R. Buckminster Fuller: The History (and Mystery) of the Universe

Play, written and directed by D. W. Jacobs
From the Life, Work and Writings of R. Buckminster Fuller

Starring Thomas Derrah

American Repertory Theatre
Cambridge, MA

Buckminster “Bucky” Fuller was a polymath, a visionary, a poet, a philosopher and the inventor of the geodesic dome. Open an archival issue of The Whole Earth Catalog (the 60s hard-copy version of the internet, for those who don’t know it) and you’ll find him there. Incorrigible, unrepentant, unrelenting and utterly captivating was his urge towards global ecology, and he did it in a determined, but exceedingly beautiful and engaging, way.

The current production is a one man show starring Thomas Derrah, a decades-old veteran of the ART and a member of the faculty at the ART Institute. Without mincing words – this is a tour de force, an amazing piece of work. It is an entertaining and subtly engaging two hours that traverses Fuller’s life’s work via his own writings and lectures, and Derrah pulls it off flawlessly.

It is hard to imagine a long one-man show being so varied and stimulating, but it is. It is as though Derrah were made for the role. I have no doubt that if he took it on the road a la Hal Holbrook with Mark Twain, he’d be a huge success.

Wikipedia “Fullerenes”

The staging is wonderfully inventive and makes use of props – many of them geometric flexagons – video, and displayed graphics to great effect. At one point, the overhead lights on stage are used as emblems of stars; it is a great moment, simply done, but highly effective.

And, without forcing the issue, Derrah engaged the audience, even having us stand up, sway and move to the rhythms of the earth. It was not a forced march of audience participation as are some rites of contemporary theatre, but was subtly done and far more effective.

All in all, this was a cosmic, compelling and wonderful evening.

– BADMan