The Mosinee Project, New Diorama Theatre Review
Written by Emily K-N for Theatre & Tonic
Disclaimer: Gifted tickets in exchange for an honest review
Counterfactual theatre company exists to “make shows that taps into the strange, complicated underbelly of contemporary life, investigating how the past and our memory of it brought us here.” Written and directed by Nikhil Vyas, The Mosinee Project is the debut production from the company, telling the true story of the fake communist invasion of a small American town in May 1950.
Three actors take on multiple roles throughout the production, notably John Decker, Joseph Kornfedder, and Ben Gitlow. These men were all key players in the events that unfolded in the town of Mosinee.
The story is told through the reading of journal entries and dialogue from interviews from the lead up to, and during, the “invasion”. When it becomes apparent that journal entries ceased after a certain point, the narrative is invented and takes a far-fetched, dramatic turn. The actors switch from narration and direct address to the audience, back to scenes as their characters. All three give engaging performances and deliver convincing American accents.
Technical elements, such as the live use of a video camera and projections, are interesting and make the production more atmospheric when needed. The same can also be said for the use of lighting and sound, which helps to add tension.
I did find the story quite difficult to follow at times. I was also sometimes confused as to who was playing who at certain points. However, with some added costume elements and clarifications, for example, this could be easily fixed. Overall, The Mosinee Project is a well delivered play, but it just didn’t captivate me. If you’re a history buff, you may well find it highly interesting, and there is certainly a lot to take in. All that being said, I look forward to hearing about future productions from this new company.
At the New Diorama Theatre until 22 March 2025
★ ★ ★
