anything to declare mr. dennis?
A jaunty sprint across India in search of that elusive epiphany!
Written and performed by Dennis Elkins
"a welcome relief from the intensity of debate about modern American Life"
David Cunningham British Theatre Guide
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Refusing to join the “Old-White-Guys-Club” of exclusion and marginalization and with his 60th birthday approaching, master storyteller Dennis Elkins travels through India with a backpack of guilt, searching for an epiphany. In this poignant comedy of travel and identity, the title character crisscrosses India via buses, tuk-tuks and taxis in hopes of uncovering the mysteries of life and middle-age clutching his backpack and a 3-item to-do list.
1. To seek guidance and wisdom from some appropriate spirit.
2. To scatter some of his son’s ashes in some appropriate place.
3. To see the Taj Mahal
—not necessarily in that order.
But, mr. dennis can hardly navigate his way out of the New Delhi airport, let alone navigate the vastness of India and its panoply of spiritual guides by himself. Leo, the Pied Piper of Ghent leads a “circus” of oddly matched travelers, including mr. dennis, on an unmapped journey from Delhi to Auroville, in search of those appropriate spirits, places and, of course, the Taj Mahal.
Written and performed by Dennis Elkins, anything to declare, mr. dennis? is based the author’s trip to India in the winter of 2017—after the 2016 presidential election that predicated a major shift in US politics, and highlighted mr. dennis’ naïve world view. Attempting to find his future through a culture so different from his own, Elkins’ insightful storytelling offers wonderment and humor balanced against cynicism and fear in being the “other,”—while sharing “tips for travelers” that will reshape your own expectations for the changing world around us.