A school's perfect veneer cracks in 'Eureka Day'

In a colorful classroom at the Eureka Day private school, a large banner welcomes students to the 2018-2019 school year. There are red plastic chairs, shelves lined with books, and a collection of rainbow-colored construction paper chains hung above the door.

The fictional California school at the center of the sharp comedy “Eureka Day,” running at the Huntington until June 28.  The school is a place that tries valiantly to get everything right. The school’s executive committee aims to be inclusive, respect other’s thoughts and facilitate community discussions to mitigate challenging processes.  But reaching a consensus comes with a lot more than just the artisanal scones the group loves. There are long debates, sometimes performative niceness, and tons of tension.

And the show’s director Margot Bordelon (who also directed the wonderful “John Proctor is the Villain”), is an expert at building up and then teasing out that tension.  A mumps outbreak in the school is pushing them to take a stance on a vaccine policy and getting a consensus feels impossible.

The small cast—Nancy Lemenager portrays Suzanne, Ken Cheeseman is Don, Eunice Woods is Carina, Sasha Diamond is Meiko, Japhat Balaban is Eli, and Ebony Marie plays Winter—is excellent in this show where a health scare ignites fierce clashes over politics and bias that test the community’s bonds.

The social dynamics of the group emerge quickly. Don (who really is nice) keeps the peace, Suzanne breaks that while always pushing her point of view, Eli just wants to be heard and cuts everyone off, Suzanne speaks for or cuts off Meiko’s voice, and Carina is offered a chance to speak, but is often cut off. Carina is new, Suzanne says, so even though she may not understand how things work at Eureka Day, it’s important to hear all points of view, even if the family is on financial aid. It’s something Suzanne, a well-heeled founder of the school — beautifully appointed by scenic designer Luciana Steccon — assumes about Carina, likely because Carina is Black. Yet such assumptions can blind even the well-intentioned. And Suzanne, a white woman, isn’t the only one who has them.

The playwright Johnathan Spector explores how we think about people whose choices, skin color, politics, or religion differ from our own. The play navigates murky moral terrain, but it’s funny and resonant because it’s so relatable, particularly given the vaccine divisions the coronavirus pandemic sparked.

The thought-provoking “Eureka Day” premiered at the Aurora Theatre Company in Berkeley, California in 2018 before moving to The Old Vic in London in the fall of 2022. Later, the show made its way to Broadway in December of 2024, at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre.

One of the best scenes in the show is a community Zoom call where the group discusses the mumps outbreak, the school’s closure and what to do about the vaccine policy. As Don looms toward the camera while addressing everyone, the Zoom chat erupts with messages.

Projection designer John Horzen & UptownWorks, lighting designer Cha See and sound designers Daniel Hart, Noel Nichols, Bailey Trierweiler & UptownWorks all work together to project the spirited messages in chat on the wall behind the decision-making committee who struggle to maintain control as they share what’s happening.

There are some folks in the chat who swear that ginger and turmeric are more helpful than vaccines, others who are furious about paying tuition while the school is closed and others who get into arguments and stoop to name-calling. Some only respond only with emojis.

One parent writes, “What do stupid people and dead people have in common? The dead people don’t know they’re dead either!” Another parent quips, “Maybe IGNORANCE is a communicable disease.”  Amid the Zoom chatter a pediatrician tries, and fails, to break through with medical advice.

In addition to the vaccine debate, there are real burdens shared, secret affairs and very sick children.  And one final battle is a bridge too far that changes the committee for good. Sometimes change is a good thing, even if it takes time to see it that way.

Early in the show the characters work so hard to be nice and inclusive that it’s a wonder how they can get anything done.  To make anything happen they discuss all points of view for hours, one member mentions.  But still, even though many, if not all of the characters miss the mark, it’s commendable that they keep trying.  Besides, as Don says, let’s try to remember “no one is a villain.”

It’s the Eureka Day way.

The Huntington Theatre production of “Eureka Day” shows through June 28.