Weekly Margin 2023, W47: How To Dance In Ohio

11/17/23: How To Dance In Ohio

What: A new musical adaptation of Alexandra Shiva's 2015 documentary, about a group of autistic young adults who, in the course of their class about social skills, plan to have a spring formal dance.

And? I haven't seen the film it's based on, though I've heard from some of my autistic friends that it has a rather infantilizing approach to its subjects, which is, well, not great, Bob. I think there was hope there would be less of that with the stage adaptation, as the conversation about ableism continues to move forward, and as the production endeavors for authenticity in casting: both in casting nonbinary actors for nonbinary roles, and in casting autistic actors for autistic roles. The theater has even provided Cool-Down Spaces in case audience members become overstimulated and need a break. There have been a lot of steps taken to actualize these characters, to give them narrative autonomy, and I do want to applaud all that as a step forward. But. There's still this insidious scent of condescension resting in the audience and maybe even inescapably in the show itself, a sort of "Good for you, you autistic people! You're on a real Broadway stage! We're so proud of you," complete with a pat on the head. I don't think it's intentional. I think a lot of people were there, like me, eager to celebrate representation and diverse stories being told. But I still felt the littlest squirm about it all. Maybe that's what comes with being the first Broadway musical to knowingly do this. I should point out, before I leave this topic, that the show does a masterful job shutting down ableist language and thinking in its most overt form, and that's something that needs to be reiterated for, well, the people in the back.

The show itself is fine. It's not stellar, but it's not terrible. I want the writing to sparkle more than it does, to reach the level that a few of its songs do reach, moments that pierce the audience, like the Act I finale, "Waves and Wires." The cast is pretty great, particularly Madison Kopec as Marideth and Amelia Fei as Caroline. Darlesia Cearcy, who plays Caroline's mother, is also notable for both her powerhouse voice and her ability to convey so much without even speaking, when she figures as Caroline's inner monologue. I'd also like to highlight Sarafina Bush's costume design, which has some truly genius moments.

Photo from the Syracuse Stage run (slightly different costume design than 
Broadway). Conor Tague, Amelia Fei, Imani Russell, Liam Pearce, Madison
Kopec, Desmond Luis Edwards, and Ashley Wool as Tommy, Caroline, Mel,
Drew, Marideth, Remy, and Jessica. Photo by Curtis Brown.