A Little Bard, a Little Punk In Uneven 'Cardenio Found'

The new Taffety Punk Theatre Company's "Cardenio Found" resembles the outcome of a Shakespearean mix-'n'-match game.

Take a good brother/bad brother rivalry, a la "King Lear." Pair it with a distressed damsel masquerading as a youth, as in "Twelfth Night." Add a little Sonnet 129 ("Th' expense of spirit in a waste of shame / Is lust in action"); some "Winter's Tale"-worthy reconciliation; and various other Bardlike elements.

What do you get? The rather frustrating show that's running in Woolly Mammoth's Melton Rehearsal Hall through the weekend. "Cardenio Found" derives from no such crazy-quilt procedure, but it is a compound that responds to a literary mystery.

Records show that circa 1613, the King's Men performed "Cardenio," a play thought to have been written by Shakespeare and dramatist John Fletcher, who based the plot on an episode from "Don Quixote." The Shakespeare-Fletcher script has been lost, but British author-editor Lewis Theobald asserted in 1727 that he had a copy, which he claimed to have adapted into a play called "Double Falsehood."

In a bold experiment, Taffety Punk artistic associate Christopher Marino has overhauled "Double Falsehood," aiming to restore its Shakespearean essence (including text from the Bard's sonnets and other plays) and adding dollops of Cervantes. The result is a piece -- seemingly part tragedy, part comedy, part romance -- about betrayal and star-crossed love.

Aristocratic no-goodnik Henriquez (Scot McKenzie) rapes Violante (Maia DeSanti), then decides he's in love with Leonora (Kimberly Gilbert), who's betrothed to his friend Julio (Mark R. Ross). The subsequent commotion involves escapes, disguises, a bunch of shepherds and the machinations of Henriquez's brother Roderick (Ben Shovlin).

Short on poetry and philosophical depth, and capped with an ending it doesn't earn, this work is not something you'd want to shelve alongside "Hamlet" or "The Tempest." It's a noteworthy curiosity, but this production, directed by Marino, misses a chance to sharply define the characters and context from the outset.

The in-the-round staging, free of scenery except for two stepladders, might have given a more familiar Shakespeare work room to resonate, but it saddles this novelty act with a disconcerting unrootedness. Partly for this reason, and partly because the performances aren't vivid enough to be compelling in their own right, it's hard to work up much interest in the story until most of the pieces have fallen in place.

A certain brash -- make that punk -- aesthetic prevails, with stylized modern-dress costumes in loud colors (Melanie Lester is costume designer). As Henriquez, McKenzie wears pink tie-dye knickers, a pink cummerbund and black punk boots, and a lock of his hair stands straight up over his forehead.

McKenzie has cultivated a brazen manner that matches his Sex Pistols-groupie attire. By contrast, Ross's portrait of Julio lacks personality, a flaw that undermines the suspense. Shovlin's Roderick is similarly inchoate. DeSanti and Gilbert, as the two wronged women, are more distinctive -- DeSanti in particular cultivating a fetchingly sad grace.

Terence Aselford and Chris Davenport interpret Don Bernard and Camillo (the fathers of Leonora and Julio) as cartoonish grouches. The cast includes Steve McWilliams and Kathy Cashel, who contribute live music composed by Cashel.

Another enjoyable detail arrives with the arrival of a flock of adorable sheep, consisting of long, dark socks dangling from canvas torsos mounted on skateboards.

The sheep steal the show.

Cardenio Found, adapted and directed by Christopher Marino. Lighting, Andrew Cissna. With David Bryan Jackson. About 2 hours. Through Sunday at Woolly Mammoth's Melton Rehearsal Hall, 641 D St. NW. Call 202-393-3939 or visit http://www.woollymammoth.net.