[NEohioPAL]Berko review: MALICIOUS BUNNY (4th Wall Productions)

[Roy Berko]

Delightful black comedy/mystery at Fourth Wall
Productions

Roy Berko

(Member, American Theatre Critics Association)

--THE TIMES NEWSPAPERS--

Lorain County Times--Westlaker Times--Lakewood News
Times--Olmsted-Fairview Times	

On the way out of Kalliope Theatre, where Fourth Wall
Productions is staging their newest offering,
‘MALICIOUS BUNNY,’ I said to the script’s author,
Matthew Sprosty, “You have a twisted mind!  A
brilliant, but twisted mind!”  He responded with an
innocent grin which split his cherubic blushing face.

Fourth Wall Productions is just completing its first
year of activity.  Made up mainly of Ohio University
theatre graduates, the company, who are mainly from
the Cleveland area, thought that there was a need on
the North Coast for a company which performed new
works by new writers.  They are mainly looking at
scripts from OU’s Playwriting Program.  If ‘MALICIOUS
BUNNY’ is any example of the quality of the scripts
and production values that we will be seeing in the
future, Fourth Wall is a welcome addition to the
Cleveland scene.

Sprosty has a wonderful way of leading his audience
down one path, doing a quick detour, allowing the
viewers to find themselves guessing at what will
happen next. In ‘MALICIOUS BUNNY’ he has given us a
black comedy/mystery that is cleverly conceived.  

The author contends that the play is not
autobiographical, but did germinate from  experiences
with his last girl friend and her parents.  He
emphatically insists, and states in the program that
it was his LAST girl friend, not this one.  (Okay,
Matthew, now that it’s officially in public print,
hopefully this saves you from your present main
squeeze’s parents not dragging her out of the theatre
and forbidding her from seeing you when they attend
next Saturday’s performance.)

The plot?  A couple of twenty-four year olds have hit
the one-and-a-half year point in their marriage.  She
(Angela) is an artist, who is on a sabbatical from
creating.  He is an engineering graduate who is
working as a janitor because she wants to live in
Cleveland, near her parents, and he can’t find a job
in his field on the north coast.  She  is bored and
manipulates her somewhat naive husband (Jonathon) to
do her beckoning.   She may be named Angela, but she
is no angel!  Her list?  Kill her parents, get a
million dollars, and buy the penthouse condo in their
building.  To go any further with the plot would blow
the whole premise.  It’s enough to say there are
enough twists and turns to make the surprise ending a
head shaker and allow you to leave with a smile on
your face!

Director Rebecca Cole has paced the play well.  She is
aided by a cast that understands the plot and their
characters.  (Having the playwright on-hand to work
with during the production and explain his concepts
obviously turned out to be a great aid in the staging
process.)

Nate Bigger, a blond with the look of total innocence
and a voice to match, is wonderful as Jonathon.  He
gets totally wrapped in the role and takes us right
along.  Though Stephanie Ford’s Angela could have
sounded a little more vocally manipulative, she is
quite believable as the spoiled little rich girl who
gets everything she wants (or, so it seems).  Dash
Combs is both properly delightful and menacing as
Jonathon’s buddy, Greg.   Steven Hoffman and Kat
Gallagher do well as Angela’s parents, but are much
better as the detectives.   (Hmm....and why are there
detectives?  I’m not going to tell!)

Capsule judgement:  It’s been a while since I’ve had
such a good time at a theatre production.  The twists,
turns and “oh my goodness moments” in ‘MALICIOUS
BUNNY’ keep the audience laughing and thinking of
what’s going to happen next.  Bravo!

‘MALICIOUS BUNNY’ is being staged by Fourth Wall
productions at Kalliope Theatre (the corner of Cedar
and Lee Roads) through July 29.  Tickets: 
330-283-2442 or visit www.fourthwallproductions.com. 
For a sneak peek of the show go to
www.myspace.com/fourthwallproductions


Roy Berko's blog, which contains theatre and dance reviews from 2002 through 2007, as well as his consulting and publications information, can be found at http://royberko.info
      
Roy's theatre and dance reviews appear regularly on NeOHIOpal, an on-line source.   To subscribe to this free service via the World Wide Web, visit http://lists.fredsternfeld.com/mailman/listinfo/neohiopal.  His reviews also appear on www.coolcleveland.com


       
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