Spy Garbo by Sheila Schwartz is a flashback to the 30's and 40's with Franco of
Spain (Steven Rattazzi), the British triple agent Kim Philby (Chad Hoeppner), and Wilhelm Canaris (Steven Hauck) the German officer who opposed Hitler, all in a kind of suspended limbo as their own pasts and the past events of the world are projected on an immense curved background. Visually it's a stunning accomplishment- a breathtaking pastiche of filmed images of Hitler and his world with thousands of participants in the newsreels and home movies edited into an amazing running commentary on the spoken words of the principals. Ay -- there's the rub: the words. Rattazzi is an actor with a strong persona and voice, good physicality and an almost incomprehensible accent as it (and most of the spoken words in the play) are over-amplified in the echoing chamber of the 3D Art & Technology Center. I found much of the talk about good and evil, the speechifying, even by the more clearly spoken Hauck and Hoeppner to be ultimately less than engaging.
Spy Garbo seems to be well-intentioned and well-researched but ends up a confusing mish-mash in some of the talk, set against with the best historical visual montage in town. We even get images of a stunning Mata Hari on film whom I think (by reading deep into the program) is played by the gorgeous Kate Moran. It's produced, with a classy touch, by Aaron Louis and Diane Morrison, directed by Kevin Cunningham, and costumes by Clint Ramos, lighting by Laura Mroczkowsi and music by Aldo Perez are all well done and fit the ninety minute play nicely. The brilliant visuals are by Jeff Morey, Peter Norrman and Aaron Harrow. Long may they wave!
