Fish Eyes
Written by Lee Eshleman & Ted Swartz
Directed by Ingrid DeSanctis
at Provision Theater, 1001 W. Roosevelt (map)
thru March 31 | tickets: $10-$32 | more info
Check for half-price tickets
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Jesus’ life as seen by his apostles
Provision Theater presents
Fish Eyes
Review by Keith Glab
Fish Eyes tells the story of Jesus from the perspective of two of his apostles. Andy (Rod Armentrout) and Pete (Mark Demel) are brothers and fishermen who are down on their luck when a mysterious stranger uproots them from their mundane lives. To an extent, this version of Andrew and Simon Peter resembles Tom Stoppard’s characterizations of Rozencrantz and Guildenstern; the unwitting apostles do as they are told, rarely comprehending Jesus’ message or the ramifications of his miracles.
The most glaring incidence of this occurs during Peter’s denial of Jesus. Director Ingrid DeSanctis has Mark Demel wander aimlessly around the stage in this scene, and Demel doesn’t make it clear enough to whom he is addressing his denials. Furthermore, the famous cock crow after the third denial is puzzlingly absent from this production. What should be the most powerful moment of the play winds up a muddle instead.
The script actually leans more towards the comedic side of things most of the time, but Armentrout and Demel don’t have the comedic instincts to bring this out. They are given plenty to work with – bickering sibling interplay, ordinary folks in extraordinary situations, dramatic irony, malapropisms of common-knowledge events and quotations from the New Testament – but something about the timing and delivery causes most of it to fall flat. Humorous portrayal of biblical times is a staple of the Chicago improv and sketch comedy scene, and it’s very surprising to see it fail here in scripted form. Interestingly enough, the funniest moment comes during a bit of unscripted audience interaction during the fishes and loaves scene. Andy and Pete bring baskets up the audience aisles collecting food to be redistributed, and – during the performance I attended – one of the patrons gave Armentrout a dum-dum lollipop. In this instance, Armentrout was able to remain in character and react with good comic timing.
Provision’s set design, as usual, serves as another highlight of this production. William Boles uses diagonally-arranged fishing nets to lend visual interest to an appropriately Earth-toned color scheme. A twelve-foot long rowboat steals the two scenes in which it is featured and does not impede the action when it isn’t in use, stored upstage-right.
Nevertheless, this production is most notable for a promising concept that doesn’t play as well as it should. Not only is the expected humor mostly absent, but we never get a clear picture of how telling this story from a different perspective changes our understanding of it. When Jesus tries to explain to the two apostles the significance of the number 12, one of them exclaims, “Does everything have to be a teachable moment to this guy?” Unfortunately, there aren’t enough moments in Fish Eyes that teach the audience anything we don’t already know.
Rating: ★★
Fish Eyes continues through March 31st at Provision Theater, 1001 W. Roosevelt (map), with performances Fridays and Saturdays at 8pm, Sundays 3pm. Tickets are $10-$32, and are available by phone (312-455-0066) or online through OvationTix.com (check for half-price tickets at Goldstar.com). More information at ProvisionTheater.org. (Running time: 1 hour 30 minutes, includes an intermission)
Photos by Megan Gallagher
artists
cast
Rod Armentrout (Andy), Mark Demel (Pete)
behind the scenes
Ingrid DeSanctis (director); Alfredo Aguilar (production stage manager, production manager); William Boles (set design); William Kirkham (lighting); Daniel Carlyon (sound design); Trent Wagler (music); Megan Gallagher (photos)
13-0219
