#i don't think i've ever written about a theatrical work before though so that's new

[calamity-bean]

Stede Bonnet: A F*cking Pirate Musical (a review, of sorts)

Recently, I — like many of y'all — kinda sorta lost my mind over a new TV comedy inspired by a certain 18th century pirate.

While Stede Bonnet was not the most obscure marauder in history, I gotta say, I don't think I'd ever heard of him before Our Flag Means Death came along, and I certainly don't recall encountering him in any media before that. So imagine my surprise when, shortly after I binged the gay pirate show, fully in the throes of fresh brainworms, I caught wind of a new stage musical based on that very same pirate that just happened to be making its premiere right after OFMD! What a coincidence, right? And naturally, having just become enthralled with one fictionalized take on the Gentleman Pirate, my curiosity could not help but be piqued!

All this is to say: there is a musical about Stede Bonnet, and I watched it, and I had a pretty good time. So I wanted to tell y'all about it and share some of my thoughts on its themes, its music, how it adapts Stede Bonnet's story, and its take on him as a character.

Stede Bonnet: A F*cking Pirate Musical runs through Sunday, May 1, with digital performances on April 30 and May 1 for those interested in watching online.

First, a bit of a disclaimer. Although I talk about OFMD in my introduction to this post in order to explain why I was interested in seeing this play in the first place, I did not go into the theatre with any intention of pitting the two against each other, nor do I intend to do so now. These shows may be based on the same historical figures and events, but each is its own independent creative work, and moreover, both are over-the-top comedies that are... not exactly preoccupied with historical accuracy. Like, at all. The Stede in SB:AFPM is not OFMD Stede, and both are quite far removed from the Stede of history. So although I'm posting this in large part because I think this musical might be of interest to people who, like me, first became aware of Stede Bonnet through OFMD... Don't expect this to be OFMD, and don't judge it on that basis.

The Story, Characters, and Themes

This is a fun, energetic, occasionally poignant show, and I'm glad I got to see it. The performances were delightful, with a lot of absurdity, physical comedy, and talented singing; the audience was laughing aloud throughout. I really liked the set design: it's simple but effective, performed in the round, centered around a main platform bearing a ship's mast (complete with a ladder and sail). The floor is dappled in blues and greens to look like ocean water, there are ropes for actors to swing on and more ropes dangling ship's lanterns, a cannon up in one corner and a lot of humorous little touches in the props. The overall effect is quite charming and pretty.

The story opens just before Stede impulsively sets to sea and covers through the end of his pirating career, focusing mainly on his "collaboration" with Blackbeard. Stede and Blackbeard are two of the principal roles, along with Israel Hands and Elsie, a barmaid on a quest for revenge. Three other actors play all the supporting roles — primarily the pirate crew and assorted birds (signified by wearing colored beanies with eyes and beaks), who act as a sort of Greek chorus.

(Israel and Stede. Photo credit: Jeffrey Schmidt / CultureMap)

Although Stede — bedecked in florid aristocratic fashion, his hair in buoyant ringlets, his face powdered and cheeks brightly rouged — provides a huge amount of the show's comedy through his eccentricity and incompetence, his character arc is fundamentally about... depression. And grief. He starts out the play not merely discontent with his life, but suicidal and numb. It's clear that he has never recovered from the death of his young son and feels, himself, dead inside. He loves his wife and children, he has everything he needs... but still he feels empty.

Grief is also one of the major themes of the storyline that runs parallel to Stede's: that of Elsie the barmaid. I'm still not sure how I feel about how she fits into the structure of the narrative. She is very much the hero of her own story: she's got her own agenda that just so happens to intersect with Stede's, and ultimately, her storyline ends up driving a fair amount of the action. She gets at least as many arias as Stede does and, honestly, felt more like the emotional heart of the story than Stede.

