Scott Davis, Kenn Parks & Joey Arena in Star Trek: Boldly Going Way Too Far
Photo-The Alley Theatre
Star Trek: Boldly Going Way Too Far
By Kenn Parks
Directed by Scott Davis
Review by Annette Skaggs
Entire contents copyright © 2014 by Annette Skaggs. All rights reserved.
I am going to lay it out on the table right away; I am not a Science Fiction fan. I appreciate it. I am familiar with it. You will catch me at the IMAX learning about the explorations of the Heavens before I willingly go see a Star Trek movie. Above all else, I am not a Trekkie. But since I grew up with a father whose Sunday morning ritual was watching Star Trek and subsequently being with friends and family who fall into Star Trek fandom, I have become familiar with the many permutations of the Star Trek lineage by proxy.
When I looked at the lineup of shows that were to be offered at The Alley Theatre I saw that Star Trek: Boldly Going WAY Too Far was on the roster. Well, I will admit I was intrigued. A parody of Star Trek? YES! I love farce and comedies. And knowing the reputation of The Alley to think outside of the box I absolutely wanted to indulge my curiosity.
Transport yourself to The Alley Theatre before this whimsical comedy ends its run on August 16th. Kenn Parks did a marvelous job of capturing the essence of the many characters of Star Trek, from the machismo of Captain Kirk to the rivalry between Kirk and Khan Noonian Singh.
The small stage is set with the USS Enterprise’s bridge, complete with the famous captain’s chair and helmsman’s navigational panel. Congrats to the props department for smart adaptations of what one would find on a 23rd century starship.
Enter the crew of the Enterprise who are, let’s say, in for the ride of their life, after entering a wormhole that transports them through time and *ahem* space.
Throughout the travels we get to meet Captains Picard and Archer, 7 of 9, Deanna Troi, William Riker, Worf, Quark and many others.
The original core crew of Mr. Spock (Joey Arena), Dr. McCoy (Scott Davis), Uhura (Kimby Peterson), Sulu (Christie Troxell), Scotty (Denny Grinar) and Chekov (Spencer Korcz) do a great job of playing to the bumbling, yet brilliant, tutelage of Captain Kirk (Kenn Parks).
The jabs and jokes fly far and wide, quick and out of the blue. Be on your toes audience members: there are lots of pop culture references strewn throughout and it is funny how cleverly they have been placed throughout the context of the various Star Trek iterations. Also, there could be some unexpected surprises for you too.
A few technical things that I will point out: there are a couple of disembodied voices that are used in the production. I had a problem with hearing exactly what was said often because the mixer levels seemed a bit off. Another is that a couple of the set movements seemed to take a bit of time and it caused the pace of the production to slip a little. But, the energy was recaptured. Also, Ms. Peterson, were you supposed to sound like Edith Bunker in the second act? If so….spot on!!
Overall, congratulations to you Kenn for a clever and funny farce into the Final Frontier and to your whimsical cast and crew who came along for the journey.
Bravo Tutti.
Star Trek: Boldly Going Way Too Far
August 1 – 16, 2014 @ 7:30pm
The Alley Theater
633 West Main Street
Louisville, KY 40202
Alleytheater.org
