By Victoria L. Dammer
Las Vegas. The worst place to live if you have a gambling problem. And if you have dementia, well, it doesn’t make a hill of beans where you live.
So begins the comic-drama world premiere of The Drop Off, written by award-winning playwright James Anthony Tyler and directed by Delicia Turner Sonnenberg. Allain (Chantal Jean-Pierre) is the gambling-addicted daughter of Delphina (Joyce Sylvester), a seasoned citizen lost in another world of her own at Deer Lakes Assisted Living in Vegas.
Allain has no choice but to put her mother in assisted living; she’s gambled away her home, her relationship with her son, and caring for her mom is no longer an option. Allain has lost her soul, her money, and her ability to tell right from wrong. That’s addiction.
In her new home, Delphina’s dementia agitates her, and she wants to go back to Allain’s home. “I am not staying here,” Delphina proclaims. She’s scared, confused, and defiant. Allain is far from sharing the details of her messed-up life. Delphina wouldn’t understand what had happened to her daughter anyway. Dementia is a sad, life-crippling disease for both the patient and the family.
Allain has trouble coping with her mother’s illness, enhanced by her own anxieties, and Jean-Pierre gives a stunning performance as a woman out on a ledge. Mimi (Harmony Harris), Delphina’s warmhearted caretaker, works hard to calm both mother and daughter as they transition to Deer Lakes. Delphina adjusts; Allain needs more than a loving caretaker to change her life.
Sylvester delivers her lines like a natural comedian, and the audience immediately endears to her. She is befriended by a resident named Crystal (Niambi), who repeats the same stories. Much to Delphina’s delight, Crystal is the friend who will make her transition to living in a senior citizen’s home that much easier.
The Drop Off is a story of transition and addiction, with a compassionate look at the devastating effects of dementia, albeit with a comical side of humanity. The Drop Off offers a glimpse of what so many families may face with elderly parents.
The Drop Off at New Jersey Repertory Company through November 23rd. Written by James Anthony Tyler and directed by Delicia Turner Sonnenberg. Starring Harmony Harris, Chantal Jean-Pierre, Joyce Sylvester, and Niambi. Scenic design by Jessica Parks; costume design by Nicole Jescinth Smith; lighting design by Jill Nagel; sound design by Nick Simone; stage management by Kristin Pfeifer; production assistant Ian Duhart.
THROUGH NOVE 23 – New Jersey Rep
