Susinn McFarlen as Dorothy. Photo by David Cooper.

We saw Burning Mom by playwright Mieko Ouchi late in the run, having missed opening night. This was, for my money, the least successful play so far this season. Susinn McFarlen plays Dorothy, the playwright’s mother, in this largely autobiographical play. Dorothy tells us the story of when she went to Burning Man with her son Kevin and his girlfriend. While I greatly admire an actor who can learn as many lines as McFarlen has had to learn, the play doesn’t work that well for me. While the scenes at Burning Man sometimes work well, including a temple that was quite spectacular, overall the play left me wanting more. Now closed. The set, which includes a camper van, was well-designed by Patrick Rizzoti, and the play was also well-directed by the playwright. Kirsten McGhie designed the costumes, Kim Clegg did the projections (which worked very well!) and the productions was stage managed by Ronaye Haynes.