‘Belleville’ cast is all-hands-in for modern thriller

Liz Sierra understands the importance of chemistry with “Belleville” co-star Trey Santiago, as they portray an American couple whose marriage may be on the brink of unraveling in Paris.

It’s a chemistry that was already in place thanks to “The Motherf***** with the Hat” – another Binghamton University play in which Sierra and Santiago portrayed a couple.

“It was easy for me to bring that experience of working with Trey into ‘Belleville,’” said Sierra, a junior from Manhattan. “I was familiar with him and when we did ‘The Hat,’ we hung out outside of rehearsals. There is a vibe there. There is a chemistry there. It’s built in – and I’m happy that’s the case.”

The Sierra-Santiago team returns to the stage at 8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 20, when “Belleville” opens at the Chamber Hall in the Anderson Center for the Performing Arts. The play by Amy Herzog will also be performed at 8 p.m. Oct. 21, 27-28 and at 2 p.m. Oct. 29. Tickets are $18 for general admission; $16 for faculty, staff, seniors and alumni; $10 for students ($5 for students on opening night).

“Belleville” tells the story of Zack and Abby, who have just moved to a bohemian neighborhood in Paris. Zack works for Doctors Without Borders, while Abby is a former actress who is teaching yoga. The pair is soon forced to deal with marital secrets that also affect their friendship with a couple who happen to be the building superintendents—Alioune and Amina (played by Robert Edwards and Mayah Wells).

Edwards and Wells create their own crucial chemistry as a young Senegalese couple raising their family in this Parisian neighborhood.

“We’ve known each other and have so many things in common,” Wells said of her work with Edwards. “It’s been easy for us to have a relationship and closeness. It was easy for us to experience a new accent, a new language and to have fun with it.”

Director Anne Brady – a professor in the Theatre Department – said the chemistry and trust on display enables the actors to make hurtful comments believable on stage.

“Having fun and trusting each other gives the actors permission when you ‘attack’ that it’s going to be OK when the scene is over,” she said. “As we delve into the scenes, we can take bigger and bigger risks. The more that (chemistry) builds, we can take bigger risks to love and hurt each other.”

For Brady, “Belleville” is more than just a play about unraveling, mysterious relationships.

“At first the relationship between this couple seems ideal,” she said. “Then the tension starts to ratchet up and you start to wonder exactly what is going on in their relationship and exactly why they are in Belleville, Paris. You begin to question whether he is the devoted husband he appears to be, and whether his wife is as emotionally needy and unstable as he keeps telling her that she is.

“The thrill of this roller coaster of a play takes off and the audience is along for the ride,” Brady added. “It is a lot of fun, filled with humor and laughs, as well as suspense.”

Brady also said the contemporary nature of “Belleville” (it opened in 2011) helps the cast.

“One of the great things about the play is that the characters are all in their 20s,” she said. “It’s a challenge to find plays for young actors in which they are close to their age range.”

Both Sierra and Wells were unfamiliar with “Belleville” before auditions.

“When I did the cold readings, it was ‘whoa!’” Sierra recalled. “I am so glad to be doing this. The first fall Mainstage plays are always so good. They are so interesting and full of life. You have to be part of it.”

“There are ups and downs,” said Wells, a sophomore from Boston. “I liked the creativity of the play.”

The cast was able to research the Parisian neighborhood of “Belleville” and Senegalese immigration by speaking via teleconference with Ibra Sene of the Dakar Institute of African Studies. Sene spoke to the cast about Senegalese culture and the experiences of moving to a new country.

Dora Polachek, a visiting associate professor in the Department of Romance Languages and Literatures, helped the cast with its French.

“It takes a village,” Brady said.

Collaborating with Sierra, Wells and Edwards for the first time has been exciting for Brady.

“I love going to rehearsals each day and working together,” Brady said. “I value the (cast’s) input. Is this working? Is that working? Let’s try this. Let’s try that. I’m a big experimenter, so we explore until we feel like the story is being told.”

Sierra and Brady said they are ready for the audience to take the “Belleville” journey.

“This play will make the audience react,” Sierra said. “It shows a lot of the gutty, nasty parts of a relationship that aren’t spoken about, but are there in every relationship.”

“I want the audience at times to be on the edge of their seat,” Brady said. “And at times, also relating to the issues that come in relationships. They aren’t just issues we see in Zack and Abby’s relationship or Alioune and Amina’s relationship. They are reflective of our own relationships. There are secrets.”