Theater Review Part Deux: Dog Sees God

by John Garcia of John Garcia's The Column

Last week the nation once again served as a unified bystander observing the tragic shootings at an Omaha shopping mall. A certain familiar pattern emerged from the violent crime. Innocent people fell victim to a lonely, angry, furious, and confused teen.

Virginia Tech and Columbine are two of the most well known cases involving teens who took matters into their own hands. They wanted those who looked below their noses at them now to view them through their guns. Think of all those elementary & high school shootings in the last 5-10 years that involved youth with guns. They are tired of being picked on, have parents who are too busy to listen, and an educational system that simply does not have the resources to handle their situations and/or problems.

In one particular scene in Bert V. Royal's play, Dog Sees God, a teen who is so damn exhausted emotionally and physically from getting beaten on for being "different", makes a statement about how he understands why teens with guns "shoot people like you!" You can't help but immediately think of the Omaha shootings, Virginia Tech, Columbine, and so on.

Dog Sees God: Confessions of a Teenage Blockhead is a comedy that slowly becomes dark in which we see what happens to Charles Schultz's beloved "Peanuts" characters in high school. The play is receiving its regional premiere by a new troupe entering the DFW theater community, Inevitable Theatre Company.

Let me preface by saying I really wasn't much of an avid reader and follower of Charlie Brown, Snoopy, and the gang. I was more of a Bloom County fan. But I do remember the basics of its characters, but really that's about all. Sure I saw the sugar saturated animated specials on TV and have seen several productions of its musical, You're a Good Man Charlie Brown. Nonetheless, it was a little difficult trying to match the teen "Peanuts" character to its younger, animated self. It didn't help that all the familiar names have been dropped (maybe it was a legal issue). But here's what they are now in high school:

"Charlie Brown" is a sexually confused boy who just lost his dog (we have to assume it was Snoopy) to rabies. He found a small corpse resembling a yellow bird dead next to his aging dog. "Sally" (Charlie's sister) is now a bitter Goth girl who is in love with the outcast "Beethoven", who is also sexually confused. "Pigpen" is now a homophobic jock who has a vicious violent streak in him, oh and he's a germaphobe. "Linus" is now a pothead who smoked the little blanket he carried everywhere as a tiny boy. Tricia (who was "Peppermint Patty") and Marcy are still best friends, but now make fun of everyone, all the while pouring booze into their empty milk bottles. Finally "Lucy" has been placed in a mental institution for setting the little redheaded girl's hair on fire. I'm sure none of this is what Schultz had in mind for the future of his beloved characters.

Royal's script is quite good, but has some flaws within its pages that need retooling and adjustments. The piece tries to be a comedy, but then switches gears midway to become a dark morality play that at times sounds like an after school special. Both elements fight against each other trying to top the other one, and then the subtext gets completely lost. The comedy is so-so, but it is not rolling-in-the-aisle humor. Oddly enough, some of the big chuckles come when the characters on stage make references to their younger days. The dramatic portions of the script are there as well, but seem to be just skimming the surface. You get a vibe of Royal struggling to honestly open up the inner dialogue of his characters, but it never truly gets there or gains solid ground.

But my main issue with the script is this: Why did the gay teen have to be the one to kill himself? Why couldn't it have been Matt (who it seems has a crush on CB)? It still baffles me that it has to be the gay character that ends up killing themselves or die at the hands of some furious, sadistic homophobe. It just gets tiresome of watching the one character that has the heart and compassion in a cold world to be the one murdered. Film, TV, and stage tend to kill off their gay characters constantly. Remember Brokeback Mountain? Or what about Take Me Out on Broadway a few years ago? While I do understand, "It's for dramatic effect", why not try to stand outside of the box and kill off the jock instead? I seriously think had Royal wrote this in his play that Matt killed himself, then the piece could have opened a whole new world of possibilities for dramatic intensity and character development within all the roles.

Robert Neblett's direction is clean, concise, and organic. There are a slew of scene changes that constantly happen, and while there were a few hiccups in the transitions, it still worked beautifully. Neblett keeps his entire cast grounded in realism, which serves the piece quite well. The director wisely steers his young company from becoming "caricatures" of the roles, but instead making them real teens. Neblett's keen eye for casting is displayed perfectly within his company of young thespians. The pace on opening night was a bit off kilter, but I'm sure that was opening night jitters. Neblett uses every inch of the intimate Bath House Cultural Center stage to full effect. For his directorial debut here in Dallas, I was immensely impressed by Mr. Neblett's work here. Kudos as well for his terrific choices of background and scene change music. Each song served as a soothsayer, narrator, or homage to the "Peanuts" gang.

