Thursday, April 24, 2008

Dog Sees God... the review



As mentioned in my last post, this past weekend we saw Offspring #1 in Dog Sees God. (The above photo is from the campus newspaper. Offspring #1 is standing in the foreground.)

The play, by Bert V. Royal, is a dark comedy that focuses on the teen years of the Charlie Brown gang. (Offspring #1 plays Marcy/Marcie.) Going into the play, I knew that the characters would no longer be simple, innocent comic strip kids. And indeed CB (Charlie Brown) is dealing with the death of his beloved beagle (yikes, rabies!), Van (Linus) is a pothead, Tricia (Peppermint Patty) and Marcy (Marcie) have become "mean girls", Matt (Pigpen) has become a jock and germaphobe, and Van's Sis (Lucy) is in a mental health facility because of her pyromania. Whoa! But I was prepared for character changes.

What I was totally unprepared for was the raw, incredible power of the play as the characters dealt with some big freakin' issues. For example... In an unexpected plot turn (spoiler alert!), CB develops feelings for Beethoven (Shroeder), a sensitive pianist who has been victimized by the popular kids. As the plot unfolds (especially in the confrontation scene with homophobic Matt) the audience is shockingly reminded of how easily school tragedies can happen when an environment of bullying and intolerance exists.

Some of the biggest laughs came in response to the high-energy antics of Tricia and Marcy. (e.g. They get buzzed at school by adding booze to their milk cartons in the cafeteria.) Yet these characters are far from one-dimensional caricatures. They are played with great depth and complexity, and their behavior helps underscore the tragedy of the pursuit of mindless popularity.

This production was really well done with a talented ensemble of actors. The set and sound design were both top notch and greatly added to the experience. One cool thing... I loved some of the "winks" to the comic strips and movies. For example, Marcy throws a party when her parents are away, and the characters all dance exactly like the cartoon kids did in the Peanuts tv specials.

Hats off to the director (Dr. Rich Brown) and all those involved in this compelling, thought-provoking play.

10 comments:

dust bunny said...

I am not happy about missing this one.

thanks for the glimpse.

Unknown said...

Sounds like a great play!

Hot Cup Lutheran said...

sounds like artistic license was truly taken to heart! but personally... i don't like it when they "mess" with happy things from my childhood.

snoopy is still alive and well people. ALIVE AND WELL. and since it's raining at my house... snoopy is typing "it was a dark and stormy night..."

okay i can sleep better having gotten that off my chest...

Rev SS said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Lori said...

I have never heard of this play. Man I would love to see it! It's rather like Wicked, looking at the true life underbelly of our iconic stories. Maybe it's indicative of our culture growing up. A little.

You must be one very proud mama! Great picture.

Barbara B. said...

Thanks everybody!

hotcup, snoopy could have typed "it was a dark and stormy play"! :)

pg, interesting comparison to wicked (which I also loved). And yes, proud mama here. (She's really a wonderful talent.)

Processing Counselor said...

I knew you daughter was an actress!

Rev SS said...

I'm with Hot Cup!

Diane M. Roth said...

wow! sounds really incredible! I'm sure offspring #1 did well too.

Terri said...

Yes, sounds like a play I would enjoy and appreciate - thanks for the review...