Fringe is underway and I’ve decided to pace myself. I don’t think I can see more than one show on a weeknight, but we’ll see how things pan out as we get more into the groove. I do love the atmosphere in Over the Rhine right now, though. It’s hopping and last night it was a who’s who of theatre folks taking in some of the festival. Had some great conversations!
More importantly, though, I was able to see three of my favorite actresses – Britian Seibert, Chelsea Harrison, and Shayna Schmidt, three recent graduates of the Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park intern acting company – tackle the very poignant, timely, and important topic of rape, bullying, and how we treat our girls. Trey Tatum, the husband of director Bridget Leak, has written a good script that features all three actresses playing various parts as the main character travels through time and gives insight into her story in a creative way. It’s sci-fi with heart (and even a few laughs). I think I loved it.
I say “I think” because I know that I was taken with the acting, especially that of Harrison. She has an energy about her (you should have seen her play Joan of Arc; hopefully you did) that makes it hard to take your eyes off of her. Seibert has her best moments playing both Lauren, our main character and tour guide through time’s, father and the brother of her ex-best friend. Schmidt comes alive when Lauren is interrogated by the prosector about her sexual history. These ladies have a bright future ahead of them, I’m confident. So I know I enjoyed the acting. I thought the direction was spot on. Leak has staged these three actresses around a single set-piece, a locker, but’s hidden in it brings the story alive. I especially enjoyed the water effect at the end. There’s a lot of very good thought provoking themes here and it didn’t feel too heavy handed as there was just enough humor to soften the punch. It’s really good.
I guess the reason I am not comfortable saying for certain that I loved it is because I am still reeling from the suicide of Brogan Dulle, the young man who was missing in Clifton all week. I was in Clifton a lot and saw all the signs, the search teams, the headquarters . . . I’m still processing all of that and the “sappy” critic in me wants to be sure it wasn’t just me that was moved. Perhaps you should go and see it and let me know what you think? I don’t think you will be disappointed.
SLUT SHAMING plays again tonight (Thursday 5/29 @ 7:00 pm), Saturday 5/31 @ 8:45 PM, and Sunday 6/1 @ 2:00 PM at the KNOW Theatre at . Tickets are available here.
The Sappy Critic 