Play #3: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
One of the new works at the Festival--it didn't premiere here, but its previous run has been limited. And our judgement call is a resounding "...Meh."
Yes, even the OSF has its misses. We saw the show with the understudy in the lead role, but she seemed to do a fine job. Overall, this was a show with some of the "lesser" talents of the company, and...really? Honestly? The script never really gelled. At least, not for us. There were some moments of meaning, but the arc didn't work, the language wasn't quite there, and the attempt at a postmodern magic realism (I'm taking that from the director's notes, I didn't make it up) just...didn't work.
The show was supposed to be about American consumption, or rather, overconsumption, in general, and fatness specifically. It's interesting that all the issues that were raised in the director's notes didn't really find their way into the action. At the intermission, the B.H. remarked that it seemed like the author (Luis Alfaro) had never spent a day fat in his life. I found the secondary characters and secondary story much more compelling. I went into this show thinking it was going to be hard for me to watch: the story of a fat woman coming to terms with how her family treats her. But I left actually wishing it had hurt MORE to watch than the few moments that pierced me--if it had, it might have actually had something to say. But the male characters had far more emotional truth, and the movement of the younger sister's relationships and her attempts to find love felt more compelling. As the B.H. said afterwards, "Hmm, if someone had handed that to me as a first draft, I would have said, 'Yeah! That has some real promise! Let's work on it!'"
The set was a lot of fun. It was in the small New Theatre, which was set up in avenue style (rectangular area, an acting "avenue" down the middle, and rows of seats on the two long sides), with the back of the stage outlined as a gigantic pair of lips. The acting area coming out from the back was a big red tongue, with various spots set up to suggest areas of a house. Lots of radio-controlled pieces moving in and out, so they made good use of the small space. The lead actor spent the entire second half of the show in a gimongous fat suit, suspended from the ceiling. An interesting visual symbol, but it occurs to me that it was that much harder to connect with her and her issues, since she was so far above us all the time. Which...was one of the things the shows was trying to talk about? I think? But it sort of shoots itself in the foot.
It will be interesting to see if this show goes anywhere else, and what changes are made as it continues to move through different venues. Having it in the repertory at OSF is a hell of a workshop experience, I'd have to say.
Tonight: Our Town. I have...mixed feelings. I mean, we are at OSF. But...I'm really, really tired of this play. We'll see if they give me anything new to think about.
Yes, even the OSF has its misses. We saw the show with the understudy in the lead role, but she seemed to do a fine job. Overall, this was a show with some of the "lesser" talents of the company, and...really? Honestly? The script never really gelled. At least, not for us. There were some moments of meaning, but the arc didn't work, the language wasn't quite there, and the attempt at a postmodern magic realism (I'm taking that from the director's notes, I didn't make it up) just...didn't work.
The show was supposed to be about American consumption, or rather, overconsumption, in general, and fatness specifically. It's interesting that all the issues that were raised in the director's notes didn't really find their way into the action. At the intermission, the B.H. remarked that it seemed like the author (Luis Alfaro) had never spent a day fat in his life. I found the secondary characters and secondary story much more compelling. I went into this show thinking it was going to be hard for me to watch: the story of a fat woman coming to terms with how her family treats her. But I left actually wishing it had hurt MORE to watch than the few moments that pierced me--if it had, it might have actually had something to say. But the male characters had far more emotional truth, and the movement of the younger sister's relationships and her attempts to find love felt more compelling. As the B.H. said afterwards, "Hmm, if someone had handed that to me as a first draft, I would have said, 'Yeah! That has some real promise! Let's work on it!'"
The set was a lot of fun. It was in the small New Theatre, which was set up in avenue style (rectangular area, an acting "avenue" down the middle, and rows of seats on the two long sides), with the back of the stage outlined as a gigantic pair of lips. The acting area coming out from the back was a big red tongue, with various spots set up to suggest areas of a house. Lots of radio-controlled pieces moving in and out, so they made good use of the small space. The lead actor spent the entire second half of the show in a gimongous fat suit, suspended from the ceiling. An interesting visual symbol, but it occurs to me that it was that much harder to connect with her and her issues, since she was so far above us all the time. Which...was one of the things the shows was trying to talk about? I think? But it sort of shoots itself in the foot.
It will be interesting to see if this show goes anywhere else, and what changes are made as it continues to move through different venues. Having it in the repertory at OSF is a hell of a workshop experience, I'd have to say.
Tonight: Our Town. I have...mixed feelings. I mean, we are at OSF. But...I'm really, really tired of this play. We'll see if they give me anything new to think about.