BWW Reviews: BEDTIME STORIES WITH POPPLEWELL Rambles Aimlessly at Trick Lock Performance Laboratory

The one-act Bedtime Stories With Popplewell ran just two performances at the Tricklock Performance Laboratory--you've missed it. Don't worry, this was not a must-see. The show made me cringe and stifle frustrated sighs: A discomfort particular to bad community theater, because it's a social as much aesthetic discomfort, because I'm almost ashamed to feel critical (who knows if I'm sitting next to the playwright's mother?).

But this wasn't some middle-school summer workshop, where heartwarming innocence trumps any aesthetic criticism. This was an adult production--granted, they were young, but not so young that they can't bear a few harsh words:

The play began with an introduction from Cyril Popplewell, who is a ghost. He told the story of his life, a playboy scoundrel who got hit by a car and died while trying to chase-down one of the many women he'd double-crossed. This summary has just spared you twenty minutes of clumsy and redundant aimlessness.

The script was the weakest part of the show, mainly because playwright Bárbara Casseb has apparently not learned how to prioritize her character's objectives to what is interesting. The scenes had neither rational nor dramatic flow, but instead, the characters behaved like members of congress--splitting hairs about every decision, repeating their dramatic declarations like "I'm leaving you" over and over...by the time a choice was actually made, all the energy had been lost in confused drivel. This drivel was the main cause of my cringes--and combined with pacing problems and superficial characters, this was a thoroughly unproduceable script.

Yet it was produced: A theater, charming lo-fi sets, a bunch of hustling techies, a competent 3-person cast, who tenaciously committed to their roles despite textual challenges--Sara Rosenthal stood out, playing multiple characters with infectious lightness and keen comedic timing. And what's more, there was an audience: The house was packed!

Why did so many people come out to see this? Because they didn't charge for admission!

And because Albuquerque has a supportive community, who gave money online to produce the show, and who did not tune-out even when it was clear the scenes were going nowhere--instead, they laughed well in the rare, golden moments when script did work.

Casseb needs this community support, and more: Casseb aught to share her script with the community earlier in the process, in revision, to weed-out the unnecessary drivel and sharpen those golden moments. There was a charming story underneath many flaws. Casseb's not in middle-school, but she is still young. She can still write the play this should have been.