Machinal

Mary Tuomanen & Ross Beschler

Whenever Thom Weaver is the Lighting Designer of a production, it is a sure bet that the results will be remarkable.  He is the best in his field.  When he oversees the entire creative team, (lighting, scenic, costume, and sound) it can be nothing short of phenomenal. And so it is with EgoPo’s current production of Machinal.  The third in a series - American Giants II (women playwrights) Machinal  by Sophie Treadwell, is being presented by EgoPo Classic Theater and is running  at the Latvian Society, 531 N.  7^th Street through May 8. Loosely based on the life of Ruth Snyder who was executed for murdering her husband, this production is intense. Boundless symbolism requires your utmost attention, but having given it, you will be rewarded with appreciation of a confluence of art forms that are rarely seen together in one piece… mime; the shedding of clothes to strip one’s identity;  stilted movements of automatons; fluid movements of a ballet; a Greek chorus; opera; and cacophony emanating from the stand-up microphones. Mary Tuomanen, the only actor not in the ensemble,  is extraordinary in her role as the Young Woman. As she portrays a wide range of emotions… fear, repugnance, resignation, desire, determination and bewilderment, she has the audience eating out of her hand. This piece may require your concentration but it is worth every second of it!  For more information or tickets, call 267-273-1414 or visit online at www.egopo.org.