Edward Remixed and Retold
Edward Remixed and Retold
Created and Choreographed by Willy Marchante
Casting Shadows Productions and Wanzie Presents
Footlights Theatre, Orlando FL</strong>
Turing a Johnny Depp movie into a dance piece is an unusual choice but a surprisingly effective one. Local dance maestro Willy Marchante squeezes his little troupe onto the Footlights stage which has barely enough room for a Michael Wanzie comedy and took us for a magical ride into a dark story. Depp’s portrayal of the misfit Edward Scissors hands is universal; like Edward all we want is acceptance despite our personal oddities. Edward’s (Marchante) sharp and dangerous appendages make his difference hard to hide, and his skin tight black body suit doesn’t help when everyone else is in polo shirts and penny loafers. He’s discovered by a nosy real estate agent (Rachel Brown) investigating a large creepy castle, the courted by Sarah Fanok and Darci Ricciardi and finally despised by Steve Johnson. I don’t think Ron Banks or Nic “Monkey” Grady liked him much either, but they had to focus on their dance moves and has little time for axiciaphobia.
While the motion was compressed and Marchante nearly disappeared behind the upper curtain when performing on his scaffolding, the dance was intriguing and the costumes outstanding. Everyone could follow the broad outlines of the story although having seen the movie didn’t hurt. What did hurt was the blasting sound track; the show was lip synced and the volume painfully high. Song transitions were often abrupt and danced across a smorgasbord of styles: I see how the lyrics fit each mood, but the jump cuts were a bit much. I’m not sure if Dancing to the Movies is Americas next big craze, but it does give the performance a coherence and order that many modern dance troupe lack. “Edward Remixed and Retold” is a clever show, well performed and dripping with potential if they can clean up the sound. While there’s one more performance left I can see this reappearing at some local theater festival or another and the concept could certainly work with any number of other well known films.
For more information on the Footlights Theater, please visit http://www.theparlimenthouse.com or http://www.Wanzie.com</em>
