The plot of this story begins with him confronting the audiences about himself having a disease but then he backtracks into how he came to NYC. Like many young people, he moved to NYC with dreams of grandeur, aspiring to be a famous director. And like many other people who move with with hopes of becoming an actor, artist, dancer, photographer, director, etc, the path changes along the way. Dan is no exception. He is, however, one who has turned his tragic story into a spectacular one man show.
Being someone who doesn't really care for one man shows, I reluctantly drug myself along, expecting to be completely depressed. I mean, who wants to hear about AIDS? Well, Mr. Horrigan, you have changed my mind, not only about your subject matter, but about the possibility of a one man show being remarkable. You showed me that you are more than a director, but you are a performer, a storyteller and HIGHlarious.
This show seemlessly flows from topic to topic and yes derails from the main subject of AiDS, but it always comes back to it. Horrigan understands that this topic is not an easy one, so to gain the audience there must be some bit of humor to it's unfolding. And the show is not lacking in the humor at all. But the sincerity of the humor is what is probably the most heartbreaking and emotional. Everything he talks about actually happened to him, which is somewhat of a sad reality and what preys on the heartstrings of the audience. This show is something that every young person, parent, sibling, or friend should see, gay and straight a like. There are moments in this performance that everyone can relate to and no doubt walk away from a better human being.
Ultimately, Dan's performance is one of sheer genius, pushing him up on the list of outstanding new performers to watch out for. Dave Soloman's direction is flawless. To sum it up in a quote from the show, "Aside from the fact I was scared i might have AiDS, it was a totally fun night!"
