[NEohioPAL] REVIEW: Frankenstein Puppet Opera in Canton

[Tom Wachunas via NEohioPAL]

  Summoned by PuppetsBy Tom Wachunas     “I ought to be thy Adam, but I am ratherthe fallen angel…”    - Mary Shelley, Frankenstein    Once upon a time, nearly three yearsago, the highly accomplished local artist Erin Mulligan-Brayton was listeningto opera music and painting an image of puppets. She had also at that time beenreading Frankenstein, and suddenly anidea was born – to make Mary Shelley’s 1818 novel into a puppet opera. Shepromptly contacted Craig Joseph, curator of Translations Art Gallery indowntown Canton.     Thus began anambitious collaborative journey into previously uncharted theatrical territoryin these parts. Joseph mobilized an eclectic group of 24 individuals into teams– conceptualizers, builders and performers. Ultimately he directed what canrightly be called a resplendently quirky hybrid of ingenious shadow play, melodramaticpantomime and puppetry (including masks, shadow puppets, rod puppets, bodypuppets and a marionette).       The story, finelyhoned into nine scenes that unfold in just under an hour, begins with RobertWalton (enacted by a masked Justin Edenhofer), captain of a North Pole-boundship that has rescued Victor Frankenstein, stranded on the ice floes, weakenedand near death from the cold. Walton nurses Frankenstein back to fragilehealth, and hears his woeful tale.     Throughout the performance, live black-robedand hooded stagehands (or deckhands, really) manipulate props and scrims withsolemn economy of movement suggesting, perhaps, acolytes of a religious riteexecuting their ordained tasks. The cleverly crafted visual mechanics -including wooden nooks and niches occupied by animated shadows, ghostly videoimagery (designed by Zach Christy) and exquisitely expressive puppets - have aneerily medieval feel, infused with a spirit of alchemy and conjuring. It is anurgent and tenebrous spirit, well befitting this story of an obsessed scientistwho would be God, the Creator of life, and the terrible consequences ofreaching beyond his own prideful grasp.    What further elevatesthe production from the level of a simple theatrical curiosity is its earnestembrace of operatic form. In this case, the score for the remarkable chamberorchestra (music by Steve Parsons, libretto by John Popa) has been pre-recorded(excellently mixed and mastered by Ron Flack and John King of Realgrey Recordsand available for purchase at the gallery). I think, though, the live audienceexperience could be considerably more enhanced by placing additional amplificationat the front of the house, to better envelop us in the soaring drama of themusic. The recorded vocal performances - from Damian Henri (as VictorFrankenstein), Bart Herman (as The Creature), Amanda Medley (as ElizabethLavenza), and James Graysmith (as Captain Walton) – are emotionally grippingand constitute a discretely powerful aural event in itself. There are moments –lyrically and musically – reminiscent of Sondheim-ian works at their mostintelligent and intense.     An additionallycompelling aspect of conveying Victor Frankenstein’s harrowing descent into torturousgrief and remorse is the progressive diminishing of his physical stature. Wesee three masked “real person” versions (enacted by Jimmy Ferko, ChristopherHisey and Kyra Stephens) that culminate in a shrunken puppet – an emaciateddoll cradled ever so gingerly in Captain Walton’s arms. Meanwhile, the createdmonster grows (that’s Donald Jones underneath the massive overcoat) until heteeters over all he surveys, his face frozen in a look more lonely and forlornthan terrifying.     Who would havethought that something so innocuous as a puppet show could embody the gravitasof this classic tale? This one works surpassingly well at pulling on ourheartstrings.       Frankenstein:The Puppet Opera, at Translations Art Gallery, 331 Cleveland Ave. NW,downtown Canton. Performances  on Oct.10, 17 and 24 at 8 p.m. / Oct. 31 at 8 and 10 p.m. / Nov. 1 at 8 p.m. TICKETSare $10 atwww.translationsart.com/frankenstein    For other commentaries by Tom Wachunas on the arts in the greater Canton area, please visit his blog, ARTWACH, at  www.artwach.blogspot.com 
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