Out of the design elements, my personal favorite was Jared Land's sublime lighting design. Using an array of bright colors for his palette, Land added a touching veil of "Emotional Lighting" in various scenes that worked hand-in-hand with the emotions being exposed on stage.

The entire cast is made of college-aged performers who all show great promise within their acting craft and choice of emotional structure.

Lindsay Neinast has only one scene as "Lucy" late into the intermission-less piece, but savors her scene with touching results.

As CB's sister, Chelsie Ashton gives the character the right doses of Goth and rebellious teenager. Her final scene with her brother will make your heart melt. There is a bizarre, confusing contemporary dance piece that Ashton performs concerning a butterfly and a platypus. And while I didn't "get it", Ashton's acting tools show that she truly does believe in the words and dance movements, that you can't help but applaud once the dance ends.

Stephanie Stuart & Natalie Young provide some of the festive laughs of the night as the snooty beyotches that rule the popular crowd. Trust me; these are not the type of girls that would participate in Disney's High School Musical. Instead they would punch Sharpay in the face, tell Gabriella she's fat, and sleep with Troy because they were bored and had nothing better else to do. All the while sipping their booze of course. Stuart & Young are entertaining, but I wish the biting and catty humor had a hint more of campy bitchiness like in Mean Girls, Jawbreaker, Heathers, or Gossip Girl. Nonetheless, I thoroughly enjoyed both of their performances very much. I would though not ask for a sip from their milk bottles during lunch. Trust me.

Drew Wall as "Van" is another laugh-provoking performance within the piece. "Van" is the typical laid-back, pot smoking teen we've seen in countless films and TV shows. You just know he collects tons of Japanese comic books, lives on the computer, worships science fiction -- all the while living in a pot-filled cloud. Wall nails the characterization down perfectly with slacker-like comedic pace, delivery, and timing.

As "Matt", Taylor Williams physically does look like those jocks that populate the halls of any high school. Tall, blonde, handsome, and tanned. Williams's choice of acting to not make him just a dumb jock was a wise decision. The performance would have become a nuisance for the audience. Instead Williams gives the character a troubling, confusing, and brutal streak of anger that is riveting to watch unfold. When Williams' anger causes him to call Beethoven a "f**", it drips with venom like hatred and disgust. I must admit, it was difficult not wanting to leap from your seat and punch the SOB smack in the mouth. That's how believable this actor is in his characterization. Williams shines in this piece.

This leaves the two performances I felt stole the evening: James Chandler as "CB" and Jared Brewer "Beethoven". As the two teens that may or may not have feelings for each other, the chemistry is both heartfelt and radiant. Like two tennis pros, neither drops the "ball of energy" that we all actors discuss when it comes to character connection and chemistry. The scenes involving Chandler & Brewer are the best of the evening in regards to subtext and organic truth. The arc created for both of them is well defined in their acting that it results in honest believability within their performances.

Brewer, a tall actor with a very expressive face delivers the pain and heartache that follows "Beethoven". The violent attack that Williams lashes onto Brewer is vividly realistic and uncomfortable to watch. Brewer's characterization is endearing and touching. You as an audience so badly want to protect the boy from any harm. This kid easily wins the audience's heart by the end of the evening.

Chandler is outstanding as the lead character and narrator who takes the audience on his personal quest of finding answers about God, his dog, and love. He never once drops character and continues to stay intensely focused, even when he is not the center of attention. Chandler's finest work comes in the last half of the piece, in which he finds both loss and understanding. The final moments are full of sorrow, with Chandler's eyes full of tears as he tries to understand the loss, it is heartbreaking to watch. Chandler is indeed an actor with great promise and which other directors need to view immediately. This young thespian has it!

The play itself does have some issues that need to be rewritten, better laid out subplots, and a much firmer grasp on subtext to make the piece truly shine. However, it is the direction and this wonderful, dedicated cast that makes the production come alive with satisfying results.

With practically every theater in the metroplex right now mounting some Christmas themed production, Dog Sees God is indeed worth the diversion from the usual Tiny Tim and Scrooge themed shows. While it is not recommended for the tots, I seriously urge high school students to view this -- they just may see themselves within these characters, and hopefully what they see will make them think twice before saying or doing the wrong thing. They just might save a life. Maybe even their own.

Dog Sees God runs through December 22. Call 972-215-8059 for tickets or purchase online.

GRADE: B+