Intensely Annoying is a Pre-requisite for a Book Club
I would also add that intensely hilarious and intense astute insight is the essence of this exquisite production of Karen Zacarìas’s play The Book Club Play, which just opened in Issaquah at the Village Theatre. The author invented a group of characters whose defects and strengths created hilarious conflicts and equally hilarious jokes, especially about literature, literary types, while generating a few not quite PC jokes.
Taking place over several sessions of a longstanding book club, two events serve to shake up the social dynamics and power structure. As the book club changes, each individual makes big positive life changes, while the audience is treated to amusing dialogue, in which the participants discuss literature both pretentiously and matter of factly.
The two events are: The filming of their meetings by a famous European documentary filmmaker with a name right out of Prairie Home Companion. (i.e. of vintage Scandinavian origin) Self-consciousness and intergroup conflict as well as long buried secrets surface as a result of the filming.
The second is that a new comer enters the group, who unbeknownst to the original members, ends up actually having literary creds, as he is a professor of comparative literature, but is rather disillusioned with reading. Rather ironically, he does not consider reading “popular” literature a sign of intellectual inferiority.
Everything about this production was spot-on from the outstanding set, designed by Catherine Cornell, which broadcast the hostess’ Type A, perfectionist personality before she even comes on stage, to the Sound Design, by Iris Zacarìas, which introduced every scene.
The outstanding ensemble cast of Marquicia Dominguez who played Ana, the tightly wound control-freak hostess and self-appointed leader of the group, to perfection; Nik Doner as her husband a polar opposite; Richard Nguyen Sloniker, as Will, an easily mocked uptight museum curator; Lauren Paris, as Jen, a single gal with a bit of a past and apparently no future; and Maya Burton, as a novice journalist and all round sassy youngster. Then of course there was Arlando Smith as our dear comp lit professor wondering about whether reading is even worth it. The great ensemble work was a testament to directors Arlene Martìnez Vàzquez and Jéhan Òsanyìn since the cast worked together with the precision of a Swiss clock.
Most of the cast also were double cast as minor characters, who broadcast about reading and book clubs from onstage TV screens. The funniest was Arlando Smith’s rendition of some sort of CIA/FBI man securing the terrain for a book club.
I heartily recommend The Book Club the Play even if you never had the misfortune to share a house with members of the University of Iowa’s Writer’s Workshop and listen to self-aggrandizing literary banter before breakfast and after midnight because even my companion, a Mathematician and a geek, found quite a bit to laugh about.
The Book Club Play. The Village Theatre, 303 Front St. Issaquah, WA 98027 (Eastside) Wed, Thurs, 7:30pm Fri, Sat. 8:00pm. Matinée Sat, Sun, Thurs 1pm. ASL Interpreted, Thur. March 19 1:00pm. Til Apr 3. Opens in Everett Apr. 8. Off street parking. Bus #554 from Seattle to Issaquah, Bus #271 from Bellevue. (Since the show is at 8pm, if you drive you miss the rush hour)
Tickets: https://tickets.villagetheatre.org/TheatreManager/1/login?event=3151
N.B. Proof of vaccination and masks are mandatory.