If a fantasy story stars a young orphan, it’s safe to guess that they’ll soon discover they have a special power, a prophecy about them or a mission that only they can fulfill. The “chosen one” trope is a particular favorite in young adult books; every unsuspecting hero-to-be needs their own “You’re a wizard, Harry!” type of revelation.
Jessica Cluess, a Los Angeles-based writer who graduated from Northwestern University, puts her own spin on this trope in her 2016 young adult novel, “A Shadow Bright and Burning,” now onstage in a world premiere adaptation at Black Button Eyes Productions. The heroine, Henrietta Howell (Annemarie Andaleon) isn’t the chosen one, but her life depends on keeping this a secret from the powerful sorcerers who are training her to save England from otherworldly monsters called the Ancients.
Adapted and directed by Ed Rutherford, the stage version has strong world-building and creative visuals, but the character arcs and themes feel underdeveloped. In a story centered on teenage characters, the standout performances come from two of the older cast members: Timothy Griffin as the fatherly sorcerer Agrippa and Darren Jones as the cunning magician Hargrove. The play raises issues of sexism and classism, but these aren’t fleshed out in a compelling way, and the ending feels abrupt for a standalone production (the novel is the first in a trilogy, and it shows).
Rutherford’s script does a fine job of establishing Henrietta’s world without dragging out the exposition. In this alternate reality version of Victorian England, there historically were three types of supernatural practitioners: sorcerers, magicians and witches. But now, only sorcerers — specifically, male ones — may use their powers freely. The others are exiled or executed, not to be trusted after a magician and a witch unleashed the Ancients.
When Agrippa discovers the fire-wielding Henrietta at a girls’ school in Yorkshire, he takes her to an academy for young sorcerers in London, believing she is the female sorcerer who was prophesied to defeat the Ancients. The only problem: she’s actually a magician. To protect herself, Henrietta trains with Hargrove in secret while pretending her skills are those of a sorcerer.
Rather than projections, the creative team uses a variety of analog effects to portray magic, including ribbons, fabric, shadow puppetry, paper lanterns and confetti. These bursts of color pop against the backdrop of Jeremiah Barr’s set — all grimy metal and drab brick, accented by London’s industrial skyline. Rachel M. Sypniewski’s elegant period costumes add a hint of steampunk with combat boots and fingerless leather gloves.
Thematically, the writing sets up what could be a fiercely feminist plot but ultimately fizzles out. Women sorcerers are rare in this world — Joan of Arc is the most recent one that Henrietta has heard of — and this England has its own history of burning witches at the stake. Henrietta is a plucky heroine who stands up to the snobbery and misogyny of her male colleagues, including one who quotes a biblical passage that commands women to be silent, but some of the cartoonish sexism goes unchallenged. Even her beloved mentor, Agrippa, believes that women’s magical powers are affected by their being “ruled by emotion.” It shouldn’t be Henrietta’s job to counter every sexist remark, but where’s her America Ferrera to give a Feminism 101 monologue a la “Barbie”?
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A subplot that touches on classism is also underdeveloped. Henrietta’s best friend since childhood, Rook (Alex George), is one of “the Unclean,” with scars from an encounter with the Ancients that mark him as an outcast. Although Henrietta always fights to protect Rook and to keep them together when she moves to London, their relationship often feels like an afterthought in the plot, with the exception of one climactic scene. Henrietta herself defies prejudice, joining the elite ranks of sorcerers despite her working-class background and familial line of magicians. There’s also a hint of a wider look at class when tension arises over protecting the sorcerers’ secret haven in London at the expense of the rest of the city. But there are simply too many threads here to fully tease out in a two-hour play.
Maybe I’m expecting too much from a show based on a young adult novel, but teen readers and the authors who write for them are capable of grasping complex themes, and “A Shadow Bright and Burning” left me wanting more depth. Still, it’s an entertaining dive into a moody version of Victorian London that will appeal to fans of historical fantasy and coming-of-age stories.
Emily McClanathan is a freelance critic.
Review: “A Shadow Bright and Burning” (2.5 stars)
When: Through Sept. 28
Where: Edge Theater, 5451 N. Broadway St.
Running time: 2 hours
Tickets: $40 at blackbuttoneyes.com
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