“Fairview” Tied my Brain in Knots; The Coney Island Cyclone Shook Them Loose

It was a day of contrasts.

My Sunday began with a Pulitzer Prize-winning play that sent my brain down a deep-thought wormhole, and ended with a sword swallowers, fire breathers, contortionists, the Cyclone, and a hot dog at Coney Island. First up: The brain gymnastics.

“Fairview” at the Polonsky Shakespeare Center in Brooklyn is a brain knot I'm still trying to untangle. It wouldn't be an understatement to say it’s unlike any show I've seen on stage (and, as you know, that's not a paltry pool of candidates).

And I mean "on stage" in a literal sense — I walked up on stage and stood on the set's balcony, overlooking the audience, during the show — also a first for me. I see why this play won a Pulitzer.

I'm rarely at a loss for words, but I am here — not because the show was a mind-blowing work of theater — it's not perfect — but because I can't express the tangled spiderweb of thoughts currently squeezing my brain. I promise, this would make total sense if you'd seen the show (not helpful, I know).

So, I'll try again: Watching much of "Fairview" feels like being curled up on the floor in the fetal position amid flashing strobe lights.

Just like after I saw "Dear Evan Hansen," I was left with a plethora of thoughts to process — good thing I had a half-hour train ride to Coney Island to do just that. Of course, following a play like this with low-brow Coney Island fun *probably* isn't how deep-theater processing is supposed to work, but I don't think it's possible to ride the Cyclone and come away with brain knots intact.

The ride to Coney Island is about a half-hour from Brooklyn on the D line (and about an hour from my Manhattan apartment). It’s a lovely ride, as the train runs above ground on the stretch from Brooklyn to Surf Avenue. Coney Island is also the last stop on the D line, so, as was the case yesterday, I got to see another train corral.

Once I arrived, my first stop was the Coney Island Circus Sideshow. The show lasts about 45 minutes and runs continuously from 1 to 8 p.m. each day (you can walk in at any time and then leave when you see a duplicate act). I saw fire breathers, sword swallowers, and contortionists, as well as a performer with the same condition as the famous Koo-Koo the Bird Girl. She explained that a rare congenital skeletal growth disorder called Virchow-Seckel syndrome is why she’s short, balding, large-eyed, and nearly blind. She did a tribute act to the original Bird Girl that involved acrobatics in a bird suit above a bed of nails.

Was the show worth $12? Probably not. Was it interesting? For sure.

Next, I walked down Surf Avenue to Luna Park for a ride on the 92-year-old Coney Island Cyclone. This was the only ride I rode at Luna Park, as the rides are pretty expensive (it was $10 for a single Cyclone ride!).

But forget the coaster (which admittedly is kind of hard to do when your butt is floating four inches above the seat), the view of Brighton Beach and the Atlantic Ocean from the top is magnificent!

I almost bought the photo — if you're wondering what my face looked like when I found out I'd get to shadow and then edit a Ben Brantley review, it would be this exact expression: joy incarnate. The closest coaster sister I can think of is The Racer at Kings Island (which is also a rattly woodie).

From there, I walked down to the Brighton Beach Boardwalk. I strolled the length of the beach, passing many lobster-humans with serious sunburns (the heat index was 100+ degrees again today, and the sun was scorching). Gorgeous views of the Atlantic Ocean, though!

And you didn't think I'd leave Coney Island without grabbing a Nathan's Famous hot dog from the original shack, did you?

I garnished with relish, mustard, and even (gasp! sacrilege!) a dash of ketchup.

Then it was back to Manhattan on a nice, hour-long, air-conditioned train ride. I have tomorrow off since I work Tuesday through Sunday this week, so prepare for more adventures!