When a seven year old boy discovers his mom is in the hospital suffering from sadness, he tries everything in his power to make her smile and be happy. His clever idea is to make a list, at least as long as his arm, filled with all the things that make him happy. He prays they will make her happy too.
Because of the current health crisis, TheaterWorks Hartford will not be able to complete the run of “Every Brilliant Thing” by Duncan Macmillan with Jonny Donahoe originally scheduled to run until March 22. With all that being said, the message of the play is well worth considering and it just may make your own life more meaningful.
Do you wake up each morning or go to bed each night thinking of three things for which you are grateful? For this troubled little boy, brought to meaningful life by Chad Jennings, his idea is to make a list of all those things that make life worth living. High on everybody’s list might be ice cream, unless you are lactose intolerant and dairy makes you sick. Think of butterflies and cuddly babies, chocolate and new car smells, the first pop of a spring crocus, a freshly cut lawn, hitting a home run, attending the first night of a new play, finding your soul mate, acing an exam, and the list goes on.
To help his mother recover, the little boy starts with ice cream and adds the color yellow, wearing a cape, spaghetti and meatballs, piglets, skinny dipping, bubble wrap, the alphabet, new sheets, surprises, bird song, planning a declaration of love and hundreds of thousands more. The audience is entrusted to help him with his endeavor and play such parts as his veterinarian, his father, a caring teacher, a new love, a college professor and a support group.
Along his journey, he learns to deal with his stress and accept a child’s perception of life and death. Underneath it all is the fear that he too would follow his mom and no longer wish to live. Eventually he learns it is important to talk about things, on his way to listing a million things to be grateful for. Eric Ort directs this poignant journey into a troubled mind as it works to find answers and hope for the future.
The message is clear: Don’t postpone joy. Run make that ice cream cone right now.
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