By Maria Gotay
A performance space on Starr Street appears quiet and inconspicuous from the outside. The presence of The Bushwick Starr is easy to ignore on the walk to from the Jefferson L stop. Only its large Bushwick Starr banner, which is both intriguing and inviting, might lead you to “suspect” a performance and theater venue… I learned about it by word-of-mouth a few months ago. Reading up on the space online I was amazed by the quality of programming they’ve housed over the past year, featuring titles such as Here at Home and The Ring Cycle, two plays that were raved about by the New York Times. The venue even received the “Voices to Watch” award from the Alliance of Art last year.
But, The Starr has made the news recently by Premiering Nellie Tinder’s Evelyn, lending the space a reputation as a Manhattan-class performance venue. Written and directed by Julia May Jonas and developed at the Starr, Evelyn mashes movement, music and text to present a parodic love letter to things past; a transient play featuring a chorus of women that examines the relationship of reality to artifice. Humorous and emotional, the viewer will step into the shoes of a mysterious community of women who struggle to differentiate between reality and mystics. The women’s thin sense of emotional security is further challenged when a luminous film star enters the facility, leading the women and viewers alike to discover why.
We can’t wait for the play to kick off- it premieres February 22nd and runs through March 10th, and their calendar is booked through June with a litany of other promising performances. Currently, the venue is gearing up for its next show, Gonna See a Movie Called Gunga Din, which opens this Wednesday. Check out the whole calendar and buy tickets at their website.