- OTHER MEDIA
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- Review in SF Weekly by Benjamin Wachs (June 9, 2010)
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- By rights, the premiere run of Giant Bones is where everything could
go wrong. Its structure is a play-within-a-play-within-a-play. It's a fantasy,
filled with unfamiliar elements and species. It has a large cast whose
characters are difficult to keep track of (one is frequently referred to
as Blond Ingénue, another as Brown Ingénue), with each actor
playing multiple parts. Intimidated? Better to be intrigued: It all works.
Giant Bones is that rare play that does everything perfectly. The plot,
a collection of fables woven into the story of how a theater troupe was
banished from a city, is easy to follow. The script, based on short stories
by Peter S. Beagle, is engaging, funny, and profound (in that order), and
the actors have great fun chewing the scenery in the first act and turning
in deft and nuanced performances in the second. The set is minimal but
evocative; the sound cues are superb. Okay, the theater was too warm —
that didn't go right — but everything else makes for a high-energy,
thought-provoking show. I'd suggest keeping your programs so you can say
you were there, but audience members get a free, limited-edition Beagle
book as a memento. See? Giant Bones just nails it.
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