What I liked
These performers are top-class and the set and lighting are absolutely stunning, especially in a somewhat atypical theater space with difficult sightlines. Matt Felton’s charming salesman is a particular highlight, as are the devious cephalopods portrayed by Allison Walter and Harrison Grant (I particularly loved their burlesque-inspired infomercial interlude). Robert Svetlik and Kristin Shoffner ground the otherwise fantastical and bizarre production in very real, very human problems, and sling just as many jokes and one-liners as their zanier costars.
I am notably a sucker for a good puppet show. And boy, did this show deliver! Not one, but two puppet shows, the final one punctuated by the best creature effect I think I’ve ever seen in a theater!
I’m also a sucker for magic, and Felton’s little flourishes and touches really help up the whimsy in what could be an extremely dark play.
There were certainly things about the source material that bothered me, but this cast, crew, and production team have taken every precaution they can to bring this play into the modern era. No small feat, and I’m grateful to them for it.
Overall, I had a fantastic time!
What I didn't like
The script is not for me. While I felt the actors, Robert Svetlik and Kristin Shoffner in particular, do heavy and sensitive work to maintain the pathos and sympathy of the storyline, it is hard to get around the fact that this script makes light of rape. It was uncomfortable for me to hear the audience laughing at one of the character’s responses to trauma, even though I feel like the production was not intentionally playing those moments as funny.
My overall impression
Wacky, over-the-top, farcial hijinks! (And squirting puppets!)
