humans anonymous - 11.15.07 8pm
So, I thought I'd try and get my thoughts on the show down now before I see it again, if only for comparison's sake.
I got to the studio around 7:30 after a brief detour to buy a chapstick and talk to one of the Local One strikers at Wicked who vaguely recognized me but couldn't place me. He thought we went to school together or something, but it turns out it was just from my last visit to the Gershwin. I went to the wrong door once and then the wrong desk at the right door, but eventually checked in where I was supposed to check in and was offered a beer (ahahaha yes) and told they'd call me when the house was open.
I thought I had been to the space before, but I think I might have seen another show at a different space in the same building? (Although Kate said later that they changed the arrangement of the theatre for this show, so that might be it, too.) Anyway, it was cute. Just some folding chairs on risers and the set which was really simple but nicely done. Coffeeshop on one side, open space in the middle, office on the other end. I sat in the middle on the second tier, but it was a small enough space that there wasn't really a bad seat in the house.
The show itself was really cute. A little plot summary for those who haven't seen it and want to know:
Ellen works in an office in Toronto. She had her heart broken by a guy who cheated on her twelve years ago and her lovelife has gone downhill from there. The play opens with her talking to her subordinate (and best friend) Peter about the date she's going on tonight with someone she met online--SmartyPants17, whose real name is "Lenny." Peter mocks her a little before she goes off, talking about how he's going to be obese and a nerd. As it turns out, SmartyPants is neither of those things, but not a "Lenny" either. SmartyPants is a young law student named Jenny who mistyped her name and assumed that Ellen knew she was a woman.
Ellen freaks out, but Jenny likes her an awful lot, and after Peter accidentally spies the two of them in the coffeeshop, he seeks out Jenny in the same coffeeshop to help her woo Ellen. She wants to remain anonymous because she knows Ellen doesn't date women (yet) but she wants her to have some happiness in her life and holds out hope that maybe Ellen will fall in love with her anyway. Jenny decides to sign each gift "A" (for anonymous) and that Peter should be her spy.
Meanwhile, the subplot involves Peter's "crazy" sister Gema and her mooing cat. Gema is going home to visit their father and needs Peter to cat-sit for her. Peter hasn't spoken to their father in years, ever since he kicked Peter out of the house for being gay. Gema is newly engaged and truly happy with her life, as crazy as she seems. She's the only one in the play who's happy, really, moo-ing cat and all.
The backdrop of this play is a sort of fourth-wall breaking project in which all of the characters list what it is they fear. While "there," Ellen meets Arden, who's quiet and sweet and seemingly scared of everything. She assumes that "A" is Arden and, in the climax of the show, thanks Arden for his kindness in front of Jenny and only then learns that Jenny is the real "A." She lashes out at Jenny and inadvertently cuts her hand before storming out. When Peter lectures her for hurting Jenny (and reveals that Arden is engaged to Gema), Ellen points out that Peter is one to talk about being stupid and scared--he hasn't talked to his father in four years. She also insults Peter's sexuality, which makes him storm out as well and gives her time to think.
Eventually, all of the characters come to the conclusion that they have to conquer their fears, and although the show doesn't have a concrete ending one way or the other, we see everyone well on their way to making amends with each other and taking the plunge to get past their fears.
So, now that that's out of the way, onto the actual review. The show was incredibly sharp. I feel silly saying this, but I'm always a little leery of the writing in shows that I go see that are written by actors I like. Um. That doesn't make much sense, but for some reason I'm always ready to be underwhelmed by the writing and often I'm proven terribly wrong, as was the case here. The show was sharp and funny and heart-breaking in all the right places. The characters were, for the most part, precise and well-rounded. I connected with all of them and I felt the story moved at the perfect pace. The only minor quibble I have is with the development of Gema as a character. During the climax of the show, when Peter is yelling at Ellen, she says she can't believe Arden is engaged to Gema because she's so crazy and Peter goes on to defend his sister. However, I feel as though Ellen hasn't really gotten enough of "crazy" Gema to think that at that point. She's only met her once or twice and actually defends her to Peter when he first starts complaining about her shenanigans. But, seriously, minor quibble. It did not detract from my enjoyment of the show in the least and is something that only came to mind on the bus ride home.
The acting was fabulous. Kate was fantastic, of course, but everyone else was top-notch too. Jennifer Laine Williams had me in tears near the end and Ester Barlow was able to walk the fine line between Ellen being confused and frightened and Ellen being a jackass. Dustin Olson's comic timing was amazing. He was great with the subtle physical comedy bits of his part as well. Philip Graeme also had comic timing down pat and fantastic facial expressions. He brought just the right amount of gravity to part of his role to make it believable, but with enough confusion to make his character seem three dimensional and not just, you know, The Wise Gay Man.
It was a really fantastic evening, and even though I bawled throughout the second half, the show was very refreshing. I really hope it comes back to New York because it certainly deserves it.
Anyway, after the show I stuck around to see if I couldn't speak with Kate. It's been a few years since I've done that in a fan capacity, and that was the first thing I told her when I had a chance to speak to her. She was incredibly gracious and pleasant and we talked about random things such as the internet and dinosaurs and I bid her good night and took the elevator down back to the street to head home. (That was, by the way, when I noticed my favorite billboard was gone, so at least it came after a really good show!)
