Photo credit: Andy Walsh
Longtime Quasimondo Milwaukee Physical Theatre ensemble member Andrew Parchman makes his writing-directing debut with The Depths, a triumph of physical performance, existential questioning and stunning stage magic. The latter comes as little surprise, given Parchman’s impressive list of puppet building and puppeteering credits. Here, he brings the mysterious, otherworldly and sometimes terrifying creatures of the Marianas Trench’s abyssal plain to vivid life.
The storyline follows aquanaut Lilith Hooper (Hesper Juhnke) who’s nearing the end of a one-month mission to survey the deepest part of the ocean assisted by the remote voices of her crew, a high-tech diving suit and an experimental drug called “Ink,” which keeps her awake 24/7. When a technical malfunction forestalls her ability to maintain contact and resurface, things take a turn for the dark and disembodied. The great strength of Parchman’s storytelling lies in its understated ability to build suspense and make us question whether the visceral horrors unfolding for Lilith are real or the product of her mind.
Juhnke is marvelously compelling as Lilith, and her recurring confrontations with a menacing humanoid creature (Paul Fojut) are particularly impressive. These, like many moments, may or may not have a basis in literal reality, and the low-gravity altercations between the two are only the more riveting for their ambiguity. Juhnke’s physical simulation of swimming is likewise mind-blowing: It’s a little bit moon walk, it’s a little bit lifts by other performers, and it’s incredibly graceful. Susie Duecker, voicing the indomitably peppy administrator of “sanctioned cognitive tests,” brings the piece a liberal dose of dark comedy. The other ensemble members—Alex Roy, Willie Hughes and Ben Yela—are excellent as the various voices in Lilith’s ear and flawless in their manipulation of puppets ranging from behemoths of the deep to tiny schools of bioluminescent fish.
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Lighting design by Yela and Brian Rott and sound design by Parchman tie everything together into a seamless, oceanic whole. Through incredibly clever use of a semi-transparent projection screen, LEDS and carefully directed washes, the lighting achieves a rapport with chiaroscuro, the dramatic interplay of light and shadow. Parchman’s score is awash in references to other works that bear on the subject matter; tracks from Jaws II and Ghost in the Shell are Easter eggs for audience members who know the works and perfectly appropriate scoring for those who don’t.
An all-around provocative piece of movement and puppet theater, The Depths is a worthy addition to the Quasimondo oeuvre and a resounding success for Parchman and company. It will make you question reality itself.
Through Dec. 10 at Danceworks, 1661 N. Water St. For tickets, visit quasimondo.org.
