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Download The Byron Chronicles from DarkerProjects.com
DarkerProjects.com, 2010- After years of working through
different types of radio drama both online and from the broadcasting organizations, a reviewer becomes accustomed to encountering
familiar actors, such as Joe Stofko, Julie Hoverson, H. Keith Lyons, Alex Gilmour and Gwendolyn Jensen-Woodard. The
Byron Chronicles offers us two more names - Christof Laputka (from The Leviathan Chronicles), and David Ault
whose previous credits include Dr. Who (for Darker Projects), the Misadventures of Sherlock Holmes, and
various productions for the Colonial Radio Theater. The effect of re-encountering such names is akin to that experienced while listening regularly
to Radio 4; it's not so much the content that matters, but enjoying the way it is performed. Sometimes actors become
so recognizable that re-encountering them aurally is like meeting old friends once more; you simply enjoy the way they wrap
their voices round the words. This is what I experienced while listening to The Byron Chronicles; while the
tale itself is a good one, involving vampires, zombies, and the future of the human race (the stuff of good sf since time
immemorial), I was more preoccupied with enjoying Ault's vocally nuanced performance in the title role. You never quite
knew where you were with Byron; he sounded so imposing, but vaguely untrustworthy at the same time. Laputka's role is
gorgeously titled "The One Who Is All"; like Ault, his voice exuded authority. The two actors dominated the drama to
such an extent that I felt rather shaken by the end of the 20-minute episode. I don't know if this is what director/writer/producer
Busby intended, but this is how I reacted.
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