Last night I had the absolute pleasure of watching The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. It was one of the three works we studied during our class week, but was only about 30 pages and I knew ahead of time that the musical was quite different so I went in mostly blind. I think mostly different was an understatement. Other than him aging backward, his father not really like him, and the fact that at some point he had a wife, it was nothing like the short story. The biggest difference I saw was the tone. The short story was pessimistic and dreary. I don’t mean to use those words and imply that the story was bad, but it was not the happiest thing I have ever consumed. The musical on the other hand was uplifting and heartfelt and neither of those things existed in even the smallest amount in the short story. When we were discussing it as a group after, I believe Shawn mentioned that the creative team loved taking something so negative, breaking it apart, and weaving their own story out of it. And wow, did they do that so beautifully. The creative team had the advantage of cultural familiarity with the general idea of Benjamin Button, but very little deep understanding. Most people know that its a boy who ages backward, but couldnt say much more than that, which means people are attracted to a title that they have a connection to by tno expectation.
Though, even if they had high expectations I almost bet they would’ve been surpassed. The person in front of me was blocking basically the entire ⅓ middle of the stage (a.k.a. where 90 percent of the action takes place) and I would still say it is a top five best shows I have ever seen and cried the entire last 15 minutes. The way they utilized the set and props, specifically during the last past and the first part was wonderful. A couple moments that stood out were when he was pulled under the water and the other actors held the wood planks to make it seem like the stage was the river. Chefs kiss. Same with nearer to the end when the swaddles were unraveled and out came the children. That will stick with me forever. I would have loved to be in the room when all these innovative ideas were being created.
Another one of the most impactful parts of the show was the ensemble. The stories they told as the villagers were by no means necessary, but absolutely made the show. It made the whole show feel like it came full circle, and like we were immersed in the world. I feel that often shows try to cut story lines that dont direct add to the plot or could be easily be cut, but this show did the opposite and it worked so well.
The last, and to me the most important, was Benjamin. This show should be studied by actors who want to understand the impacts of physicality and how to do it right. When we saw Benjamin for the first time, the actor didn’t look quite 70 ish and so I thought I could tell he was about 50 year old. It made me wonder how they were going to do the rest of the transformation. But then, he kept. Getting. Younger. The man ended up looking 25. I was in such shock. And with no prosthetics or anything. Just his movements. Insane and deserves every award ever.
All of this to say, I thoroughly enjoyed the show and will be recommending it to anyone who wants heartfelt and beautiful story.
Theatre in London U of A 