Days of Late

Written and Directed by Braden Lubell

Produced by Sinnerman Ensemble

At the Viaduct Theatre Chicago

Tales of desperate people unfulfilled lives too gloomy

Maybe because I’m 66 years old and not in touch with the 20-30somethings that I didn’t think most of Braden LuBell’s Days of Late was either funny or dramatic. The younger folks in the audience laughed often and they seemed to get the pop culture references that alluded me.

Day of Late is a romantic drama about a group of 30something’s each lonely and desperate for sex, companionship and personal fulfillment. The play is structured like a screen play with many short scenes each lasting a minute or two followed by blackouts and movement of benches and chairs.  I found all the characters  emotionally desperate souls.

Each of the eight characters were struggling to avoid loneliness and isolation. All were inept, almost pathetic losers that I quickly lost interest in.  We see these lost souls attempting to navigate their sexual liberation with online dating, anonymous sex as their inter desires never get to be fulfilled.

We meet a married lawyer who cheats on his wife with men and women;  a talk radio host afraid of sex and his girlfriend of nine years.  An African-American, over 30, woman who desires a man for companionship and rough sex.  She falls for a man who has just broken up with his male lover of 2 years. Ha? We also meet a Japanese woman who likes kinky sex.

LuBell’s drama simply tried to cover too much during its 2 hours and 45 minutes.  While I found each of the characters  unique, none were developed enough for me to care much about. When Nina (Ebony Wimbs) finds out that her lover Max (Douglas Tyler) was her art client Sascha’s former lover,  the play lost all credulity.

Each of there characters were so flawed and incapable of communication that I had no one to cheer for as they all seemed doomed  to lonely unhappy lives.  This work paints a gloomy portrait of the struggles of  a generation trying to find purpose in their lives.  Their isolation is self imposed and avoidable.

Maybe the 20-30 folks will find this play revelatory, I found it an unfocused series of  disjointed situations.  Shane Kenyon was the most intriguing performer.

Somewhat Recommended

Tom Williams

At the Viaduct theatre, 3111 N. Western, Chicago, IL, callc773-296-6024