As ambitious projects go, West Hartford’s Playhouse on Park has
set the theatrical bar
quite high and then proceeded to soar over it. The theater has built a grand pool of
water
on stage in which to dip your toes or plunge in fully clothed as it tells
the fascinating tales of
“Metamorphoses,” myths of Greek and Roman origins as
originally penned by Ovid in 8
A.D. and adapted in 1996 by Mary Zimmerman.
Until Sunday, July 1, you are invited to experience a series of
vignettes about the gods and
mortals who sought immortality and love, who felt
greed and lust, who gave in to
temptations and wanderlust as a cast of ten
talented actors – Amelia Randolph Campbell,
David Nate Goldman, Harrison
Greene, Melissa Kaufman, Troy Peckham, Jillian Rorrer,
Justin Sease, Quinn
Warren, Eric Whitten and Ashley C. Williams-splash, float and come
close to
drowning in the shimmering waters as they retell ancient tales relevant to
today’s
world.
The gods in all their power and frailty come to earth in a series
of stories that will provoke and tease, stimulate and sadden, inspire and
educate. You’ll remember King
Midas and his prized treasury of wealth, the classic workaholic 24/7, who when
offered a boon from the gods chooses a golden touch. His heart’s desire proves particularly painful when he
touches his beloved daughter and turns her into a pure and precious metal.
The
pool turns tempestuous for King Ceyx who leaves his bride Alcyone to go off to
sea only to be killed in a storm.
But her love and devotion persuade the gods to let Iris the rainbow
goddess transform the tragic pair into birds who will forever fly the heavens.
Other
tales involve Phaeton who demands of Apollo, his father, the keys to his
chariot so he can race across the sky, a story he relates to his therapist when
he almost destroys the earth by flying too close to the sun, of Cupid with his
blinded eyes and his search for true love, and of gods who punish Erysichthon
by sending him Hunger so no amount of food satisfies his craving for
nourishment, after he cuts down a tree sacred to Ceres, the goddess of the
harvest.
Mourn with Orpheus who
loses his bride Eurydice on their wedding day and travels to the Underworld to
reclaim her, only to lose her not once more, but twice. Enjoy the many disguises that Vertumnus
assumes in his wooing of the nymph Pomona and how he eventually wins her love
by being himself. Within this
story is the tragic tale of Myrrha who is cursed to love her own father in an
unnatural way and is punished by melting away in a pool of water, dissolving
like her tears.
Sean Harris directs a talented troupe who are almost all making
their Playhouse on Park debuts in this imaginative work that spans centuries
with its universal themes of love, life, greed, loss, and all their wisdoms and
warnings.
Original music is composed and played by Richard Hollman.
For tickets ($22.50-32.50) call Playhouse on Park, 244 Park Road,
West Hartford at 860-523-5900, ext. 10 or online at www.playhouseonpark.org. Performances are Wednesday and Thursday
at 7:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m.
Dive
into this transforming pool where Mary Zimmerman plays lifeguard and the god
Poseidon reigns supreme. There’s
no need to bring towels or shower caps.
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