Mar 23, 2007

Classic Shakespearean tale revived

'Lysistrata' adapted to current state of war, city streets

MediaNews

For 2,000 years, give or take, times of war have prompted fresh looks at Aristophanes' "Lysistrata," the ancient and classic anti-war comedy with the chant-worthy theme of "No peace, no sex."

The premise is deceptively simple, often wildly funny, and amazingly effective.

But the real joy in the recycling of "Lysistrata" is to see it through the eyes of new generations and new variations on anti-war sentiments. The basic story remains the same, but it is told with contemporary twists that give it not only a fresh feel, but also a vitality that speaks to the specific situation at hand.

And, in the case of the African-American Shakespeare Company's production, which opened over the weekend at Buriel Clay Theatre in San Francisco, the sex-strike comedy not only comments on the Iraq war, but the warring and violence on the streets of a number of Bay Area communities.

This certainly brings the tale close to home - and makes the idea of a sex strike at least a bit more plausible. And it adds a compelling emotional component by taking a global issue and clarifying it, almost frighteningly, by placing it on a local level.

And, although the Rhodessa Jones-directed production makes no bones about where its sentiments lie, the production also never forgets that its first duty is to entertain. And that is exactly what this "Lysistrata" does - it tells the basic story, adds diverse commentary from a column by the late Molly Ivins, headlined "Stand Up Against the Surge," along with writings from Maikiko James and Veissa Keith-Queen, both of whom perform in the show.

It is a bare-bones production, with a small cast and limited sets, but there is an abundance of energy and creativity to tell the story not only in dialogue and movement, but also with some delightfully effective use of shadow puppets and human shadows, not to mention music and sound.

The result is a lively production that tells the story in a vital and readily accessible way, which makes it appealing and perhaps even convincing to those who may not walk into the theater sharing anti-war sentiments with the bulk of the audience.

The performers enter the piece at a variety of levels of skill and experience, but what they share is an eagerness to entertain and create laughter as they get their message across. In other words, they seem to be having a lot of fun expressing a vitally serious message in an extremely droll manner.

Since there is only one man in the cast, the battle of the sexes component of the play gets short shrift - although there are a few well-wrought shadow puppet scenes that get the message across somewhat.

The lone male actor, Shareef Allman, playing Cinesias, gets huge laughs in a faux seduction scene with his wife, Myrrhine (Tamika Chenier), who has been well-coached in what to do when her painfully eager husband returns from the battlefield, aching for more pleasant action.

Allman is a big, powerful fellow, who becomes increasing helpless as Myrrhine turns on her charms and ultimately rejects the big guy. The scene is beautifully played and hugely funny to those witnessing the uncomfortable event.

Cheryl Bennett-Scales, who plays Lysistrata, also creates a fascinating character who takes the difficult job of convincing the other women that a sex strike would be an effective way of getting their men to stop fighting.

Although the other woman have no trouble with agreeing in concept, Lysistrata has to do some heavy campaigning to convince the women that it is worth the sacrifice they will have to make.