<div dir="ltr">
<style>
<!--
/* Font Definitions */
@font-face
{font-family:Arial;
panose-1:2 11 6 4 2 2 2 2 2 4;
mso-font-charset:0;
mso-generic-font-family:auto;
mso-font-pitch:variable;
mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;}
@font-face
{font-family:Times;
panose-1:2 0 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0;
mso-font-charset:0;
mso-generic-font-family:auto;
mso-font-pitch:variable;
mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;}
@font-face
{font-family:Verdana;
panose-1:2 11 6 4 3 5 4 4 2 4;
mso-font-charset:0;
mso-generic-font-family:auto;
mso-font-pitch:variable;
mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;}
@font-face
{font-family:Palatino;
panose-1:2 0 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0;
mso-font-charset:0;
mso-generic-font-family:auto;
mso-font-pitch:variable;
mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;}
/* Style Definitions */
p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal
{mso-style-parent:"";
margin:0in;
margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:12.0pt;
mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-ascii-font-family:Palatino;
mso-fareast-font-family:Times;
mso-hansi-font-family:Palatino;
mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";}
a:link, span.MsoHyperlink
{mso-style-noshow:yes;
color:blue;
text-decoration:underline;
text-underline:single;}
a:visited, span.MsoHyperlinkFollowed
{mso-style-noshow:yes;
color:purple;
text-decoration:underline;
text-underline:single;}
@page Section1
{size:8.5in 11.0in;
margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in;
mso-header-margin:.5in;
mso-footer-margin:.5in;
mso-paper-source:0;}
div.Section1
{page:Section1;}
-->
</style>
<p class=""><span style="color:rgb(0,255,255)"><br></span></p><p class=""><span style="color:rgb(0,255,255)">•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• </span><br></p>
<p class=""><b style>Ensemble’s ANIMALS
OUT OF PAPER, a challenging look at how the folds affect life</b></p>
<p class=""> </p>
<p class="">Roy Berko</p>
<p class=""><span style="font-size:10pt">(Member, American Theatre
Critics Association, Cleveland Critics Circle)</span></p>
<p class=""> </p>
<p class="">Cleveland has several young and dynamic playwrights who are
making a name for themselves on the national scene.<span style> </span>Eric Coble’s BRIGHT IDEAS had an off-Broadway presentation,
after its Cleveland Play House run.<span style>
</span>His THE VELOCITY OF AUTUMN, which had a staging at Beck Center, and
starred Dorothy Silver, is readying for a Broadway production which will star
Estelle Parsons.<span style="font-size:13pt;font-family:Helvetica"></span></p>
<p class=""><span style> </span></p>
<p class=""><span style>Cleveland Heights native Rajiv Joseph,
has been labeled “one of today’s most acclaimed young playwrights,” has the
awards to back up the claim.<span style> </span>He’s
received the Paula Vogel Award for Most Acclaimed Young Playwrights, the Lucille
Lortel Award for Outstanding Play of 2009, and was a Pulitzer Prize finalist
for Drama for BENGAL TIGER AT THE BAGHDAD ZOO, which had a Broadway run and
starred Robin Williams.</span> <span style></span></p>
<p class=""><span style="color:rgb(38,38,38)"> </span></p>
<p class=""><span style="color:rgb(38,38,38)">Joseph, who has a</span><span style> "fascination with the power of
language,” uses that language to probe “the origins of human artistic impulse
and ask what they mean</span></p>
<p class=""><span style>for those enslaved to it.”</span></p>
<p class=""><span style> </span></p>
<p class=""><span style>ANIMALS OUT OF PAPER is in production at Ensemble Theatre, which
seems to act as Joseph’s home theatre.<span style>
</span>The company, headed by long time Joseph friend, Celeste Cosentino, has
done one of his plays in each of its last three seasons.</span></p>
<p class=""><span style> </span></p>
<p class=""><span style>ANIMALS OUT OF PAPER centers on an unlikely trio of people.<span style> </span>Ilana, a world renowned origami
artist,<span style> </span>has perfected the Japanese
art of folding paper into decorative and representational forms, to the extent
that she has written the second best selling book on the subject.<span style> </span>Andy is a math teacher, and Suresh, a
troubled youth whose mother was recently killed in an accident.</span></p>
<p class=""><span style> </span></p>
<p class=""><span style>Ilana has barricaded herself in her littered studio surrounded by
