Theatrius
  • Now Playing
  • All Reviews
  • Writers
  • Reflections
  • Millennial Notes
  • Join Us
  • About Us
  • Search Icon

Theatrius

Theater Reviews—San Francisco and Beyond

“The River Bride” Asks, “What Price Love?”—at 6th Street Playhouse

“The River Bride” Asks, “What Price Love?”—at 6th Street Playhouse

November 10, 2022 Patricia L. Morin

Marisela Treviño Orta’s Exotic Fairytale Unites Romance & Myth

by Patricia L. Morin

“The River Bride” enchants us with talented actors, intriguing lighting, and subtle music, set in a fishing port in the tropics. We are transported to a nameless village along the Amazon River in Brazil. Here, where folklore and reality meet, natives speak to dolphins and understand the tropical birds and distant thunderstorms.

Scenic Designer Giulio Cesare Peronne’s simple dock with posts and nautical ropes create a dreamlike air. With subtle lighting, sounds of water, and flashes of lightning, we can almost smell the salty air.

Playwright Marisela Treviño Orta’s folktale portrays the botos, river dolphins, who transform into men for only three days— to find their beloved. If they fail, legend has it, they live in solitude forever.

Lauren DePass (Helena) and Bethany Regan (Belmira)

Orta shows two sisters tangled in a love story, but this isn’t your usual fairytale romance. The playwright is asking  us questions, in her elegant prose: Would we risk changing our whole life for love? Or, take a perilous leap of faith?

Younger sister Belmira (irrepressible Bethany Regan) is about to marry to an easy-going, village-born fisherman named Duarte (hard-working Lorenzo Alviso). Belmira secretly longs to explore the world; she sees Duarte as her ticket out of the tiny village.

Her reticent elder sister Helena (pithy Lauren DePass) loves the river, the land, and the sounds of birds—but she also loves Duarte, her sister’s future husband. Even though they have a past together, Helena does not pursue Duarte. Belmira accuses her of being “motivated by fear and not desire,” marking the difference between them, and adding: “I’m not afraid to grab what I want.”

Terrance Smith (Moises) and Lauren DePass (Helena)

These sisters mirror the contrasting attitudes to risk-taking that many of us debate in personal anguish.

Helena delights in feeding a particular dolphin that has strayed from the ocean down the dark waters of the Amazon. She wonders about love and her own future. As she feeds the dolphin, she whispers, “If the river could put its mouth to my ear, what secrets it would impart.”

We are not surprised when their doting father Señor Costa (carefree Danial Villalva) and loyal Duarte haul Moises (powerful Terrance Smith) out of the river. Handsome Moises wears an expensive looking white suit, and exhibits a gentle nature. And he is whole-heartedly accepted by Señora Costa, (loving Jannely Calmell) who married Señor Costa in three days.

When Helena meets the enticing man from the sea, they clearly feel a magnetic attraction. She announces, “When our eyes met, I saw the reflection of myself.” Although she believes “Love must transform,” she is hesitant.

Daniel Villalva, Lorenzo Alviso, and Terrance Smith

Belmira, upon meeting Moises, swoons over him, and envisions a yacht, and travel to faraway cities. Orta’s lyrical script and Moises’ ethereal persona invite us to dream with her.

Director Marty Pistone’s talented actors take on contemporary manners, unlike any Disney fairytale characters. There are no “good” or “bad” people, and no impending evil.

I recommend “The River Bride.” It is both enchanting and haunting, with characters that touch our own struggles. Is it worth taking world-shattering risks for love? The story twists and turns with a subtle, cliffhanger ending that will keep you wondering.


“The River Bride”
by Marisela Treviño Orta, directed by Marty Pistone, set design by Giulio Cesare Peronne, lighting design by Luca Catanzaro, sound design by Nate Riebli, at 6th Street Playhouse, Santa Rosa, California. Info: 6thStreetPlayhouse – to Sunday, November 27, 2022.

Cast: Lorenzo Alviso, Jannely Calmell, Lauren DePass, Bethany Regan, Terrance Smith, and Daniel Villalva.

Banner photo: Daniel Villalva, Jannely Calmell, Lorenzo Alviso, Lauren DePass, and Bethany Regan


#BLM, #International, #Latinos, Latinas, Plays
#BLM, Capitalism, Civil Rights, Colonialism, Family, feminism, friendship, hope, Identity, Imperialism, love, marriage, patriarchy, power, Romance, sex, social class, wit, Women's Rights, workers

Post navigation

NEXT
“A Slice of Life” Fuses Fragments of Father/Daughter Memories—at The Rhino 
PREVIOUS
“A Raisin in the Sun” Still a Force of Nature—at The Public, N.Y.
Comments are closed.

Menu

  • Now Playing
  • All Reviews
  • Writers
  • Reflections
  • Millennial Notes
  • Join Us
  • About Us

BLM

Black Lives Matter

Subscribe for upcoming reviews!
Loading

Current Shows

  • “Dry Powder” Spotlights Wall Street Power-Brokers—at Left Edge
  • “Pride and Prejudice, The Musical” Enchants with Sass & Satire—at Ross Valley
  • “Clue” Melds Mystery & Comedy into Entertaining Adventure—at SF Playhouse
  • “Donna”: Intimate Interviews Celebrate Trans Triumphs—On Screen
  • “Fannie”: Sixties Spirituals Pave Path to Freedom—at TheatreWorks
  • “’Tasha” Tackles Raw Racism—at 3Girls
  • “Tea Party” Brews Up a Cup of America—at The Strand
  • “A Raisin in the Sun” Explodes with Drama and Power—at 6th Street
  • “Cambodian Rock Band” Deserves Its Standing Ovation—at Berkeley Rep
  • “Cambodian Rock Band” Mixes Nostalgic Hits with Terror—at Berkeley Rep
  • “Fun Home” Seduces with Strong Songs & Sultry Sass—at Berkeley Playhouse
  • “Anything Goes”: It’s Delightful, It’s Delicious, It’s De-lovely—at 42nd Street Moon
  • “SIX, The Musical” Celebrates Women’s Freedom & Individuality—at BroadwaySF
  • “Fun Home” Bursts with Love & Feeling—at Berkeley Playhouse
  • “Dear San Francisco” Wows with Kaleidoscopic Acrobatics—at Club Fugazi

About us:

If you want to see the best plays & performances around the San Francisco Bay or beyond, read our reviews. We promise to give you a true report on the best shows.
Bay Area Critics Circle

Barry David Horwitz, Editor of Theatrius, is a Voting Member of the San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Critics' Circle, SFBATCC. Follow us on: facebook.com

© 2023   All Rights Reserved.