[NoHo Arts District, CA] – A NoHo Arts theatre review of Laura Joy Gold’s Finding Joy, as part of the Soaring Solo’s Solo Stars Series.
Can I just say that one of the many things I love about solo shows is that sometimes, if the show is particularly wonderful, by the end of it, you feel as if you just made a new friend, found a soulmate, or fallen in love.
Laura Gold’s Finding Joy is one of those few very special shows that gives you that unmistakable sense of knowing. As if you had always known, all your life, in fact. It’s a rare skill to communicate so subtly and so directly that every member of the audience has the experience of being the only person in the room.
Finding Joy is an autobiographical show about Laura Gold’s search for peace and, yes, joy. Joy is a thing that we are not really told very much about as we grow or guided to. It’s not seen as important or purposeful. We must all work hard, give up much, and never complain. Spending any time at all, even contemplating joy seems unthinkable, and certainly unencouraged.
But joy is vital to our well being. That feeling you get when you laugh with your entire body and can’t seem to stop, or when you look at the face of a baby who simply looks right back, with no expectation or judgment. Or walking through a wood alone with nothing around you but the trees and the birds and the deep dark scent of life. These things can trigger that ‘joy’ emotion. Some people have the gift of finding joy easily, but as we age and our life experiences cling to our bodies and our souls, it seems harder and harder to find. Just when it’s more important than ever to us all.
Laura Gold has beaten a path to joy. She has pushed through fear and pain, anxiety and denial, and rejection to find her joy. It has taken many years and multiple life-changing experiences for her to be able to look back reflectively and understand that the journey has been the discovery and her ultimate destination of joy and acceptance is worth every step she took.
Finding Joy is a beautifully written and wonderfully performed ode to joy. Laura Gold is a master storyteller. Funny, thoughtful and inventive. Her songs are hilarious and heartrending, her story relatable and full of profound truths.
Stories like Laura’s are what solos shows are made for. Becoming who we are meant to be is not always a straight line, if you will pardon the pun. Laura’s understanding of her own sexuality and her place in our gorgeous rainbow world took her time and a lot of self love. As I get older, I find myself being more ‘me’ with every day. I suppose we have fewer things to prove, and really there becomes no point in hiding even a sliver of who we are. Wrinkles are a powerful lesson in humility, and with that comes freedom… finally.
Finding Joy is a brilliant piece of solo theatre. Laura’s songs lift her story even higher than the vintage photos and heartfelt anecdotes could alone. It’s a fantastic method of delivering music.
It quiets even the busiest mind and reminds us all how much we are alike as we sit in the dark and listen to another human sing, telling us who they are so we, in turn, can see ourselves a little clearer.If you have the chance to see Laura Gold’s Finding Joy, I highly recommend that you seize it…absolutely marvellous and inspiring show. Bravo!