On Jan 14, The Side Project Theatre packed a tiny area of tightly-placed folding chairs full of people, all anticipating the opening of Daniel Caffrey's play, "Little Triggers." Sitting at the top of a black-painted and elevated wooden platform, I noticed most eyes facing toward the bedroom-sized stage. The music grew quiet, the lights went dim, and my imagination ran wild wondering just how this play would incorporate both puppets and live characters in such a space. The main character, a young assistant office manager is working late on a wintry Christmas Eve in the city some- where. His name is Martin, (played by Kevin Lambert) and he is busy distracting himself with mundane office tasks such as shredding paper, paper basketball waste disposal and scary movies. Martin's boss Mr. Bahnson (played by Rob Grabows- ki) enters the picture briefly bringing Christmas gifts, champagne and an overbearing yet hospitable presence to the eerily empty atmosphere of the office space. We learn that the rather ominous looking (and acting!) copier machine is on the blitz and that a repair man is en route to hopefullyrem- edy the situation. The wait leaves a hapless Martin once again to his lonesome and restless self. Perhaps more importantly and sweetly adding to the mounting tension, Martin is left to question where his life is headed; a stable yet predictable path concerning shredding paper, endless phone correspondence, and otherwise mundane office operations.
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