Notes on a Friday Feast of Theatre Part 1

OK. In a very short amount of time, I have had two revelations about this blog. One: It takes a lot of work to update it. Between getting ready to move to NYC and working over 40 hours a week with my lovely jazz singer and at an ice cream shop, I don’t have a lot of free time. But take heart, gentle readers, (all two of you) I will do my best. Two: I am beginning to see this food metaphor may get old fast. I am testing my sharp wit I suppose.

With a Bang @ Southern Rep, New Orleans

www.southernrep.com

Now I can get into some slippery territory here because I am approaching this theatrical piece with a critical eye. To the artists who created and contributed to the production, kudos. Because to get a show from the mind of the playwright (or collaborative team or whoever) to the stage and in front of an audience is worth its own evening of ovations. OK. With a Bang is a dark comedy summarized by the Southern Rep website like this: “Our young heroine, Margaret, finds out that her father has died…again. When she’s confronted by one very awkward messenger who vehemently denies being an angel, Margaret realizes she must take on her father’s mission – to save the world.” The poster is photoshopped to look like a comic book. And the dramaturgical wall of the lobby is filled with images of iconic comics and graphic novels. So I come to the show with some expectations: that, perhaps, the show will feel like a gorgeous graphic novel brought to life, and being a lover of the dark comedy genre, I will laugh. A lot.

I usher and bartend for a free ticket and flip through the program. I really think this is the theatre artist’s first connection with its audience. A piece from the Artistic Director note peaks my interest: “…at last, epic theatre with TWO women at the center!” And a few more expectations are added: I will see strong women characters carrying forward, and that this is not only a comic book, but epic theatre. Epic in what sense? Big, expansive, showy, mythological? Not sure yet, but epic.

I don’t want to give you a play by play of the show. Go see it for yourself! Support your local theatre scene! But I want to share my impressions and thoughts. Here are some of my notes I wrote in the program during intermission:

-Darkness serves as a very prominent character

-I am watching this show with almost a completely adult (over 45) audience and I am laughing way more than they are; if this is a comic book, have they lost their magic for adults?

-Scenic changes are long but beautifully stylized; the most comic book-esque moments so far…

-If this is the end of the world, I want more tension

The show and my expectations didn’t really line up. It had the darkness and rough element of some of my favorite graphic novels, but the scenic changes and the posing of the actors at curtain call were as close as it got. Now, do I expect a comic book onstage? Not necessarily. But with how it was marketed to me, I expected more of that look and feeling. I laughed a whole lot in the second act with John Boy’s character. But the laughs seemed hard to get otherwise. I guess I would characterize this show more quirky than comedic. But quirky is not a theatrical genre (yet), so comedy is closest. As far as my expectation to see female characters in control and at the center, I don’t quite agree with this. Margaret (our heroine) is constantly at the hands of the male characters in the play, from her father to Halbick to each of the other creatures she meets along the way. It reminded very much of Alice in Alice in Wonderland. She has no say in where she goes or what she does when she gets there. Halbick even apologizes at one point for giving her the impression that she has a choice in fulfilling her father’s mission. To be fair, she makes a choice at the end. But only at the very end. And as far as the anti-heroine Dani goes, she is merely a conflict device to muddle the good intentions of the not-angel Halbick. She slices, kills, and disappears. It is my impression by how the story was told onstage, Halbick was the center of the epic, moving the plot forward using Margaret as a wheel and swerving to avoid Dani, our metaphorical pothole. The show did indeed feel epic in that we moved through this dark world quickly and expansively. And as the lights consumed the world in the final moments, I felt part of something really big. But this epic was composed of little moments. Which is the only way one can get through a long journey. One step at a time.

There was also a moment in the play that bothered me immensely. The dream sequence. One of the most important and symbolic parts of any epic. It was told by our charming not-angel in paper clip pants and with masked and hooded actors. There was dancing, puppetry, silly gags, and elbow acting. It was acknowledged by Halbick that it was low budget, but it read as ridiculous. And sloppy. It should be a persuasion. This is structurally the turning point for Margaret. It is after this dream that she decides to take up her mission. If I am not convinced by this dream, why would I believe Margaret is?

So….to end this long word vomiting session, did this satisfy the artist and audience member in me? Yes and no. Yes in that I am pro new works and in a world where most regional theatres require submission through a literary agent, I am happy to see playwright Pete McElligott have a chance to speak. Yes because it was, for the most part, entertaining. Yes because there was great amounts of craft and care from all parties involved. No because as hard as it is, a small house is no excuse for low energy performances. No because playing up darkness too much leads to this audience member losing important dialogue and interest in scenes. No because it seems style won over story, and it is my opinion that storytelling is a key function of the theatre. Yes because, despite the things I didn’t like about it, it stuck with me long enough to discuss it with my roommates and write a blog about it. There needs to be more theatre that eats at our brains long after the house lights come up.