origami creations, Chinese take-out boxes, and piles of unused paper.<span style> </span>She has not only lost her
husband, but her three-legged dog has run off, and her will to fold has
disappeared.<span style> </span>Her life is much like
the crumpled papers that litter the floor.</span></p>
<p class=""><span style> </span></p>
<p class=""><span style>Andy is a nerdy math teacher who has an artistic and physical crush
on Ilana, as a result of meeting her at a national origami convention where he
was a student in one of her seminars.<span style>
</span>He writes of this obsession and views of life in a notebook. <span style> </span>He journals because he once opened a
fortune cookie, which told him to “count your blessings.”<span style> </span>He comes to Ilana’s loft, not only to
meet her in person, but to sell her on mentoring Suresh, one of his students
who shows a natural talent for origami, as his mentor.</span></p>
<p class=""><span style> </span></p>
<p class=""><span style>Suresh, in contrast to Ilana, and other well known origami artists,
doesn’t sketch out his work to decide on the order of each fold.<span style> </span>Instead, he works by instinct.<span style> </span>He perceives that actions, rather than
developing a step-by-step plan, is the way to create.<span style> </span>His inspiration is the rap music he listens to in his
ever-plugged in headphones.<span style> </span>He is
in conflict as his life requires order, which has eluded him, while his
origami, which should be based on set patterns, doesn’t follow orderliness.</span></p>
<p class=""><span style> </span></p>
<p class=""><span style>The plot deepens when Andy and Ilana entangle their lives, and
Suresh develops a fascination for Ilana.<span style> </span>Each probes for how they can exist in the world.<span style> </span>Recognizing, to some extent that, “So
much of what I am is what I’ve lost.”</span></p>
<p class=""><span style> </span></p>
<p class=""><span style>Ensemble’s production, under the directorship of Celeste Cosentino,
creates the play’s essence, but fails to dig deeply enough into the characters
and their motivations to give full meaning to Joseph’s well crafted script.</span></p>
<p class=""><span style> </span></p>
<p class=""><span style>Katherine DeBoer creates an Ilana into a real person, complete with
outward and hidden angst.<span style> </span></span></p>
<p class=""><span style> </span></p>
<p class=""><span style>Geoff Knox is properly anxiety filled.<span style> </span>There are times when he falls back on a geeky speech pattern
which somewhat distracts.</span></p>
<p class=""><span style> </span></p>
<p class=""><span style>Andrew Samtoy, generally displays his inner conflict.<span style> </span>In several scenes, such as when he is
creating rap songs, he fails to let lose and capture the meaning of the words.</span></p>
<p class=""> </p>
<p class="">Ian Hinz’s projection designs are excellent.<span style> </span>Using visual images, rather than real
sets, helps develop the artistic nature of the work.</p>
<p class=""> </p>
<p class="">The many intricate origami creations used in the production
were supplied by The Public Theatre in Maine. </p>
<p class=""> </p>
<p class="" style="text-autospace:none"><i style>CAPSULE
JUDGEMENT: </i><i style><span style>ANIMALS OUT OF PAPER is an often amusing,
thought provoking play about what happens when the lives of mismatched people
collide in complicated ways that highlight hurt<span style> </span>and the challenges of individuals who don’t know who they
are or how to be in the world. The Ensemble production doesn’t quite reach the
quality of the play’s writing, but does hold attention and leaves the audience
thinking.</span></i></p>
<p class="" style="text-autospace:none"><i style> </i></p>
<p class=""><span style>ANIMALS OUT OF PAPER </span>runs Thursdays through Sundays through
October 20 at Ensemble Theatre, housed in Coventry School, 2843 Washington
Blvd, Cleveland Heights.<span style> </span>For
tickets call 216-321-2930 or go online to <a href="http://www.ensemble-theatre.org">http://www.ensemble-theatre.org</a></p>
<p class=""> </p>
<p class=""><span style="color:rgb(53,53,53)">Of special interest:<span style>
</span>Ensemble will be having a benefit performance on the October 4<sup>th</sup>,
with a post show talkback with the director and the cast as well as a wine and
desert reception which will be catered by Rajiv's uncle DAVID GAUCHAT, a well known
pastry chef). </span></p>
<span style="color:rgb(0,255,255)">••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••</span><br></div>