Review: The White Snake (Goodman Theatre)

  
  
The White Snake
 
Written and Directed by Mary Zimmerman
Original music by Andre Pluess  
at Goodman Theatre, 170 N. Dearborn (map)
thru June 8  |  tickets: $25-$86   |  more info
  
Check for half-price tickets 
  
  
   Read review
  

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Venerable folktale gets dazzling reinvention

Goodman Theatre presents

White Snake

Review by Clint May 

From the Tony Award-winning director that brought Chicago Metamorphoses comes her latest spin on an ancient myth. Full of insight and the elegant spectacle she and her team have created time and again, Mary Zimmerman’s The White Snake brings a nearly 2000 year old tale to the 21st century in a family-friendly spellbinder of a show.

An immortal white snake spirit (Amy Kim Waschke) has spent thousands of years coiled atop a sacred mountain, contemplating the transcendent and learning the magical Taoist arts. In a dream (or maybe not?), an Immortal tells her of a past life in which she was saved from destruction by a passing merchant. To repay the balance, she allows herself to be enticed by her younger companion, the green snake (Tanya Thai McBride), to change themselves into beautiful young women and descend into the world of mortals. There she meets a young man of lowly birth (Jon Norman Schneider) and falls helplessly in love. Thwarting their forbidden romance is the head monk of Jinshan Temple (Matt DeCaro), who views the woman as a demon – despite her charity – and her love with a mortal an abominable sin.

A simple story retold in countless cultures and media with as many disparate details amongst them, Zimmerman’s retelling focuses on the sacrifices we make for love—even when it’s taboo. It’s possible she means to make the zealot monk a parody of religious leaders that decry certain types of marriages in our society, but that’s just one interpretation. She makes several brave choices (a hallmark during her 20 years), particularly a philosophically poignant ending that eschews the easy in favor of the open-ended melancholy found in pre-Grimmiefied fairy tales. This may be the design team’s most graceful pageantry to date. My particular favorite is the form of the white snake (one of several, and one of them quite terrifying) evoked by a parade of undulating umbrellas. Daniel Ostling’s austere set, Mara Blumenfeld’s gorgeous costumes, Shawn Sagady’s sophisticated projections—it all combines to enchant young and old alike. Her only misstep is a too-often digression into Disney-style humor that temporarily cuts through the mythological profundity.

  

Tuned appropriately to just-this-side of operatic archetype, the core trio remain loveable and accessible. Waschke is a grand presence tinged with heartbreaking resolve, counterpointed by the more zany foil of McBride’s energy. They’re the prototypical female buddy duo. That leaves McBride to be a slightly less interesting, ‘hapless man’ type, but given how often women are relegated to ‘damsel’ in fairy tales, I’d say this just evens things out a bit. Unfortunately, De Caro never imbues Fa Hai with enough of a threatening presence to inhabit a fairy tale menace, more comic than sinister. Set to the beautiful, culturally evocative score by Andre Pluess, they and the able band of supporting characters achieve a wonderful sense of the timeless meeting the contemporary that makes the Zimmerman brand so appealing.

Rich and resonant in that ineffable way that makes the enduring myths both fantastical and human, The White Snake is at its best when it meditates on the universal challenges of romance that have made this type of story so pervasive. How much we can give of ourselves, what to hide and what to reveal, the need for balance, self-deception, etc. Its grand visions always underscore the piquancy of those emotional elements. At the risk of being cute, it’s nice to see a transformation tale that achieves a subtle reversal—a snake that charms us.

Rating: ★★★

The White Snake continues through June 8th at Goodman Theatre, 170 N. Dearborn (map), with performances Wednesdays 7:30pm, Thursdays 2pm and 8pm, Fridays and Saturdays 8pm, Sundays 2pm and 7:30pm.  Tickets are $25-$86, and are available by phone (phonenumber) or online through URL (check for half-price tickets at Goldstar.com). More information at GoodmanTheatre.org.  (Running time: 1 hour 40 minutes without intermission)

Photos by Liz Lauren and T. Charles Erickson 

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artists

cast

Richard Howard (Canopus), Cristofer Jean (Brother-in-Law), Emily Sophia Knapp (Crane), Vin Kridakorn (Boatman), Matt DeCaro (Fa Hai), Tanya Thai McBride (Green Snake), Jon Norman Schneider (Xu Xian), Stephenie Soohyun Park (Guan Yin), Eliza Shin (Acolyte), Lisa Tejero (Sister), Amy Kim Waschke (White Snake)

musicians

Tessa Brinckman (Flutes), Ronnie Malley (Strings/Percussion), Michael Palzewicz (Cello)

behind the scenes

Mary Zimmerman (director), Daniel Ostling (set design), Mara Blumenfeld (costume design), T.J. Gerckens (lighting design), Andre J. Pluess (original music, sound design), Shawn Sagady (projections), Adam Belcuore (casting), Joseph Drummond (production stage manager), Briana J. Fahey (stage manager), T. Charles Erickson, Liz Lauren (photos)

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