LARCHMONT BUZZ - SUNDAY NIGHT AT JANE’S REVIEW

Sunday Night at Jane's

Sunday Night at Jane’s is an original show with a clever concept starring an ensemble of five characters, including the playwright. It takes place on a surprisingly complex set, with costumes and clever special effects. And besides having a real message, it has moments that are raucously funny. (I found myself laughing so hard in one place I was afraid I’d have to leave—and the stranger next to me was similarly struggling.)

The show brings together four exes for a dinner party that isn’t, since the hostess, Jane, doesn’t show up. The exes, from high school, college and beyond, are left to glean insights about Jane from their predecessors and successors. As such, Sunday Night at Jane’s paints a portrait of romantic life in the 2020s. Spoiler alert: It’s gender fluid. Besides feeling completely modern, it’s totally in touch with the eternal truths of relationships.

There is much to ponder in the show. One character says, “Childhood crushes are placeholders we use to construct who we are.” This feels true; after all, childhood is the foundation for adulthood, by which time we are supposed to have learned what we really need in a partner.

Under the direction of Joe Garrity, the actors are uniformly terrific. Writer Emily Powers is Jane, seen in clever flashbacks with each of her former lovers. There’s Sam (Mariana Aroxa), Ben (Roy Gutierrez), Carey (Bryanna Smith) and Craig (David Nordstrand), who brings his disgruntled wife Heather (Audrey Wooster). The interactions are fabulous and the lessons worth learning for all concerned.