Five things to know about 'Adult' at None Too Fragile

"Adult," the 2014 father-daughter comedy by Christina Masciotti, is playing through Aug. 20 at None Too Fragile in Akron. Here's what you need to know about this entertaining, ultimately uplifting two-person show.

The title says it all

Both father Stanley and daughter Tara are learning to be adults in this story. The divorced Stanley, a self-described loser and "worthless piece of s*@t," has isolated himself for years in Reading, Pennsylvania, where he runs a failing gun shop business. When he invites his estranged 18-year-old daughter to stay with him, he has to learn how to parent. At an even more basic level, this man, who says he's "not a people's person," has to relearn how to interact meaningfully with another person on a daily basis.

College student Tara is learning how to navigate school, her boyfriend and a renewed relationship with her father, so her life is focused on "adulting." In one of her funnier lines, the not quite self-actualized Tara says, "I pay for everything but food and living places, and school, and my phone. Maybe I’m not a fully developed adult, but I’m a good portion of my way there, and I can get the rest of the way myself!"

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The stars are a real-life father and daughter

Equity actor Robert Ellis, a theater professor at Cuyahoga Community College, plays Stanley and his daughter, Madison Ellis, plays Tara. He's directed her before in "These Mortal Hosts" at None Too Fragile, but this is the first time they're appearing together on stage at the Akron theater.

The bickering dynamic they develop as father-daughter is humorous in "Adult," with an underlying love clearly ringing through. We feel the depths of a father's worry as Robert Ellis' Stanley tries to reach his missing daughter by phone for hours. And Madison Ellis brings a sweet, teasing humor to Tara as she's amused by her father's computer illiteracy with his "lap computer."

The characters' word misuse is great

A big part of the ongoing comedy in this play is Stanley's constant misuse of words. That includes everything from talking about "Uglo-Saxons" to "workin' from dawn up to dawn down." Through Masciotti's insightful writing, though, a number of his seemingly dunderhead word choices oddly make sense. And Robert Ellis makes all his butchering of the English language sound completely natural.

Tara, too, uses malapropisms, including saying, "you act like you have some infliction keeping you in that chair" and "my life doesn't have to abye by her!" But playwright Masciotti has an uncanny way of using even the most awkward language to illustrate the messy yet real love between father and daughter.

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This story is ultimately sweet

There's quite a bit of misunderstanding between the generations and plenty of arguing in "Adult." It doesn't help that Stanley's ignorant, racist attitudes get in the way, leading to some of the most heated fights between father and daughter.

These two teach each other some things, though, with Stanley starting to broaden his mind and also tentatively learning how to use a computer for his business, with the help of his daughter. And in his own funny way, he gives Tara some actual sound advice about going back to college and not cutting off relationships.

We know Stanley's love for Tara runs deep when he tells her, "The only future I got is you."

The play's direction is spot-on

David Vegh brings out all the right dynamics with his two actors, who keep our attention for 80 minutes without intermission. That's not easy to do in a play that has one scene of harrowing action and the rest dominated by situational dramedy.

Arts and restaurant writer Kerry Clawson may be reached at 330-996-3527 or kclawson@thebeaconjournal.com.

Details

Play: "Adult"

When: Continuing through Aug. 20, 8 p.m. Thursdays-Saturdays, 2 p.m. Sunday, 8 p.m. Monday

Where: None Too Fragile Theatre, 732 W. Exchange St., Akron

Onstage: Robert Ellis, Madison Ellis

Offstage: Christina Masciotti, playwright; David Vegh, director/costume design; Margene Rannigan, stage manager/props design; Louis Williams, board operator; Sean Derry, set design; Marcus Dan, lighting design; Tom Barnes, sound design

Cost: $30

Information: www.nonetoofragile.com or 330-962-5547

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Love underlies all the arguments in 'Adult' at None Too Fragile