My overall impression
FULL DISCLOSURE: I am good friends with both nostalgium’s writer, Matthew Benyo, and director, Alex Scott. I was also privileged enough to witness a workshop performance of this piece several years ago at the University of Iowa.
Nostalgium is a beautifully written psychedelic exploration of self-identity and the dangers of living in the past. The words are poetic, and the picture grandiose. The piece forces the audience to examine the meaning of life through a drug-induced kaleidoscope of thoughts and feelings, and times past and present. Set entirely in the cluttered apartment of one of the characters, Nostalgium plays upon the conventional writing idea that static location and lineal time is a natural tension builder. Forcing an audience into a singular moment creates a sense of urgency and importance in even the most mundane of actions.
Unfortunately, there are some pacing issues to the piece. After the play I couldn’t help but think all that was done in 85 minutes could have been done in 70. Part of the blame there may lie with Alex Scott’s direction, and part of it may lie with Matthew Benyo’s wordy and philosophical writing style. However, despite the play running a little long, the end rewards viewers patient enough to spend an hour and a half translating Benyo’s poetic style with a gut-wrenching and earned climax.
The acting is truthful, and the stage direction on point. Mr. Scott does an excellent job keeping the actors busy to deflect from the fact that they haven’t left the same room in over an hour. Mr. Benyo does an excellent job of keeping the story moving toward the inevitable tragedy (or is it triumph?) of the play’s final moments.
I would recommend seeing Nostalgium to anyone with the patience and mental fortitude to be rewarded by revelation as opposed to action. Enjoy!