Israel Hands is heavily involved in both Stede's and Elsie's narrative arcs, and he's a nuanced, sympathetic character who likewise does a lot of the heavy lifting in the show's more emotional moments. Blackbeard (played by a woman) is the primary antagonist, a theatrical, ruthless, and cheerfully manipulative charmer who is using Stede for his own ends.

Props to all of the actors in the main roles for their performances, and a special shout-out to the supporting cast, who were versatile and memorable in all their various roles. I kinda want a beanie with a bird beak on it, they were pretty cute.

The Music

The musical styles in this show range from piratey shanties, to your classic musical theatre "I Want"/"I Am"–type song, to what I can only describe as "80s movie training montage power ballad." While the singing itself was lovely throughout, I definitely enjoyed some songs much more than others. Those who know my preferences won't be surprised to hear that I mostly favored the ones on the folksier, more shanty-esque end of the spectrum. Some particular standouts:

The Act II opener ("Brothers of the Brine") is a stirring, very nautical piece that features a stomping part and a fiddle solo that the whole audience went wild for.

Blackbeard's villain song ("Blackbeard") is in a sort of dark cabaret style, complete with Blackbeard doing sexy splay-legged poses upside down on his throne — while wearing a massive fake beard.

"The Ballad of Davy Jones" has Blackbeard striking fear in Stede's heart through the tale of Davy Jones's narwhal-related demise, with a lot of theatrical bombast and fun.

(Blackbeard! Photo credit: BroadwayWorld)

Admittedly, there were some songs that fell flat for me. So it goes in any show. I really liked Israel's first feature song ("Israel's Rambling Backstory") but less so his later ones, and Elsie's solos were well-sung but felt a little out of place for me, in much the same way that her arc feels a little out of place, maybe? I swear I'm not just, like, against the concept of inserting an original female character into the story on principle — I actually enjoyed her as a character, and I certainly enjoyed her actress's performance. I'm just not sure how I feel about her role in the overall narrative structure.

Maybe the issue is simply that I felt like her character arc, though it shares themes with Stede's, diverted time that could have been spent better developing the title character, who to me was driven by the more interesting motivation.

What Is This Show's Take on Stede Bonnet?

The historical Stede Bonnet did bad shit, before and after he became a pirate. That should really go without saying. This musical's Stede is not entirely beholden to the original — historical facts about his life are omitted or substantially altered, his characterization is exaggeration and invention, and he really is, as I have said, best viewed as an entity very separate from the real-life figure that inspired him. But the musical still grapples with core features of what I think make the concept of the Gentleman Pirate intriguing: the idea that someone who had so much privilege would abandon his life and family in favor of a short, violent, and ultimately doomed adventure in criminality for which he was very ill equipped. In dealing with these facts, the narrative ultimately kind of has to at least imply some kind of judgement on his actions.

To start with: Why?

It's not a mere longing for adventure. It's not "discomfort in a married state." In this version, Stede loves his wife, loves his children. He says as much at the end of the play, at the trial that will lead to his execution. So if he loves them, why would he leave them? He struggles to articulate the answer, just like I'm struggling to articulate my point now.

Though this show's Stede is largely a comic character, frequently over-the-top and ridiculous, there's a sorrowful undercurrent to him that comes out in the too-brief moments where his character is allowed to be more serious and subdued. His songs express a desire to "rewrite his story," but what it really comes down to, as I said before, is the numbness and emptiness that too many of us who have dealt with depression know all too well. He's grieving his son, who died years before the story opens, and moreover just does no longer feel anything about life: he finds no happiness in all the things that used to make him happy, he desperately wants to change but cannot seem to do so, he seems mired in the past and without hope for the future. He tries to hang himself in the first few minutes of the play — a foreshadowing of his eventual fate. He's stopped only by a chance meeting with Israel, which inspires the impulsive decision to become a pirate, which leads, at the end of the first act, to the moment where he joyously declares that he FINALLY feels ALIVE again...!

