By Richard Pacheco
“The Hunchback of Seville” by
Charise Castro Smith Currently at Trinity Rep is a wild, wacky fun filled romp
that is a retelling, both vivid and imaginative of the Spanish history as they
ravage the New World in the name of God.
It opens with the bold Christopher Columbus played
with wacky aplomb by Jessica Ko is wild and hilarious. She comes upon land
after a precarious voyage with loads of thunder and lightening and does a merry
little dance with her two crew members. The entire play is a wild and wooly ride, full of comic twists and
turns finding its roots in the remnants of Spanish genocide and racism in a
cockeyed phantasmagoria of history in the New
World. The antics are outrageous and silly, delightfully
fun.
The actions then turns to the ailing Queen Isabella
who is concerned about naming the successor to her throne. The pickings are
slim to put it mildly. There is her daffy daughter, Princess Juana, who
indulges in idiotic baby talk and rambunctious
tantrums wild enough to put anyone into fear for their life.
Or maybe it will be Isabella’s adopted hunchback
sister, Maxima Terrible Segunda, who is voracious reader with an impressive
mind who has been imprisoned to a tower for her entire life. Isabella wants to draft her to be her crazed
daughter’s trusted advisor, no matter what protestations her daughter my offer. Anyone who has spent on second with the
whacked out Juana knows this is doomed to failure from the first word.
In the midst of this madness, there is the
meddlesome maid, Espanta who appears at times accented by dramatic lighting to
let everyone know she harbors a dark secret germane to all this madness
frolicking about at court.
The
performances here are top notch.
Jessica Ko is not only the wacky Columbus at the
beginning, but also as a meek maid later in the play. Ko is incisive in both
roles with impeccable timing and a flair for the absurd with zest.
Then there is Janice Duclos Queen Isabella, She is
full of imperious bluster and little concern for the dark side of things in her
reign. She prefers pageantry and pomp to the nitty gritty facts of her daily
reign.
The hunchback sister is played with poise and comic
finesse by Phyllis Kay. She is cynical and a bit aloof, with a keen eye to the
situation she is in and what goes on around her on a daily basis. It is a
performance full of poise and understated comic flair.
Anne Scurria is the meddling maid, Epanta who
insinuates herself into everything at every chance she gets. It is a delightful
performance, vivid and nuanced.
There is further fine support coming from Joe Wilson
Jr.'s Talib Furozh and Omar Robinson as yet another Moor. Wilson is a
delight as the Moor wanted by the government with little hope of escape or
reprieve. Robinson is enjoyable as his friend and ally.
The costumes by Oliveira Gajic are striking and
impressive, a bold mixture of old and new, vivid and impressive.
The direction by Taibi Magar is sharp and incisive,
right to the point. He emphasizes the play’s points with finesse and vigor.
The Charise Castro Smith play is imaginative, at
times ribald and always funny and intriguing. It is a dark comedy that never
fails to entertain or amuse, not matter what extremes it has to get to
accomplish that.
There are tons of surprises along the merry way of
this play.
"The Hunchback of Seville" runs
through March 6 at Trinity Rep, 201 Washington St., Providence. Tickets are $25-$71. Call (401)
351-4242, or visit trinityrep.com.
