The Value
Written by Nicholas Dunn. Directed by Frank Caiati
John Gilleece Theatre | Building T4 at Fort Tilden, Rockaway Park, NY 11694
May 23 - June 8
A new play presented by a staple community theatre company? Count me in.
It just so happened that I had a free night. When I received the request to review this show, it felt like fate.
Rockaway Theatre Company, or RTC, is one of the well-known theatre companies throughout the world’s borough of Queens. Its location is in historic Fort Tilden, surrounded by the Rockaway sea air.
When my guest and I walked into the theatre, we were welcomed in true Queens Community Theatre fashion, with 50/50 raffle tickets already making their way into the audience’s hands. Being an avid Queens community theatre participant, it’s comforting to hear the same sounds from theater to theater. And for this show, I needed that comfort.
This particular community production was unlike any others that usually perform. This was a once-in-a-blue-moon circumstance. The Rockaway Theatre Company debuted a brand new play, by a playwright from Utah.
Nicholas Dunn’s script caught the attention of Director Frank Caiati with unmatched colors. I see why Frank and RTC chose this one out of hundreds of submissions. The script is profound, with high stakes, and as Frank puts it in his Director’s note, “stands out for its urgency.”
Its dialogue is intriguing, keeps you guessing, on your toes, and pushes you to ponder much of human nature. It pushed me to take a moment to reflect on those in my life, and sent me in a spiral of “what ifs.” Theatre that acts as a catalyst for reflection is my kind of theatre.
Centered around a cast of 4 characters, we watch as relationships get torn apart, egos fall, empathy is squashed, murder may be attempted and the value of our own being gets put into question. The actors portrayed complex characters, each one with a want to be someone of importance, either to themselves or each other.
As I’m looking in my notes writing this review, I see different themes that constantly come up. What is enough? The art of action. The power of money and opportunity. The need to control. Knowledge. What is power? There are more, which embodies just how much The Value pushes you to think.
The play’s title explains it all. What makes something valuable? Is it money or something you can’t put a price on? 3 of the 4 characters steal a painting they eventually find out to be the ticket out of their financial and life debts. The painting is a metaphor for all of life as it relates to human nature and the length they will go to feel valuable. The anxious journey included.
When it comes to being human, can we really change? Can we really change who we are at our core? Is there really such a thing as a sure thing? All of these pondering questions are presented in a one-unit 70s decor motel room set, amplifying the feeling of feeling trapped, not only physically, but in ourselves mentally. And if we don’t take action, we might regret the action that ensues in desperate times.
The Value is running at Rockaway Theatre Company from May 23 - June 8. Get your tickets for this suspenseful play here: https://www.rockawaytheatrecompany.org/
Review by Amanda Montoni
Published by Theatre Beyond Broadway on June 8th, 2025. All rights reserved.