Displaying items by tag: Shail Modi

With the mesmerizing hold of a Moth Hour radio story and the visual creativity of the (late, lamented) Redmoon Theatre show, Trap Door Theatre’s production of “A Devil Comes To Town,” is so incredibly good that I urge you to stop reading this review and just get a ticket.

Here’s why.

First: there is the source material., adapted and directed by Jeremy Ohringer from a novel by Italian author Paolo Maurensig from his elegantly crafted 2018 page-turner (from the English translation by Anne Milano Appel). This gripping yarn and its magnetic charm is distilled creatively into Ohringer’s script - maintaining the dramatic tension of the original book, concentrating it into a 60-minute elixir of a story that moves with compelling interest to its satisfying resolution. The promotional thumbnail captures its well: “In a town obsessed with writing, the arrival of a mysterious devilish publisher sets off a sinister chain of events, as literary ambition turns feral.”

Second: The tiny Trap Door Theatre becomes, through ingenious stagecraft, a magical window to one delightful scene after another - sometimes worlds away. Simple practical effects with lighting, puppetry, scale models, and even a shadow lantern delight in their simplicity, pulling our attention despite our surfeit of exposure to perfect CGI recreations in film and gargantuan stage machinery on Broadway. Credit Ohringer in his direction, Karen Wallace for lighting design, Saskia Bakker for puppet design, Finnegan Chu for costumes, and Oskar Westbridge on sound design and as stage manager.

The play, like Maurensig’s novella, is set in Switzerland, opening at a conference in Kusnacht for professional psychologists at which a parish priest, Father Cornelius, delivers a paper on the prevalence of human manifestations of Satan. Afterward he returns to his home village of Dichtersruhe, population 1,000, where indications of an inordinate interest begin to appear among many townsfolk - the butcher, the baker, children, shopkeepers, a senescent cleric - all begin writing manuscripts for publication by major book publishers.

A subplot on a rise of rabid foxes adds zest to the storyline, and a shadowy past for Father Cornelius adds intrigue. The fixation by the townsfolk with being published mirrors in so many ways the passion for TikTok influencer status, while the presentation of the publishing storyline reminds us of the cunning self-publishing hucksters that abound.

In the stage adaptation of the book, Ohringer gives us five actors playing Father Cornelius, with Shail Modi in a stunning performance as the principle one. Ohringer has inventively choreographed the performances of these Father Cornelius characters, at times having them march and prance in lockstep together. The four other Father Cornelius figures (Dina Berkeley, Juliet Kang Huncke, Lydia Moss, and Y’vonne Rose Smith) serve as a kind of chorus that doubles as the author’s omniscient voice and general exposition. These four at various points take on other roles as well, Y’vonne Rose Smith particularly notable as the devilish publisher, Dr. Fuchs, and Lydia Moss as the decrepit cleric Father Christoforo. Dinah Berkeley is a manic delight in several roles.

Indescribably good, really, “A Devil Comes To Town” comes highly recommended and has already had its run extended, playing through December 6 at Trap Door Theatre, 1655 W Cortland St in Chicago. Don’t miss it.

“Galileo” written in 1938 by German playwright Bertolt Brecht, tells the straightforward story of the 17th century physicist and astronomer’s run-in with church authorities for asserting that the earth revolved around the sun. For this Galileo, played with Brechtian finesse by Trap Door’s David Lovejoy, was hauled before the Roman Inquisition, and threatened with torture until he recanted.

Brecht’s play centers on how this conflict played out in Galileo’s personal and professional life, and his final years under house arrest under the watchful eyes of the authorities. Galileo was torn between unfettered scientific assessment of the world, and his need to make a living. Even before the play opens, director Max Truax has Lovejoy’s Galileo seated, nearly naked, facing away from the audience posing in contemplation, reminiscent of Rodin’s famous sculpture. Throughout the scenes that follow, Galileo’s nakedness seemed to represent the periods when he was thinking most freely. He seemed to be dressed when he was engaging the public or the authorities.

But the style of Brecht’s script for “Galileo” is not naturalistic - this version of the script was the second, written in English with Charles Laughton who starred in it in 1947 - and the audience is distanced from the characters who dwell with him: Galileo’s daughter Virginia (Genevieve Corkery), his protege Andrea (Shail Modi), his student Ludovico (Caleb Lee Jenkins), and a character, the Inquisitor, who is present throughout. Brecht wanted audiences to be unattached to the emotions of the characters, so they could focus intellectually on the story and the social values he wanted to convey, a style known as Epic.

Lines are repeated multiple times with different emphases. At certain points, the actors address the audience directly, breaking the fourth wall, said to be another technique favored by Brecht. The Inquisitor (Joan Naid) who is blindfolded in early scenes, at times seems more like a spouse to Galileo in the household.

Lovejoy’s performance of Galileo is described by Trap Door as “a humanizing portrait,” and he is in this respect distinct from the other characters on stage. One example: when his daughter Virginia’s betrothal is threatened by Galileo’s branding as a heretic for his work, she registers no emotion. We simply hear the facts of the matter. Lovejoy’s performance is intense, and a remarkable achievement overall: and he is on stage every minute of the two hour show. Also notable is Modi as Andrea, a character with whom I was able to connect. 

