BWW Reviews: Miraculous Eric Davis in freeFall's THE TEMPEST: ESTA ISLA ES MIA

Theatre reviewing is not always easy. Sometimes you find yourself trapped in a show that is bad or (worse) that is mediocre and boring. (I'll take Carrie: The Musical over any groaning, audience-pleasing but empty Michael Parker farce any day of the week.) Sometimes what you see is so amateurish that you are shocked that they are actually presenting the show to a paying audience. Sometimes you will see a beloved favorite crucified with a misguided production. And sometimes you give up your time for a production that winds up as painful as Dr. Christian Szell doing root canal work sans novocaine.

But then there are weeks when I feel that I am the luckiest man alive, enlivened by powerful theatre and able to relate my experiences here at BWW. That's where I am right now. Since the second weekend in May, I have seen some sensational theatre: a rollicking In the Heights in the park; a sturdy version of Pinter's most accessible play; a fun, albeit unmemorable musical revue; a community theatre production that did Sondheim right; the moving Annapurna at Jobsite that left me shaken and that contained two of the finest performances of the year; and lastly, a one-man version of THE TEMPEST that turned out to be the best of them all. That's an amazing six shows in fourteen days, a wondrous roller coaster ride of theatre-going. Even the weakest of the shows that I saw received a standing ovation and turned out to be at least an enjoyable waste of time. But all of them made me realize that we are currently in a positive patch of grand local theatre. It's a pendulum of sorts, and right now that pendulum is swinging towards some glorious works.

Last week, Annapurna turned out to be one of those transcending theatrical experiences, and lucky as I am, I got to experience another one less than a week later with freeFall's amazing THE TEMPEST: ESTA ISLA ES MIA. I wasn't prepared for its excellence, but I should have been. freeFall rarely disappoints. And with this version of Shakespeare's last play, the company has done it again...The Wild Party, The Normal Heart, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Into the Woods, and now this must be added to that illustrious list. This is an exciting, heart-pumping theatrical experience that elevates not just freeFall and not just our local theatre scene, but our area in general. We have something so special in our grasp with this tour de force that it's in that rare put-down-everything-and-reserve-a-ticket-now category, the type of performance that everyone will be talking about long after it closes, the type of show that plants its flag in the sand (almost literally) and showcases the best that our area has to offer. This is a performance for the ages.

What else do you expect from our local superhero of the arts, Eric Davis?

The one-man show, THE TEMPEST: ESTA ISLA ES MIA, is actually two plays taking place simultaneously--a re-creation of Shakespeare's Tempest and a play that mirrors the actions of The Tempest but follows the plight of a Cuban refugee (the show is adapted by Davis with the more modern story written by him). It's not just an actor performing all the bits of a Shakespeare classic (like Alan Cumming tackling the Scottish play); it's Davis putting it in perspective in an original adaptation, leaping from character to character, storyline to storyline, and yet never once confusing the audience. The two stories are separated by bursts of thunder and strobe-lit lightning. But even without the tech help, Davis' acting is so strong, so crucial, that we never doubt which character he is at any given part. Yes, he holds the staff when he's a rather solid Prospero, but everyone else pretty much is known by his characterizations, his focus, his various accents, and his ability to jump from role to role in less than a second. It's an acting feat unlike anything you've ever seen. Over 22 characters inhabited by one man, and we get a sense of each one. Special mention must be paid to Davis' Caliban, the deformed slave; this may be my favorite Caliban ever. His Trincolo and Stephano are hilarious, and his airy Spirit, Ariel, is a beautiful creation with divine choreography (thanks to choreographer Carolina Esparza).

Even stronger than the Shakespeare bits is the Cuban storyline. As the lost scholar, Yuri, Davis showcases a deep humanity, and his Bembe, the boy, is heartfelt and glorious enough to leave the audience in tears. The scene where the child is weeping is in the running for the most powerful theatrical moment of the year so far. And there's a sequence near the end, when Chango the Lord of Fire, Lightning and Thunder erupts, that shook the theatre and wowed us all. The whole Davis-scribed story is beautifully written and fits perfectly with the Shakespeare storyline. And the ending--just an actor, a candle and some glorious words--is a stage moment so great that we don't want to see it end.

Davis the Actor and Davis the Writer are earth-shatteringly brilliant; we all knew he could act but who knew he was an equally astounding storyteller? Just to show his broad range and that he can do anything, Davis also created the ultra-clever set which consists of a gigantic sandbox, a tub (that acts as a boat), and several steps leading to a small platform. It's simple but suits the story perfectly, and Davis' staging, under the guidance of director James Oliver, is sublime. He moves about barefoot and even gets soaking wet during the proceedings. He's constantly in action, lights flashing, thunder rocking, always on the move, yet it's not like watching somebody perform a pentathlon. There are also key moments of quiet, stillness amid the powerful motion.

You think a single Shakespeare role is hard to memorize? Try acting out EVERY character, plus characters in an entirely different story. Davis also sings marvelously and dances at certain intervals. It's obviously quite a workout, and the audience feels like it has sustained quite a workout watching him. Last week I thought I saw the performance of the year with Paul Potenza's brilliant work in Annapurna, but I think Davis certainly equals that and maybe even surpasses it here. It's the stuff of legend.

There's even a band, led by music director Burt Rushing, that gives accompaniment to key moments in both stories. Mike Wood's lighting is stellar, and with James Oliver's wall-rattling thunder, it jolts us out of our seats. There's a moment where Yuri is in the process of killing a man, and the lighting--a coffin-shaped rectangle on the beach sand--turns to red. This is one show where all the elements come together--acting, script, lighting, set, music. It's all here.

The show is the work of various individuals, but it rests on the shoulders of one person--Davis. It's such an epic performance, so seemingly impossible what he does onstage, that the production can't even handle an understudy. It might even be considered a vanity project, but whatever the case, it's a mind-blowing one. It goes beyond awesome, beyond incredible. What Davis performs in THE TEMPEST: ESTA ISLA ES MIA is a feat nothing short of magical. Miraculous.

"Is there anything Eric Davis can't do?" That's the query I asked during the intermission of the show. Although it was a rhetorical question, a local actress decided to answer it anyway. "Bear children," she said. After the miracle taking place at freeFall Theatre that night, I don't know if I can even say that. I think if any male can outsmart Mother Nature, Eric Davis would somehow find a way. After watching his performance in THE TEMPEST: ESTA ISLA ES MIA, I will never put anything past that man.

THE TEMPEST: ESTA ISLA ES MIA, freeFall Theatre's one man spectacle starring Eric Davis, runs thru June 14th. For tickets, please call (727) 498-5205.