Actor James Heatherly is living Life With Jeem in the New York International Fringe Festival production of Jimmy O'Neill's cult one-man show. Performances run through Aug. 26 at Collective Unconscious. Michael Hyman of Planet Q directs.
Life With Jeem is about the life of Jimmy Jeemers, a gay man in his thirties, and the top half of a Macy's mannequin, nicknamed Jeem. Together they live in a playhouse he has constructed for himself and where his only companionship is other dolls -- Mountain Man and Hippie Girl -- and the occasional surprise guest. O'Neill created Jeem for the stage after the success the piece had on Public Access cable. Also the writer of The Great World Wide Bathtub Lecture Series, Very Famous, he died in 1996 at age 43.
Heatherly is best known for his performances in Off-Broadway's When Pigs Fly, Prom Queens Unchained, To Have and To Hold and Nunsense A-Men. He is currently performing with the comic opera group La Gran Scena Opera Company at the Lincoln Center Festival.
Tickets are $12. For information and reservations, call (212) 420-8877 or (888)-FringeNYC. Collective Unconscious is located at 145 Ludlow Street. The New York International Fringe Festival is on the web at http://www.fringenyc.org. Life With Jeem is on the web at http://www.lifewithjeem.com.
-- By Christine Ehren
