'Just like our clocks'

Rachel Benton

Just like our clocks, the Thurston County arts scene moved forward last weekend in presenting refreshingly original entertainment.  

Harlequin Productions opened its show, “Is This A Room” and the Washington Center finished its 24/25 Silent Film Series with Buster Keaton’s “Sherlock Jr” performed by cellist Gideon Freudmann. Both performances offered something I never experienced before. 

Harlequin Productions “Is This A Room” 

Oscar Wilde once said, "Life imitates art far more than art imitates life,” and that rings true in this production. Director Aaron Lamb opened the show by telling the audience that this production was acting out the verbatim transcript of a recording of a FBI interrogation and arrest. In perfect irony, this transcript is perfectly shaped like a piece of theatre.  

I am grateful there was no intermission because I could not stand the thought of delaying finding out what happens to our real-life protagonist. Portions of the transcript with the specifics of the case were blacked out, so the audience did not know the specifics on this case. This did not create any lack of suspense, quite the contrary. In moments of what would be blacked out text, the Harlequin powered pink blinking lights and queued the eeriest beeping imaginable.  

The cast performed this transcript with immense talent, never missing a beat and always remaining true to character. Twenty minutes into the show, I forgot they were actors and not these actual people. As told by Lamb, every cough, throat clear, sneeze, and awkward small talk was marked in the transcript. What is truly haunting is that what was also marked in the transcript was intimidating body language and pregnant silences that chill the spine. Everything about this performance shaped what could just be considered news coverage into an entire thriller. The transcript does not mark fear, but it is keenly felt throughout this production.  

I left the theatre feeling electrified and starving for the case details. All the information is out there, and this story has been made into multiple films, but I encourage you to not look up any information about this show until after you see it.  

The mystery behind the case details is what makes this production so important. Political bias can be blinding to human experience, and when specifics are redacted, we can be united in our observations and our compassion.  

 Purchase tickets here. 

“Sherlock Jr” performed by Gideon Freudmann  

Gideon Freudmann’s performance was the perfect way to end this season’s Silent Film Series at the Washington Center. The series attendees are accustomed to hearing historical context before watching silent films and hearing the live accompaniment.  

This time, audiences were given a delightful surprise and change of pace with Freudmann performing his own music during the first half of the event, then getting into film context and watching after the intermission. Personally, I am grateful for this surprise and the introduction into a different genre of cello music.  

Freudmann explores many genres throughout each piece offering whispers of jazz, folk, rock, classical and blues. The beat carried throughout each piece makes the music adaptable to many forms of dance. All songwriters are creative, but Freudmann’s imagination is out of this world.  

A one-man band, Freudmann was able to layer musical patterns through the use of the pedals. Had he not explained how these pedals worked, I would have been convinced he just played alongside pre-recorded music.  

Freudmann’s ability to create all these layers of sound live is phenomenal and awe inspiring. Watching him shape his music reminded me that any instrument, including the cello, is what you make it. However, outstanding creativity can unlock its infinite potential. 

Freudmann’s imagination thrived in his musical scoring of Buster Keaton’s, “Sherlock Jr.” A true master at work, Freudmann created repeating themes appropriate to the story while also indicating the smallest of details with the truest to life sound effects.  

How he was able to create the sound of traffic, an axe dropping, a train, and many other elements is beyond me. Freudmann does have a clever sense of humor, as was shown when he used the James Bond theme and later the classic nursery rhyme, “Row, Row, Row Your Boat.”  

The Washington Center’s Silent Films Series allows us to travel through time and experience history in an immersive way. Audiences sat in this same place 100 years ago and watched some of the same films still offered by the center today — it is one of the most unique experiences you can ever have.  

I hope to see you in the audience during next season’s silent film series. Stay tuned for the center’s season content announcement in June.