The Seattle Times reviews small metal objects:

Seattle’s Olympic Sculpture Park is a haven for joggers, dog walkers and amblers.

You wander amid artworks, taking in magnificent water and mountain views, maybe chatting with a friend. But do you ever wonder about the strangers strolling by? And their conversations? READ MORE

Seattle Weekly posted an on-line review of last night’s performance.

The audience sits in chairs, listening to the performance in headphones while the actors come upon them out of the crowd, telling the story of two invisible men. READ MORE

Welcome to our review blog for small metal objects. Read our patron reviews, click on the Comments button to read the comments of others and post your own thoughts.

Listen. I want you to hear from me, I mean really hear, but how do I do it in an unapologetic-politico-equivocal, diesel-engine, hyperbolic-radio-shout-advertising-saturated world? Common wisdom is if you want to be heard then you better speak the power language, get on board, put up or shut up. If you can’t do it, you’re weak, apathetic, obstinate, and/or impaired. Challenged. I do a lot of double-thinking, double-speaking just to figure out how to communicate authentically, even with myself. The result can often be publicly embarrassing. So you need to know that about me in order to know why I felt such deep gratitude for Back to Back’s small metal objects, the show I witnessed last night. But please take my use of the word show with a grain of salt. It’s a necessary word but I know it comes from a language that privileges commerce, packaging, products, capitalization-of-life, etc. and it invokes those values when uttered. The amazing and creative linguist George Lakoff has been suggesting, to powerful effect, that folks who want to combat the policies of the “global elite” need to be involved in the work of actively reframing the terms of the debate itself – define alternative values and demand “metrics” that are based on these values and these values alone. Sometimes it’s so complicated to communicate with this in mind that I just want to beam feelings from my chest! Well, small metal objects does the thrilling and powerful work of “reframing the debate” simply by claiming public space, blissfully avoiding self-editing (what the fearful might tidy up as “quirky”), and refusing to budge. Last night, “power” was redefined as a deep, instinctive commitment to dignity, and “dignity” claimed independence from legalese. LISTEN I WENT TO THE OLYMPIC SCULPTURE PARK LAST NIGHT AND SAT IN SOME RISERS WITH SOME OTHER PEOPLE AND WE WERE ALL WEARING HEADPHONES AND WATCHING THE PARK AND WATCHING THE JOGGERS AND THE GIANT SCULPTURES AND THE GIANT BODY OF WATER AND THE HILLS AND THE PLANES AND THE BOATS AND THE TRAINS (YEP). IMAGINE RICHARD SCARY FOR GROWNUPS: ALL THE THINGS THAT GO – ALL THE MARKERS OF A COMPLEX, BLUSTERY CIVILIZATION – WERE EVIDENT AND MAKING THEIR LOUD NOISES and within it we heard, intimately, two humans, two friends, both alike in dignity… GO SEE THIS SHOW. Thank you OtB. Thank you B2B. Come back soon! You are the leaders of the free world!

- Paige Weinheimer

*The author of this blog assumes that you are already familiar with “small metal objects”, by reading other posts or summaries, or seeing it yourself.

This piece left me with a rare emotional dichotomy: I’m certain that I understand what happened, how it was constructed, why certain choices were made…and yet I’m simultaneously lost in the uncertainty of meaning that seemed to permeate the piece. DID I GET IT? Do I really understand what I just saw? I suppose it doesn’t matter. It gave me a certain feeling, and that feeling was warm and compassionate.

“small metal objects” would be a great example in an artistic discussion about showing rather than telling. It has very little exposition, and even less spoon-feeding in terms of the themes and message. Things happen, then the show ends. But the WAY they happen, especially in terms of the audience’s point of view, are by far THE REASON TO SEE THE SHOW.

This is the first On the Boards show that I immediately wanted to bring my mom back to. Its warmth and honesty make me feel that the artists are not trying to pull a veil over our eyes, but rather remove one. Is the piece a cry for attention from the different, the excluded, the confused, the “invisible”? Not so clearly. With the wonderful use of music and sound, sparse and elegant and sometimes jarring, we feel connected to Gary, and especially Steve. Ironically, we feel closer to Steve’s soul than we usually do with actors not twenty feet away in a small theatre. Yet Steve is a good 100 feet away.

