Review by Tanisia Morris, Show Business Weekly

Lincoln green clothes, “Merry Men,” and bows and arrows can only mean one thing: Robin Hood. Written by Daniel John Kelley, Robin Hood: Prince of… Monsters! is the second program in Mainspring Collective’s Monster Literature — a children’s theater series that will continue in monthly episodes — which follows 12-year-old Benjy Bleeglehorn (Jenna Weinberg) and her sidekick, Bravo Kirkwood (Aaron Matteson), as they try to save the world’s most revered works of literature from the evil Zorlan Morlan, Lord of Tears (Owen Scott).

As in Monster Literature’s first production, Twas the Night Before…Monsters!, Robin Hood’s storyline is simple, as are its messages of kindness, forgiveness and courage. Zorlan Morlan puts a spell on Robin Hood (Mike Green), and suddenly, the once gutsy English hero is transformed into a coward who fears everything from the trees around him to the ground he walks on. It’s up to Benjy and Bravo to help him rediscover what it means to be a hero.

The folks at Mainspring Collective have clearly sought to improve the Monsterseries, with this installment more mindful of its young audience. As in English folklore, Robin Hood is dubbed a hero in this production, but, appropriately, no mention is made of his well-known kleptomaniacal tendency to steal from the rich and give to the poor. (It might be challenging to explain to five- and seven-year-olds why Robin Hood is considered a hero when he steals, an activity parents no doubt teach their kids is wrong.) Unlike in the first production, Robin Hood seeks the help of its young audience members, who are asked to shout “Oh, No!” whenever they hear the words “Archery Contest” during the play. All of the characters, from Robin Hood to Zorlan Morlan and Benjy, have enough charisma to sustain the audience’s attention. Maya Baldwin, who plays Zorlan Morlan’s Monster Messenger, elicits the most giggles with her gruff voice, depleted bugle horn, and awkward toddle. (read more…)

The scenic (Theresa Rivera), lighting (Dave Monroy) and sound design (Nick Moore), much like the production as a whole, are basic yet imaginative. As in Twas the Night Before, Julia Mancini’s costumes are effortlessly inspired, cleverly making use of household items, paper and plastic, and Robin Hood looks semi-sophisticated in Lincoln green attire. With these touches, Mainspring Collective clearly understands the idea that less is more — a concept many children’s productions have yet to master.

nytheatre.com review

Dan Kitrosser · February 14, 2010

Well, Zorlan Morlan is at it again, and this time not even Robin Hood and his band of merry men are a match for Zorlan’s Monsters as they continue to invade our most precious books in Robin Hood: Prince of … Monsters, the latest of installment of “Monster Literature,” Mainspring Collective’s hilarious and action-packed children series now playing at the Brooklyn Lyceum.

For those of you who have yet to witness these maniacal monsters, the premise is simple: In the future, monster megalomaniac Zorlan Morlan (Owen Scott) has decided that the only way to defeat humanity is by injecting monsters into their most prized pieces of literature, thereby changing the morals of mankind. But he meets his match every time, when heroine Benjy Bleeglehorn (Jenna Weinberg) and her trusty sidekick Bravo Kirkwood (Aaron Matteson) fight back, jumping into the stories and teaching the monsters about friendship, loyalty and bravery. I enjoyed the first installment ‘Twas the Night Before…Monsters! and so I had to come back and see the second. As a monster might say, Me Glad I Did!

Robin Hood, known for his bravery, is anything but in this version, penned by Daniel John Kelley. Zorlan Morlan has Robin Hood petrified to the point where, in the form of a wimpy and adorable Mike Green, Robin can’t seem to do much of anything, let alone rob the rich and feed the poor. The kids howled as Robin Hood seemed to be afraid of the most trivial things, from the floor to the papier-mache trees. Channeling Ghostbusters‘ Annie Potts is Maya Baldwin as Zorlan’s assistant, Monster Messenger, and at each appearance her dry lines (like “I do it for the dental insurance”) give the adults something to look forward to as well as push the story forward. As always, Benjy and Bravo are there to pull Robin Hood back together and in this installment, there is some wonderful chemistry between the two actors as Bravo laments his sidekick status and Benjy applauds him for his bravery. These real relationships, amidst the fantasy of monsters and hijinks of farce, really keep the kids engaged and the story moving forward. All children’s shows, no matter how bright and flashy, need to keep it real and in a couple of choice moments like this and the reconciliation with Zorlan Morlan at the end, “Monster Literature” does just that. (Read the rest of the review here…)