In 1998 the then-itinerant Lookingglass Theatre Company opened a new show, Metamorphoses, at the now-defunct Ivanhoe Theatre. Written and directed by Mary Zimmerman, it was based on a work by Ovid, completed in 8 CE—the same year the Roman poet was banished by Emperor Augustus for his allegedly immoral writings. Though Zimmerman’s 90-minute production barely skimmed the surface of Ovid’s 15-part epic, it captured the essence of his meditation on love—its power and fragility, its cruelty and whimsy, its ability to nurture and destroy.
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When I reviewed the original production, I praised the “coolly expressive storytelling.” But what strikes me about this new incarnation is its warmth. Zimmerman’s eclectic style, though free of sentimentality, is now imbued with a palpable empathy for the characters. The evening ranges from ironic irreverence to eerie mystery, from lyrical romanticism to dark violence, yet the abrupt shifts in tone are never jarring and never feel contrived. Bringing a postmodern sensibility to myths that were ancient even to the ancients, Zimmerman unlocks the tales’ universality and timelessness.
A youth’s longing for his father’s acceptance underlies the story of Phaeton, son of Apollo, who dared to drive the chariot of the sun and found he couldn’t control its fiery power. Phaeton is portrayed comically, as a spoiled whiner, kvetching to his therapist (the droll Marilyn Dodds Frank), who in turn analyzes the legend’s psychological subtext. The playful humor of this scene gives way to the enigmatic allegory of Psyche—her name meant “soul” to the Greeks—who dared to sneak a peek at her sleeping lover, Eros, and thereby drove him away. In an image borrowed from an illustration created by Steele Savage for Edith Hamilton’s classic 1942 book, Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes, Douglas Hara portrays Eros as an angelic youth, naked except for his white wings.
Through 11/18: Tue-Wed and Fri 7:30 PM, Thu and Sat-Sun 3 and 7:30 PM, check with theater for exceptions, Lookingglass Theatre Company, Water Tower Water Works, 821 N. Michigan, 312-337-0665, lookingglasstheatre.org, $36-$70.
