Minneapolis/St. Paul - "Ghost Quartet"

Regional Reviews: Minneapolis/St. Paul

Ghost Quartet
Elision Playhouse
Review by Deanne McDonald Haywood | Season Schedule

Also see Deanne's review of Ain't Too Proud: The Life and Times of The Temptations and Arty's review of Macbeth

The Cast
Photo by Jolie Morehouse Olson

First-time audience members at Ghost Quartet are invited to "immerse themselves in the music and experience" of the Elision Playhouse's production and not worry about the plot, as it is "a circular story." Composed by Dave Malloy, the choral, art song-influenced folk music is beautifully sung and creatively orchestrated, varying from a cappella to heavily percussive with enchanting violin and unique piano playing. Director and designer Lindsay Fitzgerald has created a lovely wooded space for the singer-musician-actors to play on, complete with logs around a campfire and an intimate forest stage evoking Chekhov's The Seagull.

In creating the piece, Malloy was inspired by the idea of a concept album, and the production is described as a "song cycle about love, death and whiskey." Despite the monologues and short spoken scenes, set and costumes, the cyclical nature and presentational manner of the songs (complete with the actors announcing the track numbers) leaves the production feeling like a workshop performance or a beautiful, folksy concert. If you are a fan of Malloy's music, this is a concert worth attending.

Fitzgerald makes use of the different areas of her set, particularly in the tight first half of the 90-minute intermission-less performance, where the actors are always moving to short scenes and songs staged with variety. The actors are more intentional and driven in the first half of the production, most strikingly illustrated by the way they hand off percussion instruments to the audience members. The first time, the actor presents a percussion instrument, demonstrates how to play it, and gestures with the instrument to a specific audience member, before crossing into the audience to hand the instrument to them. The second time instruments are handed out, for the final song, "The Wind & Rain," seems like an afterthought, with actors simply running out into the audience with their arms full of instruments in an attempt to distribute as many as possible.

In general, the second half of the performance seems less specific and begins to drag, with more space between songs and less clear staging and intentions. The spoken dialogue feels somewhat stilted throughout, making character establishment difficult in a purposefully unclear book. The singing is universally gorgeous; Emily Hensley's resonant soprano as Pearl and Christine Wade's emotional Rose stand out among the excellent voices with notable solo numbers.

Actors venture into the audience several times in the production, never more exuberantly than in the number in which they distribute whiskey shots. Even with Elision's intimate black box theater setup in a proscenium style, no audience member is far from the stage. The sound design and balance is excellent, ensuring that everyone hears every word and note from the actors.

Dave Malloy is well-known for his Tony-award winning production of Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812. Elision Playhouse was recently granted the rights to the local premiere of Great Comet. Fans of Malloy's music and that piece will find a lot to enjoy in Elision's Ghost Quartet.

Ghost Quartet runs through October 20, 2024, at Elision Playhouse, 6105 42nd Avenue North, Crystal MN. For tickets and information, please visit elisionproductions.com.com or call 612-662-6105.