←Recommendations of 110 COLUMBIA HEIGHTS

Much like the Bridge itself is a wonder of engineering, mechanisms and innovations building up something at once mind-bogglingly complex yet also intensely direct, so too this play builds something grand from poetry, history, fate, love, optimism, and the idea that the true spirit of America is something that can stay solid throughout such turbulent times. But between the 1870s, the 1920s, and our own current decade, what times haven't been turbulent?

This play manages to combine the lyricism of Hart Crane’s poetry with the harsh realities of his troubled life. By juxtaposing the rhythms of the Jazz Age with the Gilded Age gentility of Crane’s ghostly visitor, the author provides the audience with a vivid and compelling look at the price of American ambition.

What an incredible play! Rich in history, vibrant characters, and a heartfelt yet funny story. It inspired me to immediately go read more about Roebling and Crane. High recommended.

In Germaine Shames’ rich imagination, 110 Columbia Heights is both an historical address and an otherworldly theatrical space where the ghost of Emily Warren Roebling (1843-1903) meets the Modernist painter Peggy Baird Cowley (1890-1970), and together they help the poet Hart Crane (1899-1932) suppress his demons so he can finish his masterpiece “The Bridge.” Playful, affecting, and haunting, with characters who rhyme with our lives today, “110 Columbia Heights,” like the Brooklyn Bridge outside the apartment’s window, memorably connects characters and audience through time and space. Strong roles for women and LGBTQI actors. Highly recommended.