BRIAN SCHAEFER

  • Home

  • Publications

  • Topics

  • About

  • My Two Left Feet

  • Contact

  • More

    © 2013 Brian Schaefer. All rights reserved.

    Illusion & Identity & "In & Of Itself"

    March 20, 2018

     The deconstruction of identity is typically the concern of academics and activists, not so much magicians. But Derek DelGaudio’s “In & Of Itself,” the intimate, oft-extended off-Broadway show next to Union Square uses literal illusions to explore identity as perhaps the greatest illusion. It’s a clever conceit, and it kinda works. Through a series of vignettes, anchored by the tale of a suicidal sailor known as the Roulettista (as in, Russian Roulette), and interspersed with tricks that involve cards, personalized letters and some ingenious audience participation, DelGaudio manages a fine balance between trust and skepticism, emotion and entertainment. He’s an unassumingly compelling guide, albeit one that leans a bit heavily on the pregnant pause. The success of the show is the way it quietly subverts its generally flashy genre, employing its wizardry in the service of subtle stories with an eye to epiphany. Its aim is not (only) the external gasp of wonderment, but the internal revelation as well. 

     

     

    Please reload

    Featured Posts

    Dance and Domestic Violence in Carousel

    April 11, 2018

    Truth and Consequences in "Lobby Hero"

    March 26, 2018

    Elsa & Anna & Harry & Hermione & Ron

    June 15, 2018

    1/6
    Please reload

    Recent Posts

    Elsa & Anna & Harry & Hermione & Ron

    June 15, 2018

    Dance and Domestic Violence in Carousel

    April 11, 2018

    Refugee Stories That Look You In The Eye

    April 9, 2018

    An "Angels" for Today's America

    April 9, 2018

    Self-doubt at "Mean Girls," the musical

    March 28, 2018

    Truth and Consequences in "Lobby Hero"

    March 26, 2018

    Origin Stories at Paul Taylor's American Modern Dance

    March 23, 2018

    Illusion & Identity & "In & Of Itself"

    March 20, 2018

    Brian's Best Picture: A Protest

    February 28, 2016

    Rice is to Taiwan as _______ is to America

    September 18, 2015

    Please reload

    Search By Tags

    #ImWithHer

    #MeToo

    Afghanistan

    America

    Andrew Garfield

    Angels in America

    Avenue Q

    Bad Jews

    Baryshnikov

    Billy Elliot

    Book of Mormon

    Broadway

    Carousel

    Chris Evans

    David LaChapelle

    Donald Trump

    Hamilton

    Hand To God

    Hozier

    Instagram

    Jack O'Brien

    Jerome Robbins

    Justin Peck

    Kenneth Lonergan

    Kinky Boots

    Lauren Lovette

    Lil Buck

    Literature

    Lobby Hero

    Made in Dagenham

    Matilda

    Mean Girls

    Michael Cera

    Misha

    Mohsin Hamid

    Musicals

    Nathan Lane

    New York

    PrEP

    Pulitzer

    Reagan

    Refugees

    Rodgers and Hammerstein

    Roundabout

    Roy Cohn

    Serenade

    Sting

    Taiwan

    The Cage

    The Color Purple

    The Full Monty

    Tina Fey

    Tony

    Tony Kushner

    Vox Motus

    Waitress

    art series

    ballet

    barak marshall

    beauty

    body

    bodytraffic

    bournonville

    copenhagen

    corn

    cuisine

    culture

    dance

    denmark

    domestic violence

    dustin yellin

    fashion

    fiddler on the roof

    gay

    gay marriage

    hair

    hans christian anderson

    history

    hofesh shechter

    immigration

    jewish

    jookin

    joyce

    koch

    los angeles

    marriage

    marriage equality

    musicals

    new york city ballet

    nycb

    politics

    polunin

    presidential campaign

    rag & bone

    rice

    royal danish ballet

    subsidies

    theater

    victor quijada

    video

    wedding

    yiddish

    Please reload