Blackbird

The historical events that brought us to this bleak break room occurred 15 years ago.  These events were neither random nor premeditated.  They are simply occurrences that unfold on the fringes of the human experience.  That being said, our 90 minutes of theater revolve around the ripple effect seen at this later date.  This is what makes the play, Blackbird, fascinating. 

We are all prisoners of the series of events that have brought us to the present day. Most of us experience life as the sum total of events big and small.  Our characters have carried something in common.  They have both been participants in a single event that sent them in different directions, separating them for the past 15 years.  Have their directions been so different?  In my opinion, that is where the drama of this play lies.   Are people, who are at a point of their life so intimately connected, ever truly separated?

The topic of this play is controversial, drawing from the dark side of our social experience.  This milieu made my wife, Melissa, uncomfortable as it may other theatergoers. 

These are old, comfy clothes for Jeff Daniels having played this role in the Manhattan Theater Club presentation in 2007.  Being early in the preview season, Michelle Williams is working her way in, demonstrating some evolution even during the course of our performance.  Personally I would have made different choices in lighting and sound but, all in all, the effect is “strap yourself in, it’s going to be some ride” type theater. 

Fellow theater goers - Pete Rienzo, John Tozzi and Joel

We saw this production and Incident at Vichy (reviewed previously on this site) with our good friends John and Mary Jane Tozzi and Pete and Barb Rienzo.  Heavy theater.  It may be time to lighten up a bit.  Jersey Boys here we come!

Review by JMG