The Terrible Tragedy of Peter Pan

It’s always interesting to watch the emergence of "the next hot thing." It seems to be a Chicago tradition that some new young group will come along every year or two, amaze the critics, garner a following and then…who knows? Some go on to develop a strong body of work, while others drop into obscurity and oblivion.

House Theatre of Chicago seems to be "the next hot thing," based on the rave revues for their second production, The Terrible Tragedy of Peter Pan. This world premiere tells the familiar Peter Pan story, and throws in some psychological probing on the nature of child and adult minds and the danger of arrested development.

The Peter Pan material, though familiar, receives excellent treatment from director Nathan Allen and his agile cast. Whipping through this material at a breakneck pace, Allen throws in theatrical effect after effect with hardly any duds. House reminds us of the fun of theatricality, as red cloth stands in for blood, full size animal puppets roam the forest and acrobatics and stage combat abound. What’s more, this cast of young actors clearly have a great time, sharing their enjoyment generously with the audience. Truly, they are a joy to enjoy.

Allen and playwright/adapter Phillip C. Klapperich stumble, though, on the psychological theorizing that interrupts the fairy tale. Periodically, The Doctor breaks in to offer his thoughts on the mind of Peter Pan, seemingly caught in permanent childhood. Apparently, this is a Bad Thing. However, these interludes seem inadequately connected to the story. The message Klapperich and Allen are trying to impart never comes off clearly, and those interludes aren’t as unsettling as they are probably intended to be.

Nevertheless, The Terrible Tragedy of Peter Pan is great fun to watch. If kitchen-sink realism has you down, check out this bundle of theatrical energy.

The Terrible Tragedy of Peter Pan–House Theatre

Chris Jones, Tribune–"Once in a very great while, a hitherto unknown little Chicago theatre company will create a low-budget production that’s so vibrant, so smart, so original, so creative and so thoroughly invigorating that one wants to shout its glories from high above the rooftops without any visible wires…Aside from some over exuberance ascribable to the infelicitousness of youth, one has to struggle very hard to find any serious flaws here–the acting, direction, design and, most of all, the writing are all superb."

Hedy Weiss, Sun-Times–"Second star to the right and straight on 'til morning! That’s the direction to take if you want to witness what may very well be the next big sensation in the Chicago theatre world. Book the next flight to Neverland, and head immediately to The House Theatre’s production, and you’ll have plenty to write home about. A brilliantly deconstructed version of the J.M. Barrie classic–alternately fierce and gentle, adult and childlike, and tremendously funny–the show is nothing short of sensational on every level."

Albert Williams, Reader–"In the best tradition of off-off-Loop theatre, director Nathan Allen’s low budget production celebrates the joy of make-believe with inventive visual effects, simple magic tricks, puppetry, and elaborate combat and dance sequences…But although playwright Phillip C. Klapperich effectively distills Barrie’s story, he then clutters it with heavy-handed symbolism and labored explanations of its psycho-sexual underpinnings…Attempting to expose the tale’s dark subtext, Klapperich robs it of its power; the promising House Theatre ensemble would have done better to apply its ingenious imagination to Barrie’s original."

Nina Metz, New City–"The House Theatre achieves some beautiful, almost kabuki-like images in their latest work. The visuals are of the magic-mushroom variety, an interesting complement to a post-ironic adaptation of this story."

Mary Shen Barnidge, Windy City Times–"The imagination exhibited, does much to redeem a show running only 110 minutes at the preview performance I attended, but in need of cutting nevertheless. The cast, led by Stephen Taylor as a charismatic Peter, endow their scattershot text with what conviction they can muster. And the presentational elements that might have only compounded the clutter, instead enhance the theses under Nathan Allen’s smart direction."

Lucia Mauro, chicagotheater.com–"It’s these astutely entwined concepts of roles and relationships that make this Peter Pan such a compelling experience…The production, however, can still undergo smoother shaping and polishing. While it’s a marvel to see Wendy elevated via magician Dennis Watkins’ deft sleight of hand or Tiger Lily wield an ax and flute with equal force and agility, the blending of disciplines has not yet fused into a cohesive whole."

Freedomland–TriArts

Justin Hayford, Reader–"If you want some indication of how much significance has leaked out of American theatre over the past couple of decades, compare Sam Shepard’s 1979 Pulitzer Prize-winning Buried Child with Amy Freed’s 1998 Pulitzer-nominated Freedomland…(W)hile Shepard’s sweeping drama eviscerates the American psyche, Freed’s creaky, implausible sitcom has no recognizable connection to the lives people actually live…Director Bryan White’s production is chock-full of talent. Troy Fujimura and Simon Lashford have created a stunning set, and the cast shows lots of nuanced smarts. But nothing can save this inept script from its resounding irrelevance."

Nina Metz, New City–"The modern American family at the center of Amy Freed’s exceptionally funny play is about as dysfunctional as it gets…Think of it as a kinder, gentler version of a Sam Shepard play. The final twenty minutes of the script come off uneven, but the overall TriArts production is an excellent performance–a case of the right cast in the right play with the right creative team."

Rick Reed, Windy City–"In spite of the play itself, TriArts, Inc. has crafted an impressive production. The cast acts the style of the play well (if madcap mania can be described as a style). Each has their thespian fingers firmly on the pulse of the text, which is about the only compelling thing to watch here. The production design, by Troy Fujimura and Simon Lashford, makes impressive use of the Athenaeum’s rather limiting fourth floor studio space. But even superior acting and clever creative design cannot save Freedomland. There are lots of better ways to spend three hours of your summer than with this family, who, even at their best, would be only repugnant."

