Theater Review: Wild Goose Dreams Goes Viral At The Public Theater
When it comes to technology, we struggle to see or accept its duality. The internet is a door for both lightness and darkness, of which, often, we talk about it like something separate from our species rather than its creation. In some ways, the worldwide web perfectly represents humanity’s spectrum nature, but it has flipped the script in making us, at times, feel closer to someone, locationally, far away than the ones we hold “near and dear.” In Wild Goose Dreams this dynamic takes effect.
Written by Hansol Jung and directed by Leigh Silverman, Wild Goose Dreams feels like a cross between vulnerable, virtuous verses and digital sound-bytes. It is a barrage of internet catch-phrases, as interluded by a chorus, and swinging, even poetic vernacular; representing how, often, we need to sift and scour the web for its riches. Yet, “riches” is a vast word; it can mean money, funny, scary. shocking, or wise depending on the user and the pop-up advertisements. Thus, as the 115 minutes play progresses, ads/messages reveal the plethora of depth, insanity, and humor that can appear on your messenger through the bond of Minsung (Peter Kim) and Nanhee (Michelle Krusiec). Two people who came on the internet for, probably, the most common reasons we all go on it: boredom, loneliness, and feelings of being unseen in our worth.
Minsung is a “Goose-father” in South Korea; working there to send money to his daughter (Kendyl Ito) and his wife (Jaygee Macapugay). Yet, he soon realizes that all he has done to give them a better life somewhere else, inadvertently, sparked them to have another life without him. As he continuously tries to connect with them over the web/ phone, his isolation grows, and Peter Kim makes sure to display the growing sadness of a man that sacrifices for a family that he is no longer “truly” apart of. They are living separate lives, of which Nanhee understands as a young woman that left her father in North Korea (Frances Jue) for a life of more peace and opportunity but is getting neither. Kruseic gives Nanhee a strength and bittersweetness that matches well with Minsung’s own kind exhaustion; both dwindling under a facade of “okayness.”
Already in the description of their backstories you could see why a bond is built between Nanhee and Minsung; in their daily lives they do so much to rise but barely feel or reap a reward. The internet is their venting escape, of which even their growing physical bond cannot overcome nor overshadow. They have duties to real families that, though not present, define their self-honor and love. Thus, the sheer honesty of Wild Goose Dreams is how it displays human isolation. You do not need to, literally, be locked away in a room with no contact to feel devastatingly/ desperately disconnected to life. The irony is that it is in chat rooms, without physical contact, that our characters seemingly feel most connected to themselves/ each other because the internet really is a world; one where people feel more open to divulge their philosophies and pains.
Lillis Meeh’s special effects and Clint Ramos’ set design manage to blend the fantasy and reality of this screened world where heighten love and pain meet. Together, they build a stage that makes Wild Goose Dreams feel like a live-action “love story” playing on your browser.Notice I put “love story” in quotations. Wild Goose Dreams could be considered a “romance” tale because the characters do connect through a dating website called “Love Genie.” Yet, I feel, it is actually a tale of companionship. Using the pulp and poetry of the internet with splashy, neon images, visionary lines, K-pop ads, and an over-all high energy dynamic, Wild Goose Dreams proves no worldwide-web can mask or represent the hardship of an individual’s life. Separated from their families, whether Minhee and Nansung are forming a romance or a refuge with each other is up to audience interpretation. Yet, ultimately, the call of their realities is too intense to make their virtual one last with each other. For More Information On Wild Goose Dreams Click Here. Playing At The Public Theater till December 16. Buy Tickets Here
Location: 425 Lafayette Street (at Astor Place) New York, NY 10003
