The Facts of Life
This touching slice of life is adapted for the stage by Nia
Vardalos (“My Big Fat Greek Wedding”) from the book by Cheryl Strayed (“Wild”)
and directed by Rose Riordan. It is
playing at the Armory, 128 NW 11th Ave. (parking is a challenge in
this part of town, so plan your time accordingly), through March 31st. For more information, go to their site at www.pcs.org
To re-imagine a quote from a comedian on his deathbed: “Dying is easy, [Life] is hard.” Simple, but to the point. As soon as we’re born, we begin to die,
everything in-between one should make the most of, but rarely do. It is said that Youth is wasted on the Young
meaning, to me, that once we realize what it’s all about, it’s over. I mean, come on, “what the fuck…!”
The story is about a woman, “Sugar” (Dana Green), having
already been to Hell and back, writing an advice column from letters received
from various individuals (Leif Norby, Lisa Renee Pitts and Brian Michael Smith). The stories are a true microcosm of
Life. But they evolved even more, as the
dynamics change over time, into a dialogue, and that makes all the difference.
The subjects range from dealing with sexual identity,
frustrations of Life…and Death, the Nature of Love…and Lust, loneliness,
dealing with abuse (sexual, emotional, physical), the Meaning of it all…and
everything in-between. Some of the more
dramatic moments include the young person dealing with being a Trans and the
riff it causes with his parents; the young girl that is forced to perform
sexual acts with a relative; the man who must deal with the death of his young
son and how it has destroyed his world; the young woman who was not present at
her Mom’s deathbed; et. al.
And what is the take-way from all this angst? Love is a major healing factor that is
emphasized. But, Walt Whitman said, that
before one should expect love from another, they should love themselves
first…for, without that, how can you expect others to love you? Another learning point is to just be yourself
and, when that’s accomplished, if others cannot accept you for who you are,
then consider it their loss, not yours!
And, if in trying to understand other perspectives that may
be alien to you then, as Harper Lee suggested, you might try to get inside
their skin and walk around in it for a while…it might open your eyes to other
possibilities. But, perhaps, the most
important of lessons from these tales, is that we are all made up of
stories…and stories within stories, and interconnected to other people’s
stories, and so we are ultimately all united within this cosmic community. We really should be making the most of it and
building bridges with each other, not walls!
Riordan has an amazing cast and, being that three actors
play a majority of the roles, it is crucial that you have just the right
artists…and she does! And Green, as the
focal individual, is very touching as she struggles with her own demons, as
well as trying to help others do the same.
She is a fine actor in all the plays I’ve seen her in. And the director has them all interacting
natural with the spaces, rather than having them deliver
their parts as separate monologues, which works perfectly.
I recommend this show but, be aware, it has very adult
language and situations. If you do
choose to see it, please tell them Dennis sent you.
--DJS
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