This is one of two shows presented in The Crane Theater's small black box theater studio, and will continue through October 20 before giving way to the other studio show. The intimate space leads to a more visceral and intense feeling of terror and unease, which this show uses well. Audience is seated on two sides of the room, the other two walls are covered with drawings of whales, symbols, and text - English and otherwise. We're on an island somewhere in the Pacific, in this tiny room where a whaler who was found floating on the sea is being held. Played by writer Duck Washington, he's there when we enter the space and is obviously distressed. Soon he's visited by a missionary and his wife who are looking after him, as well as a mysterious man who's very interested in his ship. We soon learn his story, and it's horrifying, involving storms, a deranged captain, a magic book, and demons that live in the sea. Directed by Jenny Moeller, the show has that creepy feeling that something is not right, a feeling that intensifies throughout the show, with help from the sound and lighting design (storms!) and excellent performances by the five-person cast (also including Philip D. Henry, Tyler Stamm, Becky Hauser, and Maureen L. Bourgeois) who are uncomfortably close to us.
The people who started TCHF are consistently great; as their name implies, they often do comedy, but for this festival it's a deliciously dark brand of comedy. The Terms is set in a NYC insurance company in 1929, just before the crash, with a couple of "hell of a salesman" guys who will sell a policy to anyone and everyone, dead or alive. But it turns out this is not just an ordinary insurance company scam, they are feeding money (and occasionally bodies) to the demons that live in the building, aka "The Board." The Four Humors (Allison Vincent as a ruthlessly ambitious salesman, Brant Miller as the boss, Matt Spring as the best salesman and he knows it, and Ryan Lear as a timid and poor salesman) are joined by Corie Casper as the naive young salesman, and they're all both hilarious and terrifying. The lighting effects, especially for the demons, are so wildly effective I had to close my eyes at times, and projections of old timey scenes give us that vintage feel, as do the '20s era "Brooks Brothers" suits, with a set including a vintage desk, file cabinets, and blood. As always with Four Humors, the show is so consistent and detailed and polished, which may be why their opening performance was sold out. And the plot twist near the end made this show scary in a very timely and relevant way. Their next show is on Thursday, through next Tuesday, and you may want to get tickets soon.
This is a good old-fashioned ghost story, brilliantly written and performed by Derek Lee Miller. The entire show takes place in a police interrogation room in Pike County, Illinois - where Derek is actually from, and from which he takes inspiration for the stories. He plays a fourth generation drug smuggler, from the days of prohibition through the acid craze to the legalization of marijuana in Colorado but not neighboring states, creating opportunity for families like this. We hear stories of his great-grandfather, grandfather, and father - whom the police are currently looking for. He refuses to give any incriminating evidence, until the power is knocked out by the loudest thunder clap I've ever heard in a theater, that you can feel in your bones. Because this is TCHF, the stories aren't just about drug smuggling, but contain elements of demons (a consistent theme of my day at TCHF), mysterious escapes, and other supernatural phenomenon. With a healthy dose of family drama and trauma thrown in. Derek embodies all of the characters in the stories, each one of which would be effective at a campfire, and together form a collective of great scary storytelling. Performances continue through Monday October 27.
