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Memphis

2012-03-01T10:10:00.004-05:00

Hockadoo MEMPHIS rocks the Palace

Bannered as “The essence of what a Broadway musical should be,” there is no way of experiencing MEMPHIS, the David Bryan and Jo DiPietro musical, now on stage at the Palace Theatre, without shouting “Hockadoo!”

Yes, this is a Hockadoo, “Yay!” and “Whoo hoo!” kind of show. It’s wonderful! It bursts on stage with the Underground opening number and keeps on going through the curtain call with explosive dancing, exciting songs and a tale of forbidden love.

The musical takes us back to the 1950s. It’s the segregated South where the mixing of blacks and whites is not only unacceptable, it’s illegal. This is Memphis, Tennessee, where the Klan holds sway, blacks “know their place,” and “negra” music isn’t sung or appreciated by whites.

An eccentric white guy bursts into a black underground dance club. He’s out of kilter with both the white and black communities. He’s a drifter who can’t find his nitch in life, but somehow perceives the idea of a white radio DJ who plays black music. And before he’s through, many rules of the Memphis culture are altered.

Though billed as a rock musical, it really mixes gospel and rhythm and blues with foundational rock music. Included in the great score are the dynamic The Music of My Soul, the heartfelt Ain’t Nothing But a Kiss, and the beautiful Someday. It’s the kind of sound that gave birth to the likes of Elvis.

The production captivates. To cap it all off, the goings on are based on actual events which highlight disc jockey, Dewey Phillips, here named Huey, who burst on the scene by being unafraid, out of kilter with the norm, and having a vision of what should be. He falls in love with a black club singer and brings her first to local and then to national attention.

MEMPHIS opened on Broadway on October 19, 2009 and went on to win the Tony Award for Best Musical. It is still running on Broadway.

The touring production is as good as the Broadway version. Felicia Boswell, as Felicia, Huey’s love interest is dynamic. She was the cover for the part of Felicia on Broadway and grabs and holds the audience with her vocal dynamics. Bryan Fenkart, who was the stand-by for the lead male role in New York, is nothing short of compelling as Huey. Both have great singing voices and create clear characterizations. There is real magnetism between the two.

Quentin Earl Darrington (Delray) powers his vocals. He is one talented singer. Julie Johnson (Mama) is delightful. Her Change Don’t Come Easy was a show stopper. Rhett George wails Say A Prayer. The rest of the cast is equally as talented.

The dancers are dynamic and the chorus sounds blend well. The band is tunefully great. The sets, lights and costumes all work.

CAPSULE JUDGEMENT: MEMPHIS is one of those special handclapping, cheer inducing, wonderful evenings of theatre. This is a must see!!

A Girl's Guide to Coffee

2012-02-28T15:42:00.002-05:00

Cleveland playwright’s A GIRL’S GUIDE TO COFFEE delights at Actors’ Summit

Eric Coble, the author of A GIRL’S GUIDE TO COFFEE, which is getting its world premiere at Actors’ Summit, is on a roll. Next month his new play, VELOCITY OF AUTUMN, which will star Dorothy Silver, the grand dame of Cleveland theatre, will be performed at Beck Center for the Arts in Lakewood.

Coble has the ability to take a minor incident and translate it into an amusing, yet meaningful theatrical experience. This is the case, again, with A GIRL’S GUIDE TO COFFEE.

In A GIRL’S GUIDE TO COFFEE, we find a java barista who’s trying to figure out her path in life. Twenty-two years old Alex has a degree in biology, seems happy without roots, and is wiling her time as the queen of lattes at the Steamed Bean. Her specialty is a “mandala,” which is a latte with a sacred Buddhist diagram created in the steamed milk. She can also do portraits and other images in this temporary art form. Temporary, as it is soon consumed and disappears.

She’s good, but, as she confides to the audience in one of her many talks to her listeners, she isn’t “as good as Lucy,” whoever that is. She’s good enough, however, that, according to Danny, her boss, one of her cups "brought one guy back from the dead.” She’s so good that Danny wants to enter her in the international barista competition in Barcelona, Spain.

In spite of the nagging by her parents, Alex’s plan for life is to have no plan at all. But into her life accidentally flows handsome, artist and some-time repairman, Christopher, who seems, in his subtle, and often bumbling way, to have other ideas for Alex’s existence.

Coble obviously has spent a lot of time hanging around coffee shops. His knowledge of the kinds and recipes for various drinks is amazing. In one long speech, Alex relates so many that it becomes overwhelming to realize that that many creations can be conceived by using one of the three types of beans available and some hot milk.

The play is filled with clever put downs of Starbucks (“the cockroach of the coffee world”), pointed criticism of consumerism, and the lack of clear focus in this text-addicted age.

The Actors’ Summit production, under the direction of Constance Thackaberry, is nicely paced, most of the characterizations well textured, and the clever lines correctly pointed for humor.

Pretty Margo Chervony is character right as Alex, the Barista Extraordinaire. She has a nice touch with humor, and interplays well the other characters. Rachel Gehlert, as Alex’s roommate and Barista Better-Than-Ordinaire, has some great comedy moments, as she gives obsession and hyperactivity, a new meaning. Frank Jackman is fun as the Owner of the Steamed Bean. Laura Stitt, as Alex’s Mother, does all those “mom” things that make her real. As Alex’s Father, Alex J. Nine, is fine in most scenes, but lacks the emotional presence needed for the segment when his wife’s life is in danger. Handsome Mark Leach displays the right degree of social uneasiness that adds a special quality to his Christopher, A Particular Customer, who seemingly is going to help Alex find a course of action for her life.

CAPSULE JUDGEMENT: A GIRL’S GUIDE TO COFFEE is a delightful evening of theatre that allows for a pleasant escape from the world of reality, adds knowledge to most people’s awareness of lattes, and showcases some pitfalls of life without a plan.

Middletown

2012-02-27T09:27:00.002-05:00

MIDDLETOWN, a fine absurdist comedy at Dobama

MIDDLETOWN, Will Eno’s absurdist comedy, has been characterized as, “a piece that's a bit like Thornton Wilder's Our Town if it had been penned by Dr. Seuss and edited by Samuel Beckett.” It’s a perfect description.

This is a profoundly wise script. In fact, that is probably why this isn’t a play for everyone. As a woman behind me said to her companion at intermission, “I don’t understand this.” They walked out of the theatre and didn’t come back for the second act.

Eno is not your run-of-the mill writer. He knows language well. He uses language well. He wrings meanings out of phrases that, on the surface, appear too abstract for understanding. His explanation of the parallel between people and rocks is far too complex to discuss here, but as two of the characters talk, and one makes a sculpture piece out of pieces of rocks, the concept becomes crystal clear.

To grasp Eno’s flow, you have to know the characters. There’s a quixotic-like librarian, a very confused handyman in search of the purpose in life, a pregnant young wife whose husband is like the invisible man, a thoughtful doctor, a well-meaning nurse, an over-compensating town cop, a former con who is a mechanic, a landscaper, and a town guide who seems to know nothing about the town.

As in OUR TOWN, the days of the play are not unusual days. they are ordinary, like the lives of most people. The existences of the people of MIDDLETOWN all intersect, like the streets on the map on the floor of the theatre, in random, yet patterned ways. Their journey takes them from the public library to outer space, from their homes to the hospital.

Eno, in the words of his characters, asks, “How does this whole thing [life] work?” and “What do you want out of life?”

MIDDLETOWN inhabits empty space, and, like many absurdist plays, asks why we exist, while showing how out-of-kilter life really is. There is only the asking of questions, not the giving of answers.

Dobama’s production, under the focused direction of Joel Hammer, wrings all it can out of the script. The cast is universally fine, not a weak actor in the bunch.

