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The Juniper Tree,
A Tragic Household Tale
Written and composed by Wendy Kesselman
Directed by David Cromer
At City Lit Theater
1020 West Bryn Mawr
Chicago, IL
Call 773-293-3682, tickets $25
Fridays and Saturdays at 8 pm
Sundays at 3 pm
Running time is 70 minutes with no intermission
Through April 7, 2007
Dark, quirky chamber musical is passionately irresistible
Faithful to Jacob and Whilhelm Grimm’s 1812 folk tale, Wendy Kesselman’s The Juniper Tree, in its Chicago premiere at City Lit Theater, is a folksy musical fable that compels and enchants us despite its dark contents. Director David Cromer (one of this reporter’s favorite stage craftsmen) has a sure hand telling weird stories. He has his two players, John Francisco and Anne Sheridan Smith, smoothly moving from one character to another in a most convincing and winning manner. This story theatre is part folk musical, part dark comedy, part symbolic allegory.
With Grant Sabin’s large white barked juniper tree centered, the show’s main symbol is the seat of the tale. This clever set literally lights up to launch the concluding scenes. The story tells of a boy who is hated by his stepmother who beheads him by tricking him to stick his head in a heavy iron chest while slamming down the lid on his neck. She chops him into pieces and cooks him in a soup that his unaware father devours. John Francisco is dynamite in these scenes as he goes from timid little boy to a ravishing, sensual man totally intoxicated with his food. The boy’s grief stricken sister takes the boy’s bones and buries them under the juniper tree near where the boy’s mother lies. A singing bird emerges from the juniper tree to move the fable toward its eventual happy ending. The journey is laced with universal justice.
Throughout the tale, folk style haunting melodies (fine music from Andra Velis Simon’s piano and Zoe Sigman’s cello) sung (mostly in duets) nicely by John Francisco and the excellent Anne Sheridan Smith, narrate the story and accentuate the mood of the piece. In a strange way, I liked and cared for the characters despite the weirdly gruesome content. Provocative, yet compelling; funny, yet repulsive, but always engaging mark The Juniper Tree. So for something different and well performed—gather under The Juniper Tree, but don’t try the soup!
Recommended
Tom Williams
Tom99@chicagocritic.com for comments
Talk Theatre in Chicago podcast
Date Reviewed: March 4, 2007
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