Slow Down and Enjoy the View: Players’ Ripcord is worth the jump

In the midst of a wintery pandemic surge, every heart needs to see Ripcord, a light but purposeful show on stage at Barker Playhouse.

The RI premiere of David Lindsay-Abaire’s piece combines perfectly timed snark, delivered by skilled actors, and soothing reminders that life is precious. While Director Karen Besson comes onstage to introduce the show, asking the audience to “suspend reality” to enjoy the message, she just needs to let her actors at it because they are perfect messengers.

Paula Faber and Trisha McManus are delightful as Abby and Marilyn, an unlikely pair of roommates in an assisted living facility. They are an emotional version of the Odd Couple. Where Felix and Oscar are neatnik and slob, Abby and Marilyn are cranky and free-spirited.

As much as Marilyn tries, she cannot break through the hard crust surrounding Abby, who wages her own campaign to get Marilyn relocated elsewhere so she can have her own room. They make a bet – if Marilyn can scare Abby, she not only gets to stay in the room, she gets the coveted bed by the window. However, if Abby can make Marilyn angry, she can have the room to herself.

The hijinks that ensue are alternately touching and hilarious. Marilyn’s family runs a skydiving business and she drugs Abby and gets her in a tandem harness to hopefully frighten her on the way down. Abby tears up a precious picture drawn by Marilyn’s grandson.

The key to the show’s premise lies in the instructions given to the skydivers before they jump – they can pull the ripcord to slow down and better enjoy the view while they can.

Besson does a nice job repurposing the stage for scenes in the nursing home, the nearby park, a haunted house and the air. Fans aimed up through a hole in the proscenium blow the actors’ hair to simulate floating through the air, and rolling screens depict the greenery in a park.

As the two-hour production moves along, the niceties and humor on the surface become more and more painfully honest. The roommates commiserate over the disappointments and pain each experienced in their relationships with family, and Marilyn finally gets to the root of Abby’s sharp exterior.

Faber skillfully portrays a crotchety old woman, with perfectly timed delivery and often hysterical facial expressions. McManus is an ideal contrast to her, with a flighty and sunny demeanor that endears her to the audience. When Marilyn’s dark secrets are revealed, it’s easy to empathize with her, and when Abby’s pain takes shape in her recovering addict son Ben, she becomes even easier to feel sorry for.

Tylar Jahumpa is the other bright spot in the cast. Playing Marilyn’s son-in-law and other assorted minor characters, he is a skilled physical actor whose movements punctuate his delivery perfectly. In one scene, he is maced and his reaction is side-splitting.

Ripcord offers a nice package of laughter, a feel-good ending and important truisms to take home with you. It’s on stage through Feb 6, with an extra show added on Feb. 3 to make up for the snow day on Jan. 29. For more information or tickets, go to www.playersri.org.