Transforming personal trauma into a supernatural element is a favorite trope of writers across many genres, including horror, fantasy, magical realism and speculative fiction. Embodying fear, grief or guilt in the form of a ghost, monster or some other form of spook can offer a vivid perspective into a character’s psychological state and give the audience a safe distance from which to confront their own demons.
In the Factory Theater’s new play “Inheritance -or- Brothers from the Deep,” ensemble member and playwright Michael Jones tries his hand at this technique with mixed success. Directed by Jamaque Newberry, this slow-burning family drama stars Jelani Julyus and Malachi Marrero as Bentley and Marcus, two brothers who meet up for their annual fishing trip and encounter something mysterious out on the water.
Early on, sparse dialogue and long silences — sometimes relaxed, sometimes uncomfortable — paint a believable picture of adult siblings who love each other but have grown apart as their lives take different paths. They often speak in a shorthand of sorts, cracking inside jokes and gently ribbing each other about their tastes in music and alcohol.
Elder brother Bentley is more financially stable and personally settled; he’s just bought a nice home with his partner of three years, and they’re planning a trip to Japan. Marcus works as a security guard and struggles to make ends meet, reluctantly relying on his brother to help pay his bills at times. The two share interests in video games and anime, but Marcus is more of an athlete while Bentley enjoys reading and playing the game Magic: The Gathering.
As the play goes on, we get hints about the brothers’ troubled past, having to do with their mother’s death and their complicated relationship with their father. Bentley is reading a book about the Von Erichs, a family of professional wrestlers whose string of untimely deaths provoked rumors of a hereditary curse, and he becomes convinced that his family is cursed, too.
Meanwhile, strange things are happening around the boat. At first, the fish seem to be scared off by something, but later, Marcus catches a small, toothless shark and a large fish with a nasty bite on its underside. Ominous noises and disturbances in the water create an eerie atmosphere, and the brothers make vague references to an unnamed “him” or “it.”
In my view, Jones plays it too coy as he threads this mystery throughout the script. The buildup is overly drawn out, and the reveal leaves much unexplained. Writers are certainly entitled to hold their cards close to their chest, especially in supernatural stories, but giving the audience a few more concrete plot points would help here.
This production also falls short in evoking the growing sense of danger that the brothers feel. Hunter Cole’s scenic design doesn’t include an actual boat but rather indicates its shape by painting the floor to look like a wooden platform surrounded by water. The nautical setting relies heavily on Peiran Zhao’s sound design, Ryan Tunheim’s lighting design and the actors’ movements — a fine solution, although the blocking that’s meant to indicate fishing off the side of an imaginary boat looks awkward. While it’s unfair to expect designers to work magic with a storefront theater’s budget, I still think the production elements could do more to enhance the script’s dark tone.
“Inheritance” has the potential to be a powerful family drama, but I wish the play would lean more into the supernatural elements. I enjoyed the authenticity and emotional range of Julyus’ performance, and both actors have good comedic instincts. Without giving away too much, I’ll say that the difficult themes addressed in the show will be relatable for many families, even those who haven’t experienced the extremes that these brothers have. Jones has a strong concept, but the script, production elements and direction could use some reworking for it to really hit home.
Emily McClanathan is a freelance critic.
Review: “Inheritance -or- Brothers from the Deep” (2.5 stars)
When: Through Nov. 23
Where: The Factory Theater, 1623 W. Howard St.
Running time: 1 hour, 30 minutes
Tickets: $30 at 312-275-5757 or thefactorytheater.com
