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Theatre / Ordinary Days

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The colour of feeling that life is okay.
The colour of an ordinary day.

Adam Gwon's emotional story about the life of four people living in New York city and how their lives intertwine along the way. Our four protagonists are:

  • Deb: A literature grad student who is in a constant state of stress over her achieving her life goals. Her story begins when she loses her graduate dissertation notes and has to meet with a stranger to retrieve them.
  • Warren: A self proclaimed "pioneer of visual art" who is working as a house sitter for a jailed graffiti artist. He spends his time attempting to distribute his employer's work to passer bys. His story begins when he finds Deb's notebook and decides it is a sign that they were made to become friends.
  • Claire: A true New Yorker who is attempting to navigate life with her boyfriend while trying to let go of her tragic past.
  • Jason: Claire's boyfriend. A happy-go-lucky man who just wants to take his relationship to the next level.

The shows original cast consisted (in its entirety) of Kate Weatherhead, Jared Gertner, Lisa Brescia and Hunter Foster.


This play provides examples of:

  • All-Loving Hero: Warren is persistent in his wish to be friends with Deb. Even after she yells at him and calls him a weirdo, he is still excited to go grab a coffee together.
  • Ambiguously Jewish: Claire briefly mentions that her wedding with John took place in a synagogue, but it's unclear which of them was Jewish.
  • Audience Monologue: Every character at some point.
  • Big Applesauce: The show takes place in New York City. "Hundred Story City" is all about the struggles of living there, whereas "One By One" and "Calm" make it clear that the city can make an already stressful situation feel worse.
  • Book Ends: Both the opening and final songs in the show begin with the same piano motif
  • Colorful Song: Rooftop Duet/Falling has Claire listing all the colors in Warren's flyers.
  • Curse Cut Short: During the last song:
    Deb: Out of all of the paintings we've seen, this is it?
    Warren: Yes.
    Deb: Out of hundreds of paintings, your favourite painting is this piece of sh-
    Warren: Hey! What's wrong with it?
  • Cut Song:
    • Claire's freak out song "Canceling The Party" was removed due to changes in the plot but was included in concert celebration of the CD release.
    • Jason's song "Seeing You There" was also cut.
  • Defrosting Ice Queen: Warren's gradual effect on Deb.
  • Duet Bonding: Warren and Deb get to know each other through a number of duets, most notably "Rooftop Duet/Falling". Claire and Jason's duet "I'm Trying" reminds them of the early days of their relationship and brings them closer together (for a while).
  • The Eleven O'Clock Number: "Rooftop Duet/Falling" for Deb and Warren, and "I'll Be Here" for Claire.
  • Ensemble Cast: The four characters each have their own goals, and are treated as equally important.
  • Foreshadowing: In Let Things Go, Claire's comment "there are things that make you feel that you need this prove your past was real" is foreshadowing for her unwillingness to let go of her late husband John's memory.
    • In "Hundred Story City," both Deb, and Warren sing a fairly inauspicious line wishing that there were "no buildings in my way." In "Rooftop Duet/Falling," it's revealed that there was a thread tying the two of them together all along: Deb had taken one of his flyers, which read "don't let tall buildings block the view of your dreams."
  • "I Want" Song: "Big Picture", "Life Story Reprise," and "Hundred Story City."
  • The Lost Lenore: Claire's husband John who died in 9/11 has an understandable effect on her willingness to commit
  • Massive Multiplayer Ensemble Number: "Rooftop Duet/Falling" and "Saturday at the Met."
  • The Musical: There is no gap in between songs for plain dialogue - each song continues into the next.
  • Nice to the Waiter: Warren in comparison to Deb in "Big Picture":
    Deb: These stupid barista's don't know how to heat up a proper—
    Warren: Deb, it's really okay!
  • Patter Song: "One By One By One," which exhibits Warren's perky personality, and "Calm," which shows that a stressed out Deb is not someone you want to mess with.
  • Quarreling Song: "Fine."
  • Shout-Out: Several.
    Deb: I moved out West 'cause I heard everyone was hiring and they were, at the Applebee's.
    Deb: Woody Allen heard Gershwin in the air when he took Manhattan.
    Deb: I don't remember the Muppets getting hives when they took Manhattan.
  • Took a Level in Kindness: Deb, thanks to her friendship with Warren.

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