More Theater Monday - Redeemed & What the Constitution Means To Me

We were given complimentary tickets to Redeemed for review purposes. Any and all opinions expressed here are our own. 

What: Redeemed 

Where: 59E59 Theatres

             59 E. 59 St.

             New York, NY

Who: Recommended For Ages 16 and Up

When: Through October 5, 2024

Chisa Hutchinson's play, Redeemed, revolves around a woman named Claire whose brother was murdered. Now, her brother's murderer, Trevor Barlow claims to be a redeemed man due to being haunted by her brother's ghost. He wants Claire, who works in publishing, to help him publish his book. 

The performances in this two-hander are excellent. Elizabeth Sun is very expressive in the role of Claire. Her character gets an emotional workout ranging from anger, disbelief, and sadness to resilience, determination, and confidence. Through it all, she seems so strong that when she has a breakdown it hits the audience hard, and when she finds her strength it's a catharsis for the audience as well. 

Doug Harris as Trevor Barlow is the opposite. He's an enigma. He holds his emotions close. You can't tell whether he absolutely believes what he is saying or he is just trying to put one over on Claire as she is initially convinced. 

The play is extremely well-written, It is completely riveting and really holds your attention for the approximately 90-minute duration. You feel as if you can't look away for a minute or you might miss something. If you don't mind a show that deals with difficult subjects like murder, racism, and more, and you like a show that really makes think you might enjoy this one. 

And that's our view. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit 59e59.org/shows/show-detail/redeemed.

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We were given complimentary tickets to What the Constitution Means to Me for review purposes. Any and all opinions expressed here are our own.

What: What the Constitution Means to Me 

Where: NBPAC

             11 Livingston Ave.

              New Brunswick, NJ 

Who: Recommended for Ages 13 and Up

When: Through October 13, 2024

When playwright, Heidi Schreck was young, she participated in debates regarding the importance of the Constitution and its relevance to her life to earn money for college. What the Constitution Means to Me is her play regarding her experiences and examining whether the document truly does what it is allegedly meant to do and whether we should keep or abolish it. This is something that many people today have very strong opinions about thus, making the show extremely relevant and timely.

In the original show, Heidi played herself. In the current production, she is played by Kate Baldwin. In the first part of the play, Baldwin portrays younger, Heidi. Later she becomes an adult, Heidi. Baldwin does a terrific job with the transition between the two, You really feel as if she has aged right before your eyes. 

In the final part of the show, Baldwin plays herself, She engages in a debate with a current high school student regarding whether we should keep or abolish the Constitution. Niara Beckwith and Wobriba Sarpey alternate in the role-playing themselves. The night we attended, it was Beckwith's turn. She is an extremely thoughtful and well-spoken young woman who convincingly made her case for her side of the debate.

This is not an easy show to watch. Several actual court cases are discussed throughout the play the resolution of which may be shocking, angering, or upsetting to most, if not all, people. If you are not feeling good about the current state of the country and the Supreme Court in particular, this show is definitely not going to make you feel better. However, it is an important show that raises an important issue and at the very least reminds us that if we want to make changes we first need to make our voices heard, and to do so, we need to carefully chose the political candidates most likely to listen and heed our voices and exercise our right to vote for them.

And that's our view. For more information or to purchase tickets to What the Constitution Means to Me, visit www.georgestreetplayhouse.org/events/detail/what-the-constitution-means-to-me

Tune in tomorrow for Tips for Tuesday.

Photo credits:

All Redeemed production photos by Carol Rosegg

All What the Constitution Means to Me production photos by T. Charles Erickson