Cultural shifts and changes in the zeitgeist make great grist for art and entertainment, and Laura Eason’s enjoyable play, The Undeniable Sound of Right Now is no exception. A close look at a transitional moment in music history, Eason’s play makes its D.C. premiere at The Keegan Theatre in an intimate, well-crafted production featuring great music and excellent performances.
[Chris] Stezin’s dynamic performance [as Hank] highlights the character’s brash aggression, as he confronts other characters, eyes wide and neck straining. He also brings out the character’s complexity, including his real affection for his daughter, and his belief in music as a meaningful art form.
Jessie Power as Lena and Susan Marie Rhea as Bette both turn in solid performances. Surrounded by strong male personalities, Power nicely communicates her character’s independence and conflicted loyalty, as she struggles with her father’s unwillingness to update the bar. Rhea embodies Bette as a pragmatic voice of reason, as well as the emotional center of this little community.
Ryan Sellers sells Nash’s charisma as the long-haired, backward-baseball-cap-wearing DJ who has real talent, and realer ambitions. If Hank is rock history, Nash is at least the present.
