Our Teen Reviewer Tackles "I Was a Rat!"

Another review from teen reviewer Kathryn L., who previously reviewed "A Tale of Two Cities" and "Goodnight Moon".


When I was in 5th grade, I took part in the Global Reading Challenge at B.F. Day Elementary School. One of the books we had to read was I Was a Rat! by Philip Pullman. Immediately, I fell in love with the poor innocence of Roger, the hospitality of Bob and Joan, and the craftiness of Oliver Tapscrew.

Peter Crook, Caety Sagoian and Don Darryl Rivera. Photo by Chris Bennion.

So, when I came to the play, it was only to fall in love all over again with the characters I had loved back then. Not only were their personalities brought to life and made even more believable then they already were, but the set was a story in itself. The idea of making the set out of the Daily Scourge added to the story by so much. It showed how a community and their actions can be fueled by a misprint in a paper, and how gossip can sometimes rule the lives of many.

Over all, the play was a very good, very believable adaption of the book by Phillip Pullman. It highlighted all of the important aspects from the book and gave personality to even the inanimate objects, such as the set, and the tiniest characters that really have no role at all, like the Philosopher Royal’s cat.
I highly recommend it to people of all ages - to adults because it helps to capture lost youth, and to the youth itself because it is set in a fantasy-world only imaginable to young minds.


"I Was a Rat!" runs through June 7th in SCT's Charlotte Martin Theatre.

More on "Rat" from the SCT Review Crew

Before we share more from the SCT Review Crew, I thought I'd take a moment and explain these "spoiler tags" you're seeing.

"I Was a Rat!" has something of a surprise involved in the story. It isn't a secret if you've read the book, and the more astute members of our audience will probably pick up on the clues and figure it out quite quickly. And, anyway, the surprise isn't really what the story is about.

But, to make sure we preserve the surprise for anyone so inclined, I'm putting spoiler tags on reviews from our Review Crew that might let the secret slip. Just click the spoiler button for the full tale.

All that being said, let's get on to the review from SCT Review Crew-er Nadine S.


SCT's new production, "I Was A Rat!," is a twisted fairy tale.
SPOILERS!

What happens if one of the rats turned into a footman by Cinderella's godmother doesn't revert back to a rodent at midnight? The main character of "I Was A Rat," is in this fix, and he suddenly finds himself a boy, with no idea how to act like a human and no one to care for him. Bewildered and afraid, the rat/boy knocks on the door of a kind, childless couple and with the explanation, "I was a rat," the story begins. Like the couple, we don't learn until later how the rat became a boy or why (he ran off from his post as Cinderella's footman to take her to the ball and was never reverted to his true self at midnight), so that we, too, are thrown confused into a world in which the rich live in a fairytale castle and the rest of the people live in a depressed, gray, and poor world, populated with unscrupulous grifters and desperate orphans who have to live hard to get by.

Through a series of mishaps, the boy, named "Roger" (Don Darryl Rivera) by the kind couple, finds himself on display as a "monster," vilified by rumour and fear spread by newpapers that serve not to inform, but to make a buck. It takes a princess to save him, leaving us with the relief and hope that fairytale endings can happen anywhere.

Don Darryl Rivera as Roger the rat-boy. Photo by Chris Bennion.

Roger's journey is staged by the SCT like a Dickens novel. The set is dark, gray and urban with lurid newspaper headlines slashed all over the stage. The kind couple are dressed in depression-era clothing and their warm, cobbler's cottage is the only homey place on this stark set. The other characters are dressed in Victorian rags and tags, ruffians straight from Oliver Twist. A fairytale castle looms behind, far in the distance. Some characters in the play, such the evil Fagin-like grifter who attempts to put Roger on display as the monstrous "Rat Boy," and the street urchin who, like the Artful Dodger, has a good heart but steals and connives to survive, make us fear that Roger will come to a tragic end.

