You Enjoy Myself by Topher Payne - 3w, 3m, 1 flexible
Judith and Eileen met and eagerly fell in love - first with a band called Phish, and then with each other. But that was thirty years ago, before their lives took notably divergent paths.
An Instagram post from a stranger leads the two of them crashing back into each other, along with four young wayward souls who passionately want to be passionate about something. Over the course of one curious night at a remote Vermont farmhouse, they’ll each explore the nature of devotion—to music, to literature, to other people—and learn the art of “including your own hey.”
This hilarious and heartfelt new two-act comedy by Topher Payne explores sex, love, and fandom, and the unexpected connections resulting from each.
posted by Jim Vogel at 11:41 AM
5 Comments:
For some reason, the entire PDF did not download, but I got the gist of more than half of it. From what I read, I liked it. I didn't know much about Phish, but I don't think it's necessary to enjoy and follow the play. The storyline is interesting and the dialog is quick, funny and believable. I liked the role of The Musician as an abstract character central to the theme.. The relationship between the rest of the characters was very real. I could hear Phish songs in my mind for scene changes or intro which would certainly appeal to Phish phans.
I thought this was a really well-written play. The characters are so clear, the plot twist is not completely unexpected, but it still feels fun and genuine. I like how hopeful and celebratory it is. I think it would be beautiful in the round.
Perhaps I am from the wrong generation. I had to Google Phish and am not familiar with any of their music. I read it before it was put on the blog, so I read it a second time. I liked it better than the first time, but still find it difficult to care about any of the characters.
I thought You Enjoy Myself was clever, funny, and an interesting exploration of identity, culture, sexuality, queerness, family, and relationship expectations. The play has a strong voice and a playful style, which seems to capture some of the current cultural/generational conversations and is decidedly more modern than many of the classic plays TRP puts on--however I would note that it speaks to a pretty specific cultural cohort. Given that our audience tends to be on the older side, this play would likely push them out of their comfort zone. I think it's good to encourage our audience to expand their theatrical tastes, however I wonder if there might be another production that could do so in a way that’s a bit more impactful. While the play is interesting and engaging, I wonder if other plays in consideration might better speak to the present moment in a more meaningful way.
This play's dialogue is engaging and the themes are relevant and thought-provoking. Each character is wrestling with a unique set of challenges, which would be interesting to watch--and likely to perform. But in a few cases, it feels like we don’t get enough insight into why the characters are making certain choices. For instance, Isabel’s desire to have revenge sex with her favorite author or her decision to break up with Jasper seem to happen without a logical/grounded through-line in the story. These decisions often feel forced for narrative purposes, which might leave the audience a bit disconnected from the emotional lives/journeys of the character--rendering these moments less resonant/impactful (this may just be my opinion).
The characters often give each other advice or launch into philosophical reflections, and while some of it lands, occasionally it feels a little out of place. Judith’s advice to Jasper and Cory’s advice to Isabel are interesting and seem to be helpful (if a bit platitudinous) but don’t seem directly relevant to what these characters are actually going through. This disconnect can make the moments feel pedantic rather than genuinely driving the story. I think this script is very ambitious, and could have benefited from some refinement. However, I haven't read that many scripts, and some of these things may not be issues when staged/performed thoughtfully.
One scene I’m concerned about is where Archie presses Cory for sex. While Cory eventually gets on board, his initial hesitation, several explicit "no"s, and Archie’s persistence could be read as harassing and problematic. This could be tricky to stage sensitively, especially in a way that wouldn’t put off the audience or undercut the characters’ intentions. I'd be curious how other productions have staged this scene.
A consideration for a potential production is that there are some specific needs for casting. According to the author's notes, Judith should be authentically cast as a trans woman. I think this is important for creating a space for performers that are often excluded from productions. Also based on the content, Archie, Jasper, and The Musician would all likely need to have musical abilities. This is all possible, but these factors would need a little extra consideration in the casting process.
I think the play could work well in an arena theatre. There are a number of different settings, but it seems that most of them could be easily set up/moved out during the course of the production and that the house could be in the background for the whole play.
Overall, You Enjoy Myself has a lot of strong moments and could be a compelling production. It’s fun, humorous, and explores a lot of relevant themes in an engaging way, but in my opinion it's a little disjointed at times and some of the plot points and character development seem forced. While it might push our audience out of their comfort zone and invite new audiences in, I wonder if other plays might do so in a more impactful way.
I was drafting my comments, but then I read Elijiah's beautifully composed review of the script and discovered that I agree with quite a bit of his commentary. I thoroughly enjoyed reading the script - something I can't say about most scripts I read. The shape and sound of the production was very clear in my mind, and I found the blend of comedy and poignancy quite appealing.
I am not familiar with Phish, but that doesn't matter a bit. I love the idea of the music, and it is so clearly described in the dialogue that it wouldn't matter if it were a fictional band. Yes, it may be somewhat challenging to find actors who are also musicians, but it's not impossible.
I loved the first act, but somewhere in the middle of the second act I felt that it lost a little steam because the dialogue seemed somewhat stagnant. I agree with Elijah that some of the moments seemed a little awkward and transitions may have seemed a bit sudden. But as I have said about other scripts, things that can appear problematic in reading a script can be easily overcome in production with good actors and strong direction. The characters in this play are all three dimensional and vivid and I can see actors having a lot of fun with them.
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