As the Public Speaker, Robert Hawkes, like the stage manger in OUR TOWN, explains to us the rules of engagement between the audience and the actors, in a long but very funny opening speech. He pops in again as a ground control NASA director, a man, and a doctor. This blending of characters is the nature of the play. As in life, most people are interchangeable.

Jason Markouc, the obsessive town cop with some anger issues, Fabio Polanco, the mechanic who borders on being mad, Emily Demko as the ineffective town guide, Maryann Elder as a female tourist and female doctor, and Mark Mayo as a landscaper, are all character correct.

Carly Germany, as Mrs. Swanson, a town newcomer and pregnant mom, develops a meaningful characterization. Tom Woodward, as a confused, frustrated, self-doubting handy man, is excellent, as is Laura Starnik, the town librarian, who has her thumb on the pulse of MIDDLETOWN.

Laura Carlson’s creative scenic design works well, as does the lighting design by Marcus Dana and the sound design of Richard Ingraham.

CAPSULE JUDGEMENT: If you don’t like to think, MIDDLETOWN may not be a play for you. But, for anyone willing to put in a little effort, this thought provoking absurdist comedy, is your thing.

Antebellum

2012-02-26T19:51:00.003-05:00

Thought provoking ANTELBELLUM at Cleveland Public Theatre

In 1939, Hattie McDaniel was the first African-American to win an Oscar for her portrayal of Mammy in GONE WITH THE WIND. She was also the first African American to be an invited guest to attend the Oscars. Ironically, she was required to sit alone at the back of the Cocoanut Grove, the site of the award ceremonies, a far distance from the white performers in the movie.

Berlin in the 1930s was a hotbed of decadence. There were over 160 gay and lesbian bars and nightclubs. The use of drugs, prostitution, cross dressing and other lifestyle choices were in vogue before the rise of the Nazis.

It is against these two backdrops that Robert O’Hara’s ANTEBELLUM, which is getting its regional premiere at Cleveland Public Theatre, is set.

The play is part mystery, part romance, and an adventure that bridges together religion and race in a time of hatred. Its underpinning is expressed in the director’s notes in the program: “As I see [U. S.] conservative extremists gaining momentum, I often have the same fear that Gabriel shares in the play, ‘The majority remains quiet..And it is the minority…which strikes the match.’”

We watch as the scenes switch back and forth between a Southern plantation, a Berlin cabaret, and a concentration camp. We find Gabriel, a Black American cabaret singer as he transitions from entertainer and the lover of a Jewish Southern American male (Ariel Roca) who is in Berlin “on business,” to becoming a companion to a Nazi officer (Oskar von Schleicher).

Meanwhile, in Atlanta, there is much decadence surrounding the world premiere of the movie GONE WITH THE WIND. Into the southern setting steps Edna, who arrives unexpectedly at the home of Ariel and Sarah Roca. Yes, the same Ariel that we saw in Berlin. Why is Edna there? What havoc will her appearance cause? Time will tell, and the results are shocking and illuminating.

O’Hara’s script is well crafted, but a bit melodramatic. It’s appropriately written in both the genre of the overdone romance movies of the 30s, combined with mystery approaches of the films of that same era.

The CPT production, under the direction of Beth Wood, generally works. Staged in a runway theatre configuration, with the audience on both sides of the stage, set up in the middle of the Gordon Square Theatre, Wood’s stage design allows for easy flow between various settings and keeps the audience close to the action. The major flaw is that the theatre’s high ceiling and hard walls causes echoes and difficulty in clearly hearing the words. The backs of the performers are constantly turned away from one part of the audience or the other. The actors make straight line stage crosses, rather than the traditional figure-8 eights used for this type of staging, which would have opened them to the audience. This, plus the southern drawls and German-American accents, makes clear hearing problematic.

Nicholas Sweeney as Gabriel, the cabaret singer, effectively develops his tightrope walking roll, moving from show boy, to lover, to medical experiment, with clarity. Dana Hart is properly both horrific and tender as the German commandant, who acts against the principles of the theories of the master race with his love for the Black, gay Gabriel. Laurel Hoffman clearly carries the audience on a journey asking whether she is a ditz, crazy or a manipulator as Sarah, the southern belle and unfulfilled convenience wife of Ariel. Mark Rabant is believable as the conflicted Ariel.

Only Audrey Lovy, as Edna, fails to develop a real character. She stays on the performance surface, using forced physical movements and unmotivated vocal idea development. Lovy doesn’t make us understand her real torment. The program credited-acting coach needed to work on this.

Sarah’s GONE WITH THE WIND gown, as created by Melanie Boeman, is one of the season’s costume highlights.

Capsule judgement: ANTEBLELLUM is a production well worth seeing. It is a thought provoking piece, which gets a very good production at CPT.

2012 Stratford Shakespeare Festival

2012-02-21T22:02:00.003-05:00

Stratford Shakespeare Festival, a season for Celebration

This year marks the 60th anniversary of the Stratford Festival of Canada. Want to get away this spring, summer or fall? Drive to Canada for great theatre, good food, and nice scenery.

This season’s productions are:
•MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING (A Shakespeare romp of deception which finds Claudio wooing his beloved Hero, and his friend Benedick and Hero’s cousin, Beatrice, trading insults in their merry war of mutual disdain.)
•THE MATCHMAKER (Thornton Wilder’s play finds matchmaker, Dolly Levi, making her own plans to hook wealthy merchant Horace Vandergelder. It’s HELLO DOLLY without music.)
•42TH STREET (Warren and Dubin’s toe-tapping musical about how a chorus girl becomes a star.)
•HENRY V (Shakespeare’s story of civil strife in which the new British monarch decides to enforce his claim to the throne of France.)
•THE PIRATES OF PENZANCE (Gilbert and Sullivan’s operatic romp about soft-hearted pirates.)
•YOU’RE A GOOD MAN CHARLIE BROWN (Clark Gesner’s delightful musical takes on the Peanuts comic strip characters.)
•A WORD OR TWO (Christopher Plummer’s one-man show which takes the audience on an autobiographical journey through the literature that stirs his imagination.)
•CYMBELINE (Shakespeare’s adventure which finds Imogen, the daughter of King Cymbeline, trying to win back the man she loves.);
• WANDERLUST (Panych and Norman’s musical about Robert Service and his dreams to escape to a new life in the Great North.)
•ELEKTRA (Sophocles’ tale of Electktra’s attempt to avenge her father’s death.)
• MACHOMER (One of Shakespeare’s most popular tragedies meets one of TV’s most popular families in this comic tour-de-force.)
•HIRSCH (A one-person production staring John Hirsch as a Hungarian Holocaust survivor who finds refuge in Canada.)
•THE BEST BROTHERS (A tale of two brothers who learn to understand each other after the death of their mother.)
•THE WAR OF 1812 (The history of the Village of the Small Huts: 1812-1815.)

Besides their regularly scheduled plays, the Festival offers stage-side chats, the Celebrated Writers Series, Night Music, Table Talks, pre-show lectures, lobby talks, public lectures, the teaching Shakespeare School and The Teachers’ Conference.

What’s the lodging like? Hotels, motels and bed and breakfasts abound to fit any wallet. I like a b & b. You get to meet new people and there is a nice friendly feel of being more than a guest. My favorite is the Avery House (www.averyhouse.com).

Hungry? For moderate cost and high quality, try The Annex Cafe (38 Albert Street). Cleveland theatre legends Dorothy and Reuben Silver, who are Stratford regulars, recommend The Waterlot Restaurant and Inn (17 Huron Street behind the Royal Bank) in New Hamburg, which is about 20 minutes away (www.waterlot.com).

Packages can be arranged by www.theatrevacations.com. Stratford Escapes (theatrevacations.com), is an efficient way to make reservations. For individual tickets call 800-567-1600 or go on-line to www.stratfordfestival.ca.

Helpful hints: The ride from Cleveland is about six hours through Buffalo. Go on-line to the festival to get directions. The routings offered by AAA and Yahoo maps are confusing and miles longer. To satisfy border requirements carry your passport. Nothing else will do.

