Kevin Meyer, Tempo Editor
Pictured above: The fairytale quest, ‘Rose and the Rime,’ found unique ways to interact with the audience that differentiated the play from a typical production.
For its second play of the fall semester, the Philip Lynch Theatre (PLT) presented the fairytale quest of “Rose and the Rime,” from Nov. 11-13 and again from Nov. 17-20.
“Rose and the Rime” was one of the more unique and complex plays presented at the PLT in the last three or four years. There was a magical storyline that led to the two different moods in the play, fear and celebration.
The story begins as the town is celebrating the birthday of the very special little girl, Rose, played by first-year student Rachel Tau. She is so special that unlike normal people who have one birthday the whole year, Rose has one birthday every week.
While it may look like a celebration for the town, it’s also a reminder of the past that brought them to their current situation. The town of Radio Falls has been cursed with an eternal winter by the Rime Witch, portrayed by another first-year student, Alex Weaver, who stole the town’s magical coin.
Rose then sets off on a quest to find and kill the Rime Witch, so that the town can return to its former glory. Along the way, she has to endure the harsh winter conditions and the dangers around every corner.
Eventually, Rose succeeds in her journey and returns home with the magical coin and a new kind a celebration begins — one everyone in the town can enjoy. They throw a big barbeque where even the audience gets involved in the fun. The winter is gone and everyone is happy, for now.
Along come two brothers, Jimmy and Charlie, who both seek Rose’s love. Jimmy, played by sophomore Adam Smetana, eventually wins Rose’s heart due to some hot dogs and a great singing performance.
They quickly get married, have a child and all is well in Radio Falls. That is until Jimmy’s brother Charlie, played by sophomore Michael Wall, gets the whole town riled up and ready to take the magical coin from the happy couple. After a battle and a half, Rose swallows the coin so no one else can have it and thus becomes the second coming of the Rime Witch, just like her mother, the original Rime Witch.
This is when the audience finally understands exactly what happened to Rose’s parents and that history really was doomed to repeat itself. Only Charlie and the baby survive the incident that ends the story. It was interesting to see a play that for once, didn’t have the most happily ever after conclusion, which was surprising for a fairytale in general.
This play really brought the audience into the action. Even before the play started, the cast was throwing pretend snowballs to audience members to get them excited for the show. There were a few parts in the actual play where the audience got to either see up close what the actors were doing or got to participate themselves.
During Rose’s quest to find the Rime Witch, the audience was literally right next to the rope holders that helped Rose get across the rickety bridge. After Rose’s successful journey, the spectators were very much involved in the celebration that followed. Cast members would throw giant inflatable balls up into the crowd along with a few hot dogs, as treats for the lucky spectators that caught them.
The whole aspect of audience involvement is not in every play. It’s exciting to be a part of something like that, especially for viewers who normally don’t like seeing theatre work.
The singing performances during the play were phenomenal. Tau, Weaver and Smetana all had their very own solos, and each was spectacular in their own right. It was clear why these actors earned these parts.
Overall, one of my favorite parts was, of course, the barbeque celebration. The way the whole cast got involved dancing and partying just made the whole crowd smile and laugh. They even incorporated some current songs on the radio in their own way, like LMFAO’s “Party Rock Anthem.” This scene of complete happiness set the stage for the dramatic ending as well.
The story of the play could have been a lot more confusing then they made it. It was no doubt a complex idea, and not something you see every day, but the way the PLT and director Jo Slowik handled the subject was outstanding. There may have been some spectators confused or lost at times with what was happening, but at the end, it seemed everyone understood what they just witnessed.
“Rose and the Rime” proved that a play can have a light and a dark side, and that not every fairytale has a 100 percent happy ending.
The next PLT performance will be the seventh annual “Holiday Spectacular,” which features skits, musical numbers and improv performances from several students all with a bit of holiday cheer. Performances will run from Dec. 8-10.
Photo provided by Jo Slowik.
Kevin Meyer
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