And finally we have the piece New York Monologues produced by Backyart as part of Theatre for the New City's Dream Up festival. Written by Mike Poblete and directed by Ruth McGowan, the show is a series of monologues about September 11th. Interestingly enough, it is not a tribute really in any way, but rather a commentary on the way people reacted to the event. Poblete's writing is very natural and often times very comical, but with enough intensity at moments to punch the audience in the gut. Indeed at the opening night performance, there were a number of gasps, shocked faces, and some vocal reactions to what was being said. Poblete challenges the audience to confront beliefs about ideas of race, celebrity, and commercialization all of which surrounded the event, but were never talked about for fear of being seen as Un-American. It is brave in the unabashed portrayal of people who were on the outside of the event. The most shocking perhaps being a monologue by a little girl who decides to play a very dark game with her teddy bear. Taylor D. Martin is excellent in this role as she channels the reckless abandon of a child while playing a scene that many will find incredibly thought provoking, and disturbing. She exudes an innocence that directly contradicts the game she is playing. The show is more of a rogues gallery featuring characters who we never saw after the attacks because the masks were still on. With some distance Poblete pulls off those masks and makes a conscious choice to ask us to look at what lies beneath. This show will shock some, offend some, and most likely elicit a number of very distinct responses, but everyone will leave it thinking. More information on the show and the Dream Up festival can be found here.
There is no doubt each of these groups is smashing the mirror in the Indie Theatre Community. This is to be commended as they travel down a path of risk and force the audience to see things differently. These companies do work that paves the way for more work to be created like this and to break those shards into finer and finer pieces, until we see thousands of them and our entire industry sparkles.
Read more of Michael's insights at www.oneproducerinthecity.typepad.com.