...Because he's just shot someone dead. Killing a person — some random sailor whose ship Stede's ship has attacked — is the big moment of triumph where the numbness breaks and Stede feels brilliantly, exhilaratingly, unrepentantly alive.

(Photo credit: Jeffrey Schmidt)

And personally, I find this a more interesting motivation and arc to explore than Elsie's, whose story is a pretty familiar quest for rescue and revenge. Her arc's themes are loss, grief, acceptance, and forgiveness. Those are rich themes, but her story follows a familiar arc and she gets pretty solid closure on all fronts. There is no moral ambiguity in her motivation or in her character. (Though there is in the role Israel plays in that story arc.) She is solidly justified, solidly Good.

Stede is much more morally ambiguous, and his story is not nearly so easy to tie up in a tidy little bow. In his final song, "Eulogy," as he reflects on his brief life of crime, he says that he cannot justify the ends OR the means... and yet he has no regrets about his choice. He rewrote his story. His decisions may have been bad, but they were his decisions, and they made him feel alive again and reclaim a sense of agency over his life.

And fuck, I mean — being in your late twenties and depressed and feeling desperately lost and dead inside and just wanting to make a sudden, drastic change? Wanting to stop going to work, leave town, throw your entire past away and wipe the slate clean and run off to do something fucking ridiculous with your life? In hopes that somehow that'll fix you, that somehow that'll make you feel the way you're supposed to feel?? Relatable!! It's fucking relatable!!!

And I think this is ultimately where the musical comes down on its version of Stede Bonnet. He made bad decisions. His decisions were harmful and ill-fated and arguably stupid, and we're not going to try to justify what he did or where it led him. But why he did it? That we can sure as hell sympathize with. There's something very compelling about watching someone, however flawed, have the audacity to make such bold choices about the course of their life.

In Closing

To those of you who read this far: Holy shit, you're still here? Thanks! This got a LOT longer than I meant for it to! I had originally planned just to kind of summarize the general vibe of the show and then list some of the details I particularly liked, but, well, I'm not known for my brevity. I might make that list a separate, much shorter post and link it here.

Overall, as I said: I had a real fun time at this show. I'm glad I heard about it and that my interest in Stede Bonnet's story had so recently been piqued. It's not a polished big-budget Broadway show by any means, but I could tell that there was a lot of love put into every aspect of it by the creators, cast, and crew, and I can safely say that the whole audience seemed to be having a great time. Plus, it's always interesting to look at how different storytellers adapt the same historical inspiration into such different stories with different focuses and themes.

At this post's time of writing, Stede Bonnet: A F*cking Pirate Musical is running for about another week, with digital performances available online on its final weekend, April 30 and May 1. I am extremely impressed that you read all the way to the end of this rambling pseudo-review; cheers. <3

#a classic genre of calamity post: in-depth analysis of obscure media with niche target audience <3 #i don't think i've ever written about a theatrical work before though so that's new #stede bonnet #stede bonnet a fcking pirate musical #my meta #op

[subjectivelycorrectcritics]

Middle Thoughts: SK8 The Infinity

Type: Anime

Title: SK8 The Infinity

Genres: Sports anime

Progress: 10/12, though refers more to 6/12

Spoilers Below

I feel like there's a few things I should preface about myself before starting. For one, I've been pretty burned out from anime as of late, or at least new anime. As for as anime watching goes, I've pulled back to rewatch some of my old favorites and finally get to some of those films I've been meaning to watch forever. Secondly, I rarely watch airing anime. There was a point where I started following that trend so I could join in some of the conversations of my friends and the anime community I was in, only to quickly realize why I didn't do it in the first place. Watching an anime when it's airing, depending on what anime you're watching, usually means you're constantly stuck on cliffhangers. It also means that, if whatever you're watching it on is a little bit behind or you're watching the dub, you are destined to just be swamped with spoilers by people that completely forgot that crowd exists. It's just really annoying to deal with, especially for someone like me who tends to binge shows they're really enjoying. The last airing show I watched was Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai back in 2018 and have managed to avoid airing anime ever since.

