The Judgment of Paris: They Certainly Can Can-Can
by Michael Dale - January 15, 2009
Although no one under 16 is permitted to enter the Duo Theatre for Company XIV's playfully sexy theatre/dance piece, The Judgment of Paris, there's really, as they say in Texas, nothing dirty going on. Perfectly placed within the faded elegance of the cozy 4th Street venue, conceiver/director/choreographer Austin McCormick's literary frolic taken from Greek mythology (he, along with Toby Burns and company members, adapted the text from several sources) mixes aspects of baroque dance with some pop culture and several spirited can-cans to prove one undeniable fact; guys go nuts over blondes.
Despite the frisky Moulin Rouge atmosphere (evocatively expressed by Olivera Gajic's silky costumes, Rumiko Ishii's clamshell footlighted stage and Leigh Allen's soft, dim lighting), the Paris in question is actually the Prince of Troy (Seth Numrich plays all the male roles) who, in what McCormick calls "the first ever beauty contest," selects Aphrodite (Gioia Marchese) as the hottest of all the goddesses in exchange for the undying love of the Spartan Queen, Helen (Elyssa Dole). As a result, the Trojan War is declared, a thousand ships are launched and the legend of the "blonde bombshell" is born.
There are sly references to Marlene Dietrich, The Busby Berkeley Girls, Marilyn Monroe and other icons of blonde glorification, but the piece turns dangerously serious when lustful worship turns to brutal and dehumanizing objectification. Not wanting to end on a sour note, everyone rallies up the smiles for a few choruses of Cole Porter's "Can-Can." Other recorded musical selections come from Offenbach, Vivaldi, Dietrich and others.
The bulk of the spoken text in the hour-long production is delivered as narration, with Numrich and Marchese serving as stylish hosts. They, along with the rest of the fine dancing ensemble (Doyle, Laura Careless, Yeva Glover and the muscular Davon Rainey, who dances as a woman without a spec of camp) work with terrific precision and are quite adorable as they wink, flirt and mingle with audiences members both before and during the show. It's a little arty, a little erotic and great fun.
Photo of Laura Careless, Yeva Glover and Gioia Marchese by Steven Schreiber.