Go to Stratford, Canada! Find out what lovely hosts Canadians are, and see some great theatre!

Eric Coble: prolific playwright

2012-02-21T09:46:00.002-05:00

Spotlight on Eric Coble, Cleveland’s prolific playwright!

He’s been called “A Playwright to Watch.” His writing has been praised as, “astute portraits [that] hit home with rib-tickling acuity.” His work has been termed, “a tour-de-force.” He’s been summarized as “the most astonishingly accurate—eye and ear on society and its foibles--of any current writer.” Who is this? Eric Coble, the present day Cleveland area’s most prolific stage writer. And, according to Coble, he owes it all to his children!

Coble, who was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, raised on the Navajo and Ute reservations in New Mexico and Colorado, and has an MFA in Acting from Ohio University, had his sights set on performing on stage. But, when he became a stay-at-home dad, he figured the casting agents weren’t going to let him tryout in his living room, and he couldn’t ask the audiences to join him in his kitchen for a family dinner, so he went down a different path.

Coble decided that he could use his undergraduate degree in English, the imagination that allowed him to be a cartoonist, and his curiosity in the logical and illogical view of current events, to spin tales for stage, radio and books. He set up a schedule around his kids…”they go off to school, I go to my work of writing, they come home, I take off my professional hat and put on my dad hat.” The results have been astonishing. From 1994 until today, there are over 100 works that have been produced.

In the next two months, several plays will be transformed from page to stage in the local area. A GIRL’S GUIDE TO COFFEE, which features a barista whose creations elevate the humble bean to unknown heights, will be produced at Actor’s Summit in Akron. It’s part of his “The Alexandra Plays,” a trilogy concerning commitment, freedom, and how a person identifies him/herself. Another of the series, VELOCITY OF AUTUMN, will be performed at Beck Center for the Arts in Lakewood. It will star Dorothy Silver, the grand dame of Cleveland theatre, as an elderly woman with a wicked sense of humor, who finds herself in physical decline.

Where do the ideas come from? Coble admits he is addicted to the media and when he reads on-line and watches TV, he starts asking who and how would someone be affected by those instances. “An idea just gestates. Sometimes it takes five to six years. I just let it sit. Come back to it.” “You can’t force a good play and when it’s time to be, it will be.” He indicates that he doesn’t have any half finished plays stuffed in a drawer. Once he starts, he finishes. Fortunately, Coble states, “I don’t get writer’s block.”

Surprisingly in this electronic age, Coble hand writes his creations. The scripts are transferred to computer, but the #2 pencil, is his tool of choice.

He pays attention to the readings and early productions of a show and makes adjustments after the production. “You see something before an audience that you don’t see until the words take life.”

An Emmy nominee, the recipient of the American Alliance for Theatre and Education Distinguished Play Award for Best Adaptation, the winner of the AT&T Onstage Award, and the Cleveland Arts Prize, Coble is a member of the Cleveland Play House Playwright’s Unit. The purpose of the group is to critique each other’s work in order to aid members to produce a better product. He depends on these writers and a select group of others to give him criticism that helps develop the final product.

Coble is a full-time playwright, stay-at-home dad, a member of the Cleveland-University Heights Board of Education, and obviously a talented writer of plays, media scripts and books.

His play BRIGHT IDEAS, which premiered at the Cleveland Play House and went on to much off-Broadway praise, may well be a way of describing Coble. He’s full of bright ideas, that seem to give birth to bright audience-pleasing works.

Anyone Can Whistle

2012-02-17T10:26:00.004-05:00

Dan Folino and Katherine DeBoer make ANYONE CAN WHISTLE worth seeing

When Martin Friedman, Artistic Director of The Lakeland Civic Theatre, announced he was staging Stephen Sondheim’s ANYONE CAN WHISTLE, there were some raised eyebrows in the theatre community. Friedman is a Sondheimophile. He knows the master’s works well. Why would he even adventure into Whistle land, which is fraught with land mines?

Originally entitled, THE NATIVES ARE RESTLESS, ANYONE CAN WHISTLE was a resounding flop on Broadway. Classified as the first absurdist musical, it lasted just thirteen previews and nine performances in spite of a cast that included Angela Lansbury and Lee Remick.

The show was seemingly doomed from the start. It took thirty-three backers’ auditions to raise the money. The lead supporting male had a heart attack, one of the dancers fell into the orchestra pit and died, Angela Lansbury, in her first musical production, was so unhappy with her performance that they considered replacing her. The three act format, the last major musical written in this style, was too long and whacking away at it resulted in some of the best songs being cut. This is not the stuff hit musicals are made of.

Sondheim, himself, in his book FINISHING THE HAT, COLLECTED LYRICS (1954-1981) WITH ATTENDANT COMMENTS, PRINCIPLES, HERESIES, GRUDGES, WHINES AND ANECDOTES states, “The show suffered a number of indignities during the pre-Broadway tour in Philadelphia. The fault was not in our stars but in ourselves” (music and lyrics by Sondheim, book by Arthur Laurents).

The show takes place in a small American town, which is a financial and physical wreck because its manufacturing base is a plant that makes a product which never wears out, and is the home of the Cookie Jar, an insane asylum. Cora Hoover Hooper, the town’s mayor and owner of the plant, comes up with a scheme to create a fake Lourdes-like miracle fountain. A nurse (Fay Apple) who covers up her identity by using a French accent and a red wig, a psycho (J. Bowden Hapgood)who is misidentified as Cookie Jar’s new assistant director, and three manipulating town employees create pandemonium.

The music is exceptional. Actually, some reviewers, in retrospect, call it Sondheim at his best. The album has a strong cult following and if the book was eliminated and the songs just sung, the choral concert might well have been a hit. Songs include There Won’t be Trumpets, Anyone Can Whistle, Everybody Says Don’t, and With So Little To Be Sure Of.

Lakeland’s production, under Friedman’s direction, is quite uneven. The leads are wonderful. Dan Folino, who left the area several years ago to take a position at Barter Theatre in Virginia, is back, and local theatre goers cheer his return. Folino has proven over and over that whether it’s comedy, drama or musicals, he is superb. His strong singing voice, ability to create real characters and dancing ability all add up to make his portrayal of Hapwood, a show highlight. Katherine DeBoer is fine as nurse Fay Apple. Good voice and a nice touch with the quirky. The duo has wonderful chemistry together.

Voluptuous Amiee Collier doesn’t quite convince as the mayor, but her singing and seduction scenes are well done.

The rest of the cast tries hard, but they don’t have a lot to work with and don’t always seem to understand how to create farce.

Larry Goodpaster does a nice job with the orchestra, supporting, rather than drowning out the singers. Trad Burns set design and lighting work well. Jennifer Justice’s choreography is fairly pedestrian. There needed to be more bizarre, let-loose joy from the cookies.

Capsule judgement: ANYONE CAN WHISTLE is a weak script which gets an acceptable production at Lakeland. It’s worth going just to experience Dan Folino and Katherine DeBoer in action.

Radio Golf

2012-02-16T16:18:00.002-05:00

RADIO GOLF, Cleveland Play House’s Black History month production

Black history month means an explosion of theatre offerings in this multi-racial city. Ensemble has already performed A SONG FOR CORETTA and LOWER NINTH. Karamu staged THE BLUEST EYE, and though it will be beyond February they will stage GEM OF THE OCEAN from May 11-June 3. East Cleveland Theater is staging Wilson’s FENCES February 11-March 4, True North Cultural Arts will present THE PIANO LESSON from February 17-March 4 and Cuyahoga County Community College stages TWO TRAINS RUNNING at its Metro campus from March 29-April 7. The latter four scripts were written by August Wilson, as is the Cleveland Play House’s present production, RADIO GOLF.

