Bridesburg is a run-down neighborhood in south Philadelphia. If Victor Kaufold’s drama set there is any indication, you won’t want to go there . . . or to “Bridesburg,” for that matter.
To its credit, this turgid dysfunctional family drama, now getting its world premiere by the Miscreant Theatre, tries to tackle a genuine issue — the plight of the working class in a brutal economy. But its characters are so generally unpleasant and uninteresting, not to mention underdeveloped, that spending even a scant 70 minutes with them is an ordeal.
The stifling claustrophobia is further accentuated by the tiny playing area, in which much of the audience sits so close to the action that it feels as if we’re — God forbid — part of the family.
Young married couple Matt (Jeff Barry) and pregnant wife Kay (Mizuo Peck) live in the basement of his mother’s rowhouse. Tensions are high and getting higher, especially after the hard-drinking Matt loses his job and his mother (Susan Ferrara) banishes his directionless teenage sister Cat (Brianne Moncrief) from the house. Only Cat’s boyfriend (Julian Joseph), an African-American student with a part-time job, seems headed for better things.
Realistically gritty but neither terribly involving nor illuminating, “Bridesburg” meanders for most of its brief running time. Even a would-be shocking act of violence lacks dramatic sizzle.
Under Jack Young’s awkward staging, the actors are constantly negotiating imaginary doors and hallways. They try hard, but the only character who fully registers is Ferrara’s convincingly bitter, world-weary mother.