skygiants: Beatrice from Much Ado putting up her hand to stop Benedick talking (no more than reason)
[personal profile] skygiants
If you are currently in Boston, you have one week left to go see Or at the Chelsea Theater! As [personal profile] aamcnamara put it on Twitter, "it is the Restoration queer bedroom farce spy writing-themed play of your dreams."

Or features three cast members, playing, respectively:
- former spy and ambitious playwright Aphra Behn
- Charles II of England and also Aphra Behn's ex-lover double agent William Scot
- Nell Gwyn, and also Aphra Behn's elderly and extremely cranky maid, and also in one memorably stamina-requiring and scene-stealing monologue Lady Mary Davenant, manager of the Duke's Company of theatrical players

Most of the play takes place in Aphra Behn's apartment, with cast members popping in and out of side rooms as Aphra Behn vainly attempts to keep all her love interests separate AND ALSO thwart a hypothetical plot on the king's life AND ALSO and most importantly finish writing the final act of her career-launching play by a deadline of 9 AM the next morning! Which nobody will let her do! Because they keep wanting to make out with her and/or tell her about plots on the king's life! It's all very frustrating!

The dialogue is delightful, the actors do a fantastic job rattling out natural-sounding rapid-fire iambic pentameter, I laughed aloud at the final plot twist, and the ending contains a solid dose of much-appreciated optimism; it's an extremely enjoyable experience and one I would strongly recommend.

Date: 2017-09-17 03:15 am (UTC)
kore: (Default)
From: [personal profile] kore
Wow, that sounds amazing.

Date: 2017-09-17 06:38 am (UTC)
scintilla10: Blue teapot (Stock - blue teapot)
From: [personal profile] scintilla10
Ahhhh, I'd dearly love to see this play!! (I've read about it before, but it's never been produced at a theatre near me). It has so many things I love! Restoration plays! Aphra Behn! Spies and plots! Queer themes! Sex jokes! Iambic pentameter!

Date: 2017-09-17 07:27 am (UTC)
legionseagle: Lai Choi San (Default)
From: [personal profile] legionseagle
Please tell me this company are bringing it to Europe.

Date: 2017-09-17 12:03 pm (UTC)
jjhunter: profile of human J.J. with goggles and a band of gears running down her face; inked in reds and browns (steampunk J.J.)
From: [personal profile] jjhunter
THIS IS VERY RELEVANT TO MY INTERESTS and I live in Boston! Thank you so much for the timely rec!

*emails a dozen friends about going to see it next weekend*

Date: 2017-09-18 11:33 pm (UTC)
jjhunter: kitten peers playfully at beleaguered peacock from on top of its head (kitten teases peacock)
From: [personal profile] jjhunter
I definitely will! I have now acquired my ticket for the very last show, and added another dozen friends to the email chain where I attempt to lure people to come with me and also have dinner beforehand. Only 18 tickets left! DON'T THINK, JUST GET ONE AND COME!

Anyway, even if I end up going by myself, I am really looking forward to going, which is a gift to help me get through this particularly grueling work week.

Thank you again for the wonderful rec!
Edited (icon nerdity) Date: 2017-09-18 11:34 pm (UTC)

Date: 2017-09-24 06:01 pm (UTC)
jjhunter: multiple watercolor butterflies flying (butterfly flock)
From: [personal profile] jjhunter
IT WAS AMAZING, thank you so, so much for the rec! Ended up going with three other friends; given how small the theater is, we were a sizeable portion of the sold-out house.

If it hadn't been the very last showing, I'd be very tempted to go see it a second time.

Date: 2017-09-17 12:09 pm (UTC)
ambyr: a dark-winged man standing in a doorway over water; his reflection has white wings (watercolor by Stephanie Pui-Mun Law) (Default)
From: [personal profile] ambyr
This played locally back in April with an entirely uninspired and uninspiring blurb. WHY did no one describe it this way to me when I still had a chance to see it? Hmph.

Date: 2017-09-17 12:57 pm (UTC)
aamcnamara: (Default)
From: [personal profile] aamcnamara
IT'S SO CHARMING I LOVE IT SO MUCH. I have been turning over the more serious/political moments in my mind, because they never really get a conclusion or even an arc per se, but on the other hand putting more emphasis on them (even enough to make an arc plot) would have made it a quite different play. (And also I think they may have cut some of the script? I vaguely remember there being more about play titles when I read it, anyway, possibly a whole bit with Aphra trying to figure out what to name her play.)

Date: 2017-09-18 04:05 pm (UTC)
larryhammer: floral print origami penguin, facing left (Default)
From: [personal profile] larryhammer
Too late to nominate it for Yuletide this year ...

Date: 2017-09-18 05:47 pm (UTC)
cinaed: This fic was supposed to be short (Default)
From: [personal profile] cinaed
Oh man, I am SO glad you got to see Or!

It's honestly one of my favorite plays! I've seen it twice, once at a community college and another local theater, and it was amazing both times. I wish more people had seen it so I could nominate it for Yuletide next year.

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