The one man production “My Fragile Family Tree” by Matt Fotis was an interesting look into the ordinary life of Fotis who surrounds himself with quite unordinary characters. Unfortunately for him, these unordinary characters are members of his family. Through interesting stories dealing from trips to Europe, the announcement to his family of his first born and the way his mother dealt with stress, Fotis attempts to tell the audience what he learned from his life experiences.
Fotis did a very good job engaging the audience and using strong body language to illustrate the scene in which he was trying to portray. He had a very inviting voice, which was clear and friendly, almost as if you were in casual conversation with him through the show.
However, while the show was very well acted out and put together, I kept finding myself wondering “why should I care?” Fotis, while accomplished compared to the everyman, had very few accomplishments in life that would make the audience truly consider his stories and advice as things to live by. Any man could have stood up in front of the audience, explained their lives and what they’ve learned, and I would probably have left thinking and feeling the same about my own life as I did after leaving this show.
This play was entertaining, which is ultimately the goal of theatre. Fotis displayed great story-telling skills and kept the audience engaged. However, I feel like he needs to be more accomplished before he tells an audience that his stories and experiences will lead to anything other than just normal everyday life.
To Brad or Not to Brad... 