Interludes

THE HANGOVER REPORT – The mesmerizing and devastating REQUEST CONCERT is an exquisite exercise in hyper-realism

• By drediman
• November 1, 2016
• No Comments

Danuta Stenka in “Request Concert” at BAM Fisher

Last weekend, as part of the ongoing Next Wave Festival at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, I was able attend the remount and reboot of the installation-cum-theater piece entitled Request Concert, courtesy of Poland’s Laznia Nowa Theater and TR Warszawa. In this wordless promenade production, gorgeous Polish actress Danuta Stenka is mesmerizing as she goes about, in real-time, her post-work/pre-bed ritual – preparing dinner, using the internet, listening to the radio, brushing her teeth, peeing, smoking, and so forth.

But on this particular evening, there’s something distinctly wrong; you have to observe closely for clues in order to put together a potential narrative. One thing’s for sure, though: loneliness pervades the apartment until it becomes itself Ms. Stenka’s co-star in the play (which is written by Franz Xaver Kroetz), as tangible as the furniture and appliances in the meticulously put-together studio. As brilliantly directed by Yana Ross in conjunction with Ms. Stenka’s extraordinarily layered and multifaceted performance (those eyes can tell a million stories!), Request Concert is a slow-burning experience that may test the patience of some, but I thought it was an exquisite exercise in hyper-realism that’s ultimately devastating – and devastatingly good (if unconventional) – theater.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

REQUEST CONCERT
Off-Broadway, Play
Laznia Nowa Theater and TR Warszawa at BAM Fisher
1 hour, 15 minutes (without an intermission)
Closed