by Karen Tortora-Lee on February 26, 2012
“How long does it take to become a true New Yorker?”
Obviously playwright Chris Harcum goes right for the tough questions in his play, Rabbit Island, currently playing in the Kraine Theatre as part of the 2012 Frigid Festival.
When we first meet Alex (Ethan Angelica) he is nervously pinging around his therapist’s office, a desperate Canadian transplant who simply wants to feel like he belongs in this town. “Some say it’s when you have your first private moment in public …” he goes on to explain, but I would offer that simply unleashing this tirade of neuroses to a therapist qualifies him for at least one click on his “True New Yorker” Punch-card.
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by The Happiest Medium on February 2, 2012
Five Questions. Five Answers. And One Big Decision: Rock, Paper, Or Scissors?
Rabbit Island
Company: Elephant Run District
Directed by: Aimee Todoroff
Alex zigzags irregular relationships with an erratic therapist, his off-again/on-again girlfriend, and an untamed burlesque dancer. What more will it take to become a Real New Yorker? “When life sucks as bad as your mental health, go to Rabbit Island.”
Show Times:
- Thur 2/23 @ 9:00pm
- Sat 2/25 @ 8:30pm
- Mon 2/27 @ 7:30pm
- Thur 3/01 @ 6:00pm
- Sat 3/03 @ 5:30pm
Answers by Chris Harcum
(Playwright)
Karen Tortora-Lee’s Question
That’s some title. How did you come up with it – and what does it mean?
Chris: Oh, I bet you say that to all the Frigid Festival shows.
My friend, and brilliant costume designer, Kathryn Rohe, suggested I develop a character named Alex from my solo show Gotham Standards for a full play. He’s a Canadian in New York City and always slightly out of place, which is my default setting. I was looking at a Not For Tourists Guide and saw that Coney Island came from the Dutch “Konijn Eiland.” In English, that’s “Rabbit Island.” I also found out that Coney Island isn’t actually an island, it’s a peninsula. Something about that is fitting for the characters in this play who are freakshows on the inside and not all they seem on the outside. Plus, come on, rabbits. (You should ask me sometime how we came up with the company’s name, Elephant Run District. It’s a far more entertaining answer.)
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