Playwright: adapted by Christopher M. Walsh from the novel by Alexandre Dumas. At: Lifeline Theatre, 6912 N. Glenwood Ave. Phone: 773-761-4477;$32-$35. Runs through: Oct. 30
You can almost hear the advertisement trailer: "He was torn from his bride on his wedding day, only to be jailed for a crime he didn't commit! Now he's backand he wants justice!" Who cares that Alexandre Dumas' novel dates back over a century and a half? The wronged hero in search of vindication is a parable for all times and places, evidenced by the many popular stage, film, television and even anime adaptations since its publication in 1844.
Although the story is premised on the return of the ex-convict Edmond Dantes, now traveling under the title of the Count of Monte Cristo, who arrives in Paris accompanied by two comrades also seeking payback for injuries inflicted upon them, this is no blood-soaked Jacobean thriller. Unlike those invoking divine "providence" to defend their selfish goals, their nemesis' exile has taught him the morality inherent in that word, as well as the responsibility of its agents to discharge their duties wisely, punishing the wicked, while sparing the innocent and repentant.
Far from diminishing the fascination of witnessing his scheme to inflict suffering on his enemiescompared more than once to the manipulations of chess-pieces on a boardthe free will proffered by wealth, education and a legal alias serves to increase the tension of anticipation. How far will our champion go in his resolve? Will he be ruthless in his vengeance like his sanguine companion, the abandoned Benedetto? Or will he stop at disclosure of the facts surrounding past events, like the deposed Ottoman princess Haidee? The guilty, toohow will they respond upon being exposed? Will they accept their fate or remain remorseless to the end?
Christopher M. Walsh's premiere adaptation for Lifeline Theatre deftly packs a horde of information into a brief playing time to forge a coherent narrative line keeping us firmly grounded in the action despite subplots and flashbacks, much as Joe Schermoly's scenic design on the disproportionately vertical stage zips us from Paris to Rome via Marseilles with nary a trace of whiplash. The cast of stalwart company regulars, led by Chris Hainsworth as the Byronesque Dantes, likewise ensures that we understand each characters' motive for every second of the two and a half hours required for the intrigue to progress to its still uncertain, but nonetheless satisfying, conclusion.