Tristan Ross

Enter the shadowy world of ‘M’

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By John Lyle Belden

Never a company to shy away from dark material, Catalyst Repertory presents “M,” a new play based on an old movie, written and directed by Tristan Ross. The original, by legendary German film pioneer Fritz Lang in 1931, was a predecessor to the genre of film noir. Being Lang’s first picture with sound, he innovated with it in ways that still inspire today’s filmmakers.

Ross captures the feeling of entrapment in a black-and-white world with the audience on three sides of the black-box Everwise Stage (formerly Indy Eleven) surrounded by heavy dark curtains. Entering and exiting this space feels like a labyrinth. Actors’ costumes are in blacks, greys and browns, with among a spare few props bright red balloons for effective contrast.

Voices literally surround us with some lines delivered by obscured actors behind the curtains or prerecorded. Little girls are puppets (provided by Beverly Roche) with vague innocent faces, ethereally voiced offstage by Kristin Watson Heintz. Technical director Arden Tiede and lighting designer Tim Dick assist with the noir effects, including fog and image projections, with graphic assistance by Catalyst founder Casey Ross.

As in the original story, by Lang with Thea von Harbou, there is a serial killer, known as “the Midnight Man,” attacking young girls. Ten have been brutally murdered when Mrs. Beckmann (Maria Meschi) discovers her Elsie is missing. Among the last to encounter the child alive was a friendly blind man (Craig Kemp) who we discover is a homeless former lawyer who manages through barter to get balloons to sell to neighborhood children. Police Chief Lohman (James Mannan) and Detective Grodin (Kirk Fields) find an unseeing “witness” only the beginning of their frustrations, as practically no clues are found and suspect leads go nowhere.

Meanwhile, the criminal community has grown frustrated with massively increased police activity and a fearful population cutting deeply into their “business.” Plus, even hardened criminals have no patience with child murder. Thus, one of their leaders, Breaker (Tristan Ross) leads an underworld search for the Midnight Man, with the help of thief Frank (Jeff Stratfer) and club/brothel owner Sharp (Austin Hookfin), with the Balloon Vendor working the “invisible” street people.

Another genre-inspiring aspect of this story is that the audience sees the perpetrator early on, one of the early plots about a killer’s descending madness and the other characters’ struggle to find and stop him. Normal-looking John Beckert (J. Charles Weimer) is locked in a cycle of obsession and predation. He acts quickly once a random potential victim is sighted, this being both a sign of dangerous impulsivity and part of what makes him impossible to predict.

However, eventually good detective work, and a vital clue realized by the balloon man, lead cops and crooks each to close in on Beckert. Which will get to him first, and what will “justice” be when they do?

The story is appropriately taut, tense and not as predictable as you would think, even as events feel inevitable. The acting is outstanding. Meschi, a mother herself, compellingly communicates the horror and desperation of Beckmann’s grief and need for answers and resolution. Kemp easily portrays his blindness without any broad gestures, his eyes looking nowhere as he “sees” with his hearing and speaks with clear voice to ensure understanding. Fields seems to toy with stereotype, at first an ineffective cop but proving his worth as Grodin realizes the right details to give his attention. Mannan gives us the Chief who is both police and bureaucrat, under frustrating pressure on both sides. Our underworld trio effectively play close to type – Stratfer’s Frank jittery nervous, Hookfin’s Sharp ever suave, and Ross’s Breaker deeply intimidating. (In the movie, the latter’s character is a safecracker, here he seems to be an enforcer; either way, his leather gloves are apropos.)

For his part, Weimer gives us an emotionally driven performance that gives insight into Beckert’s disordered mind and personal horror. This “monster” is given neither justification nor supernatural menace; as is noted during the search, he is “a man, like one of us.”

Consider the title to stand for Midnight Man, or “Murderer” as Lang did, or even the Roman numeral as the killer states “there will be a thousand more” if he is not caught. Regardless, find Catalyst’s “M,” with performances through July 7 at the IndyFringe Theatre, 719 E. St. Clair St., Indianapolis. Get tickets at indyfringe.org.

ALT: Big issues in small-town meeting

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By Wendy Carson

Small town politics is much more important than it appears. As we see in “The Minutes,” by Tracy Letts, a lot can happen in a single meeting, and missing it could change your whole standing within the community itself.

