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Critic: Frank Atton
Slow Boil: A Review of Shanachie's Comedy Quartet March 1, 2011
The Shanachie Theatre in RhyDin really seems to have a tendency to showcase its talent through subtlety.
With such large-scale productions this year as "Waiting for Godot" and "The Pirates of Penzance," Shanachie has hastily put itself on the map as one of RhyDin's blossoming theatre and repertory companies. And more often than not larger companies find themselves unwilling to take a chance on less popular performances in the hopes of keeping the influx of audience-members high - particularly if those theatres are relatively new ones. Thus it comes as quite a surprise that Shanchie has chosen to feature four of Terran playwright Anton Chekhov's less familiar one-act plays this season.
Ironically, it is through obscurity and obliquely crafted performance approaches that Shanachie manages to dazzle most of all. Set to run until March thirteenth, the comedy quartet performances collect to form what those in the industry would call a "slow boil" - a subdued endeavor in exploratory diction that culminates explosively in effortless character execution. In this year's comedic endeavors, that explosive execution is provided by Jonathan Granger.
Though the performances initially commence with "A Reluctant Tragic Hero," Fidel Wiebusch (Tolkachov) and his flat line delivery delays that simmer until the second play. In "The Bear," Armand Pershing plays Grigory Stepanovitch Smirnov, a middle-aged landowner cursed with the unfortunate task of attempting to collect a debt from a landowning widow. When Popova (Katelynn Hueser) delays, Smirnov continues to badger her incessantly and refuses to leave, leading to a bizarre and comical conflicting interaction that blurs the fine line between anger and passion. Pershing's transition between manipulative debt collector and devotee is unexpectedly subtle despite his exaggerated bursts of emotion. But most impressive is his precise yet spontaneous method of staging that blatantly outshines the previous play's performances, rooting comedy into more serious ilk with hysterically subdued nuances.
The first play after the break, "The Proposal," keeps that momentum going with unexpectedly sharp acting of its own. Luke Shaunessy plays a nervous hypochondriac who, in the process of seeking his neighbor Natasha's (Frida Shappard) hand in marriage, distracts himself mercilessly with petty squabbling. Ironically a neurotic character is often one of the most challenging to play, as a performance can very easily seem too over-the-top. But aside from his occasionally rushed intonation and intermittent line anticipation, Shaunessy's timing is flawless, branching so far out of the realm of satire that it almost approaches slapstick humor. Shappard follows suit, contributing teeth-grinding control to a hilariously tense atmosphere that ultimately constricts enough to drop poor Lomov (Shaunessy) into a heap of worried catatonia - much to the delight of giggling first-row audience-members.
Though Jonathan Granger is no newcomer to Shanachie, having previously starred in the theatre's January production of "Waiting for Godot," his performance as the tragically funny Ivan Nyukhin deprives him of the security of type-casting and challenges him to character exploration on a whole new level. Nyukhin, an irate instructor and manager of the housekeeping department at a boarding school, is charged by his abusive wife to give a talk about the risks of smoking. But what begins as a "dry scientific lecture" ends up as a rant that releases thirty-three years of pent-up anger over his marriage. From beginning to end, Granger manages to capture the peculiarities of human nature through gesticulation, purposeful inflection, and circuitous rambling that still comes across as commanding. Most riotous of all is Granger's tendency to transform characteristically funny lines into deadpan statements of facts - a talent that had the audience nearly roaring with laughter. Granger's miraculous transformation from a swaggering Hollywood star into a miserable "bag of bones" is never more evident than when he is frankly asking the audience whether he looks like Satan - an "endearment" his wife regularly calls him. Over all, the actor's off-track ramblings have degrees of brilliance and richness - both uncanny and unflagging descriptions of Granger's talent that we have no reason yet to rescind.
Chekhov's Comedy Shorts will run until March fourth, and then from March sixth to the thirteenth. Contact the Shanachie Theatre box office for tickets and ticket prices.
Chekhov's Comedy Shorts with player's permission. Thank you!]]
