Aptly Titled ‘Gruesome Playground Injuries,’ a Favorite Among Drama Teachers, Earns a New Revival

Trigger warnings are all the rage right now, but every so often a work comes along that makes the concept seem a little less priggish. So, here goes: Don’t see the new revival of Rajiv Joseph’s aptly titled “Gruesome Playground Injuries” if you’re put off by, say, simulations of exploded eye sockets, or references to bloody vomit and eight-inch nails being driven into feet.Granted, you’ll be missing an ideally cast and beautifully directed production of a bleakly funny and moving play — qualities that also apply to the New York premiere of Mr. Joseph’s “Archduke,” which opened earlier this month. The one-act “Injuries,” a favorite among drama teachers since it was first produced in 2009, is even leaner and grittier, requiring its two sole actors to remain onstage throughout: moving scenery, changing costumes, applying makeup when necessary.“We should especially see Doug’s dressing of his wounds,” Mr. Joseph’s stage directions read, referring to the character portrayed here by Nicholas Braun, a tall, lanky performer best known for playing the hapless Cousin Greg on TV’s “Succession.” Doug’s friend, Kayleen, is played by Kara Young, who won two consecutive Tony Awards for her hilarious performances in last spring’s “Appropriate” and the previous season’s “Purlie Victorious.”Doug and Kayleen are represented between the ages of 8 and 38 in scenes that alternately jump forward 15 years and backward a decade, during which both accumulate a string of physical and emotional scars. Kayleen has a sensitive stomach, she tells us repeatedly, and becomes inclined to self-harm — factors that no doubt stem at least in part from having been abandoned by her mother and left with a father who ignores her, at best.Nicholas Braun and Kara Young in ‘Gruesome Playground Injuries.’ Emilio MadridDoug would seem to be more privileged in this respect; Kayleen notes his parents’ kindness more than once. But he’s prone to terrible accidents that don’t really seem accidental, like getting struck by lightning while standing on his roof in the middle of an electrical storm. Maybe he’s one of those guys who takes thrill-seeking to dangerous extremes, though the level of danger seems to increase as Kayleen continues to spurn his often indirect, usually awkward — at times extremely awkward — expressions of affection.Kayleen is also in love with Doug, of course; some of the play’s humor and much of its poignance derives from the inability of these damaged souls (and bodies) to see that love to fruition, even as various traumas keep drawing them back together through the decades. “What’s gonna happen with us?” Doug asks Kayleen after one of his misadventures. “Nothing,” she replies, instinctively hopeless.Neil Pepe, a prolific director on and off-Broadway, makes full use of his actors’ attributes, including — appropriately, given the subject matter — physical ones. Mr. Braun towers over Ms. Young, reinforcing the protectiveness Doug feels toward Kayleen, even in his silliest and most ill-considered gestures. Ms. Young’s Kayleen also exudes a tender solicitude, evident even between scenes, as the performers, in character, occasionally help each other in adjusting or smoothing out costumes.Both actors are adroit and affecting in spanning the considerable age range covered here, though Ms. Young is particularly impressive, bringing the same exhilarating comedic virtuosity to Kayleen as a little girl as she has to previous roles and then capturing, with aching authenticity, how that spark is slowly extinguished.“I just am tired,” a teenaged Kayleen tells an overeager Doug in one scene; the remark could be an only slightly oversimplified epitaph for their relationship as it’s presented at the end, more than 20 years later. Seldom has a failure to launch been more compelling, or more painful to watch — no matter how thick your skin.

Aptly Titled ‘Gruesome Playground Injuries,’ a Favorite Among Drama Teachers, Earns a New Revival

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