The Unseen

Forget Cloverfield. For some really creepy, scary fun, see Craig Wright’s allegorical The Unseen at Stages. The darkly humorous story is about two men imprisoned in an unknown place, by unknown captors, for unknown reasons, while they struggle to find meaning in lives shaped by torture, fear and bitter disappointment.

The two men — one representing faith, the other reason — have been held in a prison for many years. They can’t see each other, but communicate through prison walls. Then one day, they begin to hear tapping noises coming from the cell below them. Is it another prisoner? Is it a guard playing a cruel trick on them? Or is it just another form of torture? Over the course of the play, Wright makes it clear that he thinks we need both faith and reason to make it through this big, bad world.

Always thoughtful, richly moving and magically funny, Wright’s work sends the audience home lost in wonder at the human condition. See The Unseen today at 8 p.m. Through February 17. 3201 Allen Parkway. For information, call 713-527-0123 or visit www.stages theatre.com. $26 to $36.
Fridays, Saturdays, 8 p.m.; Sundays, 3 p.m.; Wednesdays, Thursdays, 7:30 p.m. Starts: Feb. 1. Continues through Feb. 17, 2008