Plot
The musical is a dark comical tale that follows the adventures of a charismatic bandit as he courts the daughter of a wealthy plantation owner. In the novella is an evil stepmother that wishes her stepdaughter dead and a wicked burglar who carries with him the head of his dead brother in a suitcase.
The musical, in essence, is a story with the characteristics of an American fairy tale, based on the 1942 Eudora Welty tale. Seemingly, the story resonates as a form of yarn created from loose threads of mythologies and traditional stories twisted together in a strange assortment of southern humor to generate a vivid picture of early American history.
This 18-century musical based on a novella following a romantic bandit who mugged travelers of their possessions while also “robbing” ladies of their virtues, is a modern fairytale about the perfect anti-hero. The musical filled with irony and absurdity, absolute drivel, profound knowledge and surrealistic spectacles transforms into a poetic harmony championed by the power of superb style.
Character
Jamie Lockhart a dual identity character dubbed “the bandit of the wood” plays the lead as a both a gentleman and a thief. When in his real identity, Jamie the sincere and upstanding man enters into a courtship with a disguised Rosamund. Ironically, Jamie in his alter ego as the robber then meets an undisguised Rosamund; their interaction transforms to a love affair.
Rosamund is the beautiful and naïve daughter of Musgrove, a wealthy plantation owner, first wife. She falls in love with Jamie while in his disguise and intentionally disguises herself as an undesirable mindless person when the real Jamie visits. However, she does not know that Jamie and the bandit of the woods are one and the same person while Jamie remains oblivious that Rosumund is the disguised girl he encountered in the forest.
Thought
Jamie has two faces; one is light, and the other is darkness, one is enlightened, and the other is barbaric. Jamie Lockhart plays the role of an upstanding gentleman while at the same time perpetuating acts of rape as the Bandit of the Woods. The story, in retrospect, is a metaphor revealing the contemporary American society: underneath all the shades of blue, America is a country that builds its reputation by “stepping” on others vis-à-vis capitalism.
Historical
The musical adaptation of Eudora Welty works reenacts the story in an 18th century setting of America, taking the audience to Natchez Trace, a forest trail in Mississippi. This location was both an unsafe and mysterious part of the country filled with people reputable for their evil characters; con men and imposters with Jamie Lockhart among the residents.
Philosophical
The tale talks about the philosophy of love through Jamie’s tribulations as he longs for the days before modernism and women redeemed rights. Jamie despised consensual sex and objectified women as things to consume as one would food. His sentiments are symbolic to the men before
Diction, Music, Spectacle
Thematically, this musical has a dark tone seemingly attributed by depictions of rape, murder, and other numerous unpleasantness featured. However, the play is entertainingly humorous with the score suited for a small band stage. The play featuring at most nine primary actors on a set, it is exceedingly flexible in the possibilities available for staging and production.
Conclusion
Naturally, the tale’s unique sound, colorful character and visual references highlighting the mythic background of the story all intertwine into a gripping depiction on stage. I found the play entertaining in large part due to its humorous characters. The dark irony involved its love story offers enough reason to perform the play.
