 A dark and disturbing comedic opera has taken up residence in the Athenaeum Theater, 2936 N. Southport Ave. Considering the evil stories it spins out , it’s a wonder that St. Alphonsus Church next door to the theater hasn’t tumbled over. The themes of the production may break a dozen of the Ten Commandments. In the first skit a hopeful young couple yearns for a child to be delivered by the stork. The resulting child arrives horribly deformed and the couple hastily shoves the new baby under the floorboards where it presumable is left to wither and die. From there the play only gets more macabre. After a series of skits, the abandoned child re-appears, now grown huge with bad hair, long fingernails, and a grossly deformed nude body. He is reunited with his parents who have also taken on some of those features. “Shockheaded Peter” is a wicked British theatrical “junk opera” which is open for a limited four-week run. It is the musical staging of the classic children’s book “Der Struwwelpeter” (Slovenly Peter), written by Dr. Heinrich Hoffman in 1844, which warns of absurd punishments for children’s naughty acts. The show features 11 songs written and performed live by the Tiger Lillies, a devilish cabaret trio of bass, drums and vocalist-accordion player Martyn Jacques, who brings just the right amount of ham for this cheesy production. Most visitors should laugh a lot, others will be horrified, but all will be entertained with this quickly-paced production. “It’s gruesome yet deliciously invigorating,” said Michael Morris, director. “Shockheaded Peter and his lunatic nursery of miscreants have horrified and fascinated generations ever since [it was written]. If you can laugh at your bogeymen, that’s certainly something you can build on.” The production flies in the face of today’s contemporary techno-pop, computer generated entertainment. No complex special effects or high tech props here. The stage setting is similar to a fairground sideshow that evokes the world of Victorian theatrical illusion, with ill-proportioned doors, windows and trapdoors through which creepy characters pop in and out. Do not bring your youngsters to view these cautionary tales of disobedient children. The morbid and sometimes chilling tales incorporate puppetry to help bludgeon, abuse, mutilate and murder children as a satanic narrator explains away the mayhem. There are plenty of dreadful stories set to haunting music. A dozen or so headstones pop up in the end representing the children who have come to gory deaths from the various skits... and that was the funny part. There is young Harriet who wouldn’t stop playing with matches and so burnt to ashes; little Conrad and his parents’ cure for his thumb-sucking; fidgety Phil with an abnormal affinity for cutlery; and flying Robert who really couldn’t. Shockheaded Peter is presented by the Chicago Association for the Performing Arts and Jam Theatrical, in association with Steppenwolf Theatre and Pomegranate Arts, Inc. The show runs six nights a week through Oct. 14. Tickets are priced from $27 to $50 and are available through Ticketmaster or at the box office, 2936 N. Southport Ave. Parking is scarce, so either allow time for circling the block or take public transportation. For more information call (773) 935-6860. |
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