The show begins “in the beginning,” a swirling blue point of light that explodes into creation and the voice of Father and the angels singing Let There Be. Shannon Sproston has the stature for the big role, tall with a good voice and a calm serenity about him. But when he creates humans, he soon finds himself perplexed and not-so-serene with the things they do – having to deal with children who don’t just trust his guidance and blindly heed his advice.

Those children are, of course, Adam and Eve. DJ Neal begins as an amusingly carefree and boyish Adam, happy as a clam to wake up every day in paradise and name animals like the ‘aardvark’ (making God a little dubious about his decision to let Adam name the animals). But when Adam is forced to choose between Eve and God, his carefree childhood is stripped away, and he becomes a serious and slightly sad man, trying to be a good father to his children, making the same mistakes that his father made, but with the best intentions. All the while always hoping that God will eventually let them back into Eden. DJ has a strong voice that shines both as Adam and later as Noah, wrestling with similar problems as he tries his best to be a good father.

Lindsay Keith is Eve, a curious soul from day one (or day six) with a craving for adventure and knowledge, not nearly as content as her husband to sit around in paradise forever. Lindsay’s desire for knowledge is fantastically portrayed, from her body language to moving her lips around the words of the animals they name to her excitement caused by a certain snake who stokes her curiosity further with intriguing questions: Who created God? What lies beyond the Garden of Eden? She also has a tremendous voice, which all comes to bear in her beautiful Spark of Creation solo. She also is the center of the powerful ending to act one, wondering if Cain is still alive, struggling with the silence of God.

Another strong performance come from Kylee Parks as Yonah, a descendant of Cain who God has condemned to The Flood. Kylee creates a deeply sympathetic character as she quietly tries to deal with the injustice of being punished for sins of her ancestors, singing a gorgeous Stranger to the Rain and Sailor of the Skies. Steven Bombino doubles as Cain and Noah’s son Japheth – rebellious sons who question the punishments of God. As Japheth he challenges God and his father Noah, demanding to marry Yonah despite everyone’s objections, on the basis that he loves her and it’s the right thing to do whether God agrees or not. As Cain, his frustration with a God who refuses to forgive Adam, and his frustration with an overly protective father whom he’s lost respect for, ends in a bitter fight during which Abel (Jacob Robertson) is murdered – a powerful scene of hopelessness, anger, and loss.

Performs February 15 - 23, 2008.

Photos by Arab-Today/Dwight Hayes: http://www.arab-today.com/images/children_eden/ChildrenofEdenArabMusicaltheatre/index.html

Rob Hopper
National Youth Theatre