No Dancing Around The Red Thread

Whether it’s a gigantic handmade tapestry of villagers in A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings or a larger-than-life digital image of Alice’s face in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, The PlayGround Theatre’s visually striking productions have become the trademark of a team that creates captivating performances for children – and the adults who schlep them. The PlayGround Theatre’s latest creation, The Red Thread, is no exception. Fernando Calzadilla’s set, lighting, and costumes are so vibrant and vital to the story, it’s as if the design elements are characters. And Octavio Campos’ choreography adds to the fluidity of the movement on stage. The Red Thread, written by Stephanie Ansin and Calzadilla (and directed by Ansin), tells the story of Ling Shih (Christina Jun), the youngest of three impoverished sisters. Their father, a weaver, portrayed by Jesús Quintero, needs only one red thread to complete his silk tapestry. However, frustrated with the family’s poverty, the eldest sister Yao Xue (Kate Shine) steals the tapestry in the middle of the night. Middle sister Mei Hua (Melissa Almaguer) tags along and they sell the masterpiece for food and clothing. Ling Shih, the youngest sister, must embark on an arduous journey to recover her father’s silk tapestry. As she tries to track down the tapestry which has been sold numerous times, she discovers secrets from her past which will ultimately propel her toward a new life. https://artburstmiami.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/red-thread-2.jpg Photo Captions, Top: Christian T. Chan, Troy Davidson, Christina Jun, Melissa Almaguer in The Red Thread/Photo by Pavel Antonov, 2011; Bottom: Marjorie O’Neill-Butler, Christian T. Chan, Christina Jun, Jesús Quintero in The Red Thread/Photo by Pavel Antonov, 2011