Review: “Echo”

Ran Xia uses Greek mythology and anonymous testimonies from people all over the world in a mixed-media meditation on loss.

Imagine being stuck in a purgatory for lost objects, alongside a person with whom you are in love, but he is only into himself. And now imagine that you can’t speak to him first, and are bound to only repeat his words. So begins Echo, an experimental theater piece by Ran Xia inspired by the ancient Greek myth. The two characters on stage, Echo (Andrea Lopez) and Narcissus (Max Henry), are joined by an audio chorus of 25 people on the intricately woven soundtracks. Xia, a playwright and sound artist, met with me prior to the show to talk about her creative process. 

Max Henry and Andrea Lopez in Echo. Photo by Ran Xia.

I lost a wallet twice within a year as well as a lot of other stuff. I keep imagining my lost things are somewhere. Nothing is ever completely lost, right? I wanted to use that theme to connect with different people and started to reach out with a questionnaire: "What is your most treasured memory? What are you happy to lose?"

As the audience dives into the sound waves of anonymous testimonies, two characters look for Echo’s missing voice while sorting through the assortment of random objects.

I was reading a children’s book called Echo. It’s a journey of a harmonica and its different owners, how their lives are changed through a memory of an object. And I kept thinking about the objects that we owned and we lost. Sometimes they carry through a lot of different lives.

Memory stored in objects is an echo of different people’s lives. To this end, the set design consists of carefully assembled random objects, inviting the viewers to discover new things along with Echo and Narcissus. It’s amusing to imagine who owned a Barbie doll in a voluptuous pink dress, or find an Easter egg nodding to Xia’s previous show Pomegrenade, based on a different Greek myth. Much like pre-recorded testimonies, these visual objects create a strong magnetic field, evoking the viewer’s own personal memories.

Echo treats the objects that surround her as would a curious child who believes in magic. There is something playful and simultaneously ritualistic in the way Lopez tries to appropriate sound by swallowing bells or fanning air into her mouth. But those methods prove to be of no use. It takes another being, Narcissus, to break the spell. Yet he needs to lose something first in order to find and be found.

I initially thought this piece was going to be more about losing people, family members or friends. But as we started to work with my director and actors on the story of Echo and Narcissus, it becomes more and more about the development of the relationship, which we explore in the questionnaire as well: "What is your most terrible memory? What is something you’re most afraid to lose at the moment?"

Lopez and Henry act like a couple of teenagers needlessly hurting each other’s feelings. We could easily forget that we are watching two deities, if not for their names and the fact that Echo can only repeat what she hears. The latter restriction is no easy obstacle when it comes to crafting meaningful dramatic dialogue. Yet the duo, directed by Nicholas Orvis, powers through by using all the means that they have at their disposal: physical games, drawing, and origami. By wrestling the task of staging, Echo searches for alternative ways of “voicing” one’s agency and manifesting oneself. 

The audio “ghosts” inhabiting this “no-place” give the characters their voices. Sometimes literally, when they retell the story of Echo and Narcissus. But mostly by creating a stream of experiences with flow together with the love story. You can tell how much care and genuine interest Xia puts into creating these "sound sculptures." The experiences of ordinary people get molded with music and ambient sound to create an intricate narrative tapestry all its own.

Audio experience, for me, has always been more intimate than performances that are limited to visual. The anonymity of that helps to make it as authentic as possible. We’ve all been through so much that we don’t really let others in. My favorite part is finding the similarities between experiences of different people, no matter their background and age. That feels magical to me.

Xia manages to convey this sense of magic in the ordinary. The flow of the spoken word and sound design feels like a tide that picks you up and pulls you into the depths of your own associations. But then comes silence, and you are on the shore again, where the dialogue of Echo and Narcissus feels like the sharp edges of broken shells. The meticulous design, emphasized by the thoughtful lighting by Ariella Axelbank, is inviting and incredibly beautiful. But it is the way that Echo sounds that makes it a one-of-a-kind theatrical treat.

