Page 27 - the NOISE July 2014

BY SARAH GIANELLI
WEST OF THE MOON Gallery features the vivid watercolor and inks of Erica Fareio in an exhibit titled “Our Home,” which show- cases landscapes ranging from canyons to cities, from Arizona to Costa Rica, with the idea that Mother Earth is our home wherever we are, and should treat it as such. Ms. Fareio will have greeting cards, prints & many origi- nals available. Meet the artist during First Friday ArtWalk, June 6 from 6-9PM at West of the Moon, 14 North San Francisco Street. westofthemoongallery.com
ONE WOMAN, MANY ROLES
In a double premiere, Cottonwood’s Main Stage presents its first theatre performance with the world debut of Giselle Suarez’s one woman show, The Death Monologues. The play, which grew out of her mother’s death in 2010, is a powerful series of vignettes that ex- plore our cultural relationship to death, while attempting to dissipate the fear surround- ing an inevitability that awaits us all. Death, personified by the lovely Ms. Suarez, steps in to deliver a monologue between each tale, making a case why the audience should see, and embrace, its precious role in life.
“Seriously folks, we gotta talk,” says Death, a trace of Ms. Suarez’s Cuban heritage still de- tectable in her accent. “I am not the enemy, I cannot be the enemy. I am part of you. You are born with your death woven into the fab- ric of your life. We are not separate. I am the only guarantee in your life, the only guaran- tee in your loved one’s life, the only guaran- tee in life, period. I am your destiny. I love you. You can trust me ... Although that’s not a requirement, and it won’t do you any good in the end, but it might, just maybe, bring you some peace of mind.”
The self-contained stories present various common reactions to death and loss that are universal in their humanity. There is the es- tranged son whose regret finally overtakes him; a woman railing against the unfairness of mortality; a thought-provoking reimagi- nation of the myth of Persephone, and an- other told from the perspective of someone new to the other side. Finally, the show clos- es with the most powerful piece of all — Ms. Suarez’s own personal journey through the
loss of her mother to cancer.
The Death Monologues is not de-
pressing. It is through the universal we are able to connect most profoundly, and find the salve for whatever ails us. Ultimately, Ms. Suarez’s passion- ate words and performance delivers a positive, uplifting message that rings true because there is no question the playwright/performer experienced it firsthand, and is making an offering of what she discovered.
“Being a witness to my mother’s death set me free,” says Ms. Suarez. “It became a gift. She died on the day our son turned one year old — and although I had made peace with her death, I developed a paralyzing fear of losing my son that was robbing me of my joy. I had to go really deep into what death is in order to be released of this fear. I felt the character of death was taking me down the rabbit hole and what came out, what death said to me, I felt was really coming from another place. I came to a place of trusting death — ‘you were born with your death already part of you’ ...
‘it is death that feeds life.’”
The next stop for The Death Mono-
logues is NYC where it was selected to be in The New York City Interna- tional Fringe Festival this August. Check it out locally while you can, 7PM Friday, June 20 & Saturday, June 21; & at 3PM Sunday, June 22 at Main Stage, 1 South Main St in Cotton- wood. deathmonologues.com
4 FOR THEATRIKOS
1. Critically-acclaimed plays. The New York Times calls John Cariani’s Al- most, Maine “a whimsical approach to the joys and perils of romance,” in which “(m)agical happenings bloom beneath the snowdrifts.” A series of 9 plays-within-a-play, it was chosen as one of the Best Plays of 2006 during its run Off-Broadway. Playing now through June 8 at the Doris Harper- White Playhouse on the corner of Beaver & Cherry in Flagstaff; directed by Nancy Wonders.
2. Big laughs. By popular de- mand, Ian Harris is back June 12. Swinging through AZ on his Criti- cal & Thinking Tour, Mr. Harris gives comic scrutiny to our unexamined assumptions about religion, mysti- cism, the paranormal, & other gaps in logic. Fans of George Carlin & Bill Maher will enjoy his refreshing wit.
3. Local cinema. On Saturday, June 14, it’s The Local Film Festival, a fundraiser for non-profit Radio Free Flagstaff showcasing three feature- length films by local filmmakers.
4. Talented youngsters. The The- atrikos Theatre Co. has staged qual- ity productions since 1989, but for the past 10 years it’s also been doing the important work of teaching local youth the art with TheatriKIDS. See what junior thespians have learned this year & attend Peter Pan Jr. the weekend of June 20-22. For times & ticket info, visit Theatrikos.com.
— John Abrahamsen
Have art? arts@thenoise.us
thenoise.us • the NOISE arts & news • JUNE 2014 • 27