The play shows the best and the worst of humanity and, thankfully, all turns right for Roger. The SCT once again lightens the story with humor and the actors made this crazy fairy-tale seem real. Our daughter (7) loved this play and so did we. It gave us the perfect chance to talk with her about how to decide if what you read in the newspaper is always true and how sometimes fear leads people to do the wrong things. The happy ending left us with the feeling that even in such a difficult world, most people are really good at heart.


"I Was a Rat!" runs in SCT's Charlotte Martin Theatre through June 7th.

SCT Review Crew's first review of "I Was a Rat!"

Our first SCT Review Crew review of "I Was a Rat!" from veteran Review Crew-er Aimee W. and daughter Kira W.

From the newspaper wrapped set, to the marvelously talented cast, to the incredibly quick costume changes, I Was A Rat! is a not-to-be-missed show! My daughter Kira (age 7) and I (age withheld), thoroughly enjoyed this delightful, surprising romp. This is both a funny and touching story of a rat who turns into a boy and all the adventures of misunderstanding and prejudice he encounters.

Luckily, he first encounters a cobbler Bob (Rob Borgess)and his wife, Joan (Marianne Owne), who makes the most delightful toasted cheese sandwiches and ginger “snap” cookies. They decide to call him Roger. Roger (Don Darryl Rivera) eats everything... really! He nibbles through newspapers (The Daily Scourge), pencils and even his mattress and bed clothes. This delighted my daughter to no end, as did his bizarre, rat-like habits.

Rob Burgess, Don Darryl Rivera and Marianne Owen. Photo by Chris Bennion.

Unfortunately, Roger ends up in some sticky situations – even getting thrown in jail because he is suspected of being a sewer monster. An amazing thing since Roger still looks a lot like a boy, clearly indicating that people choose their own context even if there is evidence to prove otherwise literally staring them straight in the face.

This tale is told with punctuations of headlines from the local, tabloid newspaper, The Daily Scourge. The cast plays multiple characters so well it feels like a cast of thousands. Each character has his or her own musical theme. I must admit, I didn’t notice this feature, but it was called to our attention when the cast came out on the stage at the end of the show to answer questions and talk to the audience. It makes me want to see the show again so that I can pay special attention to that detail.

The things my daughter loved are listed below – her top ten but in no particular order:
[Editor's note: This list has some spoilers in it, so be warned before you click the list name to reveal it.]

Kira W.'s Favorite Parts

1. The headband on Roger’s head at the end
2. When Roger hid in the trashcan
3. Eating pencils!
4. When Billy rescued Roger from Professor Tapscrew’s
5. The sewer guy’s costume was great because it was dirty like he was from the sewer
6. Liked how Roger stood straight like a pole when he was hiding from the police
7. Loved it when he ate the peppers – it was funny!
8. Liked it when the princess turned the rat into a cleaned up boy to get him out of jail
9. Liked how the picture had Roger in it
10. Liked the scene where Bob and Joan gave the princess the red shoes.

We both loved the show and could have probably created a much longer list than this. This show is fun for ages 6+. And unlike some toys with a starting age that really represents a range of about 2 years beyond, the plus here really means 6 and up. My 11 year old would have loved this, and, well, that plus includes me and I loved this, too.

"I Was a Rat!" runs in SCT's Charlotte Martin Theatre through June 7th.

Activity: Late for Class, or Out Too Late

Another great activity from SCT's Drama School, Late for Class is a basic game structure onto which we have built themes from I Was a Rat!


Late for Class, or Out Too Late (the I Was a Rat! version)

Choose one player to be Roger, the rat-boy. Roger is being interrogated by the Police Man (activity leader) about why he is out late with no parents. The Police Man says that if Roger explains himself, he will take Roger back to Bob and Joan. If not, he will take Roger and all the Rat Children to the Sterminator! The rest of the players are the Rat Children who try to help Roger.

Roger leaves the room while the leader and the rest of the class decide an outrageous story that is Roger’s excuse for being out late (for example: a space ship took him away, etc.).

Roger returns to the room and the Police Man demands his story. The rest of the group, standing or seated behind the Police Man, mimes or gives other clues to Roger about what he/she should say to the Police Man. If the Police Man turns around, the group must immediately start doing their “work” and not get caught signaling to Roger.

