It was cold last night and as I wound my way downstairs and downstairs and down into the Atlantic Theater’s Second Stage I didn’t know what to expect. I had heard great things but, you know, you never know, so now I know. I know I’m late to the party, but better late than never. And that definitely applies to the Foundry‘s production of David Greenspan’s The Myopia which is playing until February 7th at Atlantic Theater’s Second Stage. If you haven’t seen it yet, you still have time and you don’t want to miss it.

The performance – and the writing – is nothing short of magical. Magical not only in the sense that Greenspan is a bewitching storyteller, but in that the internal logic of the show is one of dreams and fairy tales. On one level The Myopia is a comedy about a character named Barclay (who is just a pulsing orb of light) who is struggling to finish writing a musical about Warren Harding which had been started by his father, Febus, who was married to a Rapunzel figure named Koreen, who is the daughter of Yetti, who is actually a goddess…. and the whole thing is ACTUALLY being told by a “raconteur” who is played by Greenspan, the actual author and performer of the entire oeuvre. On another level it is even more complicated than that. Carol Channing makes an appearance as does Gertrude Stein and a stubborn mule named Dearie.

But more than being a story -and it is a fascinating story – it is a show about imagination, about theater, about watching something actually happen in front of you and believing it, no matter how far-fetched or unimaginable it might seem. And in that regard Greenspan is a magician, drawing us into his imagination and leading us on a whirlwind ride all from his seat in an armchair.

If I had time – and this weren’t a blog and I were getting paid to do this instead of my day job – I would re-read the script and pluck out all the gems of wisdom and wicked one-liners to share with you. But as that is not the case and I’ve got to wrap this up, for now, let me just say that if you want to have a singularly amazing evening in the theater – then don’t miss The Myopia.