Seven elevens aren't just for slurpees anymore – at least not according to Desipina & Company which presents the fourth annual edition of their highly lauded series Seven.11 Convenience Theater throughout April at the Kraine Theater. Seven.11 Convenience Theater tips traditional theater on its ear by presenting alternately funny and poignant aspects of immigrant life in America through seven, eleven-minute plays and musicals all set within America's favorite convenience store. Gimmicky – yes, but ultimately worth the bite.
The cast of Seven.11 Convenience Theater
The idea of Seven.11 Convenience Theater is a rock solid concept with an overall fast pace that cleverly and easily brings the point home – to those who have experienced immigrant life first hand and to those who have only played witness. The seven plays included in this year's edition featured a mix of "tongue and cheek" skits along some musical and dramatic numbers. The plays which stayed in the musical and comedic vein made their point by strategically using "on-target" humor which, from audience reaction, was a sure fire hit. Ultimately, each play was not afraid to use stereotypes and have a good laugh at different cultures as seen here in America. It was refreshing to see these cultures poke fun at themselves and have a good time doing it. The two plays entitled "Homecoming" and "Undone" which took on a slightly more dramatic script, unfortunately spilled over into "mellow-dramatic territory." While the subjects presented in each of these plays were both extremely poignant, the message became convoluted as actors attempted to master such heavy subjects in a very brief amount of time. While these two plays allowed for more interpretation on behalf of the actors, they both seemed to make the eleven minutes drag and wrecked havoc on the upbeat and fast tempo that had already been established by preceding skits. Although the variety was appreciated, it ultimately did not work.
What did work though was the incredible ensemble casting. Between acts, as the set was reconfigured for the next performance, you could witness the inherently good nature of all the actors who gelled together not only as a cast, but also as Americans with immigrant pasts. Jerold E. Solomon, who appeared in three of the evening's plays, stood out with his strong and appealing nature both on and off stage. His personality was warm, genuine and infectious and provided the ability to push his fellow cast mates to their ultimate best. He presented a relaxed manner on stage with an engaging smile that made you wonder if he was really acting or just everyone's friend. Solomon was an extreme natural on stage and was wise to accept this type of role. To borrow a term from high school, he had "serious fun," that was easily transferred to the cast, raising the bar and pushing the overall performance to a new height, allowing the audience to enjoy it all the more.
Jerold E. Soloman, Alicia Ying and John Wu in a scene from "Kung Fu Hustle," one of the plays featured in the evening.
The casts' stories, both fictional and real seemed to strike accord with the audience who featured a beautiful mix of pasts and nationalities. Seven.11 Convenience Theater has an almost "Rent-like" following – with fans seeing the performances numerous times in each season every year since the theater company founded in 2001. The bare basic set coupled with both powerful and comedic musical numbers expressing the wants, needs and hopes of people trying to acclimate and survive in the new environment they find themselves in, draws an uncanny parallel to the Broadway smash hit. But putting these similarities aside, Seven.11 Convenience Theater is theater that can obviously stand on its own and do it well. This play seamlessly demonstrated that a light-hearted approach to a subject that can easily turn ugly, works. Sometimes humor is the best medicine.
Seven.11 Convenience Theater runs through April 23rd at the Kraine Theater on East 4th Street. Performances are Thursdays through Saturdays at 8 PM with a Sunday matinee at 2 PM. Tickets are available through SmartTix by calling 212-868-4444 or at www.smarttix.com. For more information on the production, please log onto the official website at www.desipina.org.
Photo Credit: John Quilty
