Anarchy in the U.K.: 'Titus' Gets Punk'd

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SHAWN NORTHRIP IS thirsty for blood.

"I love graphic violence on stage," said the punk aficionado-turned-theater composer regarding Bouncing Ball Theatrical Productions' one-night-only revival of his musical "Titus X" at the Black Cat on Dec. 18.

Loosely adapted from "Titus Andronicus," the notoriously coarse Shakespearean epic ripe with cannibalism, dismemberment, murder and rape, Northrip's version is a fleet 75-minute killing and shrilling spree.

"It's basically a 'CliffsNotes' version of the story; there's very little of the actual text," said Northrip, a Virginia resident and Catholic University alum. "It's more about what we're doing to 'Titus' than what we're doing with 'Titus.'"

The source material is regarded as one of the Bard's most violent and oft-decried efforts. There have even been scholarly movements dedicated to disavowing the text from Shakespeare's canon as having been written by an anonymous lesser playwright. The 1999 film version, directed by Broadway veteran Julie Taymor ("The Lion King"), embraced the carnal, anarchic thrust of the themes and juxtaposed them with an amped-up soundtrack thick with electric guitars.

But the extremeness of the play's elements found a kindred spirit in the angsty energy of punk rock in its myriad forms. Hardcore, new wave, post-punk and D.C.'s "Revolution Summer" anthems of 1985 are conjoined with a motley cast of characters whose motivations fester with hunger, vengeance and sadism. Set to three chords and a kick drum, Northrip's "Titus X" gains a modern tone but maintained its enduring pitch.

"There's almost no actual dialogue," he said. "Instead, our characters are singing what they're feeling. There are definitely people who say the lyrics are incoherent — but I think the music does tell the story well. The music and the visuals propel the plot."

Northrip's songs are heavily inspired by the iconic hardcore punk sound from his salad days in D.C.

"Fugazi ruled when I was a teen. I loved Bad Brains. Dischord [Records] put out some great samplers that exposed me to bands like Teen Idles and Minor Threat," he said. "I also listened to the less-well-known JJ Trey and Peat. To me, that sound is 'Titus X.'"

The engagement at the Black Cat marks a return for both the show and its composer before a Washington theater crowd. Northrip has been rewriting his musical since its inception six years ago. Each time the show is produced, the script has been a little different. What began as a 20-minute whirlwind of raw, punky pyrotechnics in a practice room at the Kennedy Center in 2002 has become a full-fledged concert-cum-theater piece that has toured New York like a road show and come back to its hometown for another shout.

"Theater is a performance the way a live musical act is," Northrip said. "I took that approach and put current-sounding music into the basic structure of musical theater."

That concept extends beyond the parameters of the stage, according to Northrip.

"If a guitar string snaps, the show stops, and we reflect on it, making it part of the show, part of the theatrics," he said. "We embrace whatever we do right and everything that goes wrong; we drop character, we play to the audience. My version of 'Titus Andronicus' is very much about the feelings I got from the punk scene that pervaded D.C."

Even having orchestrated the seemingly improbable conjunction of two unique entertainments like punk music and musical theater, the results remain jarring to Northrip.

"We have tickets on sale through Ticketmaster, which completely blows my mind. It's nerve-wracking."

Still and all, he contends, "As long as there's blood and violence onstage, I'll be happy."

» Black Cat, 1811 14th St. NW; Tue., 9 p.m., $8; 800-551-7328. (U St-Cardozo)

Written by Express contributor Christopher Correa
Photos by Colin Hovde