All of that being said, a show must be pretty darn good for someone like me to break their avoidance streak. A dub must be really, really good for someone like me to watch it over the sub, despite the fact the sub has finished airing and the dub has not. SK8 The Infinity as a show definitely, so far, lives up to my decision, and the dub only makes it even better.

Watching the SK8 dub gave me a feeling I never thought I'd feel in anime again. Well, actually, it gave me multiple feelings I believed other anime couldn't give me anymore, which is why I have certain anime on my favorites in the first place. Watching the dub specifically brought me back to my first time watching Durarara. Yes, I watched the dub and, after having come back to rewatch the sub with my partner, to me, it simply doesn't compare. The dub of that show completely entranced me. Every voice actor played their character wonderfully and in such an interesting way, even for the characters I disliked, their performance was unforgettable to me. Not to mention all the added humor that just made it all the more enjoyable, some of the jokes completely void in the sub or without the same kick. The dub performances will always be the way I see the characters, they're iconic.

Watching the first episode of the SK8 Infinity dub made me feel the same way. I was immediately drawn in by the way each voice actor played their characters, they did such a great job at portraying them in such a unique way. Not to mention the nuanced emotions shown at the beginning, which is only built on in later episodes in such a gut-wrenching way. Then, just like Durarara, there's the humor. I wasn't aware until some people pointed it out to me, but some of the funniest lines aren't in the sub or simply aren't delivered as hilariously. It's amazing how a few word changes and delivery can really make a joke all the more better, or Hell, add an extra layer entirely. However, that's not the only layer the dub adds. Let's just say the viewers weren't the only ones that support renga and matchablossom and it really shows in the best ways.

That being said, the dub voice actors still need a good script and characters to work off of, and this show provides that in spades. All the characters feel entertaining, rich, and I found myself wanting to learn a lot about all of them. All the characters have so much charm and I think the dub really highlights that. As for the story, the relationships and the dramas showcased don't ever feel one-note or neglected. The drama and conflict of the story constantly had me thrilled rather than rolling my eyes, which is thanks to the way the races are presented (more on that later) and all the emotional investment the characters put into it. It also follows my favorite trope of biting off more than you can chew and getting caught up in something much bigger than yourself, so maybe I'm biased.

SK8 The Infinity also has that certain element I think other sports anime are missing. It's what Yuri!!! On Ice had, focusing a lot more on making each performance theatrical, entrancing, with a focus on the character's passion and drive over realism. I want the characters to win not for the sake of winning, but because they put a part of themselves into each performance. It's not that other sports anime doesn't try to do the same, but I tend to either struggle with getting invested in the characters, winning is way too emphasized overall, or the way the sport is showcased is just dull to me. Yes, half of the things the skaters do in this anime are unrealistic, but that's what makes it so fun and unpredictable. I adore seeing the stunts the characters, especially Langa and Adam, pull. They're amazing and the way they're animated are so cool! In my opinion, this is a great example of "action" done "fun". All the characters are pulling out their greatest stunts to win, only getting better and better as time goes on. Still, as an audience member, you don't feel as if anything is artificially being held back from you, the characters are always giving their all, they simply learn or have different opportunities as time goes on. This is probably one of the reasons that Langa becoming too good at the sport so quickly didn't bother me. He's awesome to watch, that and the fact the snowboarding excuse makes sense to me, plus it makes for such an interesting plot point and character conflict. The way the races are portrayed, along with the deep connections of the characters that play into it reminds me of Yuri!!! On Ice a lot.

