Review: MHS ‘Narnia’ adaptation fun theater for the whole family (gallery)

Maricopa High School Theatre Company is taking a trip to “Narnia” this week with its interpretation of C.S. Lewis’ “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.”

The show opened Thursday night in the Performing Arts Center. It is appropriate for families, and the opening-night crowd included several youngsters.

Similar to “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” the set and costuming of this well-known story are as important to the staging as the actors. The MHS crew comes through admirably on that score, and good light management enhances the other-worldliness for a fun theater experience.

The plot follows the Pevensie children, sent out to the English countryside during World War II for safekeeping, who discover an unlikely passage to the magical world of Narnia. There, a White Witch is trying to usurp the throne of the rightful king, the lion Aslan. The Pevensies must quickly judge which side they are on.

The youngest brother Edmund ultimately has the most soul-searching to do as his self-centered actions endanger not just his siblings but the entire land. Played perfectly by Brandon Korritky, his defiance of his older brother Peter, prevarications and craving for special treatment by the White Witch are clearly portrayed without completely stripping him of sympathy.

The question becomes whether he can be salvaged by Aslan, voiced by Nikolas Mase, who also plays the Professor and Santa. Mase’s voice has just the gravity needed for the royal role. The giant lion is completed by puppetry created by Todd and Dylan Stradling and operated by Christian Patten and Isabella Garza.

Also delivering as the other Pevensies are that same Dylan Stradling as noble if officious Peter, Setera Miller as good-natured Susan and Sarah Ledbetter as young Lucy, who instigates the entire family adventure by hiding in a wardrobe.

Tyler Curtis clearly relishes her part as the evil White Witch. Whether manipulating Edmund, torturing a faun or bossing around wolves, she commands the stage whenever she appears.

That faun, Mr. Tumnus, is played with great vulnerability and nervous energy by Porter Jones. Tumnus’ friendship with Lucy is sweetly played.

The Pevensies also befriend Mr. and Mrs. Beaver (Derek Blakely and Hannah Panter). They are all hunted by the witch’s army of wolves, led by Carlos O. Venegas and Ivie Keene.

The cast is filled out with dozens of students playing woodland animals and mystical creatures in fun bits of costuming.

The story was adapted by teacher Cynthia Calhoun, who also directs.  The technical crew is led by teacher Kevin Piquette, who designed the set created by his students. Amid the staged forest, important elements like the witch’s sleigh and the wardrobe function as they should to tell the story.

The show runs through Saturday. Performances are at 7 p.m. Friday and 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Saturday. Cost is $5.

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