Such is the plight of Mr. Peel (Josh Ramsey), who missed last week’s City Council meeting to attend to his dying mom. He knows something major occurred from overhearing the others talk but only discovers it resulted in the removal of Mr. Carp (Charles Goad) from the council.

His queries to Mayor Superba (Stephen Roger Kitts II) and clerk Ms. Johnson (Susannah Quinn) get him nowhere. However, Mr. Hanratty (Scot Greenwell) is willing to help him shed a little light on the matter in return for support towards his proposal.

The council is filled with a plethora of quirky characters. Mr. Blake (Ian Cruz) is a paranoid schemer who is overly confident of the success of his bill regardless of its practicality. Mr. Breeding (Raymond Kester) is “The Weathervane” of the town but has no desire to make waves of his own. Ms. Innes (Suzanne Fleenor) has some good points to make but buries them inside a tangle of poetry and nonsense that annoys even the most even-tempered in the room. Mr. Oldfield (Len Mozzi), who served on the council the longest, has a tendency to ramble and forget things. Mr. Assalone (Tristan Ross) is “The Junkyard Dog” of the group and made even more imposing by his brother being Town Sheriff. Finally, Ms. Metz (Paige Scott), while physically present, pops so many pills that we have no idea where her mind actually is.

With the Big Cherry Heritage Festival rapidly approaching and its planning the most important thing that the Council actually does, Mr. Peel finds the unexplained absence of last week’s minutes – as well as where Mr. Carp is – to be of far greater import.

Directed by Chris Saunders for American Lives Theatre, this comic drama shows Letts’ ability to connect with and in a relatable manner reflect the personalities of small-town America. While there is much hilarity within these scenes, there is an equal amount of reality as to the inner workings of city government.

The talent level of the cast is spectacular and under Saunders’ steady hand, none of them overshadow each other and perform as a well-oiled machine.

So, who is the real hero of The Battle of Mackie Creek? What is more important, truth or the status quo? Why is the town named Big Cherry? These questions and much, much more will be answered (mostly) at the Phoenix Theatre Cultural Centre, 705 N. Illinois St., Indianapolis, through Feb. 11. For tickets and information, visit phoenixtheatre.org or americanlivestheatre.org.

Bard Fest takes another look at Trojan War

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By John Lyle Belden

If the title of Shakespeare’s “Troilus and Cressida” sounds familiar, that’s because just this last July there was a musical adaptation, presented by Southbank Theatre. This time around, the war story/comedy/tragedy is presented by Indy Bard Fest on the stage of the Cat theatre in Carmel.

Director Zach Stonerock approaches this play as a satire of the Trojan War (and thus war in general). As battles tend to “trash” the landscape, the stage looks like a modern salvage yard, the players like a band of hobo thespians acting out the Bard’s work to pass the time. For junkyard scavengers, knowing who plays Ajax is easy if you can find the plastic bottle.

Thersites the Fool (Sarah Heider) welcomes us and introduces the war, already seven years in progress (these events are prior to the legendary part with the big horse, which is hinted at). Young Trojan prince Troilus (Jack Tiehen) is seeking to woo fair Cressida (Hannah Embree), whose father has defected to the Greeks, leaving her with uncle Pandarus (David Mosedale), all too eager to play matchmaker. Trojan troops, led by older princes Paris (Tristan Montgomery) and chivalrous Hector (Ryan Powell), and general Aeneas (Tim Fox), return from battle frustrated at the continuing stalemate. They consider whether it would be best for Paris to return Helen (Abigail Simmon), whom he had stolen from the Greeks, starting this whole mess. It would at least quiet the ravings of princess Cassandra (Audrey Stonerock). But proud Troilus helps talk Hector out of that plan, which leads to an even more audacious one.

Meanwhile, on the Greek side, King Agamemnon (Jeffrey Stratford), Menelaus (Mosedale), Diomedes (Jack Paganelli), and Ulysses (Tristan Ross), are frustrated that their best warrior, Achilles (John Kern), is refusing to fight, staying in his tent with his boytoy Patroclus (Montgomery). Under truce, Aeneas arrives with a proposed challenge – Hector vs. a champion of their choice in single combat. The Greek leaders accept and decide to name less-able soldier Ajax (Austin Hookfin), confident the insult to Achilles should rouse him to battle.

