“The Whole Story” is a hilarious satirical romp of the Cinderella story with a fun twist. The show is written by UVU alumni Addie Wray Scoot who is now attending the University of Idaho studying for an MFA in Dramatic Writing. With a cast full of standout performances, this show is sure to make the audience melt while maintaining the poignant themes of love, betrayal and blind trust.
Starting off in typical Cinderella fashion, Jillian wishes to meet the prince and escape her boring old life. She is dumbfounded to realize that her prince wants to use her with no intention of marrying her. Her fairy godmother tells her that she wants to train Jillian to kill all of the other princes. But when Jillian meets Jack, a prince with no intention of governing his kingdom, she realizes that maybe the fairy godmother was not so transparent about her intentions.
Elise Claire Jones (Jillian) and Seth Chris Johnson (Jack) shared remarkably cute and awkward chemistry while lighting up the stage. Elise was able to keep the eager glee of her character while not letting it take away from the deeper moments. Other standout performances were from Dylan Thomas (Rupert) who played a comically evil prince while maintaining a manipulative and scary energy when the role demanded it. Isabella Williamson’s (Delilah/Brindee) stepsister banter brought the audience into an uproar of laughter. And Kolby Jenkins’s (Charmaine) awkwardly serious comedic timing was sure to crack up audiences.
Narratively, the show maintained wonderful cohesion throughout the start and middle with the ending faltering, feeling a little clunky. The resolution given to the Fairy Godmother went by too quickly, jumping past the errors of her ways for the sake of maintaining a quick pace in doing so, losing the cohesion the story needed. However, with the quick pace the audience was kept on their toes with no dull moments. The multitude of gags and small running jokes helped the audience digest the more serious moments of the show. The more serious theme of blindly trusting others was given the time it needed to ruminate by the audience. The progression of Jillian helped to show how trust is something built not something inherently given.
The set design perfectly encapsulated the satirical take of the medieval times. With walls that seemed like fake rocks you could buy at a Halloween store and a running gag about changing the setting through moving a sign the show brought you into this medieval spoof perfectly. The lighting design invited the audience into the theater and captivated them throughout. “The Whole Story” ran from Feb. 21–22, and then from Feb. 25–March 1 in the UVU Bastion theater, but there are still more shows anticipated before the spring semester is over.
