I've talked about Shakespeare-adjacent plays a couple times in these pages. These plays use one of the works of the canon as a base, shifting it in time and/or space, or just revising it to see what happens next or what is happening elsewhere. They are retellings, and as a result rewirings of the original. Duel Reality is one of those Shakespeare-adjacent performances, using acrobats and cirque performers to tell the tale.
The acrobats in question are the 7 Fingers troupe, who we last saw a couple years back in Passengers. Back then I mentioned that while the performance was top-notch, the performance didn't seem to have a lot going for it as far as an overarching plot. Here, we've got a plot. Well, mostly. And it is one that you know of - Romeo and Juliet. Again, mostly.
The performance takes its base bones from the original play in that we have Capulets and Montagues. Jets and Sharks. Two families, alike in dignity, poised against each other. In this case, we have two troupes of acrobats, Reds and Blues, who battle against each other in competition and in hand-to-hand conflict. And a Romeo and an Juliet from each side that breaks through the limitations of clan and tribe.
And that's about it. The conflict of the original play provides the framework for the acts. pole-climbing and hula hoops (the party where the young lovers meet) and teeter-totters (for a duel to the death). Bodies are being suspended and thrown back and forth across the stage. There's amazing juggling. No family dynamics, no members of the family easily identified. No nurse or friar. Liberties are freely taken, and while a few beats are maintained and few lines sprinkled along to help direct the play, most of the story-telling is physical in nature.
And it works. This is polar opposite of Eddie Izard's Hamlet - this is all dynamic and kinetic and waves at the bard as it zooms past him. The conflict of Reds and Blues is extended to the audience, who are given red and blue cloth wristbands at the start of the play, and whose seats are lit with red and blue lights. The troupe reaches out to the audience continually for approval and encouragement, and there are patrons on stage as physical supporters. The play ends with everyone dancing (including the audience), and, unlike Laughs in Spanish, it felt incredibly earned.
As I say, liberties are taken, Great liberties. And you don't mind because the sheer athleticism of the group is overwhelming. Were I to pick a nit or two, that the overwhelming nature of the stage-wide performances often had me distracted by some incredible bit of business to one side of the stage competing with the main thrust of the activity in the center. Usually the Lovely Bride and I adjourn to a local restaurant to pick over plot points and writer's intent. This time we sat on the sidewalk patio of the local Agave, and dispensed with only a couple "That was great" statements. And it was.
Duel Reality finishes up this year at the Rep for us, and it was a rocky season this time. The best of the collection was Hamlet, which wasn't even on the initial list. Duel Reality was also excellent, as was Primary Trust. Mother Russia was very good. Laughs in Spanish and Blues for an Alabama Sky were OK. It was the most tradition plays - revivals of The Skin of our Teeth and Blithe Spirit, that stumbled and brought the average down. Now we just wrap up one more play at the Arts West, and we're done until August.
More later,
