Photo by Joan Marcus

A new American play, especially one written by a playwright as young as Mr. Harmon, finding its way onto Broadway is always a thing to be celebrated. But something that's even more worth celebrating is Harmon's depiction of the young gay male on stage. Far too often has the gay character been reduced to the role of court jester or feisty, one-dimensional sidekick in both musical theatre and straight plays. Thanks to Significant Other, he is now front and centre in all his complicated, nuanced glory. Jordan Berman, masterfully played by Gideon Glick in a career-defining performance, is stripped bare in front of us over the course of the two hour comic-drama. He is endearing and aggravating, manic and melancholy, caring and selfish - his complexities are a dream for any stage actor. In contrast, the structure of the play is quite simplistic. We quickly get to know a group of four close friends - Laura (Lindsay Mendez), Vanessa (Rebecca Naomi Jones), Kiki (Sas Goldberg) and Jordan - the only male in the clique. One by one, each of his female comrades finds a partner and settles down, via colourful bachelorette parties and traditional weddings, leaving poor Jordan dwelling in singledom. There are no great surprises in the script and I would personally love for Significant Other to be produced as a TV sitcom mini-series, however, the human beings we get to know have us gripped. On the evening I attended, I have never heard as much verbal confirmation from an audience with echoes of recognition, approval and disapproval ringing throughout the theatre. Looking around, these cries weren't just coming from young gay men in the audience either, but from middle-aged and senior middle class straight people too.

Jordan's interactions with his grandmother (a sublime Barbara Barrie) are an essential ingredient in the piece, not only giving it a multi-generational appeal but also intensifying the young character's sense of loneliness as each of his contemporaries starts that new chapter in their lives and he only has his ageing grandmother to discuss his "social life" with. And hats off to supporting actors John Behlmann and Luke Smith who convincingly portray six of the play's subsidiary male characters between them.

I applaud Joshua Harmon for developing his lead protagonist as a "warts and all" kinda figure. I related to him for the most part and was, at times, irritated by his self centeredness. Perhaps something I see in myself but am reluctant to admit it? As Laura preaches "Sometimes you just have to recognise the moments when it's not just about you," the room took in a big sigh, as if collectively holding up our hands and saying: "You got us there..." And I also applaud Harmon for not choosing an easier cop-out of an ending to the play.

I look forward to following the blossoming career of Mr. Harmon and encourage you to experience his current piece. It ticks many of the boxes for a thought-provoking trip to the theatre, whether those thoughts relate to your own life or that of a lonely friend maybe. At the end of the day, you'll realise you are not alone.

Click here for tickets to Significant Other for performances through to July 2, 2017 at Broadway's Booth Theatre.

- by Tom Millward