What I liked
This was a plot that really piqued my interest and while I can only describe it as interesting and awkward all in one, I really enjoyed the story.
What I didn't like
Due to the nature of the story and the nudity, the audience members behind me not only showed up late but spent most of the performance chit chatting and laughing. I know that it is not the fault of the performance, but that would be the biggest dislike for me during this show.
My overall impression
Absolute Zero (How Lovers and Sad People Hold up the World) is a very dark and intriguing story that is as loving as it is disturbing. Jim, a 32-year-old man in love with his 17-year-old neighbor Charles, learns that Charles will be going away to college and just wants to get to know him so he kidnaps him and keeps him tied up in his basement. After a few weeks and realizing Jim is not there to hurt him, Charles starts opening up and the two soon learn that they actually have a lot in common and develop a connection to one another. Meanwhile, Charles girlfriend and brother find a sexual tension between the two and act and explore on it as a way to cope with the disappearance of Charles with no way of finding him in sight. When Charles turns 18 and is ready to take his relationship with Jim to another level, not wanting to escape nor wanting to stay kidnapped anymore but instead wanting something real, the cops figure out that Jim kidnapped Charles and place him under arrest. After speaking with a criminal psychologist, what seems like a very wrong situation of an older man kidnapping an underage boy seems to be much more than a crime of passion but a crime of the heart and sometimes the heart does actually win. Not all stories of love end in a happily ever after because sometimes when the happiness comes, the only thing left is the end. With great acting, poetry by Alan Ginsberg and incredibly fascinating story Absolute Zero is definitely a performance worth checking out at Frnge 2016.
