For the short of attention span, the idea of three one act plays is a dream come true. Thus, the Experimental Theater Board's Hit 'N Run capitalizes on the Carleton campus's slight ADD and combined three very different shows into one short, hour-and-a-half production. I would rank the three plays, but I am a freshman nd fear making too many enemies in the theater department, so the review will follow the acts as they were performed.
The first play of the evening was Babels in Arms written by David Ives and directed by Joe Knoedler, starring Gorph (played by James Sheridan) and Canniphlit (Drew Chambers). It's loosely based on the biblical story of the tower of Babel, and the protagonists have been commissioned to build a tower to reach the height of God himself. Gorph and Canniphlit enter carrying the first of what will be an infinite number of stones and show impressively intense enthusiasm after getting the giant rock to the correct spot. The play addresses the issue of vocabulary development in years BC by offering explanations of the naming process. One of the two offers a more detailed definition, namely, "Any fucker made of stone is a stone." The rest of the cast includes a broadsword-wielding businesswoman (Kestrel Schwaiger), a hired high priestess (Julia Ringel) and her perfunctory eunuch (Joe Glasrud), and all roles were played convincingly. The play had everything a girl could ask for – battles over religion, intense air guitar sessions and an assortment of timeless puns (Egyptian pyramid schemes, anyone?)
The second play was All about Al, written by Cherie Vogelstein and directed by Hal Edmonson. It opens with two friends running into each other in a coffee shop, Lenny (played by Robert Hildebrant), a sexually repressed Woody Allen wannabe who's just been through the emotional wringer, and Gil (Max Herzl-Betz), who is planning to dump his girlfriend, Allison (Moira Hough). When Gil tells Lenny about his plan, Lenny is outraged, shouting, "I may be afraid of the dark – but not of LOVE!" Both actors show remarkable intensity as they act out the age-old battle of the sweet and awkward versus the smooth and shallow. All About Al is a well-performed vignette of unrequited love and undeserving boyfriends.
Last but not least, Out at Sea (written by Slawomir Mrozek and directed by Julian Oja), offers the winning combination of cannibalism and British aristocracy. The play opens with tree starving British gentlemen stranded at sea. A debate starts up over who should make the noble sacrifice and offer himself up as a meal for the other two. The leader (Kristen Johnson) and the cleverer of his loyal followers (Mike Stevens) quickly form an alliance to nominate the third man (Mark Stewart) for their meal. While the boat is supposedly isolated, a stray postman (Erica Chesley) and the leader's old butler (Owen Bement) both manage to make guest appearances before choosing a nautical death over spending any additional time with the three protagonists. In the end, national loyalty takes precendent over fear of cannibalism. Comforting.
This review was originally published in the </i>Carl<i> and has been reprinted with permission from the editors and the author, Kelsey Antle. The </i>Carl<i> is the Carletonian's biweekly culture and arts supplement.