Wood Boy encounters a Dog Fish for great entertainment in Burbank
Listen to this articleOn opening night the entire theatre inside and out was awash with a rich and alluring carnival sense. It very much set the tone for what was to come and it was truly a work of art created by Jason Anderson and Victoria of HHFX. So I begin with a heartfelt salute to their good work. And then the house opened and the drama accelerated. I believe this shall continue throughout the run and I surely hope so because it truly does set the stage.
The set design was absolutely spectacular. It was very three dimensional and visually captivating; arguably one of the most intriguing I have seen and I have seen thousands. But then again that is pretty much the standard for the Garry Marshall Theatre. Now let the show begin.
Wood Boy Dog Fish is heavily influenced by if not based on the 1940 Disney hit movie Pinocchio, but taking to a whole new level. Geppetto is a wood carver who, with some magic from Blue creates a living wooden puppet who strives to become real. But along his danger filled path the question to some extent becomes what exactly does it mean to be “real?”
On his pursuit of “real” Wood Boy is threatened by a seemingly never ending array of dangers and unsavory characters including the fabled Dog Fish monster. With a steady plethora of astounding costumes and masks, original music and phenomenal stage effects, Pinocchio winds his way through Shoreside, a tourist trap with a strange and quirky carnival atmosphere. All of it brought to powerful life with great acting, great music and a whole lot of special effects.
It is so intense and the action is so fast that at times I found it almost overwhelming. At the suggestion of my good friend and top tier actor who joined me for Wood Boy Dog Fish Victor Onuigbo I revisited Disney’s 1940 smashed hit movie Pinocchio, a show I hadn’t seen in such a long time I won’t even tell you how long, and suddenly everything fell into sharp focus. So if you want to assure maximum enjoyment of your viewing of Wood Boy Dog Fish I would highly recommend you spend just a minute or two at This Wikipedia site first.
But again that question of exactly what does it mean to be “real” keeps jumping up. At one point the adorable cricket is killed, but is he? Was that killing real? I ask because he returns. And what about the choking and gasping he is hung at the end of Act One. How can a rope around a piece of wood serving as a neck cause choking when there are no lungs? Oh wait maybe that chunk of wood is in transition into something else, something more real.
It is thoughts and experiences like this that fill the show with massive energy and visual as well as mental stimulation and I love shows that not only create emotion but which also generate mental stimulation as well. Wood Boy Dog Fish does that abundantly. Ergo this is a show of great entertainment value but I am also convinced to see it at its very best you really do need to refresh your recollection of Pinocchio first.
Yes I know I just repeated myself but that is because I truly do believe it is that important to achieve maximum joy from watching a truly great cast deliver a deeply memorable performance on stage now at the Garry Marshall Theatre in Burbank, California. It is a wild and zany ride and one you will long remember.
And one other thought to contemplate. Could it be that Geppetto is the father of Wood Boy and that Blue is his mother? I don’t know if that was a subliminal intent of playwright Chelsea Sutton or not, but it emerged in my mind as a possibility as I was re-exploring this show in preparation for writing this review. And that is yet but one more example of the awesome mental stimulation Wood Boy Dog Fish delivers.
Written by Chelsea Sutton and produced by Rogue Artists Ensemble Wood Boy Dog Fish is on stage now through June 24, 2018 at the Garry Marshall Theatre, 4252 Riverside Drive, Burbank, California 91505. Ticketing and reservations are available by calling 818-955-9101 or online at the Garry Marshall Theatre website.
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Top photo of Ben Messmer as Geppetto by Chelsea Sutton
Ron Irwin was born in Chicago, Illinois a long time ago. He served in the Marine Corps in Vietnam, became a trial lawyer, TV and radio host, CEO of a public company and once held an Emmy. He never won an Emmy he just held one. Ron has written and published twelve books. His most important book to date is “Live, Die, Live Again” in which Ron tells of his early life and his unexpected and very temporary death in 2012. That experience dramatically refocused his life and within the pages of that book Ron reveals how he achieved a much healthier life, ridding himself of Diabetes, Cancer and Heart Failure. Now Ron enjoys writing about many things including health topics, travel [he has circled the globe several times], adventure, culinary experiences and the world of performing art. Ron’s motto is “Live better, live longer and live stronger because it feels great and annoys others.” Contact the author.