Did you make a New Year’s resolution to clean up your home and toss some of the clutter? If you haven’t succeeded, you will find a kindred spirit onstage at Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati this month in the character of Sam, whose story is told in Theresa Rebeck’s new play, I Need That. A Cincinnati native whose work is regularly produced on Broadway, Rebeck will direct ETC’s regional premiere of her play. Its original production on Broadway in late 2023 featured well-known actor Danny DeVito as Sam; DeVito’s daughter Lucy played Sam’s frustrated daughter, Amelia, constantly badgering him to reduce the overwhelming collection of lifelong possessions that fills his home.
ETC’s producing artistic director D. Lynn Meyers is quick to clarify that Sam is a “clean” hoarder. “His house is not filled with garbage,” she said in a recent interview with CityBeat. “It’s stuff he can’t let go of.” Sam is a lonely widower living by himself but frequently visited by Foster, his one friend and longtime neighbor. Daughter Amelia struggles to keep her father healthy and engaged — and one step ahead of the city department that’s ordered a clean-up. Sam repeatedly claims he’s “organizing” his belongings, but it’s clear that he’s distracted over and over by the history of his belongings. He’s quite happy to be disconnected from the world.
I Need That is right up ETC’s alley for many reasons. “This show,” Meyers said “is what we [at Ensemble] were made to do. It’s what we excel at.” Her interest in the show grew out of her constant effort to present plays that “speak to people here. Being a regional theater, caring about what people in the region care about.” Meyers is thrilled to have Rebeck in Cincinnati to stage this production. “What could be better than somebody who grew up here, who spends time here, has family here, who knows us, who comes to direct this first production since Broadway! That’s an amazing tribute to the city where she grew up. It’s an amazing opportunity for Ensemble to have her touch on our stage. I’m thrilled and honored by that.”
Rebeck actually approached Meyers with an offer to direct the show here in Cincinnati. Almost simultaneously, actor David Wohl inquired about playing Sam. He and Rebeck have worked together in New York, and he had told her he was interested in doing this show sometime. Meyers and Wohl have known each other since they worked together at the Cincinnati Playhouse years ago. “I thought this was the greatest idea ever,” she exclaimed. “He’s a wonderful actor, an incredibly kind, funny, generous soul. I’m thrilled to welcome him.”
Rebeck wrote I Need That with the engagement of DeVito and his daughter. But in a phone interview with CityBeat, she was clear that a role is seldom intended for a singular actor. “You always write it knowing that an actor is going to take on the character and bring a certain amount of energy and specificity to it. But that’s not the only way for a play or a part. … I knew pretty much what Danny could bring to it, and he did. Now I’m excited to see what David brings to it.”
Wohl will be joined onstage by two Cincinnati stage veterans: Maggie Lou Rader plays Amelia, and Ken Early will be Sam’s devoted friend, Foster. That character, Rebeck says, is important. “Sam isn’t crazy; he’s sad. He stands in grief and memory. Having a friend there solidifies that truth. They are two older people who are moving into a time when there is less in front of them. Having to accept that is both of their struggles.”
Rebeck calls her play a balancing act “between the terror of loneliness and aging and the comedy of the life force that springs into action in the middle of that.” Audiences will resonate with the story’s heart as well as the seriousness with which Sam’s story unfolds. “There’s something you learn from a relationship to the things that we hold to ourselves as we move through life,” Rebeck said. “This idea came throughout the work — that memory, the passage of things themselves is actually part of the way life goes. There’s this complicated relationship between the self and the stuff of life. There’s a kind of holiness to our collections.”
Rebeck has profound praise for ETC and Meyers’ creative team. Her script Mauritius was staged there in 2009. “I heard really good things about that production. I have seen lots of good productions there. I really love that beautiful space. That really steep rake [of the seating] gives a kind of added epic quality to the playing space.” ETC routinely does a fine job at creating lived-in environments from a vast supply of scenic properties curated by design assistant Shannon Rae Lutz, who works hand-in-hand with accomplished scenic and lighting designer Brian c. Mehring.
Meyers feels certain that I Need That is a show about people who audiences will recognize. “I don’t think there’s anyone among us who hasn’t experienced loss,” she observed. “And what it’s like to have a really good friend: The friendship between the men in this play is real and sincere, as is their heartbreak. On the other hand, you’re willing to forgive everything because it’s your friend. A good friend can’t keep up a lie. It’s so very honest.”
Heartfelt honesty is the byword for many of ETC’s shows. I Need That is a prime example, the kind of story that keeps audiences coming back.
I Need That, presented by Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati, continues through March 2. More info: ensemblecincinnati.org.
This article appears in Feb 5-18, 2025.