Theatre Reviews

There is nudity on stage for shock value, for sexual stimulation, and for simple gratuitous exploitation – and then there is the tasteful use of nudity that propels the artistic creativity of the folks at The Living Canvas. Under the leadership of Artistic Director Pete Guither, the Living Canvas’ 2011 production: Rain deals with the fundamental connection between the human body and the natural world — the pure and essential relationship between water and flesh. It’s theatre, it’s dance, it’s movement, it’s art, it’s a celebration!

In Wilde’s wordy, biblical sounding prose, Salome becomes a tedious interruption of the story of how Salome demands the head of Lokanaan in payment for her performing the dance of the seven veils.

Now, let me state that most children and adults will find this production charming and quaint – and so did I. The material – the Menken score and the Ashman/Rice lyrics and the enduring fairytale about love, acceptance and friendship is so strong that it always finds the hearts of the audience.

The high flying act was breathtaking and the aerial silk and straps duo were amazing but there was too much contortion and insect-inspired dance for my taste. But, then the audience seemed to enjoy this show more than I did. I liked the trampo-wall act that ended the show.

This 90 minute work is filled with rich poetic language, a few laughs and a spirit that suggests that dreaming and the effort to reach the sun – no matter how much one may get burned – is superior to not trying. The living must have dreams and taking risks is necessary for happiness. Beau wears a ski mask to hide his real pain. He realizes that he can love and be loved if he dreams and takes action toward personal reconciliation for his painful secret.

It took effort to get me past the strong Our Town references about everyday life in small town America. But once I realized Eno’s take on the life cycle focuses on the middle part – that part between birth and death of the life cycle – I began to appreciate deeper levels of Middletown. Eno emphasizes how we attempt to articulate our lives through human speech.

The show moves slowly as it is filled with references to major works of English literature that fuels Rita’s newly found intellectual freedom as she move up from a working class environment to the intellectual world of the intelligentsia.

Without giving away more of the plot, let me say that Good Boys and True is an indictment of privilege and wealth to give young men a warped sense of life that easily allows a teen to use a working class girl as an object of pleasure. The play covers the gray areas of how and why the societal structure both fosters and enables elitist behavior that doesn’t require owning or taking personal responsibility for one’s actions.