"Tristan Tzara Was My Best Friend in Junior High" at Mirror-Lab

And now for something completely different: Tristan Tzara Was My Best Friend in Junior High. The subtitle of this odd and charming little play is "A dinner party ritual," and that's exactly what it is. It's been around in various incarnations for about ten years, but this was my first experience with it. I'd tell you to go see it if you're looking for a different kind of theater experience, but there are only four performances and it's sold out (self-produced by the artists). Here's hoping they'll bring it back again - follow this website for more info.

This was the best dinner party I've ever attended, even if it only consisted of celery and wine, plus a lovely curry soup after the ritual was over. Seated at a long table with about a couple dozen strangers, the performers succeeded in making us all feel like a community, if only for a little while. The premise is that the Dadaist poet Tristan Tzara (played by co-creator Jon Cole) is hosting a dinner party for old friends after all of his Dadaist friends become Surrealists (it's OK, you don't have to know what any of those words mean). He hosts the party with another host/leader/reporter (played by Sulia Altenberg), who leads us through various rituals - the singing of sacred hymns, the telling of parables, the toasting with actual wine (or sparkling cider). There are little activities with crayons and paper, and voluntary participation in reading of questions and parables. It's absurd and profound and awkward and surprisingly moving.

the end of the meal
photo credit: @cherryandspoon Instagram

Everything about the piece (written by Savannah Reich and created in collaboration with Jon Cole and Lauren Anderson) is very thoughtful and well-constructed, from the place settings to the nametags to the cue cards for the singalong. Stories about sardines, or a journalist whose office explodes, are weird and silly and also kind of profound. The piece uses all these absurd stories and situations to evoke thoughts and feelings about what it means to be human amongst other humans.

I do not normally enjoy participatory or interactive theater (although I love immersive), but this is all done in a non-threatening way that expanded my comfort zone without propelling me completely outside of it. It's unlike anything I've experienced, a mix of theater and performance art and ritual and communion. In a world that's increasingly divided and distant, it's nice to be reminded of the communities that still do exist, including my favorite kind of community - people sitting in a room together experiencing art.