Oblivion

Is this play a comedy, a drama, or both? Mostly, Oblivion is playwright Carly Mensch’s provocative snapshot of an affluent, well-educated family at the present time.

The parents are urban professionals and secular intellectuals. Mom (Elisabeth Nunziato) is management at HBO. Dad (Kurt Johnson) was formerly a high-powered lawyer, but quit all that to stay home and write a book.

Teenage daughter Julie (newcomer Julie Balefsky) is college-bound. She and classmate Bernard (a buddy, not a boyfriend) theoretically attend an orientation at Wellesley College. But when Julie returns, her account of the trip is sketchy, and Mom gets suspicious. Dad schmoozes with nerdy Bernard (newcomer Arthur Keng) and learns the truth: Julie tagged along with Bernard’s church’s youth group on a prayer retreat.

Mom, an agnostic, would have been OK if her underage daughter was quietly experimenting with alcohol or sex. But she’s aghast that Julie is memorizing Bible verses in her room.

Much of the early humor (handled with breezy style by director Buck Busfield) comes from watching the “tolerant” parents twist themselves into pretzels, as they try to set boundaries for their daughter (but not themselves). Julie accuses them of making no distinction between right and wrong—and not without cause. Mom and Dad gradually realize that by having been reluctant to discuss religion, they’ve created an opening for Julie’s teenage curiosity. Complications involve the stressed-out mom’s overbearing manner and the rudderless dad’s sputtering work ethic. In the final analysis, the play is primarily about the self-deluding parents coming to grips with themselves. Along the way, the show transitions from comedy into something resembling drama (with mixed results), but several scenes are a kick.