By Cassidy K, Roundabout Theater, Cassidy K
Thanks to Show-Score, I along with a bunch of our Show-Score peers had the opportunity to see "Significant Other" with Lindsay Mendez (bae), Gideon Glick, Sas Goldberg, and Rebecca Naomi Jones etc. If I'm being honest here, I'm really not a "play person"- I much prefer musicals however, I thoroughly enjoyed this play in particular.
If you didn't know, "Significant Other" came from a sold out run off Broadway and of course I had to see what the big fuss was about. When I got to the Booth last night at approximately 7:41pm (yes- I was almost late because of a "LIRRrailfail" #surprisesurprise").... Anyways, after I realized that I was on the wrong line to get in, I proceeded to get to the correct set of doors and I went ahead and opened my envelope. I was pleasantly surprised to have gotten a Row E side orchestra seat this time around. Some chick in row D with her giant head of hair was in my way for most of the performance and my 4' 11'' self didn't have a booster... that sucked- though it did help me hide my mascara covered under eyes while I tried to stop myself from crying through act 2...
Like I said before, I'm not much for plays. I can tell you that there were a few times where I forgot it wasn't a musical and anxiously waited for music to start where it would have fit perfectly. Then, Lindsay and Gideon's characters began to sing a song (jokingly of course- there was no signs of Elphabelting here) but i'm not gonna lie, that was one of the highlights of my evening.
Act 1 was packed with jokes and laughter from the audience as well as the cast. The story line seemed typical. There was some repetition that I was able to spot a mile away, though It was definitely purposeful. The familiarity (in those scenes that I won't spoil for you) was quite comforting as the story built up.
I have to admit that I'm someone who takes out my phone during intermission to text a friend or my mom and tell them what I think about the show so far. I kid you not, my first text was to my mom telling her how funny it was and that had to be why everyone loved it- but boy was I wrong.
Act 2 was NOTHING like act 1. It began with some hilarious scenes and some familiar moments you could recognize from the previous act and gradually built up to something I was hardly able to recognize as the same show I had been watching just an hour ago. The tears of laughter quickly turned into tears of heartbreak before I could even process it was happening. There were people sniffling and wiping tears away for the duration of the performance.
Have you ever seen a show where all of a sudden your arms are covered in goosebumps because you so closely identify with a characters story? I felt that way last night seeing this beautiful story of unfold. Now don't get me wrong, this definitely wasn't my first time weeping in a dark theater - I mean you guys.. the ending of "Tuck Everlasting" not to mention the entirety of Falsettos... but this felt different. It felt more real than ever before. Jordan's character.. his life.. thing from his grandmother (who clearly had some form of Alzheimers) right up to the loneliness he felt as his friends lives moved on while he just seemed to be stuck all alone... That was me - that IS me and I've NEVER connected to a story like this before.
I urge EVERYONE to get tickets to this heartbreaking yet hysterically funny performance at the Booth to witness this superb cast in action.
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