The Big Picture

Big Love is a big play. To begin with, Charles Mee's modern interpretation of Aeschylus's The Suppliants takes root in the ancient tale, in which fifty brides flee fifty grooms in a classic battle of the sexes. But Mee’s reimagined update is so jam-packed with theatrical artifice — a wild...

By Susan Froyd

November 5, 2009

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Big Love is a big play. To begin with, Charles Mee's modern interpretation of Aeschylus's The Suppliants takes root in the ancient tale, in which fifty brides flee fifty grooms in a classic battle of the sexes. But Mee’s reimagined update is so jam-packed with theatrical artifice — a wild gamut of musical styles, a live band, slam-bam kinetics, aerial silk techniques and more — that it isn’t even quite correct to call it play. And that’s precisely why the Aluminous Collective, a loose group of Naropa theater graduates dedicated to building upon techniques they learned at the avant Boulder university, chose to take it on locally. Their regional premiere of the show opens November 6 at 8 p.m. at BINDERY | space, 770 22nd Street.

“I look at it not as just a play, but as a theatrical event,” says Big Love director Colleen Mylott of the massive collaborative effort. “We took on a grand-scale production, working on a shoestring budget.” And it’s an effort, adds ensemble spokeswoman Nita Davanzo, worthy of a larger stage and audience: “It’s the most exciting show we’ve ever worked on,” she says.

Big Love continues on Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. through November 21. Admission is $12 to $15, or two-for-one on opening night only; go to www.biglovecolorado.com or call 303-589-3905 for more information.
Fridays, Saturdays, 8 p.m. Starts: Nov. 6. Continues through Nov. 21, 2009

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Susan Froyd started writing for Westword as the "Thrills" editor in 1992 and never quite left the fold. These days she still freelances for the paper in addition to walking her dogs, enjoying cheap ethnic food and reading voraciously. Sometimes she writes poetry.

Contact: Susan Froyd

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