Thoughts on Modern Terrorism

[themysteriousgrowl]

Well, sure. Yeah. Whatever.

There are probably more options than A, B, and C, but they haven't been invented yet to justify After Eight's perspective in a given scenario.

He'll make those up when he needs them.

But I do quite enjoy the idea that theater critics are engaging in this collective behavior independent of one another, because, I guess, that's just what anyone who became a theater critic post-William Winter... inherently is.

[maddymapo]

I saw it last night. Here are my thoughts:
Jon Kern takes on the complexities of modern terrorism and not unexpectedly falls short. His opening slap stick scene is a case in point. The "martyr" whines when told to shave off his pubic hair (to make the wires stick). But, very religious Moslems shave off their pubic hair anyway and so from the getco Mr. Kern's story loses authority. The young bomber's pure and sweet nature is problematic. In a generic way, any person who desires martyrdom is full of the glow of simple and absolute faith in something, and the nature of such profound faith in itself is compelling. Yet, it is the specific object of worship which is mirrored in the spirit of that person. It behooves the writer to show that when the object of faith is distorted, the person will reflect that same cruelty. Not so in this play. Until the bitter end we cannot help but like the lovable jerk who wants to do mass murder, and that conflicts with the viewer's innate need to distinguish right from wrong. And, Mr Kern seems uninterested or lacks knowledge about the religious concepts that are shaping this pathological behavior. Furthermore, how does a writer overcome the natural creepy feeling people get when asked to laugh about a situation that has left tens of thousands of people in misery? I admit, despite my own natural qualms, I did laugh at times, and the first act presented the paradox of modern life and terror in a way that began to capture my interest. However, these themes were not deep and profound enough to go anywhere and ultimately, the second act collapses in confusion under the weight of its own ambition and mixed messages. Both Utkarsh Ambudkar and Steven Boyer, were superb in depicting the bomber and local everyguy dude, respectively.

[rgdave]

I had a comp tik for this tonight, and almost didn't go because of the general trashing on this board. But I went, and had a good time. I enjoyed it, and laughed a lot. Lighten up, folks, it's a satire. It's not "Detroit". It has some great humor and comic elements, and the audience was laughing pretty hard at a lot of it. There also weren't any noticeable intermission walkouts that I saw ... and I looked. It's going to be really interesting to see how this one is reviewed. But all in all it was a very enjoyable evening of theater, and I didn't look at my watch once, which for this simple minded theater goer is my baseline for a thumbs up or thumbs down.

[henrikegerman]

I wonder if people who live in Uganda or the Congo would find Book of Mormon amusing?

[henrikegerman]

I wonder if people who live in Uganda or the Congo would find the warlord dark comedy of Book of Mormon amusing?

[mamaleh]

I was at the second preview. It's an unusual, highly disconcerting subject for a comedy, even a dark one. The abrupt shift of tone from farce to horror was shocking even if somewhat expected. I could see how the play polarized the audience; numerous people left during intermission. I could stay for only the first several minutes of the talk-back. I wasn't sure I bought the playwright's approach--how the (thankfully) failed Times Square bombing attempt was so mishandled by its perpetrators, it bordered on the comic. So I wonder how a New York audience (this one's no tourist pleaser), obviously more affected by 9/11 than those from elsewhere, will take to it. Are we--is anybody?--ready for a putative comedy about human monsters?

[TimesSquareRegular]

I saw this on Saturday ..... no, not a "great" play, but definitely worthy of your attention. Terrific performances, solid direction, and one "laugh till you cry" moment. Controversial? Yeah, and that's refreshing for a change!

See it - you won't be bored, and you won't quickly forget it.