The Spring Fling: Chemistry

See it if you’d like a crash course in contemporary culture as seen by 7 diverse emerging playwrights.

Don't see it if 7 plots & 20 characters in 80 minutes are just too many for you to keep straight in your head.

Also The theme for this anthology of 7 short plays is nominally “Chemistry”. But the pervasive thread is: Life in the Digital Age. These are voices of tomorrow & there’s no looking back—& that’s a strength. Characters across the pieces are preoccupied with aps, mobile devices, streaming media & the peculiarly authoritarian lifestyle experts that terrorize our age. Here “mediated” life shapes both content & form. I found this oddly soothing: This world is not totally mine, but it’s nice to know live theater has a place in it. Production was spare. Sets consisted of furniture dragged on & off again. The quality of the actors was very high. Every piece deserved a hearing. I admired “Henry” for the clear-eyed confrontation at its core, “Detention” for transcending its slice of life, “The Verjeena” for its implacable weirdness, “The Contemplation” for dematerializing its actors so neatly—I’m running out of room. Let me say I look forward to new work from all of the “Chemistry” writers.... Read more Read less

See it if you like short plays (10-15 min) with similar theme.Some were quite good, some felt rushed and confusing, but overall didnt feel complete

Don't see it if You do not like very small theater with a tiny stage. Or if you like to see classic play from start to finish, this is not your thing.

Also Sometimes experimental theatre might be refreshing and bring you different perspective than a classic structured play but this did not feel finished or ready for audience yet.... Read more Read less

See it if you're up for a series of hit-or-miss vignettes by eager players on the subject of ... love? chemistry? the chemistry of love? Not sure.

Don't see it if you like well-defined shows with clear messaging. A few segments really hit their mark, some were perplexing, others just felt irrelevant.

Also Call me literal-minded but the pieces that felt most competent were those that had an obvious point and conveyed it in a smart way (such as the playwright with her literary agent). Many segments felt not quite ready for prime time, but could become so with more lucid purpose and clearer resolutions.... Read more Read less