In the fleetest hour you're ever likely to spend at a show, Allentown Public Theatre's "Robin Hood" will whisk you thousands of miles and hundreds of years into the dark past and mythical land of Sherwood Forest.
In the cozy and convincingly transformed basement assembly hall of St. Luke's Lutheran Church on tree-lined North Seventh Street in Allentown, PA, this tiny but mighty production company more commonly called 'APT', under the direction of Anna Russell, has created the look, the mood, and the feel of quintessential children's theater, combining a timelessly riveting story, utterly committed performances, and dare-you-to-look-away pacing.
Playwright Greg Banks has been called the 'maestro of the small cast classic', and Ms Russell has assembled just about the most nearly perfect selection of performers imaginable to demonstrate the truth to that boast.
Banks, who will direct his 'Robin Hood' at the Egg Theatre in Bath, UK this coming Christmas, has written twenty plays and produced these little gems from Seattle to Singapore, along with Moscow and the Arctic Circle in between.
And APT's production does his work fine credit!
His "Robin Hood' was conceived to be able to afford roles for as many as 2 women and 20 men, but, as with his own original presentation of this play, APTs production features but four women and an onstage musician.
Oh, and lest we forget, it also occasionally is graced by a charming group of young students from APT's acting classes who add a delicate texture and gentle swaying to the show on several occasions.
Each actor plays at least two characters, and a couple of them portray even more than that.
The lissome cast includes Kate Egging, Willow Reichard Flynn, Sydney Stauffer, and APT board member Cheryl Moritz.
Everyone is thoroughly engaging and fully committed every minute of this lightning quick production, and none more so than Moritz, who, if you squint, appears at times a living, breathing, dancing marionette. There were moments you thought you actually saw strings and the operating cross twirling in the hands of a master puppeteer above her head.
Ms Russell, who is also APT's artistic director, hosts the show and punctuates much of its action with clean and delightful riffs on violin.
Performances of Robin Hood will run July 29 at 6pm and July 30, and 31 at 2pm at St. Luke's Lutheran Church, 417 N. 7th St., Allentown.
The show is suitable for audiences of all ages, (' Robin Hood' is APT's fourth annual family-friendly production).
The presentation is free for children, ages 12 and under; adults and teens, pay-what-you-will.
For more information, please call 888-895-5645 or visit www.allentownpublictheatre.com
APT's production of Robin Hood and its related series of theatre workshops for children are sponsored by Community Action Development Corporation of Allentown, the County of Lehigh, Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, St. Luke's Lutheran Church, The Trexler Trust, and Upside Allentown.