DEDICATED TO THE REVOLUTIONS created and performed by Small Wooden Shoe (Shoe/Buddies in Bad Times, 12 Alexander). Runs to April 12, Tuesday-Saturday 8 pm, matinee Sunday 2:30 pm. Pwyc-$25. 416-975-8555. See listing. Rating: NNN
Bet you never sat in the theatre watching someone work out a long division problem.
And in the unlikely event that you have, you probably didn’t have a big smile on your face.
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But I saw and shared that collective audience smile in Dedicated To The Revolutions, a striking piece by Small Wooden Shoe that explores seven scientific and cultural revolutions (from Gutenberg to Information) that have shaped our society.
In an interconnected and quirky fashion, the six creator/performers move from one revolution to the next, using demonstrations, songs, experiments, improvisation and drawings to look at what we call progress and whether it in fact improves our lives.
You know from the start that this isn’t a typical show. As you enter, most of the company’s playing Jenga, that game of small wooden logs that pits a steady hand against gravity. Lighthearted and tense at the same time, it nicely suggests Newton and his falling apple.
That playful quality underlies the entire show, which includes a song whose lyrics help us recall where to find the letters on a typewriter keyboard, a look at tin-can messaging and why natural selection doesn’t always help giraffes.
Mixed in with these episodes are some magical moments of reflection, such as when a look at various levels of street lighting morphs into a mass of stars in the sky.
The genial cast – Frank Cox-O’Connell, Chad Dembski, Aimée Dawn Robinson, Erin Shields, Evan Webber and the show’s conceiver, Jacob Zimmer (who co-directed with Ame Henderson) – clearly enjoy bouncing off each other and the audience on designer Trevor Schwellnus’s set, filled with toys and lots and lots of whiteboards.
Dedicated To The Revolutions is the kind of fun show that’ll appeal to those who don’t usually go to the theatre. While it’s not a conventional, well-made play, it offers thoughtful, well-made entertainment.
