This was put on by the Albany Park Theater Project (APTP) at Chicago's Goodman Theatre and was the culmination of the CHI office summer outing on Tuesday, August 12, 2008. Here's what my reflections were that evening...
The choreographed monologues of the first half of the play gave clues as to the kinds of jobs undocumented persons may have to take when they come to America. Some were obvious, other movements weren't. It would've been great to have the monologues make mention of the jobs they were illustrating as the individual stories were being told.
I loved the way scene set-up/breakdown was included in the body of the play.
This play was actually 2 plays put together. How did APTP make the choice to integrate these 2 stories? What made them decide to focus on mainly Manuel and Julio within those 2?
The best part of the play was "Nine Digits," in which Julio, an undocumented Colombian, is plagued by problems that could in some cases be resolved with a social security number - getting a job, registering for financial aid, registering for college, participating in summer programs, etc. The actor's presentation of the story was lively and the integration of dance with speech was phenomenal (there were elements of modern, jazz, hip hop and capoeira styles). A touch of humor as he told of he and his mom's life made it much more enjoyable. Also key was the fluctuation between past recollections and his present (as a member of aptp who now felt comfortable sharing his secret).
It's interesting to consider that an actor is telling the story of an immigrant who's been living a lie and is then, at APTP allowed to use that "lie" as a dramatic outlet....a true example of Ars Longa, Vita Breve.
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