From the Wilbury Theatre Group: It’s time to get real and rock out about the one thing we all have in common: We’re Gonna Die. Actor Helena Tafuri takes over the role originated by playwright Young Jean Lee. The work is a blend of storytelling, stand-up, music, and theater, and “lets us know we may be miserable, but at least we won’t be alone.” From the New York Times review in 2011, when Lee performed this Obie Award-winning show at Joe’s Pub:
The charm of “We’re Gonna Die” is in how effectively (and humorously) Ms. Lee converts the exaltation that pop music can spread into a kind of collective consolation for life’s unavoidable woes. Employing the same basic tools of songcraft — catchy choruses, relatable lyrics, uplifting melodies — she applies them not to the eternal subject of swooning romance but to darker if no less common experiences (more common experiences, probably): loneliness, unhappiness, the gut-churning 4 a.m. fears about the pointless mystery of life that all sensible souls are prey to. There is comfort, Ms. Lee suggests, in public celebration of the private misery we keep locked away for fear it will leave us too exposed.
Tickets for all performances are $5-$55 through the Wilbury Theatre Group’s innovative Name-Your-Price model. Go here for tix.
Evening shows start at 7:30pm. Sunday matinees at 2pm.
(Photo by Erin X. Smithers)
Through February 12th, WaterFire Arts Center, 475 Valley Street, (directions)