SCR's 'Shipwrecked!' Blimey Fun

Growing up in a coastal community, dreams of swashbuckling and great sea adventures floated around throughout my adolescence, and thanks, in part, to Disney recently giving a much needed boost to the pirate adventures series, tales of the high seas are back in vogue.  Subsequently, what was once the toast of Victorian England, Louis de Rougemont's wild stories of a life out at sea, has come full circle and once again shines as bright as the North Star at South Coast Repertory.

As told through the guise of a theatrical reading of de Rougemont's purported autobiographical tales of being stranded on a deserted isle for nearly 30 years, SCR's world premiere of Shipwrecked! An Entertainment – The Amazing Adventures of Louis de Rougemont (As Told by Himself) surprisingly sails smoothly as it traverses the tall tales of swimming atop sea turtles and giant octopus attacks while remaining grounded in the intriguing story of the seafaring adventurer, himself. 

In the title role, Gregory Itzin (Fox's "24") captures the precise flair de Rougemont must have had during his lecturing in England following his return to society in the late 1800's, often recalling the presence Mark Twain, or rather Samuel Clemens, had on stage for his own wild readings throughout America during the same time period.  Itzin remains salty yet all the while cheerful in telling his character's exploits, which can often be slightly hard to swallow, much like a strong bottle of pirate's rum, or so I am told.

The story of de Rougemont's travels is nothing new, with stranded island woes, native islander encounters, an exotic marriage to a beautiful "savage" (Melody Butiu) and the skeptical fallout upon public scrutiny of such stories, but the sheer vividness of such recollections and telling propel the entire experience beyond a Robert Louis Stevenson knockoff.  Such adventurous tales come off as colorful as a child's wild fantasy-filled dreams, imagined with only a few simple props (mostly crates and chests from a theatre's backstage warehouse; from set designer Keith Mitchell).

There are a few choppy moments during the voyage, mainly a plain clothed cast member (Michael Daniel Cassady) doing a silly portrayal of de Rougemont's friendly canine companion, which if believed, survived a shipwreck and remained the sailor's best friend during a long stretch somewhere off the coast of Australia.  To the credit of all those involved in creating such a comic character, the audience remained amused for all the pooch-like antics.  As do the childishly funny shadow puppet designs from Christine Marie, which are certain to provide a chuckle or two.

Beyond the fascination with wild happenings out at sea, Shipwrecked! delves into the post glory days of de Rougemont, chronicling his horrifying jolt into a progressive society that long ago abandoned his cherished pre-industrial London town.  Ironically, it is the same modern technologies that propel the author towards fame and fortune, albeit for only a short while, as the penny press allowed magazines to publish his works.

Accolades are short lived for de Rougemont, as experts and critics, oh those humbugs, bring his memoirs to a standstill after pointing out the sheer implausibility of many noted accounts.  It is hard not to think of a modern example of such shame thanks to James Frey's infamous experience on Oprah Winfrey's television talker.  Where de Rougemont's story differs is that honest sympathy wells from within as Itzin puts no ego or cockiness on stage, rather only heartening moments of a man only looking to entertain those in need of cheering. 

In the end, Shipwrecked! does not fully explain if de Rougemont's stories were fact or fiction, but that really is not the point.  Unfortunately, for the real-life author, he was unable to recover from the ridicule and died poor and shamed.  And general consensus remains that his wild stories were nothing more than the wild fantasies of a depressed and failed old man.  It is discouraging that nobody, other than "The Wild World Magazine," saw the entertaining potential of de Rougemont's work.

Had the author attempted such a feat today, he would have been awarded a hefty signing bonus and most likely optioned with a major studio.  Although, he would hopefully be proud of the latest incarnation of his work, Shipwrecked!, directed by Bart DeLorenzo, and written by Pulitizer Prize winner Donald Margulies.  At least they will not be held up to scrutiny by the Royal Geographical Society, only by those harsh theatre critics.

Shipwrecked! An Entertainment – The Amazing Adventures of Louis de Rougemont (As Told by Himself) plays on South Coast Repertory's Julianne Argyros Stage through October 14.  Tickets can be purchased online at www.scr.org or by calling 714-708-5555.  SCR is located at 655 Town Center Drive in Costa Mesa.

Photos by Henry DiRocco/SCR.  (1-2) Gregory Itzin (3) Gregory Itzin, center, with Melody Butiu and Michael Daniel Cassady.

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