Margin Notes: (beyond) Doomsday Scrolling

(beyond) Doomsday Scrolling

Seen on: Thursday, 2/16/22.
My grade: feels very much like a work in progress

Photo by Jarrett Robertson.

Plot and Background

Refugees across time and place gather in an abandoned theater space, connecting through their trauma and their will to survive. Representing the countries of Ukraine, Poland, Iceland, Georgia, Moldova, Russia, Scotland, Italy, Cuba, and the US, (beyond) Doomsday Scrolling seeks to connect the current crisis for Ukranians to crises of both the near and distant past, through a liminal moment of rest for these people on the run. AnomalousCo is a "predominantly queer-woman-led, feminist, transdisciplinary performance collective" presenting this work devised by its company of performers.

What I Knew Beforehand

Loosely the premise of refugee women in a devised theatrical space. I tried not to read too much more than that, so I could go in and be surprised.

Thoughts:

Sometimes singly, sometimes in pairs, the refugees find their way to an abandoned theater, to a bunker space within that theater. At first huddled in separate corners, they start to come together, communicating even as they have no common language, to construct the space to tell the stories that must be told. It is not Noah's Ark (though it is, a little), it is not the Tower of Babel (though it is, a little), but it somehow something both ancient and modern, their need to bear witness to what they have seen and survived. Periodically an air raid siren will sound (stunningly performed merely with the actors' voices and a violin) and the refugees will retreat to huddled positions, but often they are bolder, singing their anger, airing their grief, guarding the precious few belongings and memories they still carry.

There are some strong ideas here, but the piece feels very early in its development, as it has not yet cohered into one driving unifying push. Some sequences are staggering, like Ylfa's speech about the city she lost, the birth-to-orphanage pipeline, or the farewell phone calls; others are either confusingly executed or aurally upstaged by activity elsewhere in the space. Even when I don't understand the language being spoken, I want to be able to hear the person speaking as the dominant sound, not wonder whether I should be paying more attention to the laundry being washed, or a squabble over supplies. Quiet intimacy still needs to be audible to be effective.

I think this piece needs further development to reach its true potential; right now it feels more like a workshop for the people within it than a performance for the audience watching. I hope in future they can also expand their population a bit: right now the cast and refugee stories being explored are primarily European, with only one representative from Cuba, and an acknowledgement of both the Syrian crisis and the border between the US and Mexico. I find myself wondering where are the Tutsis, the North Koreans, the Pakistani? To be clear, I think these are good questions to ask. I want this group to keep exploring the unfortunate universality of the refugee with a wider representation.

Weekly Margin 2023, W7: Pictures From Home, The Wanderers, The Tempest

2/07/23: Pictures From Home

What: Roundabout presents Sharr White's adaptation of Larry Sultan's photographic memoir, framed here as Sultan and his parents presenting his project, all the while arguing the project's merits, the definition of success, and the nuances of their relationship.

And? Not terrible, but less than the sum of its parts. I loved White's play The Other Place, so perhaps I brought the wrong expectations to this piece. The three actors are fantastic, but for all that the characters insist Sultan's father Irving is a contradictory cypher, I find the character as portrayed by Nathan Lane pretty understandable. Contradictory, yes. A mystery, no. The strongest impression I took away with me was the way Michael Yeargan's scenic design, intentionally or not, interfaces with one of the play's themes: the question of truth versus a posed version of truth, and how much authenticity lies within that distinction. So sitting in the audience, seeing the shape of the beams that back the canvas walls of the set, or the folds in the fabric for the outdoor backdrop, noting the seams in the sheets thrown over the furniture, or witnessing (from my side section seating) props being gently placed within or removed from the actors' reach, all reminds me of the artifice of theater, of the presentational style of this play in particular. It's all a posed version of reality, every piece of the stage frame is as specifically planned as Sultan's inclusion of a postcard in a shot of his parents at the kitchen table. The shape of Yeargan's scenic design is the shape of the Sultan's house. But it's a stage set, and we all know it is. Is it still true? Is it still honest? 

Zoë Wanamaker, foreground, and Nathan Lane, background, as Jean and
Irving Sultan. Photo by Julieta Cervantes.

2/08/23: The Wanderers

What: It's a Roundabout week! I can't help it if they keep producing playwrights I like. Anna Ziegler's play follows two married Jewish couples in Brooklyn, a generation apart: Esther and Schmuli in the 1970s, in an arranged marriage; and Sophie and Abe in the present day, both the children of mothers who left their Hasidic community. Esther and Schmuli reckon with Esther's desire for more freedom and exposure to the outside world, and the effect that has on their family. Sophie and Abe are both writers struggling to start their next books, when Abe finds distraction and validation through an email correspondence with an actress he idolizes.

And? I keep trying to separate the play itself from the performance, because I think the play is better than what I saw onstage. I have difficulty believing either of these couples have known each other for years, or that there is love nestled beneath the resentments and barriers. The most effective parts of the performances are the audience-addressed monologues, as no relationship besides a sense of self is required. Lucy Freyer is particularly good as Esther; the rest are fine. I do still like Ziegler's writing, but I fear this may be the Roundabout Curse rearing its head. After all, her play The Last Match didn't leave a huge impression on me when I saw it at Roundabout in 2017, but when I saw the Writers Theatre's filmed production of the same play four years later, I thought it was truly excellent. Don't worry, though! I have praise! Marion Williams's poetic scenic design--overlapping walls made of open-faced books, their pages fluttered out--is beautifully and mercurially lit by Kenneth Posner to be sometimes the many books in Esther's or Abe and Sophie's library, or backlit to be the phone and computer screens of Abe's illicit conversations, or--most stunningly--the cobbled walls of Esther and Schmuli's closed community. Honestly, this design is so poetic without being overbearing, and I hope it wins some awards.

