RED NOISE

Radio play combines dark humor and intriguing characters, entertains but confuses

Jessica Baldwin - baldwije@plu.edu

mast a&e reporter

“Red Noise,” written by former PLU student, Max August Falkenberg, is the capstone project of theater major and senior Brie Yost. In the style of a 1930s radio drama, each actor stands up from a row of seats, script in hand, to give their monologue or act out a scene.

Set in Seattle, “Red Noise” follows the lives of eight seedy and somewhat disturbed characters. The leading lady, Roxanne (sophomore Anne Olsen), is a seemingly confused woman who came to Seattle from L.A. She seeks redemption for her deeds by helping good people in bad situations. Roxanne befriends a man named Peyton (junior Nicolas Olson). Peyton appears to be a good man who understands Roxanne and her need to help others.

Throughout the play, more characters are introduced, including Foster (senior Cameron Pahl), a German who was abducted by Peyton. Foster is an odd man, a prostitute to homosexual men—though not homosexual himself. He creates comedy in this dark play, with his quick wit and taboo jokes.

The plot thickens when, in a flashback, the audience learns that the reason Foster went to Roxanne is because his friend, Tom (first-year Kyle Sinclair), was abducted by a group of people who controlled a radio signal they called—you guessed it—“Red Noise.”
With a dark, sharp and witty screenplay that keeps you guessing and intrigued until the end, this play reminds me of “Sin City” on the radio. I could even see it being turned into a movie directed by Quentin Tarantino. Without a doubt the best character in this play was Foster. Pahl charmed the audience with his humor and wit.

There was one problem that truly hurt this otherwise great play. Though the style of a 1930s radio show was a great idea, the script did not lend to that type of style. With so many characters and flashbacks, I was confused as to who was who. During intermission, I had to write down who I thought each character was in the play. Later I found out, even with this precaution, I had them mixed up.

The scenery never changed and there was no indication when the story would suddenly drop into a flashback sequence. This created even more confusion. With a great script and great actors, this minimalist radio-drama style dragged it down. Other than this, “Red Noise” was a great play and if you didn’t see it, you’ve missed out.

"Red Noise "

Directed by Brie Yost

Written by Max August Falkenberg