My overall impression
This play is a hell of a thing…
In this case, the subject matter alone is enough. It doesn’t take much else to get most grown men squirming to their seats from the box office, but along with that comes it’s own sets of dangers that often lays waste one mans shows. Disillusioned writing, over-dramatization, self indulgence… Ben exemplified none of these things. His calm and confident demeanor matched with a steady speech quickly set me at ease. Here was a man with capable hands… experienced hands… and he was about to tackle a subject matter that is not only taboo, but practically overlooked in every way possible — ‘Cutting.’
From the get go, Ben’s ability to infuse humor into such gaudy subject matter quickly exemplified his capability not only as a performer, but as a writer. His ability to step back and look at his writing from a distance as to not overwhelm the audience with something they have, most likely, not experienced themselves, was a key factor in making this piece work. Once again, the subject matter is more than plenty, and his tactful, poetic descriptions combined with a raw, unabashed performance was just cream on the upper crust. In any case, what impressed me the most about Ben, not only as a performer, but as a person, was his ability to open in himself up as to say ‘Here I am, here’s where I’ve been, and here are my scars. This is me.’ A level of true vulnerability that many great men may never experience in a lifetime. I commend him for that, and I was moved.
‘Cutting.’ It’s some F’ed up shit, but none-the-less what I learned from Ben is that it’s out there, it’s real, and it’s extremely resilient. I was uncomfortable, I was shocked, and at times, I was sick to my stomach… but I am a better person for seeing this play.
