The Playboy’s the Thing
Along with being the Playboy of the Western World, Cody Nickell can count himself the current ruler of the Central Coast. As the eye of J.M. Synge’s dramatic storm in Shakespeare Santa Cruz’ production of Playboy, Nickell is a hyper-kinetic bundle of intelligence, sex appeal, body language and sensitive character development. Kudos to director Robert Moss for launching Nickell’s electrifying performance as an underclass Irishman, whose tale of murdering his father becomes grist for village gossip, mischief and transformation. To Moss also goes credit for the brisk pacing and intricate stagecraft that illuminate Synge’s haunting text. Ah, but I’m thinking that it was a wee bit difficult to decipher all of the densely-accented dialogue. . . .
Dense or not, those lilting accents were flawless, thanks to dialect coach Christine Adaire.The earthy textures, lines and tones of B.Modern’s costumes placed the action squarely in another time and place. The setting was a small masterpiece of economy and authenticity, and save for a large central table, seemed perfect to allow for the free-flow of action. Kudos to Erik Flatmo. (more…)