RADIO GOLF is a seminal script. It was Wilson’s last work. He died in 2005, the year the play was published. It is the final chapter in his ten-play cycle which intended to chronicle African-American life in the 20th century.

The story centers around Harmond Wilks, a well-educated, wealthy real estate broker. He and Roosevelt Hicks want to develop the blighted Hill District in Pittsburgh. Wilks is also a candidate for the mayor of the Steel City. Problems arise when Wilks discovers that a house in the area was acquired illegally. Wilks attempts to buy the property from Old Joe, the tax delinquent owner, who is a vagrant with a questionable past, but Old Joe won’t sell. He has the backing of Sterling Johnson, a construction worker. Wilks decides to build around the house, much to the frustration of his partner, who has worked out a deal with a white developer to be his “black face” in several deals, including buying a radio station. On the day that the house is to be demolished, Hicks and Wilks have a falling out and Wilks goes to participate in a rally to stop the demolition, thus giving up his dreams of wealth, his political future, and possibly his wife.

RADIO GOLF is a true final play in the series, as it includes references and issues that Wilson discussed in earlier works. It centers on the question of what it means to be African America. The play asks whether it is possible for black culture to be preserved as it is integrated into mainstream white society.

Wilson focuses his vision on reality. He opens the issue of the differences in being a “negra” and a “nigger.” He asks whether there is a dissimilarity between the white’s and black’s definition of ethics and morality. He examines if progress is really good for black Americans. He uses the golf game to illustrate the alterations taking place in the African American community as they transfer from being denied privileges at golf courses, into playing the white man’s game.

The play won the New York Critic’s 2007 new play award.

CPH’s production, under the direction of Lou Bellamy, is generally effective. It’s long, especially the first act, which tends to get too caught up in exposition, thus slowing down the idea development.

Abdul Salaam El Razzac is both poignant and delightful as Old Joe. When he is present, he controls the stage with subtlety and character underplay. Terry Bellamy, as Sterling, develops a clear character as an advocate for Old Joe and a conscious for Harmond. David Alan Anderson is properly manipulative and smarmy as Roosevelt. He clearly illustrates he is out for Roosevelt, and Roosevelt, alone. Austene Van is properly aloof and self-centered as Mame Wilks, Harmond’s wife.

James Craven has the difficult job of developing a realistic Harmond. He does an excellent job early on. At the end, however, he starts screaming and swallowing his words. His breakdown would have been more effective with more intense internal emotion and less unbridled hysteria.

Vicki Smith’s set design, Karen Perry’s costumes, Don Darnutzer’s lighting design and James Swonger’s sound design all help enhance the production.

CAPSULE JUDGMENT: RADIO GOLF, the last play in August Wilson’s monumental 10 play cycle, gets a very good, but not a great production at the Cleveland Play House.

Theatre calendar, Feb-March '12

2012-02-13T17:34:00.004-05:00

Go to the theatre--a list of late winter theatre offerings

Here’s a partial list of what’s on the boards for March and April in some of the Cleveland area theatres.

Blank Canvas Theatre
1305 West 78th Street (78th Street Studios)
March 16th- April 1st (Friday-Sunday performances)
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
The classic tale of George and Lennie, two displaced migrant ranch workers during the Great Depression.
For information and tickets: www.blankcanvastheatre.com
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Actor’s Summit
Tickets” 330-374-7568
103 High Street, Sixth Floor, Akron
A GIRL’S GUIDE TO COFFEE
February 23-March 11
Cleveland Playwright Eric Coble’s take on a barista whose creations elevate the humble bean to unknown heights.

THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST
March 29-April 22
Oscar Wilde’s laugh filled comedy of manners that gave the world malapropisms and what it’s like to form an alliance with a handbag.
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convergence-continuum
The Liminis 2438 Scranton Rd. Cleveland
For tickets: 216-687-0074
THE HYACINTH MACAW
March 16-April 17
Mac Wellman’s portrait of America adrift. A sinister stranger announces what could be the play’s credo: “What’s real has no name. None. Whatever!”
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ENSEMBLE THEATRE
2843 Washington Blvd, Cleveland Heights
Tickets: 216-321-2930 or www.ensemble-theatre.org
DESTROYING THE NIGHT by Sasha Thackaberry
March 9, 15, 24, 30 @8 18@2 APRIL 1 @4
A modern reinvention of the myth of Persephone.

DANCING WITH N.E.D.—Tyler Whidden
March 8, 17, 23, 29 @ 8 March 11@2 April 1 @ 7
Claire has big plans for her 55th birthday, if only Peter would stop being a party pooper.

GROUNDS FOR DISMISSAL—Cindy Dettelbach
March 10, 16, 22 and 31 @8 March 25@2 April 1 @ 2
It’s the early ‘60s, an idyllic time to be a co-ed on the campus of a prestigious college. For roommates Sally and Nan ambition, creativity and a professional tryst signals the end of innocence.
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CLEVELAND PLAY HOUSE
Tickets: (216) 241 6000 www.clevelandplayhouse.com
RADIO GOLF
February 10-March 4—Allen Theatre
August Wilson’s last play investigates how a successful and idealistic entrepreneur aspires to become a city’s first black mayor. It’s the final chapter in his unprecedented 10-play cycle chronicling African-American life in the 20th century.
RED
March 16-April 8—Allen Theatre
Master American painter Mark Rothko has just landed the biggest commission in the history of modern art; but, when his young assistant gains the confidence to challenge him, Rothko faces the possibility that his crowning achievement could also be his undoing.
The Winter's Tale
March 7-17--Helen Rosenfeld Lewis Bialosky Lab Theatre @The Allen Theatre
(A production of the CWRU/CPH MFA program)
William Shakespeare ’s epic in which King Leontes is consumed with jealousy, believing his pregnant wife Hermione has been having an affair with his childhood friend King Polixenes. He orders one be poisoned, another imprisoned and the baby exiled. What will become of the child as her true origins are revealed?
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PLAYHOUSE SQUARE
Tickets: (216) 241-6000 or www.playhousesquare.org

MEMPHIS 
February 28 - March 11, 2012 --Palace Theatre
From the underground dance clubs of 1950s Memphis, Tennessee, comes a hot new Broadway musical that bursts off the stage with explosive dancing, irresistible songs and a thrilling tale of fame and forbidden love.

THE ADDAMS FAMILY
April 10-22—April 10-22—Palace Theatre
The weird and wonderful family leaps off the TV screen and printed page and comes to devilish life in song and dance.
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GREAT LAKES THEATRE
HANNA THEATRE
Tickets: 216-241-6000 or www.greatlakestheater.org
THE MOUSETRAP
March 9-25
Agatha Christie’s murder mystery masterpiece which examines what happens when a group of strangers is stranded in a guest house during a snowstorm and discovers that a murderer is in their midst. Whodunnit?
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DOBAMA
Ticket: 216-932-33906 or www.dobama.org
MIDDLETOWN
February 24-March 18
MIDDLETOWN is Will Eno’s moving and funny new play exploring the universe of a small American town.
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BECK CENTER FOR THE ARTS
Tickets: www.beckcenter.org or call216-521-2540 X10
VELOCITY OF AUMUMN
March 23-April 29 (no performances on April 6-8)
The grand dame of Cleveland theatre, Dorothy Silver, portrays Lillian, an elderly woman with a wicked sense of humor, in this regional premiere of Eric Coble’s new script.
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Cleveland Public Theatre
Tickets: 216-631-2727 or www.cptonline.org
Antebellum  by Robert O’Hara
February 23 - March 10
Two stories merge as a love affair between two men, one Jewish and the other African-American, bridges time, space and gender.

Darwinii: The Comeuppance of Man  by Glen Berger
 March 1 - March 17
Back by popular demand!  Cristobal confesses to stealing the original manuscripts of Charles Darwin from rare book libraries around the world.

