Cygnet Theatre - Rolando (San Diego, CA)
Dying City tells the story of a woman a year after her husband's death in Iraq, forced to confront his identical twin brother who arrives at her apartment unannounced. Christopher Shinn's play is a remarkable tale of loss and how two very different people handle their grief.
Event summary prepared by the Goldstar Editorial Team.
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The last event was Sunday October 26, 2008 / 2:00pm. (view all dates)
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It was slow at the beginning and then picked up. Great venue, excellent seats, terrific prices, goldstar is awesome!
it was great acting,
THIS WAS THE WORST PLAY MY HUSBAND AND I HAVE SEEN.
IT WAS NOT THE STORY LINE WE WERE EXPECTING. THE LANGUAGE
USED WAS VERY OFFENSIVE TO US. HAD WE KNOWN THERE WAS
GOING TO BE A HOMOSEXUAL STORYLINE WE WOULD NOT HAVE
BOUGHT TICKETS. I WOULD NOT RECOMMEND THIS MOVIE TO
ANYONE.
My first time at this venue and I loved it. The acting was beautiful and so was the story. Not a political drama about the war but rather a wonderful character study of three people and how the war affects them and using the war as a revelation about truths in their lives. Good stuff.
Maybe my guest and myself are too old to appreciate an entire show dedicated to being gay and suicide
This was an excellent play. The script was remarkably well-conceived and nuanced, and the acting was top-notch. It was a very powerful experience, and the more we discussed it afterwards, the more thought-provoking layers we uncovered. I would highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys character-driven dialog-intensive pieces.
Content is definitely provocative - though the script was slow and some of the content completely uninformed. Did the author speak to people who represent the demographic he's portraying? As the spouse of a military member during 2 deployments to Iraq, I found the representation one dimensional and the script didn't give enough exposition to inform audience member who lack my frame of reference. The actors did a good job of differentiating between characters and two different points in time. Kudos to Sean in successfully finding a way to flip the switch between two very different personalities (he portrays twin brothers). All in all I found the script one dimensional and there was very little plot movement allowing the audience to be drawn into the action. Active duty military and families beware - content might be considered offensive.
More cringe moments than a Sarah Palin interview.
Acting was excellent! and subject matter interesting.. how people respond to grief is so varied
I thought the production was very good and the actors did a great job. I was not overly fond of any of the characters but they were interesting. Very intense material but provocative.
I liked the topic quite a bit but I thought it was a little overacted and a little long. The storyline was a good one, though.
Great script and acting. We both thoroughly enjoyed the play.
REALLY good psychological drama. Excellent acting from both characters (actually 2 actors, playing 3 characters). This is not a light musical.... be prepared to pay attention. Very cozy, intimate theater -- no bad seats.
I really liked it. Cygnet just keeps getting better. Very fine actors and interesting script.
The acting and set design were up to the Cygnet's high standards, as always. The problem was the play itself. It's overall message was very unclear, and the characters motivations equally murky.
I'd like to stress that the two actors involved made the very most of the material they had, and that they conveyed the available emotions in a telling way, but that was offset by the weak plot line.
Too bad.
loved it..excellent acting, very real life
It was interesting and well done. When you ask to rate it, "I loved it" doesn't do it, because you can't love a play that's so sombering and leaves you with a heavy heart.
I liked that it combined very well different issues: about the war and some very personal and complicated.
It was a tour de force and left me thinking for a long time.
I had read a good review of this play when it was performed in NYC and I was eager to see the play. However, this production was a disappointment to me in terms of the acting and directing. The female actor did a good job but the male actor was not believable in one of his roles. I also thought what should have been powerful dramatic moments fell flat. The play has some humor to lighten the heavy drama but these humorous lines also fell flat.
Cygnet is a great venue and I commend their commitment to performing works that challenge preconceptions and stimulate new ideas.
The theatre
A wonderful, intimate, and newly renovated 146 seat theatre with beautifully restored vintage theatre seats and upgraded lighting and sound equipment. Every seat has a great view.
The Cygnet Theatre Company is run by award winning actor and director Sean Murray. Previous to the Cygnet, Murray ran the North Coast Repertory Theatre in Solana Beach.
Dying City tells the story of a woman a year after her husband's death in Iraq, forced to confront his identical twin brother who arrives at her apartment unannounced. Christopher Shinn's play is a remarkable tale of loss and how two very different people handle their grief.
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