Phyro-Giants!

Phyro-Giants!
In this snapshot of four troubled souls looking to fill their lives with an impossibly paradoxical mix of excitement and emotional safety, the backbiting gossip and self-revelatory banter take the comedy on some wicked turns as the evening progresses and the empty wine bottles multiply. Set entirely at a table in a hip eatery, Phyro-Giants! is one long conversation about love, sex, and infidelity, all played out in real time.

Michael Blieden began writing and performing in NY while working as a correspondent for Comedy Central's The Daily Show. After moving to Los Angeles he worked as a staff writer on NBC's Everything's Relative starring Jill Clayburgh and Jeffrey Tambor. This year he has appeared on ER, The King of Queens, The Ellen Show, and a handful of commercials, all of which paid for the LA production of Phyro-Giants! Mike is currently editing a feature film based on this play, directed by Bob Odenkirk.

The idea for Phyro-Giants! was born in New York. During dinner at a SoHo restaurant with a friend, the two men were joined by two female acquaintances. Over the next few hours and as many bottles of wine, the four young people dropped their attempts at small talk and revealed their innermost selves. Returning to his West Village apartment, Mr. Blieden scribbled down bits of the conversation. The play itself ‹ a dramatized re-creation of the dinner ‹ gestated for three years until Mr. Blieden moved to Los Angeles in 1999 and wrote it.

TheatreZone is taking advantage of the misfortune of having lost their regular venue, the Actors Workshop (as in the owner is tearing the building down, not we misplaced it) and not being able to get a permit to produce in their own space, to stage Phyro-Giants! in the most exciting new addition to Chelsea's bohemian scene. The Chelsea City is a new cafe/art gallery created by the owners of the Fenway's Designs for Living. Adding realism to the restaurant setting, dinner or brunch will be served with each performance. Dinners will be Italian and Asian inspired entrees, brunch will be traditional healthy all natural, and Sunday super will be French crepes. A true international culinary experience from the chef and staff at The Chelsea City.

Performances of Phyro-Giants! were Sept. 27-Oct. 13, 2002, at The Chelsea City, a cafe located at 173 Washington Ave., Chelsea, MA. Friday & Saturday performances were preceded by a full course dinner at 6:30. There were 2 Sunday shows; at 1:00 preceded by brunch and at 7:00 followed by a crepe supper. Tickets for Fri. and Sat. were $22 in advance, $25 at the door, and Sun. tickets were $18 in advance, $20 at the door. There were a limited number of performance only tickets, $15 Fri. & Sat., $12 Sun.