THE HANGOVER REPORT – Nassim Soleimanpour leads both actor and audiences down the rabbit hole in his trippy WHITE RABBIT RED RABBIT

IMG_8189Every Monday night at the Westside Theatre, you’ll see a different actor taking on Nassim Soleimanpour’s singular White Rabbit Red Rabbit. The central gimmick of this trippy, uber-meta play is that that night’s performer has not had the opportunity to read the script prior to getting up on the stage (I encourage you, prospective audience members, to limit your research, as well). So in effect, what you’re seeing is a cold reading. In Mr. Soleimanpour’s play, the very nature of theater – and therefore the roles of the writer, performer, and audience – are contemplated. What puts White Rabbit Red Rabbit on the right side of the compelling theater / pretentious dreck divide is its sly way of making you aware that theater only has stakes if all three prongs are fully engaged (Spoiler: Audience participation is involved, for some more than others). Within his elliptical construct, Mr. Soleimanpour, himself an active voice in the play, all but guarantees that they are. Already onboard to take on this challenge in the coming weeks are such stage and screen luminaries as Martin Short, Bobby Cannavale, David Hyde Pierce, Alan Cumming, and George Takei.

Yesterday night, Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actress Kyra Sedgwick (of The Closer fame) took the role of “actor” at the Westside Theatre. The brilliance of the play and its manipulative gimmick is that it ensures that both the actor and audience are on this journey down the so-called rabbit hole together, a trait shared by all great theater experiences, at least for me. This turns any awkward moments of adjustment and realization into deeply human, as well as theatrical, moments. Ms. Sedgwick was certainly game last night, exuding a warmth, generosity, and positive energy that was infectious. She seemed somewhat confounded by the writer’s playfully dictatorial approach and sharp shifts in tone, but this only contributed to the charm of the performance. I would be curious to see the piece with a more adventurous actor who is more willing to explore the darker themes of the work. Perhaps another trip down Mr. Soleimanpour’s rabbit hole is in store.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

 

WHITE RABBIT RED RABBIT
Off-Broadway, Play
Westside Theatre
1 hour, 15 minutes (without an intermission)
Open run

Categories: Off-Broadway, Theater

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