I LOVE YOU SO MUCH I COULD DIE @ NYTW

I went on a whim with someone the other night and haven't stopped thinking about it since. It was a last minute thing and I went in 100% knowing nothing about the show or what it would be.
This is a one woman autobiographical show staring Mona Pirnot, directed by her husband Lucas Hnath, starting around the time of them meeting and then into a tragic event in her life at the beginning of the pandemic. It's not giving anything away to say that the entire show is Mona sat center stage at a table with her back to the audience. She never speaks for the shows 65 minute run time and her words are only heard through a Microsoft text to speech feature on an open laptop next to her that tells her stories. We only ever hear her voice 5 times when she picks up the guitar to her right and sings (some pretty exceptional songs, I thought).

Again, not knowing what I was about to see it took me about 15-20 minutes to really get into this and appreciate what I was watching and by the end I was just a damn mess crying. I got home and read some of the reviews which are extremely mixed on the project but I'm in the camp that I thought it was brilliant. I'm just really curious if anyone else has seen it and what your thoughts were - good or bad. On paper it's the kind of show I'd probably make fun of for trying to be "artsy" for no reason other than the be "artsy" but damnit if it didn't move me like few things have recently.

Updated On: 2/23/24 at 04:06 PM

I went again last night. Seriously just couldn’t stop thinking about it. Like a song you can’t get out of your head and have this need to listen to it again. And again.

Lucas Hnath is not the author of this play

Raddersons, last night there were a few walkouts during the show and at the end, I saw people sitting there just shaking their heads when a lot of others were standing applauding her.

I love theater like this that divides people - I find it exciting especially now in a time when so much of what’s put on seems to be “safe” and “for the masses”. So when a piece of “experimental” theater moves me, that’s why I always am interested to hear from people who had an opposite reaction.

I really really loved this show. It requires patience. And yes, the Microsoft David element is weird and could be alienating. But by the end of the show it was clear to me that, not only was there thought behind that choice, but that it actually provided true insight into the author's lived experience in a way that I didn't see coming.

This wasn't weird for the sake of being weird. Every element has clear intention behind it, and if you look for that, you'll can really be blown away.

Thanks for recommending this so highly, Jordan! It was on my radar when NYTW announced their season and completely slipped my mind since. I saw that it was closing this week and came on here to look for any reviews and you sold me. Seeing it on Friday and very much looking forward to it.

Also, taking someone who has never seen a non-musical piece of theatre before, so this should be an interesting break from their concept of theatre.

I’m so glad you loved it! I wish more people could have had a chance to experience this one.


I forgot to mention that I asked Pirnot if the songs would be recorded and she said they’re discussing releasing an EP, so fingers crossed for that one.