A Utah Theater Review by Ben Christensen
I admit I was a little hesitant going into Echo Theatre’s production of J. Omar Hansen’s original play, Bielzy and Gottfried. It’s described as “a modern morality musical” and directors’ notes in the program refer to Adam and Eve, Jesus Christ, sermons, Job, and the War in Heaven. I find the psychology of religious belief fascinating, but I do not go to plays (or read books or watch movies) to be preached at. If I wanted that, I could go to Sunday School. I had been assured by a cast member ahead of time that this show does not preach, though, and I was not disappointed by my choice to trust his recommendation. Bielzy and Gottfried is a fascinating show that asks difficult questions without spoon-feeding the answers–in short, the type of show that Echo Theatre is becoming known for here in Utah Valley.
Bielzy and Gottfried is a collection of five short plays exploring moral issues, framed by an ongoing conversation between showmen Lucius Bielzy and Joshua Gottfried, each using the plays in an attempt to prove his view of humanity is accurate. Tyrell Clement plays Bielzy as intense and playful, one of the most captivating portrayals of the devil I’ve seen. Trevor Newsome’s Gottfried is at the same time earnestly cheerful and smugly aloof, as (in my opinion) any portrayal of God should be. As the showmen present each short, a vintage circus-style poster unravels to introduce the short. Unfortunately, on Friday night most of the posters didn’t unroll all the way, but the actors handled the mishap well, with Clement at one point using his cane to pull the poster all the way down.
In the first short, the biblical tale of Adam and Eve is combined with the Greek tale of Pandora’s box. Camille Kahle is thoughtful and slightly manipulative as Eve/Pandora, while Danny Savory as Prometheus/Adam is dumb and likable, if a little stiff. The Eve/Pandora short also introduces Michael Bascom as the Snake. Bascom provides musical accompaniment for the remainder of the shorts (together with guitarist KC Ushijima), which is fitting since he is the musical director, but he does so while remaining in character–charismatic and funny throughout. (On a side note, the original music in this show is catchy and smart, as all the best musicals are.) In the second short, we meet the cocky and self-righteous Mr. McCarthy, played by Michael Carter, and Patch, a nervously sycophantic secretary to the devil played by LeeAnn Carter.
The third short is the one where the entire audience, myself included, died laughing. Lori Hansen plays Sister Prescott, at first a timid housewife reluctant to give a talk at church who then rips loose, breaking every rule of church etiquette when she can’t find the notes she had prepared. Hansen gives a show-stopping performance, appropriately followed by intermission.
Lori Hansen rehearsing as Sister Prescott.
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While the first half of the show is filled with hilarious moments, the last two shorts are a little more somber, relying less on humor and more on drama. In the fourth short, Nicolas Brady plays everyman Job, who gets caught in the middle of a war between God and Lucifer. Brady displays a wide variety of emotions as Job, from intense pain to anger to hope. Ann Vom Lehn and Cimony Buchanan play the judgmental friends, contrasted by the kindness and empathy of Charity, played by Rosalinda Lopez. I was happy to see the short call out one of the problems of the Bible story when Job proclaims to God that a family isn’t like a dead puppy that you can just go to the pet store and replace. In the final short, Joel Applegate tugs at the audience’s heartstrings as Ed, a recently-deceased man desperate to find his son, Ole. Mont Connell plays opposite Applegate in a more stoic role, allowing Applegate’s pathos to drive the piece. The emotional nature of this final piece is intensified by the lighting–the only lights are behind the actors, making them seem ghostly and consumed by darkness.
One of the interesting aspects of this production is that it is a team effort. One director directs the framing pieces while others direct the shorts. As a result, each short has its own feel, but there are unifying themes throughout, such as the circus/vaudeville imagery, the Snake, and the title characters’ ongoing debate. Jeff Blake, Georgia Buchert, Jacob Lees Johnson, Ronnie Stringfellow, Daniel Riggs, and Zachary Vineyard collaborate with a talented cast to put on a show that explores morality without moralizing.
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