A Heartbreaking and Original Story from Et Alia Theater

Federica Borlenghi’s Until Dark presents a gripping tale of three siblings put to the test by a heinous act that they learn that can neither deny nor make right.

Cass (Maria Müller) is a yoga teacher and complicated human—we first see her in her apartment cross-legged on a rug, meditating but also smoking. We soon learn that she is preparing for a hearing involving an allegedly nonconsensual sexual encounter with a student, when her sister Jackie (Giorgia Valenti) an up-and-coming criminal defense attorney, arrives to take her case. She hides the evidence of her cigarettes, only to see Jackie brandish a pack herself. They have decided not to involve their youngest sister, the energetic Lisa (Luisa Galatti), who finds out and shows up anyway. The tension among the sisters as they cohabitate for the first time in years is thick and unsettling, but just as powerful is their connection and unconditional love for each other.

Jackie’s horror as she comes to realize that her sister is indefensible is gutwrenching, as is the slow erosion of Lisa’s cheery optimism. The likeable Cass has done something unfathomably terrible, and she even had it filmed. Due to the media’s rather perverse love of sex crimes, the press is camping outside the courthouse and Cass’ home. Jackie tries to save her sister anyway, in a beautifully lit courtroom scene where the two face each other, shadows across their pained faces. In one of the most haunting scenes in the play, Jackie tries to defend Cass by telling the story of her sisters own harrowing childhood trauma and sexual abuse. It’s a story that the doomed Cass doesn’t want to tell, and Jackie knows it won’t change her fate, but movingly, all she wants is for the world to understand. This dynamic is recreated a scene later, when Cass and Lisa have a tearful reunion, facing the reality of their lives and wondering where they go from here.

The three actors are astonishing—over the course of 75 minutes one grows to fully believe they have had decades together of happiness and heartbreak, joy and sadness, connection and conflict. One of the most moving scenes is when the sisters finally share a simple meal together; the all-business Jackie closes her laptop at Lisa’s request and they sit at the table, trying to re-connect by asking each other about their favorite foods, favorite colors, and favorite songs. Cass’ is the Green Day Classic “On My Own Here We Go” which the three sisters belt out cathartically. It is a poignant scene that reads bittersweet, as we realize that Cass must soon face the consequences of her actions. Federica Borlenghi’s writing is unique and genuine, presenting a story of abuse of authority, boundary betrayal, and nonconsent that is thus-far rarely told but all-too-real and pervasive.

Trigger warnings: sexual assault, non-consensual sex, psychological abuse, childhood trauma, and adolescent sexual abuse.

Until Dark is directed by Borlenghi, and co-produced by Mo Shah and Kavita Shah; Covi Loveridge Brannon is the Associate Producer and Dramaturg. It is presented at Out of the Box Theatrics through March 3, 2024. Note on Feb 22-23 and 29^th, Cass is played by Covi Loveridge Brannan, and Lisa by Anan Moioli.