The Ash Girl: Strong performances fail to save a weak script
Given the box office breaking success of Studio 58's forty-second season, it's a shame that the fourty-third season opener does not align with the theatre's previous acclaim. Timberlake Wertenbaker's The Ash Girl is a modernization of the classic Cinderella tale, but with the seven deadly sins and the emotion of sadness tossed in for additional intrigue.
Unfortunately, intrigue is something this play lacks entirely. The storyline is predictable and weak, falling somewhere between disappointing and boring.
This is not to say it was all bad. Lindsey Angell charms the audience as the sad, lonely Ash Girl and Susan Coodin and Ella Simon make a remarkably conniving duo as evil stepsisters Judith and Ruth. Luc Roderique is touchingly honest as Prince Amir, the object of affection to our Ash Girl.
In addition to the usual cast of Cinderella and the personification of the seven deadly sins as woodland creatures, comes Sadness, as played by Evelyn Chew. The haunting portrayal of such a cold and private emotion is brought to light with her ever hovering presence and effortlessly elegant movements across the stage. Overall, choreography is fitted to each individual character, most notably evident in our little sin pride. Pridefly, played by Genevieve Flemming, exemplifies all elements of the fly from the buzzing and twitching, to the jerky gestures and is perhaps the only reason to stay awake during the endless forest scenes.
Though much of this production leaves me with mixed feelings I must say the work of the creative team is a wonderful exception. Simple set pieces, as beautifully crafted by Bryan Pollack, are transformed from what could have been one large elaborate set into at least three to four distinctly different looks. The always stunning lighting design of Itai Erdal captures and capitalizes on the characters' emotions, and is aided by the ever-lovely costuming of Barbara Clayden. With direction by Sarah Rodgers, the staging is appealing and creative utilizing the theatre's entire space.
Everything that fails in The Ash Girl is due to poor scripting. Predictability and length do not a good play make. This entire production lasted roughly two hours but could have easily been cut down to 45 minutes. An hour possibly, if there had been any new or unusual twists to the story, but there weren't otherwise the outcome of this review would have been quite different.
It is also possible that everything I've written thus far is my own personal protest. I disliked the laziness that Wertenbaker showcases. It feels as though the story should have been pushed further. The tale more extreme. In order to remake a classic, one of two things must happen: it needs to be remade to the tee or remade in such a way that the original acts solely as inspiration to a whole other story. The Ash Girl was a perfect balance between the two, which, sadly didn't work.
Despite the best efforts of Studio 58's creative team and cast, The Ash Girl falls short of spectacular. Maybe next time Wertenbaker should consider taking more of a risk or just not bothering at all.