Content warning: Spoilers for Albion College’s production of “Firebringer” ahead.
When one thinks of cavemen, they probably don’t pair that image with adult humor, romance or talking mammoths. However, Albion College’s production of “Firebringer” brings all that and more to the table.
According to the playbill, StarKid’s Production, “Firebringer,” a musical written by Matt Lang, Nick Lang and Brian Holden, with music and lyrics by Meredith Sapien and Mark Swiderski, is a story set in a time before modern humans had discovered most of Earth’s hidden treasures – pointedly, fire.
It follows our ancestors, who lived amongst each other in a tribe led by peacemaker and leader Jemilia, played by Trenton first-year Ava Cheff, who often butts heads with the adventurous and feisty Zazzalil, played by Saginaw senior Amariah Talley-Woodson.
Meet the Cave People and Their Cave Problems
In the opening scene of the musical, audience members are met with a song performed rather ominously by the ensemble, who carry torches with glowing flames. The chant at the beginning reminded me of Albion’s own “Io Triumphe.”
Once the opening song concludes, Molag, played by Chicago senior Alaya Swoope, steps out and brings the audience’s attention to the torches being held by the tribe members. She goes on to say that the musical revolves around humanity’s discovery of fire and the consequences it inevitably brings upon them.
Most of her dialogue breaks the fourth wall, which I always enjoy in any piece of media. Molag also refers to the audience as “privileged f—s” throughout the musical, something completely unexpected. However, I was positively thrilled with this, and it helped me feel much more engaged as an audience member.
The musical carries on in a display of how the tribe operates on a typical day-to-day basis, revolving around tasks and jobs that are to be done to remain successful and alive. We meet more tribe members, as well as the all-powerful duck they worship.
Zazzalil has an openly stated distaste for working, and they ask if the tribe can take a break for just one day. The tribe then performed the song, “We Got Work to Do,” which had a brief moment on TikTok, sparking my recognition of the piece.
Like most of the musical’s songs, this number was upbeat and fun, and it made me believe that our early ancestors shared my penchant for laziness.
However, not every character shares Zazzalil’s attitude. Jemilia is a firm and no-nonsense leader, which Cheff said she “struggled” with during rehearsal.
“My particular struggle was being mean,” Cheff said. “I often had to get told to be meaner.”
The musical continued along these lines, with conflict building between the tribe members – a flame (pun intended) only further stoked by Zazzalil’s discovery of fire. It sets the tribe ablaze in chaos that carries on throughout the other acts, up to the jarring plot twist at the end.
A voguing alien was not on my bingo card when watching this musical, though neither was the talking mammoth.
Ancient Humans, They’re a Lot Like Us
All in all, this musical was not only hilarious and full of historical references I found I could understand due to my “Intro to Anthropology” class, but it also shone an important light on the effects of actions that may not have had harmful intent but caused harm nevertheless. Though it’s based on humans who lived many, many years ago, it’s also a reflection of who we are now as a society and the direction that we may continue to go in.
We may not be entranced by the bright, flickering flames of a fire, but we do often become consumed by industrial technology to the point where we don’t even recognize the harm that it’s causing to both us and the world around us.
Every new advancement comes at a cost, a cost most corporate chains and their followers have become desensitized to. This is similar to the tribe’s discovery that by using fire to wipe out entire species, they can then indulge and feast on much more than mere nuts and berries.
As humans, it’s important to take note of our actions and past mistakes, so we can apply them to our future endeavors and make beneficial decisions, a lesson that I felt “Firebringer” portrayed extremely well.
“The show is so silly,” Cheff said. “But, it also gets at a lot of deeper issues that I think are very prevalent, and there are questions that should be raised right now, especially in our current political climate.”
In the director’s note included in the playbill, Department Chair Zach Fischer wrote “The best satire skewers its targets with a smile, and delivers heavy medicine with a spoonful of comedic sugar.”
A sentiment I couldn’t agree with more if I tried.
If early Homo sapiens humor entices you, along with songs just as vibrant as the element they discover, don’t miss the chance to see all that this exuberant tribe has to offer.
You’ve got four more chances to see the musical: Thursday at 7:30 p.m., Friday at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
Sophia Valchine is a member of the Pleiad and is also featured in “Firebringer.”
Editor’s note: Monday, Dec. 2, 12 a.m.: A typo within a header was corrected.
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