Silver Spring Stage has been a local institution for more than half a century, performing in an atmospheric basement blackbox in the Woodmoor Shopping Center in Four Corners, and its latest offering is Colman Domingo’s family drama Dot, running through December 15.

As the Shealy family gathers in West Philadelphia for another Christmas, oldest daughter Shelly has been struggling to take care of her aging mother Dotty (a sweetly moving Bridgett McCain), who is stricken with Alzheimer’s. Shelly’s younger siblings Donnie and Averie have their own difficulties too, and all the stress and absurdity and struggle coincide as Dot moves in and out of lucidity.

Despite the play’s impressive pedigree — premiered at the prestigious Humana Festival in Louisville in 2015, staged Off-Broadway at the Vineyard the following year — and the playwright’s evident personal connection to the material, I can’t escape feeling that the script needed further workshopping, particularly the first act, which leans very heavily on exposition. For most of the first act, whenever the characters aren’t lobbing information and shocking revelations at each other, they’re coming in already with heightened emotions about secondary plot points. And perhaps a character with dementia named “Dotty” and a loyal caregiver named “Fidel” is a bit too on the nose.

The first act particularly impacts the character of next-door neighbor Jackie — no knock against Pamela Northrup’s solid performance — whose dialogue is mainly serving up reactions to Shelly’s exposition (a virtual loop of “Really?” “Oh!” “And then what?” and “Noooo!”) before announcing, “I’m pregnant!” She then gets the ignominy of being all but forgotten in the second act before literally being picked up off the floor from behind the couch like an old coat. I can’t immediately recall a character so ill-served by a playwright, especially one with a primary background in acting.

As Shelly, Brianna Nobles has the unenviable task of playing a character so raw and burnt out that her choices make her nearly unlikeable. Day drinking, lying, constantly correcting, arguing with, or otherwise enfeebling her mother when she was confused or in a fog of forgetfulness. Nobles manages to find the human moments and pulls Shelly back from the abyss, which is no small task.

When middle child Donnie (an earnest Luke Hellyer) and husband Adam (an ebullient Mark Boisvert) sneak in after dark in mid-argument about the juice cleanse they ill-advisedly chose to start just before Christmas (please, any good queer knows the best time to start a juice cleanse is New Years Day!), I begin to wonder if Domingo is intentionally setting up his characters to fail.

After a long first act of info-dumping and yelling, I approached the second act with some trepidation. I don’t know if I would call the second act a Christmas miracle, but the arrivals of youngest daughter Averie (Jo Monsplaisir) and slightly illegal caregiver Fidel (James-Curtis Bowers) navigate us through the choppy waters and right the ship. Monsplaisir’s energy and vitality and Bowers’ grounded, empathetic performance provide much-needed spirit and human decency. I enjoy the irony that Averie, a minor internet celebrity, ends up being the most selfless character. Kudos are due to Bowers and dialect coach Maureen Roult for their accent work.

As the script starts finding its humanity, the tension between the characters becomes more rooted, the performances sharpen, Rikki Lacewell’s direction tightens up, and we can start connecting to these characters as they look past their own problems to repair the harm they do to each other, and the play ends up being an effective argument for the power of family and love in a time of crisis, and I must acknowledge Silver Spring Stage’s commitment to making space for BIPOC stories and artists.

Joey Olsen’s set design is quite impressive; Don Slater’s lighting and director Lacewell’s sound and costuming also create a warm, homey environment. I attended opening night, and I’m confident that issues with pace and cues will pick up over its run. It’s only playing for two weeks, and it’s worth your attention.

Running Time: Two hours and 15 minutes, with a 15-minute intermission.

Dot plays through December 15, 2024 (Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00 pm, and Saturdays and Sundays at 2:00 pm) at Silver Spring Stage, 10145 Colesville Road, Silver Spring, MD. Purchase tickets ($22–$25, with discounts for seniors and students) at the door or online. For more information, call (301) 593-6036, visit the website, or email [email protected].

COVID Safety: Masks are encouraged but not required.

Dot by Colman Domingo
Directed by Rikki Lacewell

CAST
Dotty: Bridgett McCain
Shelly: Brianna Nobles
Jackie: Pamela Northrup
Donnie: Luke Hellyer
Adam: Mark Boisvert
Averie: Jo Monplaisir
Fidel: James-Curtis Bowers