War of the Worlds

Nicholas Campbell in The War of the Worlds, 2011 production. Photo credit: John Lauener.

The realms of music and theatre collide in Art of Time Ensemble’s fascinating production of The War of the Worlds, a dramatic staging of Orson Welles’ famous radio play, now on stage at the Harbourfront Centre’s Enwave Theatre.

The production is divided into two distinct parts: In the first half, Art of Time artistic director Andrew Burashko leads a five-piece orchestra in a stirring medley of film scores by Academy Award-winning composer Bernard Herrmann (famous for his association with Welles and Alfred Hitchcock), arranged by Dan Parr, with a live film montage mixed by Tess Girard. This haunting “Herrmannthology” features scenes and songs from movies such as Citizen Kane, Cape Fear, Hitchcock’s North by Northeast, Psycho, The Man Who Knew Too Much and Vertigo.

The second half is a verbatim reenactment of the 1938 broadcast of The War of the Worlds, with authentic set and costume design by Beth Kates, strong performances by Sean Cullen (as Orson Welles), Nicholas Campbell and Marc Bendavid, alongside live Foley sound effects artist John Gzowski.

The notorious Mercury Theatre production interrupted popular music of the day (including “La Cumparsita” and “Stardust” played delightfully by the Art of Time Ensemble) with a series of breaking news bulletins that actually tricked many listeners into thinking that a real alien invasion was taking place in New Jersey and New York City. Yes, they were that good. And Art of Time Ensemble delivers a fine tribute to Orson Welles’ work with this charming piece.

The War of the Worlds is an entertaining extraterrestrial theatre experience. Catch it until November 4 at Enwave Theatre. Visit artoftimeensemble.com for more information and to buy tickets.