Company

By Darcy Thiel

Last week I went to see a play called Company in Amherst. It’s a musical, actually. I’ve been hanging out a lot with my theater friends lately and we’ve been to several shows. This one is outstanding.

I think a lot of theater appeals to me because it is entertaining, upbeat, funny- and yet underlying it all is is a very, very dark and somber message. Relationships are hell. A couple of weeks ago we watched Lovers and Other Strangers, which had you rolling in your seat the entire time. But the underlying message was the same. People can be awful and relationships are next to impossible to navigate.

Company had great music, which I just loved in and of itself. But I found the message to be riveting. It centered on a character named Bobby, who was surrounded by married friends. We follow the different relationships and all their complications as we also watch Bobby date equally complicated and imperfect women. The happiest couple in the show was one that decided to get divorced. They still lived together and were obviously in love. Divorce was what allowed them that luxury.

The play’s director, Roger Paolini, wrote a note in the program that I think captured it all. He said that the message of the play was that while commitment is difficult, being alone is impossible.

While it’s terribly uncomfortable to immerse yourself in the truth that relationships cause great pain, I know that the fact of the matter is that we are driven to have them, in spite of their imperfections. We want them, warts and all.

And that’s the uncomfortable truth.