The cast of Ochre House Theater’s ‘Daddy’s Rabbits: A Cotton Tale.’ (Photo by Trent Stephenson)
In just over an hour’s time after the Wednesday night performance of Daddy’s Rabbits: A Cotton Tale, I admit I asked myself ” What the hell did I just see?” OK, yes, it was this absurd comedy about a boarding house with an odd array of characters and three rabbits in a cage overly protected by Daddy. But in a short time, the cast and live band served up some unhinged comedy and thrills in Carla Parker’s new musical play.
I mean, I’m still asking myself the same question.
In Ochre House Theater’s newest production, Parker wrote and directed this play that fires on all theatrical cylinders. There’s drama, comedy, intrigue, music numbers and puppets. But moreso, she delivered a story that was satisfying, sharp and gloriously deranged.
Daddy and Mommy own a boarding house where the glamorous Isadorra and oddball brothers Boney and Hairy stay. Daddy keeps his bunnies Fu, Pete and Skip in a small prison cage where he dotes on them with distinct obsession. Their harmony is disrupted by the passerby Nancy who wishes to rent a room and is quickly embedded into the “family.” Instructed never to open the cage, the bunnies begin communicating with her to tell their real story.
The cast landed all the right notes for this show’s specific tones. Daddy’s explosive energy and drunken lethargy was delivered by Omar Padilla in an on-point performance. As Mommy, Marti Etheridge’s portrayal was hypnotic with her dead-eye stare and delivered an abundance of hilarity in her actions and expressions.
Ben Bryant as Boney and Kevin Grammer as Hairy were naughty fun but also hella creepy as “twin brothers” with decidedly queer undertones. The queer vibes resonated throughout first with Boney and Hairy’s seemingly unorthodox connection but also with everyone servile to Daddy. Plus, Nance was serving lusty eyes toward Isadorra which Meagan Harris played up with nice subtlety. As the newest guest, Harris gave an enthusiastic performance that evolved — or perhaps devolved — as Nance learned more of the rabbits’ story. As Isadorra, Lauren Massey was every bit the detached diva delivered with sassy panache.
The band also served as the voices of the rabbits most notably Justin Locklear as Fu. Even while at the keyboards, Locklear was snarky and ominous as the rabbit who tells the tale of witch and a curse which the rabbits suffer under. Trey Pendergrass on drums and Lyle Hathaway on guitar both chimed in as with funny retorts to their band/rabbit leader.
Matthew Posey’s set was cozy but gave a clever air of Daddy and Mommy’s larger manor. Locklear’s music direction and five musical numbers fit right into the mysterious vibes and his puppet creations strayed away from cutesy bunny types into more pet cemetery aesthetics. Bobby Weiss’ stunning artwork depicting the rabbit tales were mesmerizing and worth giving a look over before and after the show. Samantha Rodriguez Corgan designed the actor’s costumes with attractive verve feeling both timeless and throwback.
Daddy’s Rabbits: A Cotton Tale was maniacal fun and Parker crafted a unique tale that will stay in your head and keep you both guessing and laughing.
The show runs through Aug. 31.
–Rich Lopez