Word for Word's 25th Anniversary Show: ☼ ☼ ☼ ☼

If you are having trouble believing that Word for Word is 25 years old, just open the Special Program. Did we all look this young once? The Word for Worders did, anyway, and a few of the current crop of actors look like they weren't even born when the company began.

The 25th Anniversary show at Z Space features "Deep Kiss" by Tobias Wolfe and "Victory Lap" by George Saunders. Both are excellent and feature the same cast, with different directors: Joel Mullennix for "Deep Kiss" and Delia MacDougall for "Victory Lap."

Of the two, we liked...both. In "Deep Kiss," Adam Elder (as Joe) has a wonderfully expressive face, as he tries to make sense out of a life that got trapped in a High School memory. There is certainly a lot of kissing and it makes us happy that both Elder and Blythe de Oliveira Foster (as Mary Claude) appear to enjoy it. The story is funny and sad and everything in between.

Let us editorialize and say: Joe. You blew it.

In "Victory Lap," Isabel Langen plays the teenaged Alison Pope. Langen is perfect as a young girl who thinks the world around her is peaches and cream.

 Meanwhile, her neighbor Kyle Boot (Alexander Pannullo), while living only next door, is experiencing existential dread. His parents have him on the world's tightest leash.



The story is Kyle's. He has a pivotal decision to make when The Guy turns up. Played with broad humor by Mohammed Shehata, The Guy has his troubles too. One of them may, or may not, be named Kyle.

We loved Susan Harloe as Kyle's mom (who insists on calling Kyle "My Beloved Only") in "Victory" and Joe's mom in "Kiss." Paul Finccchiaro is his usual hard-ass self and Molly Benson played several roles to perfection in both plays.

We always exit a Word for Word show feeling good about the world. The company consistently creates shows that are different than anyone else's, blending literature and theater into a hybrid that appears seamless. It's a lot of work.

Congratulations, everyone. Twenty-five years. Wow.

RATINGS ☼  ☼  ☼  ☼

The San Francisco Theater Blog Awards Division grants Four Stars to Word for Word's 25th Anniversary Show: "Deep Kiss" gets four and "Victory Lap" gets four more, which ought to make eight, but let's just call it Four Stars. It's very nice to see them on the larger stage upstairs at Z Space. We never miss a Word for Word show, and you shouldn't either.

"Word for Word's 25th Anniversary Show"

Stories by Tobias Wolfe and George Saunders

Z Space

450 Florida Street, San Francisco

Through September 2

$20-$50