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‘Snoogle-Fleejer’ for all ages
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
THEATER REVIEW: “The Little Baby Snoogle-Fleejer.”
“Tell us about the Little Baby Snoogle-Fleejer, Daddy.”
Jimmy Carter says those were the first words out of his sons’ mouths when he returned home from his submarine journeys in the 1940s. The Navy officer and future president had no time to buy souvenirs, so he invented a fantastical adventure series about a heroic monster’s friendship with a boy named Jeremy.
Now Alliance Children’s Theatre director Rosemary Newcott has brought one of Carter’s tales to the stage, using Ron Anderson’s 2003 Springer Opera House adaptation as a blueprint. Thanks to a skillful design team and a cast that finds the comedic gold beneath the fable’s simple contours, “The Little Baby Snoogle-Fleejer” is a veritable treasure chest of puppetry magic, playful music, aquatic ballets and performances that sparkle and shine like seashells.
Anderson frames Carter’s original yarn, published in 1995 with illustrations by daughter Amy, as a story-within-a-story in which a seafaring dad returns home from the deep and wakes his son, Jer. The boy wants a baseball glove, but Anderson’s Carter-inspired father produces a bedside improvisation instead. As the realistic drama dissolves, the actor portraying the dad (Bart Hansard) becomes the Snoogle-Fleejer.
Hansard goes from a crisp white uniform to a costume that resembles an armored car with scales. (Or is it a float?) Hansard, a human jellyroll with a gift for cartoonish performance, makes quite a splash as the adorable Snoog, and when the character burrows his face under his shell like a skittish underwater creature, he’s poignant.
The part of Jer (who in the father’s made-up story doubles as the fatherless and disabled Jeremy) rotates between Scott Beale and Zachary Solomon (who was featured on opening night). No doubt Beale gives a fine performance. But Solomon is so comfortable and assured, his acting so natural and detailed, that the seventh-grader has “future film star” written all over him.
Doubling as Jeremy’s mom and the town’s befuddled lifeguard, Ellen McQueen brings smart and unexpected comic touches to both. Working in Don Knotts crisis mode, her bumbling lifeguard gets entangled in her whistle and her walkie-talkie as she summons the “shurf” (sheriff). And when Jeremy turns up with gold coins, McQueen’s unsuspecting mother is a riot.
As proverbial small-town bully Jimbo, Justin Welborn seems to be channeling Jughead on Red Bull —- clueless, but lightning fast. As Jimbo’s little brother, Hugo, Clifton Guterman is the quintessential nerd; Hugo goes so far as to unknowingly scrutinize Snoog under a magnifying glass. Eeeek! A sea monster! And Sharisa Q. Whatley’s Danielle makes a saucy accomplice for the boys.
“Snoogle-Fleejer” functions as a moral tale that instructs us on tolerance, understanding and friendship. Humans are scared of the harmless Snoog, and Jeremy’s playmates taunt him for being physically slow. When Snoog and Jeremy connect, perceived differences melt, and the entire community —- land- and ocean-lubbers alike —- celebrates.
Newcott layers the story’s machinations with delightfully dreamy underwater sketches in which sea turtles, stingrays and eels jive and high-five with Snoog and Jeremy. Unbelievably, oversize Snoog manages to maneuver his tall tail under a limbo pole. (Scenic and puppet design is by Kat Conley —- with Susan Mickey going solo on Snoog’s get-up.)
For young viewers, these frolicsome touches, set to music by Thom Jenkins, will charm like “The Little Mermaid.” More seasoned theater-heads will find a sophisticated sensibility that echoes Cirque du Soleil, Julie Taymor and Jon Ludwig.
As Snoog says when he’s happy, “Colossal!”
THE 411: 1 and 3:30 p.m. Saturdays-Sundays; 1 and 4:30 p.m. Jan. 29. Through Jan. 30. $12-$15. Alliance Theatre, 1280 Peachtree St. N.E., Atlanta. 404-733-5000, www.alliancetheatre.org.
The verdict: Jimmy Carter’s children’s story gets a first-class Alliance production.
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