Saturday, February 21, 2009

Distracted Rocked my World

You. Must. Go. See. This. Show.

The script is smart, funny, engaging, and cleverly structured. I have not laughed so hard in a theatre in a long, long time.  The pacing was divine and the performances were purposeful and captivating. I do not gush about every show, in fact hardly any show really takes me away in the way that this one did. I did not find myself outside of the show analyzing it at any point. Having experience as an actor, director, and playwright it is easy for me to start picking things apart, which totally distances me from the production. But in this show I was right there with the action of the story.

It is the story of a mother who is retelling her experiences with and conflict regarding her 9 year old sons ADHD and whether or not she should medicate him. Cynthia Nixon played the mom and she was remarkable...I just realized I didn't once think Miranda (from Sex In the City) and that is a huge feat!  She used a direct address that could have been gimmicky or just annoying in the hands of a lesser playwright, but worked wonderfully here. The play felt extremely contemporary and I was surprised to find out that the playwright, Lisa Loomer, was not a 20 or 30 something.

I am in love with Distracted. Yipeee. Go see it. You will enjoy yourself and leave the theatre, not discussing what you had for dinner or where you are going for a cocktail, but how marvelously fun the play was and how it connected to your own life. 

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