BWW Reviews: DARK DEEDS AT SWAN'S PLACE at Theatre Suburbia

Theatre Suburbia does a "meller dramer" every year, and it's always the summer finale to their season. It's an interactive show where they encourage the audience to cheer for the heroes and boo the bad guys. They even sell popcorn to throw at opportune moments! Right after intermission there is a sing-along with the cast, and it's all family-friendly fun at the theater. It has become a tradition unique to this company, and they revel in it every year. Alice Smith provides a constant piano soundtrack to add and enhance the old time feel of everything. There's nothing quite like it out there in the Houston arts scene.

This time around the show is DARK DEEDS AT SWAN'S PLACE or NEVER TRUST A TATTOOED SAILOR by Tim Kelly. A dastardly villain named Montague Leech has made a living kidnapping unsuspecting sailors and selling them to a pirate captain in Monterey, California. He does this out of a tavern he leases, but the owner expires and his heir shows up. She's a meek orphan named Bertha Birthright, and the bad guy wants to con her right out of the place. But along comes a hero in the form of an English gentleman called Jack Swan, and he just might save the day. Swirling around them are a cast of mysterious characters who all seem to have their own secret, and not to mention a gold rush that explodes the entire town.

This year Suzanne King takes the helm of the melodrama, and she is aided in her directorial duties by Lindsay Smith. They don't stray far from convention, and the show fits nicely in the tradition of Theatre Suburbia's annual event. The two have created a nice pace, and guided their actors to throw all subtlety out the door. Suzanne has a reputation for bringing the comedy out in her productions, and she does well with this piece as pre-ordained as it all is by the genre.

The large cast represents a nice mix of veterans of melodrama as well as new faces to the fold. Adrian Collinson dons his black hat and cape again this year for his second turn as the main villain Montague Leach. He twirls the moustache nicely, and does an admirable job of bringing smarmy menace but not without charm. He's the guy you love to hate. Alex Thompson is once again the heroine, and she's as beautiful and big eyed as ever. She knows how to get the audience sympathy, and acquits herself nicely through all the trappings of this type of show. Her hero is played by Shane Weikel who is making his Theatre Suburbia debut. The boy knows how to ham it up well, and his poetry performance of "The Wind" is a comedic highlight. Amanda Garcia Faul is the bad guy's slithery hench woman, Carlotta Castanet de San Diego. She's great fun as she tangoes her way through tempting all the sailors with her buxom charms and feminine wiles. Ian Collinson is the other sidekick for the villain, and the bad guy's real life son to boot. They have a neat rapport that showcases well onstage.

Also returning this year to the melodrama is Iggy Nguyen, who gets to play the mysterious Oriental lady Tai Pan in drag. He's joyously big and broad, but also has the sense to restrain himself to create a believable Asian woman. Raul Castillo pulls double duty as a pirate and a soldier, and manages to do both well with enough easy to see distinction to keep the two separate for the audience. I loved the spunky Augusta played by Yolanda Ratcliff who brings some Southern charm and a smart church hat to the proceedings. Kiki Cummings, Mildred Dickel Johnson, and Susan Palmgen O'Connor round out the town's lady characters nicely each with their own schtick to develop. Ken Cullinane and Johnny Le each get multiple roles to round out the guys side of things with great aplomb.

DARK DEEDS AT SWAN'S PLACE is simple theatrical fun without a penny of pretense. There's no deep meanings here, no subtext, and no need to analyze much. Get your popcorn at the door, and be ready to chunk fistfuls at Adrian Collinson and his sidekicks. The acting is broad, the costumes are bright, and the set is just a tavern in gold rush era California. If you've never seen the melodrama at Theatre Suburbia then this is a great one to indoctrinate yourself with. If you're a fan of this genre you'll appreciate their commitment to presenting something few theaters do anymore. Kids should have a good time since it is all so interactive and broad.

The show runs at Theatre Suburbia through August 29th. It shows Friday and Saturday evenings at 8:30, and also Sunday matinees at 3:00pm on select dates. Reservations are best made by calling (713) 682-3525. More information can be found at www.theatresuburbia.org

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