Poor Little Lulu  conceived & directed by Matthew Earnest
March 8 - March 24
Chronicles the exploits of Lulu - a sexual outlaw in a society riven by lust and greed - who is tossed like a frisbee from man to man.

Rusted Heart Broadcast  conceived and Directed by Raymond Bobgan
March 22 - March 24
This work-in-progress is about staying awake, surviving the apocalypse and championing one's own home.

Opera Per Tutti
March 23 - March 25
Cleveland's newest professional opera company is continuing its mission of "opera for all."

Dracula and Oher Love Stories

2012-02-11T14:44:00.005-05:00

Ohio Dance Theatre brings love to The Breen Center

When the Cleveland San Jose Ballet left town, it left a void. There appeared to be no regularly performing company that presented ballet. Yes, touring companies came in. Raymond Rodriguez and Karen Gabay’s Point of Departure popped up on occasion and gave hope for a return of a company that would showcase ballet.

What was overlooked was Artistic Director Denise Gula and her Ohio Dance Theatre, housed in Oberlin. Regularly appearing at Lorain County Community College, where Gula was the school’s first dance instructor, and making some west side of Cuyahoga county performances, the company brings a unique presence to local stages when it performs. Many of its numbers are ballet. Yes, pointe shoes, classic lifts and story telling ballet.

In their latest appearance in the Cleveland area, appearing at the Breen Center, the company performed to a nearly full-house on a snowy February 10 evening. The balanced program touched on various types of love….love of country, dreamy love, passionate love, obsessive love.

A new work, THE DREAM, choreographed by Lisa Lock, found the red, black and white costumed dancers moving to Ekectrocutango and Elecrotango. Staged with contemporary ballet movements, a dreamer and her dream characters created a fine parallel to the Latin moods and rhythms.

CARMEN, danced to the sensual music of Georges Bizet, was a fast paced, melodramatic vision created by Gula. It featured rapid moves, nice lifts and carries, and a variance from the usual CARMEN done with capes and bullfighting. The costuming worked well, except one can only wonder why Morgan Stinnet (Jose) was dressed in black chino pants, which was out of character and seemed to cut off his free flowing movements throughout the evening.

An excerpt from DRACULA, with music by John Pryce-Jones/Alfred Schnittke,

found the dancers performing in a gated-cemetery complete with gravestones and mysterious lighting. It was somber, dramatic and well fit the foreboding music. Kyle Primous was a visually imposing Dracula and Juliana Freude was a tempting tidbit for the bloodthirsty being.

BEYOND COURAGE was a tribute to World War II veterans, some of whom gave their lives while others suffered emotional scars, for love of country.

Set to video footage from composer Stephen Melillo’s THAT WE MIGHT LIVE, THEN, NOW. FOREVER., a documentary in music, the performance piece showed the battles of Bataan and Corregidor. The battle which lasted 3 years, 8 months and 25 days, resulted in 31,095 people losing their lives. Visual images and vocal transcriptions were seen and heard as the dancers moved.

A little overly long, BEYOND COURAGE was filled with melodrama and flag waving. The first part was powerful, but after an oral letter quoting segment, the effect wore off as more and more emphasis was placed on visuals and less on dancing.

The program was nicely balanced by two impressive interludes of music performed by the Credo String Quintet, a product of the Oberlin Conservatory’s Chamber Music Program.

Capsule judgement: Ohio Dance Theatre’s DRACULA AND OTHER LOVE STORIES was a nice balanced program of music, ballet and contemporary dance.

Miss Abigail's Guide to Dating, Mating, & Marriage

2012-02-11T14:09:00.003-05:00

Miss Abigail’s feeble attempt to give advice now on stage at 14th Street Theatre

The 14th Street Theatre, nestled between such big venue spots as the Hanna Theatre and the major venues on Euclid Avenue, has a unique place in Cleveland theatrical presentations. It’s where the “little” acts go to play. We’ve had a nun teaching us the catechism, a cross-dresser talking us into buying Tupperware, and now an “expert” spewing out facts from books about dating, mating and marriage while being stalked by her on-stage Hispanic assistant.

The scripted/adlibbed presentation is dependent upon a dynamic and quirky presence as Miss Abigail, and a fun and sexy male assistant named Paco. Laurie Birmingham, who plays Abby, appears to be a nice woman, but isn’t a forceful presence. She doesn’t have the adlibbing ability to compensate for the poorly written script. Gabriel Gutierrez is quite charming, but lacks naturalness and the stud factor. Their interactions lack meaningful spontaneity. It’s almost like they are reading from prompt cards, and not doing that well.

Based on the ideas of real-life advice columnist and blogger, Abigail Grotke, the concept is to get the audience to enjoy themselves and share their views, participate from their seats and on stage, and hear many theories about dating, mating and marriage. They were also asked to fill out cards which were to be used to flesh out the script. Only a couple were used, and those seemed like planted questions.

Having an audience that is sloshed, willing to be played with, and can be excited by mildly sexual innuendoes, helps. Unfortunately the small opening night crowd, many of whom were woman out for a night on the town, weren’t quite drunk and raucous enough to help much.

There were “prizes” for participation including a stick of gum and cards with “Miss Abigail’s 10 Commandments for Couples,” “Miss Abigail’s ask the looking glass!,” and The Miss Abigail Dldow.” These are inscribed with such sage wisdom as: “Men, always greet her with a kiss, especially when other people are present,” “Is my hair brushed?,” “Order some Chinese food,” and “When in doubt get counseling.”

The set, which arrived so late that the original opening night performance had to be cancelled, consisted of some old couches, a poorly painted cloth backdrop, and a ton of books, from which Miss Abigail read the quotes of experts. This is a low cost tour, with seemingly low level expectations. One can only wonder what the producers were thinking when they decided to send it on the road.

CAPSULE JUDGEMENT: The show’s websites list “reviews” from viewers as they exited the show. One person wrote what turns out to be my view of the show: “The idea was good but script was so bad that I couldn't really laugh even though I wanted to.”

Grounworks Dancetheater 2/12

2012-02-09T10:31:00.002-05:00

Groundworks presents compelling program at The Breen Center

David Shimotakahara’s Groundworks DanceTheater has received lots of awards and recognitions. They are well deserved. The artistic director and the company’s major choreographer continues to find fine dancers who are well-trained to continue the company’s tradition of having performers who are proficient, have fine body control, and can consistently perform at a high level. When one dancer leaves, he or she is replaced by another of equal or higher quality.

Though he didn’t choreograph a single piece in the company’s latest program

at the Breen Center, Shimotakahara’s perfectionist stamp was all over the performances.

Amy Miller, a former Groundworks dancer and presently the group’s Artistic Associate, left the area to move to New York, but returns to choreograph. Her VALENCE, was all Miller. Strong, powerful, controlled. The dancers moved with precision to a cacophony of sounds. The piece portrayed the capacity of one person or thing to react with or affect another. Like exploding atoms, the dancers ran, interacted and moved and affected each other. The two art forms of music and dance melded into a coherent purposeful piece. Dennis Dugan’s lighting well accented the actions.

CoDa, by Israeli choreographer Ronen Koresh, received its world premiere. It was danced to a variety of musical sounds and selections from such sources as Steppe, Seuls au monde and Invités sur la terre. Combining visual images from both Sephardic and Ashkenazy heritages, with moves of Hasidic and contemporary Israel, there was a heartiness, freshness and compelling presence to the dancing.

No story was told. Instead, it was a series of kinetic images that grab and hold an audience and was greeted by prolonged applause.

HINDSIGHT by Choreographer Lynn Taylor-Corbett concluded the exciting evening. Dancing to such songs as I’ll Stand By You, Hymn to Her, Rosalee, and Love’s A Mystery, the six-part piece, well used the dancers to create visual images that fit the music and created fine illusions.

Capsule judgement: Bravos to Felice Bagley, Sarah Perrett, Kathryn Taylor, Damien Highfield and Gary Lenington who effectively danced every number in the concert. Their abilities, along with fine choreography, made this a special evening of dance.