I can’t say I am a fan of Brecht, and am always surprised that he continues to be popular among troupes and actors. For me Brecht takes a lot of work to appreciate and enjoy. But “Galileo” has remarkable currency for our times, as the retreat from modernism finds factual science and the age of reason under attack by the authorities. For this concern alone the Trap Door production of “Galileo” is valuable. Kudos to Merje Veski for stage design and Jonathan Quigley for projection design that gives us synopses of historical contexts at key moments.

“Galileo” runs through June 14, 2025 at Trap Door Theatre, 1655 W Cortland St. inChicago. Tickets are now on sale at trapdoortheatre.com

*Extended through June 28th

Blue in the Right Way audaciously chose for their inaugural production a 400-year-old play, WOMEN BEWARE WOMEN, written in 1621 by Thomas Middleton and adapted by the company’s co-founders Kevin Smith (Kevin/Kevin’s, also director) and Daiva Bhandari (she/her, also lead actor and choreographer). WOMEN BEWARE WOMEN was abstractly staged, accompanied by a pair of gender-bending commentators, with Spanish/English translation subtitles, original music, exotic projections … and as many other quirky devices as their extraordinary minds could devise.

The result had me asking other audience members, “Am I the only one who has no idea what’s going on here?” Unfortunately, the ones I asked simply looked at me pityingly, one saying, “It’ll all clear up with the second act.” Sadly, this did not transpire. In the first act actors wore sumptuous Jacobean garb, but in the second act costumer Alaina Moore (she/her) chose contemporary dress, and I had trouble even figuring out who was who, leave alone clarifying all that had gone before.

Smith added some notable supplements to Thomas Middleton’s original script. Most remarkable was the double act of Kidany Camilo (they/she/he, Solange) and Bree Perry (she/they, Clara) appearing throughout the show dressed as ‘maids from the Clue game’, with commentary and heart-rending narrative about Solange’s trans/femme childhood.

Also outstanding were Daiva Bhandari (she/her) as Livia, who ultimately gets embroiled in her own schemes and John Zhou Duncan (any with respect) as Ward, who romped exuberantly with Sordido (Shail Modi he/him). Ward is described as ‘immature’ – was this a euphemism for ‘camp as a row of pink tents’?

Kudos to intimacy consultant Leo Mock (they/them/he/him) and intimacy director Courtney Abbott (she/they); as well as and most particularly to violence designers R&D Choreography (Rick Gilbert (he/him) and Victor Bayona (he/him); the fights were marvelous, and the cataclysmic ending was spectacular.

The entire cast was extraordinary: Lynne Baker (she/her, Mother); Ryan Wright Cassidy (he/him, Hippolito); Johnny Moran (he/him, Fabritio); Huy Nguyen (he/him, Duke); Keenan Odenkirk (he/him, Guardiano); Christin Prince (she/her, Bianca); Mia Van De Mark (she/her, Isabella); and Brandon Wiman (he/him, Leantio). Cardinal was played by understudy Alex Amaya (he/him), who did a fine job with a suitably bizarre performance.

Sound engineer Chris Wood (he/they) gave us a lot of sound! though it sometimes overrode the actors’ voices. Likewise, Eme Ospina-López’s (they/them) videos and projections were powerful; sometimes overly so. The scenic design by Andersonville Scenic Studios was made particularly striking by a mirror on the ceiling so the action below was repeated above – striking, yes, but an additional confusing feature in a thoroughly bewildering show. The show ran more than 30 minutes longer than billed, and during the final scenes I kept wondering when it was going to end… and how would I tell when it did?

Also on the artistic and production team were Katie Mazzini (she/her, assistant director); Sonia Perelló (she/her, Spanish translator);  Tianxuan Chen (any with respect, scenic and lighting designer); Juan Contreras-Kirby (he/him, wig, hair and makeup designer); Sam Flipp (she/her, stage manager); Anna H. Gelman (she/her, production manager);  Lililo (Emma Ladji) (she/her, composer); Viviana Mendez (she/her, lip-sync choreographer); Catherine Miller (they/them, casting director);  Keith Parham (he/him, associate lighting designer);  Hayley E Wallenfeldt (any with respect, properties supervisor); Baylee Speer (any with respect, master electrician); Caitlyn Birmingham (she/her, assistant stage manager), and Claire Michalak (she/her, box office manager).  

WOMEN BEWARE WOMEN presented several problems for me, but these did not override its contributions: a stellar cast giving amazing performances and a wonderful production team. The flaw was that all this excellence exceeded itself – altogether too much of a good thing. Blue in the Right Way is unquestionably a theatre company to watch. Kevin Smith revealed himself as courageous and adventuresome; if Kevin can muster a soupçon of temperance Kevin can offer an invaluable addition to Chicago’s theatre scene.

WOMEN BEWARE WOMEN

at The Edge Theater

Running Wednesdays through Sundays through May 12