Gruesome Playground Injuries Review

You could forgive me for being a little bit nervous for Gruesome Playground Injuries, a two-hander following the lives of childhood friends Doug (Nicholas Braun) and Kayleen (Kara Young). A two-person show requires both performers to be excellent, and it was no guarantee that Braun–best known for the HBO hit Succession–would succeed in an intimate theatrical setting. As I took my seat, I felt a creeping fear that it would be a poor piece of stunt casting, an attempt to cash in on the phenomenon of Cousin Greg.

But my fears were quickly assuaged; Braun is quite strong in his New York City stage debut. As expected, he is tremendously funny in the comedic scenes, especially when playing the childhood version of his character Doug. And I was pleasantly surprised at his performance in the more dramatic scenes. For 90 minutes, he shows us real tenderness,  frustration, and broken-hearted anger. But yes, mostly, he gives us silly. After all, most young boys are quite silly. But I still can’t shake the sense that Braun has been cursed with his own success. Cousin Greg was the perfect role for him. Combine that with the rabid success of Succession thrusting him into the spotlight, and it’s just really difficult to look at him on stage and not see Cousin Greg. Like Shatner to Kirk or Radcliffe to Potter, it will be difficult for Braun to separate himself from Greg in our collective consciousness. But still, he's great!

Playing opposite him--anchoring the show as the Broadway vet--Young is also quite good. The problem is that she’s spoiled us with her recent string of successes (she has back-to-back Tony wins and two additional nominations across her four Broadway outings). She’s had such a phenomenal run that I expect her to blow me away with each and every performance. Gruesome Playground Injuries falls short of that. She undoubtedly elevates the material she has to work with, and Braun is better for having her as a scene partner, but still, a Tony three-peat is not in the cards.

Both Braun and Young are at their best in the younger vignettes. Young’s physicality is--as always--particularly exceptional. The free movements at 8 years old, the awkward, new-to-high-heels shuffle at 13. Young is a movement-first actress, and a master of her craft. Even as older Kayleen, this part of her performance shines. The question “How do you act drunk?” is a classic challenge for any actor, but it’s easy money for Kara Young. Acting students: watch and learn.

Importantly, the pair has solid chemistry throughout. There’s an inherent comedy to the massive size difference between them, but it doesn’t outshine the character relationship; there’s a real sense of the genuine tenderness, tension, and pain between them through the years. They mine Rajiv Joseph’s script for everything it’s worth. The trouble is, that vein doesn't go very far. It starts with promise, feeling like it might have hit the mother load, but the pocket peters out, and the depth we hope is there just isn’t.

Nevertheless, the design largely steps up where the script lets us down. The scenic and lighting design (from Arnulfo Maldonado and Japhy Weideman, respectively) were both good fun. White screens form a large box for a simple backdrop that works equally well as a school nurse’s office, a hospital room, or a funeral home. One can forgive the missed opportunity to better use the vertical levels, which Maldonado saves for a reveal in the final scene.

Weideman’s playful use of shadows during the transitions between vignettes is an enjoyable bit of artistry. The scene changes all have Braun and Young preparing for the next scene in full view before a new injury-referencing title is projected above their heads. Each transition is part of the piece, not just a chore to get to the next line of dialogue. There’s a lot to do. Costume changes, choreographed movement of two hospital-style beds, make up--and nearly all of it done by Young and Braun themselves. Still, they dragged on a bit too long. I wish audiences could sit in it and appreciate the artistry of the changes happening on stage. What the show manages to do with makeup in such little time is exceptional--shoutout to Brian Strumwasser for that particular design masterstroke. But the truth is that it’s folly to expect a 2025 audience to pay close attention to the scene changes, which get repetitive by the fourth or fifth go around. My rants against phones in the theatre are well documented. Everyone who doesn’t turn their phone off--fully off!--before curtain should feel deep shame, and theatres must do more to fight back against the scourge. But with that said, I almost couldn’t blame the man in front of me for sneaking a peak at his phone during one of the more lengthy transitions. To be clear, fuck that guy! But theatre artists need to be aware of this all-powerful technological competition for their patrons’ attention and avoid choices that provide a seemingly perfect moment to check if the babysitter texted.

But Gruesome Playground Injuries’s real struggle is not tricky transitions or impatient audiences, but a script that just isn’t quite up to par. This is most apparent in the final scene, which almost makes you feel bad for the actors who have to try and land the plane. There’s just a sort of...trailing off as our two friends reminisce about a moment in their past. As the lights went out and the applause began, I found myself thinking, “That’s it?”

It felt unfinished.

Still, it was well worth it, all things considered. Gruesome Playground Injuries is not an A-plus by any means, but not every show has to be.