Faust is tempted and gives up his soul for earthly pleasure, realized in the form of Gretchen, who falls but is reunited with God, as Faust flees with the devil. Feel free to call this heavy, 19th-century moralizing. Although the plot offers several scenes, the action is static. The pushcarts split and recombine even within scenes, allowing Faust to step forward into a playing area that didn't exist only seconds before. It's a concept that stays interesting for about half of the first act, but wears thin when there is still too much play left.
Costumes are uniformly red and black, with little variation or attempt to create character.
Lighting is murky, filled with deep shadows and narrow pools of light. These production choices throw heavy focus back on the actors, giving increased importance to the spoken word. Although there are some exceptions, the university cast, as a whole, isn't up to that demand. Dialogue lacks sharpness, clarity and variety. Nevertheless, Danel Verdugo does well in her short appearance as Martha, and Carr has some good moments as the elder Faust in Act One.