Spotlight on in "Things Get Ugly" at Firehouse Center

We’re onstage in 10 minutes. Are we fighting about this now?

“Things Get Ugly” is a play written by Doug Brendel. Two actors, newly married, star in a show together. As they prepare for their roles, Alex and Lee have several heated discussions before going on stage. A secret slips. Can they still go on?

The world is a stage. You never know what stories can be pulled from real life onto the stage. Firehouse Center’s “Things Get Ugly” is a clever and insightful show about a couple working through their issues before the spotlight falls on them.

For Wednesday, May 13’s opening premiere performance, Justin Demers and Tara Johns took the roles of Lee and Alex. Demers and Johns inhabited these characters, creating natural dynamics and characteristics.

Both actors balanced believable comedy and tension. There are also several subtle layers about the characters that the actors captured wonderfully. You felt like you knew them in 90 minutes.

Lee is a moderator in their relationship, often trying to keep things calm and grounded, while Alex is more haughty and overconfident. Alex thinks she’s perfect, until she mispronounces a word. This was the funniest running gag in the show. It reminded me of myself because I don’t know how a certain word is pronounced until hearing it aloud.

Lee and Alex engage in several debates that you wouldn’t normally have time for, 30 minutes before a show starts. Their conversations bounce between serious relationship frustrations, petty arguments, and absurd observations. Alex and Lee are always up for a competition, which is what makes their relationship so compelling.

Time plays a key role in this show. The characters return for ten minutes once act one is complete, have a conversation and fight call, until returning to the dressing room when the show is finished. 10 minutes may sound short, but you can fit a lot of drama in this time.

What’s unique about “Things Get Ugly” is that the roles switch every performance between the actors. Audiences get a different show each time they attend. Now I am intrigued to see how the new dynamic plays out with the roles switched.

“Things Get Ugly” is a father-daughter project between Doug Brendel and Lydia Charlotte Brendel. Doug wrote the script, while Lydia directed the show. The play is inspired by Doug’s 40-year marriage to his wife, Kristina Grundmann.

Lydia Brendel’s direction balances humor and emotional tension. She carefully paces the couple’s backstage discussions. Lydia uses the confined space of the dressing room effectively as the couple prepares for the show.

The dressing room becomes an integral setting for debates, allowing audiences to feel the intensity of conversations. Audiences laughed when one of the actors dressed in a green troll-like costume.

Whether it was intentional or a small mishap, Demers and Johns worked through a mic-clothing mishap onstage like it was nothing. No matter what happens in the theater, keep going. A spur-of-the-moment could enrich the scene all the more.

Relationships play an integral part in the story. Who says that any relationship is easy? My favorite moment was towards the climax. Lee and Alex have a heart-to-heart that cements what their relationship is about. Beneath the humor is a story about communication, insecurities, and pressure.

Throughout the night, audiences laughed at relatable dynamics and dialogue you’d hear in a relationship. Even during the quieter moments, Alex and Lee’s scenes kept audiences invested in every conversation and disagreement.

“Things Get Ugly” performs at Firehouse Center in Newburyport, MA, until Sunday, May 17. Think about seeing it twice, as there is something new each time.