RSS 2.0 FeedOctober 21, 2009, Theatre
Are you scared?
"Are you scared?" Those were not the last words, or screams, uttered by a hand-wringing teenage audience member at Coterie at Night's world premiere of "Maul of the Dead," a spoofy tale of apocalypse and hilarity with blood spatter a-plenty.
Those were not the last words, or screams, uttered by a hand-wringing teenage audience member at Coterie at Night's world premiere of Maul of the Dead, a spoofy tale of apocalypse and hilarity with blood spatter a-plenty. After an adrenaline-rushed entrance into the theatre, who could blame her for her anticipation?
"You're all alone. Will you be okay?" she inquired again.
Before a moment to consider what might lie ahead, the delighted crowd who sat seat-edged in absolute captivation was drawn into the Maul and not so sure of what was next. "Trapped" in JC Penny's with local survivors and zombies in this re-imagined nightmare, a full-blown, action-packed, rock-n-gore performance ensued. As Megan Turke's costume design left no doubt, it was the 70s, baby, and all hell was breaking lose.
Purportedly based on Dawn of the Dead, Mitch Brian's Maul seemed more reminiscent of Return of the Living Dead with its subtle and not-so-subtle sexy humor; and yet another guitar-clad-Coterie lad and main zombie, Cody, who woos his punk-rock love, Wendy (Meredith Wolfe), amidst the crisis with his teasing plucks.
Nine survivors and 44 zombies comprise the cast. Notables included two highly-armed, show-stealing swat guys (Tosin Morohunfola and Matt Weiss), a weather-girl (Kimberly Queen) and her helicopter-pilot cohort John, played by Greg Krumins highlighted the expertly cast company of actors.
Cody Wyoming (who also plays zombie Cody) filled the theatre with a spot-on 70's rock contrast in punk and classic rock and even a bit of disco to smooth it all out with a little help from Art Kent's lighting design. Ron Mcgee's cast and zombie crew invaded the audience's imagination and kept them laughing and gasping out loud up until the very end. It was clear the actors enjoyed themselves as much as the Coterie at Night's patrons, and their energy was contagious.
It's a wild night at the mall at Maul of the Dead and is definitely worth checking out.. probably more than once.
REVIEW
The Coterie Theatre
Maul of the Dead
Runs October 16 - October 31 (Reviewed: October 17, 2009)
2450 Grand Boulevard, Level Three, Kansas City MO
For tickets call 816-474-6552 or online www.coterietheatre.org
Top Photo:
Danger lurks behind every mannequin... (Tosin Morohunfola, Kimberly Queen)
Photo by J. Robert Schraeder
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