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Echo played at The Tank, 312 West 36th Street, through April 21, 2018. Running time was 65 minutes, no intermission. Tickets were $15. For more information and recordings from the show visit thearcticgroup.org.

Echo is by Ran Xia. Directed by Nicholas Orvis. Audio Design by Ran Xia. Lighting Design by Ariella Axelbank.

The cast is Andrea Lopez and Max Henry.

Review: “A Lady Does Not Scratch Her Crotch”

Celeste Cahn takes a penetrating look into how a certain fairy tale affected her early sexuality.

If you are a woman, you were probably told more than once when growing up: “It’s not lady-like to burp” or “A true lady always keeps her posture straight.” As if societal expectations and pervasive dreams to become a Disney princess are not enough, then puberty hits and everything becomes a mess. A Lady Does Not Scratch Her Crotch is an honest and hilarious solo show, written and performed by Celeste Cahn, that reminds us exactly how messy the awakening of one’s sexuality can be.

Celeste Cahn in A Lady Does Not Scratch Her Crotch. Photo by Deniz Çam.

Cahn evokes both the sweet and the embarrassing moments of her own early biography by holding conversations with the imaginary characters of Disney's Beauty and the Beast. Mrs. Potts scolds her every time she wants to masturbate, Fifi the feather duster teaches her to apply makeup, and Belle's father Maurice introduces her to porn magazines. The three blond village girls in love with Gaston receive unexpectedly nuanced and sober personalities, despite Cahn’s inclinations to torture her blond Barbies. And then the macho Gaston himself appears, impersonated by the smiley face on the actress’s bicep.           

Certainly, Cahn's show might especially appeal to those (like myself) for whom Beauty and the Beast was a favorite fairy tale growing up. But no matter what your aspirations and early sexual fantasies, there is something for everybody in A Lady Does Not Scratch Her Crotch, even if you are a gentleman. And in case you forgot what it was like to be a child, the memories will come flooding back as you play MASH with the person next to you before the show, or during the fortune-telling ritual on a “cootie catcher” at the beginning. Those silly, long-forgotten paper games help evoke those times when “to be ugly” sounded like the worst curse and “dying a virgin” seemed the least desirable future.

Cahn's sincerity and sharp humor are truly winning—I couldn’t stop laughing through the entire show. She looks homey barefoot, wearing a white “Dare To Dream” T-shirt featuring three Disney princesses. The playful tone of her writing, along with her passionate delivery, puts the audience at ease despite the somewhat taboo topic of children’s sexuality. Here, fantasies inspired by popular culture spark games, and the games become foreplay. And somewhere in the process, between the desire to scratch the itch and the embarrassment of doing so, one’s sexuality is born, long before the real partner in flesh appears. And that role is reserved for you, a random audience member.        

A kiss is only perfect in a fairy tale; for a regular teenager it is a source of endless self-doubt and anxiety. At some point Cahn asks a volunteer to give her kissing feedback using a chart containing seven parameters. I can’t testify to any of those, but as for the show itself, it got all As by my standards. The topic itself is handled with care and sincerity, smart humor, and thoughtful staging. No unnecessary traumatic experiences weigh down this delightful evening, yet all the drama of youth is very real and relatable.

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A Lady Does Not Scratch Her Crotch plays at The Tank, 312 West 36th Street, through April 18, 2018. Running time is 70 minutes, no intermission. Performances are Wed 4/11 at 7, Thu 4/12 at 9:30, Tue 4/17 at 7, and Wed 4/18 at 7. Tickets are $10 and are available by calling (212) 563-6269 and at thetanknyc.org.

A Lady Does Not Scratch Her Crotch is written and performed by Celeste Cahn.  

Review: “The Trial of Typhoid Mary 1915”

An immersive show where the audience gets to decide the destiny of the deadly cook.

