Incorruptible in Performance

Over the weekend, I attended a performance of Incorruptible that was put on by the Saginaw Valley State University theater department. The show was directed by David Rzeszutek, a theater professor who managed to impress me with how well the play was performed. The play was very enjoyable and I really liked watching the play after enjoying reading the script so much. Most of the characters were exactly how I pictured them, but Professor Rzeszutek added some things that enhanced the play and others that I felt took away from it.

Allow me to begin with the character of Jack. David Milka played the character exactly how I imagined him to be. He seemed to be very charismatic and witty, and you never knew what to expect from him next. Milka also did an excellent job of milking the humor out of the show with his very well timed comedic side comments. I loved how he played a character that played to the audience. Next is Charles. I loved how Rusty Myers played the role of a suffering priest in conflict. He was very humorous throughout the play but also very serious when the need arose. Olf was another character that I thoroughly enjoyed. He truly was a loveable oaf and David Ryan brought that to light in the funniest way possible. Olf starred in one of my favorite parts when he clothes lined Jack as the latter tried to escape. The peasant woman played by Cassidy Morey was surprisingly humorous. Although she was a smaller character without much dialogue, the humor was really emphasized with some of the “vulgar” gestures that she used that you wouldn’t expect from a woman of her age.

Agatha, Charles’s sister, was played by Mykaela Hopps. Vocally, the character was perfect. She was extremely loud and very frightening. However, the actress was pretty small and after watching Charles shake in fear, I had expected her to be some huge woman with monster strength. This is only a small complaint that I can’t really validate because I enjoyed her performance. On the other hand, the character that I couldn’t stand was Felix. He was played by Cameron Thorp. I had expected Felix to be a very outgoing and robust character after reading the script. After all, he is supposed to have been a great lover of women. However, Cameron played the character so timid and un-influential that I wondered how he managed to help restore faith to the church at all. Besides the character of Felix, the only other complaint about the performance I had was that the lines of the play frequently ran together. At these moments, I had a hard time figuring out whom was talking, much less what they were saying.

 Overall, the show was very good. It had great humor and an excellent cast. I would definitely recommend seeing the show if you have the opportunity.