Lest we forget the title, there is more intrigue with Troilus and Cressida, who decide on a quick tryst before being formally wed. But the morning after brings news that the girl has become little more than a bargaining chip.

The cast also includes Brittany Magee as Hector’s wife Andromache, yet another woman whose feelings are disregarded.

Though the trappings of this telling are a bit comical, the story is deadly serious. Tiehen gives a solid performance, with the looks and aggressive romantic bluster of a Romeo but a little smarter and less suicidal. Embree also plays her lead admirably, a young woman getting by on cleverness until she can’t, then realizing she is her only salvation, even if it means hurting one who loves her.

Stratford plays an amusing monarch, but not one to be trifled with. His portrayal, along with Kern and Montgomery’s haughtiness and Ross’s deadpan, reflect how the early scenes play out like a Strangelovian comedy. Powell, who easily slips into roles both comical and serious, plays Hector as both nobly earnest and absurdly genteel. Heider, for her part, revels in her role. As the play progresses towards bloodshed, however, the tragedy and waste of war come to the fore.

An intriguing example of how all’s un-fair in love and war, “Troilus and Cressida” has three more performances Friday through Sunday, Oct. 13-15, at the Cat, 254 Veterans Way in downtown Carmel. Get tickets at indybardfest.com.

IndyFringe: Tortillo 3, Sombrero’s Revenge

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This is part of IndyFringe 2022, Aug. 18-Sept. 4 (individual performance times vary) in downtown Indianapolis. Details and tickets at IndyFringe.org.

By Wendy Carson

Casey Ross has brought back another chapter in the never-ending saga of the Tortillo Corporation and its unfortunate predicament of having cocaine mixed into the seasoning mix for their chips, again. Again.

Presenting “Tortillo 3: Sombrero’s Revenge,” by Ross’s Catalyst Repertory. Even though this is the third installment of the series, you do not have to have seen the previous ones to understand or enjoy it. In fact, highlights of the first two shows are shown prior to beginning of the performance. The cast has an opening number discussing the past events as well.

We begin with put-up Patrick (Dave Pelsue) dealing with imbecilic customer complaints as well as disappointment in the company overlooking his accomplishments.

While Dave (Robert Webster, Jr.) is trying to keep things in the company on an even keel, his decision to bring back the sexist pig, Steve (Matt Anderson) to head up their pretzel division has caused much distress throughout the company even with his wife (Lisa Marie Smith) and their baby Chip. After a heated board meeting, Patrick quits to pursue his dreams.

While Steve and his idiot nephew, Mitchell (Ryan Powell) – Patrick’s cellmate during chapter 2 – are doing research, it’s discovered that the chips are doped yet again, leaving Patrick as the prime suspect.

Will we find out who was behind this nefarious plot? Will Sombrero actually return? Who exactly is the lovely Madeline (Trick Blanchfield) and why does she seem to know so much about Patrick’s past? Also, why is Ted (Tristan Ross, no relation) even here – didn’t we kill him already? That’s not THE John Entwistle (Brian Kennedy) as our Janitor/Narrator, is it?

These burning questions and many more will be answered (whether you want them to or not) in this crazy show. Watch, laugh, enjoy, and be ready in case this gang cooks up another sequel.

Note Casey likes writing the F-word, otherwise it’s OK for teens and up, with performances Saturday night and Sunday afternoon, Aug. 27-28; and Thursday night and Saturday afternoon, Sept. 1 and 3; at the IndyFringe Theatre, 719 E. St. Clair.

Go west (of downtown) to see ‘Laramie’

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By John Lyle Belden

As I suspect it was for many other straight people, I can look back and see a rough point between “before” and “after.” A friend, coworker or family member turns out to be gay, or even officially comes out, and then others you know. You start to see things from the LGBTQ+ perspective. Then, suddenly, some jokes aren’t funny anymore, certain attitudes are absurd, and you feel embarrassed you used to indulge in any of that. Soon, you think of these individuals as friends, family, regular people — then no longer see them as “them.”

