Review: ‘Luminous Birch’ at Greenway Court Theatre

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Writer and performer Randy Sean Schulman is the strong, silent type. His idiosyncratic fusion of physical comedy, silent screen-era tropes and music renders words superfluous in all but the long-winded title of his latest piece: ‘Luminous Birch: And the Splendor of the Colorless Light of Emptiness.’

The third and final chapter in a series of hybrid projected film-live performance works that included ‘Infinity’ and ‘La Gioconda,’ ‘Luminous Birch’ is a meditation on love, obsession and rebirth depicted as a journey through the unconscious.

An introductory movie evokes the black-and-white era of Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton, as hobo-hero Luminous Birch (Schulman) spies the fair Tangerine (Delcie Adams) languishing on the seashore, where she’s abducted by a sinister Absurd Conquistador (Roy Johns) and his comely band of Neuro Nymphs. Grotesque clown makeup and fanciful costumes situate the piece in surreal territory as Birch takes off in Orpheus-like pursuit, to the accompaniment of a densely layered soundtrack compiled by Schulman.

Making excellent use of the Greenway Court Theatre space (including the sides and rafters) Schulman and co-director Jane McEneaney employ ingenious visual techniques to merge the worlds of film and stage as Birch emerges from a slit in the screen and begins to interact with the cinematic imagery. Under his intense gaze and dexterous sleights-of-hand, abstract elements from the movie seamlessly transition to three-dimensional reality — glowing orbs, a key, a pile of butterfly wings — all loaded with psychological meaning.

A little of this goes a long way, however. The piece could safely be trimmed to half its length. Endless mannered posturing amid ocean vistas puts the movie portion dangerously close to film student project territory. The minimalist plot may resonate with anyone whose true love has been kidnapped by demonic clowns, but for others, even the most impressive stylistic invention can drag under the weight of a nonstop barrage of symbolically charged imagery.

— Philip Brandes

‘Luminous Birch,’ Greenway Court Theatre, 544 N. Fairfax Ave., Los Angeles. 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 4 p.m. Sunday (dark May 8). Ends May 10. $20. (323) 655-7679, Ext. 100. Running time: 1 hour, 25 minutes.

Caption: Randy Sean Schulman in ‘Luminous Birch.’ Credit: Greenway Arts Alliance