New York Daily News May 22, 2015

The Sound and the FuryPress

Fury, Again

By Joe Dziemianowicz

Brush up on William Faulkner’s notoriously complex novel before seeing “The Sound and the Fury” as envisioned by the Elevator Repair Service.

Even if you reread the source material about the dysfunctional declining Southern Compson family, the show can be a challenge to follow. In one scene, a character’s played by a man. In the next, by a woman. Gender’s fluid. And what’s up with the banjo-infused dance breaks?

It’s par for the course for this experimental company, known for verbatim literary adaptations. In this one, first seen in 2008, 12 actors take turns reading from the book, saying the dialogue and playing scenes. At two hours and 15 minutes, it’s brief compared to the seven-hour “Gatz,” in which “The Great Gatsby” got the troupe’s treatment.
Time matters, since Benjy, the mentally disabled narrator, has no notion of it. The show is highly theatrical even though it’s not all that dramatic. In the end, the troupe’s singular take makes it worth your time.

Excerpt from “Fury, Again” by Joe Dziemianowicz. Full article in print only.