While small theaters all over town are scrambling to find new
spaces as old venues close, Avenue Stage has established a cozy home at the Dot
2 Dot Café in Dorchester. There are at least a
dozen reasons to think outside the box and search it out. This year is Arthur
Miller’s centenary and there isn’t anywhere else you can see his bittersweet 1987
play, I CAN’T REMEMBER ANYTHING (playing through April 9th.)
Those of us who remember the halcyon days of Irish theater in
Boston will be
delighted to see Jennifer Jones back on stage, starring opposite Geoffrey
Pingree as two aging friends who lament the loss of their former lives. As they
combat their feelings of uselessness, they find fault in each other: He
grumbles that she drinks all his liquor. She accuses him of not facing the
reality of their hopelessness. He blames her for his hypertension.
Their amusing bickering bubbles below the surface as the two
friends try to recall fading memories of their glory days… try to find reasons
to go on, as Miller quips “adding triviality to the boredom of existence.”
Director Michael O’Halloran and company compose a moving portrait of the
stresses in a relationship, working beneath the dialogue to show us the
affection, even as the characters threaten never to see each other again.
The highlight of the play is a lovely, sensual dance, a
magical moment where Jones brings romance to life. She becomes the young
dazzler again, undulating to the rhythms of the sitar, the center of attention,
the object of desire. With that dance, Jones creates all that has been lost to
them. It’s heartbreaking and triumphant at the same time. And you can imagine
what Miller must have felt at the end of his life, when his best plays (best
years?) were behind him, as so many critics took pains to point out.
Have I mentioned that this gem of a play comes with
dinner…for the price of a fringe theater ticket! A two course gourmet meal
invented by master chef Karen Henry-Garrett! If I were a food critic, I’d give
the Dot 2 Dot Café and Henry-Garrett my top pick. There are four entrees to
choose from and three desserts. The rich, luxurious vegetarian pasta puttanesca
was a hearty, savory choice and her tarte tatin was an opulent surprise, contrasting
caramel apples with a crunchy crust of puff pastry. Even presentation was a
treat at Dot 2 Dot.
This isn’t your grandfather’s dinner theater experience. It’s
an event. Don’t miss out on this embarrassment of riches.
