at Left Edge Theatre
Runs through February 17, 2019

When confronted with a choice between fame or obscurity, between celebrity or ho-hum existence, which would you choose? Even if it meant setting aside your long-held principles and ethics? Even if it depended on a fake identity and persona on the internet? Powerful questions of identity and behavior in the digital age arise for the two characters in Laura Eason’s stirring play. Strong actors and attractive production values give it a solid, thought-provoking rendition at Left Edge Theatre.

Olivia (Sandra Ish) mutters to herself, “Who are you?” as she spies out the window at a car that has pulled up, in a blizzard, to a writer’s retreat in remote Michigan. Soon she reluctantly agrees to share the cabin with Ethan (Dean Linnard), whose stated credentials and mutual acquaintances seem safe enough, at least for one night. But as they talk, sharing writing interests—she’s proofing her novel, he’s working on one—it surfaces that Ethan actually came because he knew Olivia would be there, and has in fact read, and loved, her first book.

Surprised and a bit shaken by this stalkerish revelation, Olivia nevertheless is intrigued and ultimately flattered by Ethan’s admiration of her writing, since that first book didn’t fare well in the competitive market— . . .

To continue reading about this production, see the full review at Talkin’Broadway:
Sex with Strangers