Tue. December 22, 2009
By John Olson
Lovely, graceful imagery seems poorly matched against pretentious speechifying in this re-telling of the familiar Greek tragedy. Part Cirque du Soleil and part Klingon opera, this Icarus is at its best when it shuts the hell up.
David Catlin, as director, and choreographer Sylvia Hernandez-DiStasi get the credit for the beautiful flights of actresses suspended from long skeins of fabric, and for Mr. Catlin's sometimes artful directorial depiction of ancient legend. But as the author, David Catlin must take all the blame for the turgid prose that drags everything back to Earth again and again. Why the two Mr. Catlins never really stepped back to study what they were hearing on stage is anyone's guess. The often dull show does have a couple of anti-fugues, where actors in lab coats have compelling, overlapping modern speeches (doctors' notes, really)—but otherwise, it's a filigreed and round-about affair: whether lithe performers are floating in circles above the stage, or just forced to make circuitous and forgettable comments about their plight.
In that sense, this Icarus is the fullest realization of a gradually emerging sub-genre: the "upside-down" Jane Eyre, where the girl plays the cold, rough Rochester, and the boy plays poor little Jane. I've seen productions of musicals, Meet Me In St. Louis, and The King And I, that broached the reversal in an improvised sort of way, but here it's all there in the dialog as well as the direction. Sadly, it's not a great leap forward for either gender. And though it panders to a certain kind of female audience, it never gets beyond a simple, sexual revenge fantasy. God only knows what it says about men, but what it says about women isn't very flattering.
Through January 24, 2010, at 821 North Michigan Ave. For more information call (312) 337-0665 or visit them online at www.lookingglasstheatre.org.
Cast
Aegeus, Minotaur: Adeoye*
Patient X, Daedalus: Lawrence E. DiStasi*
Minos, Theseus: Anthony Fleming III*
Aetra, Androgeus: Lauren Hirte*
Woman, Naucrate, Medea: Nicole Shalhoub*
Pasiphae, Icarus: Lindsey Noel Whiting*
Crew
Writer, Director: David Catlin
Assistant Director: John Russell
Circus Choreography and Movement Director: Sylvia Hernandez-DiStasi
Director of Production: Alexandra Sieffert
Lighting Design: Jaymi Lee Smith, USA
Sound Design and Composition: Rick Sims
Production Stage Manager: Patia Bartlett*
Technical Director: Joel Hobson
Costume and Properties Design: Allison Siple
Assistant Stage Manager: Tess Lauchaire
Assistant Technical Director: Sean K. Walters
Assistant Lighting Designer: Jill Norris
Assistant Costume Designer: Melissa Maganuco
Assistant Properties Designer: Maria DeFabo
* Denotes member, Actors Equity Association
Photo: Lawrence E. DiStasi and
Lindsey Noel Whiting
Photo by: Sean Williams
For the complete article (non-reader view with multimedia and original links),
Tap here.
Head to the local LGBTQ news, events, directory and people network at ChicagoPride.com