In playwright-actor Ngozi Anyanwu’s engrossing and endearing “The Monsters,” we meet half-siblings Big and Lil. In the few years they lived together as children, they gained mutual strength from the tyranny of their shared alcoholic father through each other’s company.
As the two-hander 85-minute play begins, the two haven’t been in contact for 16 years. Big (Sullivan Jones), approaching 40, is a Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fighter known as “The Monster.” He has just won an MMA bout when his younger sister, Lil (Ngozi Anyanwu), suddenly appears back in his life.
She is outwardly all smiles and quick wit, happy to see him, though we sense her bitterness at his abandonment of her all those years ago. A functioning alcoholic in a dead-end job, Lil wants Big to train her to be an MMA fighter. Almost reluctantly, he takes her on. It is an easy and perhaps nostalgic transition, since the two always wrestled as kids.
In one powerful, realistic, yet poignant scene, we learn something about Big’s inner life. Looking like a strong, fully grown man from age 12, Big suffered from the misperception others had of him. His MMA career, and indeed his persona as “The Monster,” was defined by strangers’ stereotyped observations rather than by his own personality and goals.
This scene was the highlight of the play. Apparently, the author hung out with her brother and his MMA community while creating this drama. I wish she had delved more deeply into Lil’s inner life, as well.
Ngozi Anyanwu was just fabulous as Lil. When the writer also acts the part, there is no question about the interpretation of the role. She’s right there, all the time. And Sullivan Jones excelled in embodying Big.
One of the exciting and creative staging effects that makes “The Monsters” such a pleasure is the invisible on-stage scene changes between the siblings ─ one second, they are wrestling as children, the next, adults. Kudos to director Tamilla Woodard for her ability to carry this off, among other creative staging techniques. And the choreography by Adesola Osakalumi and MMA consultant Sijara Eubanks adds immeasurably to the production’s artistry and authenticity.
I would not have chosen to attend “The Monsters” based on the MMA subject matter. But the heartfelt characters and performances won me over.
A co-production with La Jolla Playhouse, “The Monsters” was developed in The Ground Floor,
Berkeley Rep’s Center for the Creation and Development of New Work. “The Monsters” runs through May 3, 2026, at Berkeley Rep’s Peet’s Theatre, 2025 Addison St., Berkeley. Tickets can be purchased online at www.berkeleyrep.org or by phone at 510.647.2949.
By Emily S. Mendel
© Emily S. Mendel 2026 All Rights Reserved
