Review: The Ultimate Online Party Awaits IF YOU CAN GET TO BUFFALO

The online world of social media began long before the internet exploded with email services and today's outlandish graphics and photo capabilities. Local BBS online systems allowed its members to log on, visit various chat rooms on lots of topics and create a world unto themselves by just typing away and watching plain text conversations fly by at rapid speed. No graphics - no photos - just words from however many users were in that particular chat room. It was a heady time when anyone could pretend to be whoever they wanted to be and create worlds where each of us could be a star - or the controller of everyone and everything going on in that imaginary room. Have avatar, will travel.

Son of Semele Ensemble (SoSE) is presenting the West Coast premiere of Trish Harnetiaux's IF YOU CAN GET TO BUFFALO through April 12, 2015, directed by SoSE company member Edgar Landa. Based on the short story "A Rape in Cyberspace" by Julian Dibbell, originally published in the Village Voice in 1993, the play centers on one of the first-ever social networks, LambdaMoo, which invites users to mingle in a fantastical mansion composed of imaginarily rooms made entirely of text. The only rule in this collective Utopia is that there are no rules and you can create your own adventure... until a sinister puppetmaster named Mr. Bungle crosses a virtual line.

A befuddled Charlie Rose is our clueless guide as intrepid online pioneers discover freedom - and looming dangers - on the virtual frontier in the world of LambdaMoo. The all-enveloping story line races by in just over an hour using multimedia screens that flash columns of text flying by as well as the faces of panelists on Charlie Rose's interview show, and the multi-level set often represents the different imaginary rooms in LambdaMoo's mansion. Each of the actors wears vibrant neon glasses and mimics typing their conversations when online, allowing the audience to understand the difference between real world action and imaginary online happenings.

And what a crazy group of characters inhabit these imaginary online rooms, each at the mercy of its voyeuristic creator Mr. Bumble (Alex Wells, bedecked with a red clown nose, who at times appears so glaringly lonely and evil) sits reading books until something online grabs his interest in participating. "I know what boredom leads to,' he shares as he manipulates the action to suit his own needs, often of a sexual nature.

LambdaMoo's regular visitors include Legba (Chase Cargill), a dreadlocked wild man with masterful accents, Grendlefish/Purple Guest (Betsy Moore) who hides herself inside a large barrel, green-haired Starsinger (Cindy Nguyen) who fancies herself the star of any party, Juniper (Caitlin Teeley), a midriff bearing party girl in search of a good time, and Gina Manziello who appears in an imaginary skit involving Bill Gates and his wife who encourages him to push things too far.

To gain more knowledge of LambdaMoo, TV reporter Charlie Rose (Melina Bielefelt, changing into the most outrageous chair positions as her show segments progress) interviews Julian/Dr. Bombay (Bart Petty) and John (Tim Venable) who do their best to explain the imaginary world to their host who seems to have never been online in her life. "What is internet and electronic mail," she asks them - questions everyone was asking when the online world invaded our lives. John confesses he goes online as Bambi because "I am too lazy to come on to girls, so I would rather have men come onto me." And Mr. Bumble is only to happy to take him up on it! This segment demonstrates how chat room "rape" can occur, a virtual attack with lots of others "watching" - or a place where even strangers can fall in love. In the online world, anything is possible.

The play's title refers to a place online chatters go for the ultimate party, a place where all your dreams can come true as long as you can gain access to this most sacred of places. Could this be the real town in which the enigmatic Mr. Bumble lives? Does it really matter? Not online!

"It's a joy to introduce Trish Harnetiaux's work to LA audiences," says Son of Semele Artistic Director Matthew McCray. "Her dynamic and unpredictable plays are a great fit for our company. When I read Buffalo, I knew right away that I wanted us to produce it. It's a wild ride that explores some little-known history through a contemporary and surreal context."

IF YOU CAN GET TO BUFFALO performances continue at Son of Semele Theater, located at 3301 Beverly Blvd. in Los Angeles CA 90004, through April 12, 2015, on Fridays and Saturdays at 8pm, Sundays at 5pm, with Monday performances on March 23 & April 6 @ 7pm. There is free street parking in the surrounding neighborhood, but be sure to allow extra time since other events often occur in the surrounding area.

Tickets are $23 online / $25 at the door, $3 discount for students/seniors/union members. Advance online purchases at sonofsemele.org. The Son of Semele box office is open on performance days only, 30 minutes prior to curtain.

Photo credit: Son of Semele Ensemble

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