Redistribution, Sherwood-Style: Robin Hood at Seattle Children's Theater

Hans Altweis as Robin Hood. Photo by Chris Bennion. (Courtesy of Seattle Children's Theater.)

A few weeks back, we mentioned the Seattle Children's Theater as one of our favorite ways to celebrate fall with the kids, indoors. And as current events unfold abroad and at home, parents can enjoy SCT's staging of Robin Hood. Robin Hood: yes, that nobleman turned bandit, taking wealth from the rich in order to give to the poor. Old-school redistribution, Sherwood-style, if you will.

We're happy to report that Greg Banks' version of the childhood story is entertaining for both children and adults, much like classic Warner Brothers cartoons. The dialogue moves quickly, relying on parries and thrusts almost as much as the well-orchestrated stage fights. (SCT recommends the play for ages 8 and up, due to the fast dialogue, multiply layered plots, and ambiguous ending. We told our 6-year-old to expect scenes like the famous fencing duel in The Princess Bride, and we weren't too far off: the witty exchanges are sharp, even if the stage swords are not.) The set itself is nearly a child's playground, and kids seemed to respond well to it for that reason: there are beams for sliding, real alder poles for climbing, platforms for jumping, and ropes for swinging. At our visit, many kids responded well to the production, laughing at many of the subtler puns, as well as at the Sheriff's (Basil Harris) extended dance medley or Robin Hood's (Hans Altwies) swooning over Maid Marian (Hana Lass) in the first act. We also enjoyed Hana Lass's transformation from the boy urchin Much to the feisty Maid Marian. David Quicksall's fabulously flashy Prince John veers into (the artists currently known as) Prince territory, with purple velvet coats and bathtub blankets made of gold coins. And as Robin Hood, Hans Altwies reminded us of the bandit's famous arrows: both appropriately light and at-the-core strong. Because the four characters move in and out of multiple roles (including the narration), the play can be a little confusing at times, but props and costume changes make it relatively easy to follow.

But it's refreshing to have this classic story ring so true for our economic moment. Consider, for example, the collective adult snicker that arose early in the play, when Robin Hood delivers these lines:

"We live outside the law but we are not thieves or robbers." "Instead we declare war on all those thieves and robbers among the bankers, the landowners, and among those that tax us until we have nothing left and give us nothing in return."

Or consider the difficult, nearly-awkward moment near the end of the production, when all four principal actors seem to break out of character: they become four people simply shaking empty buckets towards the audience, asking for spare change. What kind of call does the play send out? What kind of response does it demand from its audience? Banks' script posits an ending which raises more questions than answers.

Kids who like to participate in onstage games or ask questions might want to arrive a little early and sit closer to the stage. There's an onstage game with audience member participation in the second act, and a short discussion/Q&A with the cast after the show.

Robin Hood runs from October 20th-November 27th. Tickets are $29 per child, $36 for adults for the daytime shows at 2PM, $25 (each) for children and adults for the evening shows at 7PM.