Dear Alien at Chester Theater
Musings from a sage who doles out advice in the newspaper, a hilarious and profane romp.
He sleeps late, and the rent is way overdue. He has an editor whom he seduced, and now a book contract is due; where is that draft? Oh, no draft? No, it’s due, but it’s not even written, every writer’s nightmare.
He is a tall man who wears a silk robe and drinks bourbon in the morning. He’s an advice columnist with salty opinions about everything, but he’s often spot on with his replies. He is the Alien (Bill Kux), a pseudonym for the 60-something gay man who doles out advice in the newspaper under the title Dear Alien. He’s an eccentric who hasn’t left his Upper West Side apartment in months, and his biggest fear is that his editor might want to come VISIT him at home. Oh my, no. Enjoy your workday, but please don’t bother me.
The show at Chester Theater is a one-man ramble about dozens of interesting topics. He gives good advice, and each comes after a letter is read by a muse. There are two muses. They are a husband and wife (Davie Keohane, Eliza Fichter) named Ecrivian and Scrittoria. The first one reads the letters from men, and Scrittoria handles the women’s letters. But there are too many of them; Alien wants something simpler. Plus the damn book is way overdue, so let’s get cracking! He chooses seven letters that will be read, hoping they will provide interesting topics and questions. They do.
Alien advice for a perfect life: take buses all the way to the end of the line, drink in dive bars, visit museums by yourself, immerse yourself in the world around you.
The muses are at first just lying on stage. Interestingly, in this set, there is no way to exit offstage. The only door is one with four locks, and it doesn’t actually open. So the muses who, in the NYC production, came and went, stay on stage the whole time.
They manage to disappear behind the divan and then reappear when it’s time to read another letter. The letters run the gamut, and they spark some of the Alien’s memories, like the time when he was down at the shore with a sister’s small child, and he almost drowned; with great effort, he saved the child.
The set for this show by Jeremy Winchester is key. The apartment is framed in a dramatic wooden structure that tapers from back to front. Brilliant red wallpaper and gold walls create a comfy NY apartment feel, one that you too would never want to leave. The place is a mess, with an ample bar and that famous chaise lounge.
Bill’s big frame looks bigger in the back of the set, and a big chaise lounge is in the middle. This chaise resembles the one that Freud himself used in his Vienna office; this was claimed by an audience member just back from Austria. The play included a fun talkback session where these points came out. I like having the chance to hear from smart audience members who bring up points and help me make sense of the script; it’s a nice addition to the performance.
The play is 75 minutes without intermission, and Big Bill is certainly able to keep us captivated throughout the journey. The muses intertwine and meet the way only spouses could do. Written by Liz Duffy Adams, the play is on its second run, starting at Alley Theater in Houston.
Dear Alien, at Chester Theater Company, August 22-24, 2026. Tickets