“Witch” reviewed by Julia W. Rath

***** A dark tale of devilish temptation and sharp wit, “Witch” is a treasure and one of the best shows I’ve seen all year. The play by Jen Silverman, directed by Devon Carson, goes well beyond anything you might conjure up and is not just a tale for the Halloween season! Based on a Jacobean myth from early 17th century English literature, this story about life and human frailty is a fitting commentary that withstands the test of time.

We see a young, charming devil named Scratch (Julian Hester) who is a conniving and eloquent tempter in training. He offers great gifts to people in the small town of Edmonton in return for having them bargain away their souls, so that Satan can receive them upon their death. Most people say yes and believe it’s a fair exchange when it comes to obtaining money, power, love, status, recognition, or vengeance in return. The one person who continually says no is Elizabeth Sawyer (Kristin Collins). People in their community believe that she is a witch and has placed curses upon them and their animals, and as a result, she has been thrown out of town. But in actuality, Elizabeth is not a witch but dares to think differently. She envisions a future of female empowerment rather than subservience. She believes that being a woman and gaining great wealth or high status in a corrupt society is a poor substitute for the freedom to think her own thoughts and to act independently of men. She sees the current world as defective and one in which men (not women) have brought to fruition for generations on end. Since Jacobean civilization is quite a nasty place, why not get rid of the whole thing and start anew?

In addition to watching Elizabeth’s “dance with the devil” and hearing Scratch’s reasons for leading people into temptation, the audience also observes a slice of life in the wealthier part of town. Cuddy (Declan Collins) is the son of the wealthy Sir Arthur Banks who has a great name and reputation and who owns considerable property in Edmonton. His castle, vast land, and servants are the envy of all, and Sir Arthur is looking for an heir to succeed him. But Cuddy is gay and loves to do Morris dancing; his father knows all this and assumes (rightly or wrongly) that he won’t sire an heir. Since Sir Arthur doesn’t want his name to die in the next generation, he turns to his adopted son Frank Thorney (Ernest Henton). He wants him to marry soon and bear a son who will be his inheritor. Rescued from an underprivileged background, Frank is anxious to make up for lost time and is willing to accede to his adoptive father’s wishes. Without giving too much of the plot away, the devil approaches Cuddy and Frank separately and asks them what they most want in life, and in return for granting their wishes, he will collect their souls. But the question is: What is missing from these men’s lives that they don’t already have? But do Cuddy and Frank really know what they want? Do they truly want what they say they want? Then there is the family’s domestic servant Winnifred (Ariana Lopez), who is secretly Frank’s wife. (Spoiler alert: I’ve said too much already.) Winnifred wants to improve her status in a century where a woman has little or no social position of her own. Can she be content with being a servant—or even someone’s wife—throughout her entire life span?

Thanks to wonderful costuming by Rachel Lambert, the 17th century garments look fantastic and perfectly authentic. Unlike the old-fashioned costumes, the monologues and dialogues throughout the show are contemporary and use modern American English. Not only does this make the language understandable to today’s audience, but all of the colloquialisms and cuss words make the performance incredibly funny. But there’s much more here than just the cheap laugh: It is the deep and abundant soliloquies which make the play meaningful and well-worth seeing!

Kevin Hagan’s scenic design is simple but impressive, yet creepy at the same time with all the black cutouts. Lighting design by Ellie Fey is perfect for the story, particularly in making the background mostly in red and sometimes in purple and blue, with the devilish aspects being in red, of course. Carson’s directing cannot be beat. While the deals with the devil take place towards the front of the stage, the story of Sir Arthur and his two sons takes place towards the back of the stage, mostly at a long dining room table, absent one person, Arthur’s deceased wife, whose portrait prominently hangs on the back wall. Randy Rozler’s property design works extremely well in this regard, and the clever touch of moving a lone candle from one scene to another, from one character to another, entangles what might initially seem to be two separate plots. Dance choreographer Britt Anderson and fight choreographer David Blixt tie things together with lots of movement and close contact among the characters. Last but not least, Petter Walbäck’s original music and sound add a crispness to a story that is not just about human nature, desire, and vanity but about the kind of world we might inherit: the known world of the past, which is immutable to change, or the unknown world of the future, which could embody the hope for improvement and a positive vision of what could be.

When I was in high school, my favorite English class was called “The Devil in Literature”, where we learned not only about the various forms that the devil can take but also about the lengths of his malevolence. The worst hell, we discovered, is generally the one that people have invented for themselves. Then too, it is often desire, greed, and arrogance which are at the root of individuals’ being hoisted by their own petard. So when Scratch accidentally forgets to file the paperwork regarding each client’s soul contract, we discover that human beings are likely to make a mess of things on their own accord. They don’t need the devil to make them do it.

Now do yourself a favor and get tickets to see this production!

“Witch” is playing through December 3, 2023, at The Den Theatre, 1331 N. Milwaukee Avenue, in Chicago’s Wicker Park neighborhood.

General Admission – $36 (includes a $1 facility fee)

Students/Seniors – $21 (includes a $1 facility fee)

Industry – $16 (includes a $1 facility fee)

Online convenience fees ranging from $3.25 to $5.75 will be added to all tickets.

Performance schedule:

Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays – 8:00 p.m.
Sundays – 3:00 p.m.

For more information about “Witch” and to purchase tickets, see: https://thedentheatre.com/performances/2023/10/28/witch-the-artistic-home-the-den-theatre
or call (773) 697-3830 or contact the box office at boxoffice@thedentheatre.com.

To see a listing of other performances at the Den Theatre and to purchase tickets, visit: https://thedentheatre.com/den-theatre-tickets.

For general information about the Den Theatre, go to: https://thedentheatre.com/.

To see what others are saying, visit www.theatreinchicago.com, go to Review Round-Up and click at “Witch”.