“Cygnus” Looks at the Forming of One’s Truth

By D’Arcy Mies with Wes Hessel

“Cygnus”, performed at Filament Theater by The Gift Theatre, is a very adult look at coping with trauma can be about picking your own perspective to avoid a more realistic truth. Three actors carry this hour and 45 minute no-intermission, no-reseating show.

The set is contemporary-ish – the living room is squarely 1986, but Mama dresses more today and once utters the line, “It was the 90’s”.  Cydney looks, to me, to be 1980’s, and Jason is dressed nondescript. They are at the mall a lot, letters arrive in the mail, and notices are placed in the newspaper.

All the characters are complicated, and have overlapping misunderstanding and bonds.  The play is realistic but also symbolic and mythic. Cydney is many things: girlish, womanly, flirtatious, mercurial, and passionate.  She’s old enough to already have been engaged, so maybe 19 or so.  

Mama is the most human, most realistic character – she vacillates between wheedling and exasperated with her daughter, obviously cares about her but just as obviously is selfish and doesn’t really get her. Jason seems, in many ways, too good to be true.  

The play explores the stories, the truths we tell others, and the lies we tell ourselves.  It delves into grieving, death, and birth. This is good acting, and great use of the space at Filament Theater. “Cygnus” only runs until March 16th, so see www.thegifttheatre.org for tickets or more information. 

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