ORANGE ALERT: THE PLAY

By Robert L. Danforth

Playwright Stephen Girasuolo Talks With Robert L. Danforth About Making Pizza Pies At Salvatore’s on 9/11, Art Conveying The Human Experience, and What Ever Happened To “ …only in New York.”

“That is part of the beauty of literature. You discover that your longings are universal longings, that you’re not lonely and isolated from anyone. You belong.” - F. Scott Fitzgerald

A decade after 9/11, many people are still deeply affected by the tragic events of that day. Orange Alert a new play by Stephen Girasuolo unearths “todays questions” and travels deep into the psyche to evoke a truthful account vis a’ vi    - a fictional story - untold.

Stephen Girasuolo (2011), East Village. Photography by TOHR.

RLD: Where were you on 9/11?

SG: I stayed close to home that entire day. You remember we were all quarantined in our own neighborhoods. People were walking around in a daze. I lived in midtown, and in my neighborhood, there was a pizzeria named Salvatore’s - Salvatore’s Pizzeria. And Salvatore was/is a friend of mine. Hours after the attack, I was walking by his place and there was a huge line of people waiting for a slice. He never had a line like that. I mean the line travelled outside his shop and out into the street. He never had a line travel outside like that! And as I walked by, Salvatore came running out and he screamed my name and asked me - in Italian -if I would come in and help him. And so on 9/11, I went behind the counter of Salvatore’s Pizzeria and made pizzas for the people in my neighborhood.

RLD: Wow! That’s a great New York story. Why don’t we hear more of those “only in New York” stories anymore?

SG: Stories of neighbors becoming friends and forming connections with people in our community captured the spirit of New York. And when you really think about it - that was the promise New York always kept. Until 9/11.

RLD: What does the 10 year anniversary of 9/11 mean to you and the play?

SG: The 10 year anniversary should remind us to never forget. We owe it to the victims, their families and loved ones to never forget what happened that day. Orange Alert is not about 9/11. Orange Alert is about people - right now.

RLD: As the playwright, are there any themes or narrative points that compel you the most?

SG: Yeah. The play is about exploring the human experience and that makes it relevant to different people; different walks of life. My hope is that the storyline will spark a memory of living in a heightened state of uncertainty. We ALL have that. And just like real people, the characters of Orange Alert have arrived at a pivotal moment of choice and discovery.

On a personal note,  I just want to say to New Yorkers: guys we’re lacking the connection with each other today. The connection that we once were able to readily find in each other is gone. What I feel we need is to re-find the connection between ourselves and our community. It was the connection in Salvatore’s that created a personal bond and that “ New York Moment” that you were mentioning. The social connection; the connection with one another; a comprised shared energy and enthusiasm that we lost and I think we desperately long for again. And I hope Orange Alert will spark a connection and remind us how powerful and important connecting with people really is. Especially in a city like New York - we need a network of friends, adopted family members, and more and more New York moments.

Blog Note: The photograph below is one of a portfolio series entitled ‘Ten Years Later’ which Chris Anderson has developed for The New Yorker.

Bushra Naji looks out the window of her office building, in midtown. She was a teacher in her native Iraq, but fled with her family in 2006, first to Syria and then to New York. Finding the city overwhelming, they moved to Idaho, but they missed New York, so they returned.