NO MAP NEEDED TO FIND FUN IN THIS PLAY
Persephone’s Treasure Island is sure to please every landlubber
It emerges from the fog under a lightning-filled sky with thunder predicting doom.
And the audience bursts into applause at the sight of it. A pirate ship on stage, moving as if on its own? “OK, one thinks, this is going to be cool.”
There’s a chest full of magic in Persephone Theatre’s Treasure Island and, despite some coldblooded murders along the journey, much humour and delight.
The Canadian debut of American playwright Ken Ludwig’s adaptation is in good hands under director Sarah (Jolly?) Rodgers, her large cast and her armada of technicians who have been shovelling coal behind the scenes for weeks now.
The Robert Louis Stevenson pirate story that started them all is confident in itself, blissfully unaware of the manic and bloated Pirates of the Caribbean franchise that would follow a few hundred years later. It’s a treasure hunt story on the surface, with a surrogate father story and a coming of age story not far below decks. Jim Hawkins, impeccably rendered by Jenna Bernenbaum, comes into possession of a treasure map. Humorous blabbermouth Squire Trelawney (Joshua Beaudry) fronts the money for an expedition led by Captain Smollet (Kevin Williamson), with old salt Long John Silver (Chip Chuipka) heading the crew. To no one’s surprise, treachery and greed threaten the enterprise at every turn.
Clad in amazing costumes by Bonnie Deaken, the cast creates terrifically colourful characterizations. Nathan Howe’s Billy Bones, absent his front teeth, is a musty, dangerous and somehow absurdly funny buccaneer. Colin Heath is an absolute wonder with six roles, two of which are vocally and physically showstoppers: the really quite scary Blind Pew and the castaway Benn Gunn. As Gunn, he’s incredibly acrobatic — one headstand move to disguise himself in the jungle is just brilliant. Rodgers guides the ship on a narrow channel between realism and imagination. The wonderful ship designed by Cameron Porteous is a real thing. But when the story calls for a horse-drawn carriage, it’s cleverly conjured with live clip-clop sound effects and rolling barrels for wheels. In the same vein, other noises are man-made. A thunder sheet offstage isn’t nearly as impactful as recorded thunder blasting over the sound system would have been, nor is what sounds like wooden blocks being slapped together for gunshots, but if you go along with the artifice, there’s some charm there.
Still, Long John’s Silver’s “wooden” leg is a bit of a letdown. And don’t get your hopes up for the parrot. You’ll strain your eyes trying to see the finch-sized thing.
Of greater significance is the nice balance that Rodgers strikes between words and action. You can tell that the source material is a novel from the 1800s given the long conversations in the script. But it’s a robust show as well, with no shortage of scurvy knaves climbing the rigging, lugging cargo, playing music, sword-fighting and musket-shooting.
Overall, an infectious spirit of fun makes Treasure Island a theatrical gem.