The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time (Broadway) (2014)

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time is the most innovative play since War Horse. Based on the book by the same name that was long-listed for the prestigious Booker Prize, this play takes us inside the mind of a fifteen-year-old autistic savant named Christopher.  The book is told in the first person perspective in a diary of sorts, putting the reader in Christopher's shoes. The play cleverly gets around this, by casting his teacher as a narrator, reading directly from the source material as a play within a play.  Notably, the book chapters are numbered by prime numbers, and so this is integrated in the audience; prime numbered seats have a surprise envelope that got us a free pin.  

Another feature of the book is several diagrams and drawings, which appear on stage.  The stage has a back panel, two side panels, and a floor panel, each of which contain many LED lights and projections.  They are also blackboards, and Christopher draws on them in chalk, and these drawings magically replicate on the other walls so everyone can see no matter where you're sitting.  In a stirring scene, Christopher is overwhelmed by all the stimuli at the train station, and the audience is equally overwhelmed seeing all the lights and signs that Christopher sees, including the ones that he envisions.  This multimedia experience is incredible to behold.  The play very rightfully was awarded Tonys for lighting and scenic design.  The lights partition off houses and rooms in different colors aligned on the grid of LEDs.  And bright compartments appear in the walls housing a train set that Christopher assembles in parts in Act I building up to a climax.     

Alex Sharp plays the young Christopher, and he too is very young at 26.  Fresh out of Julliard, this is notably his first professional role, and he kills it.  He beat Bradley Cooper in Elephant Man for the Tony. He is so deserving and I am glad they took a chance on a rookie.  He has so many lines, and Christopher talks very fast and yells and screams when he feels uncomfortable. Christopher is awkward in social situations, and that comes through in every scene.  The play, thanks largely to Sharp and a great script, evokes tears and laughs equally from the audience. Sharp also maneuvers some intricate choreography bouncing off the walls and spinning through crowds which competed against traditional dancing in musicals at the Tonys.