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<div class="MsoNormal">MONSTER PLAY, Jeremy Paul’s imagination again goes wild </div>
<div class="MsoNormal"> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">Roy Berko</div>
<div class="MsoNormal"> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">(Member, American Theatre Critics Association)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal"> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">--THE TIMES NEWSPAPERS--</div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">Lorain County
Times--Westlaker Times--Lakewood News Times--Olmsted-Fairview Times</i><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">--COOLCLEVELAND.COM—</div>
<div class="MsoNormal"> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">When Jeremy Paul, the creator and director of MONSTER PLAY,
now getting its world premiere at Cleveland Public Theatre, was a child, he was
afraid of monsters.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>A normal kid
would be afraid of bats, witches, the thing under the bed, or the boogey<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>man.<span style="mso-spacerun:
yes"> </span>As has been demonstrated in many of his previous
productions, Paul’s fertile imagination doesn’t follow the “normal” path.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>Believe it or not, his monsters were
robots.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>Yep, robots. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal"> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">As I<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>said in a
previous Theatre Ninjas’ review, “being inside Paul’s head must be like being
in a labyrinth of a fun house.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</span>Weird visions must swirl around and around.<span style="mso-spacerun:
yes"> </span>The result of Paul’s creativity is usually fascinating and
confounding theatre.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>MONSTER
PLAY, his latest invention, is true Paul.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal"> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">The evening starts out with the author, sounding like Bela
Lugosi of Count Dracula film fame, warning the audience to turn off their cell
phones and not dare to crinkle candy wrappers.<span style="mso-spacerun:
yes"> </span>Or else!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>You
have been warned.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>The bizarre is
about to begin.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal"> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">Paul creates a combination of monsters, fantasies and
haunting metaphors.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>Andrew
Kaletta’s set, is a canopy of fabrics draped over the theatre-in-the-round
playing area.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>Large blood covered
tarps often enshroud the actors making them into a solo monster, and other
times individual actors are wrapped in the cloth.<span style="mso-spacerun:
yes"> </span>Startling Benjamin Gantose lighting effects, including a
strobe light, add to the visual illusions.<span style="mso-spacerun:
yes"> </span>Blood inked actors assault the senses. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal"> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">Paul inserts comic routines that delight, including a
walking version of the shower scene from the movie PSYCHO, a macabre segment
from Little Red Riding Hood, and several Grimm’s fairy tales.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">Paul doesn’t just stop at getting you ready for Halloween,
he also takes on the real monsters:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</span>religion, doctors, and parents. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal"> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">Yes, as the conceiver warns, “Monsters haven’t gone
anywhere, they still wait outside our houses, our closets, beneath old bridges,
and in the grills of cars as they run stop lights.”<span style="mso-spacerun:
yes"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">The cast is well versed and trained.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>They consume the stage and the
imagination. Ray Caspy, Stuart Hoffman (adorned in a hair shirt), Val Kozlenko,
Jenni Messner and Lauren B. Smith morph from role to role with ease in their
grubby blood and dirt stained rough-clothed costumes. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal"> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">Since the audience is no more than 15 feet away from the
performers, the cast’s grunts, moans and smells are up front and personal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>It all adds to the bizarre effect.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">A pre-tween girl watching the performance I saw, spent most
of the evening clinging to her father, being devoured by Paul’s
imagination.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>I’m sure she spent a
sleepless night.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal"> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">CAPSULE JUDGEMENT: <span style="mso-spacerun:
yes"> </span>MONSTER PLAY is a fun, confounding and psychologically
disrupting experience.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>It should
be on the must see list for every warped teenager, and will also appeal to adults
who are fascinated by things that go bump in the night.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:15.0pt;mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align:
none;text-autospace:none"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size:13.0pt;mso-bidi-font-family:
Arial"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">MONSTER PLAY runs through October 29 at Cleveland Public
Theatre.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>For tickets call
216-631-2727 or go to <span style="mso-bidi-font-size:13.0pt;mso-bidi-font-family:
Arial">cptonline.org.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size:13.0pt;mso-bidi-font-family:
Arial"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size:13.0pt;mso-bidi-font-family:
Arial">CPT’s next offering is the world premiere of YA MAMA! by the wonderful
Nina Domingue, running November 3-12.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"> </div>
</div><div> </div><div><i><font class="Apple-style-span" color="#8000FF">Roy Berko's blog, which contains theatre and dance reviews, as well as his consulting and publications information, can be found at http://royberko.info. His reviews can also be found on www.coolcleveland.com and www.NeOHIOpal, while special features appear at http://artsamerica.org.<br></font></i></div></div></body></html>