Annie Baker's THE ALIENS ?

[WiCkEDrOcKS]

Posted: 4/25/10 at 10:42pm

Has anyone seen this? And do they do a student rush? If so, what's the policy? I loved CIRCLE MIRROR TRANSFORMATION and I'm very interested in catching this.

[WiCkEDrOcKS]

Posted: 4/26/10 at 5:16pm

Bump. Any idea about a rush policy?

[Willster279]

Posted: 4/26/10 at 8:36pm

Since the rave in The Times, it isn't even on TDF any more.
I actually did the unthinkable (for me) and paid almost (a slight Dramatist Guild member discount)full price. May I suggest you go to www.rattlestick.org and see if you can't score an usher slot. They are great folks and it's a great way to see the show for free. I doubt they'll be doing Rush.

FYI there is a reading of Annie Bakers new play NOCTURMA at Manhattan Theater Club (the 55th street house) on Monday May 10th at 7PM. Just show up, you can usually get in. It's free and people make reservations and don't show.

[April Saul]

Posted: 4/26/10 at 10:40pm

Hey rOcKS--I saw Aliens Sunday afternoon and posted about it-- along with Creditors and Forest--a few hours ago. Like you, I LOVED Circle Mirror, and immediately grabbed a TDF ticket to this. I didn't like it quite as much as Circle Mirror, but it was still a pretty wonderful story of three outcasts with that trademark Annie Baker dialogue and pregnant pauses...always authentic and touching. Damn, she is good! I believe the house was completely full (it's such a small theater anyway) and I heard tickets were getting scarce, so I might follow the other poster's suggestion and try to usher for a performance. I would also think they might extend...but if you love her stuff, it's really a must-see.

[After Eight]

Posted: 4/30/10 at 6:29am

One of the many great things about the theatre is its capacity to surprise you. It never allows you to be complacent in your expectations.

I hated this author's first two plays, and yet, I found I liked this one. The characters are drawn with truth, understanding and compassion; it is beautifully acted and directed, with great attention to nuance, and it moved me. The problems are that it is dramatically flaccid, too protracted, and marred by the kind of authorial self-indulgence (eg. repetition of one word ad infinitum) that ran amok in her previous effort. But it's definitely less in evidence here, and this play is a major step forward.

That said, I wish that critics (a futile wish I know) would be more measured in their assessment of worthy plays. Yes, it's a good play, but to compare this to Chardin, as did Isherwood--- really, now. But that's the state of the critical landscape, and with this author now a certified critics' darling, I have no doubt she will go far.