The North American touring production of “Life of Pi” is a magical piece of theater, but please don’t expect a break from reality. Nor should you bring young children along to Minneapolis’ Orpheum Theatre to experience this magic, for, beneath its awe-inspiring stagecraft, this is basically a brutal story about coming to terms with the world in all its ugliness.

Based upon the Booker Prize-winning novel by Canadian author Yann Martel, Lolita Chakrabarti’s play – which premiered in England in 2019 – captures the essence of the book brilliantly, managing to bring a down-to-earth frankness to a fantastical tale that inspires contemplation of spiritual matters and the role of religion in enduring what this life throws into your path.

Chakrabarti’s script is a brilliantly executed adaptation on its own, but where this piece of theater takes flight is in the vision she brought to life in partnership with director Max Webster, scenic and costume designer Tim Hatley, and the puppetry and movement team of Finn Caldwell and Nick Barnes.

To call what a breathtakingly graceful and athletic cast offers onstage at the Orpheum “puppetry” is to understate its power. The whole production feels as much a dance work as a play, the settings transforming before your eyes as the story unspools without interruption (save an intermission that comes with a gasp-inducing adrenaline rush).

The story is of a teenager who lives in a zoo in India with his family, his father the zookeeper, the animals his beloved companions. But it’s clear from early on that his father is intent upon his children having no illusions about the harshness of life, as he forces them to witness a favorite goat fed to the zoo’s marquee animal, a Bengal tiger (the first of many scenes that show why Hennepin Arts recommends this show for those 13 and older).

But the crux of the tale concerns the journey that Pi takes from Asia to North America, all of it told in flashback from a Mexican hospital room. We learn that Pi survived a shipwreck and floated on the Pacific for several months. Investigators have arrived to ask how.

Anchoring this production is an amazing performance by Taha Mandviwala as Pi. His is a performance both physically and emotionally acrobatic, one full of captivating charisma. But every character is a vivid creation in the hands (and bodies and puppets) of this cast.

Lest you think Pi’s Pacific crossing a solitary one, know that he’s accompanied by that tiger, astoundingly portrayed by a team of three puppeteers. And he’s visited by the spirits (or memories?) of his support network, their love sometimes tender, often tough as he struggles to stay alive while adrift.

This production possesses so much of what’s wonderful about theater as an art form, not only wowing an audience with skills and stagecraft, but leaving them with ideas and complex emotions to process. As I exited the Orpheum Tuesday night into the beginnings of a blizzard, the world seemed a more magical place than it was when I entered. And availing yourself of art that does that is always a good idea.

‘Life of Pi’

When: 7:30 p.m. Wednesday-Friday, 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday, 1 and 6:30 p.m. Sunday
Where: Orpheum Theatre, 910 Hennepin Ave., Mpls.
Tickets: $159-$43, available at hennepinarts.org
Capsule: A captivating yarn, an amazing piece of theater.

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