Best of 2005 Awards!
Athena Theatre congratulates the actors and production team of The Shape of Things and Proof:
TOP TEN PLAYS OF 2005
"The Shape of Things" Athena Theatre Company
TOP FIVE ACTRESSES - LEAD
Veronique Ory “ The Shape of Things" Athena Theatre Company
TOP FIVE ACTORS - FEATURED
John Bobek “Proof" The Athena Company
We are also proud to make Travis Michael Holder's top 2005 list:
BEST ACTOR IN A PLAY, 2005:
RUNNERS UP: John Bobek, Proof, Athena
BEST ACTRESS IN A PLAY:
RUNNERS-UP: Veronique Ory, Proof, Athena;
The Shape of Things
The Shape of Things closed April 2nd - Thanks to everyone who came out and supported us!
The Shape of Things by Neil LaBute
Director: Scott Schutzman
Producer: Veronique Ory
Starring
Veronique Ory, J.R. Nutt*, Daniel Wisler, Emily Happe
Opens March 18th 8pm
Previews Mar 17th
Runs Fridays and Saturdays
General Admission $15
The Actors Playpen
1514 N. Gardener St.
Los Angeles, CA 90046
http://www.theactorsplaypen.com/
Reviewplays.com - The Shape of Things
The Athena Theatre Company presents
The Shape of Things
by Neil LaBute at The Actor's Playpen
What begins with an apparent casual meeting, moves quickly into an intense affair where many lines are blurred and feelings are disdained for the sake of art. In a wickedly clever study of selfishness and manipulation, four people's lives become tangled in a sort of square knot, where one pull of the right strand will unravel the seemingly tight bond. Art student Evelyn threatens to deface a sculpture at the museum and guard Adam tries to stop her, but his shift has ended and he has to leave, not before getting her telephone number and a promise of a future date.
Right away you see this is a match made in Hades; Evelyn is strong, opinionated, aggressive and beautiful and Adam is a shy, nervous, nerdy English major who is obviously way over his head with this girl.
Yet their relationship flourishes, and her casual suggestions about his style of clothes, haircut and other personal habits soon begin to make a visible change in Adam - so much so that his close friends Jenny and Phillip, notice it and tease him about being under Evelyn's thumb. Despite his protests, it's evident that she is a great manipulator and is orchestrating their relationship to the very last note.
Veronique Ory plays Evelyn with an almost frightening tenderness, loving and sweet, sexy and fetching but with calculated plotting, where every gesture of affection reeks of a secondary agenda with her. J. R. Nutt, as Adam is way too pliant, allowing Evelyn to bend his wishes at will, and he single-handedly redefines the meaning of being "wrapped around her little finger". Others would use a cruder phrase that alludes to a kitten being flogged, but such language is best left to the likes of Chris Rock.
Daniel Wisler is a bit older than the twenty-two year old Phillip he's supposed to represent, but that doesn't stop him from behaving immaturely at times, deadly serious other times and somewhat of a wishy-washy friend, as he struggles with his own rite of passage with fiance, Jenny, herself not really sure if their upcoming wedding is really for her. Emily Happe's insecure character is a great balance to Veronique's calculating spider woman.
Sometime ago there was a play called "I love you as you are - Now Change!", a perfect secondary title, were it not for the destructive premise of this play. As the plot develops, we learn more about Evelyn, and an uncomfortable nervous tension begins to build, until the surprising ending where the truth is openly revealed. At that point the only thing you feel is enormous contempt towards Evelyn and pitiful anger towards Adam for allowing his feelings and need for affection to blind him to the point where he allowed her to completely take over his life, all under the guise of love.
Director Scott Schutzman masterfully guides the plot to its unsettling climax, and his ingenious use of movable flats and backgrounds often give a claustrophobic feel to the area, as if symbolizing the entrapment that slowly surrounds Adam. Among its messages, the secondary text points to the vulnerability of youth and the cruel lengths people go to insure their own success at the expense of others.
Author Neil LaBute has been praised and vilified at various times, and this production is an excellent example of why his work elicits extreme reactions. When you see this play you will either love it or hate it, but the performances and the presentation insure that ambivalence is not an operative alternative.
Pick of the Week
http://www.reviewplays.com/shapethings.htm
Veronique Ory
website
Metamorphoses (Eurydice)
Pterodactyls (Emma Duncan)
Slow Dance on the Killing Ground (Rosie)
Wait Until Dark (Susy)
A Lie of the Mind (Beth)
Proof (Catherine)
The Shape of Things (Evelyn)
How I Learned to Drive (Li'l Bit)
Waiting for Godot (Estragon)
Beirut (Blue)
Crimes of the Heart (Babe)
Two Encounters, "Birdbath" (Velma)