Katie Holmes, Eddie Kaye Thomas, and Sarah Cooper as Julia Cheever, Abe,
and Sophie. Photo by Joan Marcus.

Streaming Theater Related Content I Watched

• Round House Theatre's magic-infused production of The Tempest, as adapted and directed by Aaron Posner and Teller.

Weekly Margin 2023, W6: Henry IV, Between Riverside and Crazy

2/02/23: Henry IV (workshop)

What: TFANA is hosting experimental workshops of both Henry IV and Richard II, directed by Bedlam's Eric Tucker.

And? Usually my biggest issue with Eric Tucker's direction is he overdoes all his choices, with no one to keep him in check, now that Andrus Nichols is no longer his collaborator. Here, my issue is he barely commits to any of his choices. This production is advertised as an experimental workshop, a sort of open rehearsal. To be clear, I have no problem with the minimal design; that lets the text breathe, and I'm here for it. But the one moment we get of an actor stopping a scene to ask if they can run it again with new choices, feels more artificial than anything else happening that evening. Other choices, like characters announcing their exits and entrances, are inconsistently used. My other recurring issue with Eric Tucker (and what might finally be a deal breaker for me) is his devoted penchant for "teehee man in a dress." I thought here we were finally avoiding that issue until Thomas Jay Ryan appears in a tattered rehearsal skirt to play Lady Northumberland and the audience obligingly titters. It makes me so fucking tired. Tucker needs to do better.

I have one other issue I want to discuss, and then we'll get to the praise and wrap this up. Falstaff is written to be a fat man. His fatness, and everyone else's mockery of it, is about a third of the play's humor. I'm not here to yell that Shakespeare was fatphobic because that conversation is a waste of time. I won't even spend much time on the fact that most men cast as Falstaff are padded out to be fat, rather than the production casting a truly fat person. But I do want to say that this particular cast is primarily thin people, and Jay O. Sanders, though not thin, is also not fat. And to have all these skinny people continually mock him for his corpulence, when the man is demonstrably not so, is enough to give the audience watching severe body dysmorphia. Just. Again, I'm tired.

Okay, the praise. Jay O. Sanders. What a damn blessing this man is. He's so gifted at language, at modulating his voice and his body to catch every nuance. He makes a truly splendid--if decidedly not fat--Falstaff. My other big praise is seeing how much the cast are enjoying themselves, and each other. Throughout much of the show they are seated in among the audience when not onstage, and they laugh and cheer each other on. I don't know if the whole show is worth the nearly four hours we spend in the theater, but it's still worth it to see Jay O. Sanders's wonderful turn as Falstaff.

Streaming Theater Related Content I Watched

• Second Stage's livestream of Between Riverside and Crazy.

Weekly Margin 2023, W4: Funny Girl, Heathers: The Musical

1/17/23: Funny Girl

What: A repeat visit, but this time with Lea Michele as Fanny Brice and Tovah Feldshuh as her mother.

And? Well hot damn. They even made act one seem like a good show (act two is still act two). I know people are crediting Lea Michele's pipes for rejuvenating the show, and they're half-right. Her voice is perfectly suited the role and she sounds amazing. But she's also acting the hell out of the part with full, grounded commitment. This role needs someone hungry, and Lea Michele is hungry for sure. And, oh what a gift Tovah Feldshuh is! She brings full Jewish Muthah energy without even trying. Another instance of my not realizing how much we were missing til we finally had it. Glad this show and production were able to get a partial redemption for me, even if it's never a show I'll love.

Tovah Feldshuh and Lea Michele as Mrs. Brice and Fanny Brice. Photo by
Matthew Murphy. 

Streaming Theater Related Content I Watched

• The UK proshot of Heathers: The Musical on Roku.

Weekly Margin 2023, W3: Eddie Izzard Performs Charles Dickens' Great Expectations, Kimberly Akimbo, Leopoldstadt

1/10/23: Eddie Izzard Performs Charles Dickens' Great Expectations

What: A one-woman play adaptation of Dickens' novel by Eddie Izzard. Great Expectations tells the story of Pip, born to a humble life but granted a chance at the more carefree life of a gentleman, thanks to an anonymous benefactor.

And? First show of 2023! Not perfect (the beginning in particular was a bit rough for me), but damn, Eddie Izzard is just such a good storyteller. Her skill at awkward humor had us cackling, and her emotional commitment to the heavier sections is also quite good.

Eddie Izzard. Photo by Carol Rosegg.

1/11/23: Kimberly Akimbo

What: The Broadway transfer of Atlantic Theater's musical adaptation of David Lindsay-Abaire's play, about a teenage girl with a disease that causes her to age rapidly, making her appear to be in her seventies.

And? A bit of a repeat, as I saw the Off-B run in December 2021. But ugh, still so wonderful. I cried five times. The entire cast is wonderful. Special shoutout to understudy Miguel Gil, who was on for Justin Cooley's role of Seth, and absolutely killed it with his sweet humor. It was lovely to see the entire cast celebrating him at curtain call.

Bonnie Milligan, Olivia Elease Hardy, Alli Mauzey, Victoria Clark, Michael
Iskander, Steven Boyer, Justin Cooley, Fernell Hogan, and Nina White as 
Debra, Delia, Pattie, Kimberly, Aaron, Buddy, Seth, Martin, and Teresa.
Photo by Joan Marcus.

1/13/23: Leopoldstadt

a repeat visit