Thomas Theater | Dangerous Common Sense

“Lizard Boy” at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival

Lizard Boy

Book, Music, and Lyrics by Justin Huertas
Directed by Brandon Ivie 

Ashland, OR at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival June 11 – October 12, 2024

Lizard Boy OSF Masthead. Design by Krzysztof Bednarski.

I am stumped. I don’t see a way to do a normal play review and capture the brilliance, engagement, and rich meaning of the 90 minutes of wonderfulness.

A traditional look at the show would have to include a synopsis of the story would which would mention that the plot is a comic book superhero narrative about a young man who has lived estranged from the world ever since being drenched in dragon blood when he was in kindergarten. It’s a rock musical with most lines sung by the three cast members. The featured instrument, played by the superhero, is a cello, and fun fact, the play was commissioned with the restriction that it had to include original music for the cello.

What???

Cary (William A Williams), Trevor (Justin Huertas), and Siren (Kiki deLohr).
OSF photo by Jenny Graham

So we are in a non-linear musical with cartoon highlights. Our superhero Trevor (Justin Huertas) has had green lizard-like skin since his bath in dragon blood, and he comes out of his apartment only once a year on Monsterfest, the night the city has a costume party celebration of the killing of the dragon years ago. That day everyone dresses in green so Trevor doesn’t awkwardly stand out. Trevor is exhausted by his weird looks, is plagued by unhappy visions, and feels permanently alone. He goes on Grindr on the costume party night hoping that someone will talk with lizard-skinned him because they won’t be put off by seeing the green this one night.

Trevor meets Cary (William A Williams). They do relationship/meeting-someone-new sparring in a monumentally wonderful scene. The new duo wind up seeing a nightclub performance by Siren (Kiki deLohr). Siren and Trevor unexpectedly discover they have lots in common. They deal with their history, Trevor and Cary deal more with the complexities of their meeting, and things happen.

But the story is really not about the fallout from a dead dragon. This is a coming of age story that is so off-the-wall that it not threatening to teenagers, young adults, or old adults. It’s actually captivating. As the performance progresses you learn more and more about the character and emotional solidness of “weak” Trevor.

Cary (William A Williams), Trevor (Justin Huertas), and Siren (Kiki deLohr).
OSF photo by Jenny Graham

I found myself cheering (at least inside) when the revelation hits Trevor that what makes us different makes us powerful. Your weirdness is your superpower.

Throughout the exploration of the story the three characters sing and move with fluid brilliance. The songs are spot on in exploring the emotion/fears/and hopes of each person as they narrate the story. The voices are strong and their instrument handling skills are so good that very few venues offer the show. (These same three actors were in the original show in Seattle March, 2015 and have performed it all over the world – only three other companies have attempted it, according to Wikipedia.)

Almost every scene is important and an acting/musical standout memory. The simple set expands in your mind as the actors dance through it. Costumes, lighting, everything is exact.

The show is fast and deliberate, meaningful and skillfully revealed. If you’re heading to Ashland book seats for Lizard Boy now – it has the highest audience percentage of any show this season (so far).

Lizard Boy sings, flows, and storytells its way to a well earned rating

Henry IV, Part One

Ashland, Oregon
at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival

Henry IV, Part I :: photo by OSF

Henry IV, Part I
by William Shakespeare

Writing about a performance you saw two months ago gives the “review” a different perspective. I have been slammed and until now unable to spend an hour or so detailing my thoughts of the plays I saw opening weekend. So now I remember only the more important parts of the time I spent in the theater. Maybe that’s a good thing. Maybe it will result in shorter and snappier commentary!

What I don’t clearly remember about Henry IV, I is why I didn’t leave the Thomas Theater a raving fan of the production. I recall that it was a very, very good, solid, and credible experience. But, I didn’t feel I’d experienced a revelation.

Now when I tell others about the evening, I am all praises. Strange?

Daniel Molina (Prince Hal) feels like a genuine rebellious, thoughtless young adult who realistically grows to understand his responsibilities… while at the same time being still willing to shirk his duties late in the play. Molina is more subtle and naturally slackerly than other Prince Hal’s I’ve seen. His Hal is a fit for 2017.

The East Cheap scenes work as real-life happenings and not just as the mandatory comic relief that Shakespeare writes in to amuse us stinkards in the pit. Hal’s playmates are are as genuine-feeling as he is in their self-centered hedonism.

G. Valmont Thomas (Falstaff) is both physical and intricate — a really good job. Michele Mais (Mistress Quickly) is a happy, slutty force of nature, and the other slum dwellers feel like real pranksters gone bad.

I will complain about the blocking in bar scenes. My seat in the corner of first row and a few other seats around the house were too close to the action. The actors would have been fine sitting and drinking where they were, if I hadn’t needed to put my legs somewhere. And, I don’t mean I wanted to stretch my legs out, I just needed to put them on the floor in front of me. As it was, I turned sideways to avoid disaster. I saw the opening show, and I don’t know if the space is still a problem. But, I spent way too much time worrying about whether the scenery was going to roll over my foot or whether I was going to trip a passing actor.

But, back to the good stuff. Jeff King was superb as Henry IV. His simultaneous struggle with — and belief in — Prince Hal were transparent and logical. I felt like I was watching a family and not an important Shakespeare history play. King felt consistent, realistic, and every bit the man who righteously deposed Richard II in the prior chapter of the saga.

I also liked the treatment of the gender-blind casting. I appreciated the switch in nouns when women were cast in key roles. Talking about “your aunt” instead of “uncle” and using “her” instead of “him” just seemed more natural and required one less bit of identification and translation for the audience.

The overall set design was clean and spacious (even if a bit too roomy for the actors and cramped for me). I liked how the action centered in different areas and moved around the room. Costumes, lighting, and other crafts were all good.

Talking about the play now, applauding so many of the pieces, I realize that all the components are excellent. Still, there is no spark that takes you completely out of the moment and shows you something you never realized before.

Maybe at three hours it needed tightening for our Twitter-addicted brains. A few less lines about the battles and bloodlines, maybe snappier delivery, or something.

As it is, Henry IV, Part I is definitely quality and credible. Worth seeing.

Still it’s only .