John Walker: The Musical

As if my experience here could not get any more bizarre, yesterday night I accompanied my roommate, Andy, and his "lady friend" to the 11:15 showing of "John Walker: The Musical". Here is the official website (http://www.johnwalkerthemusical.com/JW/index.html), if that title piques your interest.

This production tells the story of John Walker Lyndh, commonly known as the "American Taliban", a mistreated youth drawn to the Koran and Islam out of a search for greater purpose and meaning. Evidently, a traumatic experience in fourth grade during which his feelings were hurt by a female classmate combined with the fact that none of the kids in Marin would smoke dope with John were reason enough to fly halfway across the world to fight the good fight with everyone's favorite oppressive misogynists, the Taliban.

John's crusade and subsequent capture made him the perfect scapegoat for America and our "minimal effort man" of a president, E.D.. (Don't ask me what that acronyn means - it was over my head). E.D. sends Don, a hapless, flabby reporter, to help trump up charges against John during a fixed escape from captivity. An extra from the Matrix movies, Jackie, also a DOJ attorney, is on her own quest to exonerate John and expose the president for what he is - a master manipulator of public sentiment - but she is no match for E.D.'s androgynous lackies.

Oh, poor, poor John. He was doomed from the start. An innocent caught up in a political war between America, the tyrant, and peace-loving, tender-hearted Islamic fundamentalists. I won't ruin the end, but I'll just say that Dan would undoubtedly shed a tear or two from this emotional climax.

Don't get me wrong, though, I did derive enjoyment from parts of the production, particularly the rousing rendition of "I'm no Hemingway" (a reference to his cowardice and inability to write well) performed by Don, the reporter, and the S&M scene between the president and his busty therapist. It was also fun to be out in Manhattan doing New York City-type things, in spite of the fact that i sat through an hour and a half of thesbians singing about the American Taliban.