Love Is The Greater Labyrinth

By Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz

Cast

Laura: Ava Ballagh

Baco: Andrew Brown

Vinny: Anthony Monteleone

Fedra: Ebony Battle

Minos: JaNyah Meadows

Teseo: Jhon Govaere

Ariadna: Nicole Merchant

Cintia: Olivia Hagar

Tebandro: Ritu Singhal

Tuna: Sebastian Barnett

Lidoro: Zach Deande

Licas: Zhanna Yakubova

Vision

There is no better way to describe Vinny than through his very name. The name Vinny inherently sounds like the word vine, which specifically represents grapevines, a direct reference to Vinny’s own penance for alcohol. Yet, Vinny is also the servant of Baco, whose name is in turn a reference to Bacchus, the Roman God of wine and theatre. As such, Vinny serves Baco just as the grape vine serves Bacchus.

Yet vines are exceedingly hard to control and carry the risk of getting into any and every nook and cranny. Therein lies the other side of Vinny; he is ultimately an instigator and a prankster, and quickly falls out of line if not properly maintained. Although not a textbook example, Vinny operates as a Brighella of Commedia Dell’arte, the only major difference being his lack of even pretend respect for authority.

This production was the world premier for Love Is The Greater Labyrinth in English, and I could not be happier to have been apart of it. This place single-handedly proves that farce, with its use of stock characters, base motives, and zany shenanigans, has the power to transcend generations

Masks, Minotaurs, mistaken identities oh my!