For America, one of those points was in the fall of 1998. Before then, to me. Laramie, Wyoming, was just a town where some of my cousins might still live, where I once visited historic Fort Laramie. To the general public, it was known as the home of the University of Wyoming, if they knew of it at all.

But the kidnapping, beating, torture and murder of Matthew Shepard in October 1998 changed that.

The story of a 20-year-old gay man essentially crucified and left to die rocked the world, and shook the town to its core. The media frenzy and public assumptions about the people there didn’t help. Playwright Moises Kaufman and the Tectonic Theater Project of New York went to Laramie in the months that followed. Their work, “The Laramie Project,” is not so much a traditional play as a live documentary. Its nonfiction text is all from writings and recordings at the time, including court proceedings, and the feelings of Laramie residents, those who knew Shepard and the perpetrators, and Tectonic company members. The only agenda of this project was the truth, an honest look at the people involved, the Laramie citizens, and ultimately all of us.

“You must tell your story,” one of the clergy interviewed says.

Now, local company No Holds Bard presents the story at Indy Convergence, just west of downtown, with profits going to the Matthew Shepard Foundation. The cast of Abby Gilster, Clay Mabbitt, Denise Jaeckel, Nathan Thomas and Tristan Ross (who also directs) are talents who make a good play entertaining and a great play unforgettable — this one will stay with you for a while. These men and women portray various friends, relatives, witnesses, officials, reporters and regular people, as well as Tectonic members undertaking this delicate mission.

Ross’s range includes portraying Kaufman, the Judge, infamous minister Fred Phelps, and Shepard’s heartbroken father. Thomas not only plays sympathetic persons including the bartender who unknowingly saw the beginnings of the crime, the man who found Shepard on the fence, and a young theatre student finding himself coming out as an Ally; but also unflinching portrayals of the two men who committed the heinous acts.

I often refer to various works, from Shakespeare tragedies to goofy farces, as “must-see” — this time it is not hyperbole, or just me throwing my stage friends a bone. This is a show every American, teenage and older, should see. Ross, whose work I already love, and friends are even more wonderful in sharing this with Indianapolis now, as the 20th anniversary of Shepard’s death was just days ago.

Going back to my starting point about changing attitudes, whether any member of cis-hetero America has transitioned to the “after” phase is up to us individually. It has become painfully plain that some are still stuck in the “before” — or even like it there. Thus, the importance of this work, even after two decades.

Tickets are only $15. Performances are 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday 2:30 p.m. Sunday at 2611 W. Michigan St. Pay onsite, or get tickets here.

Bard Fest: The essential ‘R&J’

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This Show is part of Bard Fest, central Indiana’s annual Shakespeare festival. Info and tickets at www.bardfestindy.com.

By John Lyle Belden

In Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet,” the one line that stands out for me is near the end: “All are punished.” And as the opening narration famously indicates, the purpose of this tragic play is to show how all involved came to that end.

In the Catalyst Repertory production at Bard Fest, director Zach Stonerock has in his adaptation stripped it to its essence. No elaborate sets; costumes are simple black and white apparel; there are few props, or even weapons beyond a simple knife. The setting is “fair Verona,” but not fixed to any place or era. The focus is solely on the characters, their quirks and quarrels (especially the ongoing Montague-Capulet feud).

The famous “balcony scene,” for instance, is presented in two spotlights, like independent soliloquies. We are reminded that Juliet thinks she is alone, that in longingly asking “Wherefore art thou, Romeo?” she doesn’t expect an answer. But when he comes to her, we are so focused on their words and feelings that we hardly notice there was no balcony.

The play’s opening speech, by the way, is delivered by a Chorus who is a blind man – done with subtle brilliance by Tristan Ross. In this way he reminds me of blind Justice, who oversees these foolish men and women coming to their inevitable end.

Elijah Robinson is our impulsive, melancholy Romeo. He is too ruled by his emotions, but this is seen as wonderful to young Juliet, sweetly delivered by Kayla Lee. Her life is strictly ruled by others, but in this boy she sees hope of liberty, away from the constraints of their family names. Thus, despite her showing the dawning of wisdom, the young teen becomes a cult of one to her foolish husband-to-be.

Critical supporting roles are in excellent hands with Kelsey Leigh Miller as Friar Laurence, who tries in vain to make love triumphant; and Beverly Roche as Juliet’s Nurse, a far better maternal figure than her actual mom (Lisa Marie Smith).

