It’s a story that we’ve all heard before. The artist is too big for their small town. They get a chance to live their dreams, but life keeps getting in the way. Zoe Sarnak’s The Lonely Few is putting a sapphic twist on this classic tale.
Lila and her band, The Lonely Few, have a standing gig at Paul’s Juke Joint in their small Kentucky town. When an established musician, Amy, gives them a chance to join her on tour, they take it. Love blossoms between Lila and Amy on the road, but can it endure?
Within the plot’s simplicity, book writer Rachel Bonds injects the story with a surprising amount of compassion and nuance. When crafting a tale about moving on, it’s easiest to demonize the small town—make it virtually unlivable for the characters so the audience understands that leaving is the clear choice. With a cast of queers and POC, the allure of violence is all the more seductive. The Lonely Few paints a softer image. When asked about her quality of life as a queer person, Lila says, “People know. We just don’t talk about it.” Bonds is welcoming us into a landscape that illustrates the more insidious side of progressivism. The “Don’t Ask. Don’t Tell,” the “I don’t care what you do in your private life, I love you anyway” which is taught to be a victory of understanding. Another one of Bonds’ characters echoes my personal opinion when she exclaims, “How does that not drive you crazy?!” (I’m paraphrasing, don’t sue me.) With this disagreement, Bond is setting up the thematic question of the musical: “What are you willing to leave behind to be all of yourself?” But of course, it isn’t that easy, and the musical continues to complicate that question with additional questions. Are you truly seeking self-actualization or fame? Are you prepared to accept the consequences of leaving certain people behind? Are you running to something or running away from something?
The simplicity of the plot allows for the true magic of The Lonely Few to shine through, the music. The MCC was ROCKING on that fateful night on May 10th (the night I saw the preview.) If you told me a week ago that I would be headbanging in the front row of an off-Broadway theater, I would’ve said, “Who are you? Get out of my house!” Sarnak approaches her songwriting with an intoxicating emotionality. The song structure harkens back to a more golden-age style in which the songs are meant to expound on a character’s sensations poetically rather than progressing the plot narratively. This structure makes the musical feel like (and I mean this in the most complimentary way) a real KICKASS jukebox musical or, perhaps a less heretical compliment, a compelling concept album. Don't say anything when Zoe Sarnak is my Top Spotify Artist this year.
The Lonely Few is a new rock musical premiering at MCC through June 2nd.
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