Any Given Day

April 13, 2012 | Filed Under patrickalparone | Comments Off

WILD APPLAUSE

Any Given Day: Drama. By Linda McLean. Directed by Jon Tracy. Through April 22. Magic Theatre, Building D, Fort Mason Center, S.F. 80 minutes. $20-$60. (415) 441-8822. www.magictheatre.org.

It’s raining hard in Glasgow but it’s a special day for Sadie and Bill, the odd pair of shut-ins we meet in the first act of Linda McLean’s achingly poignant “Any Given Day,” which opened Wednesday at the Magic Theatre. Childlike and fearful of the outside world – not without reason – they’re awaiting a visit from Bill’s niece Jackie.

It’s a pretty ordinary day for Jackie (Stacy Ross) and Dave (James Carpenter) in the tavern where they work on the other side of the Scottish city. Until she gets a phone message. After that, the day starts looking pretty good.

It isn’t, I hope, a spoiler to say that some things don’t turn out well and others end on a deeply moving, ambiguous note. What’s important is that director Jon Tracy’s skillfully staged and sumptuously performed American premiere of this beautifully bifurcated 2010 drama is a special occasion for lovers of strikingly original character-driven theater. Read more

Linda McLean’s ‘Any Given Day’ at the Magic Theatre

April 5, 2012 | Filed Under patrickalparone | Comments Off

Filling in for a few performances of Any Given Day at the Magic Theatre.
Directed by Jon Tracy.

American Premiere/Begins March 29

ANY GIVEN DAY

A story about the moment when everything changes

It’s 2pm in the East Side of Glasgow: Bill and Sadie are preparing for the arrival of their favorite person. It’s all going like clockwork until they discover they’ve forgotten the bread. Buying bread means going outside. Uh oh.

It’s 2pm in the West Side of Glasgow: two people are closing up the bar for the afternoon. A chance call opens up the opportunity for a future that they have stopped imagining. Leading Scottish playwright Linda McLean explores the fleeting nature of love and happiness set against a backdrop of violence and disappointment.

Featuring: James Carpenter, Amy Kossow, Christopher McHale, Daniel Petzold & Stacy Ross.