One quality I appreciate is the use of long pauses before any responses from Steve and Gary. These unique men TAKE THEIR TIME. I assume nothing about their intelligence, but rather I am clearly reminded, over and over, that they value their words and actions more than the majority of society, busily bouncing through our days like pinballs.

One great moment with the use of the public park: a woman, about 50, walked up to the actors during a pivotal moment and asked, “what’s going on here? What is all this for?” The entire audience could hear her through the actors’ microphones, though she was a good 150-200 feet away. The psychologist character turned very quickly and quietly and responded, “it’s a play.” Embarassed, the woman walked away and darted out of the audience’s view, but it was too late. A crowd full of people wearing headphones was laughing hysterically at a poignant moment that could not have been planned and will never happen again.

Thanks, OtB! See you next season!

- Ben Rapson

“I don’t want to lose you Gary.”

To sit within the Olympic Sculpture Park with the mandate to look and listen, aided by microphones and headphones is to occupy a place of privilege. Suddenly, rather then hiding the fact that you are engaged in voyeuristic practices, you are laid bare as a spectacle. The Voyeur. The Audience.

“I don’t want to cry in front of a guy.”

The story of small metal objects is partly a story of masculinity that, much like the performance, is always in motion. Friendship is explored and defined within a framework of human imperfection. And unlike the borrowed masculinity of archetypes and superheroes, the characters in small metal objects create their own masculinity through intimacy. Often it’s an intimacy that can only be found by actively looking and listening to the world around us.

“It’s my task to be a man. I want people to see me.”

We are witness (or participant?) to this forging of masculinity in the most unsubtle of ways. The audience, geared up with headphones and the secret of knowing which jogger, dog walker, lover, tourist and baby stroller is part of the entertainment, is the biggest spectacle of it all. We are there to look, but to also be looked at. And while our presence provides a diversion for the actors, the voyeuristic role of the audience allows a level of public spectatorship that is unequal in the city.

As a member of the audience, you have a 180 degree view of an incredible Puget Sound horizon, filled with buildings, ferries, sculpture, water, islands and the setting sun. In short, it’s a cinematic landscape with a depth of field that runs to infinity. People enter into your frame of vision as if on cue. The costumes, make-up, and props of people that stroll through the park have a level of realism that defies real. Suddenly the everyday world seems exaggerated and fabricated when you look this close.

“You’re standing here dying, when you could be living.”

Attending a performance of small metal objects is similar to discovering a new color in the world. Everywhere you turn, there are shades of the familiar. It’s when you decide to look beyond that familiar horizon to something closer is when it gets interesting.

- C Snyder

That place, those moments, this relation, these voices, when they capture something of the essence of being human and makes it immediate, there, staged, is the heart of the matter for me when it comes to theater. Here the stage is the Sculpture Park. We watch and listen a long time before we see any actors, yet the actors are certainly there. The noises of the city and the passers by in the park even the obnoxious jets roaring by overhead seemed to be somehow choreographed into the strangely affecting minimalist music and the funny, affirming, thoughtful dialogue. A great sendup of obnoxious yuppie busybodydom, a bittersweet heartwarming story of very real friendship, love. Back to Back Theatre — what an unusual interesting group. Small Metal Objects, what a well crafted script, what a perfect set for it. A gem to end another extraordinary season of OTB. (If you’re lucky enough to go, dress warmly, there’s a chilly breeze off the sound that time of day.)

- Ken Shear

Small metal objects gets a preview write-up in today’s Seattle Times.

Have a listen to an audio interview with Bruce Gladwin, the artistic director of Back to Back Theatre.

Click here to download the mp3 file.

*viewer has opted to not fully describe the content and appearance of each piece, as there are many other worthy summaries on the blog list, and the assumption is that you already have a decent picture of them in your mind. rather, this fact (opinion) list is meant to provide another voice on top of those already heard.

John and Anna Dixon – Level of Captivation: Stimulating – Level of Talent: Obvious – Level of Work Put Into Piece: Holy Crap – Level of Viewer Comfortability: Video Game – Biggest Viewer Con: Had no real point – Biggest Viewer Pro: These performers forced themselves to be present and open to immediacy, or else the piece would literally fail – One Sentence Description to Random Friend at Bar After the Show: “Dude, they gave us instructions and we told them what to do!”