Slow Boil: A Review of Shanachie's Comedy Quartet March 1, 2011
The Shanachie Theatre in RhyDin really seems to have a tendency to showcase its talent through subtlety.
With such large-scale productions this year as "Waiting for Godot" and "The Pirates of Penzance," Shanachie has hastily put itself on the map as one of RhyDin's blossoming theatre and repertory companies. And more often than not larger companies find themselves unwilling to take a chance on less popular performances in the hopes of keeping the influx of audience-members high - particularly if those theatres are relatively new ones. Thus it comes as quite a surprise that Shanchie has chosen to feature four of Terran playwright Anton Chekhov's less familiar one-act plays this season.
Ironically, it is through obscurity and obliquely crafted performance approaches that Shanachie manages to dazzle most of all. Set to run until March thirteenth, the comedy quartet performances collect to form what those in the industry would call a "slow boil" - a subdued endeavor in exploratory diction that culminates explosively in effortless character execution. In this year's comedic endeavors, that explosive execution is provided by Jonathan Granger.
Though the performances initially commence with "A Reluctant Tragic Hero," Fidel Wiebusch (Tolkachov) and his flat line delivery delays that simmer until the second play. In "The Bear," Armand Pershing plays Grigory Stepanovitch Smirnov, a middle-aged landowner cursed with the unfortunate task of attempting to collect a debt from a landowning widow. When Popova (Katelynn Hueser) delays, Smirnov continues to badger her incessantly and refuses to leave, leading to a bizarre and comical conflicting interaction that blurs the fine line between anger and passion. Pershing's transition between manipulative debt collector and devotee is unexpectedly subtle despite his exaggerated bursts of emotion. But most impressive is his precise yet spontaneous method of staging that blatantly outshines the previous play's performances, rooting comedy into more serious ilk with hysterically subdued nuances.
The first play after the break, "The Proposal," keeps that momentum going with unexpectedly sharp acting of its own. Luke Shaunessy plays a nervous hypochondriac who, in the process of seeking his neighbor Natasha's (Frida Shappard) hand in marriage, distracts himself mercilessly with petty squabbling. Ironically a neurotic character is often one of the most challenging to play, as a performance can very easily seem too over-the-top. But aside from his occasionally rushed intonation and intermittent line anticipation, Shaunessy's timing is flawless, branching so far out of the realm of satire that it almost approaches slapstick humor. Shappard follows suit, contributing teeth-grinding control to a hilariously tense atmosphere that ultimately constricts enough to drop poor Lomov (Shaunessy) into a heap of worried catatonia - much to the delight of giggling first-row audience-members.
Though Jonathan Granger is no newcomer to Shanachie, having previously starred in the theatre's January production of "Waiting for Godot," his performance as the tragically funny Ivan Nyukhin deprives him of the security of type-casting and challenges him to character exploration on a whole new level. Nyukhin, an irate instructor and manager of the housekeeping department at a boarding school, is charged by his abusive wife to give a talk about the risks of smoking. But what begins as a "dry scientific lecture" ends up as a rant that releases thirty-three years of pent-up anger over his marriage. From beginning to end, Granger manages to capture the peculiarities of human nature through gesticulation, purposeful inflection, and circuitous rambling that still comes across as commanding. Most riotous of all is Granger's tendency to transform characteristically funny lines into deadpan statements of facts - a talent that had the audience nearly roaring with laughter. Granger's miraculous transformation from a swaggering Hollywood star into a miserable "bag of bones" is never more evident than when he is frankly asking the audience whether he looks like Satan - an "endearment" his wife regularly calls him. Over all, the actor's off-track ramblings have degrees of brilliance and richness - both uncanny and unflagging descriptions of Granger's talent that we have no reason yet to rescind.
Chekhov's Comedy Shorts will run until March fourth, and then from March sixth to the thirteenth. Contact the Shanachie Theatre box office for tickets and ticket prices.
Chekhov's Comedy Shorts with player's permission. Thank you!]]