Nine Gen-Xers struggle with a quarter-life crisis

When I heard the title, "Aloha Say the Pretty Girls," it conjured up images of a play that was going to be a cutesy comedies, in which the guy gets the girl.

Even though these crazy situations happen to the characters, it all works out in the end. To my relief, I was instead presented with a production similar to Tom Stoppard's "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead" that was funny and yet heartbreaking.

The essence of the Naomi Iizuka play is less about the plot and more about the questions it asks — the questions we all ask — the ones we never can find the answers to.

A series of vignettes introduces the nine Generation-Xers in situations where each character's boat rocks just enough so that he falls overboard, and the cold water startles them into something like a spiritual awakening.

They each lose the sense of security as their self-contained bubble worlds all pop.

Vivian (Hollis Witherspoon '04) has been dumped by her boyfriend (Justin Anderson '02) in addition to being pregnant with his child. Her boyfriend has fallen head-over-heels in love with someone else.

His new girlfriend has decided that love does not exist. A dog has escaped from his owner. A writer has finished his manuscript. A clerk meets an eccentric young woman, who has realized that she isn't going to become an actress.

All of them are crying, "Who am I? Why am I here? What am I doing with my life? I'm growing old, and I'm not happy yet!"

It's as if they have suffered a metaphysical breakdown and suddenly realize they are not satisfied with their lives. Through their interactions with each other, they are forced to face reality and decide.

The play's set was fantastic. It was actually one of the anti-sets that are becoming so fashionable: the black-box stage, simple props and minimalist backdrop.

The floor was painted with multi-colored jellybean-like ovals, and the entire theme was also like candy, with props and furniture that reflected the bright characters.

I wasn't wild about the lighting during the first act. The spotlights that fit the ovals were fun at first but failed to reflect the mood of the first act.

However, the lighting was excellent in the second act. The oranges and pinks depicted the tropics beautifully, and the lavender of the Alaskan scenes added to the forlorn feeling of the icy landscape.

The actors made most of the sound effects on stage themselves: Anderson crunches chips in the microphone off stage to echo what another actor does on stage. But that felt a little too trendy.

At first, I felt the acting was a bit hyperbolic, but the exaggeration worked well to define the inherent insanity in people. The dog that believes he is a man (Matthieu Boyd '03) and the "slut"-turned-lesbian (Teniqua Crawford '02) performed particularly well. All actors had great facial expressions and effective gestures and postures.

In the second act, all characters but two wind up in Hawaii in a quest to find something better. They are looking for that "Aloha" that means hello and not goodbye. Some of them find that there — that happiness in the simple pleasures of life. But others go to Alaska to find it. Pete (Jeffrey Kitrosser '03) even turns into a lizard, which was my favorite twist in the show.

What they all do find, however, is an answer to their loneliness. Their questions have not been answered, and they are still growing old. But they realize that their small island in the big blue ocean can be a whole world if they have friends. They realize that life may feel meaningless and hard, but at least they aren't alone.

"Aloha, Say the Pretty Girls"

By Naomi Iizuka Directed by Roger Babb Matthews Acting Studio 185 Nassau Street Nov. 15-17 (609) 258-1742