier juxtapose their characters with traits, physicality, and vocal rhythms that give visceral vigor to every scene they share.  Tina Benko is charming and heartbreaking as Yevgenia, the wife of Nicholai Yezhov.  The chemistry between her and Mr. Burstein is tangible.  Their connection is honest and genuine.  Nadia Bowers is powerful as Mariya.  She shows her range by also playing Mrs. Petrovna.  Max Gordon Moore’s character of Vova grows from an unassuming, eager government employee to a manipulative and aggressive official.

Danny Burstein, Zach Grenier, & Tina Benko
Photo courtesy of Atlantic Theater Company

Playwright Rajiv Joseph and director Giovanna Sardelli conquer a huge subject matter that is tightly interwoven with clear themes that are relative to every audience member.  The Atlantic Theater Company production of Describe the Night is running at the Linda Gross Theater through December 24.  The play has many layers that will keep you thinking.  See it with someone with whom you can have a deep, detailed discussion, or be prepared to do as I did and engage the person next to you during the two intermissions.   

Domenick Danza

Guards at the Taj

Guards at the Taj

Atlantic Theater Company

Linda Gross Theater

May 24, 2015

Photo courtesy of Atlantic Theater Company

Can there be only one most beautiful thing in the world?  Can the creation of beauty become extinct?  What is beauty?  These are some of the thematic questions addressed by playwright Rajiv Joseph in Guards at the Taj now playing at Atlantic Theater Company.  This play will make you laugh, and cringe… and ponder beauty.

Humayun and Babur, two of the Emperor’s guards at the Taj Mahal in 1648, are among the first to see the newly completed mausoleum at first light.  They behold this MOST beautiful creation, a monument never to be exceeded in beauty.  They then journey to a blood drenched dungeon, where they face their darkest nightmare and come out with different appreciations of the truth.  Omar Metwally (Humayun) and Arian Moayed (Babur) each develops a unique and realistic character.  Together they create a relatable bond of friendship and adventure.

Arian Moayed, Rajiv Joseph, & Omar Metwally
at the Taj Mahal (Agra, India)
Photo courtesy of Atlantic Theater Company

The script by Rajiv Joseph, well known for his BengalTiger at the Baghdad Zoo (a 2010 finalist for the Pulitzer Prize), spans a broad range of topic as it focuses in on its main theme (the essence and creation of beauty) through the heartfelt comradery of the two characters.  It is profoundly, yet simply, directed by Amy Morton. 

The set is a brutal structure that weighs heavily on the space.  Ingeniously designed by Timothy R. Mackabee, it is realistic, powerful, and alive.  The moments of beauty the script refers to are illuminated by David Weiner’s amazing lighting.  The brightness contrasts the heaviness of the set to create spectacular moments that stand out in the characters’ perspectives.

Guards at the Taj runs through June 28 at Atlantic Theater Company’s Linda Gross Theater.  Put your thinking cap on and ponder the beauty of this piece of theatre.

Domenick Danza