Writer of the Academy award-winning short Trevor, founder of The Trevor Project (a 24-hour nationwide crisis hotline for LGBTQIA+ youth), and stage and screen actor, James Lecesne performs his hit off-Broadway play, The Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey. This live performance of a powerful police procedural comes to life through the artistry of James Lecesne and is accompanied by the original music of Duncan Sheik. James portrays every character in a small Jersey Shore town as he unravels the story of Leonard Pelkey, a tenaciously optimistic and flamboyant 14-year-old boy who has gone missing. A luminous force of nature whose magic is only truly felt once he is gone, Leonard becomes an unexpected inspiration as the town's citizens question how they live, who they love, and what they leave behind.
Brash detective Chuck DeSantis seeks out answers as to why Leonard is missing. Along the way, questions about the teen's sexuality force members of the community to confront their own biases and beliefs. This poetic piece of audio leads listeners down an important path towards understanding and acceptance. The entire town changes forever because of Leonard Pelkey - a character originally from James Lecesne's young adult book Absolute Brightness that inspired the play. This whodunit brims with humour and heart and delivers a deeply important message about love, prejudice, and being yourself.
The New York Times raved that The Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey "...leave[s] you beaming with joy...a superlative solo show...Mr. Lecesne is a writer of wit and keen observational skills, who here unfolds a dark tale that shimmers with the needling suspense you associate with the best police procedurals."
Written and performed by James Lecesne
Sound design by Christian Frederickson
Original music by Duncan Sheik
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(Audible Original, 20 June 2019, 1 hour 2 minutes, bought from @audibleuk, free with membership for a limited time)
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This play is more emotional than I was expecting. I cried a lot listening to it. I didn't read the blurb properly and if I had I would have been a lot better prepared. The play has some lighter moments but overall is quite dark and upsetting as a 14-year-old boy goes missing and the police want answers. The tragic outcome seems inevitable but that doesn't make it have any less of an impact. This play delves into love, small town prejudices, the importance of being yourself and accepting people as you find them. I found it very moving.
