Kiko Soirée (Dear Kiko), Michelle Chan-Bennett (Netflix is a Joke) and Ihea Inyama (UCB Maude Night). Photo by Sabrina Di George.
Intelligently written and directed by Taylor Jon Gonzalez, the world-premiere comedy Chapter Meeting brings a sharply observed, micro-budget satire of modern political activism to the downtown stage. Prepare yourself for 90 minutes of non-stop laughs alongside fellow audience members. Sooner or later, the story’s biting wit will get to you.
Playing a limited engagement at the Wild Project, the production zooms in on a beleaguered Brooklyn chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America as they weather both an outside blizzard and an internal meltdown. True facts will be exhibited to the audience for clarification (and additional laughs).
We have come a long way since cavemen and women were painting their surroundings on walls. We have been through a lot as a human species.
Initiated by the Socialist Party of America, the first-ever “National Woman’s Day” was observed on February 28, 1909, in New York City. Suffragists fought for a century to be able to vote and obtain the 19th Amendment in 1920. The first contraceptive pill was developed in the U.S. and approved by the FDA in 1960, benefiting everyone. Women’s liberation is considered by many to be one of the most important achievements of last century.
If you are alive, born anytime in the 1900s, you know we fought not to go to wars, love and peace, and we were told that the Age of Aquarius was coming. Some philosophers had a realistic perspective of our current century’s challenges, and my generation learned about that in university futurology classes.
Fast forward to 2018 in the U.K., Extinction Rebellion (XR) was founded by activists from the campaign group Rising Up!. October 31, 2018, is the official public Declaration of Rebellion in London by XR. We must thank XR for creating, shaping, and branding contemporary activism for Gen X, Millennials, Gen Z, and Generation Alpha. And we all know well that they are here to stay. Pollinating its global spread, XR expanded into an international network with thousands of decentralized local groups active in nearly 90 countries, including regional chapters like Extinction Rebellion NYC.
If you are interested in diving deeply into the details of how to get it done, meaning “how to start a chapter”, and get your friends ready, perhaps you could take a crash course at Chapter Meeting, the play. You will not only witness real-life stories and struggles, but slowly but surely you can decide to join or avoid, with a 90-minute, non-stop laugh.
I highly recommend watching Chapter Meeting, the play, to understand, witness, join, and laugh. And laugh. And keep on laughing.
Featuring an energetic cast of Upright Citizens Brigade alumni including Michelle Chan-Bennett, Kiko Soirée, Kelly Whitley, and Ihea Inyama – the 90-minute, two-act play turns the microscope on the contradictions, grandstanding, and ideological purity tests of contemporary millennial leftists.
The comedy kicks off when an already depleted late-night organizing session descends into chaos over an unthinkable betrayal: one of their own members has quietly accepted a regular, salaried job.
Between heated debates over protest aesthetics, tactical disagreements, and deeply personal clashes, Gonzalez’s script manages to skewer political posturing while maintaining an affectionate pulse for its flawed, fiercely committed characters. It is a brisk, laugh-out-loud addition to the downtown off-off-Broadway landscape, proving that even the most fervent ideological movements could use a good laugh at themselves.
The production team includes Z Cameron (Light Design) and Abigail Landesman (Assistant Director & Stage Manager).
wild project
195 E 3rd St, New York, NY 10009
(212) 228-1195
#taylorjongonzalez #citizensbrigade #kellywhitley #kikosoiree #michellechanbennett #iheainyama #zcameron #abigailandesman #wildproject #sabrinadigeorge #lightdesing #photography #theatre #theater #newyork #ny #nyc
