Reviews 2003
Reviews 2003
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music by Greg Morrison with Karen Hines, book & lyrics by Karen Hines, directed by Chris Earle
Tarragon Theatre, Tarragon Theatre Mainspace, Toronto
November 11-December 14, 2003
Much in Hello...Hello is a mystery. Why would Karen Hines, a fine comic actress but poor singer, write a musical for herself to star in? Why would the Tarragon mount this dreary 1999 work when it is so obviously flawed? Why has designer Robert Thompson set a show with so many outdoor scenes in what looks like an early '70s disco?
At some time in the future when suicide capsules have become fashion accessories and zebra mussels with mercury are on the menu, Cassandra (Karen Hines) and Ben (Peter Oldring), both recently bereaved, meet in a cemetery, fall in love, get married and have a child. The show's best writing is found in the satirical spoken narration of a chorus (a lacklustre Aurora Browne and Steven Morel), who describe futuristic scenes and mores all the while undercutting any notion of idealism with deeply morbid cynicism. Birds flock to the lights of city towers only to fall dead to the sidewalks below. Yet, occupying at least half the performance time, this narration is also a major flaw, draining the show of drama and treating Ben and Cassandra as symbols not characters. Greg Morrison's Twin Peaks-like music can barely rouse itself from mood-making to shape a memorable tune, not that the cast can stay in pitch to sing it.
Hines inexplicably plays Cassandra, whose mind is overwhelmed with dread and unfathomable darkness, as a set of coy poses from 1930s movies. The talented Oldring is only one to inject the soporific atmosphere with any vitality.
©Christopher Hoile
Note: A version of this review appeared in Eye Weekly 2003-11-20.
Photo: Karen Hines.
2003-11-20
Hello ... Hello