Juliana Smithton is unraveling before our eyes.
That may not sound like an evening’s entertainment, but in the more than capable hands and haunted eyes of “The Other Place” star Janine Papin, it surely is.
The entertainment does not come from Smithton’s pain — for “The Other Place” is in many ways an exploration of emotional pain — but from trying to deduce the cause of Smithton’s distress and from guessing what will happen next in Sharr White’s twisty mystery.
“The Other Place” is the latest from the Ensemble Company, and it’s a showcase for Papin. (In New York, the role of Juliana nabbed Laurie Metcalf an Obie Award and a Tony nomination.)
Juliana is a scientist who works for a pharmaceutical company. She is speaking at a medical conference about a new drug that seems to be a breakthrough in neurological disorders when she notices something odd: A woman in a yellow bikini is sitting among the doctors.
The playwright teases with more information: Juliana is planning to divorce her husband, Ian. There is clear tension between her and her daughter, Laurel — not to mention Laurel’s husband, Richard. And there has been a change of address at some point in Juliana’s life. She frequently mentions “the other place” to Ian — a home where she felt safe and happy.
Sarah Malfara is suitably enigmatic in various roles in The Ensemble Company’s production of “The Other Place.” (Courtesy Matthew MacDermid, The Ensemble Company)
Under the direction of Matthew MacDermid, the minutes fly by as clues drop and playwright White cleverly makes the audience question the “facts” they think they knew. MacDermid also wisely doesn’t belabor revelations, letting theatergoers absorb the changing narrative at their own pace. And he makes the changes of scene — this is not linear or simple storytelling — easy to follow.
Jason R. Donnelly and Chad Lewis have created an effective projection design of slides that accompany Juliana’s lecture, clever in how, like the play’s narrative, the slide sequence feels real and yet also not quite right.
Gabriel Garcia’s lighting and MacDermid’s set and sound get the job done, and by that I mean they don’t intrude upon the characters, because that is where the audience’s attention is going to be.
Thomas Muniz provides solid support to Janine Papin, as his character does to hers, in The Ensemble Company’s production of “The Other Place.” (Courtesy Matthew MacDermid, The Ensemble Company)
Papin’s Juliana is irascible at first. Determined, confident and annoyed by those around her. But slowly Papin lets the pain start to leak through. Confidence gives way to confusion. It’s a shrewd performance that doesn’t give away where the story is going because to Juliana, as Papin beautifully shows, every emotional beat is real.
She is more than ably supported by three co-stars. Thomas Muniz plays Ian with an exasperated, everyman charm. He holds his own with Papin, which is saying something, and he shines when he reveals Ian’s hidden depths.
Sarah Malfara does strong work in a variety of roles, including a detached doctor, an angry Laurel and most critically, a closed-off woman who finds room in her heart for compassion. Each character feels completely different from the next, and each one makes a strong impression.
The Ensemble Company’s production of “The Other Place” provides an acting showcase for Janine Papin. (Courtesy Matthew MacDermid, The Ensemble Company)
Finally, Hunter Rogers has the least amount of stage time but a tricky job to do: He must make a retroactive impact, as we find out key and disturbing information about one of his characters after he has left the stage. Rogers delivers.
There’s a lot in play in this clever show that’s simultaneously an exciting thriller and an introspective thinker: How we deal with loss, how we deal with reality, how we deal with health, how we deal with relationships, how we deal with mortality, how we simply deal with the daily grind of living. And perhaps most poignantly, how do we find our way to the peace that is “the other place.”
Follow me at facebook.com/matthew.j.palm or email me at mpalm@orlandosentinel.com. Find more entertainment news and reviews at orlandosentinel.com/entertainment or sign up to receive our weekly emailed Entertainment newsletter.
‘The Other Place’
Length: 1:20, no intermission
Where: Imagine Performing Arts Center at Oviedo Mall, 1700 Oviedo Mall Blvd.
When: Through Nov. 16
Cost: $18-$22
Info: imagineperformingartscenter.org
https://www.orlandosentinel.com/2025/11/11/other-place-play-review-oviedo/
