(Written by Intern, Sean Barry)
Theater and the art of performing are some of the best ways to express oneself and present inner thoughts. This is the main thesis statement behind the new dramatic comedy, Ghostlight. Despite what it may seem, audiences of all kinds, not just veterans of the stage, will find themselves engrossed in the story of an everyman getting a role in a show, whilst trying to navigate his domestic issues. The cast, led by a trio of performances from real life family members, conveys all the proper emotions for each passing scene. Kelly O’Sullivan’s complex script masterfully weaves through contrasting feelings from tragedy to absurdity without ever sacrificing one for the other. All these factors amalgamate to create a powerfully cathartic experience.
Dan Mueller (Keith Kupferer) is an introverted construction worker whose family has not yet recovered from the death of their teenage son. His daughter, Daisy (Katherine Mallen Kupferer), is rebellious, and often acts out at school. By happenstance, Dan is brought into a reading of Romeo and Juliet at a local theater. With stress mounting at work, communication problems at home, and an approaching legal case, Dan decides to continue with the show as an escape. Given his lack of acting experience, Dan is used to opening himself up to strangers. Due to recent personal struggles, discovering the fates of Romeo and Juliet troubles him deeply. Once Daisy joins the play as well, Dan sees it as an opportunity to bond with his child, and at least partially understand his late son’s emotional challenges.
With a family dynamic reminiscent of films like Ordinary People, this version has an extra strand of realism as they are played by Keith Kupferer, Tara Mallen, and their actual daughter. Even with growing tensions, they are still able to exist and operate as a unit. When the cast goes out to sing karaoke, Dan and Daisy have a moment of believable unease. Up to this point, most of their time together consists of bickering, but Dan takes time to notice his daughter’s discomfort, and asks if she wants to leave. Small details like these make the characters feel closer as opposed to constant awkward or wordless interactions between them.
The parallels between Romeo and Juliet and the Muellers are striking. Both contain young adults ending their lives because they could not be with a loved one, leaving a mourning family behind. Each character’s knowledge about the show adds ignorance towards their feelings. Dan does not like talking about his son’s death and inevitably walks out of the room anytime he is brought up in conversation. Likewise, Dan is unaware of Romeo and Juliet’s plot, and he even leaves halfway through watching the movie. Daisy, on the other hand, is able to recite the play’s opening from memory, and jumps into a leading role just a couple of weeks before opening night without any issue. She desperately wants to discuss the grief left over from her brother’s death because she knows more about what he was going through.
Themes of theater do not stop there. Scenes constantly flip from comedy to tragedy, exemplifying the opposing masks which have become a symbol for acting on stage. Dan explains that he found his son dead after he saw Oklahoma!. As a result, during points when Dan is spiraling, songs from the musical play in the background to display the weight of that night still hanging heavily over him. Actors must often leave their own mindset behind and become a new person, and Dan has been struggling to see things from his son’s perspective until he starts playing the role of Romeo. It is both a stirring collection of motifs for drama nerds, and a moving introduction to theatrical practices for outsiders.
Do not let the Ghostlight go out when the film opens in limited release on June 14th, and expands nationwide the following week.
