Marin Theatre in Mill Valley kicked off 2025 with Waste, the organizations fresh take on a century-old play that will have you on the edge of your seat.
Now they’re onto a very different but equally riveting performance with New Zealand-based Indian Ink Theatre Co. takes command of Marin Theatre’s Boyer Theatre, converting it into a capacious storage room/kitchen in the back of Mrs. Krishnan’s store, stocked to the rafters with boxes of packaged foods. In colorful party garb, her tenant, a university student and would-be DJ named James (Justin Rogers), greets visitors with a high-performance smile, lots of dazzling repartee and thumping Bollywood disco music to put them in the mood for what proves to be a wildly entertaining 80-minute ride.
Written by director Justin Lewis and Jacob Rajan, the comedy leverages the traditional Indian harvest festival of Onam. The hyperkinetic James directs visitors to don bright scarves to get with the program, to blow up balloons and toss them about and to join in the activities as much or as little as they desire. It’s a totally voluntary event — extroverts are encouraged to sit at a large table center stage, while the more timid are consigned to the “cheeky seats” surrounding it. On opening night, some audience members made significant contributions to the hilarity, especially a local named Malcolm who acted as sous chef while cracking a few jokes of his own.
No comedy is complete without tension, and Mrs. Krishnan (Kalyani Nagarajan) delivers it in full — initially reluctant, then accepting, she pours herself into preparing dal (lentils) with onions, garlic, tomatoes and rice, jabbering away as she does so. Her high-pitched staccato delivery and frenetic physical comedy combine to disarm and seduce the delighted audience.
READ THE FULL STORY ABOUT ‘PARTY’ HERE.
Barry Willis is a member of the American Theatre Critics Association and president of the San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle. Contact him at barry.m.willis@gmail.com.
What: “Mrs. Krishnan’s Party”
Where: Marin Theatre, 397 Miller Ave., Mill Valley
When: Through March 30; 7:30 tonight; 4 p.m. Sunday; 7:30 p.m. Tuesday through Friday; 2 and 7:30 p.m. March 29; 2 p.m. March 30
Admission: $10 to $97
Information: 415-388-5208; MarinTheatre.org
Barry Willis is a member of the American Theatre Critics Association and president of the San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle. Contact him at barry.m.willis@gmail.com.