The Cardboard Knight brings KC Fringe the essential found family drama
Photo by Kaylynn Mullins
I am such a sucker for the found family trope. Whether it be The Bear or The Last Of Us, nothing tugs on my heartstrings more than vastly different people bonding in distressing times. Local playwright Cory Busch created The Cardboard Knight after learning about the Syrian Civil War in college. “I just felt myself getting more frustrated, and like, man, I’m a broke college student in Missouri,” says Busch. “I don’t really feel like I have too much of an impact whatsoever, and I wanted to do something beyond normal thoughts or prayers.”
The story revolves around a rag-tag group of refugees fleeing the hostility from the war. Some are hopelessly optimistic, others needlessly negative, and all of them grieving their previous homes and lives. “I really believe in the message that it says, there’s a lot to be said in our current world right now where there isn’t a whole lot to hope for sometimes, but that’s not a healthy way of looking at it,” says director Sequoia Crissman. “I think the characters are constant reminders of why negativity is not the best way for progression.”
Every character possesses wildly different perspectives and quirks from the others and their differences make for laughter and more oftentimes, turmoil in their make-shift haven. Mrs. Sterling, played by Amelia Trollinger, begins as the heart of stone, grounded, and oftentimes hopeless mother figure of the crew. “It wasn’t like anything I’d ever read before,” says Trollinger about when she first read the script.
Mrs. Sterling most often bumps heads with the “anything is possible” duo, Ferdinand Windsor and Amelia Westbrook. The pair’s ambition for their unsteady futures cannot be dwindled, and they’re assured of their path to a peaceful tomorrow. “He gets some of the weirdest, silliest stuff, like most comic relief in the show, in a show that is largely pretty heavy,” says Mason Hoyt, who plays Ferdinand.
The delicately balanced comedic relief is necessary, with a darker premise and amazingly executed, PTSD-centric monologues from Corporal Harlowe, performed by Nat Weber. Harlowe was played so well, that I thought Weber was genuinely unwell while they prepped their lines for the show. Weber says, “It’s a really difficult role, but a great role to sink your teeth into.” The long bouts of emotionally heavy and poetic speeches from Harlowe would be broken up with the teenage angst of Simone, played by Mikayla Gandara, and Ferdinand’s white-knuckle-gripped memories from his astronaut days.
“I’ve always had a good time when I work with Corey and Sequoia, and I always look forward to any time they invite me back for a production,” says Gandara. The directorial duet worked together at Dreamline Theatre and William Jewell College, and the crew seamlessly blended together with fantastic chemistry on stage.
Kansas City’s arts and theatre scene thrives, and the two-week-long Fringe Festival offers many acts and artists the opportunity to showcase their talents. Astra-Lia England, an Australian actress who recently moved to KC, plays the highly empathetic and hopeful expecting mother, Amelia Westbrook. “When I first moved here, I was working as an actor in Australia. I was like, ‘What am I going to find here?’,” says England. “I was surprised…there is such a big community.”
The Cardboard Knight contained truly impressive performances from everyone involved, and it’s truly a showcase of how underrated KC remains in terms of theatre.
Performances of the play can be caught at the Union Station City Stage on July 24, July 25, and July 27. The KC Fringe Fest website has tickets, or tickets will be available at the box office before the shows.
