Dallas Voice (Dallas, Tex.), Vol. 35, No. 1, Ed. 1 Friday, May 11, 2018 Page: 22 of 44
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■ DAISY From Page 20
D
ANNIVERSARY MONTH!
HELP US CELEBRATE OUR TWO YEAR ANNIVERSARY
REVIEW: ‘THE HUMANS’
■
05.11.18
Gene Street and Phil Cobb, co-founders of the
Black Eyed Pea, will host a Two-Year Anniversary
Party on Wednesday May 23. Street's will bring
back a limited menu of Gene and Phil's favorite
recipes. Raffle tickets will be sold all month for a
chance to win a hefty gift basket featuring local
items donated from restaurants and stores. All
raffle proceeds will be donated to the Resource
Center and Legacy Cottage.
essential part of who she is, one wonders
whether it has ever affected her career.
"I've had to embrace the notion that
some people will be very turned off by
my honesty and some people will appre-
ciate it," she reflects. "And if someone is
going to be grossed out by my honesty
or lifestyle or whatever choices I want to
make, then they're probably not somebody
I want to work with."
In its open examination of basic human
emotions, fears and problems, The Humans
proves just as honest. What's so striking
about the play is that, though it was writ-
ten in 2016, it digs deeply into the state of
our country as a whole and feels up-to-the-
minute. The New York Times praised The
Humans by saying it "might almost qualify
as deep-delving reportage, so clearly does
it illuminate the current, tremor-ridden
landscape of contemporary America."
Although it deals with modern cultur-
al issues, The Humans isn't as heavy as it
sounds — the profundity is buoyed by hu-
mor and some odd supernatural moments.
"I think audiences are hungry to see
their own experience played out in fiction
media," Eagan says, noting that she and
a fellow cast member "were just talking
about Eugene O'Neill and about how tired
we are of seeing his idea of what women
and people of color were, and how we are
much more inclined to want to see more
accurate portrayals of non-straight-white
men up onstage.
The first thing you
notice about The Humans
— aside from its impres-
sive, two-tier set, a musty
duplex-style apartment
in Lower Manhattan —
is that the actors are
unmiked, and seem to be
shouting at one another.
And you realize: This is
how theater was meant
to be and still works in
the right context. And this play is the right
context. Somehow, the idea that this family
of effusive but suppressive Irish would need
their voices to be artificially amplified feels
counterproductive. It’s the naturalism of their
overlapping speech (sometimes impossibly
mumbled) that is one of its assets.
Not much happens in The Humans, which
takes place in real-time over a Thanksgiving
meal. That’s a feature of a lot of modern the-
ater, which observes its characters without
judgment (the name itself conveys a lot). It’s
as if the 21 st century has suddenly discov-
ered Chekhov anew. What’s unexpected is
how Steven Karam’s play is filled with tropes
and “universality,” yet doesn’t fee/that way.
It’s alternatively frustrating and funny, sad
and mysterious. You’ll recognize a lot of your
own family in the Blakes, even if the particu-
lars are different.
— Arnold Wayne Jones
At the Winspear Opera House through
May 20. ATTPAC.org.
"I think audiences in general want to see
[realism]," she continues, "so I think pay-
ing our rent isn't just an everyday thing
that we do — every decision we make as
adults is wrapped up in 'How am I gonna
pay my rent?' So it's not just a small thing.
It affects the partners that we choose, and
it affects the reproductive choices that we
make, the places that we live, everything."
The parent figures in The Humans are
somewhat conservative, disappointed that
their children have chosen to struggle in
New York City rather than stay at home.
For their part, the kids view the change as
a manifestation of freedom; the parents see
it as a loss of values. "Taking this play out
into this country, it's interesting to watch
people side with the parents more. I feel
like we get the sense the audiences on tour
are scared of change and scared of what
has been happening in this country over
the past 20,30,40 years," Eagan says. (As
if to hit home its basis in Americana, one
of Eagan's co-stars, Richard Thomas, is
most famous for playing the scion of the
quintessential TV family: He was John-Boy
on The Waltons.)
It's a lot to take in, but the play moves
along at a fast clip, with plenty of humor.
Eagan even counsels audiences on how best
to enjoy it. "Don't come late!" with a laugh.
"And I also want to invite people to go
along with the ride and not think too hard."
After all, in the end, The Humans is relat-
able because it's about all of us. ■
2 FOR YOU
May 1 - 22 All Day
To celebrate our 2 year anniversary, we will be
offering $2 drink specials and a 2 for $22
coursed menu starting May 1st, and ending
May 22nd, the day before our anniversary!
ANNIVERSARY PARTY
Wednesday May 23 All Day
I
r
_
22 dallasvoice.com
IREETS
FINE CHKKIN
--Y--
3857 Cedar Springs Rd
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Nash, Tammye. Dallas Voice (Dallas, Tex.), Vol. 35, No. 1, Ed. 1 Friday, May 11, 2018, newspaper, May 11, 2018; Dallas, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1179952/m1/22/: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Special Collections.