Justin Klein is Paris, the young man from out of town caught in the middle of Verona’s passions. Klein is right at home in the Bard’s worlds, but should try to avoid pointy objects.

And to lighten the mood (making the darkness more contrasting) we get excellent comic relief from Audrey Stonerock as the put-upon Capulet servant Peter; and the awesome Kelsey VanVoorst as brash, boastful Mercutio, Romeo’s best bud. (Note to parents: Shakespeare included bawdy innuendo to entertain his audiences; you’ll get quite a bit here.)

With the right editing, “less is more” fully applies – especially here, as Stonerock delivers a fresh perspective on well-known material. The end is the same, thus we understand that “Romeo and Juliet” is not a love story, but a “tale of woe.” Woe to those who miss it.

Remaining performances are 8 p.m. Thursday, 7:30 p.m. Saturday and 5 p.m. Sunday at the IndyFringe Basile Theatre, 719 E. St. Clair, just east of the College and Mass Ave. intersection.

NoExit ‘1984’ – experience the love of Big Brother

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By John Lyle Belden

It was a bright cold day in November, and the clocks had struck nineteen 30 minutes ago. The back door to a facility commandeered by the Party and Ministry of Truth opened, and we were allowed to enter.

After Agents determined our country of origin and loyalty to the Party, we were detained with other participants until 20:00, when the Ministry provided a goodthink show of a man discovering his love for Big Brother. This is all it is and ever was.

I would never be unfaithful to the Party and tell you that this was a clever and insightful production of “1984” – adapted from the George Orwell novel by Matthew Dunster, produced by NoExit Performance (with co-conspirators including AnC Movies, Cat Head Press and iMOCA) and directed by Ryan Mullins – as that would be “fake news.”

But if I were to say such a thing, I would point out that Ryan Ruckman gives an excellent performance as Winston Smith, the conflicted everyman who tires of his duties for the Ministry, constantly “correcting” history and sending obsolete information down the Memory Hole so that it never happened. He wears his depression and ennui like an extra layer of clothing, feeling the weight of the Telescreen eyes upon him. NoExit mainstay Georgeanna Smith Wade wins his heart and ours as secret rebel Julia, who inspires Winston to defy the Party – simultaneously the smartest and stupidest thing he would ever do.

The Party orders that I denounce Dave Ruark for his commanding portrayal of the mysterious O’Brien, Adam Crowe for his deceptively warm turn as Charrington, and Tristan Ross for his appropriately milquetoast presentation of Smith’s co-worker Parsons (extra rations go to Zac Schneider and Elsie McNulty as the Party-faithful children, though Shannon Samson as Mrs. Parsons is still under suspicion). If Syme had not become an unperson, I’d praise Phil Criswell’s double-plus-good performance. I also hallucinated sharp work from Taylor Cox and Ann Marie Elliott in supporting roles.

Where NoExit – I mean the Ministry – most excels is in the way this drama is presented. It is totally immersive: You stand in or right outside the room where each scene occurs; and the actors frequently move from one area to the next, forcing all to turn and/or follow. Ministry agents help guide the audience. There is no climbing stairs, and limited seating is provided at every scene. Compare the amount of movement necessary to an easy tour of a museum gallery with about a half-dozen display areas in three large rooms. Appropriate set design (by Andrew Darr), with occasional video images (by AnC) and haunting sound (by Rob Funkhouser) enveloping the rooms, provide a perfectly tense atmosphere throughout. Big Brother’s red glowing eye is everywhere, watching us all.

I advise all to take time out from news of whatever war we have always been fighting, and observe this double-plus-good entertainment appropriate for whatever year this happens to be. Performances through Nov. 18 at Ministry Headquarters, 1336 E. Washington St., Indianapolis. For information and tickets, visit www.noexitperformance.org.

We’ve got a hot lead on a play at the Fringe

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By John Lyle Belden

New local company Fat Turtle Theatre makes a bold debut with its production of “Glengarry Glen Ross,” the Pulitzer-winning drama by David Mamet, directed by company co-founder Aaron Cleveland.

