Small town life is troublesome for 12-year-old Oskar (Diego Lucano). He is being bullied at school. His father is absent and his mother is drinking. And there is a killer loose in the woods. We know about the killer because, near the start of the play, we witness his brutality. He hangs a man upside down from a tree, slices his neck, and collects the blood. Clearly, something is off.
Oskar ignores his mother’s desire to keep him safely locked inside, and wanders into the night where he encounters Eli (Noah Lamanna) a gender and age ambivalent creature with a Peter Panish persona. The two hesitantly begin to bond. Eli is neither young nor old, male or female, comforting or frightening — just Eli, And, for reasons neither Oskar or the audience quite fathom, Eli seems to be the Right One for Oskar, who desperately needs a friend. But is Eli REALLY the Right One? Or is Eli a monster? Or could Eli possibly be both the right one AND a monster?
Whatever the reasons, these two misfits manage to connect, and Eli begins to help Oskar stand up to the boys who have mercilessly bullied him at school.
Meanwhile, Eli seems to be in a very peculiar relationship with a much older man, Hakan, the killer (Richard Topol). Is Hakan Eli’s parent or grandparent? Perhaps Eli’s abuser and/or lover? Hakan certainly seems to be obsessed with Eli. Who is in control here?
Thinks get weirder when Hakan continues to kill, and feeds the blood of his victims to Eli, who might be a vampire. Could the Right One for Oskar be a vampire? Perhaps so, because soon Oskar is professing his love for Eli, who plaintively asks Oskar, “Does it matter if I’m not really a girl?”
When Oskar replies, “I don’t care if you are a boy. I won’t us to be together,” Eli responds, “What if I’m not really a boy either?”
Is Eli also looking for the Right One? If so, the Right One for what? What does love mean to a vampire?
In the midst of all this, Oskar is coming-of-age, growing from child to young man, as, with Eli’s help, he learns to respect himself and stand up to the bullies at school. The bullies, it seems, are even more horrifying, perhaps much more horrifying, than a vampire. This reality is chillingly conveyed by actors Michal Johnston and Jon Demegillo as the bully and his sidekick.
All of this adds up to a tangled and confusing web of thematic material that is as thick as congealed blood. It is not easy to understand. And, wisely, the director doesn’t put too much effort into making things clear. Instead, this production focuses on mood and feeling. It is a sad, intense, and beautiful other worldly visceral experience.
The sense of another world is helped greatly by the design work: the wintry forest set by Christine Jones, the haunting lighting by Chahine Yavroyan, sound by Gareth Fry, and special effects (sometimes quite bloody) by Chahine Yavroyan.
“Let The Right One In” covers a lot of ground: coming of age, being different, gay sexuality, family, omplexes, love and horror. As a story, it doesn’t all cohere perfectly, but it doesn’t matter. With this play, it’s all about sensations, feelings, and goosebumps. “Let. The Right One In” delivers all that.
“Let The Right One in” continues at Berkeley Rep through June 25th, 2023. For further information click here.
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Rating: ***** For an explanation of Theatrestorm’s rating scale, click here.)
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“Let the Right One In,” by Jack Thorne, adapted from the Swedish novel and film by John Ajvide Lindqvist. A National Theatre Of Scotland Production, presented by Berkeley Rep in association with Marta Rubin Productions and Bill Kenwright. Director: John Tiffany. Associate Director/Movement: Steven Hoggett. Scenic Design: Christine Jones. Costume Design: Aileen Sherry. Lighting Design: Chahine Yavroyan. Sound Design: Gareth Fry. Special Effects Design: Chahine Yavroyan. Dance Captains: Jon Demegillo & Julius Thomas III.
Cast:
Micke: Jon Demegillo. Janne/Jimmy/Torkel: Jack Difalco. Kurt/Oskar’s Dad/Jocke/Nikls/Stefan: Erik Hellman. Jonny: Michael Johnston. Eli: Noah Lamanna. Oskar: Diego Lucano. Oscar’s Mom: Nicole Shalhoub. Halmbrerg/Mr. Avila: Julius Thomas III. Hakan: Richard Topol.
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