Theater of the Absurd

Saw two shows today -- both of which used absurd storylines to make a point (or at least entertain).

First up was "Mr. Marmalade" starring Michael C. Hall of Six Feet Under fame. It's about a four-year-old girl who has an imaginary friend, "Mr. Marmalade" played by Hall. Too bad for the girl, her friend is manic depressive, abusive, alcoholic, addicted to cocaine and heavily scheduled. I'm not sure what the playwright's message is, but the absurdity of the plot was entertaining.

This evening I saw "A Naked Girl on the Appian Way" starring Jill Clayburgh and Richard Thomas. The plot is about a sophisticated couple with three adult adopted children, two of whom fall romantically in love with each other. Written by Richard Greenberg, this play is awful! Greenberg has lost it. The script is a collection of baroque dialogue about meaningless topics. It's like Greenberg wants to impress on the audience that he knows about a lot of stuff. Who cares?

Had a lovely dinner at The Four Seasons Restaurant. Their pre-theater dinner of 3 courses for $65 has to be the best bargain in New York City. I've now had lunch their twice and dinner once. The service is impeccable and the food excellent -- but I think the room is prettier during the day. At night the office lights from surrounding buildings are shining and that detracts from the beauty of the setting. During lunch you can tell you're witnessing some major power lunching (a term that was coined at the Four Seasons.) Tonight, at least, the crowd seemed to be mostly tourists getting their kicks. I don't want to eat in a room filled with a bunch of people like me.