Review: First Stage's Magical, Mystical THE SNOW Melts the Chill of Sadness

In the First Stage fictional village of Kishka, "the wall of snow did not melt, the knitted scarves grew to long to use, and the fires eventually burned out," described the town's never ending winter....This sets the story for the company's World Premiere production The Snow. Commissioned in collaboration with Oregon Children's Theatre and Magik Theatre, internationally acclaimed author and playwright Finegan Kruckemeyer conjures a modern folk tale adventure where the villagers in Kishka rely on a tiny child named Theodore when he seeks a solution to their never ending prison of frozen snow.

How often can a child's wisdom be overlooked? The tiny Theodore, who makes small hugely heroic, begins his search for companions so they can catapult over the snow wall to see the "problem" from the outside. While Teddy's first solution has a high cost, he and a mute giant Oliver, with a heart as big as he is tall, survive the catapult and set about to melt the snow.

Oliver and Theodore first discover the huge snow becomes a physical manifestation of a hidden problem--which is a great darkness and coldness between their next door neighbors in Gretaville. Thus, merely melting the snow would only relieve the symptom instead of cure the real reason for the unending winter in Kishka, which then might return one day.

In this mystical adventure, the unlikely pair traverse dark forests, run from mean birds, leap over a large canyon and meet a lonely old woman named Margareta. Seen on a weekend afternoon, a superb Strong cast, one of two Young Performer casts that alternate in First Stage productions, featured Seth Hoffman, whose tongue in cheek delivery of Kruckemeyer's witty story touched adults and children alike under the masterful direction of Jeff Frank. Eight other Young Performers create the ensemble, portraying villagers and narrators throughout the production.

An impressive Tim Linn embodies an amazing, tenderhearted giant, against type, that paired with the small Hoffman visually emphasizes the 'very tall,' Oliver, a physical force, complemented by the 'very brave," Teddy, the clever mind. Other adult actors in The Snow include Music Director Andrew Crowe strumming the fiddle, Karen Estrada's Margareta also playing accordion, and Matt Daniel's' burly, bearded Rajev, who also accompanies on ukulele. All three play throughout the performance, changing from musician to actor seamlessly, so Crowe's original score haunts the story's action with strains of folk tunes tinged with a melodic contemporary twist.

The cast dressed in boho costumes channeling a bygone era by Kim Internes and set in Sarah Hunt Frank's far off forest, First Stage creates their unique brand of magic through puppets, flashlights, silhouettes and low-tech stage designs with the help of Lighting Designer Nick Belley to continually mystify audiences with ingenuity. With this in the background, The Snow playfully wanders through fictional terrain where as Theodore explains, "Every problem has an answer within."

First Stage and Kruckemeyer produce a contemporary fairytale edged with up to date humor yet complete with metaphysical meaning. Plenty to consider afterwards whatever the age of the audience, and contemplate a chance to look within to solve ordinary and extraordinary problems, as First Stage illustrates with every production. Falling between this latest addition to the company's innovative Wisconsin Cycle, The Snow adventure treads a path to how people hurt one another, often the ones they love most, "where a shout becomes a punch, a punch becomes a blow and a blow becomes the snow."

Underneath Kruckemeyer's and Kishka's great wall of snow, lies the darkness of sadness, a frozen barrier of loneliness and the chill of emptiness when separated from loved ones and community. As Mama Kishka admits, "These become thickest when people are truly cold."

Perhaps when the story begins to warm the audience's spirit, and after the wonder of Teddy and Oliver's magical adventure, audiences might begin to look within themselves and decide to search for the heart of problems instead of only trying to relieve the symptoms. And somehow the heart of many concerns and issues these days involve those feeling fear, hurt, loneliness and sadness that require only care or consideration of another person along with community to begin the healing process and alter all too common human coldness.

What an grand gift to Milwaukee, America and the world from a playwright who has traveled the globe and First Stage, who illustrates bravery and cleverness to produce new stories that inspire audiences of all ages. The marvelous, timely message of The Snow bears repeating--over and over---so the walls of chilling darkness that divide humanity may warm into shared charity and kindness.

First Stage presents The Snow at the Todd Wehr Theatre in the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts through March 20. Playwright Finegan Kruckemeyer appears at a talk back on Sunday, March 6. For special events, performance schedule and tickets, please call 414.273.7206 or www.firststage.org

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