Kinetic Theatre is one of the few companies in Pittsburgh that prospers on the nomadic model. Helmed by tireless and resourceful Producing Artistic Director Andrew Paul, who has directed all thirteen of Kinetic’s impactful productions (most recently Brandon Jacob Jenkin’s critically-lauded, devastatingly prescient Octoroon), Kinetic, “theatre that can’t stand still,” is as committed to enlivening the classic works of theatre and literature that are the foundations of our craft as they are to giving a platform to bold, new plays and voices.
Kinetic’s lineup for Summer 2019 follows through on its commitment to pay due diligence to both classic and modern dramaturgy. The months of June and July will see two, exquisitely-casted productions—The Speckled Band in June, and Scapino in July—that uniquely represent an admixture of classic theatre and ingenious modernization that is characteristic of Kinetic’s exceptional vision.
Frequently reproduced and re-imagined, the oeuvre of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, specifically the chronicles of his fabled protagonist Sherlock Holmes, has enjoyed a voluminous life on stage in Pittsburgh. Paul and his creative collaborators at Kinetic have been responsible for a remarkable amount of the Holmes curation, bringing Charles Marowitz’s novel Sherlock’s Last Case, Peepolykus’ adaptation of The Hound of Baskerville, and Jeffrey Hatcher’s Holmes and Watson to life ecstatically over the past years. With The Speckled Band, Kinetic delves once again into the escapades of Holmes, Watson and an eclectic cast of characters ensnared in a diabolical scheme. The Speckled Band, also known as The Adventure of the Speckled Band, was published as one of the 56 short Sherlock Holmes stories, and is the eighth of the 12 stories that comprise The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes collection. Personally considered to be his best Holmes story, Doyle first published Band in Strand Magazine in 1892 and later adapted the story for the stage, premiering at the historic Adelphi Theatre in 1912.
David Whalen as Holmes and James FitzGerald as Watson
Kinetic’s production of The Speckled Band will be a triumphant reunion of sorts for some the Pittsburgh Holmes Elite, including David Whalen as Sherlock Holmes and James FitzGerald as Watson. The Speckled Band opens on a distraught Enid Stoner, inconsolable after the untimely death of her sister, who is brutishly implored to get her emotions in check by her mercurial and brooding stepfather, Grimesby Rylott (and if ever there was a villainous name…). Cue the spot-on perspicacity of the dutiful Dr. John Watson, a friend of Enid’s family since his military service in India, who senses danger is afoot for Enid. He calls upon his colleague and indefatigable detective, Sherlock Holmes, to poke around the dubious situation. James FitzGerald is a tour-de-force as Watson, whose resilience, astute sensitivity and keenness that so often serve as a complement to Holmes’ ostentatious brilliance are center stage in this production.
David Whalen returns to Sherlock Holmes as a second self, as Band marks his sixth outing with the legendary sleuth. A self-described “workaholic” like Holmes, Whalen notes that each iteration of the character is unique experience. “Each ‘Holmes’ play is a new challenge… I try to bring as much energy, intelligence, and wit to the character…. My own life experiences are fodder to draw on for Sherlock,” Whalen notes, emphasizing a symbiosis between character and actor. “For Holmes, life is all about the details, observing it, experiencing it, this has influenced me to be more aware to all that is around me.”
The Speckled Band premieres Saturday, June 15th at the Charity Randall Theatre and features a stellar cast of Pittsburgh’s finest including Sam Tsoutsouvas, Jessie Wray Goodman, Wali Jamal, and Martin Giles. Whalen announces Band’s appeal exquisitely, remarking “it’s surprisingly timely as we watch Holmes deal with an abusive husband, a reckless egotist, & a slew of corrupt individuals. Yet, through it all, there is a goodness among some that must rise above it all.”
In the spirit of honor classic stories while illuminating the bevy of bold new voices in theatre, Kinetic’s second production of the summer, Jeffrey Binder’s Scapino, is a divinely ludicrous leap into the world of mafiosos, haywire desire, and Moliere. If you feel like that trifecta is playing “one of these things is not like the other,” then you haven’t opened your mind to the infinite possibilities that can be harnessed by a daringly irreverent script. Binder–who does double-duty, starring in the play he penned—modeled his script after satirist Moliere’s 1671 comedy, Scapin the Schemer, featuring the conniving yet diplomatic machinations of Scapin as he manipulates the marriages of several political figureheads’ children.
Rebuilding the framework of the source material, Binder’s play transplants the story of romantic pursuits and foiled marriages into the harried, melodramatic world of sleazy, Florida mob bosses.
Jeffrey Binder as Scapino and Phillip Taratula as Sylvester in Gulfshore Theatre’s “Scapino” Staging
The uproarious play, which shattered box office expectations at noteworthy Gulfshore Playhouse during its sensational run last year, centers around Leo, who is in love with Feather, and Chloe, who is love with Octavio, and their desperate reliance on the quintessentially skeevy, disbarred lawyer Scapino to navigate their romances in spite of the age-old rivalry between mob-boss fathers. Binder’s play has been heralded as unequivocally, superbly funny, and the irreverent new work fits in exquisitely with the Pittsburgh theatre aesthetic. As comical as it is clever and daring, Scapino will be brought to life by an outstanding cast featuring Phillip Taratula (who also starred in the Gulfshore Playhouse premiere) David Whalen, Ethan Saks, Sarah Silk, and, of course, playwright Jeffrey Binder. Scapino will run July 11th-July 28th at the Henry Heymann theatre in Oakland.
Decidedly not to be missed, Kinetic Theatre dazzling, one-two punch of a Summer lineup continues the company’s tradition of immaculate craft, dynamic storytelling, and quality theatre that. For more information on these shows and Kinetic Theatre, visit their homepage.
Categories: Feature