See it if you love delightful theatrical works that are imaginitively staged, you enjoy strong ensemble acting and a unique theatrical language.
Don't see it if If you only love musicals or conventional kitchen sink realistic plays. Hate Pushkin's Eugene Onegin, or works that delight in sillyness. Read more
See it if you want to see hilarious presentations of 2 short stories & 1 play, wonderfully acted and full of characteristic Russian absurdities
Don't see it if you don’t like quirky odd plays with lots of 4th wall breaks or prefer traditional dramas or musicals, or are a Hemingway or O’Neill purist Read more
See it if An interesting take on theater - Russian theater tradition is quite distinct from what we're used to in NYC. Great stage design/constumes
Don't see it if Too many pregnant pauses filled with romantic music that never worked for me; maybe they could with more powerful acting Read more
See it if you question whether Grotowski and commedia might have common ground. You need another take on Eugene O'Neill you hadn't considered yet.
Don't see it if Hemingway grates on your nerves. The opening act of BIG NIGHT 2 is a reworking of his "Hills Like White Elephants" w/a swoop of dance. Read more
See it if you like experimental theatre
Don't see it if you prefer classical theatre
Krymov’s production is a rapturous love letter to the making of theater. He unearths how we really tell our stories by our emotions, what we hide, as much as what we reveal. He uses his stagecraft to develop new work from what has existed for decades but now through what must be the most meticulous, yet fresh, improvisatory stage vocabulary. His new company’s forthcoming seasons will be must-see events of the highest order.
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To say that Krymov works like no other director is an understatement not to be taken lightly. He is known for his inventive Russian adaptations, but he has also been earning a reputation for tackling American literature with the same whimsical and sometimes fourth wall-smashing approach that emphasizes the pure act of theater making. It is at first quite disarming in its playfulness, yet never loses sight of sincere treatment of works of literature. Here we find two Ernest Hemingway short stories, "Hills Like White Elephants" and "A Canary for One," both written in the late 1920’s, matched with two scenes that serve as dense character portraits from Eugene O’Neill’s "Desire Under the Elms," circa 1924.They are not your normal fare when you consider the expectations of the term “love story.”
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“If you appreciate fanciful approaches to drama, never stooping to cutesy or twee, this is the kind of theater that will warm and nourish you like the best chicken soup. I mean, where else can you be treated towards the end of being told a great Russian story by the appearance of Kermit the Frog?”Theater Pizzazz
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“We don’t often get the opportunity, as there is so much on offer for live events in this city, to experience points of view from deeply rooted theatrical traditions besides our own. Dimitri Krymov’s residence in our city is a gift and something to look forward to.”
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To get the full flavor of what the great exiled Russian director Dmitry Krymov does with (to?) Ernes Heminway’s short stories…and to Eugene O’Neill’s play…it helps to have read the texts recently.
This is not at all necessary to enjoy “Three Love Stories Near a Railroad, an entertaining ninety minutes full of physical clowning and alluring off-kilter anarchy.
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"With a dash of Brecht here and a dollop of Ionesco there, Krymov brings a circusike atmosphere to La MaMa, where most of the audience sits in rising rafters but some in semicircular rows on the stage. Emona Stoykova’s set is anchored by a dilapidated wall of cardboard splashed with white paint, with random objects on the floor buried in the rubble. Host and guitar player Jackson Scott introduces the show, constructing a table and chairs from the detritus. He orders us not to clap until all three works have concluded. “It is one single piece, like a symphony,” he says. Thus, right from the start, we are aware that this evening will be as much about the art of making theater as it will be about the art of performance itself."
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