I’ve been feeling pretty down recently for a litany of reasons so last week I decided to impulse buy a ticket to Clubbed Thumb’s workshop production Elizabeth Bent’s new play: Indeed, Friend! Going into it, I knew nothing about the piece other than the fact that the ticket was an astonishingly low $15. The last Clubbed Thumb show I saw was Tin Cat Shoes by Trish Harnetiaux and it was wild and weird and out there and an absolute joy. So, I guess part of me anticipated the same chaotic excitement when I walked into Indeed, Friend! I didn’t get that, but I was far from disappointed. The piece follows the lives of 5 students who organize their campus’ literary magazine. The first thing I have to point out is how EXQUISITELY the set was dressed. Sleater Kinney posters, a boom box and even the furniture set stage perfectly: our play begins at the start of Fall semester, 2001.

The show follows these students over the course of the year as they come together to analyze submissions, talk about current events and make plans for their futures. Every character in this show was compelling, relatable, and written with such specificity that I was in complete awe of the character development that took place over the course of the piece. Watching their journeys was insanely comforting and cathartic for me as an artist who is still trying to navigate what that title means in my day to day adult life.

The workshop production is now closed so, unfortunately you can’t see this beautifully genuine piece for yourself, but you can take my word for it that everything at Clubbed Thumb is worth seeing. I always leave their feeling rejuvenated, excited and inspired.

In other news, my show opens tonight! One Night Standing by Ashley Hutchinson is !FINALLY! going up and I couldn’t be more excited. Keep your eyes peeled on my “work” page for a gallery of production photos and my directors note! It should be there by Monday night at the latest. I hope you all wait by your computers with bated breath until I post it.