Our final play on Broadway was a non-musical, a piece that we were entirely unfamiliar with. We chose it by browsing through the list and finding a synopsis that intrigued us. “The Minutes,” by Tracy Letts, was described as part-Parks and Recreation, part-Twilight Zone. That alone was enough for us to buy tickets.
It was an apt description. The play takes place during a city council meeting in the small town of “Big Cherry.” At the start, there is abundant humor in the form of finicky little bureaucratic details and the eccentricities of each council member. Then we become aware of something more sinister as the tone subtly shifts into horror.
One council member was absent from the last meeting, and he’s disquieted to learn that another member was ousted from the group that week. No one will tell him why. When he requests to see the minutes, the others fend him off with odd mutterings and vague excuses. Meanwhile, the current meeting addresses proposals that are related to the town’s heritage. We are treated to an enthusiastic (and hilarious) reenactment of the town’s founding hero and legend. But something still seems…off.
Eventually the events of that last meeting are revealed, and things get very dark. I’m not exaggerating that we left the play feeling shaken to the core. Yet…in a good way? It was a stark and thoughtful interrogation of the founding myths that we cling to, and the extremes we might embrace to keep those myths nice and shiny.
The production was excellent. This is a fairly new play, and it had just debuted on Broadway a week earlier. I was captivated by every performance and particularly delighted to recognize the actor playing Mr. Oldfield as Austin Pendleton. He’s in some of my favorite films from the 70s, and still going strong! Certain features of live theater made this production especially immersive, like the conceit of the lights flickering or going completely black during the thunderstorm going on throughout the council meeting. Watching something like this on a screen could not compare to actually being there in the spooky darkness. And as always, the audience responses to humor or shocking moments make it so much more electric and alive. A powerful finish to our Broadway experience.
cynthiaailshie 