Lessons in letting go: In 'Rheology,' Shayok Misha Chowdhury's secret weapon is his physicist mother

In “Rheology,” Shayok Misha Chowdhury, an experimental theatre artist, and his mother, Bulbul Chakraborty, a theoretical physicist, span the connection of their antithetic disciplines to research a taxable beloved to some of them: loss.

Chowdhury, writer of the play “Public Obscenities,” a 2024 finalist for the Pulitzer Prize, and the manager of the sensational off-Broadway accumulation of Jordan Tannahill’s “Prince Faggot,” is arsenic tenderly devoted to his parent arsenic the young Marcel was to his ain successful Proust’s “In Search of Lost Time.” The thought of his parent dying is insupportable to Chowdhury, but fixed that she’s successful her 70s and he’s successful his 40s definite terrifying realities indispensable beryllium faced.

“Rheology,” which is receiving its West Coast premiere astatine REDCAT (in a little tally ending Saturday), is the portion they’ve created to hole Chowdhury for that fateful day. This strikingly staged Bushwick Starr, HERE Arts Center and Ma-Yi Theater Company accumulation is an interdisciplinary experimentation that is arsenic playful successful its methodology arsenic it is superior successful its probe aims.

Chakraborty, a prof astatine Brandeis University, starts disconnected with a physics lesson. Her taxable is sand, and she poses a elemental question: Is the soil pouring done the hourglass sitting connected the antagonistic earlier her a liquid oregon a solid?

A charismatic teacher, she knows however to Socratically prosecute a room. Her welcoming mode draws retired from the assemblage the antithetic ways soil behaves some similar a coagulated and similar a liquid.

Shayok Misha Chowdhury and Bulbul Chakraborty successful “Rheology” astatine REDCAT.

(Courtesy of Roy and Edna Disney CalArts Theater (REDCAT)
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Rheology, oregon the subject of however a substance responds to outer stress, is her main interest. Her research, focused connected brushed condensed matter, has been seeking a broad mentation to explicate the funny elasticity of specified material. A photograph of a soil dune, successful which she’s seated alongside Chowdhury arsenic a toddler, helps exemplify her constituent that soil tin travel similar a liquid yet clasp its signifier similar a solid.

An onstage sandbox is much than conscionable different ocular accompaniment to her talk. It’s a root of some elemental enigma and childlike wonder. But elucidation is her motive. She enters the container with her bare feet, noting the mode the soil flows astir her toes yet supports her value successful reflection of the regularisation that “every atom has to beryllium successful unit balance.”

She writes equations connected the committee to explicate these findings, equations that statesman to glow arsenic the accumulation moves from the realm of axenic subject to the much slippery domain of art. The transition, similar each aspects of this piece, is frolicsomely conducted.

While pouring soil from 1 instrumentality to another, Chakraborty appears to beryllium flooded with dust. For a moment, it’s not wide if this is portion of the amusement oregon a aesculapian incidental until Chowdhury, discreetly occupying a spot successful the audience, asserts himself arsenic the director. He asks his parent to tally done the decease country with a antithetic series of movements and introduces the accompaniment of George Crotty connected cello to liberate her performance.

They are rehearsing not truthful overmuch Chakraborty’s extremity but Chowdhury’s reaction. He assumes helium volition autumn isolated and vows to dice himself retired of heartbreak. Chakraborty wants him to transportation connected his work, conscionable arsenic she carried connected her probe arsenic a parent with a young lad who would wail uncontrollably erstwhile she would driblet him disconnected astatine daycare.

She recounts that his affectional outbursts were truthful utmost that it was achy leaving him behind. But she was assured that helium was handling the separation. For proof, she was taken into a backstage teacher’s room, wherever done a one-way reflector she saw him constitute himself soon aft her departure and commencement to play with the different children.

Mother and lad enact a akin concern where, aft a much imperishable leave-taking, she tin drawback a glimpse of her lad recovering himself sufficiently to past her loss. Chowdhury, a queer creator who enjoys sampling show modes, adopts the fig of the grieving Bollywood widow. The effect isn’t to lampoon but to face his earthy emotion and to trial his capableness for resilience.

The experimentation mightiness dependable sentimental, but Chakraborty, the production’s concealed weapon, maintains a technological restraint, albeit 1 suffused with maternal anguish. The mode she listens to her son, takes successful his feelings, mildly suggests different possibilities of effect and treats his experimental theatre portion with the aforesaid dignity arsenic her ain probe is incredibly moving to witness. Her show won an Obie Award, and though she insists that she’s not an histrion she demonstrates a sincerity and collaborative grace that galore seasoned performers would envy.

As it unfolds, “Rheology” tin look piecemeal, adjacent haphazard. There’s an informality built into the production, but it’s somewhat deceptive due to the fact that the mercurial staging is highly precise. Chowdhury’s absorption has ocular panache. Kameron Neal’s video plan transforms Krit Robinson’s portion lab, portion lecture hallway acceptable into thing kaleidoscopic.

When parent and lad sing songs from the celebrated rhythm by Bengali writer-composer and Nobel Laureate Rabindranath Tagore oregon clasp a deathbed speech successful Bangla, the portion spins further crossed clip and space. Empiricism gives mode to surrealism. But the world, arsenic immoderate idiosyncratic probing into the atomic level tin attest, contains much secrets than meets the eye.

Fragile substance is Chakraborty’s specialty, and her expertise is enactment to caller usage successful shoring up her son’s tender heart.