BWW Reviews: COLOSSAL Blurs the Line Between Sport and Art

Colossal

Written by Andrew Hinderaker, Directed by Summer L. Williams; Dramaturg, Ramona Ostrowski; Choreographer, Tommy Neblett; Football Expert, Adrian Hernandez; Scenic & Projection Design, Kathryn Lieber; Lighting Design, Annie Weigand; Costume Design, Meggan Camp; Sound Design, Darby Smotherman; Properties Design, Molly FitzMaurice

CAST: Anthony Goss, Greg Maraio, Alex Molina, Marlon Shepard, Damon Singletary, Tommy Neblett, Cameron Allen, Aaron Dowdy, Chris Pittman, Ben Salus, Henoch Spinola, Kai Tshikosi; PERCUSSIONISTS: Matthew Grina, Nick Liddie, Seth Pumilia

Performances through August 15 by Company One at the Roberts Studio Theatre, Calderwood Pavilion at the Boston Center for the Arts, 527 Tremont Street, Boston, MA; Box Office 617-933-8600 or www.companyone.org

Three summers ago, Company One Theatre converted the Roberts Studio Theatre into an authentic wrestling arena for its acclaimed production of The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity, Kristoffer Diaz's satire of the faux violence and bright lights of the show biz world of professional wrestling. C1's season 16 concludes with the very real brutality of college football simulated on an astroturf stage in Colossal, a National New Play Network Rolling World Premiere by Andrew Hinderaker. Accompanied by the sights and sounds of an actual game, the audience is immersed in a "Friday Night Lights" experience of pounding drumbeats, crunching body contact, and crushing emotional sequences. Blending the physicality of the sport with the artistry of dance blurs the line between the two seemingly disparate activities, resulting in a compelling approach to telling a powerful story.

With the Super Bowl Champion New England Patriots' training camp right around the corner on the calendar, this is a timely production that will whet your appetite if you are a football fan. If the gridiron is not your cup of tea and you don't know a tailback from a touchback, or think a quarterback sneak is a guy who is likely to cheat, have no fear. The program contains a "Football for Dummies" page of definitions, and Colossal is as much about coping with adversity and finding your way in life as it is about the arguable national pastime. As the director, Company One cofounder Summer L. Williams adheres to the rigid constraints of four 15-minute quarters (bisected by a halftime show) ticking off on a scoreboard timer, yet she successfully delves into the stories beneath the surface of the locker room banter and camaraderie. She has chosen her all-male cast well and employs an all-female team of designers who provide them their gear and their playing field.

Colossal centers on 22-year-old Mike, about ten months after a life-altering injury in a game has left him in a wheelchair, erasing his dreams and setting him up for an arduous regimen of physical therapy. Hinderaker structures the play in real time, but also uses flashbacks and frequent confrontational scenes between present-day Mike (Marlon Shepard in his professional acting debut) and young Mike (Alex Molina) that accentuate his internal struggle. The flashbacks show the stark contrast between the before (able-bodied athlete) and after (paralyzed lost soul) persona, paint the backdrop of Mike's challenging relationship with his father Damon (Tommy Neblett, also the choreographer), a professional dancer, and reveal his secret romance with his teammate Marcus (Anthony Goss), who is a critical cog in the machinery of the devastating play and its aftermath.

Before his injury, young Mike is an extremely talented football player who, to his father's chagrin, has chosen the game over a career in dad's dance company. He is in incredible shape and expects to be drafted by the NFL in the first round, and he is making plans about spending some of his windfall for a place where he and Marcus can go to be themselves. Molina conveys Mike's cockiness, but grounds it in feeling comfortable in his own skin and having confidence in how his body performs, informed by his years of dance training. He is the ultimate team player and leads by example, pushing harder and longer than everyone else at practice, and is willing to sacrifice his body to protect a teammate. In his scenes with his injured self, Molina cajoles and barks at him, mixing frustration with concern that present-day Mike will not live up to young Mike's expectations of himself.

As much as Molina's health and strength are palpable, Shepard wears his heart on his sleeve and his pain (both physical and emotional) is etched on his face. Perhaps because his movements are limited by being in the wheelchair, he conveys so much feeling with nonverbal cues - a grimace, an exhalation, a silent stare. He has great chemistry with Greg Maraio as Jerry, his physical therapist (emphasis on therapist), a bit of a noodge who knows when to push and when to back off. Maraio plays him with a nice mix of self-deprecation and caring competence. Young Mike is the hard-driving motivational coach, while Jerry is the spirited cheerleader for Mike's recovery.

Goss captures the ambivalence Marcus feels about his relationship with young Mike, alternately being all in or distant, relaxing or brooding, and exercising extreme caution around the other guys in the locker room. Damon Singletary (Coach) commands attention, blowing his whistle and shouting encouragement, but also shows warmth and inner strength when Mike gets hurt. The rest of the ensemble (Cameron Allen, Aaron Dowdy, Chris Pittman, Ben Salus, Henoch Spinola, Kai Tshikosi) is authentic in their portrayals, whether running drills or trash talking with each other.

The halftime show gets off to a raucous start with virtuosic drumming by Berklee College of Music products Matthew Grina, Nick Liddie, and Seth Pumilia. In an interesting twist, the football players change out of their uniforms into black tank tops and pants to perform a modern dance piece as members of the Damon Shaw Dance Company. Neblett's choreography is simple enough for the non-dancers in the troupe, while showcasing Allen and Spinola in a homoerotic pas de deux and featuring a joyous, playful sequence with Damon and young Mike. In the third quarter, Neblett is impressive with the floor to himself when Damon is working on a raw interpretive dance that expresses his torment about Mike's situation.

Colossal lives up to its title in that it is so much more than a play about football. It might just as easily have been titled "Collision," as the world of sport collides with the world of dance, father and son clash over life choices, and the two iterations of Mike butt heads in an existential struggle that will determine his future. The strong acting performances, the brash battle of the bands, and the brutality of the game combine for an intense viewing experience, but the most powerful components of the play exist in the unspoken gestures and moments of stillness.

Photo credit: Liza Voll (Anthony Goss, Alex Molina, and Ensemble)

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