Jaffe

Talking pretty

Everyone has a story. Everyone has people in their family who seem like they're from another planet, or been in situations that were so awkward that just thinking about them makes them embarrassed. Fortunately, none of us needs to share those elements of our personal lives. David Sedaris does it for us. I've read two of his collections of short stories, Me Talk Pretty One Day and Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim, and both had me laughing aloud. As outlandish as some of his stories are, there's always an element that's familiar to the reader.

A couple of days ago I saw that he was performing at Symphony Hall, but didn't buy the ticket because I wasn't sure I could make the 7pm show this evening. Fortunately, I live just around the corner, so after a little dinner I wandered over to see if there were any tickets left with 15 minutes until showtime. I found a guy selling one of his tickets because his friend didn't show up, so for $30 I had a front row balcony seat for my first show in Symphony Hall.

David Sedaris didn't read anything from his new book, When You Are Engulfed in Flames. Instead, he chose to read some unpublished stories, which ranged in content from biographical (a very interesting trip on Amtrak) to political (trying to understand how anyone can be an undecided voter in the upcoming US presidential election). Anyone who has heard him on This American Life knows the kind of wit and humor Sedaris has in his delivery. But one of the highlights of the show was the Q&A with the audience after his readings. His interaction with the members of the audience was so natural, the conversation could have easily happened in my living room... minus the microphone.

Labels: Boston

posted by Aron @ 10:09 PM