BWW Reviews: THE DEVIL IN HIS OWN WORDS

Words are indeed the star of this Taffety Punk production as much as the Devil himself in Marcus Kyd's ambitious The Devil in His Own Words stitched together from more than 30 literary works ranging from the Quran to the Book of Revelations, from Twain to Bulgakov to C.S. Lewis. Like a patchwork, the pieces contrast vividly in tone, pace and intensity, highlighting Kyd's artistic range and strength.

With assurance and intelligence, Kyd shares the puzzle and contrasts of Lucifer, the fallen angel who had once known the face of God. The one-man show brings us through the many guises of the Devil pulled from many interpretations and traditions. "In the play, we jump through centuries and deal with different time periods simultaneously," Kyd explains. "There is an illusion of control that the Devil grasps at, but ultimately, he is cursed. He's stuck. We try to deal with what it means to be cursed for all eternity."

The material ranges from classical text to modern stand-up, all of which Kyd attacks with great fluidity. The quiet, dangerous temptations in the desert of both Moses and Yeshua are most powerful in their hushed simplicity. A gag-laden Devil-as-CEO barking out orders on the retro red hotline was less effective with its manic energy. A scene taken from D.C. native and Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Edward P. Jones' The Devil Swims Across the Anacostia while adding local flavor and a contemporary story sadly isn't woven into the rest of the material as seamlessly as the other vignettes and distracts from the flow. But generally a light touch and wry humor in many scenes propel the action and counterbalance the thoughtful, darker, weightier moments probing evil, flaws and sinfulness.

The production elements are wonderfully spare and effective. A rolling mannequin, a ladder, a bench, some Barbie dolls, a brown lunch bag serve to place us in the narrative and add humor and whimsy. A simple backlit sheet is used to great effect. Lighting designer Chris Curtis even makes use of the black box theatre's overhead fluorescent lights to add a proper supermarket ambience. Kathy Cashel's sound design layers vocals, distortion and original music by Cashel and Michelle Rush - a rich soundscape that serves almost as another character. Scott Hammar's costumes are lush, timeless and appropriately devilish. Lise Bruneau's direction effectively balances humor and depth.

The Devil in His Own Words, a reworking of Taffety Punk's inaugural production from a decade ago, highlights the company's commitment to making the classical and the contemporary exciting and meaningful. In the ten years since The Devil in His Own Words was first produced, the company has gone on to earn the John Aniello Award for Outstanding Emerging Theatre Company at the 2008 Helen Hayes Awards and become a finalist in 2010 for the D.C. Mayor's Arts Award for Innovation in the Arts.

The Devil in His Own Words is ambitious and effective theatre; an artful adaptation of classic literary works crafted into an engaging, thought-provoking contemporary look at the Devil and humankind's flawed struggle against evil.

Runtime: approximately 70 minutes with no intermission

The Devil in His Own Words presented by the Taffety Punk Theatre Company plays through October 4, 2014 (Wednesdays through Saturdays at 8:00 PM with 3 PM matinees on September 27 and October 4 at 3:00 PM) at the Capitol Hill Arts Workshop (545 7th Street SE, Washington, DC 20003). For tickets, please visit the Taffety Punk Theatre Company website here.

photos by Lise Bruneau and Teresa Castracane.

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