“There is little plot or action but there is emotion.” This was the reaction of a critic to Lanford Wilson’s Hot L Baltimore. It’s a very organic drama that originally debuted in 1973. It’s set in a run-down hotel in Baltimore that has become home for unwanted people. The cast-offs from society find a home in an old hotel. The drama takes place in a lobby. Wilson’s a brilliant playwright. If there’s little plot or action, it’s because that’s what life is like for those trying to make it between the folds of society.
UWM Theatre stages a production of the early ’70s Wilson play. Bill Watson Directs. From the press release: "The dramatic comedy looks at the resiliency of people to create community even amidst the ruins," Watson says. But Watson concedes that despite the community's steadfastness, the people who should be served by urban renewal are more often displaced. "The conversations that plays like Hot L Baltimore...initiate, reveal that in the 40 years that separate them, we don't seem to have gotten any better at dealing with these issues."
Hot L Baltimore runs Apr. 27 - May 1 at the UWM Mainstage Theatre on 2400 E. Kenwood Blvd. For tickets and more information, visit UWM online.