Once Roger has figured out the story, try again with new actors and a new story.

NOTE: The first couple of times you do this, keep it pretty simple. As the players refine their miming skills and understand the exercise better, add more details to the story.


Added layer: Moving Around the Room

Moving Around the Room is a warm-up activity we use to help students get used to using their voices and bodies. Students walk around the room slowly and silently, and when the group leader gives them one of the following prompts, they respond with the corresponding gesture and words.

Prompt / Gesture / Phrase

Pencil / Mime eating a pencil / Delicious!

Bread and Milk / Mime sticking face in bowl / Sluurrrrp

Wash up! / Rub face like a rat cleaning / Rub-a-dub

Make your bed / Students circle and curl up / Snore

Spoon / Hold an imaginary spoon / Spoom!

To incorporate Moving Around the Room into Out Too Late, have the Rat Children stay where they are (actually moving around the room will just make it hard for Roger to follow the Rat Children's hints). Whenever the Police Man turns around to try to catch them signaling Roger, he/she should use a sentence with one of these prompts (e.g. "Children, pull out your pencils!" or "You children are grubby - wash up!"), and the Rat Children should respond with the corresponding gesture and phrase as their "work."

A Few Minutes With Don Darryl Rivera

A couple of weeks ago, we sat down for a video interview with Don Darryl Rivera, Puppet Coach for Goodnight Moon and Roger the rat-boy in I Was a Rat!

We started things off, of course, with an introduction:

At this point, embarrassingly, my camera battery died, as I had been unable to find its power cord that morning. But, the ever-resourceful Don Darryl reached into his backpack and pulled out a digital camcorder, and we were back in business.

And then we were foiled by technology again, as the saved video proved to be unreadable. The sound, however, remained, and so I've cobbled together a quick podcast of our interview. You can listen via the player below, or download the MP3 here.

Many thanks to Don Darryl Rivera for the interview and the technology assist.

Goodnight Moon runs in SCT's Eve Alvord Theatre through June 7th, 2009.

I Was a Rat! opens May 1st, 2009 in SCT's Charlotte Martin Theatre, and runs through June 7th, 2009.

Fun facts from the Props team working on "I Was a Rat!"

Our Props department does an amazing job, and a big part of that is their attention to detail. They do a lot of studying for each show to come up with the best design for the properties you will see. Prop Shop Manager Edie Whitsett routinely shares the interesting tidbits of information she comes up with while researching each production.

For example, in I Was a Rat! you'll get to meet the Philosopher Royal, and below are some of Edie's notes on how each facet of the character is reflected in the prop design.

The Philosopher Royal is a devotee of several branches of knowledge, study and weirdness. Among his interests are:

Phrenology - the science of knowing a person by his or her bumps and fissures on the head. NOTE the poster of a head on his wall.

Palmistry - the science of knowing a person (or predicting their future) by his or her lines and creases on the hand. Also using the shape of the hand and digits. NOTE the model hand on his table and poster on the wall.

Alchemy – the science of transmutation (changing) of common metals into gold. Also, the search for or creation of a "panacea," a remedy believed to cure all diseases and prolong life indefinitely. NOTE various bottles and equipment on his table.

Ancient Egypt - NOTE the "hand painted" papyrus and God's eye protection amulet.

Acupunture - a technique of inserting and manipulating fine filiform (threadlike) needles into specific points on the body to relieve pain, or for therapeutic purposes. In China, the practice of acupuncture can be traced as far back as the Stone Age, with the Bian shi, or sharpened stones. Stone acupuncture needles dating back to 3000 B.C. have been found by archeologists in Inner Mongolia. Recent examinations of Ötzi, a 5,000-year-old mummy found in the Alps, have identified over 50 tattoos on his body, some of which are located on acupuncture points. NOTE the posters under the table.

Also note, a tiny Muslim prayer rug is on his floor...it sometimes points towards Mecca.

Join us to see what other interesting characters, and their props, you will meet.

I Was a Rat! opens May 1st and runs through June 7th in SCT's Charlotte Martin Theatre.