Suspended without pay from her office job for punching a co-worker after he touched her ass, Divi (writer Danielle Rodd) senses her unacknowledged anger management issues spiraling out of control. As a solution, she impulsively attempts to “heal” herself by embarking on an Eat Pray Love-style journey to Columbia and Bali. Once there, she chattily consumes ceremonial cacao or practices yoga until her toddlerhood traumas are triggered again, and she departs for her next destination.
With material about intentional meditation and Balinese basket-weaving, on paper this could easily be a prototypical navel-gazing Fringe show. But in this intimate solo show, Rodd’s low-key humor and unaffected vulnerability captured my empathetic interest right until the abruptly enigmatic ending.
Interactions with prerecorded off-stage characters are paced awkwardly, and scene transitions could stand tightening. However, powerful emotional outbursts give Divi’s impassioned pleas for personal space the impact of a gut-punch. The self-improvement process might not always be easy to stomach, but the ugly truth is important to hear and Rodd is a performer who makes you want to lean in and listen.
Orlando Fringe: Tickets and times for “The Process Is Ugly”
Orlando Family Stage
This article appears in May 8-14, 2024.