Stage Door: Blind Date

Photography: Greg Tjepkema

Mythology describes muses as women who inspire creativity. So who knows when Thalia, the muse of comedy, set forth to inspire Rebecca Northan. Blind Date is so seemingly simple but so brilliant when you take the time to break down how much effort is actually necessary to make a production of this nature succeed.

The basic platform is straightforward. Mimi is a clown, sitting at a table waiting for her date. When her date fails to show, she selects a pre-screened audience member to join her at the table where together the two will create their very own, one of a kind show.

On the stage there’s a table, service staff to take drink orders, and a timeout box, a high stool in a box of light where Northan and her date can step outside of the reality of the date for a breather or a talk with the audience.

The date plays out in slightly condensed time, and some set pieces may or may not be used depending on the night and the date.

Photography: Greg Tjepkema

Blind Date has enjoyed success across Canada and now finds itself playing to full houses and thoroughly entertained audiences at the Galleria Theatre in the Denver Center for Performing Arts. It brilliantly you showcases Northan’s talents as an improv comedian and a charming human being. Let’s face it, the woman can calm the nerves of even the most uptight men and convince them to kiss her in front of a live audience, the lady has talent.

But there’s a larger reason for its appeal beyond Northan’s charm and talent. Blind Date lets us all step outside of our own dating experiences, and pray that buddy up on stage manages to dig himself out of the trap we watched him walk into. We get to pretend that it wasn’t us that missed all those signs that she was telegraphing, or it wasn’t us that had been caught with our fingers in her box…

Denver Center for the Performing Arts

DenverCenter.org

Curtis St & 14th St
Denver, Colorado 80202
(303) 893-4100