“Gruesome Playground Injuries,” written by Rajiv Joseph, is an unconventional play that blends heartbreak, pain, humor, and recklessness into the complex, lifelong relationship between Doug (former Independent Editor-in-Chief Andrew Spielmann ’25) and Kayleen (Lauren Mei ’27). Directed by Texaco Texeira-Ramos ’26, the show ran from Feb. 20–23 in the Loeb Experimental Theater, offering the audience an up-close experience of the flaws and fragility of human relationships. Told in a non-chronological order, the play explores key moments in their lives through both physical and emotional wounds.
The play begins in a school nursery, where the cavalier Doug meets the sharp-witted Kayleen. Doug bears a fresh cut from riding his bike off the roof, while Kayleen is nursing a stomach ache. When Kayleen asks why he did it, Doug gives his recurring answer: he doesn’t know. Her curiosity leads her to ask if she can touch his wound, and though hesitant, Doug agrees. Although the play unfolds across different stages of the characters’ lives, Spielmann and Mei skillfully embody the shifting emotional states of each phase, capturing the full evolution of their relationship. Their chemistry becomes evident as they draw the audience into moments of unspoken longing, frustration, and emotional tenderness, fostering a deep sense of genuineness.
Despite just being an introduction to the characters, this first scene establishes crucial dynamics that persist throughout the play. First, it reinforces Doug’s belief that Kayleen has a healing effect on him, reflecting his deep physical and emotional attachment to her. Additionally, Doug’s remark that “girls don’t get scars” foreshadows a recurring theme in their relationship—while Kayleen is often positioned as the caretaker, attention is primarily given to Doug’s physical injuries, leaving Kayleen’s emotional pain overlooked.
The physical set was minimalistic, consisting of two chairs, a screen, and a changing rack where the actors transition between scenes in full view of the audience. This choice creates suspense as viewers anticipate how each set and costume change will shape the next act. Moreover, the simplicity of the set places more emphasis on the characters and their evolving relationship. Notably, the costumes used in previous scenes were not placed back on the rack—a subtle hint to the idea that eventually, the toxic cycle would end, and the characters would reach a healing place.
Most productions of this play emphasize the romantic relationship between the characters by including kisses in certain scenes, which are used to convey their bond. However, Texeira-Ramos sought to present a more universal message and chose to remove those romantic elements. “I felt that the characters were more spiritually connected than necessarily romantically, and so I wanted to sort of remove those instances of very clear romance to take the emphasis away from this being a romantic story and more of like a soulmate story,” she explained.
The lack of background information about the characters allows the audience to relate to them more deeply, fostering a sense of empathy. Their struggles are not unique; rather, the play serves as a reflection on the challenges and pain many have faced at some point in life. The title itself is an oxymoron—while “Gruesome Playground Injuries” may suggest an element of humor, the play explores heavy themes such as suicide, depression, and sexual assault.
The play follows a chronological structure with two timelines separated by 15 years. It jumps between scenes where Doug and Kayleen are eight, then 23, then back to 13, and so on. While it seems as though their relationship evolves and grows more complicated with age, this constant back-and-forth instead emphasizes their unchanging characteristics. Doug and Kayleen will always be Doug and Kayleen.
The title “Gruesome Playground Injuries” can be interpreted as a reflection of their cyclical dynamic—forever trapped in a pattern established from the moment they first met. Doug continuously suffers irrational “playground” injuries, while Kayleen remains the caretaker, tending to his wounds while silently battling her own pain. Throughout their lives, Doug disappears for years until he inevitably returns to Kayleen for help with another injury.
One of the play’s most critical scenes occurs when Doug asks Kayleen to use the razor she harms herself with on him. She refuses, insisting that it’s completely different when inflicted on someone else. Doug responds, “I’m not someone else; I’m you.” This moment encapsulates the idea that Doug and Kayleen are emotionally and physically bound to one another—a theme that Texeira-Ramos sought to emphasize. “That was a very big picture of their relationship and part of the reason I pushed away from a definitively romantic interpretation. I wanted to explore the idea that they are two sides of the same coin, constantly drawn back to each other out of an inherent need,” she explained.
After 30 years of a relationship marked by mis-timing, the final act brings the play full circle. This time, Doug is in a wheelchair, weary of always being the one who disregards his own well-being. When Kayleen reaches out to touch him—upholding his long-held belief that she could heal him—he rejects her. At this moment, it seems that Doug has finally broken the cycle of pain and codependency.
As the play concludes, Kayleen reminisces about a memory at the playground, pulling the audience back to the beginning of their relationship. This ending leaves us with the hope that the characters reached a healing place in the relationship and were able to make peace with the past.
The state of the relationship between Doug and Kayleen can be seen as a reflection of their physical and emotional injuries. As the timeline progresses, these injuries become more severe and often life-threatening. The stripped-down, raw nature of the play allowed the audience to fully immerse themselves in the experience, deeply feeling the emotions of the characters throughout the 80-minute performance.
The sound and lighting design played a crucial role in reinforcing the themes throughout the play. Sound cues like the middle school dance music, playground ambiance, and the beeping of a heart monitor not only set the scene but also symbolized memory, trauma, and the fleeting nature of each moment. Meanwhile, the lighting marked transitions in time and emotion—soft, warm tones evoked childhood innocence, while colder, harsher lighting emphasized the weight of their trauma. Together, these elements brought each scene a heightened sense of emotional ambiance.
This production of “Gruesome Playground Injuries” was, as described by Texeira-Ramos, a “very ephemeral emotional experience in the theater.” The brilliant and poignant performances by Spielmann and Mei captured the essence of the play’s central theme—that while we may feel trapped in our own patterns, time enables us to reach a place of peace and healing.
Marcel Ramos Castaneda ’28 (mramoscastaneda@college.harvard.edu) will try to watch more plays from now on.