what: the killing of michael x (a new film by celia wallace) by cory hinkle
where: jackalope's brand spakin' new home at the broadway armory in edgewater
accompainiment: dustin, matt & sarah!
drinkability: the armory is a school/park district so no booze, but the jackalopes did offer some light refreshments.
show length: 90 minutes, no intermission
out of four: three/four
its no secret that i'm a big fangirl of everything jackalope theatre creates. my very first four in four review was of their show RICH AND FAMOUS early last year. in the six short seasons they have been an active company they've consistently created shows, opened two spaces, added members to their ensemble, and made friends with aldermen & politicians. i don't take the time to research what their shows are about, i just find myself in a seat and get to it. i was on a break from four in four when i saw their last show- a rousing success written by playwright calamity west - THE PEACOCK. leaving me floored, i was ready to see what was next. and next was a whole new can of worms.
the killing of michael x challenges the audience from the start. in a clever and bold choice by set designer eleanor kahn, we watch celia (played by joanne dubach) approach the staircase leading to her deceased brother roger's room - which is placed in the middle of and behind where the audience is sitting. we all turn our necks to watch and continue to do so throughout the show- not because we simply have to, but because we must.
jackalope took on several feats at once in accomplishing this show. they filmed a movie, built a theatre into a large brick-surrounded empty area in the corner of a gigantic maze of a building, and directed a play at the same time. we live inside of celia's head for most of the play- a wanna-be film maker with a love for french noir (a la breathless) and any other film her brother put in front of her eyes to see. as audience members it takes a while for us to stop trying to grasp onto reality and simply let the hunt for michael x to unfold before our eyes.
anyone who has encountered considerable grief knows that the most comfort lives in crawling your way out of it and hopefully attaching yourself to something that isn't damaging to your own life. celia's light at the end of the tunnel is film. we watch dubach bounce around stage, 'shooting' the lights off in between transitions and reacting to her film reel in front of her. jackalope did a nice job creating video scenes that appear a step above something shot on your iphone, but not out of the realm of believability that a young girl created them on her own.
while film clips kept the audience's eyes entertained through scene transitions, i think michael x could have done with an even more simplistic approach to set decorations. pre and post living room scenes were somewhat distracting and long winded as the actors had to bring in and out a couch with many pillows, a chair, a coffee table, a rug, and various coffee table decorations. while it made for a nice final picture, we would have bought them being in their living room at home with out the adornments.
minimal set distractions aside, this is a beautiful accomplishment for jackalope and their future with video work and simple transitional sets. all actors save dubach and her counterpart randy played by andrew goetten (as we recognized from his work in calamity west's THE GACY PLAY) played many roles and hustled from lights up to bows. its a show not to be missed.
THE KILLING OF MICHAEL X runs through april 13th. tickets range from $10-$20, with some discounts over on trusty goldstar.
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upcoming april shows:
monday april 7th, 8pm: duplicity ensemble's folk bound
thursday april 10th, 6:30pm: harold medez's but i sound better since you cut my throat
tbd: tuta's the jewels
tbd: the plagiarists' war song
join me, will you?