Mary Mallon, better known by her media nickname Typhoid Mary, was the infamous first “healthy carrier” of typhoid fever. Around the turn of the century Mary was a cook for rich New York households, and in many of them, an outbreak of typhoid fever started shortly after her arrival. Branded by the media as “The most dangerous woman in America,” this Irish Immigrant was blamed for 51 cases of typhoid, three of them deadly, until she was forcibly quarantined. After three years spent in isolation she was released on the condition that she would never cook again. But within a few years Mary broke her promise and was discovered working under an assumed name at Sloane Hospital for Women after yet another outbreak.

Alena Acker in The Trial of Typhoid Mary 1915. Photo by Natalia Yandyganova

This is where we, the guests of a Sloane Hospital benefit, find Mary Mallon. The year is 1915. In reality, that year she was quarantined again, and for the rest of her life. The outcome might have been different if she wasn’t a poor, uneducated immigrant woman from Ireland. Live in Theater’s interactive production gives the woman a second chance, a trial that she never received.

From the start, the improvised court hearing seems not to favor Mary Mallon. A Health Commissioner (JR McCarthy) assumes the role of the judge, despite the obvious conflict of interest. Prosecutor Prescot Sinclair (Thomas Burns Scully) is one of Mary’s former employers. The slimy defense lawyer Francis O'Neill (Tom Staggs) claims to be a protector of freedom and equality for all, but mostly he's looking for fame, which he gets regardless of the outcome.

After a short briefing on Mary’s background, it is up to the audience to investigate in order to make the most informed decision regarding her future. Armed with notepads and drinks, we scatter around Arlene’s Grocery on a mission to interview the people associated with the case. In addition to the characters mentioned above, we also have a chance to talk to the passionate scientist George S. Soper (Joel Austin), a typhoid expert who tracked Mary. There is also Desi Warren (Nicole Orabona), a survivor of typhoid and Mary’s strongest defender. 

Another healthy carrier, Tony Labella (Tonino D'Amore), is an interesting component to Mary’s story, as he was never quarantined, despite being a baker. Having him as a character in her trial seems odd since he has no personal connection to the woman; if he were left out, the show wouldn’t lose anything. This might have left room for far more interesting characters that are tied to Mary, like physician Sara Josephine Baker, who evaluated Mary, or some of the journalists who inflated the “Typhoid Mary” myth.  

The atmosphere of the shabby bar, with a drum set on stage and a refrigerator humming from time to time, might be a little distracting at first. But once you are interviewing the characters, it is easy to fall under the theatrical spell. Live in Theater are masters at harnessing the collaborative energy between audience and actors. The gummy candies offered upon entering become Peach Melbas, and a huge sign reading “20 years of rock and roll” above the stage nearly “disappears.” And every cast member remains in the moment, even when distractions occur. When somebody’s phone rang during the trial, Phoebe Dunn (Mary) nervously asked—without skipping a beat—if there was a fire, with the excitement of an escape possibility.

After the prosecutor and defense attorney each assemble a team of four, the trial begins. Much like the process of interviewing potential litigators, the trial is a well-balanced combination of farce and pressing political matters. You might be asked, while on stage, about your views on immigration, and then, cued by a prompter, happily yell “poop” with the rest of the audience every time a witness says “stool samples." In this way, The Trial of Typhoid Mary manages to be both your post-brunch (while buzzed) entertainment and a historical drama that is still somewhat relevant today.

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The Trial of Typhoid Mary 1915 plays at Arlene’s Grocery, 95 Stanton Street. Running time is 2 hours, no intermission. Tickets are $59. Performances are Saturdays at 2. Live in Theater rotates through several productions; additional performances of The Trial of Typhoid Mary 1915 will be announced. Visit liveintheater.com or call 347-422-7562 for tickets and more information about The Trial of TyphoidMary 1915, its other shows, and booking a private event.

The Trial of Typhoid Mary 1915 is by Carlo D’Amore. Directed by Collin Blackard. Stage Manager is Aina Raposa.  

The cast is Phoebe Dunn, Joel Austin, JR McCarthy, Tom Staggs, Thomas Burns Scully, Tonino D'Amore, and Nicole Orabona.