Review: Witch

Review: Witch | Boulder Ensemble Theatre Company | Denver, CO | Gina Robertson

Do you dream of dancing with the devil in the pale moonlight? Many people do, and Witch is the story of one such woman, and what happened when the devil decided to dance with her too.

Jen Silverman’s fierce dark comedy is based on a 1621 Jacobean play about a woman ostracized, tried and executed for witchcraft. Witch is the story of Elizabeth, an outcast from a feudal village, who lives a life alone in her rustic little cabin doing witchy things like sweeping and weaving baskets. She, along with other members of the village, is approached by the devil, a handsome young charmer named Scratch, with a salesman’s gift for manipulating people into selling their souls. While other villagers eagerly give their soul to the devil when their heart’s desire is offered to them, Elizabeth resists and engages Scratch in conversation that intrigues him and makes him feel unexpected feelings.

In the castle, another story is taking place involving Sir Arthur, his son Cuddy, a young village man, Frank, who has charmed Sir Arthur into thinking of him as a second son, and Frank’s secret wife Winnifred who has come to the castle to work as a servant.

Overall, it is a story about hope. What will you give to keep it, what happens when you lose all hope? What is the violent, dramatic action you might take, or what sad, desperate compromise will you accept once all hope is gone? Every character is faced with these questions and makes their choice in the face of the devil in the pale moonlight.

The play opens with a monologue from Elizabeth (Jessica Robblee), who refers to herself wryly as “a plague of locusts with just one locust.” She’s in a “burn it all down” state of mind when offered the chance to trade her soul for her own heart’s desire. Like a voice echoing from the 1600s, her rage and despair fit comfortably in our modern ears, particularly because Silverman’s clever dialogue is contemporary and fun. Characters use phrases like “what’s the BFD?” and “I was like ‘is she crazy?’” Robblee’s messy hair and sharp wit embody Elizabeth with the appropriate amount of witch vibe without straying into “weird sister” territory. She’s weary but bold, a woman who says what she thinks, and people tend to hear that as spell casting.

Marco Alberto Robinson (Scratch), Jessica Robblee (Elizabeth Sawyer); Photo Credit: Michael Ensminger

Scratch falls for her because she is seemingly immune to his charm. Henry award winner Marco Alberto Robinson plays him so smoothly, with a sense of amusement and deception, that it isn’t clear whether he genuinely falls for Elizabeth or he’s still working on a sale. In the end, he too loses hope and ends the play with an emotional monologue like a bookend to Elizabeth’s opening.

Bryan J. Black plays Cuddy Banks, the son of the lord of the castle. He’s a closeted gay man who likes to dance and worries that his father’s affections have turned toward another potential heir. He is earnest and sweet, though he admits to feeling murderously toward his rival at times.

Frank Thorney (Cameron Davis) is special. He knows it, he feels it. He is destined for greatness, or at least he deserves to supplant the lord’s son and inherit the castle manor and its lands. He’s been working on Sir Arthur and knows he’s on the verge of getting what his heart desires, except that the woman he secretly married is giving him a hard time. He must choose whether to abandon her to chase his dream. Davis plays Special Frank with a delightful deviousness. He is callous at times, even sinister and threatening, but clearly feels some regret over the wife and life he had to give up for his dream. The chemistry between Davis and Black is a fun sort of comedic contempt with homoerotic undertones.

Torsten Hillhouse’s Sir Arthur Banks is a comic delight. He is a blowhard and basically a prop, a reason for other characters to do things and want things, while having no real hope or desire of his own that the devil may take notice of. His heart comes to the front, though, while speaking to the picture of his dead wife, and the result is both touching and hilarious.

L to R: Cameron Davis (Frank Thorney), Tor Hillhouse (Sir Arthur Banks), Elizabeth Harlen (Winnifred), Bryan Black (Cuddy Banks); Photo Credit: Michael Ensminger

Winnifred is played by a passive aggressive Elizabeth Harlen. Her expressive eyes shoot daggers at her husband across the room while he discusses other women he might consider marrying to please Sir Arthur. In the end, she too loses all hope, and her desperation and sadness are a perfect counterpoint to the rage and destruction that other characters have come to.

Director Josh Hartwell has pulled a gut-wrenching performance from this cast, dripping with charisma and wit. If the fight scene is a bit awkward, it only stands out because the rest of the action is so smooth and seamless. As the action volleys back and forth between the two homes, the plots seem to touch upon and taunt one another.

The set by Tina Anderson is beautifully detailed and concise. A fireplace in Elizabeth’s cabin sits opposite the fireplace in the dining hall of the great manor house. Music and sound effects by Adara Baltazar work brilliantly with lighting design by Erin Thibodaux to set a playful yet sinister mood. Costumes by Sarah Zinn are richly detailed with velvet jackets, frilly shirts, and medieval short pants with stockings.

Whatever your hopes and dreams may be, or your inclination toward dancing with the devil in the moonlight, you will be delighted, entertained and provoked by this thoughtful comedy produced by Boulder Ensemble Theatre Company and appearing at Savoy Denver through August 8, then at the Dairy Arts Center in Boulder through August 23.

For information and tickets: https://www.betc.org/upcoming-shows/witch-l2a8l-ewsah-26caf-ywr5h