Theater Review: Stray Dog Theater’s ‘EVIL DEAD: THE MUSICAL’

The month of October is always busy in St. Louis with local horror events. Between late night movie screenings, themed art exhibitions, and costume contests, horror fans have a lot to fit in their schedules in a quick 31 days. One outlet for horror fans that has grown more popular over the years is live theater. Last year, Stray Dog Theater’s October show was the cult musical The Rocky Horror Show (the original stage version of The Rocky Horror Picture Show). To continue in their tradition of offering a special treat for all you Halloween fans, the theater company is producing another show that will sure to please those with a taste for blood: Evil Dead: The Musical.

Like the Sam Raimi film The Evil Dead , the show opens with five kids lead by our hero Ash, heading to a “Cabin In The Woods” (which is also the name of the show’s opening song). After uncovering a sacred book, a tape recorder, and a range of weapons (those might come in handy later), the group proceeds to read from the book and play the tape. Just like in the movie, the tape is that of a Doctor who has been doing research regarding “The Book of the Dead” and its magical powers. As you can expect, an evil curse is set on the cabin upon the speaking of some “ancient mumbo-jumbo.” One by one, each of the kids quickly turn into a “deadite” that Ash is forced to survive against.  Ash is not alone with the demons for long, as the daughter of the Doctor, her nerdy boyfriend, and their trusty guide stumble upon the cabin as well.

As you can tell from the synopsis, this campy musical combines plot points, characters, and lines of dialogue from Evil Dead 1 & 2 as well as Army of Darkness. This amalgamation of the three films makes it fun for a true Evil Dead fan to find all the hidden inside-jokes scattered throughout. For instance, Ash’s sister is reading Bruce Campbell’s memoir in one scene. The show is very funny and entertaining most of the times. One of the problems with reproducing a cult film is that the unintentional laughs that make up the majority of the original film can never be reproduced on stage. When Evil Dead was released in 1981, Sam Raimi and company set out to release a scary horror film. Though it was seen as intense and brutal upon its initial release, fans who have discovered the film since have admired it for its over-the-top nature and its gimmicky violence. In Evil Dead: The Musical, gory sight gags have been replaced with over abundant cursing and sex jokes. Unfortunately, some of these jokes get old real quick. This is not to say that there isn’t enough of the gory stuff. One of the more fun aspects of the show is the “splatter-zone.” Stray Dog Theater continues this tradition by blocking off the first two rows of the theater so that audience members can get a unique and bloody theater experience. Thankfully, the theater is nice enough to give those lucky patrons a custom made “I Survived The Splatter-Zone” t-shirt to protect their normal clothes. Be warned though, it has been said that the blood sometimes extends past the first two rows. You are a horror geek though, you won’t mind.

One of the most crucial elements to the success of the show, is casting the iconic role of Ash; Made famous by the irreplaceable Bruce Campbell. Thankfully Stray Dog Theater nailed this one on the head. Donning a blood-soaked blue button-up and wielding a shotgun and chainsaw is Gregory Cuellar. The young actor captures the charm and charisma that Campbell exuded as well as taking fierce control when its time to get messy. Though the iconic chin and flowing hair is missing from his appearance, Gregory Cuellar certainly captures the energy and spirit of Ash … and that’s what is important. The rest of the cast does a fine job in each of their roles. Highlights for me included Ash’s nervous sister played by Anna Skidis. Who performs a show-stopping number, “Bit Part Demon”, is Ryan Cooper. Not only is it one of the funniest songs in the show, but it is also strengthened by Cooper’s energetic stage presence. Though I was expecting a little more of the red stuff, Stray Dog works with their meager budget to turn out the gore. The effects team give you heads lopped off, severed hands, spilling guts, and a unique partial head removal. The top of the head is sliced off revealing the actresses’ brains. Their inventive use of effects is evident in the “tree-rape” scene where the audience is directed to look out the windows of the theater. Unfortunately, one of the main detractors of the show was the sound. Although the theater (an old church converted to a theater) doesn’t have the best acoustics to begin with, the overly miked actors come across as too loud at times. Other times, the microphones and speakers seemed to crackle and fizz making some of the dialogue inaudible. Unlike the visual gags of the movie, the production centers on the humor of the dialogue and lyrics. It is unfortunate that many times the audience was left scratching their heads trying to understand what they were singing (better pronunciation!). Hopefully this problem can be fixed for future performances.

If you are a fan of the Evil Dead movies (if you are readers of this site, you most likely are) and are looking for something fun to do during one of these October nights, look no further than Stray Dog Theater’s Evil Dead:The Musical. Due to its crude humor and bloody gore, I am sure it is not going to win over anyone interested in The Sound of Music. Yet, that is not who this show was made for. It was made for us … the horror geeks. Although it doesn’t match the original film’s intense and unrelenting nature, Evil Dead: The Musical doesn’t try to. Instead, it is a love-letter for the fans to experience their hero live onstage in his chainsaw wielding glory. Hail to the king, baby.

You can catch Evil Dead: The Musical at St. Louis’ Stray Dog Theater

Thursday – Saturday, October 14 – 30.  Tickets are $18 – $35.  For more info, click here.