"Marvin's Room" by Scott McPherson (Directed by Annie Kauffman; American Airlines Theater)
"Marvin's Room" is a black comedy about a divided family in the cross hairs of virtually every wellness issue you could possibly think of. The Times reviewer thought this latest revival had lost its resonance since the original run in the early 90s because, when it opened, AIDS was in the news and it reflected the times. Well, the Times reviewer apparently hasn't had the experience of just losing a parent to a debilitating disease because, to Anthony and I, "Marvin's Room" was still sharply, creepily, relevant.
Anthony's mother passed away almost exactly a year before mine did, a fact he reminded me of as we sipped beers at an Ethiopian restaurant just before the show. This was only our second outing in eight months and much like the last one, there was a lot of catching up to do. In fact, just before he arrived, Anthony had received a family text message that his "younger" brother (terms like younger and older tend to lose their relevance once you pass sixty, IMO) had just lost his job. It flashed back to me that Anthony has been having sessions about this same brother since our earliest days in RC forty years ago!
In fact, it has gotten to the point where I can barely sit down to a bite to eat with anyone my own age before something catastrophic is reported to them via their cell phone. At least in the old days, bad news had to wait until you arrived at home.
So, "Marvin'sRoom" hit us in just the right spot. Kudos to Jeanine Garofalo in the pivotal role of the estranged sister, Lilli Taylor as a caregiver reaching the breaking point, Celia Weston as a seriously dotty elder and to Jack DiFalco as a troubled 17 year-old.
Anthony's mother passed away almost exactly a year before mine did, a fact he reminded me of as we sipped beers at an Ethiopian restaurant just before the show. This was only our second outing in eight months and much like the last one, there was a lot of catching up to do. In fact, just before he arrived, Anthony had received a family text message that his "younger" brother (terms like younger and older tend to lose their relevance once you pass sixty, IMO) had just lost his job. It flashed back to me that Anthony has been having sessions about this same brother since our earliest days in RC forty years ago!
In fact, it has gotten to the point where I can barely sit down to a bite to eat with anyone my own age before something catastrophic is reported to them via their cell phone. At least in the old days, bad news had to wait until you arrived at home.
So, "Marvin'sRoom" hit us in just the right spot. Kudos to Jeanine Garofalo in the pivotal role of the estranged sister, Lilli Taylor as a caregiver reaching the breaking point, Celia Weston as a seriously dotty elder and to Jack DiFalco as a troubled 17 year-old.