There’s a curious vigilance that falls over a room where a story is told without words. Not the absence of sound, but an intimacy, a heightened awareness of breath, glance, gesture. In Small Mouth Sounds, currently playing at Wilbury Theatre Group, this hush becomes the heartbeat of the production. Director Tanya Martin compassionately captures playwright Bess Wohl’s tender absurdity with a quiet power that’s both disarming and deeply human. Filled with awkward yet insightful humor, Small Mouth Sounds asks how we address life’s biggest questions when words fail us.
Set at a silent spiritual retreat, a setting ripe for both revelation and ridiculousness, Small Mouth Sounds unfolds mostly without dialogue. A motley handful of seekers each arrive burdened with invisible cargo. Yoga mats, a suitcase, sorrow, snacks. Temporarily eluding city life, the six come searching for something: peace, forgiveness, distraction, connection. Wilbury skillfully conveys what Wohl gives them: recognition. As these strangers confront internal demons both profound and absurd, their vows of silence collide with the sorely human need to connect. The silence, at first overwhelming, slowly transforms into its own language, which the ensemble speaks fluently.
This ensemble of seven is the show. Each performance delivers control and restraint. Olivia Hodson’s restless energy buzzes like white noise next to Dave Rabinow’s reticent posture. Harry Aspinwall cedes a staggering, wordless breakdown that ripples through the room in a confession everyone understands. You can always count on veteran Amie Lytle’s comedic countenance. Even the unseen teacher — a recording (spoken live by Jennifer Mischley) serving as both abortive spiritual guide and comic foil — becomes a presence that’s part guru, part passive-aggressive boss. Rounding out the cast with equally compelling portrayals are Beth Alianiello and Stuart Wilson.
While the text’s humor remains intact (the irony of seeking transcendence through wi-fi withdrawal never gets old), it is compassion that speaks volumes here. Wilbury Artistic Director Josh Short describes Small Mouth Sounds as a quietly mischievous piece of theater. “In a world that rarely stops talking (or pinging, or beeping, or buzzing), Bess Wohl invites us into silence and dares us to actually sit with it. With the recent Broadway success of her new play, Liberation, Wohl has firmly established herself as one of the most insightful voices in American theatre today. And even more resonant, tapping into our collective craving for connection, meaning, and a little bit of peace in an increasingly noisy, disconnected world.”
Short further explains, “The play follows six strangers at a silent retreat, which means we don’t get the usual comforts of dialogue to tell us who these people are. Instead, we learn by watching: the way someone fidgets, hesitates, reaches out, or pulls away. In the absence of words, the audience assumes the power to fill in the blanks, make assumptions, and build the stories of these characters together. And the play gently asks us to notice that, too. What are we bringing into the room? How much of what we think we understand is about them, and how much is about us?”
Visually, Wilbury’s production thrives in simplicity. Scenic Designer Keri King utilizes a minimal yet striking set: several chairs, yoga mats, the skeletal architecture of retreat cabins in the woods. This frames not just the story but the silence itself. The blocking is intentional, as if each pause has been choreographed to let us notice the smallest gestures: a sideways glance, a hesitant offering of comfort, the nervous crackle of a snack wrapper. Subtle shifts in lighting punctuate the emotional arc, moving from fluorescent realism to moments of dreamlike stillness (sound and light design by Andy Russ; technical direction by Jason Sall).
Small Mouth Sounds is a quiet triumph that asks of its audience what it asks of its characters: to listen. To sit in discomfort. To find meaning in the awkwardness of being human together. Wilbury prevails in this experiment. By the end, when words return, you find you no longer need them. Sometimes, when we’re feeling overwhelmed with noise, silence says the most.
Wibury presents Small Mouth Sounds through February 15. Production contains mature themes, mild, infrequent coarse language, and full frontal male nudity. For more information, visit thewilburygroup.org/small-mouth-sounds.html.