After Darwin

On Friday night, Z and I went to see a play. We'd originally wanted to see D'Arranged Marriage by Those Indian Guys but it was sold out. I've secured tickets for this Friday--review to follow.

After attempting many other Off-Off Broadway shows he secured tickets for After Darwin. It was a terrific show. It pays to attend without expectations. The tiny theater was packed with friends and family. We were the clear non-auto fans present which was affirmed with a girl with a Flip interviewed US for the review.

It's a play within a play. And like most of these, the play within the play was less interesting than the play itself. The premise is a struggling production company in the UK putting up a production of Darwin's voyage to South America with a particular focus on the original evolutionsist's relationship with Captain FitzRoy, the religious fundamentalist steerer of the vessel. The nuances of the young gay actor who played Darwin's desire to act in film as observed and chastized by the seasoned older theater actor's desire to give this production his all in order to ressurect his failing career created an interesting layer to modern notions of propriety and place. Additionally a brewing love affair between the Bulgarian film director who misrepresented her experience to get the job and the older actor plays into ideas of gender, ethnicity, and ex-patriotism. The final character is an academic African-American writer who apparently wrote the play within the play. His multi-purpose soliloquoy showcases the differences across cultures that unite us in place.

They packed a lot of abstract ideas into the 100-minute play. We sipped with enjoyment the cheap glass of room-temperature white wine our $18 tickets afforded us as we took in the unchanging set of ever changing characters played by two highly competent actors.

Z and I hit up Congee Village on Bowery for dinner post show. Lychee martinis were drunk. Food was greatly enjoyed.

I dragged him to my future mentor's 39th b'day party at The Edge. He, as always, was a beacon of social cheer and kept up all the way through Connect Four tournaments and discussions about detaching retinas--specifically mine.

Another WCC non-date lived large and continues to prosper in my memory.