Paula Vogel's quirky look at the nature of loss was, as I recall, kind of an odd one. It's been a long time, but I saw the thing fully staged at the Boulevard years ago. I remember a stuffed bunny coming into play quite prominently. I also remember one actor playing many, many roles. So it's interesting to hear it being staged as a reading. One actor will be quickly sketching many, many characters in the process of staging the story.
The story itself was Vogel's way of dealing with the loss of her brother, who died of AIDS-related pneumonia. Comedy is a really strong way of dealing with loss and I recall the comedy in question having some particularly strong moments, even if the central conflict here involves something as intentionally stupid as "acquired toilet disease." I guess taking that out of context is kind of missing the point, but it's an intentionally flawed piece that I remember quite vividly the better part of a decade after I originally saw it staged.
Pink Banana's Staged Reading of The Baltimore Waltz occurs on May 18th at 7:30 in The Underground Collaborative on 161 West WIsconsin Avenue. Suggested donation is $10.
For ticket reservations, visit Brown Paper Tickets.com