The last point I want to make is what great main characters Reki and Langa make. Reki is such a relatable character main character and is written really well in this regard. He's insecure without being a brat about it, when he does break down or get upset with the other characters it's completely reasonable. His struggles of not feeling good enough, of allowing himself to be bullied due to a lack of self-worth, among other things, are something a lot of us struggle with. It's been great seeing him go along his journey and finally find support in Langa. Speaking of Langa, apparently, he and Reki were made together (and for each other if you ask me), and it really shows. Langa juxtaposes Reki, yet isn't his complete opposite, nor a rival. In fact, their friendship is not only because of their common ground of loneliness and socialization issues, but also because of their differences and how that makes them work as a team. Unlike Reki, who comes off as very turbulent and cautious at times, Langa can come off as quite confident (with skateboarding) and adores taking risks. Reki effectively serves as Langa's breaks and the voice of reason, while Langa helps Reki come out of his shell and learn to trust. I just love these two together, can you tell?

To summarize, SK8 The Infinity is great, especially the dub. The writing does have some hiccups later down the line that I will discuss in my final review. For now, though, I am rating this really high and am going to finish it. I feel like, no matter how it ends, this is going to become one of my favorites.

Current Rating: 8/10

~ SuddenCoffeeMug ☕

#review #sk8 #sk8 the infinity #sk8 the infinity dub #show review #anime review #spoilers #show opinions #middlethoughts #middle thoughts #midthoughts #sk8 the infinity review #sk8 the infinity current thoughts #I'll finish watching #suddencoffeemug

[rndyounghowze]

Helvetica Sails On At Elm Street Cultural Arts Village

By Ricky and Dana Young-Howze

Woodstock, Georgia

On May Thirteenth around three o'clock the play Helvetica by one of our dear friends Will Coleman was dead on arrival. It was yet another theatrical casualty of this global pandemic that has shuttered the doors of theaters everywhere from the Elm Street Cultural Arts Village in Woodstock, Georgia all the way to Broadway. The notice was one of the millions just like it that Dana and I had seen in our feed and our hearts had gone out to them. As reviewers we have felt helpless sitting on the sidelines for this whole thing. Then we saw a post by director Nicole Adkins that the show was not only not dead but going live on Thursday as a digitally streamed experience. So one message later and Dana and I were sitting on our bed with our cats doing our first theatre review from our homes!

Saying that Helvetica is the story of a writer of the same name isn't doing it justice. A "deconstructed" or "exploded" life is more fitting. Narrated by her favorite stuffed bear Myron this play takes you on a journey through Helvetica's younger years with her Mom and Dad to her adult life in a marriage gone wrong, to her final months battling cancer. But we never stay in one place too long as Myron deftly moves us from one time to another weaving the story together as if it's a tapestry. This is a play about stories and how they're born.

I've mainly known Nicole as a talented children's playwright and teacher. This is my first real encounter with her directing and I want to point out two strengths she has. When you watch this the first thing you'll notice in many scenes is that you don't notice her. When you sample the wares of a baker you're not tasting the individual ingredients you're tasting the confection and this is the case with her. Like with my South Jersey cohort I love the directors that put in the time and labor over their shows but like up North she's one of the few where you don't see her metaphorical hands on actors' shoulders gently nudging them or see their handiwork everywhere. You just see the amazing work as a whole! Nicole's second strength was grand stage pictures that reminded us of the depth of this story and its journey through time. There were a couple times like in Helvetica's funeral and the ballerina scene where I felt pacing suffered for that depth but that is being completely nitpicky.

One thing I envy about K. Willow Coleman are their characters. But in this play there are some characters that offer challenges to actors which rival the feats of Hercules.

Take Myron (played by Sean Haley) in which you have to be a stuffed bear that's not just a stuffed bear. If you stepped into this role thinking, "I'm just Helvetica's teddy bear" you've failed from the beginning. Haley seems to know that Myron is also Helvetica's avatar, the only person that she has loved one hundred percent, and the only person qualified to tell her story. But he still had to also be a bear and through Haley's performance I never forgot that even though he's not wearing a bear costume.

