There are many stories of transgender experience in recent history and Malvolio examines a few of them. This play was created by Reno’s very own Sandra Brunell – Neace & Rachel Lopez with so much passion that you can feel the energy they put into each word. Inspired by Shakespeare’s comedy Twelfth Night, Malvolio looks at the challenges that come with living as a transgender person in a society full of hate and injustice.
The performance is presented with such heart; this is a superb cast and crew. Bradford Ka’ai’ai plays Malvolio and he is the anchor from story to story. The stories told are true and impactful. We left the theater, but the performances stayed with us as we discussed what we saw on the ride home and even the next day. Malvolio will stay with you like a good meal with lots of substance.
The evening starts out with an opening performance: The Green Show is fun with characters represented by the masks they wear. The Green Show got me warmed up to looking for the deeper meaning in what is presented. You will see the masks in the photos but you will see in the Green show that there is more to it that just fun characters but also some food for thought as well.
The messages are at times hard to watch, but I found that the stories felt important, especially at this time that our communities are being torn apart from injustice and lack of understanding. Malvolio examines many transgender stories with open eyes and truth. Some of these stories end in ways that may be hard to see but in my opinion, need to be looked at.
This is one of those plays that should be seen more than once to fully realize the depth of each story and the subtitles of the performances.
For more information about Bruka Theater and show times for Malvolio check out their website: http://www.bruka.org/
