After answering ice-breaker questions, three strangers mysteriously end up on a deserted island, premised on the classic “would you rather” scenario. Now all their answers are coming to life.
In this magical realism tale, these strangers face the consequences of their choices and learn new truths about who they are.
The world premiere will be at the 2019 Capital Fringe Festival. This show will also be Director Marketa S. Nicholson’s full theater production directorial debut.
I have always been intrigued with riddles and team-building games and challenges. Ice breaker questions and games are two ways I have begun many of my most meaningful experiences, friendships, travels, and also theater projects.
This is my first magical realism play. I became fascinated with the genre when learning Spanish throughout school. The very first draft was brainstormed over 1 week and then written in 24 hours. Then the adrenaline and being in the zone helped frame this magical realism adventure.
Living in D.C., the usual introduction questions are, “where are you from?” and “what do you do?” I wanted to explore what it would take to help people get to know each other more effectively and invest in each other.
I had also heard about similar ice breakers for dating. Some of them are used for building dating profiles. I heard about the New York Times article: “The 36 Questions That Lead to Love.” So, I began to wonder, what is it about these questions that lead to love?
This question lead to the question, what would happen if people had to face the consequences of their answers? How true were they to themselves when answering and what new truths about themselves will they discover? Would You Rather… is a fun way to explore these thoughts, delve into how different people approach questions, and examine how we learn who we are independently and because of the people we meet along the way. So, the play is speed dating meets choose your own adventure, so to speak.
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Bringing Would You Rather from the game to the stage
Since a goal is for characters to bond, our director took this aspect to heart in the rehearsal process. Marketa wanted the actors to connect and feel comfortable so that it would translate to the stage. The entire cast and crew also participated in ice-breaker and trust activities throughout the production process, from theater games to trust exercises like guiding your blind-folded partner through obstacles, to sharing loads of personal fun facts.
The TMD Theater cast is AMAZING! They are constantly playing and morphing their characters. Marketa and I love the layers they keep adding. They bring surprises to the characters that will draw you in and make you attached to their fates.
What is magical realism and how does the play fit into the genre?
Magical realism is when magical elements appear in the universe of the play. However, if these magical aspects happened to us, we would find it unbelievable, but for the characters it is a truth of reality they must accept and face.
This play is filled with delectable fun air-quote “impossibilities.” All the choices the characters make on their “meet-up party” questionnaire come to life. No one is quite sure how. It is fun to see the ways the answers manifest and how truthful the characters were to themselves and how they grow.
Marketa is a connoisseur of fantasy, magic, and horror. Her passion and knowledge of these themes beautifully shines through.
Dara Gold is a Washington D.C. based playwright, theater director, and actor who works in new play development, improv, short films, and tying theater to activism. She co-leads Too Much Damn (TMD) Theater. Dara has presented her original pieces at the Kennedy Center, Capital Fringe Festival, the D.C. 48 Hour Film Project and the D.C. Future is Female Festival.
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