Navigating new realities: 'THE CHILDREN' questions what defines us as humans

Why are we as humans here? When disaster hits, who are we?

Playwright Lucy Kirkwood puts those questions in audiences’ minds during the production of “THE CHILDREN,” a play set in a world filled with disaster and chaos. The play will run at FUSION at 7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 14, and Friday, Nov. 15; 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 16; 3 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 17; with repeats through Nov. 24.

Navigating new realities: 'THE CHILDREN' questions what defines us as humans

After a disaster strikes at a local power station, three nuclear scientists — Rose, Hazel and Robin — live together in a small cottage far from the world filled with radiation. Though society is dealing with the effects, there are still several hard choices to make about the fate of the world and the fate of the individual. During the trio’s time together, they explore the new realities they face and how those truths change them as people.

The show, which was originally set to debut in the spring, was moved to the fall to accent situations that might make audiences feel similarly.

“I moved it forward just for this reason of how relevant the questions are at this time in our history with voting and everything that’s coming up, so it provides a forum to kind of process all that,” said Jacqueline Reid, director of “THE CHILDREN.”

“The show is a tour de force on societal levels, as well as basic entertainment levels,” said Reid. “It presents many complex and nuanced questions that are important for every human being to answer, and the kinds of questions that it brings are what I call ‘the requirement of the soul.’”

Reid said the show was written for a particular age group to portray, that adds to the theme of the play.

“There are very few shows written for actors in this age demographic,” she said.

After stripping away some of the moments that define us as humans, what are we left with? “THE CHILDREN,” while named for a younger audience, is meant to help young adults and older adults come to question the big moments of their lives and makes the audience wonder who they are on a deeper level.

“I would say middle school, upper middle school, all the way through, are going to find something relevant in this, and they’ll also be surprised at how these three individuals deal with the scenarios at hand. It is quite vibrant and surprising,” Reid said. “You’re a child, you have children, you have to face the only thing we can depend on in life, which is our own death. At some point, we’re all either the child ourselves or the child within.”

Though the show is filled with melancholic moments that may have the audience walk away pondering their lives, the show isn’t filled with deep-thinking moments.

“There’s a lot of humor, music, there’s even dancing that happens,” Reid said. “I mean, there’s a little bit of everything. And I’d say it’s kind of joyous when you watch the people that have the ability to make decisions based on experience and lift the audience up.”