Psychedelic spectacle searches for meaning
Is being staged at at Heliconian Hall.
March development program in 2016, it was clear that even with a promising concept and execution, the real highlight of the production would be Johnson’s music, drawing on contemporary electro-pop influences (everything from Florence Welch to Purity Ring to CHVRCHES). It lends an especially mysterious and ominous tone to the cult’s hymns (“Invocation” and “The Song, The Choice”) and especially those who lead them. As Vera, Guloien is the charismatic frontwoman you could see headlining Osheaga, while Braid’s Harmony takes on an intense focus, as if her mission is to release eternal salvation through her voice.
These moments, taking place in the present, are what makes this a new musical worth watching. The Johnsons have an exciting, current musical voice, presented in a slick setting (fingers crossed the projection hiccups are smoothed out in future performances) with powerful performers. Dr. Silver’s religion, based in music and vibrations and Greek and Roman history, is convincingly argued through these sequences. And yet, it never really penetrates to a meaningful core. Flashbacks to the family’s past, illuminating wayward son Gordon (Peter Deiwick), feel atmospherically and musically out of place. The story gets bogged down in attempting to wring out a family drama that’s never as interesting as the service. It lacks character development while it over-explains its plot and it’s never confident in what the audience should be learning, or what role they’re playing, as the service does or doesn’t go off the rails. Dr. Silver: A Celebration of Life operates surprisingly well as a metaphor for cults themselves; it’s full of dazzle, charm, convincing performances and crafty slogans. It’s easy to get sucked in but, ultimately, you don’t know what you’re following for. Dr. Silver: A Celebration of Life,
is a freelance theatre critic for