blogbits
Art imitates life. In some case, art imitates superfluous fairytale princesses on a bad hair day, and Japanese authors doubling as insurance salesmen. This past weekend I gave myself a healthy dose of theatre, with fancy footwork and societal commentary to boot. The first production, Unlock’d, a dynamic, side-splitting musical created and written by a friend for the annual NYMF festival, explores the love-addled world of lords and ladies, complete with lacy frills and puckered frounces to match. Perhaps the days of musical partnership aren’t far behind us, as we’d drearily deemed with the passing of Fred Ebb. Sam Carner and Derek Gregor’s operatic creation provides ample Shakespearean lyrics rivaling the master himself, and not a century too late. The finely-tuned characters chorale finely-minced couplettes, beating in biting satire (love the phrase!) for the two and a half hours of captivation. Fortunately, everyone’s got a sense of humor that resonates just in time at moments of open sentiment, as if to admit yes, this is long-ago fantasy, but some battles never end. I mean, we’ve all met with these demons before: unrequited love, sibling rivalry, a bad haircut; it’s enough to push anyone over the edge. The cast’s talent is almost enough alone, and I cannot wait to watch the rise of this star. Unlock’d has opened the door to Broadway greatness, and those whom creativity hath joined together, let no producer put asunder.
For the second act of the weekend, I trotted myself over to the Dance Theatre Workshop, for the Big Dance Theater’s performance of The Other Here. Apparently, there are two heres: one here, and one, waaaay over here. What do you get when you mix contemporary Japanese pop beats with folksy twangs? Beats me, but this seems the closest you’ll ever get to it. Modern dancework, performed in simple yet defined costumes, layered over multiple character analysis, keep the production flowing from red sun-up to sun-down. And, just as each leaf turns into abstract contemplation, a sharp stroke of humor reins it back to easy-to-swallow commentary. It’s hard to classify this sort of production: is it dance, with a bit of musical satire built in? Or is it dramatic theatre, with dance numbers bearing alike weight to dialogue and plot? Myriad of technological sidekicks push stereotypical stage work to further corners: CGI-swimming fish splash across the stage, mimicking the fluidity and loyalty between time and friendship. Paper flakes flutter between dancers, flirting with ever-breathing footwork. And, tugging the piece along in solidarity is the narrator: brut-tongued, brassy changeling whose only dream is to be as articulately successful at selling insurance as her predecessor, an aged bachelor who gets his kicks from berating his lackadaisical servant.
Of course, there were some fuzzy moments. It took a good half hour to comprehend what in the world the two stories had to do with each other, and themes of androgeny, economical hierarchies, and the ever-popular love almost overclouded the physical production. However, once again, a sharp sense of humor swung in to save the day, and by who other than a life insurance salesman? Directors Paul Lazar and Annie-B Parson blur the lines between story and report, characters and actors, while giving room for ironic humor bubbling up behind the otherworldly drama. You laugh with the characters, not at them. Intermitten folk songs sung in Japanese lay thick emotional groundwork, and the performance never lets you forget for a moment its intent: you are here now, you were here once before, you will ultimately return here at some point in your life. With all these here’s, let’s hope someone’s listening.
Fancy Feats
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
