On Oct. 25, the Repertory Theatre of St. Louis kicks off its Steve Woolf Studio Series with the dark comedy, “The Roommate” by Jen Silverman, a two-character play starring Nancy Bell as Robyn, and Kelley Weber as Sharon. In “The Roommate,” middle-aged Sharon, recently divorced and seeking a sensible roommate, opens her home to Robyn, a mysterious woman with a murky past.

The 90-minute play strives to take audiences on a humorous adventure “of self-discovery, secrets and revelations that challenge societal norms, embrace the unexpected and revel in the reinvention that only true friendship can create,” according to press materials.

“The Roommate,” is being directed by Rebekah Scallet, artistic director of New Jewish Theatre. In a wide-ranging Q&A, the Jewish Light spoke to Scallet about the play, which also happens to be on Broadway starring Patti LuPone and Mia Farrow (the play’s small scale and St. Louis’ distance away from New York, allow the Rep to stage this production), and directing on a stage away from the Jewish Community Center campus and the Wool Theatre, her “regular” home.

How do you interpret the central themes of “The Roommate,” and what unique perspectives are you bringing to this production?

“The Roommate” is about unlocking your hidden potential no matter how old you are, and recognizing that it’s never too late to make a real change in your life.  The women at the center of this story are both stuck in the ways they’ve been living their lives to this point, and desperate to make changes. And through their interactions with each other, they both are able to spread their wings and make new discoveries about who they truly are.

In directing the play, it was very important to me to find the reality in the characters. It’s easy to sort of jump to familiar archetypes — Sharon is the traditional Betty Crocker housewife, Robyn is the rebel cool girl.  And while some of those characteristics are definitely present, we have been working to go deeper and find all the nuance and intricacies of what drives each of them.

Can you share your approach to directing the character dynamics between the two roommates? How do you plan to highlight their differences and similarities?

The script has really done most of that work for me. (Writer) Jen Silverman has created two fascinating women, both in their 50s, and both mothers of grown children, but that’s about where their similarities end. Sharon has never had a career, and her entire identity has been wrapped up in being a wife and mother.  And now that she’s divorced with her son far away, she’s no longer sure of her own identity. Robyn has definitely had, well, I suppose you could call it a career. And though she has also been married and been a mom, she never let those roles define her.  Sharon has never ventured far from her Iowa City home (though she takes pains to point out that she’s originally from Illinois), while Robyn has traveled and lived all over the place, most recently the Bronx, which terrifies Sharon.  One way we’ve worked to emphasize those differences is through costumes – my designer Lou Bird and I decided that Sharon probably just goes to Dillard’s and buys what she sees on the mannequin in the women’s section, while Robyn cultivates her own unique sense of style. This supports the work of the actors finding ways to distinguish these women from each other.

I understand the set is crucial to the production. What influenced your decisions regarding the set design and overall aesthetic of the production?

From the very beginning, I felt like this big old Iowa City farmhouse was almost like the third character in the play.  Rob Morgan, who I’ve been working with as a scenic designer, did a phenomenal job of finding research images, both of real actual Iowa City kitchens by way of online real estate listings, as well as more abstract art that captured the feeling of the world. In particular, both of us were drawn to the paintings of Andrew Wyeth, and the way he captured an idyllic, but lonely sense of country life.

As a Jewish director, do you see any parallels between the characters’ journeys and your own experiences or values? How might that influence your direction?

This is a tough question. Religion itself isn’t much of a topic of the play.  However, morality certainly is.  And I suppose my sense of morality is strongly directed by my faith.  Some of Sharon and Robyn’s actions could certainly be considered amoral, but the play is so brilliant, we find ourselves rooting for them to be “bad,” because those actions also do them so much good.  The play doesn’t really show us the people who might get hurt, so it’s easy to lose yourself in the fun of “breaking bad.” But at the end, the play also reminds us that those actions have a cost – and Sharon and Robyn each must decide if they’re willing to pay it. So lots of moral questions to wrestle with, which is very Jewish indeed

Given that “The Roommate” is also playing on Broadway with Patti Lupone and Mia Farrow, how do you plan to differentiate this production for the St. Louis audience?

Well, obviously, we don’t have Patti and Mia! I didn’t see the Broadway production myself, but I would imagine that when you have two amazing megastar actors like that, their star power has the potential to overwhelm the script.  Can you really forget that Patti LuPone is Patti LuPone when you’re watching her on stage?  Our fantastic local actors Kelley Weber and Nancy Bell have the ability to disappear and transform themselves into these roles, hopefully keeping our focus on the story.  The two of them have amazing chemistry and are bringing so much love and care to the play.  In fact, our entire design and artistic team on “The Roommate” is also St. Louis based, which has led to us crafting a production that is going to be really special for St. Louis audiences.

What do you hope the audience takes away from this production, particularly regarding its emotional and social themes?

I hope they have a great time and leave with a sense of hope for themselves and the world, knowing it’s never too late to start a new adventure.

What: The Roomate at The Rep
When: Oct. 25 – Nov. 17 
Where: The Emerson Studio Theatre, 130 Edgar Road Webster Groves, MO 63119
Ticket Info: Purchase tickets online.