DATA Off-Broadway Reviews

With Data, Michael Libby has written an unquestionably significant play wrenched not only from today’s headlines but possibly also ripped from headlines heading our way in the frightfully near future. Furthermore, he’s unleashed a work that fits into a category that may be entirely new or at least still thin: The Intellectual Horror Drama.

Data is a serious play but there is humor, almost exclusively in the hands of Jonah who knows his limitations but compensates by taking on the persona of an over-stimulated dude. Brandon Flynn is that guy to a T, and all the more impressive after seeing him play Marlon Brando so convincingly off Broadway in Kowalski

Luckily, the four splendid cast members help us overlook the playwright’s calculations by bringing these characters to life, even Brandon Flynn as Jonah. Or should I say him especially. Flynn is the only one of the four whom I remember seeing on stage before, and his performance both as Marlon Brando in Kowalski and the kidnapped child at the center of “Kid Victory,” were memorable.

This moral-dilemma play contains several unexpected twists and turns, including a few that draw audible gasps from the audience at the performance I attended. The lone flaw is that part of Maneesh’s family backstory, the driving force behind his career choices, feels underdeveloped. But this thrilling new play is worth your time — even if you’re a tech employee trying to unplug from that world after work.