THE PRINCE IS BACK!
nytheatre.com review by Andrew Henkes
August 15, 2002
Permeated with energy and detailed
characterizations, The Prince is Back! by THEATRON is a pleasure
for both children and adults. The play is framed through the nostalgic
perspective of a Narrator as he reads us the story of the Prince from
his book. As the play begins, we get a glimpse of the Narrator as a
child learning to draw, reading his favorite story, and, later,
exploring the world as a (pretend) airplane pilot. It is delightful to
see the cast transform themselves with crisp movements into the
characters, animals, and objects described by the Narrator. There are
many clever touches added to these moments, such as a mirror becoming
sleepy and irritable, which help to keep the otherwise repetitive plot
structure from growing stale.After fondly following his exploits as a child for twenty minutes, the Narrator encounters the Prince in the Sahara. The Prince has tired of his sedate life on his little planet, and we follow him as he explores other worlds, only to discover how empty and bizarre adult behavior is.
I found it odd at the end that we return to the point when the Child first encounters the Prince, but the Child does not appear again.
Director Euripides Laskaris has a great eye for visuals, and makes amazing use of both the open stage and the actors’ individual talents. The most fascinating and inspired performance is Elisa Malona as the Fox. With her ears and tail to assist, she captures an exciting animal energy with her strong vocals, sharp movements and striking postures. The colorful costuming used to differentiate major characters provides just the right touch to suggest each character’s individual attributes. So, in spite of some structural problems with the plot, the polished techniques and clever ideas help to make The Prince Is Back! a charming performance.
