'The Counter' review — a slow-brewing thriller
Read our review of The Counter off Broadway, a new play written by Meghan Kennedy, directed by David Cromer, and presented by Roundabout Theatre Company.
There’s something brewing in playwright Meghan Kennedy’s new Off-Broadway play The Counter. Through the piercing quiet, director David Cromer pours a low-key thriller upon Roundabout Theatre Company's Laura Pels Theatre stage.
Kennedy laced her script with realistic small talk. The onstage rapport between a diner's lone server, Katie (Susannah Flood), and her regular coffee customer, Paul (a world-weary Anthony Edwards), is a persuasive spark, their conversational shorthand turning into serious corners of secrets, regret, morality, and decay. Their exchanges boil over with Paul’s bombshell request: Sick of his meager existence, he trusts Katie to one day poison his coffee so he can go out on his own terms.
The Counter crawls through Katie’s attempt to dissuade Paul, his will to live perhaps depending on the flow of secrets between them. There are plum monologues for Flood, who has convincing frettiness curbed by her aw-shucks demeanor, but her character’s definitive secret (involving the clearing of voicemails) doesn’t quite bubble to persuasive poignancy.
The play is aware that Katie and Paul’s friendship veers on creepiness; respective soliloquies describe their stalker-ish observations of the other’s lives outside of diner. The play doesn’t moralize this dynamic more than it underlines their desperation to know the other and fill the emptiness in their lives, though their interactions gloss over this idea, making it feel miscalibrated within the rest of the play.
Although Kennedy cautions against expecting a sugary resolution, I find it head-scratching that the denouement dips its fingertips into schmaltz, an awkward cherry floating atop a bitter coffee.
The Counter summary
Katie, a waitress at an upstate New York diner, serves Paul, a regular customer. Small talk about banal subjects gives way to secrets and concern for one another. Disappointed with the unremarkability of his life and the impending pain of aging, Paul asks Katie to poison him on her chosen day, known only to her. Over multiple visits, Katie tries to dissuade him by occupying his thoughts with her own secret.
What to expect at The Counter
At 75 intermissionless minutes, the play is so focused on Paul and Katie’s interactions that they seem to own the space. It becomes a little startling when a third character (an excellent Amy Warren) briefly enters into the otherwise two-hander show.
Scenic designer Walt Spangler’s diner set feels as humdrum as required of the small-town feel. The set juts toward the audience at a 45-degree angle, obscuring some details from certain angles and hampering my engagement in Flood’s performance. Those seated closer to stage right may not catch Flood’s profile and process her crucial emotional expressions.
What audiences are saying about The Counter
As of publication, 48 users on Show-Score collectively granted the play an average 75% audience approval rating.
- "Great exploration of human experience… This is a gem of a show for those seeking a quiet play.” Show-Score member Show Addict
- Show-Score member @Piwacket gave it a 3 out of 5 stars, complimenting the "themes of friendship and connection explored and how sharing more personal details deepends our intimacy and sense of connection." This review and others on Show-Score also warn of sightline issues.
- “The play was humorous and heartfelt it demonstrates the value of interpersonal relationships and the ways in which showing vulnerability may save lives I was impressed by the set of the play. I smelled each time Katie would pour a cup of coffee for Paul, which allowed me to feel a closeness to the characters at one point I started to connect with Katie monologue about her past experiences. The play brought up tough topic people are afraid to hear so I would advise a disclaimer but overall I enjoyed the story.” - My +1 at the show
Read more audience reviews of The Counter on Show-Score.
Who should see The Counter
- People should see The Counter if they like shows with a quiet atmosphere, something Cromer is known for his direction of The Sound Inside and The Band’s Visit.
- Those who have experienced Meghan Kennedy’s previous plays, like Napoli, Brooklyn (which was also premiered at Roundabout) should see her latest work.
- Those with a taste for compact slow-burn drama with two talents should come to see Edwards and Flood.
Learn more about The Counter off Broadway
The mug of introspection that is The Counter has its clashing ingredients, though Anthony Paul and Susannah Flood are a believable pair.
Photo credit: The Counter off Broadway. (Photos by Joan Marcus)
Originally published on