Actor-playwright Brendan George stars as Milo, a grieving friend, in his new solo show, A Eulogy for Roman, at 59E59 Theaters.
Going to a solo show that is set up as a memorial service might not sound like a particularly inviting theatrical experience during the dog days of summer. But A Eulogy for Roman, written and performed by the beguiling Brendan George, proves that saying farewell to a childhood friend doesn’t have to be an occasion for tears but can be a time for making new promises.
Before entering 59E59’s intimate Theater C, audience members are greeted by a personable young man in a black suit who introduces himself as Milo and hands each person a funeral program that reads: “In loving memory of our friend, Roman / Right now I’m in a different place / And though we seem apart / I’m closer than I ever was, / I’m there inside your heart.”
Milo peruses the Life Points List in a scene from A Eulogy for Roman.
Hokey it might be—but the funeral program’s spartan verse chimes with the production’s design: a bare stage, with an urn and vase of flowers on a small table.
Then Milo (Brendan George) bounds into the playing area. Standing alongside the urn, Milo says that he has only been in New York City for a couple of weeks; he’s a transplant from a small Pennsylvania town and he had hoped to make the road trip with his best friend Roman, who passed away two weeks ago.
Whether it’s the pain of saying that last sentence aloud or sheer travel fatigue, Milo falters. He reaches for notes but they are in disarray. Milo asks for an attendee to flip through them and find Card 1 that has written at the top: “Milo, They’re Your Friends!” He adds that it’s his “reminder not to be scared.” Fortunately, he finds a kind soul in the front row who has nimble hands.
Milo comes across as a charming regular Joe who’s simply a bundle of nerves when it comes to delivering a eulogy. On the night I attended, he enlisted audience members (Jasmine, Charlotte, James. and many other do-gooders) to help him deliver Roman’s eulogy and more.
Since Milo is the only one present who actually knew Roman, it falls to him to provide attendees with a history of their friendship. He recounts that he first met Roman in the Boy Scouts when they were 8 and 9. They immediately bonded—and eventually became best friends. Although Milo touches upon many other memorable experiences with Roman, including a Blizzard contest involving Dairy Queen milk shakes, he talks about one being a life-changer.
It was when Milo was in the ninth grade, having one of those “terrible, horrible, no good, very bad days”—and he decided to commit suicide by standing in the middle of the road. Roman, who remarkably materialized on the scene, shouted to Milo that he had something to show him, and suddenly Milo found himself with Roman perusing the Life Points List, a kind of bucket list. Roman had listed 99 challenges.
Conceived and directed by Peter Charney, A Eulogy for Roman is not a garden-variety solo show. Unlike most monodramas that let the viewer sit back and listen to a raconteur, the voluntary interactivity helps to shape its dramatic contours. George, a graduate student at New York University, inhabits Milo so persuasively that it’s hard to know where the actor ends and his character begins.
George, a graduate student at New York University, as Milo shares memories of his late friend Roman in a solo show he wrote. Photographs by Ellie Gravitte.
The show really takes off, though, when Milo tosses down his notecards and invites audience members to help him complete those unchecked tasks on the Life Points List. This results in some very amusing scenes on stage that include a massage from a best friend; joining Milo to do a round-robin of 100 push-ups; suggesting songs for a playlist; and, lastly, a truth-telling moment.
George is adept at finding the real “hams” in the audience and employing them in the show’s routines. For instance, when he decides to have a go at No. 38 on the list—“Take a picture with a celebrity”—he tells his guests that “You might not think you’re famous for anything—but you might be wrong.” As Milo looks expectantly toward attendees, a teenager named James comes forward. His claim to fame: he is the state soccer champion. Milo is starstruck and engages the boy to pose for a selfie with him and Roman.
Although on the surface A Eulogy for Roman appears to be about death and grieving, it is truly about the challenge of rising phoenixlike from one’s past and moving with hope into the future.
The 59E59 Theaters & Through the Tollbooth Co.’s production of A Eulogy for Roman plays through Sept. 3 at 59E59 Theaters. Evening performances are at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday–Saturday; matinees are at 2:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. For tickets and information, visit 59e59.org.
Playwright: Brendan George
Direction: Peter Charney
Technical Designer: Emilio Maxwell Cerci
