At first glance, itmight be difficult to understand the enthusiasm. After all, the play looksfairly static on the surface. A dozen actors sit at a table facing the audienceas the story plays out in a series of overlapping monologues occurring in thecourse of a telethon. Conceptually, however, there’s a lot more going on. Thecharacters in question are all superheroes out of costume. They are working thephones to raise funds for a production of Shakespeare’s The Tempest that they’re trying to put together. And from there itjust gets weirder and more complex.
The complexity of Spirits to Enforce lies in itsjuxtaposition of superheroes (who are largely considered to be disposable popart) with characters from Shakespeare (whose work is largely considered to besome of the greatest in English literature). The physical action is almostnonexistent, but the story itself is very dynamic.
The show featuresestablished Youngblood actors like Tess Cinpinski, David Rothrock and DanielKoester joined by some of the best talent to come out of UWM’s theater programin recent years, including Grace DeWolff and Adrian Feliciano. Anchoring theplay is talented Shakespearean actor T. Stacy Hicks as a Christlike Ariel.
The challenge for Coteyand company will be to create a dynamic performance from a group of peoplesitting down. The rhythm of Maher’s script should go a long way in helping thecause.
A good deal of Cotey’sjob as sound designer for the show has been a matter of working with the actorsto get the perfect vocal arrangement. This is a stage drama and a comedy, butin a way it is also an experimental chamber orchestra piece for 12 non-singingvoices. And it’s really, really deep. This sort of show rarely makes it to thestage, so it should be a unique theatrical experience for actors and audiencesalike.
Youngblood Theatre’s Spirits to Enforce runs April 22 throughMay 9 at the Miller and Campbell Costume Service (907 S. First St.).
