THE HANGOVER REPORT – Gerogina Escobar’s dystopian THEN THEY FORGOT ABOUT THE REST makes for muddled drama

Renata Friedman and Mindy Escobar-Leanse in Georgina Escobar's "Then They Forgot About the Rest", presented by INTAR Theatre and Radio Drama Network. Photo by Carol Rosegg.

Renata Friedman and Mindy Escobar-Leanse in Georgina Escobar’s “Then They Forgot About the Rest”, presented by INTAR Theatre and Radio Drama Network. Photo by Carol Rosegg.

I’m a sucker for both speculative fiction and theater. Therefore, it’s unsurprising that plays like Caryl Churchill’s Far Away and A Number, as well as this season’s sensational (and recently much Drama Desk-nominated) Off-Broadway sci-fi musical Rags Parkland Sings the Songs of the Future, have hit my sweet spot. I’m not the only one it seems, given the cult following of playwrights like Philip Ridley, who occupy the sometimes terrifying niche terrain of apocalyptic theater.

Which brings us to Then They Forgot About the Rest, a new play by Georgina Escobar which opened this week at INTAR Theatre, in a co-production by Radio Drama Network. On paper, the premise piqued my interest. Set in an apocalyptic future, the play introduces a fictitious “pill” that induces the repression of chosen memories and explores the moral responsibility of an advertising agency to market it, especially given that the drug has undergone only limited clinical trials. Alas, however, Ms. Escobar’s play, at least in its current state, is muddled and confusing. She has plenty of interesting ideas that never coalesce into a compelling dramatic narrative.

The strongest element of the production may very well be the feverish and creative staging by director David Mendezabal. Christopher and Justin Swader’s environmental bomb shelter set immerses the audience into the play’s dystopian world as soon as they step into the intimate auditorium. Additionally, lighting designer Cha See and Enrico de Trizio’s music and sound design effectively unify the play’s naturalistic and stylistic episodes. Unfortunately, the acting is pitched at an exasperatingly high decibel. There’s a lot of unnecessary shouting across the board, as if the cast is compensating for the play’s deficiencies.

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THEN THEY FORGOT ABOUT THE REST
Off-Broadway, Play
INTAR Theatre / Radio Drama Network
1 hour 30 minutes (without an intermission)
Through May 22

Categories: Off-Broadway, Theater

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