You’ve Got to See It To Believe It: THE EXCAVATION by Theater Ninjas
Anyone who has ever been to a Theater Ninjas production knows that Jeremy Paul, the theater’s guiding force and Artistic Director, doesn’t like “normal” theatre. He doesn’t pick plays or develop the ordinary. Being inside Paul’s head must be like being in a labyrinth of a fun house. Weird visions must swirl around and around. The results of Paul’s creativity are usually fascinating and confounding theatre. THE EXCAVATION, Ninjas’ latest invention, is no exception.
Now consider this. Theatre Ninjas’ “home” is part of a floor of rooms in an old abandoned industrial building. The building has been transformed into a home for the arts. The area that the Ninjas use is basically a wreck. So, if you are Paul, what do you do? You, of course, excavate the space to see what’s there. What’s there, in Paul’s mind, is Pompeii. I kid you not.
The Roman city of Pompeii was completely buried during the eruption of the volcano Mount Vesuvius over a span of two days in 79 AD. The city disappeared in about six yards of ash. It remained hidden until about 1600 when excavations gave the modern world insight into life at the height of the Roman Empire.
Paul, clipboard in hand, and a group of “guides” take the audience, who are divided into self-formed groups, each going through different experiences, to celebrate the life, death and re-discovery of Pompeii. The “guides” are rhetoricians, scientists, puppeteers, dead bodies and science fair addicts who lead us from room to room in a labyrinth of exhibits and galleries dedicated to the doomed city. As Paul explains, “blending live action, music and visual art, this interactive museum examines the way people reveal themselves when digging into the past.” (Okay, if he says so.)
The format takes us back to the happenings of the 1960s, blended with fantasy flicks, as they intersect with the Discovery and History channels.
At times the production is not an easy sit. Well, most of the time the audience is not sitting, but following the performers from place to place, being active participants in a weird adventure as they traverse through the museum shop (yes, artifacts are sold), the Main Gallery, Via Donotorem, the Catacomb entrance, the Amphitheater, Shrine, Tomb, House of Mysteries and the Observatory.
I actually learned a great deal about volcanoes (eg., when Mentos are mixed with soda, explosions occur), the history of Pompeii (or Paul’s version of it), how long I can stand while shifting my weight from foot to foot, and how much fun a classic Punch and Judy show can be.
CAPSULE JUDGMENT: It must be quite an experience to live inside the head of Jeremy Paul. You can get a glimpse of it by attending THE EXCAVATION. It’s an evening of invention, humor and the bizarre.
From Cool Cleveland contributor Roy Berko. Berko’s blog, which contains theatre and dance reviews from 2001 through 2011, as well as his consulting and publications information, can be found at http://RoyBerko.info. His reviews can also be found on NeOHIOpal and CoolCleveland.com.
Roy Berko, who is a life-long Clevelander, is a Renaissance man. Believing the line in Robert Frost’s poem “Road Not Taken,” each time he comes to a fork in the road, he has taken the path less traveled. He holds degrees, thought the doctorate from Kent State, University of Michigan and The Pennsylvania State University. His present roles, besides husband and grandfather, are professor, crisis counselor, author and entertainment reviewer… Read Roy Berko’s complete bio here
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