Would You Want to Wrinkle?

There are lots of stories that are passed down from generation to generation.  These stories can present themselves in many ways.  One of these ways is from books.  Books are extremely important to sharing stories, especially the ones that transcend time.  One of these stories that has been passed down in book form is A Wrinkle in Time.  Published in 1962, this book has been read by millions…it’s been taught in schools, has been banned, has been adapted into so many forms, including movies.  And at the Arden Theatre, for their family series, it has been adapted into play form.

This book has a very special place in my heart.  It was one of my mom’s favorites when she was growing up, and it was one of mine as well.  People’s Light had done a play adaptation many years ago, but the Arden really went all out.  What they did with the story was absolutely beautiful, and really hit me.  I can’t imagine A Wrinkle in Time is an easy one to adapt, but they really did a fantastic job.  It was everything combined…a simple yet striking set, unbelievably brilliant costumes, and of course, acting that completely nailed it.

I think that a part of me gets very judgy when it comes to a show like this.  Obviously, I want to completely love this play based on a book that I love.  But that’s not just going to happen.  I’m going to be judging every last thing about this show.  So really, it’s a lot for me to even express the elements I loved of the Arden’s A Wrinkle in Time.  But all those elements made for something extremely special.  There were so many cool things…there were things that I noticed right away, and things I didn’t notice until they were pointed out…I suppose those were things that they didn’t want us to notice right away.  It was fantastic.

The cast was small, just six people.  The three adults played multiple roles, which was a lot of fun.  They got some really cool costumes for different roles, definitely enough to show us the different personas they were taking on.  I believed all of them in all the roles they played, but they were definitely best as Mrs. Whatsit, Mrs. Who, and Mrs. Which.  Those costumes were probably also my favorite costumes in the whole show.  Major hats off to costume designer Nikki DelHomme for those costumes.  And to the actors for pulling it off.

Most of all, though, was seeing the actors playing the kids.  Meg and Charles Wallace Murry, and Calvin O’Keefe are amazing characters.  There’s so much to love about those characters.  It’s part of the beauty of A Wrinkle in Time…the heroes are just kids.  I loved those young people playing the kids.  Even though they’re a little older than the kids in the book, I believed every second of them onstage.  They worked so well together, which is just so incredibly important for these characters.  You could tell they were loving what they were doing, and loving each other.

They didn’t need to do anything too crazy or fancy to get their point across. The cast really relied on their character work and their work with each other to give us this show.  There was some really cool stuff, like all the items hanging from the ceiling (including over the audience!) and the multileveled stage.  Some of the costumes were extremely creative, and some were just every day costumes.  But the story was what really shined through.

Getting to write about family theatre again makes me so happy, especially since it’s so soon after The Snow Queen at the Wilma.  I’m really hoping this is a trend that continues.  Again, A Wrinkle in Time is so special to me, and I love that it’s really being made accessible for the next generation.  Seeing all of the kids at the show made me so incredibly happy.  During the talkback, a young girl asked if this was an actual story, or if it was based on a movie or something like that.  I feel like she’s going to love this book someday, too.

This production of A Wrinkle in Time just had so much heart.  It reminded me all over again how much I love this book, how much I love this story about a few kids saving the world.  The cast gave me so much in this regard, but so did everyone involved in this show.  It couldn’t have done what it did for me without every single person who had something to do with this show.  I am so thankful that I got to experience this play.  I am so thankful that so many others got to experience this play, and will continue to experience this play.  Especially all those kids.  I like to think that all of them will end up reading A Wrinkle in Time, will love it, and will continue to pass it down.  Maybe I’ll even get to bring my future kids to see a play of it as well.  I know I would love that.

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