Greetings from my Manhattan apartment. I am writing this blog entry on April 15, 2020. The last time I went outside was March 15th. As someone who averages 15-20 theater shows per month, the change has been enormous. With the free streaming opportunities and relatively low cost (or donation) models, now is the time to try something outside the box.
The Clam (Playing on Air)
Recorded live, this short play runs 25 minutes including Q&A at the end. The Clam was written by Amanda Quaid and stars Tony Shalhoub as the mollusk and Kristine Nielsen as his therapist. This comedy was directed by Moritz von Steulpnagel. The play contains silly and funny jokes. The clam says, “I’m nervous. I feel moist, a little…” The therapist deadpans, “clammy.” The clam quickly tries to shut the therapist down. “I don’t like cracks about coming out of my shell.”
The therapy session addresses feeling stuck, being lonely and alone. The tone is light but provides some depth when discussing the five paths to happiness. My favorite line was when the clam stated that he was “spinning in an eddy of my own anxiety.” I also loved, however, this insight: “Barnacles are not the most erudite conversationalists.” The Clam is a happy diversion.
Night Vision (Playing on Air)
The second short play I listened to was Night Vision by Dominique Morisseau. April Matthis and Eden Marryshow portray a couple who have just returned to their apartment in Bed Stuy (Brooklyn). She is pregnant and feeling hurt, angry and disgusted. They witnessed someone in a hoodie punching a woman. Now safely home, she wants to call the police.
What exactly did the couple see? Did they see the event similarly? In ten minutes, this play challenges the listener to self-reflect. Do we internalize our biases? How do they inform our actions? I highly recommend listening to the Q&A afterward which provides thoughtful judgment-free analysis.
Cybertank (Episode 2)
Every Tuesday, the Tank presents an online arts variety show which remains viewable on their website. The second episode was promisingly titled, “How can we be silly?” While this fifty minute presentation started and ended strong, much of the time ranged between honorable attempts and strike outs.
If you’ve been to the Tank, you will definitely remember the operations manager, Collin Knopp-Schwyn. He introduces many of the 1,000 shows this company produces each year. His segment was a “welcome to cybertank!” via the currently popular video game cartoon Animal Crossing. The opening was cute and inviting. The message even more so: “If you’ve never made art before,” there is “no better time than now!”
Mark Nunez is a “resident dance curator” who host a Sunday “sip and sweat” on Instagram. People post their quarantine dances. He shared excerpts of this high energy and super fun communal bonding. Host Michaela Escarcega created a video starring herself called “Cabin Fever.” How does an artist entertain herself and others from her seclusion? Her creations are quirky and absolutely delightful.
Julian Shapiro-Brown introduced a new talk show, “The Social Distance.” This inaugural outing was hit and miss but the good parts were promising. The CDC calls COVID-19 a pandemic. The host cleverly notes that this description is theoretically more inclusive than calling it a “bi-demic.” His oddball sidekicks are amusing as well. If you’d like try CyberTank, I’d recommend starting with the first episode. That one, although more melancholy in tone, was a richer and more consistently elevated program.