Happily
Ever After
In the age of the pyrotechnics of "Beauty and
the Beast" and the elaborate masks of "The Lion King," Odds
Bodkin's presentations may seem bare-bones: an empty stage, except
for a chair, a guitar, a harp and a little percussion. But he
still conjures up a witch, an ogre, fairies and an entire African
savanna.
Mr. Bodkin (Bodkin is his real surname; Odds is an
embellishment) is not a magician but a consummate storyteller.
He is making his Lincoln Center debut with "The Art of the
Tale," a series including performances for adults as well
as "StoryBlast!" family matinee concerts.
"StoryBlast!" might be described as "around
the world in 80 minutes". It begins in Italy with "The Little
Shepherd," whose title character pays for his mischief by
completing a quest that makes the search for the Holy Grail seem
like a scavenger hunt. Then Mr. Bodkin moves on to Aesop's "Wind
and the Sun," accompanied by his Celtic harp.
After intermission he offers "The Name of the
Tree," a Bantu story that could be subtitled "The Tortoise
King." Once again, a tortoise proves that slow and steady
wins the race by saving his fellow creatures from starvation.
The finale is the ever-popular "Three Little Pigs," which
Mr. Bodkin performs as a rousing rockabilly ballad with help
from an enthusiastic chorus: the children in the audience.
--Laurel Graber |
