Prospera!

Advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic, but who will be transformed? And what does it mean to win?

Otherworld Theatre formed in 2012 with the goal of bringing science fiction into the theatrical experience. True to the mission, Prospera! is an epic re-imagining of The Tempest in an alternate universe of interplanetary intrigue, intra-familial maneuvering, and a struggle over life-altering power that is maybe tech – or maybe divine.

This original script by Otherworld Artistic Director and Founder Tiffany Keane Schaefer retains much of the broad plot points and characters of The Tempest within its futuristic form. Prospera (Stacey Lind / Sydney Ginter) is brilliant, powerful and exiled from her rightful place after betrayal by her jealous, power-hungry brother Andarin (Jacob Watson). The ingenue Miri (Izzi King) is Prospera’s daughter, innocently awkward from a lifetime of isolation in exile. Ariel (Janice Rumschlag) wields powers in service to Propsera as an integrated Artificial Intelligence. Kai-Lune (Blake Marion Hood) is a reimagined Calaban – a mystic being indigenous to this far-away planet. The youthful romance is preserved through Dax (Hayden Lane-Davis), brought on this ill-fated mission by his mother Captain Alon (Hilary Sanzel) and the loyal spitfire Zalos (P-Jay Adams).

There are nods back to the Bard that conjure Shakespearean works; indulgent soliloquys, lyrical philosophizing, and exchanges referencing many of TheTempest’s moments. Present too, and transformed, are the explorations of freedom and bondage, vengeance and transformation, and the inescapable clash between world views of colonizing commodification and animistic connection.

New to the tale is the focus on wealth and debt inequities plaguing the population from Roma Prime. The desperation it causes underlies Prospera’s exile and sparks new conflicts throughout the story. Some narrative exposition is offered at the beginning of the show, but is mostly inaudible over the music. The program is a clever news sheet that is essential in setting the broader scene, recalling the scrolling exposition opening Star Wars.

The elaborate set (Tiffany Keane Schaefer) is a visual feast – a sort of salvage-operation meets Land-of-the-Lost decaying ancient temple. There is so much to take in you’ll be tempted to use the intermission to inspect the details. The otherworldly lighting by Mike McShane (Lighting Designer/Master Electrician) deepens the illusions, and turns creeping set accents into harbingers of violence. The production makes potent use of a massive circular screen – a technological porthole that brings the threat of a red dwarf and the promise of the wormhole looming over all.

Izzi King’s Miri is an absolute delight in every one of her scenes. King’s journey from an isolated bud to a blossoming young woman is endearing and amusing. Her comic relief is natural and a welcome thread in the production. She stumbles, fawn-like, into a romance with Lane-Davis’ Dax that is pure despite being one of Prospera’s many machinations. Their swift courtship runs through the standard phases of a romance – from awkward formality to physical captivity, from innocent vulnerability to an exuberant consummation that is humorously yet genuinely portrayed with Hayley Wilkinson as Intimacy Coordinator.

Jeff Award Nominee Stacey Lind takes the title role, playing the elder Prospera who has been hardened by exile, betrayal, and loss. Instead of a practitioner of white magic, Prospera is a scientist, intent on completing the life’s work that triggered her exile and will transform the lives of her debt-ridden people from Roma Prime. As she plots revenge and a future for her daughter, Prospera engages in casual cruelty towards Ariel and Kai-Lune, and indulges her insecurities and buried heart recalling her lost wife Sybil (Janice Rumschlag).

In moving ‘flashback’ scenes we see Young Prospera (Sydney Ginter) in the moments that fuel our anti-hero’s fire for revenge and power. Ginter is captivating in the scene where the seeds of Andarin’s betrayal sprout. As young Prospera struggles to reinforce her connection with Andarin, Ginter brings a swirl of conflicting emotions in a fully realized and complicated exchange. As Ginter withdraws we can see Prospera knew their bond was broken, and that she had no idea how important that division would become.

Janice Rumschlag gives a multifaceted performance as Ariel, the ‘airy’ spirit reimagined as an Artificial Intelligence entity with wide-ranging powers. Rumschlag has impeccable delivery of Ariel’s sardonic wit, bringing unexpected laughter in scenes where she is otherwise on the sidelines. When Prospera and Ariel are face-to-face there is a sense that Rumschlag is pacing the edges of her cage, shifting tactics to find cracks in Prospera’s iron facade. She shifts from creepy inuendo to a mocking obsequiousness, then flipping a switch into emotionless tech at Prospera’s will.

Kai-Lune as played by Blake Marion Hood, is intriguing. Kai-Lune is a shamanic figure who is so intertwined with the planet that his physical form is embedded with the planet’s crystals. Presented as a hunchbacked humanoid with a costume representing rags over blue skin, the theme of colonization over an indigenous population (and echoes of Avatar) is reinforced. His other-ness is present also in Hood’s use of flowing gesture as Kai-Lune’s native language. Hood’s portrayal is perhaps the most complex of characters; sometimes uncomfortably shuffling and clownish, occasionally sarcastic and snippy. In transfixing moments Hood gives us actual transmutation – sinking deeply into a spirituality that transforms technology back into magic.

A worthwhile and unique take on The Tempest, Prospera! is evocative of sci-fi giants and will delight fans of Shakespeare, Lucas, and Roddenberry alike.

Recommended

Reviewed by Soleil Rodrigue

Prospera presented by Otherworld Theatre runs Thursdays through Saturdays at 7:00 PM with matinees Saturdays and Sundays at 2:00 PM through February 8. All shows are at Theatre Wit, 1229 W Belmont, Chicago

Tickets are $15 to $30 and may be purchased online at https://theaterwit.org/

Additional information about this and other area productions can be found by visiting www.theatreinchicago.com.