[NEohioPAL] Review of Cleveland Public Theatre's "Rusted Heart Broadcast"

[Bob Abelman]

CPT re-envisions the apocalypse in the engaging "Rusted Heart Broadcast" 

 

Bob Abelman

News-Herald, Chagrin Valley Times, Solon Times, Geauga Times Courier

Member, International Association of Theatre Critics 

 

This review will appear in the News-Herald on 6/14/13

 

It is hard to pinpoint just when post-apocalyptic stories became a mainstay in our mainstream entertainment.  And it is unclear whether Nostradamus' prophecies, the Mayan calendar, or predictions in the "I Ching" are responsible.  But there sure seems to be a curious and disconcerting supply of them now.  

 

At the local multiplex, "Oblivion," "After Earth" and "World War Z" share the marquee with "The Great Gatsby."  On TV, shows like "Falling Skies," "The Walking Dead" and J.J. Abrams' "Revolution" are popular primetime options.  First-person shooter survival video games, such as "The Last of Us" and "Gears of War," are all the rage.  Literally.

 

Things must be getting serious if Cleveland Public Theatre is offering its own doomsday drama in the form of playwright and director Raymond Bobgan's "Rusted Heart Broadcast."  True to the CPT's mission, this world-premiere piece of devised theater "serves to raise consciousness through ground breaking performances," and it does so in riveting fashion.

 

"Rusted Heart Broadcast" takes place after a technology-induced pandemic destroys life on the planet, save for one small group of survivors.  And while this play sheds the more conventional trappings of the science fiction genre in favor of the expressionistic - there are no flesh-eating zombies or special effects - it could not escape their influence.  

 

There is a bit of "Mad Max 2" in this play.  In the 1985 film, Max (played by Mel Gibson) is saved from exposure by a community of underground-dwelling children who are the direct descendants of survivors of the apocalypse.  They relay the story of their survival through distorted recollections of the past that have since become the treasured myths and rituals that guide their existence.   Memories are kept alive in the form of communal, spoken "tells."  

 

In "Rusted Heart Broadcast," the entire tale is told as a second-hand story revealed through a running narrative embellished with a visceral montage of chanting, original song, and highly stylized movement.  Faye Hargate, Molly Andrews-Hinders, Dionne D. Atchinson, Carly Garinger, Sally Groth, Jeremy P. Lewis, Adam Seeholzer, Chris Seibert, and Darius J. Stubbs play the survivors and are superb performers.  They remain singularly focused, amazingly disciplined, and absolutely engaging throughout this high-energy production.

 

The play is a study is perpetual motion, as the ensemble constantly reconfigures the barren performance space into different times and locations using only expressive choreography, Bobgan's creative stage management, and Benjamin Gantose's mood-setting lighting design.  So much movement renders the rare still moments - including a scene performed in total darkness - particularly powerful and quite poignant.   

 

There's a touch of "The Book of Eli" in this play as well.  In this 2010 post-apocalyptic action film, a nomad (played by Denzel Washington) is in sole possession of the sacred stories that have guided humanity's morality and roams the decimated countryside to deliver his message and resurrect the spirit of the planet's survivors.  

 

In "Rusted Heart Broadcast," a young woman named Kaysha is the chosen one.  A former spokesperson for Softnet - the company that devised the means to connect people to the Web without any hardware and is responsible for the deadly virus -- Kaysha miraculously recovers from the illness and assumes the mission of saving humanity.  Faye Hargate, as the survivor who plays Kaysha in the retelling of the tale, is a gifted dancer, singer and actress, and turns in a spectacular performance.   

 

While there is plenty of science fiction that espouses the freedoms and power that come with modern technology, most offer commentary on the freedoms we lose and the powers we abuse with each new technological advancement.  Some, including "Rusted Heart Broadcast," serve to warn us about how our inability to control technology can someday result in technology controlling and destroying us.  

 

With recent concerns over privacy issues involving Google and Verizon, perhaps Bobgan and his CPT players are working on a sequel.   If it is as intriguing as the current production, it will be worth waiting for.  

 

The world premiere of "Rusted Heart Broadcast" continues through June 15 in the Gordon Square Theatre, 6415 Detroit Avenue in Cleveland's Gordon Square Arts District.  For tickets, which range from $10 to $25, call 216-631-2727 or visit www.cptonline.org.
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