Beowulf: A Thousand Years of Baggage is a Banana Bag and Bodice song play written by Jason Craig and directed by Rob Hipskind that centers on the famous story featuring the same title character. Performed at the Abron Arts Centre, this version of Beowulf puts a thoughtfully humorous twist on the world’s first English epic. As the story progresses on stage, three panelists in front continually provide commentary on the events that unfold. Wit abounds throughout the production as character stereotypes are broken, reformed, and then entirely thrown away, with all of this set to rollicking soundtrack and dialogue.

The play is broken up into two acts, with an intermission between the acts. The first act, which spanned roughly an hour, opens up with three “academics”, all clad in black. Their role at first is unknown, and thus makes it difficult to say whether necessary at all. The academics introduce the story of Beowulf to the audience; in doing so, they also brought up questions about the time period Beowulf is set in and the character themselves. The slew of questions creates a mood of academic deconstruction, making the audience anticipate a performance based more on a dissertation of Beowulf than on the events of the epic. However, as the academics finish up their inquiries and musings, the curtain behind them suddenly rises, revealing a disoriented King Hrothgar and two of his soldiers singing of Herot’s plight: the terrible Grendel.

In the middle of the piece, one of the academics rises and joins the events of the stage as Grendel. As Hrothgar laments Grendel’s murder of his men, the another academic joins Grendel, and is revealed to be his mother. The two participate in an intimate musical number that hints at a relationship deeper than mother-and-son. Following this, as Hrothgar wonders if Herot can be saved, Beowulf lunges out from behind a white screen. However, while Beowulf lived up to his heroic physical size, his appearance portrayed him as a revenge-of-the-nerds hero, complete with glasses and a charismatic awkwardness. As Grendel and Beowulf faced off, their battle was punctuated with childish name-calling that results in Grendel’s death and the end of the first act.

After the intermission, a grieving Grendel’s mother weeps over her son’s body. The song that accompanied this was well-performed, perfectly marrying the mother’s sorrow with the grim tones of the symphonic band. In her anger, she ravages Herot just as her son, inciting Beowulf to ambush her in her den, located at the bottom of a lake. The academics play a rather active role at this point, “acting” out the ensuing fight between Grenel’s mother and Beowulf with tanks of water, thoroughly splashing the audience in the process. After the fight, from which Beowulf emerges victorious, the academics attempt to end the play, but an enraged Beowulf stops them, clamoring for more blood, more action. In his fury, Beowulf tears up an academics notebook, symbolizing a destruction of the academic deconstruction set up earlier. The angered academic turns into a dragon stage and brings Beowulf to an end as the hero’s final adversary.

All in all, while confusing at times, Beowulf: A Thousand Years of Baggage proved itself to be simultaneously serious and silly, and highly enjoyable. The soundtrack was especially notable, showing off the great talents of the cast and the band. If you feel like revisiting the English epic you read back in high school, Beowulf is an excellent way to refresh your memory.