Death looms above Charlie (Anthony Adu), a morbidly obese man who teaches online writing courses in “The Whale” by Samuel D. Hunter. Charlie’s days are spent slogging through the mediocre and unmotivated writing of the ungrateful students he instructs from his laptop.

As a teacher he desperately tries to help his students see past the monotonous nature of their work and guide them to embrace their passions. However, Charlie’s efforts to enlighten are mostly in vain, despite his passionate recitation of one student’s essay on Herman Melville’s “Moby Dick.”

This staged reading, directed by senior Isaiah Adams, touches on serious themes including parenting, religion and marriage while still successfully infusing a healthy number of laughs in a runtime just short of two hours.

Charlie lives alone in Idaho, struggling with his weight and a past that includes an estranged daughter, a deceased boyfriend and a complex relationship with organized religion.

Weighing in at over 500 pounds, Charlie is heavily reliant on his nurse Liz (Lois Shih) who urges him (unsuccessfully) to seek medical attention. Liz devotes herself to caring for Charlie, but is deeply skeptical of Elder Thompson (Drew Harrilchak), a Mormon missionary who visits Charlie. Thompson attempts to offer Charlie the spiritual guidance of the Church, but Charlie is far more interested in an episode from the past involving the church and his ex-lover.

Further details about Charlie emerge with the reappearance of his angsty and challenging teenage daughter Ellie (Katie Goodwin). Ellie enlists her father to help her write her final essays all while hurling a torrent of verbal abuse at her father and the rest of the world.

Ellie is seeing her father for the first time in 15 years and without the permission of her mother Mary (Shelby Lynhall). Mary abruptly enters Charlie’s apartment to confront him about their broken past and Ellie’s future.

After less than 12 hours of rehearsal, the cast transformed the Byron Theatre into the intimate living room of a sad, hopeless man. With no technical elements, the performers successfully navigated the complex themes covered by the script into a performance with considerable emotional punch.

Few of the characters are clear cut and many complex backstories emerge in the course of the story. Ellie’s unpredictable antics lead to a surprising revelation about Elder Thompson, while Mary’s return prompts Liz to discover Charlie has been lying to her for years.   

Adu captures the essence of Charlie through his laboured movements and commitment to the physicalization of a much larger man. While Charlie remains mostly stationary throughout the play, his brief moments of movement, notably his attempts to stand from his couch, are particularly poignant. Despite his enormous size, Charlie appears remarkably small in these moments.

“The Whale” remains anchored to Charlie and his quest to help others realize their passion, but its excellent cast of ensemble characters creates a more profound reflection on larger motifs.

The DU Department of Theatre’s next show will be “Cradle Two Grave,” Feb. 1-11. The department will also present “Trojan Women,” Feb. 22- March 4. Tickets are $10 and can be purchased at Newmantix.com.