REVIEW: Octet Deftly Explores Internet Addiction
Through 09/07 @ Hudson Valley Shakespeare
Photos by Gabe Palacio
“Hudson Valley Shakespeare understands what is necessary in creating a uniquely outstanding season of plays that truly justify the term destination theater.”
I have been waiting for years to see Dave Malloy’s Octet and always voted for it if any musical theatre companies were polling audiences for suggestions for future seasons. My wish finally came true in an unlikely venue and it was more than worth the wait.
It’s not just that the musical garnered rave reviews and won an Obie, Drama Desk and Lortel award, but since its much lauded off-Broadway run at the Signature Theatre in 2019, the only other production I could find of it was at Berkeley Rep. Also, and most importantly, is the subject and treatment from the composer of Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812. I mean, how many other chamber choir musicals about internet addiction are you going to see?
When I saw this listed on Hudson Valley Shakespeare’s schedule, my heart skipped a beat, although I wasn’t sure what the musical would gain by being outdoors under a tent as it is set in a nondescript church basement. But this was one show that was definitely worth the extra drive. HVS understands what is necessary in creating a uniquely outstanding season of plays that truly justify the term ‘destination theater’.
Maybe staging this under a tent with a sand floor underlines the simplicity with which Malloy addresses his subject matter. You would think a musical about internet addiction would need 100 screens and rolling and whirring machinery and furniture to represent the high speed interconnectedness of it all. Here, we have eight folding chairs and a coffee pot, the only instruments are a pitch pipe and eight glorious voices singing exquisite harmony. The cast directed by Amanda Dehnert takes on many communal roles, including the higher power, moving about the space imaginatively as each addict qualifies.
The recovery meeting is set and Paula (Alexis Tidwell) who is chairing for the absent and mysterious Saul announces exactly what we’ll be seeing: a few shares, a hymn, a coffee break, more shares, tea and closing.
Jumping in to share first is Broadway veteran Jill Paice as Jessica who suffers a relapse as the chorus pushes her to “click, swipe, fuck.” Gunnar Manchester bounds excitedly around the room proclaiming, “All the games I like have candy in them.” Paula shares that she and her husband share their bed with the low glow of their phones. The uses of the internet for validation, connection, entertainment, sex, and information are all creatively explored here.
The great Luis Quintero does a great streetwise Toby in his hoodie who burrows into the conspiracy threads and finds either a receptacle for his anger or its cause. The bass Adam Bashian duets with the lovely Melissa Mahoney (as Karly) on the succinctly titled “Solo” which explores porn addiction.
Anand Nagraj as Marvin, a neuroscientist intolerant of unintelligence, falls into the rabbit hole of late night comment sessions on science forums and has a spiritual experience.
The newcomer to the group is the vulnerable Velma, played by Mia Pak and she brings a connection to the tarot deck who meets a “girl like me in St. Marie” in the aptly titled “Beautiful.”
Besides the appreciation for the extraordinary beauty and awe at the precise skill of the singing, there is something so mind blowing about the artistic achievement here that it’s almost impossible to process. Kind of like the internet.
Octet is the most original, passionate and creatively astonishing show of this or many other summers.
Octet plays through 9/7 at Hudson Valley Shakespeare. Tickets: www.hvshakespeare.org
