“Things are not always what they seem,” says Tanya, the blonde.
If so, then how much self-deception enters the imaginings of our everyday lives?
Butterfly Effect’s production of Robert Hewett’s The Blonde, the Brunette and the Vengeful Redhead, presents this question and we, the audience, can only rely on the Roshomon Effect monologue stories of the seven characters, male and female, ranging from four to over 60.
Photo courtesy of Michael Geier and LAB Space
There is a death but who, how and why? Kim Chen (程鈺婷) is the tour de force storyteller taking on all roles and if you weren’t a fan of hers before taking your seat, you will be by play’s end.
Kim deftly personalizes the gestures, language and intonation of each of the seven in a tale that begins after Rhonda’s husband Graham has cowardly ended their seventeen-year marriage over the phone.
However, what makes Hewett’s play a gem for the audience is that even while enjoying the performance, we are forced to examine the isolation of everyman’s limited perceptions.
Photo courtesy of Michael Geier and LAB Space
Different pieces of the puzzle will come from each character, but it is only “years later” at play’s end that the never seen but previously mentioned Ellen brings resolution.
Time sequences and Chinese translations of dialogue are found on stage right. Yang Chih-yi’s (楊之儀) set, Jenna Robinette’s costumes and Anton Botes’ sound design skillfully keep pace with each changing monologue.
This summer classic is not to be missed.
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