Why Does the Wilbur Theatre Suck? Better Rock Shows in 5 Steps
Photo of the Day, November 24, 2009: Hook, Line, and Sinker
Photo of the Day, November 25, 2009: Boston as seen from the harbor
Cheap Eats: Burtons Grill
Democratic Primary Debate at WGBH: Transcript Time!
Mike Daisey was the first to note that there were a few messy spots in his Tuesday night performance of "Tongues Will Wag," the monologue workshopped before a rapt American Repertory Theatre audience at the Zero Arrow. He remarked upon that fact as soon as the standing ovation applause subsided.
He was right. "Tongues Will Wag" has a few rough patches - an overly used reference here, a missed identification there. But for a monologue never before spoken, let alone performed, the work was a beautiful two hours of performance that served as a fitting close to Daisey's month-long, three-monologue Cambridge residency.
Since April, ART audiences have grown to know Daisey the monologuist. He introduced us to his family in "Invincible Summer," then took audiences to his hometown in "Monopoly!" Both works wove together his life and external elements - the New York subway system and 9/11 in the former, Tesla and Edison's war over electricity and Microsoft among those in the latter.
"Tongues Will Wag" dabbled briefly in alchemy, but was otherwise firmly rooted in his core family unit - himself, wife and director Jean-Michele Gregory and their black pug Baci, an animal described so vividly that an audience member could just about see the pair of shiny black eyes above the white spot on his chest.
"To understand the story," Daisey said as he launched into the the monologue, "you need to understand the dog."
Photo courtesy of American Repertory Theatre. Read the complete review after the jump!
True, gaining a sense of the confident dog found at a Greenwich Village pet shop three and a half years ago was important, but moreso was understanding the dog's delicate place in Daisey's life. He carefully explained that position to his audience through the pages of outline that have become familiar over the course of his ART run - each piece of paper framing a portion of the rawest, most intimate tale he has shared in Cambridge. Understanding the dog meant understanding elements of Daisey's history - a pregnancy that ended with childbirth, another that ended with abortion, gender roles, love, exploration and death.
Such subjects often strayed into emotion-heavy territory, as Daisey shared things about his life that few people discuss with acquaintances, let alone complete strangers. His description of a visit taken to the Planned Parenthood in Brooklyn not only broke through the silence that surrounds abortion, but planted the audience right there in the waiting seats next to him. Yet the monologuist managed to balance the drama and comedy, bringing audiences to cackling laughter right before he brought them back down.
And it always came back to the dog. Dogs, he said, become mirrors of their owners. Baci, then, served as a mirror for Daisey and Gregory to reflect their experiences, character traits and hopes. His audience could realize that if it understood the dog, it could understand the man seated at the desk in the spotlight.
By the time Daisey said thank you and goodnight on Tuesday, it had become clear that the end to a successful, tumultuous run at ART also marked a beginning, the birth of a touching new work on its way to something special.
add to stumble upon
add to reddit
tweet this
post to facebook
Post a comment (Comment Policy)