The Skinny on Father

Just heard from a colleague about Suzan-Lori Parks' new work in progress in the Public/Lab series, Father Comes Home From the Wars. If my wife's bed rest lets up, this sounds like a good night out:

It is a beautiful folk chamber play, unlike anything I’ve ever seen before. It is running through the end of the month. It is worth seeing now and then later as more is added. It is a wonderful way to see this masterwork develop...It certainly draws from Suzan-Lori’s previous work, but it is something altogether new.

When it is completed, it will be nine parts, with connective narrative, songs and improv-ed bits (Suzan-Lori plays the role of narrator, much like Thornton Wilder, when he took on the role of Stage Manager). You will be able to see two of those parts with connective tissue by the end of the month. Currently Part 1 plus some extras are in the mix. Jo Bonney is doing a brilliant job in the direction and the cast is superb. It runs only one hour at this time.

It is epic, Shakespearean to a degree, and draws from Wilder’s style and Suzan-Lori’s own. I wouldn’t miss it.

Pay $10 to watch a master develop a new work in public? Duly noted.