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Past Reviews Regional Reviews: Seattle Lizard Boy
Trevor, the Lizard Boy, lives alone in Seattle, a musician and virtual recluse, thanks to an accident that occurred in his childhood as a side-effect of the famous Mt. St. Helen's eruption which left him all scaly. But even a Lizard Boy needs love, and so, on the night of Monsterfest, Trevor goes looking on Grinder, where he meets recent Seattle transplant Cary, the nerd-boy next door, so to speak. After a bit of rom-com cuteness, the pair head off to catch a singer at a local club. Billed as Siren, we soon find out she is the girl haunting Trevor's dreams. Siren and Lizard Boy unsurprisingly were both affected by the eruption years ago, but she knows far more about the ramifications of it, and an impending cataclysmic event that is nigh!< /p> Huertas' book and indie-rock light musical numbers entice and hold interest all the way to the curtain, and director Ivie has staged the show with wit, charm, and heart. He also has a terrific trio of actors to tell the tale. Huertas is engaging, soulful, quirky, and funny and sings his appealing songs with brio and abandon. As Siren, Kirsten deLohr Helland, often cast for her quirky comic bent, is her the embodiment of a dark, sulky, enigmatic presence, and succeeds in walking the line between heroic spirit and power hungry villain. Having been with this project since its inception, she delivers Huertas' songs with a comfort and ease that only comes from deep understanding. As uber-dork Cary, William A. Williams is far more than comic relief, and he creates a charming intimacy and tenderness in his scenes with Huertas. The three also handle all the musical accompaniment in the show, which seems as it should be, not in a John Doyle kind of way where it feels like a stunt. L.B. Morse's scenic and projection designs hit the right note, particularly the projections which show us the characters and action in comic book art form. Robert J. Aguilar's lighting design gets the moods of the material just right, and Erik Andor's costumes amply suit the characters—and no, folks, there is no lizard suit, thank goodness. Lizard Boy was commissioned for, nurtured by, and supported by Seattle Repertory Theatre, and it plays beautifully in their intimate Leo K space. It deserves a life beyond Seattle, and I strongly suspect it will have one, just as I expect Huertas to have a long and illustrious career in the arts. Lizard Boy runs at the Seattle Repertory Theatre in Seattle Center through April 26th, 2015. For tickets or information contact the Seattle Rep box office at 206-443-2222 or visit them online at www.seattlerep.org. $5 front row tickets to each performance are available one hour before the performance (in person and cash only).
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