To get to the Black Kat Theater, one enters through Desi 'n' Friends neighborhood bar on Lytton Street. You pass the pool table, the bar, and finally reach the ticket desk. Then you go back even further to the theater space. On an excellent night, almost 40 people can pack sardine-like into the audience space. The fans turn, but it is still warm. This, of course, keeps Tammy Pearson very busy bringing libation from the bar. You can even have something to eat. If you are wise, you'll get there at cocktail hour (7:30 or a wee bit earlier) and be entertained by a combo, Sidika and the Tribe of Tongues. While the audience is mixed, it is primarily 20- and 30-somethings out to have a good time...and that we did.
At 8:00 p.m. the lights dim and Brian Collins, Anthony Gordon Hamm, Pat Harley, Jeremiah LaFleur, and Matt Myers enter stage right and left and center with a musical intro. The audience is queried about their knowledge of The Bible. They fail.
In the beginning was The Compleat Works of William Shakespeare (abridged). And many more poured forth from the fertile brains of playwrights Adam Long, Reed Martin and Austin Tichenor. In Black Kat Theater's current production of The Bible: The Complete Word of God (abridged), Matthew Croke added some material. Also, the show opens and closes with musical numbers directed by Christine Jugueta.
When Adam tears out a rib and Eve appears, the word of God has begun. Act I has to move along rapidly to cover the 610,577 words of the Old Testament. The ensemble does spend some time on the creation as recorded in Genesis. Later they greatly accelerate though many of the books with a mere pause to paraphrase bits and pieces of Proverbs. Costume and wig changes are fast and furious as the five actors take on new characters as well as occasional changes in gender.
Act II could slow down a bit since the New Testament contains a mere 180,751 words in only 27 books. However, pause is not in the vocabulary of these five actors. There is some serious consideration of the Immaculate Conception. In fact baby Jesus comes out black! It is at this precise point that the audience must become defensive. The nine people in the front row should have been warned to don raincoats. Suddenly fully loaded and primed squirt cannon appears on stage, and we all duck for cover. John the Baptist seems to have been carried away in his exuberance to christen the newborn.
Noah's Ark reappears, totally out of sequence, in the New Testament. It sort of got short shrift in the first act. All too soon we are witnessing the Last Supper with only four actors. It works...well, sort of.
Collins, Hamm, Harley, LaFleur and Myers are excellent, with almost perfect timing. As most actors will admit, comedy can be hell. With the number of costume and wig changes, one would expect a glitch along the way. If there was one, I missed it. Director Tisha Tumangan deserves accolades for her work. She and Rebekah Jackson created and/or collected a vast array of costumes and accessories that helped define the multiplicity of characters. The Bible is a prop-heavy show to which Pat Hartley and Matt Myers contributed greatly as well as designing the small set.
Black Kat Theater is known for producing original works but has also found that these playwrights create works that their audiences enjoy. The venue is intimate, treats the audience as family and invites us to stay around and chat over a beverage of choice at a production. They are known for their annual sketch comedy, In Review. A Living Newspaper. We are looking forward to their newest, due in January.
