Orphans
My first thoughts during intermission at Orphans , the play by Lyle Kessler, were, “I really like this! It’s fun and efficient; it’s funny and intriguingly pulpy.” I continued to like the play as the second act played out and as I left the theatre. However, as I was walking home, I started wondering if, despite the fact that I was certain I liked it, the play was actually good. I’m not so certain about that. Set in North Philadelphia, this three person play focuses on Treat (Ben Foster), his brother Phillip (Tom Sturridge) and the stranger Harold (Alec Baldwin). Treat and Phillip (both young adults) live on their own, having been orphaned at a young age. Treat, whom Phillip describes as having always been a delinquent, “provides” for himself and Phillip through thievery. Phillip has some (unspecified) mental challenges and is a shut in. They live in squalor but they entertain each other with grand fantasies. Enter Harold, a well-to-do businessman Treat meets at a bar. Drunk ...