It’s their daily routine.. Katie, the waitress in small café in a small town in update New York, pours coffee for Paul every morning. It’s predictable, comfortable and a quiet oasis.
Right up until the day that Paul, a retired firefighter, asks Katie if they could take their relationship to the next level and become friends.
In The Counter by Meghan Kennedy, Katie played by Faith Fossett (Our Town, Swing State, The Thanksgiving Play) is asked by Paul played by Orlando Arriaga (The Father, Jesus Hopped the ‘A’ Train) to take a gigantic leap in their relationship from casual acquaintances to being able to open up to each other.
“It’s this beautiful play about two people who are on an awkward and bumpy journey to friendship and trying to navigate the sort of vulnerabilities when you are trying to become friends and uncovering the truths about the other person,” Fossett says.
“It’s about overcoming grief and how important it is to reach out and not isolate yourself. Sometimes we think we need to shelter ourselves away to protect ourselves from becoming hurt again, but we end up doing more damage. And how important it is to reach out and connect with other people.”
Katie and Paul seem very different but in other ways are very alike, Fossett says.
“Katie is just enjoying the everyday predictability of her life. And that is all that I want. And then he proposes friendship. OK I’ll go along with that. Now she’s surprised to find that yes, she does want deeper connection.
“Paul is funny. He’s honest and blunt. He’s got nothing to lose. He’s hurting. He’s curious He’s the other side of the coin for [Katie]. He’s ready to jump in and she’s more cautious. He’s older he’s made up his mind about what he wants to do with the best of his life.”
“He has a better understanding—according to him – in his adorable arrogance in Katie’s mind, what’s right. Katy finds that charming. She learns a lot from him.”
It’s a two-hander plus one – there’s a brief appearance by actor/director Christy Watkins – in this 80-minute, one-act. This is Fossett’s seventh show at 4th Wall. She is good friends with Watkins and the two had wanted to collaborate for a while. Exploring the themes of vulnerability and grief in the play appealed to her, she says.
“I think a lot of people ae worried about being judged a lot of the time. Shame comes into play. We get so concerned with negative feedback and how someone might respond to our choices or anything — we look how we dress how we act – and we constantly measure ourselves against other people. That we start to build this idea that we’re not good enough, that somebody is going to question our choices. We would rather just close ourselves off if we’ve been burned in the past,” Fossett says.
“It’s about these two people trying to pull each other back into the light after their own loneliness and grief,” Fossett says. “Practically anybody can relate to that and how hard it is to trust, to put yourself out there again.”
An added benefit to this being staged at Spring Street is the intimacy of the venue. “This is a great play if you want to experience being a fly on the wall. You’re going to maybe feel like you’re in the diner,” Fossett says. “We’re just two people talking and laughing and drinking coffee and I’m sweeping the floor. You walk into a situation like that if you walk into any café.”
Fossett says this play has wide appeal, but will especially hit home if someone has experienced grief and tried to work through that, she says. “How it changes you, how it changes the world around you.
” It’s about just getting yourself in front of another person and why that is so important. And I think that’s what people will take away. The reminder yeah, that’s why it’s so critical to put myself out there, even on a small level, even if it’s just checking in with another person and saying ‘How’s your day going?'”
Performances are scheduled for February 20 through March 16 at 7:30 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays and 2:30 p.m. Sundays at Spring Street Studios, 1824 Spring. For more information, call 832-767-4991 or visit 4thwalltheatreco.com $40-$70.