Becky Byers and August Schulenburg—having exactly the kind of fight that every good play needs. Photo credit Isaiah Tanenbaum.
Adam Szymkowicz has the kind of last name that keeps reporters up at night. How many Ys? How many Zs? It's giving me heartburn just thinking about it.
But it's worth it, because he's a nice guy and a good playwright. I saw his Hearts Like Fists on Wednesday, and interviewed him yesterday. We talked about Kansas!
Now Adam Szymkowicz, a playwright known for quick-witted genre play, has dipped his toes into the ever-pleasant waters of geekdom. His Hearts Like Fists has been running for the last few weeks at Long Island City’s Secret Theatre. It closes tomorrow, but like all great superheroes, Adam Szymkowicz will return—in next spring’s Clown Bar, produced by the good people at Pipeline Theater Company. We spoke to Adam yesterday, about, well, all sorts of things.
Where did this play come from?
I don’t remember, exactly. It was a few years ago. I’ve played a few times with genre—like I have a cowboy comedy Hamlet, and a film noir play. I wanted to do something with comic books. I started reading a bunch of X-Men and some other Marvel stuff, and I tried to do my own version of that genre. A world that’s normally more about action, I made about love.
Unfortunately, Hearts Like Fists closes tomorrow. But Clown Bar, which opens in March, is gonna be even better. Watch this space for more information.
Well, you don't have to spend all your time watching this space. I probably won't mention Adam again until March. If you want up-to-the-minute information about him, you're better off hiding in his closet or just following him around. But if you're just interested in Clown Bar, check back in spring.