attempting conversion

I love theater and go often. I had hoped that would also be true of my son. 

I begin taking Alexander to performances when he is young. Alexander has just turned two when I take him to the Big Apple Circus.  His disinterest is already obvious.

Still, I up our outings to more sophisticated fare.

When Alexander is five, M and her son Harrison come to town and we see The Lion King.  At one point in the play, some creatures are literally swinging from the rafters, professing their love for each other.  Harrison, who is four at the time, turns to M and says, “Is this what they mean when they say love is in the air?”  Alexander watches quietly, probably bored.

I take my son to some spectacular musicals.  Hairspray. Mama Mia. Phantom of the Opera. The Boy from Oz. Spring Awakening. Fiddler on the Roof. Jersey Boys.  Some he likes more than others, but none he loves, although Beauty and the Beast comes close.

We see elaborately staged Broadway productions and simple off-Broadway ones.  We see comedies and dramas.  I take him to solo performances (he likes Sarah Bridge and Tunnel but is less enthused by a one-man hip-hop musical called Clay). We even see a series of five one-acts. He asks, "How many more," after the first one.

Then somewhere in his teens Alexander, to my horror, proclaims, “I hate theater.  I am not going anymore.”  And I can't convince him otherwise.

That was years ago and I am still trying.

Tonight I get tickets to a one-man off-Broadway show called The Real Americans. It’s gotten only positive reviews and is described as an “accent-dependent solo show.”  I think Alexander will like it.

Before we go, my son asks his two favorite questions:

• How long is it?
• Did it get good reviews?

"One act, 90 minutes," I tell him in answer to his first question.

I show him this, from Ben Brantley’s site, Did He Like it, in answer to his second:

Within the first five minutes of the show, I know I’ve made a good decision. 

One reviewer sums it up this way:

(Dan) Hoyle is brilliant; the show is a revelation; and you shouldn’t even consider missing it.

Alexander and I both agree.  Finally.  I've found a play my son totally enjoys. We leave the theater and he can't stop talking about it.  

Hoyle’s working on another show.  I say to Alexander, “When it opens, we’ll have to go.”  He responds, “Maybe.  But first I’ll have to see what the reviewers say.”

I guess he’s still not quite a theater-convert.  But I will keep trying.  Tonight was a major step forward.