The Guys is a one-act play written by Anne Nelson that deals with the very personal aftermath of 9/11. According to everyone involved in this production, you should not let the heavy idea of that day deter you from seeing this play, which is ultimately about healing.
Director Kate Hinman told The Reporter, “This play is wonderful. I’m a little biased, but it is a script that I immediately ordered when I heard about it.”
The Guys is a long one-act play. It will last just under one hour and is based on the real story of a fire chief in New York who lost men on 9/11.
“It takes place in an apartment one week after 9/11,” Hinman said. “A character named Nick is starting to write eulogies for eight of his men. Having a hard time, he gets in touch with a writer-turned-editor named Joan who helps him write these eulogies. It’s very powerful. Not only because of the content and topic, but it is brilliantly written. It is told through monologues that Joan has, then she steps into dialogues with Nick.”
Hinman has been in theater most of her life. She started performing at the age of 5 and told The Reporter her first paying job was as a lighting technician in her high school. She enjoyed that so much she now prefers to work the lights for her own shows, even when directing.
Hinman said this was an interesting and challenging play to cast.
“I had eight or nine women come to auditions, but I only had three men show up,” Hinman said. “I knew two of the men, but the gentleman who got it, Joe Aiello, just kind of showed up out of the woodwork. I’d heard his name, but I didn’t know Joe. The woman I ultimately cast, Julie Wallyn, I had worked with in other shows together.”
Hinman said she had to schedule callbacks to make her final decision.
“When we had the callback, I also wanted to know what drew people to this show,” Hinman said. “I got some interesting answers. Some people had very personal connections to 9/11.”
Joe Aiello plays the fire department captain, Nick, in The Guys. Aiello has been acting for over 35 years. Speaking of the men who gave their lives during 9/11, Aiello said, “They were just regular folks who were called to do something heroic. It is important to remember those who were lost, but it is also important to think of the people who served every day.”
Aiello’s character, Nick, is a captain who has lost men and has been called on to give their eulogies.
“He’s at a loss,” Aiello said. “He is grieving himself, but he doesn’t have the time or the chance to grieve because now he has to come forward and talk about these other guys. He has to put his own grief and anger and frustration on hold.”
Julie Wallyn, who plays Joan, began acting when she was in grade school but then took a 39-year break, getting back to community theater five years ago.
When asked why she wanted to be in this play, Wallyn said, “One of the things that attracted me to the story is that it’s based on fact. Everything in this play was run by the actual fire captain that my character interviewed.”
She was also drawn to the way this story celebrates the humanity of the firemen involved.
“It’s such a wonderful story told in such a wonderful way and I love how it humanized some really ordinary people who did some super-heroic things when they sacrificed their lives,” Wallyn said. “When people watch this, they are going to find out which fireman had a great recipe for apple salad and which fireman loved to restore old cars.”
Both actors and the director wanted to stress that this is not a play about tragic events, but rather about healing.
“I don’t want people to be afraid to come,” Wallyn said. “I’m afraid people think it’s too heavy or too painful. I don’t want them to stay away because it’s not like that. It’s a journey. Don’t stay away because you think it’s going to be too sad.”
Aiello also pointed out the play is not focused on the events 9/11.
“It’s about people – that’s what it’s about,” Aiello said. “How they are trying to overcome this tragedy. It’s more of a celebration.”
Wallyn added, “It’s about the strength of human beings.”