Raoul

An interesting performance piece at odds with itself. It opens by confronting the audience with a set design that must be interpreted as a shipwreck, the slow funereal music of Shubert's Piano Trio in Eb (opus 100), and a man crashing himself against the fixtures on stage. I found it immensely moving and sad, enough so that I cried for the first 10 minutes of the performance. And then I realized everyone else around me was laughing.
Raoul claims sanguinary descent from Charlie Chaplin. And in this performance, with the uncomfortable mix of comic and tragic, he can claim heritage in Chaplin's aesthetic.

The best part of the evening turned out to the be the part I was least looking forward to: the gala dinner following the performance. We sat at a table of strangers, all of whom were fascinating conversationalists.

Recommend.