FANGS (review)

 Spoilers ahoy!

No one who knows me will feel surprise that I jumped at the chance to see a play about vampires.

Fangs from the Downtown Repertory Theatre makes for an almost startlingly good night of immersive theatre.  "Good" mostly because it treats the subject matter seriously.  "Immersive" because it really is that.  Each attendee will experience a slightly different set of scenes as they are led to varying locations, watching the story unfold from individual perspectives.

The town is Strigoia, some time in the last century most likely, in some Eastern European country (the name suggests Romania or nearby).  The first character we meet is Florin (Sarah Lee Harter) awakened in the middle of the night by a possibly prophetic dream.  Her father Vasile (Taylor Flowers), one of the local fishermen, tries to soothe her but she remains terrified.  Soon the town will vote on which girl will become the Harvest Queen, and Florin does not what to win.  Why is not immediately clear, although we see most folks seem to regard this as a honor.

From Vasile's brother, Presbyter Calin (Kevin Cook) as well as the Alderman Andreu (Christopher Karbo) plus his wife Ruxana (Erika Godwin) we get some idea of how things work here.  A century ago, the town was under attack by some kind of threat, some horror devouring people.  Until the Baron Luca (Aidan Collett) saved them, and continues to protect them on the condition every year one Harvest Queen would be chosen "for" him.  

Along the way, the town--they insist--is prospering, while Vasile knows people are getting poorer and poorer.  Watching all this is Vadoma (Georgan George), a Traveler woman who cleans things and pretty much is tolerated so everyone can always have a target below them.

Finally, we find out Florin feels deeply for Narcissa (Caroline Quigley), the Alderman's daughter who used to be her friend but is now a bully, partially from the pressure from her family to be Harvest Queen.  The third candidate, Viorica (Danielle Fraser) has a hard-working boyfriend Bogdan (Markus Jorgensen) with grand plans for a happy life.  Watching over them is the teacher Alina (Rachel Levy) from outside the town, and a very mysterious young woman named Mjircalla (Chanel Castañeda) who secretly befriends Florin.

Yes, the Baron is a vampire.  Obviously.  Almost as obviously, so is Mjircalla.  Everything is about to change.

Now that description of the setup hopefully might whet your appetite but what I really want to focus upon is the quality of the show overall.  Devon Armstrong who directed and co-wrote (with John Armstrong)  the piece chose a truly excellent cast, and fashioned a story with an exciting narrative which genuinely plumbed the characters' lives in a compelling vision.  Here is love and tragedy, sorrow and terror, raw evil and real virtue all walking and talking on stage.  Supernatural horror meets human terror, frailty, and heroism amidst more than one love story which very much touches the heart.

Starting September 29, Fangs will being a new series of performances at the Mountain View Mausoleum, 2300 North Marengo Avenue Altadena, CA 91001 Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays at 7:50pm from September 29 through November 7, 2023.

 

Sex & Love in the Modern Age (review)

 Spoilers Ahoy!

This review has come late, and for that I do apologize.  Sex & Love in the Modern Age is the latest exploration at ZJU of a given theme, in word (including both song and poem) as well as movement, including dance.  It consists of a ten member troupe acting out a series of vignettes.

So what we experience is a kind of odyssey, an exploration of so many pitfalls and nuances of simple (and not nearly so so simple) human connection.  Yes, the meeting of the two rare individuals in a crowd not staring into their iPhones.  Yes, the fear of intimacy amid temptations of availability.  Humor from the potential perverts might find in the internet here.  A dash of lesbian bondage there.  An almost surreal but potentially just real example of parents giving the "talk" to their gay son on prom night.

And if this sounds like the theatrical equivalent of paint-by-the-numbers, then I've given the wrong impression. Instead we get a kind of variety show which achieves more than mere entertainment.  While exploring the pitfalls and even some dangers of human connection, the performers actually make one.  With the audience.  The show doesn't simply come up with one funny skit after another (for one thing, they aren't all funny--some even are a tiny bit heart-breaking).  It hits the chord of deja vu.  These are our hopes as well, and our fears.

Photo Credit:  Sebastian Munoz

In the end, we even make a connection not just with the content, but the cast themselves.  And other members of the audience.

For the record, plenty of Zombie Joe regulars can be seen, including Nicole A. Craig, Jennifer Novak Chun (she of the cello), David Wyn Harris, Ian Heath (not naked once for a change) and Roger K. Weiss.  Others in the cast are Lee Quarrie, John Santo, Jacquie Waldman and Julian Zambrano.  I mention Callie Williams last simply because I want to praise her pipes--strong singers have their own special magic, like extremely fine dancers, and she is one.

Sex & Love in the Modern Age plays at ZJU 4850 Lankershim Blvd., North Hollywood, CA 91601 (just south of the NoHo sign, north of Camarillo) Fridays and Saturdays at 8:30pm until March 26. Unless there is an extension.  I hope there is.

Year of the Monkey (review)

Spoilers ahoy!

Followers of my blog probably realize I see nearly everything produced by Zombie Joe's Underground Theatre Group.  I'm proud to say several folks associated with this theatre call me friend.

But I try my best to be objective.  This show, Year of the Monkey, however comes across as something deeply personal--a kind of theatrical Happy New Year card from ZJU to their audience. (For the record, Chinese astrology recognizes not only the 12 totems of the years, but also their association with five chinese elements--earth, air, fire, water and wood.  2016 is the year of the Fire Monkey).  It comes across as another example of what I call "theatre of dreams" at which ZJU tends to excel.  There is something resembling a plot--the triumph of the monkeys over the tyranny of the passing Dragon (2015 was year of the dragon).  But in the hour-long show the cast of monkeys really take us on a journey/quest exploring what monkeys are, what monkeys do, what monkeys want.

And in case you haven't guessed ye, we are the monkeys.

So with music and dance, song and pantomime, the monkey tribe celebrates itself and seeks to over come the Dragon.  They lack the raw power, the ferocity of their adversary--whom the cast becomes as they do everything else in the show.  But they try--and fail.  Then try again, to fail again.

But the cycle declares that eventually they will find a way--a way for monkeys to win (and therein lies the secret of their success--trying to be a dragon cannot help but fail, after all).

If this sounds weird, you're not wrong.  But make no mistake, the show is also very fun indeed.  Not just fun but at times tragic, moving, always startling and yet quietly logical according the logic of dreams.  Heroes die, devoured by a monster, only to be resurrected to help fight again.  Terror gives way to comfort, ritual to courage, experience to insight and wisdom.  From thence, comes victory.

For a time.

Kudos to the entire ensemble, including several ZJU regulars:  Jennifer Ashe, Jeannie Hudak, Gerald McGrory, Olivia M Powell, Dale Sandlin, Elif Savas, Anastasia Serada, Adam Shows, Kevin Van Cott and Roger D. Weiss.  Their performances hint they had a blast putting this show together--and it shows, even overflowing into the audience.

Year of the Monkey plays Fridays and Saturdays at 8:30pm until February 27, 2016 at ZJU 4850 Lankershim Blvd (just south of the NoHo sign) North Hollywood CA 91601.  You can get reservations by calling (818) 202-4120.