It would be a missed opportunity to have a play with tango as a central theme and not have the dance performed onstage as part of the action. The playwrights and producers of "A Milonga for Gabriel Isaacs," John McCaffrey and Mark Singer, understood this, and their concert staging includes tango dancers and live music in a performance set for LTV Studios in Wainscott on Saturday at 7:30 p.m.
The plot blends comedy, drama, and passion as a newly divorced man looks for new confidence, and perhaps even love, on the dance floor. Paul Lincoln, who is also a vocal coach and actor on Broadway and off, directs. Sandra Antognazzi, her dance company, and the Oscar Feldman Trio will provide the tango elements of the production.
Last week, Mr. McCaffrey, who lives in Wainscott, said the idea came to him when he and his wife took their own tango lessons with Ms. Antognazzi. "What intrigued me most about tango lessons was discovering how impacting this form of dance can be on a relationship."
A naturally timid person, "I had to learn to 'lead' without fear, to guide my wife into the steps and movements with purpose and passion," he said. She, in turn, "had to react to my leading not passively, but proactively, even anticipating my lead."
The experience gave them a better understanding of their differences and helped them become more unified as a couple through the dance's "thought and energy and physicality."
It so affected him that he felt the need to put something down on paper related to the adventure of it. A performance he saw at the Southampton Arts Center by Ms. Antognazzi and Mr. Feldman, who is her husband, sparked the idea for the play. "Luckily for me, I was able to convince my friend Mark Singer, a talented vocalist, actor, and writer, to be a co-author of the piece." He credits Mr. Singer with adding new insights, nuances, and humor to the project.
Gabriel, who pretends he is not falling for his dance partner, is contrasted with Terry, his married friend who has become fascinated with another woman. The writers promise suspense, spice, neuroses, and zaniness interpreted by the cast of five actors: Robert DiSario, Michelle Duffy, Jennifer Evans, Adam Huel Potter, and Edward Kassar.
Josh Gladstone is producing the evening as part of the Playwrights' Theater series, with the Catskill Mountain Foundation and LTV Studios as partners. A dessert reception and a discussion will follow the play.
