Coincidences can be a surprising treat. In Chicago, I decided to take in a production of Jules Verne’s classic tale 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. Admittedly my familiarity with the story was hazy at best. I remember a submarine and a huge menacing calamari from the movie. Also, the completely idiotic Disneyworld ride which was dismantled long ago. Saw this production on a Wednesday night and got on a plane Thursday night for a wedding weekend celebration. (Congratulations Courtney and Matt!)
I’m currently reading All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr. The book takes place in France during World War II. One of the main characters is a blind girl who reads books in Braille. She is given 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea around page 400. Both books begin to reflect the realities of warfare. “The first mate,” she reads, “struggled furiously with other monsters which were climbing up sides of the Nautilus. The crew were flailing away with their axes. Ned, Conseil and I also dug our weapons into their soft bodies. A violent odor of musk filled the air.”
When reading, I decided I liked this play more than I did when I was sitting in the theater. Nemo is portrayed by Kareem Bandealy, returning the character to its Indian roots after the story had long ago been whitewashed. Nemo’s grand adventure involves sinking warships and collecting sunken treasure. Is he a hero or a villain? I’m not able to answer that question. Mr. Bandealy’s performance was big but the long thematic speeches in Act II seemed excessively melodramatic.
While the script adaptation here was only semi-successful, the production values were quite high and cleverly theatrical. The set initially looked like a ship before morphing into a submarine. When certain characters are tossed into the sea, they are floating as if suspended in water. Our giant squid even makes a fun puppet appearance. Ned Land’s portrayal of the Canadian harpoonist Walter Briggs was particularly fine and felt period perfect. The spirit of this famous adventure was there. A little too talky and preachy, this adaptation may have been too faithful to the tone of the book resulting in some dull patches. I’m glad I saw it, however, as it paired beautifully with my reading the next day.