Men In Boats by Jacklyn Backhaus recreates the expedition of the Green and Colorado Rivers by John Wesley Powell and crew, including the Grand Canyon. Technical aspects are wonderful, including dramatic lighting (James Thomason) and versatile, climbable canyon-ish set (T’nia Purse) including versatile rolling platforms and a beautiful map that lights their progress along the rivers. I don’t know if Nick Zoia “Properties Master” was responsible for the “wearable boats” - but they were wonderful.
What brought this all to life, was the creative choreography/acrobatics (Movement Director Alexis Black) allowing these ten actresses to sweep us over the rapids along with them.
Yes, acTRESSes. The twist of this play is that all the men are played by women, “racially and gender diverse” the press release says — though the gender diversity wasn’t obvious to me. The story is true and exciting and could well be played by all men — so what does it “mean” that they are all women? It could be Ms. Backhaus’s answer to the frequent play-selection lament of not enough roles for women… but it also make us think twice about who gets to be “he-rows” (Check out the insightful and nautically phrased Director’s Note by Ann Folino White who states that they “anchored our work in a search for the humanity within Powell’s immortalized adventure.”
Kudos to this diverse ensemble: Leah Bauer, Abigail Byrne, Jayna Carden, Abbie Cathcart, Eli Drake, Beth Hendrickson, Jala Jackson, Hongwen Lu, Isa Rodriguez, Isabella Stenz and their director for this entertaining and unusual theatrical ride.
Men on Boats continues through November 18.
http://theatre.msu.edu/productions/past-seasons/20182019season/men-boats/
Studio 60 is in the basement of the Auditorium Building on the corner of Farm Lane and Auditorium Road. Tickets at the Farm-Lane side box office. Theatre in the basement, past the Arena Theatre.
Director Pre-Show Discussion on Sunday, November 11, 2018 @ 1:15pm
Post-Show Discussion on Tuesday, November 13, 2018. (Following the performance)
Talkback on November 13th will feature panelists:
Briona S. Jones, Doctoral Student and University Fellow, Department of English
Dr. Mindy Morgan, Associate Professor, Department of Anthropology and Affiliated Faculty, American Indian and Indigenous Studies