We saw God’s Ear by Jenny Schwartz the other night at The Vineyard Theatre. It’s such an interesting show, but not one that will speak to everyone. It’s funny, when our little group walked out, I was the only one who didn’t say, “Oh my God, I loved it!,” and it took me a while to figure out why. Here’s what I came up with:
I left the theater feeling exactly as the playwright intended: very sad, anxious, angry, a little frightened. Then, as I thought back, I remembered all the moments I really loved (when a little girl morphs into her adult self with a gesture and a piece of wardrobe, when another character disappears–literally–down a rabbit hole, Gibson Frazier’s face as his character watches his wife implode and the Tooth Fairy and GI Joe remembering the good memories for a grieving couple when they just can’t do it themselves.) Did I enjoy it? Well, I did in retrospect, obviously, but I think it’s more accurate to say I appreciated it, both during and after.
Chip was completely enamored of what he calls the “parallel language” that Schwartz has created. I wonder if she herself had the meta dialogue in her mind as she wrote. Even now, as I recall the piece, I’m struck her cleverness in forcing me to articulate my own questions and answers to the scripts endless repetitions and seemingly nonsensical dialogue.
Should you go see it? Well, if you enjoy experiencing language crafted by someone who obviously loves manipulating it–and has great skill–you owe it yourself to see God’s Ear. It’s good theatre.