Juliet and Stephen – Level of Captivation: Heart-Melting – Level of Talent: Envy-Inducing – Level of Work Put Into Piece: Just Enough – Level of Viewer Comfortability: First Date (the good kind) – Biggest Viewer Con: Didn’t use the set to its fullest extent – Biggest Viewer Pro: Finally, modern dance choreography that feels 100% necessary and connected to the action of the piece – One Sentence Description to Random Friend at Bar After the Show: “That was the most adorable thing I’ve ever seen onstage, and I don’t mind if I sound gay saying it.”

Fever Theatre – Level of Captivation: Plummeting – Level of Talent: Questionable – Level of Work Put Into Piece: I’d believe 100 hours, I’d believe 5 hours – Level of Viewer Comfortability: Headache – Biggest Viewer Con: Every performer seemed like they were in a different show, and none of them knew quite what that was supposed to be – Biggest Viewer Pro: Happy to see subject matter about spiritual process and discovery rather than human drama – One Sentence Description to Random Friend at Bar After the Show: “I’m pretty sure they didn’t really care whether we understood it or not”

Waxie Moon – Level of Captivation: Intoxicating – Level of Talent: Unique – Level of Work Put Into Piece: He didn’t work, he played – Level of Viewer Comfortability: As if I were drunk – Biggest Viewer Con: Waxie deserves more of a set/light/sound design – Biggest Viewer Pro: On the other hand, Waxie could’ve rocked the house with a stepstool and a roll of floss – One Sentence Description to Random Friend at Bar After the Show: “It was hotter and funnier than any female burlesque I’ve ever seen”

Assemblage (headphone walking tour around Queen Anne) – Level of Captivation: Mildly Inspiring – Level of Talent: Potential- Level of Work Put Into Piece: Unclear – Level of Viewer Comfortability: Museum as a Kid – Biggest Viewer Con: Forgettable – Biggest Viewer Pro: This concept, even if they weren’t the first to employ it, has serious potential here in Seattle, where every nook and cranny has character – One Sentence Description to Random Friend at Bar After the Show: “I hope they do this with every neighborhood in town”

Danny Herter and the Invasive Species – Level of Captivation: Terror-Inducing – Level of Talent: – Loud and Clear – Level of Work Put Into Piece: Flooring – Level of Viewer Comfortability: Are you kidding? Comfortable? – Biggest Viewer Con: gave the audience about 6 inches to walk on, in terms of understanding the what and why of the piece – Biggest Viewer Pro: some incredible overlap in focus between groups of performers, and a large sense of ownership from each performer – One Sentence Description to Random Friend at Bar After the Show: “I wanted my mommy and had no idea why.”

“Awesome” – Level of Captivation: Induced Nervous Laughter – Level of Talent: The amount of good ideas behind the piece were more evident than the talent that employed them – Level of Work Put Into Piece: They didn’t stress themselves, but they didn’t stop til it was how they wanted it – Level of Viewer Comfortability: Secretly witnessing two strangers get in a fight – Biggest Viewer Con: Never blew my skirt all the way up, so to speak – Biggest Viewer Pro: The satire of modern dance and performance cliches was what we think but do not say out loud – One Sentence Description to Random Friend at Bar After the Show: “I hope I laughed when I was supposed to…”

LAUNCH dance theatre – Level of Captivation: 10% Meandering, 90% Pulse-Pounding- Level of Talent: When i think about it…Inconsistent among performers. – Level of Work Put Into Piece: Indisputably Immense – Level of Viewer Comfortability: Your best friend spills their guts because they trust you and you alone to listen – Biggest Viewer Con: The dance element was rarely connected to the emotional content or “story” of the voiceover, music, and projection – Biggest Viewer Pro: An abstract multimedia piece actually hits you in the heart – One Sentence Description to Random Friend at Bar After the Show: “I felt really smart when I thought I knew what was going on.”

Hooliganship – Level of Captivation: Hahahahaha…….- Level of Talent: It doesn’t matter! – Level of Work Put Into Piece: I have no idea whatsoever. – Level of Viewer Comfortability: Dreams I had when I was four years old – Biggest Viewer Con: I didn’t get to watch it again the next day – Biggest Viewer Pro: Made me want to say “thank you!” – One Sentence Description to Random Friend at Bar After the Show: (a friend actually said this to me after the show) “I just want to put Hooliganship in my pocket and keep them with me all the time.”

Thanks OtB! See you next time!

- Ben Rapson