The longest running solo show in Los Angeles, “Einstein!,” will make its return to Eastern tonight over a decade later.
Jack Fry, the solo performer, starred in the play at Eastern in 2012 and remarked on how memorable it was for him.
In the award winning ‘Einstein!’ play, Fry displays the true revolution Albert Einstein goes through in his life. He starts with a clean look and as life struggles happen to him, he begins to look disheveled and have his infamous look. He goes through nervous breakdowns while striving to prove general relativity but ultimately rises above the odds.
“It’s a universal story that I think all of us can relate to because it tells this story of a person trying to overcome obstacles with the whole world and seemingly God himself seemed to be against him with all these things that happened,” Fry said.
He said the experience was great for him and recalled how he uses the same set he used back in 2012.
Fry began his reign as the longest running show in Los Angeles in 2012 and said that his interest in starring in this play came when he read a quote from Einstein regarding physics. After doing research on Einstein, Fry became enthralled in his discoveries of Einstein’s early life because what he was finding was not well known.
“What inspired me was his iconic struggle,” Fry said. “His kind of messy divorce, his 10-year old son who he loves and adores, that relationship is slipping away.”
Fry kept the thought of longevity in mind when he wrote the play, which he said is testimonial because of how long it’s been performing.
He said he has seen growth in his acting abilities since performing in the play. He strives to make every moment as authentic as possible but finds it challenging to put himself in an emotional state to benefit from the story.
After almost 200 shows, Fry said he is still longing for his perfect show.
Fry defines this flawless production as having given the perfect acting performance, the humor landing with the audience, the emotion evoked and conveyed appropriately and lastly a standing ovation.
“Performing in front of live people is really, for me, where it’s at,” Fry said. “It’s so powerful because there’s such a connection that you feel with the audience when it’s just grooving.”
What he wants audience members to take away after the performance is to have a new and fresh appreciation of Albert Einstein.
“I also want them to learn something they haven’t learned before or re-learn a life lesson they forget or learn a new perspective on how to handle challenges in their own lives,” Fry said.
To prepare for each performance, Fry said he goes through a plethora of mind exercise and mind hacks to convince himself that each performance is his first.
‘Einstein!’ is set to premiere Friday in the Doudna Fine Arts Center at 7:30 p.m.
Cam’ron Hardy can be reached at 581-2812 or at cahardy@eiu.edu.