The ‘The Reservoir’ –Pathos, Humor, Wisdom – A Wonderful Play and Production

By Alix Cohen

Josh (Harrison Bryan) is successively suspended from NYU and kicked out of rehab. He goes on a bender, apparently flies to Miami, then finds himself literally on the ground in his hometown of Denver, Colorado without memory of events. Blackouts are not new, the leap in geography is. 5.1 million young people in the USA from ages 18-25 are currently alcoholics. Chronic heavy drinking can damage brain regions involved in memory and learning.

Shaken by a park ranger, Josh comes up with a plausible story, then breaks into a Hebrew prayer- which sends the officer away shrugging.Warily the young man goes home to single mom, Patricia. (Rebecca Pitcher) Without a key, he crawls in through the dog portal- a nifty conceit.

This is hardly the first time. His mom is at the end of her tether. When she insists he go back to rehab, Josh begs for a grunt job in her bookshop and swears sobriety. She doesn’t trust him, but relents.Store manager, Hugo (Harrison Zraly), recognizes the situation and gives his new hire the simplest job he can come up with, shelving in alphabetical order. Josh’s mind, however, is soup. He can’t manage it. Later, we discover he was once a voracious reader.

“I might not have any friends here, but I have my grandparents,” the hero rationalizes. He faces no fourth wall. We meet the grandparents, both a Greek Chorus and the other side of Josh’s looking glass:

Hank is loving but conservative, struggling to reconcile Christian beliefs with affection for his queer, alcoholic grandson, unable to fully express his feelings in words. He thinks a girl would keep Josh in line. Steve Brady somehow exudes feeling despite Hank’s innate stiffness. A later emotional wound is palpably painful to observe.

His wife, Irene,to whom Josh has always felt closest, embodies unconditional love exemplified by home baked cookies and shared music. “You taught me to be kind- until I started wearing girl jeans…” Josh recalls. First to succumb to dementia, Irene is portrayed as more than her illness, suggesting that important parts of identity and humanity remain present beneath cognitive decline.(An example of this takes us back to the film Awakenings.) Josh is shaken to have to visit her in a facility. “How did this happen?!”

Joy Franz is sweet (not cloying) and fairy godmothery in her portrayal. We accept without question she must’ve been the one to hug and listen. Aphasia is credible as is a parenthetic example of breaking out.

Shrimpy, aka Melvin, contributes an irreverent, gently comic element. Half the Jewish part of Josh’s heritage, he decides to have a second Bar Mitzvah at 83. With his grandson’s help, studying for it and the event itself are poignant- superbly imagined and played. This grandparent is cognizant of gradual decline.

Joel Leffert actually recites the Haftarah from his own Bar Mitzvah.There isn’t a moment onstage he doesn’t inhabit Shrimpy. The actor wears character like skin. Droll response and touching moments feel as if they happen in real time.
Dancing evinces a particularly youthful and charming lack of inhibition.

His wife, Beverly declares (about Irene), “If I ever get like that shoot me. It’s not hard, this is Colorado.” She’s tough, blunt, and smart with a sharp tongue, a dry sense of humor, and little patience for self-pity. A former scientist, hers
is a practical outlook.She encourages Josh to accept things as they are rather than trying to control everything. Of the four, Beverly is the only one capable of tough love. She represents honest accountability.

Lori Wilner is outstanding. The actor emerges out of whole cloth, a woman with past and future. There’s grace in what turns out to be hard won strength. A revealed secret (beautifully written and played) completely surprises. Presence in the play’s denouement is wrenching.Ms.Wilner has played the role before. If you’re lucky, she will again.

Plagued by memory loss, shame, and persistent “brain fog” Josh’s mental state aligns with his four aging grandparents. All are navigating varying stages of cognitive decline and dementia. Coping with his own degeneration, he starts to read up on ways to perhaps slow the process, gulping down spinach and apple cider vinegar, trying to aid each grandparent with popular methods like diet, exercise, and testing the mind.

Of these, an elder aerobics class (lead by Rebecca Pilcher) is the most captivating.The four terrific actors each epitomize limitations/ailments and attitudes in his/her own way. (Josh is exuberantly loosey goosey.)

At other times, the grandparents sit in a row behind action. Written into the play is eurthythmic, seemingly improvisational ‘choreography’ illustrating metaphors of Josh’s reading. We learn what the concept of a reservoir means. Again, unique interpretation adds immeasurably while lightening the mood of an ultimately serious subject.

Everything seems to be taking a positive turn – Josh clocks days sober aloud- until Irene dies, sending him off the deep end. The method of relapse is original. I won’t give it away, but its agent seemed so unlikely, I looked it up- take it from me, it would work.

Starting again takes a completely different form that of the boy’s first attempt. Josh is aided from unexpected quarters. The play’s ending is inspired.

As Josh, actor Harrison Bryan is both sympathetic and empathetic. The character’s alcoholic evasiveness- as if he’s happy in the fog, his confusion, remorse, determination, derailing, and (if tenuous) joy present a believable arc.Transition speed bumps read authentic. Both physical and facial expression enrich.

Rebecca Pitcher and Harrison Zraly play multiple roles with skill.

A semi-autobiographical piece, this is astonishingly playwright Jake Brasch’s initial offering. Count me first in line for the next one. Balance of grave, often illuminating subject matter with a lighter touch is nimble and original. Details intrigue.. Insight and compassion land with great grace. Use of movement (it’s in the script) is highly creative.

Director Stephen Nachamie keeps action flowing organically. We always know when and where we are without extraneous telling. Individual character formulation is first rate, especially, as called out above, in movement. Pacing allows listening, thought and reaction.

Peter Johnson’s Scenic Design offers a minimal, yet just right backsplash.
Costumes by Chris English personify each character.

The Reservoir recently completed an off-Broadway run, gaining an Outer Critics Circle Award
nomination for outstanding new off-Broadway play.

Photos by Jeremy Johnson
Opening: Joel Leffert (Shrimpy), Lori Wilner (Beverly), Harrison Bryan (Josh), Steve Brady (Hank), Joy Franz (Irene)

The Reservoir by Jake Brasch
Directed by Stephen Nachamie
Through June 14, 2026
Shadowland Stages 98 Center Street Ellenville, New York
https://shadowlandstages.org/