By Jenny Sandman

Lauren Katz, Amy Warren, and Kate Arrington in When the Messenger Is Hot (Photo: Jay Geneske )

When the Messenger is Hot is a (mostly) light-hearted look at death and recovery. When Josie's mom dies of lung cancer, she spirals into a whirlpool of grief, depression, and anger. She certainly never expects her mother to call her three years later from a bus depot in North Dakota.

Laura Eason's play is a clever, often poignant look at the process of grieving. Josie is a typical lost urban soul—few friends or family to rely on, an adult life spent moving around, a series of usually bad and short-lived relationships. Her mother is one of the few cornerstones of her existence and when that's taken away her only refuge is in denial. That means her mother's not really dead bu t just on vacation. . .somewhere. When her mother calls three years later from North Dakota, Josie's overjoyed, but not for long. Her mother is swept up into a new celebrity existence as the only person to "return from the other side." That brings a book deal, a hit TV show and a celebrity husband. She has no time for Josie any more. And so Josie is led to the inevitable conclusion that her life is not dependent on her mother. She can move on, discover some spiritual solace and finally make a life for herself, by herself —and finally stop falling for all the wrong men.

In this mostly confessional play three actresses play Josie — all at the same time, all taking turns speaking to the audience, to each other and to the other characters. Consequently we are always privy to her internal dialogues. It's a bit of a cliché, but Jessica Thebus's tight direction keeps the concept from becoming hokey. The frisson created between the three Josies provides the play's chief conflict and keeps the play from turning into one of those dreary one-woman confessionals. . The other characters, even Josie's mother, are largely peripheral.
While When the Messenger is Hot isn't the most powerful or original production ever to come out of Chicago's renowned Steppenwolf Theatre Company, it's a great introduction to the strong ensemble dynamic for which Steppenwolf is best known. It features one of the most compelling acting ensembles in town right now so that even when the story is occasionally lackluster, the acting never is. The small, plain stage highlights the humanity on display.

When the Messenger is Hot Written by Laura Eason Adapted from the book by Elizabeth Crane Directed by Jessica Thebus With Kate Arrington, Lauren Katz, Amy Warren, Molly Regan, and Coburn Goss Costume Design: Debbie Baer Lighting Design: J.R. Lederle Scenic Design: Marcus Stephens Sound Design: Gregor Mortis Running Time: One hour and fifteen minutes, no intermission 59E59 Theaters, 59 East 59th Street; 212-279-4200 Tuesday through Friday at 8:15 pm, Saturday at 2:15 pm and 8:15 pm, and Sunday at 3:15 pm and 7:15 pm All tickets $40 Through October 28th Reviewed by Jenny Sandman based on October 11th performance