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As you link it
Shakespeare, gangster legends and American politics are fused dizzily together in "Outside the Law."
By FRANK EPISALE
Offoffoff.com
"Outside the Law" is a politically charged pastiche of Shakespeare's "As You Like It," the story of Depression-era outlaw Pretty Boy Floyd, and a
multitude of references to popular culture and current events. Tom
Wolfe, Oprah Winfrey, J. Edgar Hoover, Oliver North and George Bush move
in and out of the story with varying degrees of impact on the plot, and
succeed (also to varying degrees) in helping the production resonate
with current politics. The text is drawn from Shakespeare, original
material by the company, and a sprinkling of Brecht, Woody Guthrie and
no doubt a host of others I didn't catch.
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| OUTSIDE THE LAW |
Company: Irondale Productions.
Written by: Jim Niesen with the Irondale Ensemble Project.
Directed by: Jim Niesen.
Cast: Danny Bacher, Josh Bacher, Erin Biernard, Terry Greiss,
Michael-David Gordon, Jack Lush, Barbara Mackenzie-Wood, Celli Pitt, Damen Scranton, Laura Wickens.
Choreography by: Clare Byrne.
Set design by: Ken Rothchild.
Costumes by: T. Michael Hall.
Lighting design by: Randy Glickman.
Related links:
Official site
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| SCHEDULE |
TADA Theater
15 W 28th Street, 2nd floor
May 11-29, 2004
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Structurally, the play begins in two separate worlds. While Rosalind
(Laura Wickens) and Orlando (Jack Lush) are fleeing oppression in one
reality, Charles Arthur Floyd (Michael David Gordon) and his wife Ruby
(Celli Pitt) are fleeing oppression in another. They both find refuge,
though, in an "Into the Woods"-style forest where all worlds seem to
collide, and the storylines begin to interact. This brings the stark
contrast between Rosalind/Orlando's lighthearted dalliances and Pretty
Boy Floyd's revolutionary crime spree into sharp relief. The oppressive
power structures of the two worlds overlap, as it becomes clear that
Lord Baden Powell and J. Edgar Hoover are not only played by the
same actor (Terry Greiss) but are in fact one and the same person.
Similarly, Orlando's brother Oliver (Damen Scranton) turns out to be
Oliver North, right-hand man to Hoover. The actor playing Silvius (Josh
Bacher) is doubled as young George Bush, here imagined as the ambitious
FBI agent who eventually tracks down and kills Floyd. Tom Wolfe (Danny
Bacher), documenting the complex events, is free to move from one
storyline to the next making wry comments borrowed from various texts.
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Originally developed in 1989, "Outside the Law" has been revamped to
reflect current political situations and to keep the project topical.
While this is largely successful, some of the material still seems
dated. Most notably, Oliver North doesn't resonate as well as a
notorious figure as he undoubtedly did 15 years ago. This is
particularly true as his character's dissent with irrationally
aggressive military policy reminds one a lot more of Secretary Powell
than Colonel North.
Another problem is that Irondale's aesthetic has a fairly chaotic,
splatterpaint kind of effect. They seemingly throw everything they have
at the audience and see what sticks. Sometimes the production feels a
little bit more like sketch-comedy than it should. The inherent
messiness of this approach, though, is mitigated somewhat by a highly
skilled and interdependent group of performers. The actors are confident
enough in their material and in their agenda to help a friendly audience
over any rough patches. It's difficult to single out individual
performances from such a strong ensemble cast, but MD Gordon, Terry
Greiss, Jack Lush, Celli Pitt and Laura Wickens all deserve special
mention for holding together the bumpy bits of this wildly ambitious
production.
Ken Rothchild's fantastically colorful set and T. Michael Hall's
eclectic costume design effectively convey the collision of worlds
taking place in the play. Randy Glickman does his best with what seems
to be a limited lighting grid and is mostly successful. The pace and scope of the production make for some aesthetic compromises,
with actors sometimes strangely bulky from wearing costumes beneath their
costumes and the inevitable offstage commotion from quick-changes — and
possibly confusion — too often audible†from the audience.
Most of the flaws in the production could likely have been ironed out
with another week or so of rehearsal, and may very well have been
corrected by now. Company members with whom I am in contact have told me
that the play has undergone some last minute restructuring which helps
clarify some events and strengthen some statements. Regardless, "Outside the Law" is a fun and exciting evening from a unique ensemble. No other
company in New York is so successful at blending agitprop populism with
classical technique. The result is sometimes puzzling, but more often
exhilarating. By the play's closing, when the ghost of Floyd channels
Brecht to exhort Rosalind to abandon her place in mainstream domesticity
and embrace her potential as a revolutionary leader, the audience is
left with no doubt that Irondale is urging us all to stay aware and to
get involved.
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MAY 25, 2004
OFFOFFOFF.COM • THE GUIDE TO ALTERNATIVE NEW YORK
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