Enlightenment Theatre

Zastrozzi, Master of Discipline

Dates 18 July - 4 August 2007 @ 8pm Matinees Wednesday & Saturday @ 2pm

Venue Waterfront Theatre, Granville Island

Reviewer Ed Farolan

This was truly an enlightening show. The polemic between good and evil was presented delightfully, absurdly, sometimes tongue-in-cheek by a talented cast led by Marco Soriano as Zastrozzi, the self-proclaimed “master criminal of Europe,” who quests for revenge on Verezzi, the man who killed his mother.

The production team led by Director Emilio Salituro did an excellent job in all respects. I particularly liked the music, composed by Jon Lachlan Stewart. The lighting by Mimi Abrahams as well as the set by Simon Webb were creatively designed to bring out the mood. I also liked the fight scenes choreographed by Nick Harrison.

The only problem I found on the night I saw the play was that I got the impression that the actors were hurrying too much. It was as though they wanted to get out in time to watch the fireworks hosted by China that night.

Writer George F. Walker (b. 1947) is a prolific Canadian playwright and a recipient of the Order of Canada. His plays, which border on comedie noire, have been produced internationally. This is the second play produced by this enlightened group led by Artistic Directors Ashley Rutherford and David Benedict Brown. I reviewed their première production, Ian Kluge's Collage: Homage to Kurt Schwitters in 2006.

Right before the show, I had a brief conversation with Salituro, who recently directed the one-act musical The Diary of Adam and Eve at the 2006 Vancouver Fringe Festival. He said that the reviews were good, but the box office returns weren't. Well, it's summer in Vancouver, and that's to be expected, I said.

Congratulations to the cast and crew for a job well done, and I look forward to reviewing their next production.

© 2007 Ed Farolan