Theater review: ‘Apology’ is a tedious way to spend an hour

If you had just one more hour to live, how would you spend it? Saying goodbyes to loved ones? Enjoying a favorite meal? Making peace with enemies?

Not John Faustus.

In Mickle Maher’s “An Apology for the Course and Outcome of Certain Events Delivered by Doctor John Faustus on this His Final Evening,” staged by the Midnight Company, Faustus fritters away his final hour explaining to a roomful of randomly assembled strangers — the audience, sitting on hard benches in the upstairs space at Dressel’s Pub — why his diary contains no actual documentation of his life.

Instead, its pages are filled with hash marks — the sort prisoners make on their cell walls to count the days.

If you’re unfamiliar with the show’s source material, the 15th-century legend of Faust, where have you been? The story of the doctor who sells his soul to the devil in exchange for 24 years of wealth, time travel and power has been the basis for countless works of music, opera, theater, poetry and fiction. At the culmination of 24 years, Faustus is whisked away to Hades.

In the Midnight Company production, artistic director Joe Hanrahan plays the aloof academic Faustus with conviction and plenty of energy, though his monologue in what amounts to a one-man show isn’t always completely engaging.

Travis Hanrahan is Mephistopheles, the prince of Hell who’s been Faustus’ servant these 24 years. Wearing an eerie, white mask that gives us only a glimpse at his eyes, he sits silently on a stool behind Faustus, occasionally shifting in his seat or tilting his head.

The Midnight Company excels at producing theater outside of the traditional theater setting. But in this situation, a more theatrical treatment — lighting that suggests a more foreboding mood, perhaps — may have helped to establish a clearer focus.

“Apology,” directed by Sarah Whitney, is mostly insightful, often clever and sometimes plain weird. But making yourself familiar with Faust’s story ahead of time (and packing a seat cushion) isn’t a bad idea.
 
By Gabe Hartwig • ©2010 St. Louis Post-Dispatch, STLtoday.com • Published 06.08.10