For those unfamiliar, the play is about real estate salesmen in a high-pressure Chicago office in the early 1980s. For those who have seen the 1992 film, note that Blake (a/k/a “F— You,” played by Alec Baldwin) was a part written for the movie, and does not appear in the play. One can presume, prior to the opening scene, that Blake already made his famous speech that the bosses have declared a sales contest with a Cadillac as first prize, and third place means you’re fired. The best sales leads are going to the best salesmen, and office manager Williamson (played here by Ryan Reddick) is in charge of doling them out.

The play opens with Williamson being berated and cajoled by past top-seller Shelly “the Machine” Levene (Doug Powers), who feels he deserves the top Glengarry leads. We next meet frustrated fellow salesmen Dave Moss (Luke McConnell) and George Aaronow (Jeff Maess), who consider more drastic measures to get ahead. Finally, we see top seller Richard Roma (Tristan Ross), working up to a sale with his latest mark, timid James Lingk (Rex Riddle).

The second act begins with the office having suffered a burglary, investigated by Detective Baylen (Jason Page). As the whole ensemble flows in and out of the room, the drama intensifies and we learn a lot more than who wins the new car.

Speaking of hot leads, these roles are among the most coveted among male actors when this play revives on Broadway, and Fat Turtle has found a worthy cast for the Indy boards. Powers gives his all in the most high-profile role, taking Shelly to every emotional extreme while staying believable and relatable.

Ross makes good use of his talent for Shakespearean patter to deliver Roma’s pseudo-philosophical soliloquies that he uses to lull prospective buyers into being receptive to his pitch. We can easily buy that this is the best man at selling patches of dirt to insecure souls with money.

Maess embodies the not-getting-any-younger quiet desperation of Aaronow, while McConnell expresses the more desperate and impulsive urge to get ahead at any cost.

Riddle does mouse-y well, and we can’t help but feel for him. Page’s performance just gets stronger as his character gets increasingly frustrated with the room full of patience-testing egos. Reddick’s Williamson is just an unapologetic a-hole, well played without compromise, and we have to respect him for that.

There’s a chuckle to be had here and there, and the marvelous absurdity of what grown men are willing to say to each other under stress – or just to keep a sucker in the sale. And, of course, be prepared for lots of salty language. This is drama at its best, a half-dozen men sweating out what could be one of the best or, more likely, worst days of their miserable lives. You owe it to yourself to close the sale on some tickets for this show before it closes on Oct. 15.

Performances are at the IndyFringe Theatre, 719 E. St. Clair St., just east of the College, Mass Ave., St. Clair intersection. Visit www.IndyFringe.org for tickets.

TOTS hosts a play for the masses (literally)

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By John Lyle Belden

“Well, of all things!” A 1959 French play by a celebrated Romanian absurdist about the destructive but seductive effects of mass conformity finds resonance in Indianapolis, U.S.A., in 2017.

No Holds Bard and Catalyst Repertory present Eugene Ionesco’s “Rhinoceros” on the Second Stage of Theatre on the Square through Aug. 13. The play is set in a near future in which most animals are extinct and most color is gone – frowned upon, even – but the people deal with it in a very orderly black-and-white world in which logic can be argued to the point that facts can mean anything.

Slovenly, drunken Berenger (Zachariah Stonerock) doesn’t fit in. And worse, he has gotten into an argument with his only friend, proud, self-sure Jean (Tristan Ross). But suddenly, a rhinoceros comes charging up the street. Did everyone see what they just saw? Of course not. There are no zoos, there are no circuses, there are no rhinoceroses. Then, a rhinoceros comes charging down the street in the other direction. Thus the question becomes: Is it the same rhinoceros? And are one or both African or Asian? This latter point, and the counting of horns, naturally becomes the most vital issue.

The next day, Berenger comes in late to work, but Daisy (Abbie Wright), who he is sweet on, covers for him with the boss, Mr. Papillon (Josh Ramsey), who, in turn, is upset with Duduard (Tim Fox) and Botard (John Mortell) not getting to work as they argue whether the rhinoceros sighting was real. Duduard has seen the beasts and is more accepting of events; while Botard did not, assumes its a hoax, and if anything did happen, it was part of a grand conspiracy by dark forces. Then Mrs. Beof (Denise Jaeckel) arrives, saying she can’t find her husband, and she’s being pursued by a rhino – when the animal destroys part of the building, she discovers the beast is her husband, somehow transformed.

