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When I reviewed Ensemble Theatre’s revival of Joe McDonough and David Kisor’s The Frog Princess in 2002, my commentary was titled “A Big Leap.” I cited a remark by Artistic Director D. Lynn Meyers, who said, “This is a show about judging people based on kindness rather than appearances, and that’s a message we need to hear in this city.”
Five years later, the neighborhood around ETC has a startlingly new appearance — there’s a garden store next door, condos and a parking garage across the street and lots more positive development on the way. It’s apparent, thanks to Meyers’ persistence and the efforts of many others to make a difference in Over-the-Rhine, the message has gotten through.
The Frog Princess was the first McDonough-Kisor collaboration presented by ETC a decade ago. In 1997, you had to be a hardy theatergoer to head to OTR to see a show at 1127 Vine St. Parking was dicey, and the urban entrepreneurs on nearby corners were more likely dealing drugs than home decor or plants.
But Meyers and her intrepid staff hung in there, and 10 years later they’ve revived The Frog Princess in the midst of a resurgent block. It’s a solid reminder of how far the neighborhood and the theater have evolved.
The show is based on a Russian fairytale of a czar (Ken Early) and his three sons. Each son finds a wife by shooting an arrow into the air.
The czar then sets a series of tasks to determine which of them will succeed him. Young Prince Ivan (Charlie Clark) finds his arrow in a swamp with a frog (Anna Kate Bocknek) that he must marry, much to the amusement of his brothers (Michael Bath and Jared Doren). Their new spouses (Annie Fitzpatrick, Sara Mackie) are akin to Cinderella’s stepsisters: mouthy, crude and arrogant.
After making it possible for Ivan to win the competition, the “frog princess,” whose real name is Vasalisa, is kidnapped by Old Bones (Deb Girdler), a villainous spirit. The callow Ivan spends seven years searching for her, maturing and learning the meaning of love and selflessness.
With McDonough’s deft and humorous writing and Meyers’ heartfelt direction (she has brought new invention to each revival of the show), The Frog Princess is both fine entertainment for families and a palatable moral lesson about listening to your heart. Despite Ivan’s multi-year quest for Vasalisa — with several humorous encounters along the way — the production is a swift 90 minutes, with an intermission. (I overheard a child so excited by the end of Act I, when Vasalisa is captured by Old Bones, that she could hardly wait to get back to her seat to see what came next. “They picked a really good spot for the intermission,” she exclaimed.)
Clark and Bocknek are a charming couple, and both have voices well-suited to Kisor’s simple melodies. Bath and Doren carry the show’s comic weight as the princes and as the fearsome Baba Yaga (Bath) and a foolish Wise Man (Doren). Fitzpatrick and Mackie use their physical skills to inject amusing slapstick into the show. Early’s role is a bit on the empty side, but he keeps the story moving by setting new tasks and reacting to their fulfillment.
The Frog Princess works best if you take a child along and talk about what you’ve seen. The story and characters are intentionally simple, although McDonough’s script has its moments of wit. (One of the prince’s wives calls her husband “a useless man,” then qualifies her remark: “Oh, I’m being redundant.”)
It’s a charming escape for the holidays. Grade: B
THE FROG PRINCESS, presented by Ensemble Theatre of Cincinnati, continues through Jan. 6. Buy tickets, check out performance times and find nearby bars and restaurants here.
This article appears in Dec 19-25, 2007.
