Talk about blood lines – The Robber Bridegroom book and lyrics are from Alfred Uhry, who gave us Driving Miss Daisy, from a novella by the esteemed Eudora Welty, who in turn apparently kipped it from the Brothers Grimm.
Grimm, yes, but grim, not so much. Oh, there’s fightin’ and cussin’ – this takes place in 1795 on the Natchez Trace – but it’s really pretty lighthearted, an amusing story of mixed-up identity, a young woman who’s hungry for love and romance, and an older woman who’s a rowdy take on the wicked stepmother. Plus, just for fun, a talking head.
The script takes a while to get momentum, but the cast moves smartly through the early slog, thanks to director Justin Been. Phil Leveling plays Jamie Lockhart, who moves through life alternatively as a gentleman and a bandit. He meets a very wealthy planter, Jeffrey M. Wright, by cleverly saving his life and earning the planter’s gratitude, especially after he turns down a financial reward, but gets invited to Sunday dinner at the plantation.
The planter has a beautiful daughter, Rosamund, Dawn Schmid, who looks like her late mother. Dad never fails to comment on this, to the chagrin of his scheming second wife, Sarah Gene Dowling. Dad thinks he’s going to marry Rosamund off to the gentleman coming to dinner – shades of Glass Menagerie – but Rosamund dreams of romance, and probably getting away from her nasty stepmother. Frequently sent out into the field to gather “herbs”, what we’d think of as leafy greens, for the most part, she runs into the Bandit of the Woods, who is, of course, Lockhart in his other guise. He doesn’t physically harm her but removes the beautiful dress her father had brought her and her underwear as well. Traumatized? Hardly. Romanticized would be the word. She wants to see him again, and they both return to the field.
This experience has left Rosamund deeply uninterested in this guy her dad’s bringing to dinner. She covers her red hair and puts on the wacko-act when the dinner guest arrives. Neither of them recognize the other, as the erstwhile bandit has removed the berry juice with which he stains his face for his other line of work. Ah, chaos. It’s the little black dress of theatre.
Leveling’s rascally character is strong and believable, very much a here-today-and-gone-tomorrow sort. Wright, as the planter, does a swell job, wrapped around Rosamund’s little finger and blind to the schemes of his wife. In addition, it’s impossible to avoid discussing his suit, all costumes courtesy of Stray Dog’s artistic director Gary F. Bell. This particular one, whose last owner may have won the third race at Cahokia Downs, is an eye-stunning mustard-colored plaid.
Schmidt’s Rosamund seems flaccid by modern standards, but by the standards of the late 18th Century, she’s actually pretty radical, which is exactly the sweet spot needed here. It’s well played. And Sarah Gene Dowling’s Salome (an appropriate name for the stepmother) is wonderful, even when she’s silent and upstage watching her stepdaughter, much less when the gentleman caller arrives.
Two other robbers, the Harp brothers, Logan Willmore and Kevin O’Brien, who has the very choice role of the talking head, are great fun. The method of creating the head is pretty amusing, too. Susie Lawrence is a talking raven – watch her costume, too, by the way – and Bryce Miller and Christen Ringhausen are a couple of intellectually challenged kids who play significant roles in ending the misunderstandings.
The music is from a 6-person band, with lots of string work from various instruments, all in a style that’s old-style country/folky/bluesy. Sounds good, some amusing lyrics, and the harmonies, especially on “Deeper in the Wood” are delicious.
Not your usual musical, but it’s fun to watch it grow as the evening progresses. One of those rare shows where the second act is better than the first, I think.
The Robber Bridegroom
through August 18
Stray Dog Theatre
2336 Tennessee Ave.
314-865-1995