Dark comedy on ENMU playbill

PORTALES - Eastern New Mexico University's Theatre and Digital Filmmaking Department is hoping some dark comedy can be a little relatable to their audiences this weekend.

The play, "Gruesome Playground Injuries" by playwright Rajiv Joseph, will be performed in the University Theatre Center at 7 p.m. nightly, Thursday through Saturday and at 2 p.m. on Sunday.

Director Ricky Quintana, an instructor at the ENMU Theater Department, said: "It's a dark comedy. We do have laughter in it. It's a story about two people who want to be together but their lives always intertwine at the wrong time. It gives us insight into the human condition and how we navigate relationships."

Mason Warner, a junior and theater major at ENMU, plays the part of Doug in this two-person play. Alex Sena, a senior and theater major at ENMU, plays the other character, Kayleen.

Warner said members of the audience should come to the play "with fresh eyes. The relationship between Doug and Kayleen is very different from a traditional love interest story. It takes some twists and turns that are very unexpected."

"In this play," Sena said, "you see the relationship between Doug and Kayleen throughout the years. Are they going to get together or are they not going to get together? It really plays with your emotions."

"I think that the show really shows," Warner said, "that caring about somebody so much that you would do anything for them, despite the consequences, can be beneficial to the relationship, but not necessarily to the individuals."

Quintana said part of the value of a play is: "We are living in a fast-paced world and a play like this allows us to slow down and reflect on our lives."

He said the fact that college-aged people are performing the play helps them to relate to it.

Sena said she agrees. "We come to college and begin our adult life. We don't want to miss out on anything and (this play) kind of asks that question."

In a news release Quintana states: "Gruesome Playground Injuries" tells a different kind of love story through sharp humor and even sharper insights into the human condition. At the heart of 'Gruesome Playground Injuries,' Rajiv Joseph asks us to examine why we hurt ourselves to gain someone else's love or affection. Injuries can chart an experience, a relationship and a lifetime. Working on this play has been healing in a cathartic way, and I hope it will resonate with audiences."

He told The News Joseph is of Indian ancestry. "The play is interesting. I think people will be surprised. It is based on him (Joseph) listening to his friend speak about his own injuries in personal relationships."

Tickets can be purchased at the UTC Box Office and are $10 for adult regular admission, with senior and active military discounted to $7.