At Curious Theatre, Rajiv Joseph’s play is an elegant exploration of character
Letters of Suresh, as the title suggests, is a play composed entirely of letters. Well, letters and one FaceTime conversation. Playwright Rajiv Joseph constructs this tale from a series of seemingly random connections among four people scattered across the world. The play begins with a stack of letters from a man named Suresh and an origami sculpture of a bird. It slowly (forgive me) unfolds into the lovely stories of four characters, beautifully portrayed in a series of monologues. These characters seek connection, try to understand love, and live with grief and regret.
The play opens with Melody (Desirée Mee Jung, energetic and charming) narrating a letter. A 40-year-old writing teacher from Seattle, she is writing to a man she doesn’t know about a relative she never met. It’s only after her great uncle, a Catholic priest named Father Hashimoto, has died in Nagasaki that she learns of his existence. After attending the funeral, she brings home his Bible, an origami bird and a box of letters from Suresh Thakur. In her letter, she asks Suresh if he wants them returned. Despite receiving no response, she continues writing because she realizes her creative block vanishes when she expresses herself to an unresponsive stranger.
As Suresh, Hossein Forouzandeh’s performance is moving and bottomless. Suresh narrates the letters in the box, which take him from a confused boy to an equally confused man. We learn how the lives of Suresh — an 18-year-old Indian-American genius at origami and math — and Melody’s uncle cross paths when Suresh attends an origami festival in Nagasaki. The priest was moved to tears while he watched Suresh in a park fold the bird now in Melody’s possession. (This scene is described in detail in “Animals Out of Paper”, which is Rajiv Joseph’s 2008 “prequel” to Letters of Suresh.)
These unlikely pen pals exchange letters sporadically over the next 10 years. Their letters discuss relationships and also religion, which causes heated responses from Suresh. This strains their friendship and communication. Suresh is tormented, scarred by his mother’s death, his unfulfilled personal life, and a career that provides him with a perfect reason for self-loathing.
He reacts with fury to the priest’s offers of prayers — to any ordinary expression of Catholicism, really. But, he can’t stop his written confessions.
Father Hashimoto, beautifully played by Peter Trinh, writes seeking connection. In his letters, he shines a light of understanding in a world that’s becoming even more divided. They each begin to make space for one another’s viewpoints, setting the stage for a major life transformation for Suresh. He goes to Japan after finding out, from Melody’s letter, about Hashimoto’s passing. He then discovers the priest’s last unanswered letter to him, which provides insight into Hashimoto’s perplexing past.
We also hear from Amelia Wren, played in heart-breaking clarity by Anne Penner. Amelia is a middle-aged, married museum director whose brief affair with Suresh upends her existence, leaving her at loose ends and living in his apartment while he is away. Amelia reads Melody’s letters, reaching out to her and explaining the profound effect she has had on Suresh.
Peter Trinh, Anne Penner and Desirée Mee Jung in ‘Letters of Suresh’ at Curious Theatre | Photo: Michael Ensminger Photography
It’s through letter writing that these characters reveal themselves to us. It’s how we learn of the moments they most regret. The cast’s masterful rhythm draws us into their lives. Through Jung’s enchanting portrayal of Melody, we clearly get a glimpse into the woman’s drab life, her unfulfilled writing career and feelings of abandonment when her parents leave to reunite with her estranged younger, sister. An emotionally charged scene in which Suresh texts Amelia and then they ultimately meet face to face over FaceTime is the only two-person exchange in the play. Their strained conversation is passionately delivered by both Wren and Forouzandeh with so many things left unsaid.
It isn’t until we finally hear from Father Hashimoto, as he narrates the unsent letter, that we discover everything that links these characters. Trinh’s profound performance brings home how each character has struggled with the transitory nature of love and humankind’s potential for destruction. That the play is partly set in Nagasaki is not a coincidence.
Director Julie Rada’s scene transitions are liquid, moving us effortlessly through hours, weeks and years. The stage design by Markas Henry is organic in the simple and serene origami-focused set. Brian Freeland’s projection of the impermanent narrated words onto the draped back panels are uncomplicated and essential. Miriam Suzanne’s backlit choreography of additional character portrayal, flocks of birds, origami animals and ocean complements the set while Erin Carignan’s costumes provide a keen profile for each character.
This play is a feast for your senses and emotions. It holds your rapt attention as it folds into a rare shape that is elegant and deep. I found the lack of character interaction and dialogue to not be lacking at all. I was given paragraphs of honest, heartfelt expression instead.
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