Time to Learn About Our Constitution!

 

Heidi Schreck and Cassie Beck - What the Constitution Means To Me (Joan Marcus)

What the Constitution Means to Me
Seattle Rep
Through October 23, 2022
 
Our Constitution is not a very long document for such an important piece of writing. There is a preamble and seven articles. What has become so consequential over the hundreds of years is the lengthy list of amendments that augment the basic rules that were written in a fairly bare-bones document.
 
The history of some of those amendments and what they created or changed for us can be fascinating. After the Civil War, there was a clear need to amend the Constitution so that freed Black people could never again be enslaved and could take their rightful place in society with the same rights as everyone else.
 
If you think that Heidi Schreck’s play What the Constitution Means to Me might be staid or boring or might be too much like a high school history lesson, your assumptions are incorrect. It is none of those things. Instead, it’s really a deeply personal story about a young high school Heidi and one of the unique ways she earned money to go to college, but also a reflection about what this journey of presentations about our Constitution meant to her then and over time.

October Theater Openings and some November, too

Bianca Raso in La Tofana's Poison Emporium (Joe Iano)

I start this month’s compilation with regrets that it’s not posting until closer to the middle of the month. Life has changed a great deal for many, and that includes me, and my ability to prioritize theater and supporting it has taken a hit from changing focuses during “covid” when there was no theater to cover. To help make sure that November openings are reported more promptly, I’ve included a few of the early November productions here, as well. Get out yer calendars!
 
My Mother’s Italian, My Father’s Jewish & I’m in Therapy!, Kirkland Performance Center, 10/1-23/22
You don’t have to be Jewish or Italian to appreciate this show. All you need to know is what it feels like to leave a family dinner with heartburn and a headache! You’ll meet Uncle Willie, Stuttering Cousin Bob, Demented Cousin Kenny, Steve's new therapist Cousin Sal (and Sal's parole officer) and a myriad of astounding characters we know, love and tolerate from our own families; each one brought to life by Peter J. Fogel. Written by Steve Solomon, this solo comedy is based on Solomon’s life growing up in a wacky family noted for its bi–ethnic diversity. Solomon’s mother is from Palermo, and his father is from Russia. His extended family had an aptitude for dysfunctional behavior and their sole purpose seemed to be to drive him into therapy…and they succeeded!
www.kpcenter.org
 
Misanthropy: A New Dark Werewolf Comedy, Wayward Works, 10/5-15/22 (at Theatre4, Seattle Center) (world premiere)
A new work by playwright Hannah A. Nielsen tells the story of Lyla, a young woman adrift in life until an animal bite spurs a change in her. She lands the job of her dreams, replaces her depression naps with power naps, and improves her diet... Well, perhaps “improves” isn’t precisely the right word. As Lyla scrambles to adapt, her friends and family flounder as they find their own ways of coping with this bloody new reality.
https://www.facebook.com/waywardworksllc
 
The Foreigner, As If Theatre Company, 10/6-23/22
Englishman Charlie Baker wants to escape his boring life and marital strife by disappearing to a fishing lodge in rural Georgia. Painfully shy, he begrudgingly adopts the persona of a foreigner who doesn't understand English. Convinced he’s unable to understand them, the guests begin to speak freely around him. Charlie not only becomes privy to dangerous secrets, he also discovers an adventurous extrovert within himself.
www.asiftheatre.com
 
A White Haunting, MAP Theatre, 10/7-22/22 (at 18^th & Union) (world premiere)
Local playwright Brian Dang introduces Darren, who has invited Tchai over to his home for the first time. They’re flirting, dancing, and discussing the morality of pineapple pizza when things start to go sour: the pizza person acts really weird; the power goes out; Tchai lets his nerves get to him; and last but not least, a masked intruder wielding an axe accidentally gets invited in.
https://www.map-theatre.com/home