I'm going back tonight with Leslie from work and leupagus and I'll probably do a little comparison when I get back. Wanted to get this down first, though.
I got to the studio around 7:30 after a brief detour to buy a chapstick and talk to one of the Local One strikers at Wicked who vaguely recognized me but couldn't place me. He thought we went to school together or something, but it turns out it was just from my last visit to the Gershwin. I went to the wrong door once and then the wrong desk at the right door, but eventually checked in where I was supposed to check in and was offered a beer (ahahaha yes) and told they'd call me when the house was open.
I thought I had been to the space before, but I think I might have seen another show at a different space in the same building? (Although Kate said later that they changed the arrangement of the theatre for this show, so that might be it, too.) Anyway, it was cute. Just some folding chairs on risers and the set which was really simple but nicely done. Coffeeshop on one side, open space in the middle, office on the other end. I sat in the middle on the second tier, but it was a small enough space that there wasn't really a bad seat in the house.
The show itself was really cute. A little plot summary for those who haven't seen it and want to know:
Ellen works in an office in Toronto. She had her heart broken by a guy who cheated on her twelve years ago and her lovelife has gone downhill from there. The play opens with her talking to her subordinate (and best friend) Peter about the date she's going on tonight with someone she met online--SmartyPants17, whose real name is "Lenny." Peter mocks her a little before she goes off, talking about how he's going to be obese and a nerd. As it turns out, SmartyPants is neither of those things, but not a "Lenny" either. SmartyPants is a young law student named Jenny who mistyped her name and assumed that Ellen knew she was a woman.
Ellen freaks out, but Jenny likes her an awful lot, and after Peter accidentally spies the two of them in the coffeeshop, he seeks out Jenny in the same coffeeshop to help her woo Ellen. She wants to remain anonymous because she knows Ellen doesn't date women (yet) but she wants her to have some happiness in her life and holds out hope that maybe Ellen will fall in love with her anyway. Jenny decides to sign each gift "A" (for anonymous) and that Peter should be her spy.
Meanwhile, the subplot involves Peter's "crazy" sister Gema and her mooing cat. Gema is going home to visit their father and needs Peter to cat-sit for her. Peter hasn't spoken to their father in years, ever since he kicked Peter out of the house for being gay. Gema is newly engaged and truly happy with her life, as crazy as she seems. She's the only one in the play who's happy, really, moo-ing cat and all.
The backdrop of this play is a sort of fourth-wall breaking project in which all of the characters list what it is they fear. While "there," Ellen meets Arden, who's quiet and sweet and seemingly scared of everything. She assumes that "A" is Arden and, in the climax of the show, thanks Arden for his kindness in front of Jenny and only then learns that Jenny is the real "A." She lashes out at Jenny and inadvertently cuts her hand before storming out. When Peter lectures her for hurting Jenny (and reveals that Arden is engaged to Gema), Ellen points out that Peter is one to talk about being stupid and scared--he hasn't talked to his father in four years. She also insults Peter's sexuality, which makes him storm out as well and gives her time to think.
Eventually, all of the characters come to the conclusion that they have to conquer their fears, and although the show doesn't have a concrete ending one way or the other, we see everyone well on their way to making amends with each other and taking the plunge to get past their fears.
So, now that that's out of the way, onto the actual review. The show was incredibly sharp. I feel silly saying this, but I'm always a little leery of the writing in shows that I go see that are written by actors I like. Um. That doesn't make much sense, but for some reason I'm always ready to be underwhelmed by the writing and often I'm proven terribly wrong, as was the case here. The show was sharp and funny and heart-breaking in all the right places. The characters were, for the most part, precise and well-rounded. I connected with all of them and I felt the story moved at the perfect pace. The only minor quibble I have is with the development of Gema as a character. During the climax of the show, when Peter is yelling at Ellen, she says she can't believe Arden is engaged to Gema because she's so crazy and Peter goes on to defend his sister. However, I feel as though Ellen hasn't really gotten enough of "crazy" Gema to think that at that point. She's only met her once or twice and actually defends her to Peter when he first starts complaining about her shenanigans. But, seriously, minor quibble. It did not detract from my enjoyment of the show in the least and is something that only came to mind on the bus ride home.
The acting was fabulous. Kate was fantastic, of course, but everyone else was top-notch too. Jennifer Laine Williams had me in tears near the end and Ester Barlow was able to walk the fine line between Ellen being confused and frightened and Ellen being a jackass. Dustin Olson's comic timing was amazing. He was great with the subtle physical comedy bits of his part as well. Philip Graeme also had comic timing down pat and fantastic facial expressions. He brought just the right amount of gravity to part of his role to make it believable, but with enough confusion to make his character seem three dimensional and not just, you know, The Wise Gay Man.
It was a really fantastic evening, and even though I bawled throughout the second half, the show was very refreshing. I really hope it comes back to New York because it certainly deserves it.
Anyway, after the show I stuck around to see if I couldn't speak with Kate. It's been a few years since I've done that in a fan capacity, and that was the first thing I told her when I had a chance to speak to her. She was incredibly gracious and pleasant and we talked about random things such as the internet and dinosaurs and I bid her good night and took the elevator down back to the street to head home. (That was, by the way, when I noticed my favorite billboard was gone, so at least it came after a really good show!)
I'm going back tonight with Leslie from work and leupagus and I'll probably do a little comparison when I get back. Wanted to get this down first, though.