Speech and Debate- what am I missing? (spoilers)

[WaltSummersPI]

Posted: 10/22/07 at 11:38am

Caught the matinee yesterday.

At 1:45, the show goes on for about 20/30 minutes too long. There are definitely some very clever concepts, and some GREAT bits of dialogue, but the plot is a mess. You have three teen characters, all of whom are very unlikable. The issue with Diwata's abortion is treated, well, very strangely, very detachedly. And the scene with Solomon's coming out is a mix between Saved by the Bell gone wrong and a very special Family Ties.

Also, I love Jason Moore's direction of Q, but was confounded why he'd direct these kids to speech with affectations for the entire show? Isn't the point of this show to get away from stereotypes?

[shesamarshmallow]

Posted: 10/22/07 at 11:40am

I guess the kids' likability is the issue - I for one liked all three characters immensely (and I'm very picky about that issue, it being almost the entire reason I dislike Spring Awakening).

[WaltSummersPI]

Posted: 10/22/07 at 11:43am

shesamarshmallow, I liked them all for the first 20 minutes or so. But what do we know about Howie other than that he's gay? What do we know about Solomon other than that... he's gay? SO WHAT?

[antiandrewx]

Posted: 10/22/07 at 11:50am

I saw it on Saturday and I thought it was really amazing. I agree that it ran a little long. The first scene between Solomon and the teacher could easily have a good 5 minutes cut from it. It got very wordy, which happened a lot with Solomon.

I personally like all of the characters very much. I felt for all of them and each of their issues. Diwata's abortion was handled very strange, I agree with that. I was really confused, I didn't even know she had had the abortion until it was outright said. But despite that, I felt for her.

Do I think it's the best written thing ever? No. But I do think that it's a very solid play with 4 people giving stellar performances.

[shesamarshmallow]

Posted: 10/22/07 at 11:52am

What we know about them really has little to do with whether I like them or not - I don't care what TV shows Howie likes or about Solomon's childhood. I enjoyed their conversations, understood their problems and generally identified.

[WaltSummersPI]

Posted: 10/22/07 at 11:53am

LOL, I didn't mean like what TV shows they watch. I meant you have no clue what kind of people they are outside the drama they obsess over.

[withoutlove78]

Posted: 10/22/07 at 3:29pm

i don't know about you, but i'd say i know A LOT about who diwata is outside of the drama.

[WaltSummersPI]

Posted: 10/22/07 at 3:29pm

Please elaborate.

[withoutlove78]

Posted: 10/22/07 at 3:32pm

she is so well written! we know what she likes, how lonely she is, what her family is like....you all can identify with that jewish drama queen.

[WaltSummersPI]

Posted: 10/22/07 at 3:35pm

I didn't get any of that.

[jake6970]

Posted: 10/22/07 at 3:58pm

Really? Wow. Diwata was such a universal character for me.

[WaltSummersPI]

Posted: 10/22/07 at 4:02pm

How many universal characters do you know who get abortions and don't seem to really care?

[jake6970]

Posted: 10/22/07 at 4:04pm

Diwata cared about her abortion, but what kind of teenage mother would she be? There are other facets to the character besides her abortion, you know.

[WaltSummersPI]

Posted: 10/22/07 at 4:10pm

It's just all so silly, that a girl who was dealing with pregnancy and abortion would get caught up in gay boy drama

[shesamarshmallow]

Posted: 10/22/07 at 4:20pm

When she had no other friends? I'm sure it was a welcome relief from dwelling on it. If she couldn't escape into the drama of the school play, she'd have to escape into the drama of the boys. I'm sure she's had plenty of time to tear herself up about the abortion, and now she wants to relish in the fact that everyone else is ****ed up too.

[jake6970]

Posted: 10/22/07 at 4:24pm

Yeah, totally. Diwata had NO other friends. She welcomes the distraction.

[popular_elphie]

Posted: 10/22/07 at 4:25pm

I'm sorry you didn't like it. I thought it was a great play, and there's so much you can get out of the characters. To me, they were all extremely real.

How did you want Diwata to act about her abortion? I'm not getting it.

[WaltSummersPI]

Posted: 10/22/07 at 4:27pm

If I were, what 13, 14, getting an abortion, it might occupy a little more of my thoughts.

[brainlessorwise]

Posted: 10/22/07 at 4:27pm

I didn't have a problem with Diwata at all. I liked her. Cared about her. Understood her. It's interesting with the boys. I had made a comment a while back that was deleted when BW went haywire, but I said there was a definite loss in the translation in the two boys, more importantly Howie. I still want to see it again because I heard they made changes. The affectations you speak of were not there opening night as far as I could tell so I can't comment on that. Its still in previews so I imagine they are still working through a lot.

[jake6970]

Posted: 10/22/07 at 4:29pm

Who's to say it doesn't occup a lot of her thoughts? Does she have to exclaim every little thought? She adresses it more than enough, it's not the main focus of the play.

[WaltSummersPI]

Posted: 10/22/07 at 4:30pm

Let's just agree to disagree. I thought it was a silly play.

[shesamarshmallow]

Posted: 10/22/07 at 4:40pm

I assumed Diwata was about 17.

[jake6970]

Posted: 10/22/07 at 4:43pm

Diwata is a high school senior, so yeah, 17 or 18.

[WaltSummersPI]

Posted: 10/22/07 at 4:45pm

I didn't catch that, either. She seemed about 14.

[GladysBumps]

Posted: 10/29/07 at 1:07am

Caught it tonight. Laughed alot. Delicious characterizations. Sara Steel is a revelation. Cared about everybody. Some lovely writing but, I agree, it went on too long. Worried about them slipping in the vomit for the last half hour. What wonderful use of an absolutely impossible space, though. Jason Moore rocks! I'd seen Stepnen Karam's "colombinus" down at the NY Theater Workshop and was one of the few who were blown away by the production. He really has a knack for creating characters who are outsiders. Now if he could just edit . . .

Old fart alert:
I was the second oldest fart in a room filled with young, hip, energetic, responsive theatergoers. This is what $20 tickets can accomplish. What a pleasure!