Heady Work

Throughout history, humankind has been obsessed with height. Cathedrals reach toward the heavens. Airplanes accomplish the impossible. Mountain climbers try to achieve the unachievable, and some even live to tell about it.

Jungle Theater director Bain Boehlke has quite literally created his own mountain with this month’s production of K2, a heart-pounding drama that follows the physical and emotional decline of two foolhardy friends (played by Tim McGee and Kevin West) who become stranded on K2, miles from base camp and the possibility of rescue. K2 is in the Himalayas, on the border between Pakistan and China. At 28,251 feet, it’s the second-highest mountain in the world, but it’s considered more challenging than Everest due to its steepness and harsh weather conditions. Fewer than 300 people have reached K2’s summit, compared with the more than 2,000 who’ve conquered Everest.

Producing K2 isn’t the same as rappelling its ice walls in subzero temperatures, but it’s not exactly a cakewalk. McGee’s character, for example, spends the entire play dehydrated and freezing to death with a broken leg as gale-force winds howl and avalanches roar. West’s character unsuccessfully tries to climb a vertical ice wall. To prepare for the part, West attended climbing school.

To convey the precipitous drop, Boehlke removed the front section of the Jungle’s stage. The ice wall, he explains, extends into the theater’s basement, bringing to life the ever-present danger of a misplaced foot or a mighty wind. “The play is fantastic, but it’s not done often because of the challenge of creating the [set],” says Boehlke. “The technical aspect of this production is going to be really stunning.” For the record, Boehlke has never climbed a mountain. He’s content just to build one. Opens April 6. 2951 Lyndale Ave. S., Mpls., 612-822-7063

Reach Jaime Kleiman at jaime@jaimekleiman.com.