"Genuinely scary" play "Wait Until Dark" puts Boston audiences into shoes of blind main character

When a fear-inducing adaptation of the classic "Wait Until Dark" opens at The Greater Boston Stage in Stoneham, two women will share the lead role.

In the play, the main character, Susan, is a blind woman who faces off against three criminals who terrorize her in her own apartment.

Eliza Barmakian, one of the actors who will portray her, has a unique perspective on the role.

"I have a rare condition called aniridia, and it has caused me to have low vision for my entire life," Barmakian said. "This show is such a great opportunity to represent my community authentically and with so much love and pride for who we are."

During rehearsal, Eliza and another actor, Jenny S. Lee, watch each other closely before alternating turns in the scene.            

Jenny explained, "I think our Susans are together like a lot stronger from being in the room with each other."

Director Weylin Symes had a tough time deciding who to cast before he thought, "What if we offered it to both? What if we split the role between two actors and we get the opportunity to tell the story in two completely different ways with two incredible actors who bring something unique to the role?     

The actors embraced the challenge.

"I think that that is the opportunity that we have with this show," said Eliza, "that we can say there is so much diversity to being blind."

Jenny explained, "Just watching the way that she moves through the world sort of teaches me. I'm always watching the way she moves her hands and sort of the way that she moves through the world. She taught me how to use a walking stick."

"It is forcing everybody in the cast to be very alive in every moment because we're basically taking turns with our Susans and so the other actors have to adjust to exactly what that person is doing and it's not the same. Jenny is not the Same as Eliza, Eliza is not same as Jenny," Symes said. 

At every rehearsal, Eliza's guide dog Zynga watches the action.

Weylin said she's been a welcome addition in the room.

"When Zynga is off of her halter, she's just a dog who we get to play with and that energy in the room has been really special," Zynga said.

While it's all smiles in rehearsal, Eliza explained you should expect to find a little fear in the theater.

She said, "We're going put the audience in the same boat as Susan. Where they can't see anything that's going on on the stage and they're going to have to listen."

"It's a mystery," said Jenny. "It's a thriller, and it is genuinely scary."

"Wait Until Dark" at the Greater Boston Stage in Stoneham opens on Friday, March 6th and runs through the 22nd.     

The matinees on the final weekend are audio-described performances, with live audio description to make the production even more accessible to members of the blind community.