Now there's the impossible task of playing Helvetica. Helvetica is played by three actresses: Past Helvetica (Evie Sickbert), Present Helvetica (Molly Gilmartin), and Future Helvetica (Mary Wolfson). It would be very hard to play one of these people but then you have the added hardship of making your performance work in such a way that I don't see a "seam" in the actresses portrayal and they all blend into one character. I don't know how much (if at all) they planned for this but whatever they they did it worked. If they did this purely by accident they should take that secret to their graves.

First of all Miss Sickbert was my absolute favorite performer! The scene she has with Helvetica's father needs a maturity way beyond her years and it touched me to the core. At such a young age to be emoting with her eyes and face like that is so amazing. Gilmartin's performance played the perfect balance of reserved and passionate. I totally felt her character's feeling of being stuck and she drew this emotion out of me that just wanted to yell "just punch the dumb husband and sail away with Myron!" Wolfson's performance is what grounded me and I found myself calmed by her. Playing a writer is hard already because all of the conflict is inside the head yet Wolfson allowed that inner conflict to come outside and I could see her working through it. All three of these women came together to give us only one Helvetica and they deserve a riotous applause.

Then there are the characters that form a sort of a spine to the play because even when we don't see them we feel them. Father (played by Daniel Sickbert) and Mother (played by Riley Rawson) were two such characters. These were both people who needed to be powerful performers because we had to feel their effect on Helvetica's life long after they were gone. I think Sickbert's delivery rang with me more but he may have been "cheating" because he was talking to his real life daughter Evie most of the time (although from people I know who have done it acting with real life family can sometimes be harder). At first I thought Rawson's performance left something to be desired but then I saw her start to settle in and own it. Her last monologue in the play is one of my favorites of all time and she killed it. I just wished we could have had that energy the whole performance.

Big shout out to James Cogswell for giving me a Husband that I want to punch in the face. It's very hard to play a jackass and my hat is off to him for it.

Okay I was looking in the program for the almost five other talented actresses that were in this play but it turns out that they were all Amanda Lynn Simmons. This performer is not only a talented actress and ballet dancer but also a composer! I can't believe that I'm using the word "polymath" in a review but here I am giving it to her. There you go Miss Simmons making me pull out my SAT words.

Okay I want to talk to both set designer Brian Gamel and lighting designer Megan Johnson. Because of the very monochromatic gray color palette of the stage all I could think about was that we were inside Helvetica's brain (her "graymatter") and watching her story unfold in her mind. If that was your intention you're geniuses. If it wasn't let that be your biggest secret. The grays gave a great background for Johnson's vibrant purples and the muted blues and greens and browns of Cindy Flanders' costume design. Also Flanders deserves high praise for uniting all three Helveticas with the same color scheme but giving them all different styles and tastes. Whereas the trio of actresses played a unified character the clothing clued us into their different personalities.

Also a shout-out to sound designer Zach Roe and projection designer Beth Tate. These roles hardly ever get any love and they are the unsung heroes of the theatre.

A special shout-out to videography by David Thompson Technologies without whom this production would have stayed cancelled.

Don't tell Katie Coleman this but this play has stuck with Dana and me throughout the seven or so years since we first saw the staged reading at the Hollins Playwright's Lab. We have stayed up at night in bed talking (and arguing) about this play because we love it so much. It was very special for it to be our first review from quarantine. Also even in this digital age we still feel that need to be somewhere in person. We've had eyes and ears as a species way before we got phones and cameras so there is still a drive to get around the campfire as a tribe and let our hearts sync up as one to hear a good story. However in these times it's good to be reminded that technology can help us feel present with our loved ones even in times of uncertainty like this. Hence why I was able to do a review of play done in Georgia from my home in New Jersey written by a colleague from Chicago and directed by a professor I met in Virginia. This is what reminds me that Theatre is really about community and as long as the community still thrives theatre lives on. You now have a limited time to be a part of that global community. Follow the link below and watch this play yourself. After you watch it share it with a friend. Hurry fast because after May 10th it disappears!