The Bluest Eye

2012-02-07T11:05:00.004-05:00

Morrison play highlights Black History month at Karamu

At the start of the Karamu production of THE BLUEST EYE we hear the voice of Shirley Temple singing. Yes, Shirley Temple, the cute Caucasian child movie star with the curly blond hair and bright blue eyes. That song harbors what is to come.

Toni Morrison, the author of the book, THE BLUEST EYE, which was the basis of the play by the same name, is a Nobel Prize winner. She was brought up in Lorain, Ohio, a blue collar city to the west of Cleveland, a city mainly populated by African Americans, Puerto Ricans and Hispanics who worked, for many years, in the steel mills, ship building yards, and auto plants. A city which in 1940, the year of the play, was still segregated. Where Lakeview Park, a city facility on the shores of Lake Erie, banned blacks.

THE BLUEST EYE was Morrison’s first book. It was written in 1970 while Morrison was teaching at Howard University. Ironically, because the novel deals with racism, incest and child molestation, there have been numerous attempts to ban it from schools and libraries. In the 1980s, when I served on the Board of Education in Elyria, a neighboring community to Lorain, a group of ministers had this title on the list of books it wanted to be eliminated from the school curriculum.

The story centers on one tragic year in the life of a young black girl. We find eleven-year-old Pecola Breedlove verbally abused and the victim of childhood incest. She is continually being told and reminded by her mother of what an “ugly” girl she is. She blames her horrible existence on her dark skin and brown eyes. If only she could have blue eyes, like Shirley Temple, love would follow. For part of that year she lives with a neighborhood family whose two daughters, Claudia and Frieda, tried to make a difference in her life, but the scars were just too deep.

In the afterword to a 1994 edition of the novel, Morrison said, “The book, doesn't effectively handle the silence at its center: the void that is Pecola's 'unbeing.'”

Lydia Diamond, who adapted the novel into a play format, has helped flesh out some of the void by adding monologues for Pecola that make it clear how desperate she is for a warm and kind touch, a voice of encouragement. To a degree, this makes Pecola’s final flight into insanity much clearer.

Karamu’s production, under the understanding direction of Fred Sternfeld, basically gets all it can out of the script. While the play is filled with compassion, because it is mainly a spoken book, and not a play with visual elements of physical action and conflict, it’s difficult to get immersed. The silence Morrison talked about is still present. We are observers, not participants.

The cast is generally fine. Andrea Belser is compelling as Pecola. She rings all the right notes out of a scene in which she is unknowingly cajoled into poisoning a dog, a dog, much like her, who is the victim of fate. Corlesia Smith gives a textured performance as Frieda. Stephanie Stovall is properly obnoxious as the heartless mother.

CAPSULE JUDGEMENT: THE BLUEST EYE is a good selection as a Black History month presentation by Karamu. It is the work of one of the country’s finest African American women writers and a local celebrity. It gets a credible production.

Spring Awakening

2012-02-05T12:55:00.005-05:00

Mesmerizing SPRING AWAKENING at Beck

On the way out of SPRING AWAKENING at Beck Center, my 16-year old grandson, known as the kid reviewer, said, “That was awesome. The singing, the acting, the music, the choreography, the staging, were all great!” Yes, Alex, you just experienced one of the finest theatrical works you may ever see.

SPRING AWAKENING, the Steven Sater (book and lyrics)-Duncan Sheik (music), folk-infused rock music drama, is based on a 1892 play by Frank Wedekind of Germany. The subject matter, which centers on teenagers on the road to self-discovery, portrays abortion, homosexuality, rape, child abuse and suicide. It was so controversial that its original source was banned for public view for over one hundred years.

The play is a powerful indictment against late 19th century Germany, where strict rules regarding right and wrong, and wide-spread hypocrisy were rampant. Sex wasn’t discussed, the reasons for actions weren’t revealed, and adults held strict control. It is relevant to modern day American where the religious right sometimes parallels the machinations of the adults in Wedekind’s script.

The play consists mainly of spoken and sung dialogues among the children, with an interspersing of voices of the adults. Wedekind has given the voices the ability to open our eyes, in gripping ways, to the joys and sorrows, hopes and despair, and struggles and the resulting tragedies. Tragedies in which the most promising children are sacrificed due a lack of appreciation and understanding from their teachers and parents.

We meet Melchior, intelligent, handsome and charismatic, who sees the corruption around him, but is powerless to change the events. There is Moritz, physically stronger but psychologically frail. He’s the product of a harsh father, and is pushed to near insanity when he fails an exam and eventually is led to suicide. Wendla is in love with Melchior, and naively becomes pregnant by him. Her fall from grace is based on her lack of knowledge about human sexuality, and still believing that “children are brought by storks.” She, too, becomes a tragic product of her culture’s rules. We also view Ilse, who runs away from a sexually abusive home, another product of the rules of the game of life.

We are left at the end of the epic with Melchior, his friends all destroyed, needing to find a reason to go on with his life.

This is a relevant play that has already, and should open additional eyes of the hypocritically blind to the need for sex education, understanding of the teenage mind and the hypocrisy of developing illogical and unbending rules for the sake of tradition.

The Broadway production won eight Tony Awards in 2007. The Baldwin Wallace-Beck Center collaboration, under the keen eye of Victoria Bussert, is as good as the professional shows I saw on Broadway and on-tour. This is Bussert at her best!

The staging is creative, encompassing, focused. The pacing is fine…slow when necessary, fast when appropriate. Ryan Fielding Garrett’s band, which is on stage during the entire production, expertly backs up, rather than drowning out the singers, the vocal blends are excellent, and even though several of the cast don’t have superb singing voices…they so well interpret the words of the songs, that it matters naught.

Zach Adkins, a young Brad Pitt look-alike, is compelling as Melchior. He displays a complete understanding of the mental and emotional workings of the role. As we see him standing alone at the end of the play we can only feel strong emotional bonding with the real person Adkins has created. His song All That’s Known is appealing, while Left Behind is emotionally revealing.

James Penca is spot-on as the conflicted Moritz. He develops a young man unable to fight off the power of his father and members of the school staff, who demand what Moritz is unable to give. His The Bitch of Living is a show highlight, as is Don’t Do Sadness.

Pretty Kyra Kennedy makes for a perfect Wendla. She creates a complete character who displays appropriate naivety and passion. Her Mama Who Bore Me was a strong curtain raiser and Those You’ve Known, a trio with Adkins and Penca, was tear-inducing.

The chorus was excellent, weaving in an out of the scenes with clarity and concentration.

Gregory Daniel’s choreography, Jeff Herrmann’s set and light designs, Richard Ingraham’s sound design, and Alison Garrigan’s costumes all make SPRING AWAKENING a special evening of theatre.

The show is advertised as 17 and older. When I asked Alex if he was uncomfortable, especially in the presence of his grandparents, he gave a, “no way” response. You have to know your teen, but the lessons to be learned from this script are great. In fact, if the characters in this play had known what they could have learned from being exposed to this material, there would have been no need for Wedekind to write the play.

CAPSULE JUDGEMENT: SPRING AWAKENING is an emotionally stirring, relevant, and well staged production. This is not a should see, it’s a must see presentation. Bravo! Bravo! Bravo!

Lower Ninth

2012-02-03T22:43:00.003-05:00

Ensemble’s LOWER NINTH gives a snapshot of New Orleans following Katrina

In 2005, Hurricane Katrina swept through New Orleans. While the nation watched in horror, the event and the area were mainly ignored by then-President George Bush. When the President finally appeared on the scene, he praised the work of Mike Brown, his director of FEMA in spite of the ineptitude of the agency and their chaotic response.

The Lower Ninth Ward is the area within New Orleans downriver industrial canal, which is near the mouth of the Mississippi River. This area, mainly populated by African Americans, is still not rebuilt.

