There are two main storylines in “Water by the Spoonful”, playing now at the Little Theatre of Norfolk, and they are cleverly separated by a screen which comes down and blurs the plotline taking place mainly in an online chatroom as the plotline taking place “IRL” plays out.  The “IRL” (in real life) action centers around Elliot, a Marine recently returned from Iraq, and his cousin Yazmin, an adjunct music professor, as they deal with Elliot’s mom’s final stages of cancer (and a whole bunch of deep-seated family trauma).  Meanwhile, when the screen rises, you are suddenly inside an online chatroom functioning as a support group for people recovering from addiction to crack cocaine. 

Sounds heavy, right?  You would not be mistaken.  This show is not exactly a good time (although there are some very funny moments weaved into the smartly written, Pulitzer Prize winning script).  But – it is an important piece, and a bold choice of show by LTN – a choice that is rewarded by amazing technical work and remarkable acting. 

First of all – when the screen rises and you see the set for the online chatroom world, you will be blown away.  Designed by Dasia Gregg, this set is like looking into a dollhouse, with four rooms on stage stacked on top of each other two by two.  Each of the four rooms are totally different, detailed, and feel lived in.  I was particularly enamored with the different walls in each of the rooms, which align with the situation in life that the individuals who log into the chatroom are currently in.  And lighting designer Derrion Hawkins has outdone himself with his work here.  His lighting complements the set, with each room lighting up separately, indicating if someone is currently in the room.  The boxy rooms are outlined by rope lights and a name plate with their chatroom username lighting up around the room when the occupant is online and available.  The lighting dims in the other rooms when one individual is soliloquy-ing.  And there are a couple of special effects with the lighting later on that are executed to a T.

But that’s not all – the lighting and sound (designed by Jimmy Dragas) interact with the story perfectly.  For example, when the site moderator (a user by the name of HaikuMom) censors out curse words from the other users, the censored user’s rope lights react along with a censoring sound effect (much like the sound effect on ESPN’s “Around the Horn”, if you know it).  The lights and sound effects when someone logs on or off feels just like an old AIM chatroom, where you would wait for that rush of joy when the little “ding” indicated that a friend was online.  And the sound and lighting effects, both subtle and not so subtle, hit their cues impeccably and don’t overpower the scene, but rather enhance the action on stage.  Really excellent technical work.

And we haven’t even gotten to the acting yet!  Yonathan Tekleab navigates the tough role of Elliot with aplomb.  Elliot, who has a LOT going on, could easily come across as cringy or over-wrought, but Tekleab is dynamic, going through the ups and downs with his character, hitting each beat of the show on the nose.  Cousin Yazmin is played by Anyssa Castillo, and she goes through her own journey of self-discovery while trying to help usher Elliot through this tough time.  Castillo plays the changing hopes and dreams of Yazmin beautifully – you can almost palpably see the change happening in her face and demeanor, as Yazmin embraces what she finds she wants from life.

Laura Agudelo, in the role of HaikuMom, is the quarterback and cheerleader of her small online community of cocaine addicts.  Agudelo is believable and heartbreaking as she encourages her community with her daily poems while coping with her own addiction and the pain it has caused in her life.  A powerful role executed masterfully. 

The youngest member of the chatroom is Vivian Ruiz’s Orangutan.  Ruiz’s character has recently moved to Japan, and is logging in from various internet cafes, while also trying to figure out who she is as a person.  She is snarky at times, devastating at others, and honest throughout.  A stunning performance.

Roger Wilson plays username ChutesandLadders, who is dealing with his recovery from cocaine addiction by being happy to just let time stand still, ignoring phone calls in his IRS job, not hurting anyone, and not getting high.  Wilson brings a breath of fresh air to the show and is a revelation in the role.  He is hilarious, delivering lines such as “I always give crack the respect it deserves” and “I was the kid who ATE the crayons” with such vigor that you can’t help but laugh.  All the best lines are saved for him – or maybe he just makes his lines the best.  And his journey from start to finish is inspiring and unexpected, as he and Orangutan demonstrate such a strong friendship, complementing and pushing each other to go past their comfort zones. 

A late entrant to the chatroom world is Ryan Murphy’s Fountainhead.  Fountainhead is just now coming to terms with being an addict, and comes into the room with an air of confidence that he has the willpower to defeat the addiction, not necessarily understanding yet that this will be a lifelong struggle.  Murphy oozes with this confidence, and as he becomes more incorporated into the lives of the chatroom members, begins to understand the battle that lies ahead of him and the importance of the community here.

With so much plot going on, and a full six dynamic characters all with their own journeys, it would be easy to lose one or more of them to the background.  Director Kari VanderLaan ensures that does not happen.  She gives each actor the space to get their story across, not emphasizing any one over the other.  VanderLaan does an excellent job of designing sudden, tense moments on stage as well as moments of joy and surprise, coordinating her technical elements with the actors.  And I particularly liked how she got her chatroom actors to work in the space, with over-the-top reactions feeling just like how online interactions can feel.  It is like the actors are acting out how you might read someone’s post, rather than how you might type it, fitting the conceit of the story like a glove. 

While there is a literal meaning in the show for the title, the phrase “Water by the Spoonful” is really a statement on the process of recovering from addiction.  It is a never-ending process requiring incredible patience, taking it one day at a time – just like the painfully slow process of quenching your thirst by drinking water by the spoonful.  Could you do it?  And doubly – could you continue to live life to its fullest while doing it?  Or would you give in to temptation and seek the momentary high of gulping down the whole bottle?  This show doesn’t ask easy questions, but it makes the point that, with a supportive community around you, those questions can be made a little easier.