Table 17 (2024) at MCC Theater – Play Review (Written)

Spoiler Alert: This summary and review contains spoilers.

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Summary

It has been two years since Dallas and Jada have laid eyes on each other. Both are excited and nervous and wonder what the other person may say. Their egos and hearts are in it, and through a night of conversation featuring flashbacks and breaking the fourth wall, it seems both seek out closure.

Collected Quote(s)

“One can’t wreck a home built well.” – Eric

“Dreams can sometimes be life signals.” – Dallas

Review

Our Rating: Positive (See Live)

Good If You Like

• Young adult relationship drama
• Plays which jump back and forth between the past and present
• Productions which break the fourth wall

Similar To This

1. Bees and Honey: “Bees & Honey” feels like a modernized 90s sitcom, like “Martin,” but with modern themes and heartening drama.

Check out our Live Performance page for our latest reviews and recommendations.

Notable Performances or Moments

Jada

It’s easy to see why Kara Young recently won a Tony. She is the first on stage, the first to break the fourth wall and call for audience participation, and when they give it to her, she rolls with the agreements as much as the critiques. It’s at the level you’d expect from a stand-up comic doing crowd work in their prime.

And even beyond that, when Young isn’t doing call and response, when she is giving you Issa from “Insecure” or Joan Clayton from “Girlfriends,” Young has you. She makes it where, when she gives you Jada’s flaws, you are torn, ready to defend her, while maybe giving the slightest of side eyes.

River

Playing multiple characters in the same production is hard. Making them distinct, easily identifiable, and leaving a strong impression is a gift.

As River, Rishawn gives you this shady gay man who hates the single life, but witnessing Jada and Dallas’s messiness makes him feel better and, at times, gives hope. He is like a more active member of the audience. It was as if the most charismatic person was allowed to join on stage and asked what they thought periodically.

But it isn’t just River. Flipping the script, he also plays Eric, Jada’s coworker who is suave, the guy she told you not to worry about, and between his words and when he takes his shirt off, whether gay, a hetero woman, pan, bi, or what have you, one way or another Rishawn will make you take note of the work he puts into his performance, either the physical aspect or the dialog.

And let me just say, going from a quick-to-clock gay man to someone suave enough to make some of the women in the audience give a notable response? That’s talent. Especially since, even for the smaller characters, like a bartender, they don’t come off corny or like they should have been cut for time, Rishawn does more than make them work but makes them have value.

Highlights

Dallas

While Dallas isn’t a top-level highlight, don’t think of him as less than. More so, it’s just Dallas wasn’t given the same ability to be comical and make use of breaking the fourth wall as Jada, River, or even Eric. Yet, you invest in Dallas’ story even without that easy method to grab the audience. He’s more than the ex that, with Jada being introduced first, you assume you will come to hate.

Through the aforementioned flashbacks, we’re reminded of his pursuit of Jada, her love of his silliness, and everything she needed, wanted, and loved in a partner she found in him. You get it, more than what words could tell you since Eisen-Martin gives actions.

But, one could submit that while River delivers pure comedic moments and Jada gives you sitcom vibes, Dallas is the catalyst for the drama and opens the floor for the serious conversations you signed up for. He pushes Jada to be more than the woman who was wronged, which complicates early perceptions. He is the one who makes Jada layered and reminds you the charm of the funny character shouldn’t excuse their flaws.

Dallas is a necessary element, and although he may not be the most grandeur or quotable, nor does he get to utilize the tricks of the stage the others do, he still earns his place.

How They Work The Room

It’s not just through breaking the fourth wall that “Table 17” seeks to make its audience a part of the play. The seating layout has it where people sit at tables or on bleachers. If you sit at tables, the actors sometimes move around you, interact with you, and perform within arm’s length.

Now, does this have the potential to create issues? Maybe for some. You do have to keep paths clear. It could make you self-conscious as the actors move through the dark, especially since Young is often moving about in stilettos, which could compel you to think you should help her up the steps if close enough.

On The Fence

While The Dialog Is Unpredictable, The Story May Feel Easy To Guess

If you watch enough movies, TV, and maybe plays, you can begin to guess the major points of a production. You may not know what will be said, line by line, but you can guess the arcs and the climax, and with “Table 17,” you’ll be able to figure out early what the cruxes were in Jada and Dallas’ relationship before it is confirmed.

How It Ends

All I’m going to say is that Jada and Dallas will leave you frustrated.

Background Information

Language	English
Attendance Type	Offline – In Person
Event Status	On Schedule
Duration	85 Minutes
Performance Date	August 14, 2024
First Performance At This Venue	August 14, 2024
Opening Night Performance	September 6, 2024
Last Performance At This Venue	September 22, 2024
Venue URL	https://mcctheater.org/tix/table-17/
Tickets Starting At	$40.00
Director(s)	Zhailon Levingston
Writer(s)	Douglas Lyons
Theatre Name	MCC Theater
Address of Theater	511 West 52nd New York, NY
Genre(s)	Play Comedy Drama Romance Young Adult LGBT+

Content Information

• Dialog:  Cursing
• Violence: n/a
• Sexual Content: suggestive dialog
• Miscellaneous: Drinking

Crew

Scene/ Set Design	Jason Sherwood
Costume Design	Devario D. Simmons
Lighting Design	Ben Stanton
Sound Design	Christopher Daebassie
Choreography (Intimacy Coordinator)	Ann James

Characters and Cast

Character’s Name	Actor’s Name
Jada	Kara Young
Dallas	Biko Eisen-Martin
River	Michael Rishawn
Eric	Michael Rishawn

Character Descriptions

Please Note: This character guide is not an exhaustive list of every cast member, and character descriptions may contain what can be considered spoilers.

Jada

Jada is a flight attendant and an only child, and for around five years, she was with Dallas. He ended it, but a part of her held on, which makes him wanting to talk somewhere between an ego stroke and something that makes her heart flutter.

• The actor is also known for their role in “I’m a Virgo.”

Dallas

A mechanic by day and music producer by night, while Dallas may push the idea he is a momma’s boy due to how often he invokes the woman’s name, he isn’t such. He’s just a good, silly man, and surely a hard-working one by any standard. However, like many hard-working men, his shifting priorities caused an imbalance.

River

River is mainly the hostess of Bianca’s, a nice bar restaurant. But he also ends up as Jada and Dallas’ waiter and hears not only the tea but also makes comments and finds himself reflecting on his own singleness throughout.

Eric

Eric is Jada’s coworker, a Knicks fan from the Bronx who is now living in Atlanta, and a smooth talker. The kind who always knows what to say and when to speak up and follow up with action.

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