Armor of Wills

A man zips in and out of the past, present, fantasy and reality while trying to keep his "maker" from snuffing out his life. This 70-minute show is sometimes clever and never boring, but it gets diminished by cartoonish characters. Still, borrowing from the movie 12 Monkeys and the poem Dante's Inferno makes for a good laugh, and of the cast of six, Harrison Williams distinguishes himself as the one to watch. ................................................................................

Kalib's mother Norma, grossly overplayed with the appearance of an Edna Marie "E" Mode-type caricature (from The Incredibles) by Jennifer Harder, is quite perturbed. She can't seem to get her weak and whiny son Kalib (Brian Morgan) out of his fiance Beth's clutches in Randy Anderson's Armor of Wills. Beth's not as easy to get rid of as his father Doc, the monkey-bone circus owner that she fled from and lied about his existence to her son. Yes, monkey-bone circus; a direct reference to the 1995 time-traveling and reality-bending film 12 Monkeys. But Beth is not the only person that Norma has to worry about. Her son has gone overly-dramatic and crazy.

When Kalib busts through the door, claiming to be running from his Maker, a being that's not quite God but has God-like qualities, try as he may, Morgan can't convey a real sense of urgency. Sure, he pants and limps around, holding his stabbed leg, but the mild red stain that's supposed to emulate blood from a femoral artery wound doesn't even come close. It doesn't help that Norma tries to apply a tourniquet to the dry stain. From there, Kalib goes into the story about how and why he must keep running to stay alive.

Armor of Wills is a jumble of various symbols, characters, and concepts from literature and pop culture. From the Dante's retreat bar that begins Kalib's journey to the characters that resemble comic-book villains, there's never a dull moment in the show, and there are even some clever ones. However, the clever parts of the show are superseded by the overacting and underacting. As Beth, Kristi Funk is the straight, neutral character, and in turn, makes very little impact. As Doc, Harrison Williams is the exact opposite. Although his antics and mannerisms are slightly overcooked, he is engaging, fun, and completely committed to delivering a zany performance.

The fluid scene changes are remarkable, and reflect the collaborative spirit of the cast. Anderson's concepts of the interchanging of time frames and settings are sound and provide an exciting frame for the play. Patricia Ju's sound design, with the exception of a false-sounding heart monitor, is the pulse of this play. Coupled with lighting design by Justin Sturges that seems to take on a life of its own, they are integral to making the wacky plot make sense.

Armor of Wills may be ridiculous in some points and convoluted in the rest, but it's still imaginative with a throwback to popular or formerly popular symbols. The Horse Trade Theater Group and the Beggars Group, known to produce provocative theater, keep in line with their mission with this show. Anderson's purgatory is full of adventure and fantasy, and provokes a subconscious consideration of free will, life and death. Armor of Wills may not be a heavy philosophical, religious, or even theatrical piece, but it doesn't need to be. Sometimes, light, quick and dirty is enough.

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Through May 17th. Tickets: $18. http://www.smarttix.com/. Under St. Marks, 94 St. Mark's Place, New York, NY 10003