The two minute Fringe preview for this show was hilarious. A male announcer described how utterly annoying Emily Dickinson was as she looked over her shoulder at the audience with contempt. Her nose was rubbed raw from a cold and she put lotion on her chaffed elbows. Emily was performed by Tanya O’Debra from Brooklyn NY.
Stretching that two minute joke out for the eternity of an hour was problematic. Emily was consistently annoying and reclusive. The only writing she did was of morbid condolence letters to friends and family suffering loss. Never leaving her room, she begins to fantasize about the narrator. There was one precious comic moment when she decided to let her hair down. She began removing one hair pin after another. She must have had 50 hair pins in that tight bun. Ultimately however, I was left bored. As a character, Emily didn’t change in any way. I can laugh at an annoying character for a few minutes but I have no desire to watch them for an hour. I need some sort of character development if I’m to become involved. I was a bit annoyed at myself for going to the show.
When:
Thursday May 23 at 9:15PM
Sunday May 26 at 2:30PM
Where:
Green Venue Rep Black box theater
$11 plus a Fringe Button