Lucia Mauro, chicagotheater.com–"Besides TriArts, Inc.’s baffling attraction to this non-play, one has to wonder how a production–laboriously directed by Bryan White–could be rife with such extreme inconsistencies. For example, set-lighting designers Troy Fujimura and Simon Lashford have crafted an elaborately cluttered academic’s house in the country…On opening night, the molasses-like pacing pushed the running time over two-and-a-half hours–which felt like a lifetime. Meanwhile, I felt the life being sucked right out of me."

Hot L Baltimore–Mary-Arrchie Theatre

Michael Phillips, Tribune–"Happily, director David Cromer and scenic designer Robert G. Smith have transformed the second-story Angel Island space on West Sheridan Road into a you-are-there experience. You really do feel as though you have checked into a place that has been around a while. It’s not a wholly successful production: Cromer’s cast is uneven, and while some of the scripted overlaps pay off, other passages–especially in high-chaos mode–feel uncertain, under-rehearsed. Yet the performances get subtler and better as the play progresses."

Hedy Weiss, Sun-Times–"It has now been remounted in an energetic, richly atmospheric, but not wholly successful production by Mary-Arrchie Theatre, where the fine director David Cromer can’t entirely disguise the fact that the play hasn’t aged terribly well…Cromer’s attempts to orchestrate the play’s cacophony of voices sometimes devolves into grating screaming matches as his cast of predominantly young actors mistakes loudness for passion."

Lawrence Bommer, Reader–"Thanks to director David Cromer and an unimprovable ensemble, it’s difficult to imagine a more authentic world than Lanford Wilson’s transient hotel, complete with rusty water, fickle heat, and fluorescent-lit ambience. A time warp in every grungy detail, Robert G. Smith’s battered lobby fuses with Joseph Fosco’s period sound design and Sarah Pace’s archaeologically accurate costumes to immerse audiences in the world of a dozen hard-boiled residents facing eviction on Memorial Day 1973."

Tim Sauers, Gay Chicago–"Wilson’s hotel has been fully realized in all its seedy glory by designer Robert G. Smith for the Mary-Arrchie Theatre’s intimate space. Normally, the company presents works in a traditional proscenium fashion, but Smith transforms the upstairs space into a spacious, painstakingly real lobby, complete with a grime-covered glass revolving door and wrap around front desk. Under David Cromer’s guidance, the production is an ensemble effort in which the women make the strongest impression."

Mary Shen Barnidge, Windy City–"For this Mary-Arrchie production, David Cromer’s sensitive direction well-serves a text that, in less competent hands, could easily be reduced to a nebulous sprawl. Robert G. Smith’s Art Deco lobby, Sarah Pace’s poly-knit costumes, Stephen Arnold and A. Cameron Zetty’s flickering fluorescent lighting and Joseph Fosco’s score of tinny top 40 radio ditties pinpoint the period with museum accuracy."

Movin’ Out–Broadway in Chicago

Michael Phillips, Tribune–"If Oliver Stone did a Broadway dance musical–and truly, I’m not suggesting it–it might come out like the more risible passages of Movin’ Out. It is a strenuous, chaotic, occasionally exhilarating dance-play, in which America’s war in Vietnam gets blue-bagged for one more pop-cultural recycling. 'Don’t worry, the second act’s better–much better,’ said the waitress working the sidewalk tables at the Grillroom, across the street from the Shubert, during Friday’s intermission. Yet with a first act so pile-driving and ill-conceived, the question remains: Is 'better’ better enough?"

Nina Metz, New City–"The ninety-plus-minute dance performance set to Billy Joel songs seems, as my companion observed, good for people who 'really like Billy Joel songs and don’t mind if Billy Joel isn’t singing them.’ "

Web Behrens, Free Press–"Tharp, the evening’s true auteur, had the good sense to be happily seated in plenty of time–but Joel wanted to make an entrance. When he did, while a buzz certainly rippled through the audience, the reception wasn’t anything approaching what one could reasonably call an ovation. A tepid smattering of applause is more like it. Which, as it turns out, is exactly the right response to this show…A third of Movin’ Out could impress as a collection of individual dance numbers. As it exists now, it’s a fascinating mess. Hopefully its failure will have a chilling effect on this half-baked new genre."

Rick Reed, Windy City–"No matter what I write here, good or bad, Movin’ Out, in a world premiere, pre-Broadway engagement here, is going to be a colossal hit. Will that prediction come back to haunt me? Maybe, but I doubt it. Movin’ Out is a glorious, flawed, wildly uneven video jukebox, a curious melding of physical, athletic, exuberant ballet with the pop opus of songwriter and composer, Billy Joel. It is a carefully calculated crowd pleaser with an artsy pedigree. It is slick, polished, resonant, and it’s hard not to like. It is the new direction of Broadway."

Lucia Mauro, chicagotheater.com–"A new–and disturbing–trend has hit the commercial stage: an extended dance concert, anchored by existing pop songs, parading as a flashy form of musical theatre. A painstakingly retrofitted story usually accompanies the fancy footwork…The result, in my opinion, is a clumsy and woeful lack of originality."

CRITIC’S QUOTE:

"It’s 10:02 p.m. and I’m still stuck in the theatre. I’ve spent the last two hours trying my best to pay attention while a troupe of mostly college actors slaughter Francis Beaumont’s 1607 comedy. But since they’ve paid scant attention to the text–let alone niggling matters like pacing, structure, and intelligibility–I might as well tune them out and get some writing done."–Justin Hayford reviewing Tragedians of the City’s production of The Knight of the Burning Pestle in the Reader.