Trinity’s ‘Primary Trust’ An Eloquent View of Change

PROVIDENCE, RI — “Primary Trust,” which just opened at Trinity Repertory Company, is a surreal and heartwarming fable about love and friendship.

On Wednesday evening, Artistic Director Curt Columbus noted that Eboni Booth’s Pulitzer-Prize winning play was the most performed play in America.  After the cast took their final bows, I understood why.

Primary Trust Is Heartfelt, Well Done

Taavon Gamble plays Kenneth, a 38 year old man living in the small town of Cranberry, New York. He works in a bookstore and drinks Mai Tais at his favorite hangout, a tiki bar called Wally’s. When the bookstore’s owner, Sam, announces plans to close so he can move to Arizona, Kenneth is despondent. He lives alone and has no family to depend on. However, Kenneth’s gregarious friend Bert (Rudy Cabrera) is there to provide moral support and encouragement. Eventually, Kenneth lands a job in a bank called Primary Trust.

The scene where he is interviewed by the bank’s good-natured but eccentric manager (Daniel Shtivelberg) is very funny due to the expert comic timing of the actors.

With solid direction by Tatyana-Marie Carlo, the four member cast has plenty of opportunities to shine. Gamble (“Blues for An Alabama Sky”) is an excellent actor who reaches new heights here in this performance. Kenneth is sweet and tremendously sympathetic as he struggles to overcome a tragedy in his past. Cabrera (“La Tempestad”) brings a great deal of charm and sweetness to Bert. We all wish we could have friends like him. Marina Tejada (“La Broa’ – Broad Street”) is highly amusing in multiple roles, including Corrina, the overenthusiastic waitress at Wally’s, and a distraught customer at the bank.

Shtivelberg also excels in the roles of Clay, the bank manager, and Sam, owner of the bookstore. Patrick Lynch’s set design features a row of buildings featured in Cranberry and various locations written in squares on the stage floor. In the end, Kenneth explains how important it is to value the people in your life because they won’t be around forever.

Life is constantly changing and we need to learn to adjust with those changes. It’s a simple message and delivered so eloquently by this cast.

Primary Trust runs through May 10. Trinity Repertory Company. 201 Washington Street, Providence, RI. Runtime is 90 minutes, no intermission. For tickets, call 401-351-4242 or visit trinityrep.com.