BWW Reviews: Synetic's Gory, Brilliant ISLAND OF DR. MOREAU Perfect Halloween Viewing

Roll over, Bela Lugosi: there's a new smooth-talking villain in town, and he wants your flesh. Not to drink it mind you, he just wants to slice-and-dice it a bit. Paata Tsihurishvili, who has been dearly missed during his behind-the-scenes hiatus, returns to the stage in fine form as one of literature's most notorious mad scientists: H. G. Wells' Dr. Moreau. And although Moreau lacks Dracula's royal blood he more than makes up for it with his scientific pedigree-a pedigree which, like nobility, has resulted in a monstrous lack of empathy for his subjects.

If you are looking for that edgy, near-perfect evening out this Halloween season, it doesn't matter whether you've got a date to impress or a feisty teenager who loves gore-you really must check out Synetic Theatre's The Island of Dr. Moreau. Synetic has firmly established its horror-show cred in recent years, with last year's The Portrait of Dorian Grey setting a very high bar indeed for macabre vivant. This year's entry is every bit as creepy and horrific, with the added thrill of futuristic gadgetry-some of which, hauntingly enough, looks like it had just been borrowed from the clinic down the street.

This updated version of Wells' original 1896 novel, skillfully adapted by Nathan Weinberger, reminds us that we've had issues with modern science, well, almost as long as we've had modern science. Wells himself would have grown up with Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, that classic tale of scientific arrogance and its devastating consequences; and as a child of the British Empire he not only witnessed the arrogance of science he also knew of the often-inhuman methods used by his fellow Englishmen to 'civilize' their non-white colonial subjects around the world. The Empire's prosperity relied just as much on expendable human capital as it did on industrial innovation, so it's hardly a coincidence that The Island of Dr. Moreau preceded Joseph Conrad's condemnation of Belgian rule in the Congo, The Heart of Darkness, by only three years.

In Moreau we find a scientist on a desert island in the Pacific, who is determined to channel Darwin and even God Himself by speeding up the evolutionary process. With his skeleton crew, a drunk assistant Montgomery (played by the disarming, exuberant Dallas Tolentino), Moreau's goal is to convert the island's indigenous beasts into humanoids-a process involving painful surgery and the insertion of programming cards to control these hybrid animals' movements and thoughts. Into this nightmarish experiment arrives Parker, a shipwrecked lepidopterist (I'll let you look that one up) who becomes increasingly horrified by what he sees on the island.

Parker's horror is heightened by encounters with Moreau's subjects, Beasts who are half-human and half-animal, as they roam and play with Phil Charlwood's ingenious set (half diabolical laboratory, half jungle). The performance of the Synetic ensemble in these roles is the highlight of choreographer Irina Tsikurishvili's work here, and a signature of the company's work at its best. Decked out in Kendra Rai's fantastical, colorful costumes-spikes here, spirals there, odd bits of flesh stapled on from head to toe-these six performers deserve high praise for their intricate, carefully-coordinated movements.

As the visitor Parker, Alex Mills exudes magnetic, Matt Damon-like good looks; and the innocence of his character gives way to a determination to cross Moreau at every opportunity. Parker's decision to shoot one of Moreau's most important 'specimens' (Philip Fletcher's memorable Creature) is made out of compassion, even though it risks Moreau's wrath. Among the beasts who try desperately to communicate with Parker is Feline; Tori Bertocci personifies the rage and pain of the island's original inhabitants, and rules the stage whenever she appears. The ruler of the Beasts, Sayer, is played here with a combination of pathos and authority by Pasquale Guiducci.

The other innocent character is Moreau's daughter, played here by Eliza Smith; the role requires a shocking, turn-on-a-dime transition toward the end of the play, which renders her earlier appearances all the more discomfiting. Perhaps the night's most disturbing sequence comes when Smith walks onto the stage with a stuffed rabbit, and-to the strains of a Chopin Nocturne-proceeds to play 'doctor' with it in much the same way as her father, with daddy Moreau looking on approvingly. Hollywood's toy-monsters can't touch this one, folks, take it from me.

The technical skill of Synetic's production company is so high it's tempting to take it for granted; Konstantine Kortkipanidze's original music drives the nightmarish dance sequences quite effectively, and Brittany Diliberto's lights include some truly dazzling effects, incorporating the walls of the theatre and evoking the great outdoors of the Pacific.

Given the ample evidence of Synetic's high standards, it's all the more puzzling that Tsikurishvili has neglected an equally important element: human sound, otherwise known as dialogue. Nathan Weinberger has done a great job honing the novel to its most essential words, and yet the audience is cheated of his work. The choice to provide microphones for minor characters only, and then to drown out crucial scenes with Kortkipanidze's music-which blares at high volume from the stage's side-speakers regardless of whether the cast is dancing or talking-is a tremendous disappointment. We strain to hear Moreau as he wanders upstage, to no avail; the words simply escape us. I would hope that the company can work out the balances in volume and equipment here, to give us as full an experience of Dr.Moreau as possible.

Running Time: 100 minutes, without intermission

ADVISORY: This production contains graphic scenes of cruelty and implied adult situations (details which might make it highly recommended for gamers aged 16 and up).

Production Photo: Alex Mills as Parker and Paata Tsikurishvili as Dr. Moreau in The Island of Dr. Moreau. Synetic Theater. Photo by Johnny Shryock.

Performances are October 1-November 2 at Synetic Theater, Crystal City, 1800 S. Bell Street, Arlington VA.

Tickets can be ordered by calling 866-811-4111 or logging into: www.synetictheater.org

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