Photo by Neal Easterling
Cooperative Performance Milwaukee’s iTopia , created by Don Russell with input from the four performers, draws effectively from Gertrude Stein’s iteration of the Faustian myth, Doctor Faustus Lights the Lights . Employing excerpts from the text, choreography and dramatic scenes, iTopia brings Stein’s 1938 exploration of humanity’s troubled relationship with its machines into the 21st century. What do we sacrifice for our technological conveniences? Health, relationships, our very souls? This grimly humorous play culls some incisive answers.
The story tracks two couples, Margret (Hannah Klapperich-Mueller) and John (J. Keegan Siebken), and Boy (Colin Daly) and Girl (Liz Leighton); all four deliver stellar performances. The first are a little older and resist tech addiction with greater conviction. During a brilliant ensemble movement number choreographed by Marissa Clayton, the performers sit at their respective computer desks, phones at hand, and jitter like infected marionettes. Deep undulations end their trance—Margret and John look at each other and exchange words, but Boy and Girl immediately return to their phones. Klapperich-Mueller’s Margret is especially heartfelt describing two kids texting each other while sitting mere feet away: “It’s like they don’t want to be alone but don’t want the hassle, either.” iTopia delves into modern sexual ethics too, exploring how virtual relationships affect real-life partnerships, and how electronic romance can lead to privacy violations and blackmail. Is it cheating if the sex is confined to an online role-playing game? Is it a woman’s fault if she’s blackmailed by someone over a nude photo she intended for someone else?
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The minimalist set and eerie green lighting contribute well to the piece’s dystopian flavor. Russell’s score, which he describes as “digitized and dark,” ranges from trip hop and electronica to alt rock, featuring Tricky, Ava Bicklarian and The Flaming Lips. A devilish computer voice (Stage Manager Abby Sours) frequently interjects “fuck you,” and a yappy, Tamagotchi-like “iDog” makes multiple appearances. Truly, it is a dark and pan-sensorily digital world. iTopia ’s vision is both funny and frighteningly accurate.
Through Oct. 31 at Theatre Gigante Studio, 706 S. Fifth St. For tickets, visit cooperformke.com.