Beau Willimon’s LOWER NINTH gives a short glimpse of three men, two alive and one dead, who are stranded on the roof of a house following the storm. As the days and nights go past, a story is told of the relationships of these men. It also gives a glimpse of life before the catastrophe and maybe an insight into what is to come.

Willimon was the recipient of the Lila Acheson Wallace Julliard Playwriting Fellowship and the Lincoln Center Le Compte du Nuoy Award. He is best known for his play FARRAGUT NORTH which was adapted into the film THE IDES OF MARCH, which starred George Clooney.

LOWER NINTH is a she slice of life story which centers on Bible-quoting Malcolm, and E-Z, the son of the woman he lived with for many years. The duo are sweltering on a house roof waiting to be saved from the sea of contaminated water that surrounds them. Though their backgrounds are only hinted at, we gain a base understanding of each man. The connection seems to grow as they become more and more desperate. Also on the roof is Lowboy, a friend of E-Z’s, whose body was dragged out of the water in a failed attempt to save him.

The play, which is getting its area debut, does hold the viewers interest, but it is not extremely well developed. It is more a series of character studies rather than having a focused story with a beginning, middle and end. The themes are not clear, the motivations are only hinted at, and it is difficult to clearly state the play’s purpose.

Ensemble’s production, under the focused direction of Celeste Cosentino, is well paced, and the inclusion of visual images of clouds, sun and overcast skies, helps in building the tedious and sweltering mood of life on the roof. Steve Vasse-Hansell’s rooftop set gives a clear image of the isolation of the characters from the rest of the world.

William Clarence Marshall fully develops the role of Malcolm. He shows us a man who has found God, and transferred from a hinted-at history of abandoned accountability and social transgressions, to a person who has assumed his responsibilities.

E-Z, is a conflicted young soul, who appears to have had little male guidance and doesn’t really know who he is. He covers his insecurities with pseudo-macho mannerisms and ghetto language. J’Vaughn T. Briscoe fleshes out the role well.

Lowboy, was a drug dealer who had once saved E-Z from a school yard beating, thus earning life-long respect from the boy. Joseph Primes makes the most of a character whose motivations aren’t clearly etched.

CAPSULE JUDGEMENT: LOWER NINTH gives the viewer an insight into life in New Orleans immediately following Katrina. Though it gets a good production at Ensemble, it isn’t a well developed piece of theatrical literature. It’s worth seeing to gain an understanding of a topic that has not been showcased on stage.

In Arabia We`'d All Be Kings

2012-02-02T18:18:00.002-05:00

IN ARABIA WE’D ALL BE KINGS inaugurates Lab Theatre in Allen Complex

It’s been an amazing year for the Cleveland Play House. On Fall of 2011 they moved into their new Allen Theatre home, a beautiful and functional facility in the Playhousesquare complex. Last month they produced their first-ever theatre in the round production in their new Second Stage performance space. And, now, the Helen Rosenfeld Lewis Bialosky Lab Theatre is open for productions.

The Lab Theatre is a flexible black box. For IN ARABIA WE’D ALL BE KINGS, performed by the Case Western Reserve University Cleveland Play House MFA Acting Program, the space was set in a runway configuration. In this type of staging, the audience sits in parallel sections opposite each other, with the action taking place on a rectangular space between the seated groups of viewers. Think—the traditional high school football stadium—in minature.

The format worked well for the in-your-face writing of Stephen Adly Guirgis. The Irish-American/Egyptian Guirgis, who was nominated for a Tony Award for his THE MOHTERF* *KER WITH THE HAT, is one of America’s new breed of playwrights. IN ARABIA WE’D ALL BE KINGS, like much of Guirgis’s writing, is gritty, free form, and uses the language of the streets. There is no sugar coating, no happy endings, no political correctness, just no-holds-barred realism.

The play is set in a Manhattan bar. It’s the kind of dive that most educated, suburban people, would walk out of as soon as they walked in. The place is sleazy, it’s inhabited by the “sociological sub-strata” which Guirgis seems to know so well. Among others, there is a recently released from jail thug, a prostitute, a junkie, and, a drunk whose entire life is spent sitting on his corner-of-the world bar stool.

The play is about a group of dysfunctional people who have formed their own community with their fellow bar inhabitants. These are people who live by their wits, often perpetuating violence and often are on the receiving end of it. These are the people who used to populate New York’s Hell’s Kitchen until the city cleaned up its act and closed their homes-away-from home. These off-beats who have nothing more to do than dream far-fetched dreams, living in the constant hope that things will work out for the better, and escape from reality through drugs, sex, liquor and talking, were left without their culture and way of life when the bars and flop houses were shuttered.

Guirgis’s dialogue is filled with language that might easily offend…racial and ethnic slurs, swearing, gutter slang. They say what pops into their often-confused minds. These are feeling, not thinking people.

On the surface, theatre-goers, who tend to be the type who have probably never come in direct contact with this urban underclass, might be repulsed by the motley group. Yet, as written about by Guirgis, there is audience understanding, compassion, a feeling of being sorry for and wanting to reach out to these misguided folks.

The playwright is an actor turned writer, and, as such, he gives his thespians the material to work with. He writes complete characters whose motivations are transparent. He sets forth language that is natural and real. The motivations that push the characters forward and the story are clear. He writes isolated scenes rather than the usual flowing script which has transitions from one segment to another. He doesn’t waste words…the viewer can fill in the blanks. Often he motivates stunned silence, at times he forces laughter, often out of embarrassment rather than a joke or a funny instance. This is heady stuff.

Ron Wilson’s direction is spot on. The action whips along, the characterizations are clear, and the staging creative. He is aided by a group of first year MFA students who show potential for making this a very special class.

Everyone in the cast is strong. Especially effective were Stephen Spencer as Skank, a spaced-out druggie, whose ability to live in a fantasy world is clearly etched. Spencer is Skank, Skank is Spencer! Christa Hinckley is appropriately pathetic as the needy, airheaded Christie, who will do anything, including prostituting herself, for drugs. Therese Anderberg (Demaris) has a wonderful touch with exaggerated comedy.

Tiffany Scribner’s scuzzy realistic bar and street corner sets visually take us where we need to be.

CAPSULE JUDGMENT: IN ARABIA WE’D ALL BE KINGS gets an impressive production and is a perfect vehicle to open CPH’s new Lab Theatre. Due to its language and subject matter, it’s not a play for everyone, but those interested in having an up-front emotionally involving theatrical theatre experience, should definitely see this production.

Inbal Pinto and Avshalom Pollak Dance Company

2012-01-30T10:16:00.001-05:00

Israeli dance troupe captivates audience

When Pam Young, the Executive Director of Dance Cleveland, went to Tel Aviv, Israel to attend the International Exposure in Dance, she had an ulterior motive. Young was looking for companies for future programs. There were 40 dance troupes from 30 countries present. Young was drawn to Inbal Pinto and Avshalom Pollak Dance Company, an Israeli group. She set her sights on bringing them to Cleveland. Young not only succeeded in getting them to come, but to open their 2012 United States tour at Playhouse Square’s Ohio Theatre.

Besides Dance Cleveland’s usual corporate sponsors, the logistics of bringing in the troupe was provided by the newly formed Cleveland Israel Arts Connection, Jewish Federation of Cleveland, Mandel Jewish Community Center of Cleveland, and the Maltz Museum of Jewish Heritage.

An Israeli dance troupe. That translates to Klemzer and cantorial music and Sephardic and Ashkenazi folk dances. Right? Wrong!

The Inbal Pinto and Avshalom Pollak Dance Company blew away the capacity audience with the one-act, hour-long production of OYSTER, an ingenious creation which gives the illusion of a circus-world of wandering street people whose intimate artistic vision speaks of truths.

