'Cost of Living': Tale of lost souls connecting

‘COST OF LIVING’: David Zayas & Katy Sullivan. Photo: Julieta Cervantes.

COST OF LIVING
Written by Martyna Majok
Directed by Jo Bonney
Through October 30, 2022
Samuel J. Friedman Theatre
261 West 47th Street
(212-239-6200), www.ManhattanTheatreClub.com

By David NouNou

Winner of the 2018 Pulitzer Prize for drama, Martyna Majok’s Cost of Living is a poignant and touching play that is so ethereal in nature but wallops a heartbreaking punch to the guts. Everything seems and feels real. Everyone has the need to have someone in their life that with whom they can interact and communicate.

Cost of Living examines the relationship of two couples, where in each case one is disabled and the other is able. Eddie (David Zayas) is an unemployed truck driver whose ex-wife, Ani (Katy Sullivan) became a quadriplegic following a tragic accident. John (Gregg Mozgala) is a graduate student with cerebral palsy and has hired Jess (Kara Young) as his caregiver.

The scenes take place at different times. Eddie is in a bar on a Friday night recalling the texts his wife used to send him. In a different scene, Jess is being interviewed by John and needs the job of caregiver desperately. Both Eddie and Jess are extremely lonely, and both have a need to fill their lives. They both need a reason to survive another day. Extraordinary events take place, some real, some by invention of the mind. Their experiences are extremely real and palpable to each which brings them to an intersection to the truth and to connect.

What’s extraordinary for the audience is twofold. The play begs us to ask the question, “What is the cost of living, especially when you can’t put a price on it?” They must connect the dots to reality as well as experience the palpable and heart-wrenching performances given by the four cast members: Gregg Mozgala, Katy Sullivan, Kara Young, and David Zayas. They are further abetted by the excellent and seamless direction provided by Jo Bonney.

There is a haunting quality to Cost of Living that lingers long after leaving the show, and that is the true gift of a night well spent in the theater.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published October 7, 2022
Reviewed at October 6, 2022 press performance.