Theatre Review in Transit of “What The Constitution Means To Me”
SCENE: The interior of Michael’s car, 9:45 PM. The glow of streetlights passes over the dashboard. Michael and Tony have just left North Coast Repertory Theatre’s production of What the Constitution Means to Me and are heading back home. Michael is driving. Tony is trying not to comment on Michael’s driving.
MICHAEL: So… that was something.
TONY: Right? I mean, can we just take a moment to appreciate how many words Jacque had to remember? It was like a masterclass in memorization. And her delivery! Nothing felt forced. Totally lived-in.
MICHAEL: Absolutely. And somehow, it felt more impactful than when we saw it in LA. The direction here—funnier, more intimate. She really had the audience with her.
TONY: Yeah, there were moments I honestly wasn’t sure if she was playing the character or just being herself. That ambiguity? Totally worked. Was she Heidi, the playwright? The younger character version of Heidi? Was it Jacque being herself? Kind of all three, and it pulled me in. And that debate at the end – were they really debating as themselves? Acting? Was that ad lib? Scripted? I couldn’t and I liked that I couldn’t.
MICHAEL: It was like a play within a play within… a memory? And I loved how it didn’t let me sit back and passively absorb. I felt yanked in – I was debating in my head while watching a play about debating.
TONY: Same! That debate at the end with the teenager? Genius. I was nodding furiously when she talked about abolishing the Constitution—I mean, the reasoning was solid. But then Heidi’s counterpoint about how terrifying and impossible that would be? Also completely valid. I’m still torn.
MICHAEL: Exactly. It showed how flawed that 200-year-old document is, but also how much of its power comes from our belief in it. Like, it only works because we pretend it still works.
TONY: That’s… kind of chilling, actually. And frustrating. The pace of legal change is glacial. I left inspired but also angry. Like, is this the best we can do? And yet, I don’t trust us to start from scratch. Not now. Not with… *gestures vaguely out the windshield* whatever this country’s doing lately.
MICHAEL: Fair. But I’ll say this—the play made me feel that tension. That frustration, hope, fear, admiration. It was doing something important up there.
TONY: And that’s what great theater does, right? It makes you wrestle with yourself a bit. Also—shoutout to North Coast Rep again. They never miss.
MICHAEL: Seriously. Stellar casting, great direction, and as always, they make that stage feel huge. And somehow personal.
TONY: So… would you recommend it?
MICHAEL: Absolutely. Just, you know—be prepared to leave with more questions than answers.
TONY: Which, honestly, might be the most patriotic thing of all.
They exchange a glance, the glow of the dashboard catching the smallest of smiles. The car drives on into the night.
[END SCENE]
