Review: Look I Made a Hat–Human Resiliency in the Face of Disaster in Echo Theatre’s YOU MUST WEAR A HAT

You Must Wear A Hat

By C. “Meaks” Meaker

Directed by Hadley Shipley

Produced by Echo Theatre

Audience Rating: PG

Run Time: 2 Hours with no intermission

Accessible Seating: Available

Hearing Devices: Not Available

Sensory Friendly Showing: Not Available

ASL Showing: Not Available

Sound Level: Comfortable

Audio/Visuals to Prepare For: There is the use of a strobe light once, and thunder preempts its use

Reviewed by Bradford Reilly 

The world could end tomorrow. Or next week. Or far off into the future. Echo Theatre’s production of C. “Meaks” Meaker’s You Must Wear a Hat is set in such high stakes among a post-ice-cap world on the dying Great Barrier Reef. The sun harshly bares down, and Tuesday (played by Cameron Casey) and Weeks (played by Dahlia Parks) make hats day in and day out–because you have to wear a hat to survive the outside world–and the world needs hats. (Full disclosure–you do not have to wear a hat to see this play).

The story is told over the course of many short scenes that show us a slice of Tuesday and Weeks’ daily lives, from the near beginning of their relationship to its evolution. Cameron Casey’s portrayal of Tuesday, the owner of the shop, is driven and sure of how the world is supposed to be. Tuesday is a dreamer and often leaves in the middle of the night to practice becoming a magician. Conversely, Dahlia Parks’ Weeks comes from away who answered Tuesday’s invitation to the hat shop. They have a story to tell that they are reluctant to share. Parks is charmingly awkward as Tuesday’s new piece of community, and the play shows us how they learn to live together. In fact, in one of my favorite recurring moments of the play, as Tuesday sneaks out at night, Weeks wakes up to turn the porch light on. That is the most striking thing about this play constructed of short brush strokes of life–there are very small, minute moments of love that keeps the resiliency alive within these two odd and loveable characters.

I could go on and on about the incredible craft that went into the construction of the production’s third character–the Rabbit (props to puppet creator and stage manager Ash Peterman). In the world of You Must Wear a Hat, there is explanation as to why a rabbit. They were invasive to Australia, and as a consequence to cataclysmic climate change, a species that has run amok is seemingly extinct. The Rabbit is our only sign of life beyond our hat makers. Henri Sudy’s puppetry brought life to an already magical puppet.The Rabbit was curious, cautious, and natural. Sudy gave the Rabbit swift movement–if it hadn't been rainbow, I’d have thought it was real. 

The production was the directorial debut of Hadley Shipley, and they should be proud of their work. The tone of the play is a cozy one. Simultaneously naturalistic and absurd, the production was reminiscent of Miyazaki’s calm and nature-centered stories, with the existential threats that pervade the works of Edward Albee or Samuel Becket. It was a lovely meditation on the human need for community, giving and receiving love for another person, and the resilience and hope necessary to endure the worst that nature has to throw at us. 

You Must Wear a Hat runs for two more weekends at the Bathhouse Cultural Center at White Rock Lake in Dallas, TX. It is a unique and lovely experience that is not to be missed. Tickets can be purchased at echotheatre.org

Are you a first responder, active/retired military, nurse, or teacher? Ask Echo about their Echo On program for free tickets! They set aside 10 tickets for those patrons PLUS patrons for whom the price of theatre would be prohibitive. So, really–you have no excuse.

Enjoy the Show

Bradford Reilly