The Book of Gabe: The angel Gabriel enters the stage wearing a black suit and small wings. He grabs the mic stand like a standup comic. His monologue has that feel. He gives us his version of the creation story. God defecating, Lucifer rejected, the planet Earth as God’s paean to Himself. Gabriel disabuses us of any notion that The Eternal Father has tender feelings for his creation. Isaac Young wrote and performs this piece. Percolating with rage, overcome by isolation, suffused with disappointment. Much of it isn’t funny, but I suspect Mr. Young (a brilliant entertainer) is saying that it can’t be. Irony is the impetus behind a lot of humor, but it’s almost as if Gabe is staving off a fit of apoplexy. The anger threatens to consume him. This angel who wears, what? A mortician’s suit and feathers? He plays taps for hope in the Divine or unfathomable grace that is there for the asking. You’d have to be crazy to miss the connection between Young’s content and the pervasive truculence, panic, mendacity and despotism we see gaining traction. The Book of Gabe is compelling, touching, disquieting. I’m not sure it’s quite there yet, but Isaac Young has electricity, and he’s one to watch.
Just Girly Things: Danielle Georgiou has a gift for placing dance in context that feels organic, less artificial. In The Show About Men, the guys wore regular clothes, danced with grace and energy, and shared anecdotes that exemplified male issues. In Just Girly Things, Georgiou creates a sitcom spoof of sorts, in which the subjugation of women emerges naturally from the material. All the characters are spunky and cheerful, but they’re ensconced in rigid cultural imperatives, participating without question or comprehension. When Lizzy’s boyfriend realizes he’s gay, consideration for her feelings are barely acknowledged. Her hesitation to sacrifice a career for the sake of another boyfriend is met with bewilderment. The dance and choreography is integral to narrative and the attitudes that lionize men and marginalize women, so habitual they verge on the systemic. Georgiou and co-writers Ruben Carranzanna and Justin Locklear have woven a witty, intelligent, insightful piece that shows how women are conditioned to be self-effacing, self-sabotaging, and self-deprecating.
Bible Women (A Cycle of Songs) : is a revue, depicting the lives of female Biblical heroes such as Ruth, Esther, Deborah and Miriam, among others. The all-female singers differ in age and range, each takes a turn in sharing the story of a particular lady, and her impact on the community. They give scriptural narrative a bit of bounce and come hither, which certainly doesn’t hurt. The best part, though, without a doubt, are the songs, which they leap into with gusto and genuine passion. There’s a skillful arrangement of various songs: torchy or upbeat, defiant or melancholy. The thematic thread (as you might have guessed) is the complicated, beguiling and tumultuous lives of these women, forced by extreme circumstances to find their nerve and valor. Bible Women captures splendid occasions of triumph, warmth, grief and exuberance, mixing solo with choral pieces, immersing us in spirited vocals without getting preachy or pious. Amen to that.
Where Do I Sit?: has a nostalgic, worldly, fanciful way about it. Dick Monday, Shawn Patrello and Tiffany Monday are three clowns who have traveled the world, and studied the finer points of their vocation. They wear the threads of more subtle clowns, rather than the outlandish costumes we so often see. Like other clowns, they are silly, childish, playful, madcap and whimsical. What makes these three of The New York Goofs so sublime is the skillful, precise expression of their craft. The gimmicks they engage (if any) are simple. A horn, maybe, a drum, a phonograph. They have no need for elaborate props or mechanisms. The chefs of The Cordon Bleu can make a phenomenal omelet from three eggs and nothing else. The sorcery that Patrello and the Mondays wield requires ittle embellishment. Only experience, timing, focus and imagination. And that they have to spare.
The Festival of Independent Theatres plays July 13th through August 4th, 2018, at The Bath House Cultural Center. 521 East Lawther Drive, Dallas, Texas 75218. (800) 617-6904. www.festivalofindependenttheatres.org