Interludes

VIEWPOINTS – ADAM & CITY OF NO ILLUSIONS: Tales of queer refugees, told differently

• By drediman
• February 18, 2019
• No Comments

In the theater, stories of queer (e.g., recent high profile Broadway revivals of Angels in America, The Boys in the Band, and Torch Song) and refugee experiences (e.g., the astonishing The Jungle at St. Ann’s Warehouse), taken individually, are not unfamiliar subject matters. Interestingly, this holiday weekend, I had a chance to see, by total coincidence, two plays featuring queer refugee characters.

Adam Kashmiry and Rehanna MacDonald in Frances Poet’s “Adam”, a National Theatre of Scotland production at NYU Skirball.

The National Theatre of Scotland’s production of Adam (RECOMMENDED) played a brief run that concluded this weekend at NYU Skirball. Written Frances Poet, the play tells the harrowing true story of a young Egyptian trans man who flees Alexandria in pursuit of safety and self-actualization in Scotland. The two-hander stars Adam Kashmiry, on whose experiences the play is based. This autobiographical connection gives Adam – which at times has the (rightful) tendency towards melodramatic excesses – a real sense of urgency. The production also features a fearless performance from Rehanna MacDonald, who doubles as the title character (particularly pre-transition), among other characters. The multimedia production has been directed by Cora Bissett as a totally somber affair, complete with a plaintive digital choir made up of trans people from around the world, which I found a little too much.

Talking Band’s production of “City of No Illusions” by Paul Zimet at La Mama Experimental Theatre Club.

The tone of Talking Band’s production of City of No Illusions (RECOMMENDED), which plays only a few blocks away from the Skirball at La Mama, couldn’t be more different. Despite exploring the same topic, the whimsy of writer/director Paul Zimet’s play is a far cry from the stark seriousness of the National Theatre of Scotland’s production of Adam. City of No Illusions tells the tale of a Buffalo funeral home and its risky mix-in with the local refugee community, including a closeted Syrian man with a penchant for putting on makeup. The farcical (oh, I still chuckle at the memory of the Robert Wilson-esque sound effects of those doors!), almost detached disposition of the production highlights the post-anger resignation of the show’s creators, who opt instead to create a charming, tongue-in-cheek fairy tale out of the whole mess that is the refugee situation in this country. Despite some uneven acting and a general sense of heavy handedness, I bought into Mr. Zimet’s vision, which is epitomized by the ubiquitous three-woman refugee band who supplies the production’s droll soundtrack.

ADAM
Off-Broadway, Play
National Theatre of Scotland at NYU Skirball
1 hour, 20 minutes (without an intermission)
Closed

CITY OF NO ILLUSIONS
Off-Broadway, Play
Talking Band at La Mama Experimental Theatre Club
1 hour, 25 minutes (without an intermission)
Closed