Hypatia

All right, I'm going to confess something. I'm not one of those critics who feels it necessary to go into long, windy plot synopses just to prove how crafty I am at understanding narrative. I happen to find that it robs readers of their sense of discovery, and I like to leave them with a little something to feel out for themselves. Well, in the case of Mac Wellman's new play Hypatia, you're totally on your own folks.

Wellman is one of those writers whose work is nearly impossible to summarize in tidy sentences, and if you even try, you're asking for it. (Richard Foreman is another artist in this vein.) But that is not to say that what is presented isn't thought-provoking and often luminous, as is the case with Obie-winning Wellman's meditation on the legend of Hypatia (portrayed by Sophia Fox-Long), a 5th-century mathematician-philosopher with an affinity for the number "0", which she presents to various lands and persons throughout the centuries. Interspersed in the production are various counterparts, including a Katie Couric-like reporter (Emily Vail), a cig-smoking journalist (Michael Cecchi), and a gaggle of chorus players who, it is safe to say, operate in the Greek tradition.

This is the type of play that you walk out of saying, "Oh, that was fun!", yet it might be best to keep those unfamiliar with the avant-garde far, far away. As directed by Bob McGrath, is appealing to the senses, with an arresting use of slide projection and some welcome moments of humor. I'm not quite sure it gives actors much of a chance to create a whole lot, but all are effective here, with Fox-Long generating a fragile presence especially. Best of all, the brisk 70-minute production doesn't wear out its welcome. A great play? No, unlike Wellman's other works, it doesn't leave you with an indelible sense of accomplishment, even on its own hard-to-gauge terms. But it pushes the form at least, and if you're willing to get through the more precious aspects, the show truly does have some heart. (A pre-final scene involving Hypatia, a girl, and a bicycle is truly lovely.) But don't come crying to me with cries of "I didn't get it!". Truth be told, I frequently didn't either.