By DAVID DUPONT
BG Independent News
On a gray autumn morning fourth and fifth graders from Bowling Green schools got to visit a magical land of Narnia. They came on school buses, accompanied by teachers.
The heroes of the play “The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe” that they’d come to see arrive in Narnia through a wardrobe in an English country home.
For the BG students this was a release from the humdrum; for the quartet of British school kids, this was a life and death adventure, involving evil and redemption.
The Bowling Green High School Drama Club opens the stage adaptation of the C.S. Lewis philosophical fantasy “The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe” tonight (Nov. 3) at 7 p.m. continuing with shows Friday, Nov. 4 at 7 p.m. and Saturday at 2 p.m. in the Bowling Green Performing Arts Center.
These children – Peter (Michael Martin,), Edmund (Bob Walters), Susan (Megan Carmen), and Lucy (Lily Krueger) – are transported into a land in the grip of eternal winter. The wicked White Queen (Claire Wells-Jensen) has cast a spell over Narnia. Unbeknownst to the children, their coming has been foretold as a sign of the return to the rule of Aslan (Martin Simon) the just, kindly, giant lion.
Narnia is populated by magical forest creatures, who are largely on the side of Aslan and the evil magical creatures, the specters, ghouls and ogres who rally to the witch.
The high school troupe brings this world to life. Mr. and Mrs. Beaver (Alexis Reinbolt and Moe Kellow) lumber about as you’d expect of creatures more at home in water. The costumes and the way the characters move in character with them do much to create the world, which is otherwise represented by a few large, but simple set pieces. This enables the action to flow smoothly from scene to scene.
The biggest technical accomplishment is representing Aslan. Martin Simon appears within a large wooden puppet that moves majestically about the stage.
Amid all the spectacle, the human element remains at the forefront. Edmund’s story as one tempted and lured by the White Witch gives this an emotional dimension beyond a simple battle of good against evil. The actors playing the children form a believable band, each a distinct personality that complements the group as a unit as they move through this strange landscape.
These characters must experience their own horror or in case of the White Witch and her henchman… must revel in inflicting pain. That’s especially true in a scene where Aslan sacrifices himself for Edmund, in accordance with an ancient dictates.
The story is a Christian allegory, but without any explicit religious references. The message is one of forgiveness, loyalty and courage, lessons suitable for all ages.
