#sky-pony

With silky colored scarves serving as tickets, the audience is ushered into a space—exuberantly designed by Kris Stone—that's part nightclub, part Burning Man camp. We're here for the Wildness, an annual tradition in which, Worsham explains, Sky-Pony & Co. get together, get wasted and perform a fairy tale written by an absent friend. It's all tied up in notions of artistic community, celebration and inventing new rituals when inherited ones prove stale.

Most of The Wildness follows said fairy tale, the adventures of a "messianic princess" (Spring Awakening alum Lilli Cooper) and her devoted servant (Worsham). They live in an isolated village ruled by a king who tells his subjects that they're the only people in the world. Beyond, of course, lies a dark, mysterious forest—and you can bet that it's going to get ventured into. This main story is interrupted by "Overshares": interludes in which cast and audience members air their doubts about the state of the world. As the show progresses, the framing tale begins to creep into the fantasy. Jarrow's music is earnest, catchy and a whole lot of fun, and the company sings the hell of out of it—particularly the excellent Cooper. But it's forced to do all the emotional heavy lifting. The Wildness hammers its fairly simplistic themes into the ground, all while delivering a predictable, half-baked story. It walks ground that's been heavily trodden before, and better. A lot of energy—both physical and creative—has been poured into making the show feel fresh and vital; but the inventiveness only goes skin-deep.