Topsy-Turvy Turmoil

yo ho

During the Golden Age of Piracy, occurring between 1650 and 1730, groups of brutal maritime outlaws plowed the waves, violently attacking and raiding other ships of their cargo. At that time, their presence struck fear in the hearts of all the merchant ships. However, as unlawful as the pirates were, these brigands lived by a strict democratic code that dictated their voting on who should be the ship’s captain and equally sharing all of the loot stolen during a raid. The goods included money, food, textiles, medicine and other everyday necessities. 

In his book from that time period,  A General History of the Pyrates, Captain Charles Johnson discusses a number of different buccaneers. Several familiar names of notorious male marauders jump out at us. They include Edward “Blackbeard” Teach, Bartholomew “Black Bart” Roberts, Captain William Kidd, Henry Morgan, and John Rackham, who was nicknamed “Calico Jack.” But perhaps not as well known, a few female sea rovers are also listed as well. Among the women, Anne Bonny and Mary Read are the two most famous standouts.

In an interesting, sexually provocative and often humorous new comical drama, primarily set in 1720 aboard the sailing ship Ranger, we get a broad, fictionalized account of the relationship between Anne Bonny, Mary Read and Calico Jack. Several other 18th century characters appear from time to time, portrayed by two other talented and versatile actors. YO HO, playwright SMJ’s two-act comedy, is currently enjoying its world premiere by the Babes With Blades Theatre Company at The Edge Off- Broadway Theater. This crazy, clownish comedy imagines the little-known connection between Calico Jack, Anne Bonny, Mary Read and several others. Directed by JD Caudill, the two-act romp is campy, comedic, chaotic and chockablock with swordplay and swashbuckling fencing. The fight choreography is created by Carly Belle “CB” Cason. Caudill’s five talented cast members absolutely throw themselves into this production, bringing the zany adventures of the pirates to life with power and pizzazz. As they sail around the Caribbean, sometimes pulling ashore in the Bahamas, we chuckle at the lives and loves of these real-life characters. But their story is told through too much topsy-turvy turmoil.

Rachel Sleek-Banuelos makes her BWBTC debut as Anne Bonny, and she totally throws herself into the role with temendous vigor. It’s known that the real-life character survived her time aboard ship by passing herself off as a young man. Like actress Sierra Bryn, who brilliantly portrays Mary Read, both characters dress in men’s clothing (all the excellent period perfect costumes are by Jennifer Mohr), binding their breasts and taking part in the routine scutwork, surprise sorties and skirmishes. Their crew mates accepted the two ladies as men, although Calico Jack, hilariously played with gay flamboyancy by Stef Brundage, was having an affair with Bonny. What he didn’t know was that Mary Read and Anne Bonny had become lesbian lovers, once the women discovered each other’s actual gender. Intimacy director, Alyssa Vera Ramos, has carefully created every delicate, yet realistic and erotic moment in this production, both gay and straight.

The two terrifically talented young actors, who complete this cast, deserve just as much praise as the three leading players. Handsome William Delforge is strong, agile and very funny playing other characters, such as pirate crew member Chad and James, Anne’s former husband. But the real highlight of this production is lovely Brittani Yawn, who’s absolutely marvelous as Victoria, the Governor of the Bahamas and a few other characters. She can wield a sword with the best of them and is a true master comedian. Ms. Yawn provides the majority of the laugh-out-loud hilarity in YO HO. Not only does this gifted young actress bring it, by way of her polished line delivery and expert comic timing, but Brittani understands how to use facial expressions and body language to get bigger laughs. Hopefully we’ll see more from this excellent comic actress in the future.

While there are a lot of laughs in this production, between the continual scene shifts, costume changes and the chaotic physical demands of the script, many scenes seem filled with pandemonium and confusion. It becomes a challenge for the audience to keep track of the story because of the choppiness of the play or the production. There’s a lot of ingenious comical bits, however, in JD Caudill’s production. The attacking seagulls were funny, the strange religious scenes drew gales of laughter and Ms. Yawn’s Governor was especially hilarious, particularly when a cutout of the character took to the stage, instead of the actual actress. But I kept wishing for more order in this production so I could follow what was happening and to whom. Once the production smoothes out all the kinks and glitches, and flows smoother, this production will be a lot more fun. But for right now the constant topsy-turvy turmoil grows tiresome after a while.    

Recommended

Reviewed by Colin Douglas

Presented July 19-August 29 by Babes With Blades at The Edge Off Broadway, 1133 W. Catalpa Ave., Chicago.

Tickets are available in person at the box office by calling 773-217-8406, or by going to BabesWithBlades.org.

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

Photos are by Tom McGrath/TCMcG Photography.