Seeking shade from the scorching (80-degree) sun yesterday, I propped myself up against the magnificent stone edifice of the Suzzallo Library (left) and set about trying to finish up the engaging spy novel The Great Impersonation by E. Phillips Oppenheim. Distractions on Red Square were plentiful, however, from the distant bleating of a brimstone-filled preacher to the never-ending stream of young co-eds whose wardrobes took full advantage of the gorgeous weather.
After I re-read page 87 several times, I prepared to give up and retire to a more secluded spot but the arrival of two women onto the bench in front of me gave me pause. One woman approached the other and accused her of stealing her seat and beach towel. The seated woman protested, and the other grabbed her by the neck and raised her fist as if to strike her about the head. After a moment, a man in a shirt and tie (unusual attire for campus) stepped up and started giving them “notes.” It then occurred to me that he was the director of some open-air theatrical presentation. I was intrigued enough by having a play break out in front of me that I decided to sit and watch.
The scene was simple enough. After nearly coming to blows over the beach towel, another beach towel dropped into the scene (helped by the director), which caused the women to stop fighting. The aggressor took the new beach towel and sat down next to the other. They both wrapped themselves in their towels. The end.
After they rehearsed several times, the actors and director began accosting passers-by asking them to stop and watch a one-minute play. At one point, they glanced over at me and told me they’d take pity on me since I had just watched it eleven times. I politely dismissed their pity and told them I enjoyed it (though I admit I found it rather lacking in character development and narrative).
It turns out what I had witnessed was part of a theatrical project called “365 Days/365 Plays,” which had its start in November 2002 when Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Suzan-Lori Parks began a project to write one play per day for a year. The “365Seattle” project, part of which included the beach towel performance, is a production of those plays throughout Seattle from November 2006 to November 2007. Productions are occurring simultaneously in other cities throughout the U.S. including New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Chicago.
The director and actors were very nice and were appreciative of my audience participation. As I was getting up to leave, I heard them discussing plans to wander over to the preacher and try to steal his audience for their play. I hope they were successful.
