Don’t let the title fool you, James Graham’s “Punch” may make you think it’s about nothing but physical violence, but, and while that’s kinda true, this is a “punch” that hits you more emotionally and not physically. It’s a riveting, highly compelling tale of redemption and community found in the least likely of places anyone could ever expect, and, without giving away too much about the storyline, you will be astonished, and even moved, as to where it’s found. It doesn’t take long for you to bite the bait this show gives you to be hooked, and once you’re hooked, the ride is one you don’t want to get off of.
Graham’s structuring may be a little in and out in terms of clarity (really just a little in the first act), but the rest is standing on solid ground as you’re guided through the long winding road by our protagonist. It moves at the swiftest of paces, but gives plenty of time to digest and savor the events that transpire. It’s dialogue is rich in a tapestry of elevated and gruff language, as well as in genre ranging from gritty crime drama, to light and dark humor, and some highly impactful lines that lift the play off the page even more. What more can you ask for in a play?!
Adam Penford’s watchful eye over it all is minimal (same in design), but knows how to get the points and messages across with iron-fisted directness, slick precision, and a great amount of subtly that keeps the whole operation grounded with no chance of loosing its footing. But the pathos he evokes and fleshes out through his onstage team is some of the most honest displays of emoting I’ve seen in a good while. And you wanna talk about a fantastic display of work, Robbie Butler’s lighting and Alexandra Faye Braithwaite’s sound/music are exceedingly evocative and wonderfully atmospheric to the overall tone and energy of the piece.
As for the cast, they’ve been molded into a well-oiled ensemble machine that can change characters at the drop of a dime with distinction and mental agility, with the highlight being our protagonist played by a more than admirable Will Harrison. To see the kaleidoscope of a journey and feelings Harrison displays is artistry at its absolute finest. The complexity, internal depth, and vulnerability he brings to his position is so powerful and well-measured that you will root and holler as he goes through the rollercoaster this story brings about. Seriously, his performance is Tony-worthy bait at its finest.
Manhattan Theater Club has been pumping out the hits these last few years, and they’re still on quite the roll with “Punch” joining their ever growing archive of new works and critical classics. It’s that kind of play that brings home, with pure honesty, the all-too-true fact that we are never alone in any fight; that support is real, and overcoming life’s trials, even the worse ones, is possible. There’s power in change, power in facing the hardest of emotions, power in internal and external growth, things that today’s world seems to have forgotten not entirely, but enough so that it’s causing too much friction amongst us. “Punch” is the reminder we need to know that all of this can make a positive impression on our carbon footprint. I hope it does in the limited run it’s been given, and I hope you’ll be able to witness it before its conclusion.
