The Wexner Center for the Arts has canceled the Sept. 26-30 production of “Charlie Victor Romeo”, a theatrical documentary that chronicles the actions of each respective commercial airline’s crews during emergencies, based upon black box recordings.
Karen Simonian, public relations manager for the Wexner Center, said the sensitive nature of the show prompted the decision.
“The subject matter is just so tragically timely,” Simonian said. “The only appropriate thing to do is to cancel in light of the tragedies.”
The play portrays the reactions of crews from six different aircraft emergencies, with the set design giving the audience the view from the nose of the plane into the cockpit.
Seena Simon, New York Times staff writer, wrote that not only did the play receive positive reviews, but had captured the attention of the United States military. The realistic representations have been videotaped to provide training for Air Force pilots and aircrews.
In Les Gutman’s review of “Charlie Victor Romeo”, the theater critic of the online theater magazine CurtainUp, stated the producers did not exploit the content of the recordings.
“Although your first instinct might be to dismiss this as a sick downtown stunt, don’t be deceived,” Gutman said. “The creators of this show take their subject as seriously as it demands.”
The creators of “Charlie Victor Romeo”, Robert Berger, Patrick Daniels and Irving Gregory, posted a message at charlievictorromeo.com expressing their condolences and plans for the future of the production.
“As Americans, as New Yorkers, and as artists we refuse to allow this act of terrorism to force us into fearful reaction and panic. At Collective: Unconscious, our home, the work goes on. We believe it is our duty, now more than ever, to express ourselves as best we can. Only in a free society can we continue to create art unbowed.”
Simonian said she was unable to reach Collective: Unconscious, the theater company and venue for the play, based in the Lower Eastside of Manhattan. She is unsure of any rescheduling plans.
“Nothing has been decided about rescheduling, but it will not be for a while,” Simonian said. “The wounds are pretty fresh in people’s minds.”
