Can a Solo Performer Act Alone?
Todd London assays the Mike Daisey issue at HowlRound:
Maybe the public agony of Mike Daisey was such great theater precisely because the contradictions and complications of human character are so darn rich, so compelling. I mean, Daisey’s undoing had it all—the private lie, the public coverup, the rise, the fall, the ambition and hubris, and tragic flaw. And like all really good stories, the faults of the protagonist were no less than an extension of the faults in the people—and institutions—around him. I mean push a playwright/performer close enough to the edge and pretty soon he’ll jump. Eyes on the prize, baby! Wait, though, whose hubris is it, anyway?
I was really glad to read Daisey’s heartfelt confession and his vow to “be humble before the work.” I just hope that the folks running theaters don’t try something like that. They would totally lose their edge.