Dr. Ox’s Experiment

Everybody thinks modern life moves too fast these days, but for the little village of Quiquendone, it’s literally true. At first, the townspeople in Jules Verne’s allegorical short story (getting its first non-operatic dramatic adaptation at the hands of local troupe Hardcover Theater) live peaceably rustic lives at rustic speeds, as if Newtonian physics were merely something that happens to other people. But then Dr. Ox shows up, as one would expect in a play with his name in the title, and steps on the gas. By secretly pumping pure oxygen into Quiquendone—the idea was considered scientifically plausible in Verne’s time—he makes life in the village speed up, bringing art and enlightenment, but also passion, confusion, and war. The metaphorical implications are, if anything, even stronger today. 2301 E. Franklin Ave., Minneapolis; (612) 822-0015; www.pangeaworldtheater.org