OFF-BROADWAY REVIEW
LIFE IN A MARITAL INSTITUTION
Reviewed by Jenny Sandman
Published 2008-08-07
James Braly looks like a cross between Richard Gere and Bill Maher, but it's the Bill Maher part of the equation that carries the most weight. To judge from Braly's one-man show, Life in a Marital Institution, now playing at SoHo Playhouse, he's a born pundit and stand-up comic (and his former life as a corporate speechwriter doesn't hurt, either). Having received rave reviews at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival last summer, the show is now running off-Broadway. Braly charms the audience with tales of his disastrous family for seventy minutes, and on the night I saw it, reduced several members to tears of helpless laughter.
Life in a Marital Institution, subtitled (20 years of monogamy in one terrifying hour), is the story of Braly's marriage and his dysfunctional family. One day, he realizes that the woman he loves has turned into the sort of woman who freezes her placenta, nurses her six-year-old son, and reads books like My Summer with the Leprechauns: A Biography. They've never had a stable relationship-their years together have been marked by constant and bitter arguments and a small army of marriage counselors. Braly's family is no better; between his parents and four siblings, he can count thirteen failed marriages. Stories of his own marriage are punctuated with tales of his family and their infighting as he presides over the deathbed of his sister, who is simultaneously dying of cancer and marrying her fourth husband.
Despite the fighting, the frozen placenta and the spiritual exorcisms by women named Rainbow Feather, Braly dearly loves his wife and children, and that comes through time and time again. Usually shows about "look how terrible my marriage is" are hallmarks of bitterness, defiance and/or regret, but this play showcases none of those things, making this a true rarity - the affectionate personal memoir. Although Braly has a tendency to rush through it, his straightforward but self-deprecating delivery makes the evening a true howl. A terrifying marriage was never so funny.
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