Company XIV’s Petite Rouge Makes Danger Alluring
Deneka Peniston for Petite Rouge by Company XIV
If you’ve seen a production by Company XIV before, you know exactly what the experience of walking into their theatre on Troutman Street is like. The rather unassuming door opens into a hazy room filled with incense, and the audience is immediately immersed in the world. Bartenders, tarot readers, and showgirls tend bar, crafting decadent drinks like the Lady in Red, complete with champagne and a lollipop, or the Baroque Pearl, with cocktail pearls and lychee liquor. Patrons are directed to hang their coats in vintage mirrored armoires, which match the chairs dangling from the ceiling. Audience members are asked their name, and a performer finds their tickets and guides them to their seats.
In Company XIV’s newest production, Petite Rouge, the entire theatre is bathed so thoroughly in red light that even those patrons who didn’t dress on theme now blend in. The audience sits on vintage chairs and couches, all equipped with a small table for resting drinks and snacks. Photos and videos are encouraged, as long as there’s no flash. In theme with the little red riding hood story, the theatre’s decorations are a cross between a lavish enchanted forest and grandma’s living room.
Act one of Petite Rouge begins with Lindsay Rose singing a mid century rendition of Billie Eilish’s “Bad Guy.” Then, the opening credits begin. Boards listing the director (Austin McCormick), costume and scenic designer (Zane Pihlström), lighting designer (Devin Cameron), sound designer (Julian Evans), makeup designer (Sarah Cimino), and narrator (Neil Dickson) are carried across by actors in wolf masks and high heels. In a time when the work of unseen creatives can be easy to overlook, Company XIV’s commitment to celebrating every member of the team gives a glimpse into the ethos of the company.
A voiceover explains the story of Petite Rouge, per Charles Perrault’s 1697 fable. Petite, played by Cara Seymour, is a beautiful young woman, courted by suitors near and far who lavish her with gifts. Petite’s suitors are of several genders and their gifts range from clothes to a tarot reading to a multi part cake balanced on Syrena’s head. (Company XIV devotees will recognize Syrena from their productions Cocktail Magique, Queen of Hearts, and Seven Sins.) Most members of the cast, including Petite, are wearing elaborate half masks. The voice over is rhymed and metrical, making it feel like the childhood fairytale that Perrault’s story morphed into.
Deneka Peniston for Petite Rouge by Company XIV
Petite’s grandmere sends her iconic red hood, and the audience inhales. This is where the story we all know begins. With the help of other performers, Petite begins to change into new, more structured clothes. Transformation is at the heart of Petite Rouge, and costumes are used throughout as a shorthand to show the characters’ journeys. The costumes feel simultaneously risqué and historically inspired, walking the line between contemporary burlesque and 17th century France. Pihlström, Company XIV’s resident costume and scenic designer, has combined a multitude of inspirations into a coherent and dazzling vision.
With the plot set, the dizzying array of feats typical to a Company XIV show begin. Rose sings another haunting number, imploring Petite to stay home and not venture into the woods. Pepper Solana intones as the moon, doing a three layer strip number while three performers in moon masks do aerials on a moon, a static trapeze, and an aerially mounted pole. Every time I had to look away to make a note, I was aware of the fact that I was missing something fantastic on stage, whether that was how one gown became at least five separate pieces, how many times a dancer in drag could pirouette on pointe, or how many spins an aerialist in a moon mask could do upside down. I lost track of what other audience members were cheering for.
After the moon comes the audience’s first opportunity to really appreciate the delicate and provocative lighting design. Cameron uses every fixture to its fullest extent, creating a story that complements every other element. The whirlwind of fantastic choreography and seductive stripping keeps the audience on the edge of their seats all the way to intermission.
Deneka Peniston for Petite Rouge by Company XIV
If you get up to get a drink or snack during intermission, the same cast that was just pirouetting, leaping, and serenading the audience will be at that party, ready to mix a martini and accept a compliment. A three little pigs number signals the beginning of the end of intermission, and Solana reappears, now in a red rose hood and red velvet dress. She sings, appropriately, “Lady in Red,” kicking out over the footlights and exiting through the audience to end intermission and begin act two.
Petite is foraging for strawberries and blueberries. Regardless of gender, every ensemble member in this number is in skirts, bras, and heels. Broadway has begun to refer to what were previously known as “men’s” and “women’s” tracks as “flats” and “heels,” but the expansive world of Company XIV is ready to challenge that simplification. The company is also ready to challenge your understanding of human physical limits. Balancing acts and movements that border on contortion deepen the amazement.
The wolves trap Grandmere in the closet after a number choreographed to “If I Knew You Were Comin’ I’d’ve Baked a Cake,” but don’t worry, Petite has seen the whole thing. Unlike her hapless child counterpart, Petite Rouge is smarter than the wolves and knows what she wants. Even in the following number, where the wolf played by Shawn Lesniak ties Petite up and blindfolds her, Petite is in control. The wolf is on his knees more than Petite.
As Rose and Solana duet on “Lunch” by Billie Eilish, the whole company emerges for the finale, a grand can-can number. (For those who may have wondered why can-can kicks were once so scandalous, underwear as we know them were not exactly the fashion of the time, so those who saw a can-can line may have seen a lot.) Petite is encircled. The number ends with a glitter burst, and the voice over returns. The final moment of the show is a shadow play. While girls may have once feared wolves, we are told, the wolf should now fear the girl. Petite is revealed from behind the shadow screen, wearing a red wolf mask of her very own.
However many shades of red you know, Petite Rouge will show you at least ten more. The show is fun and decadent, while raising complex questions about desire, consequences, and love. After all, the very beginning of the show demonstrates Petite’s love: even in an all out barrage of gifts, the most precious is a cloak from her grandmother. Seymour’s portrayal of every emotional turn of Petite’s journey is stunning, to say nothing of her incredibly strong and graceful dancing. The immersive space of the Company XIV theatre feels sacred, especially as theaters are trying to find a way to compete with all the other demands on our attention. Performers are just an arms distance away, and are happy to chat before they scurry up a spiral staircase in heels and not much else. At the beginning of their 20th season, Company XIV has crafted a performance that committed fans and newcomers alike will not want to miss.
Writer: Pallas M. Gutierrez
Editor-in-Chief: Karlye Whitt
