New Works Festival: 101 Ways

So... based on general consensus... and maybe it was just because of the cast... but I would defintely say that this was the hit/ talk of the festival. That being said, in spite of the long lines, I waited my forty five minutes, and my opinion.... it was totally worth it.

Now, first of all I have never seen a play like this before. Like all... commentary like? It was different for me, but I REALLY liked it. It was much more engaging on the audience's level in my opinion and that's what I truly appreciated. The way I saw it, the "Actors' wants" were to convey a message to the audience, and what better way than to just TALK TO THE AUDIENCE!
So as far as stylistically, I thought it was pretty darn cool.

But this was I what made the play worth it for me, and to be honest, though I did find it funny, the humor wasn't what made the play. It was the two monologues by the big guy , over the pressure placed on little girls and Jenny's over self security.
See, to me, those monologues WERE the play. And while the humor was real, and funny, it was merely the means to the end.

I don't know if this is the way it was ever viewed or planned. But in my personal opinion, to get an audience to a certain level of emotion one has to loosen them up somehow. Make them more vulneralble, or simply make them more emotional. Humor, is the perfect tool for such a task. And the humor from this play did just that. It got the crowd to drop their guard and lean completley in to the play. We were so entranced by it, that we would have raised our hands for anything, eaten any bowl of fruit loops we were handed, and listened to just about anything those actors had to say. The humor, was the jab that made us drop our hands down, and then BAM! The sucker punch.

Just when we were most vulnerable, and totally consumed, the tone is really set. The issue hits us square in the jaw, and I can't speak for everyone, but I felt it. I genuinely felt crushed, for both Jenny, and all the little girls, as were mentioned in the other monologue. Maybe I'm a big baby, but it's the truth.

So yes, 101 ways was the funny play, but in actuality, it was the real play. And it was pulled off so well, that I litterally felt it. Simply great.