by Mike Hoban
The Book Club Play – Written by Karen Zacarías; Directed by Shana Gozansky; Scenic Design by Jeffrey Petersen; Lighting Design by Kat C. Zhou; Sound Design by Stephanie Lynn Yackovetsky; Costume Design by Kevin Morris. Presented by Boston Playwrights’ Theatre, 949 Commonwealth Avenue Boston, through October 13
There’s a saying that came out not long after the first photographs were developed, “The camera cannot lie”. And as those of us who are less-than-photogenic can attest, the truth isn’t always pretty. The same can be said of film, which is the premise of The Book Club Play, an updated version of the 2008 Karen Zacarías work now being given its Boston premiere at the Boston Playwrights’ Theatre.
As the title suggests, the focus of the play is a book club, which in turn is the focus of a documentary by a (fictional) acclaimed Danish documentary film maker, the amusingly named Lars Knudsen. He’s interested in documenting the distinctly American phenomenon of the book club, and has chosen one founded and led by Ana – pronounced “Ah-nuh” – (the gifted Becca A Lewis), a lifestyle columnist for the city’s daily paper that, as we soon learn, is more than a little bit controlling. We first meet her as she is speaking into the camera, describing Book Club as a “safe haven…a place to read, talk, and to be our authentic selves.”
