THEATRE REVIEW:
KPBS AIRDATE: December 29, 2006
Once upon a time, there was a very homely, lonely
boy, ridiculed by his classmates, ostracized by his peers. But he turned his ghastly
childhood experiences into gold. He grew up to create some of the most enduring
fairy tales ever written. Most of them concerns outsiders and outcasts, some of
whom triumph over adversity, many who don’t. Hans Christian Andersen was The Ugly Duckling, but though he
became the most famous writer in mid-19th century Europe, he never
turned into a swan. He remained an awkward, gawky man, who never had a romantic
relationship. But he lovingly offered his explosive imagination to the hearts
and minds of millions, even if his fantastical stories were almost always
tinged with loss and death.
And so it is with “The Steadfast Tin Soldier,”
which was adapted by British playwright-turned-screenwriter Karina Wilson. Her
version, “The Tin Soldier,” which premiered at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in
1998, loses some of the edge of the original. First of all, this tin-spoon
soldier is missing an arm, not a leg. It’s a far greater challenge to remain
steadfast – or even vertical – with only one leg. In the play, he does
everything for his love of the Paper Doll. In the story, his motives are more
military. His onstage adversaries – a pair of mischievous mice and a fearsome
sewer rat – are joined by a philosophy-spouting spider. All ultimately come to
his rescue, which doesn’t happen in the fairy tale. The nefarious goblin is the
jealous, scheming cause of all his tribulations, though that’s far less clear
in the original. But the Tin Soldier still comes to an unfortunate end, so the
tale isn’t totally Disneyfied, as was ‘The Little Mermaid.’
Still, this isn’t a wholly satisfying production,
at least not for adults. Joe Powers, director of North Coast Rep’s Theatre
School, intended this as a mainstage production. But the acting style he’s
encouraged is decidedly kiddie-oriented. There are some pleasures to be had:
San Diego newcomer Joshua Zar makes for a credibly resolute Tin Soldier – but
he shouldn’t be asked to sing; Gabriella Battista and James Patterson are cute
as the harebrained, impish mice; and Mark Christopher Lawrence is a nasty rat
-- with a heart. The mega-talent of Robert Grossman, a frequent visitor to
North Coast Rep, seems wasted here in the minor role of the affable,
guitar-playing Narrator. There just doesn’t seem to be a strong sense of
ensemble cohesion to the production, which is modestly designed and
attractively costumed.
Hans Christian Andersen tales have darkness and
depth that isn’t sufficiently mined. The best of theater, for children or
adults, gets under the skin of the characters, beneath the surface of the
story. Here, we just get the fairy tale, but that’s plenty for some young
theatergoers.
©2006 Patté Productions
Inc.