Blood Wedding Review

April 30, 2009 • By Rachel Dozier, The Breeze
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CORRECTION: This article was updated at 5:16 p.m. on April 30, 2009 to correct the spelling of Aaron Jones.

Haunting voices slithering on stage preceded the pounding footsteps of villagers in the Latimer-Shaeffer Theatre Tuesday night. From the moment the play Blood Wedding began, a serious pall hung over the theatre.

This semester’s first and only mainstage play followed the lives of townspeople in a small village near Andalusia, Spain. The story followed a Mother, played by junior Christie Steele, grieving at the murders of one of her sons and husband. When the play opens, she is anxiously awaiting her other son’s impending wedding. Her worry over being alone is an annoyance to her son and the others she encounters. However, as the storyline continues, it becomes clearer that her fears are well placed. In the end, the Mother is left with only: “The earth and me, my grief and me.”

A series of outside factors collectively created the necessary tone of foreboding. Though Blood Wedding was not a musical, music was definitely present the entire the show.

Sophomore Corey Hummerston, a member of the ensemble and the associate choreographer/dance and music captain, worked with composer Aaron Jones to give the show sound.

“This was a more experimental version of Blood Wedding,” Hummerston said. “We wanted to add some Spanish flair and rhythms. The music helped to keep the play alive and further the plot. [Victor Maog, the director] said that the characters had to ‘earn the music.’ If they pushed the plot forward with their emotion, the music would follow.”

Stomping feet, a capella voices and a tambourine worked together to create simplistic yet haunting melodies.

Along with the music, the stage and set helped to further the plot and keep the gloomy atmosphere a constant. Set on an elevated rake, combined with a variety of backdrops ranging in complexity, it provided a stimulating environment for both actors and audience members.

“We began rehearsal on a flat surface with a taped outline,” said junior Trevor Wilhelms, who played the role of the Bridegroom. “Getting onto the actual rake changes so much. Where before you would simply be walking away from someone, now you would be higher or lower than them.”

The opening night audience noticed the symbolism of the play.

“This play is supposed to be surreal and they portrayed that perfectly with the constant changes in scenes,” junior Sarah Toth said.

However, the music and depths of the set were not the only elements that pushed the plotline.

The lighting, filled with constant shadows and a mixture of colors, helped give the intricate and vibrant set more depth. Though the main rake was always covered in light, sometimes the lighting in the wings, or lack there of, provided lingering images. Ensemble members were almost always present on stage foreshadowing events.

And then, of course, there was the acting itself. A constant theme of the show was one of anger and frustration. The conflicted Bride, played by freshman Shannon O’ Riordan, went from being a seemingly wholesome girl in love with her future husband, to a tormented woman screaming and hurtling chairs at the man she truly loved. In her last scene, this once beautiful girl, the pride of her family, is shown with dark mascara streaking down her cheeks in a final expression of utmost despair.

The Wife of the Bride’s lover, played by senior Lauren Ramsey, also showed true desperation as she clawed at her husband’s coat, begging him to tell her what was really going on, not only in his life but with their marriage.

However, one character had the largest transformation of all. The Bridegroom began the play as a comforting son, whose mother is on the brink of insanity. As the story continued, disappointing events caused him to turn into a furious, bloodthirsty madman.

“I focused on the character’s frustrations which consumed his life,” Wilhelms said. “First he has his mother who is in constant mourning and a desire to get away from that with his wedding. When things don’t go the way he wants them to, his anger just starts to snowball. It’s the realization that dream’s don’t come true.”

The loss of hope, dark tones and frustrations wove together with a combination of elements create a unique interpretation of Federico García Lorca’s classic Blood Wedding.

Contact Rachel Dozier at breezearts@gmail.com

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