WildClaws Play With God
Events / 3/3/2008 7:07:37 PM
We had to duke it out here at Killer-works over who would get to write about this next event! Eventually Jude Mire's chops in literary horror history won out and he brings you the words of praise about a modern take on an ancient god of gore. (Besides, I always get to give my two cents too - check out my p.s.'s at the end.)
Almost a dozen years ago I missed a stage version of the Clive Barker short story 'In the Flesh'. I got hopelessly lost on the way to the theater and never managed to see it. So it was with great delight that I discovered that the same folks have launched WildClaw Theatre and tackled a terrifying tale by one of horror's founding fathers; The Great God Pan by Arthur Machen. Now, if you don't know who Arthur Machen is, I wouldn't be surprised. Most of his stories were published almost a hundred years ago. His influence reverberates down through the authors he inspired, from H.P. Lovecraft to Stephen King. He helped open the door on the mystical world of supernatural horror writing and the beasts have been creeping into our nightmares ever since.
The newly minted Chicago-based WildClaw Theatre group is a rare (and welcomed) beast dedicated solely to Horror theatre. "Our audience is one that craves stage journeys of wonder, dread, suspense, and terror." Their inaugural production of The Great God Pan fulfills all of this and more. The play itself is fantastically executed considering the restraints of space and story. The tale spans the lifetime of a man, from his youth as a skeptic, his obsessive pursuits, and his final confessions. It would be impossible to tell the story literally from Machen's text, but Charley Sherman (adaptor/director) does an excellent job of creating a narrative flow that makes sense, and also adds a bit more purpose and depth to the origins and motivations of the tales antagonist. The additions to the first act are chilling.
Michaela Petro (as Mary)
Props are minimal so there is a great deal left to your imagination. Lighting and sound (Did we hear some Nick Cave along side the thunderclaps and ballroom dances?) skillfully move you around the stage, help set the tone and punctuate the moments of tension. The acting is also of high caliber and the female leads Lily Majekwu (as the many faces of evil) and Michaela Petro (as Mary) are particularly captivating. Descriptive dialogue carries the play a long way, but it is not without gore. If you're looking for blood, you won't be disappointed. Any play that requires two intermission so they can bring out the mops... well, that's a good thing in my book!
Jude Mire
Jill's p.s. The Great God Pan is playing at the Athenaeum Theatre in Chicago between February 28 through March 30, 2008. Go see them before they get some corporate, Sweeney Todd-like dollars (Okay, my set designer career roots are showing, but I can only image how much more fantastic it will be with a big budget) and the tickets cost an arm and a leg.
p.p.s. As a side note, I also particularly enjoyed the visual story behind the show poster design on the WildClaw Theatre website! -JC
