Two Strangers (Make the Funniest Musical Ever)

Two Strangers (Carry a Cake Across New York) is a glimpse into daily life and living with depression while disguising itself as a comedy.

I had the absolute pleasure of seeing Two Strangers with Phoenix Best and Sam Tutty earlier this year. I went into this production almost completely blind and was absolutely blown away (so much that it made it to my top five)!

Two Strangers hinges on only two actors and a minimal set full of silver suitcases to tell their story. Putting the success of a show on the shoulders of two actors is a hard task, and they nail it. The world and other characters feel real even if they aren't actually shown. At the beginning of the show, we see Dougal landing in New York City for his dad’s wedding and Robin picking him up in order to help out her sister (the bride). Sam Tutty as Dougal has an energy that is so electric that the audience becomes immediately invested in his story and wants to be his friend.

Robin appears as a hardened New Yorker who would rather do anything else before sightseeing with her soon-to-be British step-nephew. As the show goes on, we start to get glimpses into her real feelings and her struggles with depression. As someone who has depression, the song “Be Happy” really hit home for me. Robin is the perfect example of someone who is struggling with high-functioning depression. There is technically nothing wrong with her life, but she doesn’t know how to be happy.

As Robin begins to let Dougal in, we get to see a dynamic that creates jokes that hit every time, especially when they swipe on a dating app together in “On the App.” At the end of Act I, the duo decides to use the groom’s (Dougal’s dad) credit card to go all out and have the time of their lives (”American Express”). It is impossible to listen to this song without smiling, which allows for a stark juxtaposition with the deeper tones of Act II.

At the beginning of Act II, “The Hangover Duet” exemplifies what it is like to live in our present-day society. Robin sits worrying about what she did the night before, and cuts to worrying about the world ending and the state of America. This is something that really stood out as we try to survive day to day in this world. While we’re busy surviving, we forget what is happening around us until it hits us one day.

After this internal struggle within Robin, the duo fights over whether or not she should attend the wedding ceremony, and Dougal claims she is jealous of her sister, which starts the song “What Did You Say?” This song creates a crescendo of anger that rivals “Therapy” from Tick Tick Boom. Robin ends the song and fight by telling Dougal that his father has not once spoken of him, and he wasn’t even the one to invite him to the wedding.

And this may not be a wedding like the one we had in mind, but it's still a celebration of its own special kind.

Dougal stands outside the wedding venue, debating on if he should go in. In the end, he decides that he would rather spend the day with Robin, as it is her birthday. Robin decides that this next year, she is going to prioritize herself and her relationship with her grandma instead of bending over backwards to make her sister happy. Robin and Dougal have their own ‘wedding’ in a small dumpling restaurant to finish out their two days. Dougal starts a toast with, “And this may not be a wedding like the one we had in mind, but it's still a celebration of its own special kind,” and escalates the song, emphasizing what makes a true celebration and making everyone in the restaurant uncomfortable.

At the end of the show, you feel as though you truly know these two characters. You have laughed and cried with them. It is heart-wrenching to see them part because you have felt the same. No matter who you are, I believe you can see yourself in these characters. If not from their mannerisms or their experiences, from the mere fact that they are normal people with normal issues in their day-to-day lives. We see just 48 hours of their lives and can imagine that they could look like ours. The actors throughout the whole show not only provide a peek into a real life, but maintain witty banter throughout. Despite the deeper themes, this is the funniest musical I have ever seen.