And “Queen’s Castle,” which is nearing the end of its third season, remains a satisfying treat.
The first two shows in the Serial Box — “Rift Riders,” written and directed by Michael Burger, and “The Secret Adventures of Sherlock Holmes,” written and directed by Alex Coy and Andrew Moritz — are both intriguing.
“Rift Riders” begins on a spectacularly lousy day for an air traffic controller named Foster (well-played by Venny Mortimer), who is already having a lousy day when he is abducted by aliens. The abduction isn’t shown. Instead, Burger wisely focuses on Foster’s disorientation upon discovering that he is no longer in the crappy apartment where he fell asleep. He is soon confronted by Rainya (the appealing Gina Hughes), a sharp young woman who has been on the ship longer and, in a particularly fun scene, initially thinks that he is the one responsible for her abduction.
The episode definitely whets the episode for more stories.
So does the first episode of the new Holmes series, titled “The Terrifying Tale of the Werewolves of Edinburgh.” The show has a monster-of-the-week premise, and a twist in which the Watson who chronicles the detective’s (Stephen Poer) adventures is not the good doctor (Chris Lombardo), to whom the stories are attributed, but his wife, Mary (Molly Walter).The premise is spelled out in the fun opening scene, in which Dr. Watson is quizzed at a press conference.
Walter radiates intelligence and an aura of all-round capability. And Poer captures Holmes’ impatience and arrogance well. They have nice chemistry together.
The large supporting cast for the episode is strong, too.
The story is engaging and entertaining, setting the stage for a fun season.
This weekend also included the fourth episode of the third season of “Queen’s Castle,” written and directed by Scott McDowell, who brought serials to the Overtime. The ep, titled “The Borrowers,” was another satisfying outing, featuring a creepy trek through the Tweedles’ hideout by a group of unlikely allies led by the White Rabbit (Chris Kelly). The foursome — which also included the Mad Hatter (Nate Bizzell), Lt. Spade (Jenny Taylor) and Bill the Lizard (Brennan Loy) — went to the spot so that the rabbit could retrieve the looking glass. The magic mirror is key to rescuing Alice, who is trapped in there, and to eliminating the increasingly ill and unstable Dark Alice (Walter).
Meanwhile, Bale (Lombardo) headed to a witches’ council meeting to try to prevent them from dispatching the Wicked Witch of the West, who still doesn’t remember who she is.
Going forward, fans who missed the episode (spoilers ahead!) need to know that the Rabbit did get the looking glass, though he was seriously injured by the Tweedles in the process. Dorothy (Cristina Vasquez) has awakened from her coma, but is still weak. Bale was also hurt in a violent ambush led by Dark Alice (Walter).
In other words, McDowell has set up a lot of great stuff for the final two episodes of the season.
The first episodes of the Serial Box shows can be seen at 8 p.m. Fridays-Saturdays through Feb. 6; tickets range from $10-$15. The next performance of “Queen’s Castle”is at 10:30 p.m. Feb. 26-27; tickets cost $6. Performances are at the Overtime Theater, 1203 Camden St. Tickets to Overtime shows are available through Brown Paper Tickets. For more information, call 210-557-7562 or visit the Overtime web site.
Resource : http://blog.mysanantonio.com/weekender/2016/01/review-overtimes-deepens-its-role-as-serial-central/
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