Humor, horror combine in ‘Shocktoberfest!’

The Rose Firebay at the John Waldron Arts Center was filled to capacity Saturday night for “Shocktoberfest!,” a series of short, spine-tingling plays presented by the Cardinal Stage Company. \n“The show is meant to be fun and not taken seriously,” said Cardinal Artistic Director Randy White. \n Alexandera Moffitt, clad in a white night gown and braided pigtails, set the mood for horror and humor in the first skit, “A Bedtime Story.” She told a shocking tale that garnered both chuckles and gasps in the audience. \n Next was “Priest” from the musical “Sweeney Todd” – a comical song about baking a man into a pie. The characters of Mrs. Lovett and Sweeney Todd, played by Lauren Robert and Phil Christiansen, discussed the edible qualities of people in different professions in song. In one verse, Mrs. Lovett joked that priests “don’t commit sins of the flesh, so it’s pretty fresh.” \n The singing duet was followed by a scene from “Titus Andronicus,” by William Shakespeare, with Jack O’Hara as Marcus and McCarry Reynolds as Lavinia. The audience roared with laughter as while O’Hara recited long flowing verses as Reynolds stood silent and meek, spurting blood on the floor. The room became somber as Edgar Allen Poe, played by Henry Woronicz, then made a special appearance to read one of his dark stories. Woronicz, will read a different Poe story every show.\n “Shocktoberfest!” concluded with a bone-chilling performance of “A Crime in a Madhouse” from the Grand Guignol Theatre, a popular Parisian tourist attraction that was most famous for its horror plays. The Grand Guignol’s secret was “how it mixed laughter and horror in equal measure,” White said in a press release. \n In the first half of “A Crime in a Madhouse,” Diane Kondrat played Madame Robin, an eccentric woman who has lived in the “madhouse” for 40 years. Later, Kondrat appears as the frightening One Eye, a mad patient who has committed murder in the past and is feared by the other patients. Senior Melanie Derleth gave a believable and heart wrenching performance as the young Louise, a fleeting young beauty who tries to warn her caretakers that the other patients might do something to harm her.\n The short plays that make up “Shocktoberfest!” are wonderfully entertaining and just in time for Halloween. The evening included a good mix of horror, gore and comedy that can appeal to both adults and young people. \n “Shocktoberfest!” will continue showing at the John Waldron Arts Center’s Rose Firebay at 7:30 and 10 p.m. Oct. 25-27. Tickets are $18 for regular admission, $15 for seniors and $12 for students and can be purchased at the Sunrise Box Office at 114 E. Kirkwood Ave., Bloomingfoods and online at www.Bloomingtonarts.info.