After this, nearly everyone starts changing into rhinoceroses. As you do.

Stonerock garners our sympathies as the individualist everyman – misunderstood, put down and unsure of what he wants and how to get it. He, and we through him, are never on solid ground as the more sober he gets, the more mad the world becomes.

His castmates deal well with the play’s broadly-drawn characters. Wright embodies the contradicting impulses of dependence and independence women have dealt with in the nearly 50 years of this play’s existence, showing her own strength regardless. Fox is appropriately glib, Mortell brightly brusque. Jaeckel throws herself into her role. Ross, who also directs, takes charge on stage as well; and Ramsey is sharp as ever, including his turn as a “professional logician” who tortures language into submission. The cast is ably rounded out by David Mosedale and Sarah Holland Froehlke – who extracts a lot of laughs from a dead cat.

The script’s length, adapted from three acts to two, and pacing can drag at times, but it’s all worth seeing the eventual “rhinoceros parade.” While this a comedy, with plenty of hilarious situations and comic turns of phrase, beneath the mirth is the hint of something strong and violent that can trample to ruin anything in its path.

Good thing it’s only a play, eh?

Join the herd at TOTS, 627 Massachusetts Ave., call 317-685-8687 or get info and tickets at tots.org/rhinoceros/.

Old lore gets modern makeover in Catalyst’s ‘Slaying the Dragon’

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By John Lyle Belden

I got so much more than I expected when I saw “Slaying the Dragon,” and I have high expectations from a play written by Casey Ross.

Ross’ plays are character-driven with great dialogue, flavored with enough of the absurd to make them entertaining without stretching credulity. And with her latest comedy production – presented by her Catalyst Repertory at Theater at the Fort, directed by Carey Shea – Ross enters the realm of fairy tales and conjures a thought-provoking fable.

Mythical kingdoms have reluctantly come into the 21st century, and the castle of King Farenwide (Dan Flahive) is now a condo. His Queen (Nan Macy) is happy as long as she has a place to garden, but Princess Maleena (Abby Gilster) is frustrated that her parents neither embrace New World ways nor accept that she has. To the King’s delight, a Knight has moved nearby – and being the only handy noble, a good prospect for his daughter (she’s not pleased with that prospect). But upon visiting Sir Alexander Meander (Matt Walls), they meet his roommate, Flameson (Tristan Ross), a dragon.

The inevitable conflict of old prejudices (that dragons are beasts worthy of little more than slaying) and outdated loyalties (a knight must obey orders and kill such beasts) with more modern attitudes can’t help but raise comparisons to events in the offstage world. True to the style of Casey Ross (no relation to Tristan, though they are good friends), the issues are handled with great humor and humanity. While it’s easy to make “Shrek” comparisons, the inspiration here seems more like the Disney short “The Reluctant Dragon” and the stage/film/TV classic “The Odd Couple.”

Gilster is great as the sane center of the swirling silliness. Flahive is fun, and makes riding a mobility chair look as noble as an actual royal steed. Macy tackles yet another maternal role with soothing ease (and a fantastic hat). And Josh Weaver adds to the laugh factor as obliviously mellow Page Jon, the castle servant.

It’s easy to see which is the “Felix” and which is the “Oscar” with Walls and Tristan Ross. Meander makes his best effort at being noble in tarnished armor, while Flameson is an excellent housekeeper and cook (who can light the stove by breathing on it). The actors’ performances are totally up to snuff, especially in Tristan’s talent for not going over-the-top with a fantasy character, aided by excellent makeup effects.

This is definitely a new work that is worthy of seeking out – and a little seeking might be in order. Theater at the Fort is located on the grounds of former Fort Benjamin Harrison (technically in Lawrence) at 8920 Otis Ave.

Performances are 8 p.m. Thursday through Saturday and 5 p.m. Sunday, March 16-19. Get info at uncannycasey.wix.com/catalystrepertory or follow Catalyst Repertory on Facebook; get tickets here.

John L. Belden is also Associate Editor and A&E editor of The Eagle (formerly The Word), the Indianapolis-based Midwest LGBTQ news source.