Delirium is a one man show starring Martin Dockery from Brooklyn New York at the Orlando International Fringe Festival. He is an amazing story teller. His high energy delivery is unrelenting. He has the most expressive hand gestures of any storyteller I have ever seen. His gestures are as expressive as the story being told.
He told a story about his desire to set up a restaurant at Burning man that only served strawberries. The irony was that he wanted the restaurant to have a huge staff of waiters, maitred’ and sous chefs. He had a year to plan but when burning Man fast approached, he realized he hadn’t done a thing to make his dream a reality. He finally decided to do it himself with a few throw pillows and a cooler. Embarrassed, he set up shop one night as everyone else was partying. He decided to call out to a hulk of a man in a black trench coat and dark hat. He though he had made a mistake as the man approached. however the man sat down and ordered a strawberry dish. Martin realized as he served up the dish that he should make small talk since he was sort of like a bartender. The conversation turned serious as the man related a story about that last time he was at burning man.it involved a relationship with a tragic ending. Just the act of listening helped the man in his healing process. A simple and silly concept served just one costumer, but the interaction changed both men.
Another vivid story revolved around the loss of Martin’s dog. His description of why dog ownership is so enticing had me wanting to get a dog for myself. There is something about walking down a street with a dog that is so excited about everything he encounters. As Marti sat at his computer doing human things, he could look across the room at the dog and there was a realization that they were is that space and time together. Martin was there when the dog had to be put down because of a cancerous growth. The loss was devastating.
So many of his stories were about love and loss. With the loss still fresh in Orlando after the Pulse shooting that took 49 lives we all need to be reminded that love is possible despite the darkness of the infinite universe. It is the one thing that makes sense when facing an indifferent world. The frantic delivery of each tale makes the telling of the stories seem imperative and desperately needed. This is theater at its best with a storyteller relating stories that can touch and perhaps change and inspire anyone who listens.
Wednesday, May 24, 2017, 10:45 pm EST at the Pink Venue $12 plus a Fringe button.