Interludes

VIEWPOINTS – This fall, Joshua William Gelb’s THEATER IN QUARANTINE continues to churn out nuggets of wonderment

• By drediman
• November 17, 2020
• No Comments

One of the most distinctive products of pandemic-era theater has been Joshua William Gelb’s Theater in Quarantine series. Shot almost entirely from the performance artist’s 2′ x 4′ x 8’ closet in his East Village apartment, the series is a triumph of ingenuity and imagination in the face of daunting logistical challenges. In the process of figuring out how to make theater under our current limiting circumstances, Mr. Gelb has coined a signature aesthetic that straddles dance, theater, and art installation. The resultant performance “nuggets” – each piece lasts approximately 10-20 minutes – exhilarate in the act of their very own creation.

This fall, Mr. Gelb has reinvigorated his creative efforts, teaming up with adventurous Off(-Off-)-Broadway institutions (like La Mama, The Invisible Dog, CultureHub, and Theater Mitu) and various notable downtown artists to conjure up new wonderments. Earlier this autumn, I was delighted by the sixth installment of “Closet Works” (RECOMMENDED), a pre-Election Day special featuring Sunny Hitt and Veronica Jiao, in addition to Mr. Gelb. In summary, it was a spirited and humorous collection that provided movement-based commentary on our most important of civic duties. Then there was Notes from an Enumerator, or 1500 Rubles and a Revolver (SOMEWHAT RECOMMENDED), an ambitious if uncharacteristically glitchy two-hander (co-starring Eric Berryman) based on Chekhov’s eye-opening travels to Siberia.

Last night saw the premiere of Mute Swan (RECOMMENDED), Madeleine George’s post-modern queer adaptation of the Greek myth of Cygnus, a man who develops an intense romantic and sexual relationship with the demi-god Phaethon (Apollo’s son). As Cygnus, actor/dancer Chris Bell skillfully navigates narrating the piece while performing fluid, gravity-defying choreography (courtesy of Hadestown‘s Katie Rose McLaughlin, who also directs). Despite its dizzying array of influences, Ms. George and her team (which includes the fabulously gifted Raja Feather Kelly) manages to distill and artfully shape the stylistic free-for-all into a strikingly-designed piece of performative installation.