Yankee Doodle: Happy Discovery

BY ROBI POLGAR

Second Youth Family Theatre has accomplished an effective feel-good show all about the good ol' U.S. of A. And it has done so simply and joyfully, without resorting to the bellicose ranting or cloying sentimentality that feature in much of our day-to-day lives and which has permeated too much of our art. Instead, utilizing music, song, dance, spritely narration, and a few props, the company relates in snippets and snatches an enjoyable overview of Americans past.

Yankee Doodle is an ensemble piece full of verve and a punster's quick wit, with moments that are deeply thoughtful alternating with plenty of songs to present a pastiche history of our land, from the ride of Paul Revere through Charles Lindbergh's famous flight. In 25 short scenes, the ensemble brings into focus a panoply of individuals -- Yankee Doodles -- to tell the story of the birth and growth of America; the cast of characters is a veritable Who's Who of folk you don't usually hear about when discussing the "great" Americans. Molly Pitcher, Thomas Fulton, Johnny Appleseed, Sacajawea: Do you remember these names from your elementary school days? A dozen actors sing and dance and act their way through the Revolutionary War and the Louisiana Purchase; they portray practically all the frontiers-folk that blazed trails West; they offer us World's Fairs and illuminate all manner of inventive achievement, from the discovery of electricity to the discovery of the ice cream cone. And they do it with an air of happy discovery throughout.

My 6-year-old companion, daughter Ari, called it the "bestest play" she'd ever seen, and seeing her sitting absolutely still for the entire event is testament to the ensemble's ability to engage all audience members right from the start, as well as director Brian Gaston's excellent understanding of what to put into each bit to keep the energy flowing.Ari's favorites: the ensemble movement-cum-narrative of the life of Johnny Appleseed and Lewis and Clark's Native American guide, Sacajawea: "I liked her feather and her voice," opined the young critic. Adults were clearly enjoying themselves, too. And everyone was moved by the multipart harmony rendition of "The Star Spangled Banner," once again delivered with great feeling, yet ever so simple and unencumbered.

Besides the national anthem, though, it is mostly difficult at the Dougherty to hear the lyrics when more than three or four people are singing, such are the acoustics. And while adults may enjoy the show as much as the younger set, the whole endeavor would fit best into any elementary school auditorium where it would find its perfect audience: eager young Americans keen to find out just who their predecessors were and all the cool things they did.

LIU, THE DRAGON KING

Nothing sucks the life out of a good dragon drama better than a lame dragon. You can have a whole stage full of characters all a-tremble, gnashing their teeth over a massive beast, and all that fear goes right down the tube if the dragon shuffles in looking like a papier-mâché Pekingese with a glandular condition. That's something audiences for Liu, the Dragon King won't have to worry about.

The first glimpse of the title character comes when one of his gigantic claws swoops in out of the darkness and lands in front of one of the human characters. Then the other claw swoops in, trapping this figure. Finally, from behind a mountain his gargantuan flame-colored head emerges, with its thick, ridged forehead, its long, bumpy snout and high, flared nostrils, its flashing eyes, tall, sharp teeth, and thick golden whiskers dangling from its mouth and chin. The puppets Liu appears before are fully half the size of humans, but still he dwarfs them. If its entire body were shown, Liu would stretch to a whopping 300 feet. No lame-o lizard here.

Writer-director-designer Brian Gaston knows his dragons. Nose of a camel, scales of a koi, claws of an eagle, soles of a tiger ... he can reel off all the characteristics of a dragon, as well as types of dragon (t'ien-lung, shen-lung, fu-ts'ang-lung, ti-lung) with ease. Born in the Year of the Dragon, Gaston says that he's "always been kind of tuned in to them." When he set out to adapt this Tang Dynasty folk tale for the stage, he had a clear image of what he wanted his Liu to look like.

Folks were suitably impressed with the realization of that vision. Gaston reports that during the first run last year, audience members would "ooh and aah and gasp" at the fiery beast. And last fall, members of the Austin Circle of Theatres expressed admiration by voting an award for design to Gaston and Winter Street Design, which co-created the costumes for the human puppets in the show.The auspicious response seemed to call for producing company Second Youth Family Theatre to revive Liu, so they have. And what better time when the Chinese New Year is ringing in -- what else -- the Year of the Dragon?

The show's one-week run, which also kicks off Playfest 2000, will include a special Chinese New Year celebration following its Feb 5, 5pm show. Chinese Lion dancers from Tropical Productions will perform, and dumplings and good-luck rice balls will be served. Make your plans immediately. This is one dragon you don't want angry with you.

'Dragon King' not just kid stuff

By Kendall Klym

Your children might know a lot more than you think they do.

At least that's what Brian Gaston, director at Second Youth Family Theatre, believes is true. And to prove his point, Gaston has come up with "Liu, the Dragon King," a sophisticated yet simple story told with puppets and designed to entertain and enlighten without talking down to younger audiences.

"This is not a little kiddie show, but I know that small children will enjoy it," Gaston said during a recent rehearsal for the show, which will run from Wednesday through Sunday during PlayFest, at Dougherty Arts Center. "I don't like to direct things at children. Children are as intelligent as adults, but they just don't have as much experience. I am directing this towards everybody, so everybody gets something out of it."

A story about a Chinese family made up of one widowed father and seven daughters living on a rice paddy, the tale focuses on one daughter who sacrifices herself by agreeing to marry a dragon so she may save her father's life from the threatening beast.

Adapted from traditional Chinese folklore, the story is childlike in terms of it's plot, yet deals with adult issues such as trust and love. However, Gaston said, he believes these issues transcend age, especially in Asian traditions in which the love of one's elders is measured by how their offspring treat them.

"The main lesson of the show is that it is a story of love, a story of trust -- how to recognize trusting," he said. "It involves listening to someone's heart rather than listening to their words"

So how can a group of actors express such a soulful theme through the use of puppetry? Actress Jocelyn Adams, who plays Daughter No. 7, also known as Chiang, said subtlety is the key.

"It is very challenging to make subtle gestures of hands become big expressions on the outside of the puppet," Adams said while inserting her hand into the sleeve of a polymer-based hand puppet, carefully making the animate object's "hand" move up and down. "It takes very little movement."

Matthew Tatus, who plays Liu, the dragon who's really a young boy with powers he does not yet know how to use, said he must accomplish the difficult task of portraying the good side of a creature that in western civilization is normally associated with evil.

"The dragon really has a softer side," he said before picking up a three-foot-long, red-and-orange dragon head constructed of painted foam rubber and PVC piping and putting it over his head. "Easterners don't feel the same way about dragons as we do in the West. He's big, but I think everyone will end up loving him by the end of the show."

But, those who like to root for the bad guys will not be deprived of a role model. Christina Dahlberg will more than fulfill anyone's wishes for a mean and heartless character with her portrayal of Daughter No. 3, the evil young woman who doesn't mind sacrificing her family if it satisfies her own means.

"She's very bitter about life and tries to take No. 7's place," Dahlberg said of her character. "It's fun playing her. She's an evil character but has a lot of depth."

Yet no matter how much depth No. 3 has, she does prove one point through her actions: It's better to be nice than to be bad. And that little tidbit of advice is something that both children and adults know about but might benefit from hearing again while attending "Liu, the Dragon King."