Nosedive Productions’ latest production, THE ADVENTURES OF NERVOUS-BOY (a penny dreadful), is aptly described as a comedy-horror play. The comedy is self-evident, but the horror creeps in.

As THE ADVENTURES OF NERVOUS-BOY unravels, the audience is treated to some funny scenes performed by a game cast under Pete Boisvert’s steady direction. James Comtois has crafted this piece so that the audience is immediately in the central character’s head. What we see onstage is life in New York as Nervous-Boy experiences it. His is a world full of annoying strangers on cell phones, demons and zombies (his friends) and an underlying hostility about everything in general.

Portraying Nervous-Boy, Mac Rogers’ serene presentation, slowing giving glimpses into his darker side, and evolving into his descent into madness, makes the character all the creepier for having initially seemed essentially harmless and not that off the wall. Rose A C Howard’s simple but functional set design, along with the combination of Stephanie Williams’ suitable costumes and Cat* Johnson’s whimsical make-up designs fill out the universe that THE ADVENTURES OF NERVOUS-BOY exists within. There is even a kick-ass bar fight and a ridiculous play within the play to complete the virtual New York experience.

THE ADVENTURES OF NERVOUS-BOY (a penny dreadful) is a largely cerebral experience, as playwright James Comtois navigates the audience through Nervous-Boy’s dangerously deteriorating mind. At just the right length, and having a good mix of comedy and horror, it worked for me.

- Kessa De Santis -

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