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fuzzy at Barrington Stage Company

A World Premiere Musical

By: - Jul 13, 2025

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 fuzzy
Barrington Stage Company
St. Germain Stage
July 8-July 27, 2025
Book & lyrics by Jeff Talbott
Music & lyrics by Will Van Dyke
Directed by Ellie Heyman
Cast: John Cariani, Cass Morgan, Teddy Yudain, Shraman Ghosh, Ben Clark and Carl Carter.
Music Direction Patrick Sulken; Scenic Designer Raphael Mishler; Costume Designer is Johanna Pan; Lighting Designer David Lander; Sound Designer Jason Crystal; Puppet Designer Amanda Villalobos.

The musical, fuzzy, with puppets by Jeff Talbott and Will Van Dyke, is having its world premiere at the Mark St. Germain stage of Barrington Stage Company. Frankly, I have never seen anything like it and that’s a good thing.

Although it takes some getting used to. For starters, the set really isn’t one. Rather it is a clutter with sheets covering a great lumpy shape in the middle. The band of three musicians, acoustic guitar, Ben Clark, bass, Carl Carter and piano, Sharman Ghosh, occupy one side of the small cluttered stage. On the other side, standing before a music stand with script, is the actor John Cariani. He projects the voice of fuzzy who is handled by Teddy Yudain who initiated the action behind that nondescript mound of sheets.

Everyone is on stage with chatty interaction before the action commences. When fuzzy pops up we really don’t know what in the world to expect. What follows is a most unusual evening of theatre. With understated acoustic music we are slowly brought in to knowing and deeply caring for fuzzy and his dramatic situation.

It seems that fuzzy is an aspiring playwright who has a story to tell. In a daring and involving manner this charming one act play tears down the walls of that process. Everyone on stage slips in and out of the constraints of their perceived roles. The puppeteers are also characters and there is no attempt to conceal how the whimsical puppets are in fact animated. The audience is shocked and amused when the guitarist puts in his two cents about how the drama is or isn’t proceeding. The bass player at key moments also chimes in but with huffy reluctance. He gets involved seemingly with frustration. Which echoes that of the audience, which is somewhat adrift of what is going on and how it develops.

The tone is set with fuzzy’s first song “Write What You Know.” That’s the mantra of every aspiring playwright even if said individual is a puppet. What evolves is that he has returned to the small town of his childhood. It’s a two square block, middle of nowhere, kind of place, although the home is described as cozy.

The sheets are thrown off to reveal a comfy couch which is the center of the ensuing action. As the play advances “There Is a Tiny Reprise.” Disrupting his own life fuzzy has returned, with some reluctance, to be with his ailing mother.

She has been diagnosed with cancer of one eye which has taken the form of a gradually more opaque film. The treatment, which fuzzy takes over, entails a regimen of chemo drops for a week. Then, a pause of three weeks, before they are resumed again. The treatment hinders more that it helps her vision. It is supposed to last a month, which stretches into six then several more.

Cass Morgan appears in the mix as herself as well as the voice and occasional animator of the mother puppet. This further blurs the boundaries between illusion and reality. The play began with traditional puppetry but that breaks down as the actors and musicians get in on the act. That’s a radical and enticing trope of this engaging production which has been skillfully directed by Ellie Hayman. There was the daunting task of weaving loose ends and disruptions into a cohesive whole. In this instance that’s like herding cats.

Mom is fussy and set in her ways. There are favorite TV shows she likes to watch. They are gradually enjoyed more for their radio-like sound than blurry visuals. Fuzzy is tasked with her day-to-day needs including meals. Her favorite is mac and cheese which he wants to make from scratch. She insists that she likes it from a box. After some resistance he resolves to give her what she wants. This entails “Lessons on Multi Tasking.”

Weather intrudes as an act of God with “Squirrel in the Wind.” There is sturm und drang which livens up the action. There was an unpleasant real time link to terrible disasters from pervasive climate change.

Special effects are enhanced by Cariani placing gels over an opaque projector. There is graphic illustration of her diseased eye and its treatment. All of this is done in a straight forward manner in which the process is laid bare.

Other characters appear such as Jordan, a friend of fuzzy, who is named for the river. He is featured in “Jordan’s Song.” It seems that Mom has been conned by a TV televangelist. Compared to fuzzy and Mom, who are hairy, this character is slick, thin and tube like. He has slicked back hair and the nuances of an old time snake oil peddler. It’s a fun vignette.

The theme of a play-within-a-play continues with “A Little Story About a Story.” The notion of fuzzy as the author of what is presented on stage was ever more improbable but credible. It breaks down any resistance to reality and pulls us into a form of submission. It’s like Mom’s favorite movie “Alice in Wonderland.”

Having sucked us in just how will fuzzy let us back out? Mom has fallen into a deep sleep on the couch. When fuzzy can’t wake her he calls 911. In this small town the ambulance arrives in like two minutes. She has had a stroke and that looks like it. She makes a remarkable recovery and fuzzy is free to go back to his home/home.

The finale comes as a play-within- a-play. It ends because with ersatz reality, having told his tale, fuzzy sings “I Don’t Know What Else to Say.” Nor do I for that matter, so, that’s all folks.