First and most formidably brilliant, there is June Squibb.
In Marjorie Prime (2nd Stage at the Hayes Theater), Squibb is conducting nothing less than a supreme acting masterclass, playing two variations of her character Marjorie: an 85-year-old woman nearing the end of life with both a flickering grip and memory of times past, alongside a no-BS sharpness about that past and the present that surrounds her.
After Marjorie dies, Squibb—herself 96—plays Marjorie’s tech avatar, a so-called Prime (hence the title of the play), an AI, computer-programmed version of a human that lives on to ostensibly offer comfort and presence to loved ones after death. Finally, in Jordan Harrison’s play, in a softly lit afterlife, Marjorie is reunited with other loved ones, all now transformed into Primes enjoying some downtime in a heavenly realm that looks very familiar on Lee Jellinek’s very domestic set.
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