Twas The Night Before Christmas And All Through The Institution...
December 21, 2007
Madison Magazine Online; December 13, 2007-- Encore Studio's Tidings from the Seasonally Affected presents an uproarious peek at the dynamics of six housemates -- all with different disabilities -- struggling to live harmoniously in a 1977 group home during the Christmas season (battery-operated disco Santa, flying Christmas tree and macaroni art collage included).
It's the sort of workplace where your boss demands you to "tighten up your F-bomb explosion!" And be sure to "beef up the diction!" Because she's found that people "really enjoy the drama of swearing. "Where your shift starts by leading a warm-up "diva jumping jacks" routine that concludes with blown kisses to your coworkers. Instead of Starbucks to jazz up your morning, you spell out your name by swiveling your hips like a hula hoop. It helps with your flexibility. Welcome to rehearsal day at the Encore Studio for the Performing Arts. While fun in a supportive environment is the name of the game, the actors here are paid professionals, and it's a job they take very seriously. This day is more hectic than most as Wisconsin's only professional theater company for people with disabilities scrambles to put the finishing touches on their latest full scale production: Tidings from the Seasonally Affected.
A twisting holiday spectacle like no other, Tidings, presents an uproarious peek at the dynamics of six housemates -- all with different disabilities -- struggling to live harmoniously in a 1977 group home during the Christmas season (battery-operated disco Santa, flying Christmas tree and macaroni art collage included). "I think this is the craziest, most chaotic script that we've ever done -- the most farcical, the most slap-sticky," says executive and artistic director Kelsy Schoenhaar of Tidings, a play she co-wrote with Encore's program director Wendy Prosise. But if viewers are expecting a cute little performance by people with disabilities that doesn't delve into issues, Schoenhaar cautions them to think again.
While many vignettes will leave you in stitches such as lead character Sam's (Jennifer Scott) "Kleenex art" or the off-the-wall intermezzo songs performed by Encore's autistic vocalist extraordinaire Christie Stadele (including a thumping "Eye of the Tiger"-esque melody about Festivus, the pseudo-holiday Seinfeld made famous with lyrics "It's Festivus, Festivus, Festivus--get drunk and abusive," or the sweet-sounding "Hanukkah ... Nothing much rhymes with ... Hanukkah" or the no pun intended "Christmas Rap"), the play has its poignant moments. "We're known for tricking people into heavy moments," says Schoenhaar. "We'll have this light stuff happening and all of a sudden we drop the floor out from under them and kick their butt with reality."
A sobering reality sets in when the audience learns why Sam is having an especially hard time transitioning from life in the institution to her new home in the group home: it was during the holidays that her mom institutionalized her at age five due to "behavioral problems," not trusting her around a new baby. Sam is also missing Bobbie (Robin Parks), the only true friend she's had, when she must leave her behind at the institution. Sam's housemate Gertie (Connie Alsum) is the two-foot-tall embodiment of Christmas cheer, gleefully whirling her wheelchair around to trim only the tree's midsection, but later has a dejecting visit home where her family forgets about her. Acerbic neighbors, who at first some of the more sanguine housemates mistake for carolers, relentlessly chant "Go back! Go back! Go back where you belong!" outside the group home door. Housemate Tyler (Max Woodson) bops his head and mimics them in a chipmunk's voice, not realizing they are protesting him, he just likes their beat. Tidings also addresses the concern of resident treatment, or rather mistreatment, by support staff.
