Morning Star is a one-woman show featuring Lucifer, welcoming the audience to Hell. Lucifer, upon setting the stage, then proceeds to regale the audience with a sympathetic plea to remember him as they leave prepare to leave Hell for Heaven.
Should you see it?
There is a fine line between homage and copying material, and this play really seems to skirt the edges of a lot of well known material, utilizing pieces of Rowan Atkinson sketches, Tim Hawkins stand-up, and an infamous scene from Kevin Smith’s Dogma about the differences between humans and angels.
For what the show is; however, Caitlin Corbett does manage to hold a strong theatrical presence for her hour run. One person shows are hard as it is one person delivering what may seem to feel like an hour monologue. Usually they are polarizing and create extremes, so props to Caitlin Corbett for her strengths. Her voice is powerful and commanding. Her visage is captivating. For only being one person she certainly makes sure that she fills up the entire stage. But then we start to examine the content of Morning Star.
Morning Star is an hour long dramedy which raises a lot of questions in relation to the plot. Why are we, as humans that have recently passed away, being brought through Hell on our quest to Heaven We are being taught of the villainy of God and are supposed to feel sympathetic towards Lucifer before ascension, which just feels theologically unsound, if one is to look at this from a theological idea. If God was as villainous as Lucifer implies throughout this tale, I doubt he would allow new Heaven-bound recruits an audience before ascension, therefore making Lucifer’s final performance, if it were that of Morning Star, one of grand deception to try and steal souls away from God.
Story aside, Avante-Garde is a horrible venue for a show. There is a one-drink minimum on top of the ticket price, and the bartenders are very strict on this one-drink minimum, as they would routinely hound people at table’s mid-show to make them buy drinks, regardless of how it would interrupt the shows experience for those around. Not everyone in the bar is there for a Fringe show either, so there was talking and laughing going on in the back of the bar. Lastly, the stage is right near the bar, so it was quite distracting as well to pay attention to the performance while the bartenders are shaking and mixing drinks as loudly as possible.
Overall there are better ways to spend your time and money.
But that’s just my opinion and I’d like to know what you think?
If you are interested in checking out Morning Star here is the following link with show times and information: http://www.productionottawa.com/morningstar/
About Matthew Champ
Matthew Champ is the lead movie reviewer for Production Ottawa's Should You See It team, making sure that you know whether or not these movies or plays are worth spending your time or money on. He is also on 101.9 Dawg FM every Friday morning at 7:10 AM chatting movies with Dylan Black. You can follow him on Twitter @matthewschamp.
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I have to say that considering the Fringe festival is about up and coming artists,and by that definition, there is not a lot of money to be had. The venue, was not meant for theater, however, to me it seemed to vanish when the production started. Catlin filled the air and commanded your full attention. You may not agree with the beliefs of the show, but somehow they are suspended for that hour.The make-up and costume seem to be a natural for this version of Lucifer, her wings ripped of,her robe mangled.
I think it was a thought prevoking show, and would be even MORE powerful in a theater.
Dear Matthew,
Thank you for coming to see Morning Star and for taking the time to review it. In case you doubt my sincerity, I do mean this genuinely. I appreciate all feedback and I do not shrink away from criticism. I am aware that I am a new artist, that my work is still developing and that perhaps not everyone will like what I have to offer. So with that in mind, thank you very much for your kind comments regarding my strengths as a performer.
I have never seen Tim Hawkins, but you are correct that I have seen the movie Dogma and Rowan Atkinson’s Welcome to Hell speech. And I do admit, that I did draw some inspiration from these sources for a line or two. Like anyone else I live in the world, I consume other people’s art and so I cannot help but be influenced by it. I assure you though, that 95% of the writing in Morning Star does come from inside my own head. Of course, I’m drawing on other sources too, such as the Bible and Milton’s Paradise Lost (though I admit I’ve only managed to read a quarter of the Bible and none of Paradise Lost. They’re on my list). Truth is, every single story in the theatre has been told a thousand times before, I believe the trick and the joy is in finding a new ways to tell them. This is what I hope to have accomplished.
There is one other thing I wish to address. God is not the villain of the piece. There is no villain. I have always been a lover of ambiguity and as such I included this element in Morning Star. When Lucifer asks if he is evil and God is good, he genuinely doesn’t know. This is a question for the audience and they are free to interpret it as they will. As to Lucifer trying to steal souls, if you as an audience member believe he is evil then that is what he is doing. But if he is good, then he is merely seeking pity from you. This Lucifer is a glutton for punishment. Though he knows that the audience are only there as part of his punishment from God (to see how pitiful he has become and judge him) he cannot help himself, he will still appeal to them for help again and again until the end of time. I am interested in your different interpretation, if you see me around at Fringe, please feel free to approach me, I’d love to have a drink with you and discuss it.
You are correct that we are limited by our venue. It’s true, it was not designed for theatre. As I said, I am a new artist and as such I have to pay my dues and sometimes perform in less than ideal spaces. All part of the glamour of life in the arts. However I do have good news on that front. We will be performing Morning Star again on August 8th at the Gladstone theatre as part of their One Night Only series. I would be happy to see you there.
All the best and happy fringing!
Cheers,
Caitlin Corbett