U. student shines in 'Children'

CHILDREN OF EDEN, Grand Theatre, through April 3 (957-3322). Running time: 2 hours, 30 minutes (one intermission).

Want to see the hottest new talent in Salt Lake City? You'd better not miss "Children of Eden" at the Grand Theatre.

Here's why: Ashley Bryant is a junior at the University of Utah. In a year, she is likely to have gone to a bigger city.

Bryant plays Eve in this musical, which is loosely based on the book of Genesis. But she's not the only new talent. Also making their Grand debut are Kenneth Wayne, who plays "the Father"; Eric Van Tielen, who plays Adam; Spencer Meyers, who plays Cain; and Joshua Joel Black, who plays Abel.

Wayne has sung at Hale Center and in Jackson Hole, Wyo. He makes a nice Colonel Sanders-looking Father. His voice is especially strong.

Still, Eve almost steals his scene in the Garden of Eden.

This play is about the Bible and about families. Every third song is a lament. Either a child's heart is ripped in half when he goes against his father's wishes or a parent's heart dies when the children fight — or fall from righteousness.

Jennifer Adams Curtis and Narlene Mathie must also be singled out as having nice voices and because Mathie coached the dozen or so child actors in this production. The kids are darling. (They are costumed, as is the rest of the cast, by Thad Hansen. The earth tones they wear manage to look biblical, even though the styles are modern.)

This is an old story, and the music, by Stephen Schwartz (music director for this production is Kevin Mathie), is not the most memorable stuff around. But the show is full of energy and hope. It ends with Noah's story and the merest hint of a rainbow, and with a lovely scene in which God bends to wipe the mark of Cain from the cheek of a young woman.

Robin Wilks-Dunn directs this production in the theater belonging to Salt Lake Community College. It is an offering that is clearly a cut above community theater.

Sensitivity rating: A mild swear word or two. Some may be offended by the theology, especially by seeing "the Father," who is obviously meant to be God, on stage. On the other hand, two Presbyterians, interviewed at intermission, not only weren't offended but were moved to tears.

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