After more than two years I renewed my at-least-annual trips to New York!

This one was prompted by the Brooklyn Academy of Music bringing a production of “Cyrano” over from London. Bryn and I had seen it through a National Theatre Live broadcast while Jason saw it in person. We all loved it, and we all jumped at the chance to see it.

The show was such a delight. A spectacle of words and emotions. There’s no props, no fake nose, barely any costumes (the characters wear clothes based on what the actors wore to rehearsals), and the set is just blond wood-paneled walls and steps. Even the blocking, while ingenious and riveting, is relatively minimal.

In other words, it’s a production that is designed to be all about the words. And when you’ve got a superb script and excellent actors, that’s all you need.

It was such a lush feast for someone like me who delights in words. James McAvoy, who played Cyrano, is such a delight to watch. He navigates the mania of Cyrano’s emotions and delivers the rhyming couplets with such dexterity that you can understand every word that’s fired at bullet-speed in his native Scottish burr.

Oh. I could go on and on. I’ve made notes to keep tabs on both the “translator,” Martin Crimp. who very much rewrote the original to great effect) and the director, Jamie Lloyd. Masters of their craft and definitely artists I’d seek out again.

Really, though, the whole trip was a delight. Jason and I went to dinner with my parents Friday at North Miznon and enjoyed sampling all kinds of delicious things:

The four of us had breakfast the next morning with Bryn and Dan (Bryn’s husband) at Le Pain (of course).

Jason and I introduced Bryn to the joy (and expense) of Mud where we all made purchases.

We then walked through the makers’ market at Bryant Park and grabbed wafles for a snack:

Then we met up with Dan again to see “A Strange Loop.

It’s a good show, an interesting one, but it doesn’t make me swoon with verbal beauty and performance. 🙂

The four of us then headed to Brooklyn for dinner at Meadowsweet (http://www.meadowsweetnyc.com/). Proof of why I’m friends with Bryn and Dan? Not only did they suggest a Michelin meal, being fans themselves, but we ordered 7 appetizers because they sounded so good.

After dinner and Cyrano, we found a place near the hotel that was open late for dessert and a post-play discussion (a surprisingly tricky task).

Like I said, a delight of a weekend with excellent company all around.