The full-length work is filled with dreamlike qualities which reminds the viewer of the works of Fellini and Tim Burton. It is set to the music of Piazzola, Leoncavallo, Harry James, Yma Sumac and the Tuvan throat singers. The latter is a variant of overtone singing practiced by the Tuva people of southern Siberia. The effect is mesmerizing and lends itself to an almost mystic-like involvement.

The troupe has 13 dancers who range in age from very young to 75 years of age, and are of diverse nationalities and backgrounds.

OYSTER is a series of scenes which are done with amazing fluidity. The movements require great physical control. It is both dramatic and comedic. According to the choreographers, the presentation is constantly being updated through rehearsal, performance, polishing and cast changes.

It’s almost impossible to give a blow-by-blow description of OYSTER as it contains ballet, modern dance, gymnastics, mime, acrobatics, flying figures, illusion, dramatic lighting effects, shadow movements, and the unexpected, all blending into a fascinating whole.

The printed program contained a column entitled Dance Matters by former Plain Dealer dance critic Wilma Salisbury. It was an interesting discussion, not only of Pinto/Pollack, but of why dance is important.

Capsule judgement: It’s too bad that the Inbal Pinto and Avshalom Pollak Dance Company was only at the Allen for two performances. The positive word of mouth would have sold out many, many concerts. Let’s hope that Dance Cleveland brings the company back…sooner, rather than later.

Martin Céspedes: choreographer extraordinaire

2012-01-29T10:39:00.004-05:00

Spotlight on Martin Céspedes: choreographer extraordinaire

And, the award for the Best Choreography for a Musical Theatre Production in the Cleveland area during 2011 goes to Martin Céspedes for his reinvention of the dancing and staging for JOSEPH AND THE AMAZING TECHNICOLOR DREAMCOAT at Beck Center. This type of citation is not unusual for the
Westlake resident.

Céspedes has been the recipient of more than ten Times [newspapers] Theatre Tributes awards. He was nominated by Northern Ohio Live for their theater award in 2005, 2006 and 2009. He was named by Scene Magazine as Cleveland’s Best Choreographer of 2006. He was highlighted for his theatrical work by Bravo magazine. He was nominated for the award as Outstanding Cleveland Choreographer by Broadway World.com. (The results have not yet been announced.)  

Born in New York, Céspedes is a first generation American. His mother, who was a professional singer, is Puerto Rican. His father is Spanish.  

He started to gain his dance knowledge when, in fifth grade, he was selected to participate in the elite Jacques d’Amboise’s National Dance Institute in New York City’s PS 161 Program. He was active in that group until, after his parent’s divorce, he moved to Lorain, Ohio to be near his mother’s family.  

During high school, he danced in and choreographed local shows and was selected to appear on Cleveland TV’s ‘DANCE FEVER’ and NBC’s ‘WEEKDAY FEVER.’ After graduation he continued his training as an apprentice at the Denver Dance Theatre. While studying there, he saw a casting call for a professional western area tour of ‘GUYS AND DOLLS.’ He tried out, was selected, dropped out of the Denver company, and his professional career was underway.  

He went on to appear in the national tours of ‘MAN OF LA MANCHA’ with Jack Jones, ‘THE KING AND I’ with Hayley Mills, ‘SOUTH PACIFIC’ with Robert Goulet and ‘WEST SIDE STORY’ with Bebe Neuwirth. He danced in opening acts for “Earth, Wind and Fire” and the “Bee Gees.”

  Céspedes worked as theatre impresario John Kenley’s assistant, running dance rehearsals during the legendary producer’s last several seasons in Akron. He served as associate choreographer and fight captain for the PBS production of ‘LE CID’ with Placido Domingo. He has also choreographed for Great Lakes Theatre Festival, Cleveland Opera, Cleveland State University, Baldwin Wallace College, and The University of Akron Opera Department. 

Céspedes considers himself to be a “hybrid director-choreographer in the mode of Jerome Robbins, Michael Kidd, and Bob Fosse.” Many in the Cleveland area would agree with him.

What’s in the future? Coming up are BLOODY BLOODY ANDREW JACKSON and LEGALLY BLONDE, THE MUSICAL at Beck Center. Then, MY WAY, A MUSICAL TRIBUTE TO FRANK SINATRA and MAN OF LAMANCHA at True North Cultural Arts.

Having just been inducted into SSDC, the national union for directors and choreographers, Céspedes feels he is “at the point where I am ready to break out.” Does this mean he will leave Cleveland? Though locals may hope not, it is going to be hard to keep this talented man in the area if prestige venues call.  

For more information about Céspedes go to www.martincespedes.com

Ten Chimneys

2012-01-19T18:22:00.004-05:00

Cleveland Play House inaugurates Second Stage with TEN CHIMNEYS

Believe it or not, for much of the 20th century, Genesee Depot, Wisconsin, was considered the center of the U. S. theatrical world. The site houses Ten Chimneys, the home of Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne, considered by many to be the king and queen of Broadway theatre. The likes of Helen Hayes, Laurence Olivier and Katharine Hepburn were guests. In 2003, Ten Chimneys was opened as a museum for theater, the arts and the art of living (www.tenchimneys.org).

The Cleveland Play House’s Michael Bloom directed, Jeffrey Hatcher written TEN CHIMNEYS attempts to introduce us to the life style, acting skills and personal relationship of Lunt and Fontaine.

The play had its world premiere last January at Tucson’s Arizona Theatre Company, which commissioned the piece. Since then, due to positive reviews, it has become a much sought-after vehicle.

TEN CHIMNEYS is not totally factual, but is based on Hatcher’s imagination and information he gleaned about the couple, their life style and choices. The author indicates that his interest in the project had three thrusts: he was in the Lunt-Fontanne Theater in New York the day Lunt died in 1977 and became curious about the man, his reading of Hagen’s book, RESPECT FOR ACTING, and a tour of Ten Chimneys.

The story is set in the late 1930s. Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne have decided to perform Anton Chekhov's The Sea Gull. They plan and rehearse the play at Ten Chimneys, their legendary Wisconsin estate, surrounded by actors, Lunt’s mother, step-sister and step-brother. When a young actress named Uta Hagen arrives, a romantic triangle begins to mirror the events in Chekhov's play about passion and art.

Lunt, who was generally recognized as his era’s finest actor, was so confident of his abilities on stage that he made a point of playing at least one protracted sequence with his back to the audience, conveying his character's emotions with his voice and body rather than his face. (A technique Donald Carrier does as well in playing the role.)

Fontanne, born in Britain, was noted for her comic skills, but also possessed the ability to play great drama.

One issue that has fascinated theatre gossips for years was the couple’s sexual orientation. A book about them, DESIGN FOR LIVING, recounts that, “Their marriage was almost certainly sexless. Passion was what they enacted on the stage.” As Fontanne herself said: ''We were friends right away. . . . I loved him utterly. We were in the same profession. We were like twins.'' Hardly sounds like a recipe for romantic love or sexual passion.

The play hints at Lunt’s life issues: an enmeshed relationship with his mother; a series of love letters from Ray Weaver, a life long friend and roommate; and, his close friendship with Noel Coward, who was such a frequent visitor at 10 Chimneys that he had his own bedroom.

The script is filled with witty lines, sarcasm and snappy comebacks. For example, when Sidney Greenstreet, who was a stage actor before becoming a movie actor in such classics as THE MALTESE FALCON and CASABLANCA, cuts down his on-stage performing, Fontaine asks him "but don't you miss acting?" The run-ins between Fontanne and Hattie Sederholm, Lunt’s mother light up the stage. For example, when Lynn learns a package has arrived and breaks into a run to get it, her mother-in-law says, “only a full-length mirror could cause her to move so fast.”

Unfortunately, there are places where the writing lags in keeping the action moving.

CPH’s production is audience appealing and filled with humor, but seems overly long due to some languid pacing.

Donald Carrier makes for a wonderful Lunt. He plays off others well and creates a finely honed character. Kelli Ruttle is appealing as Uta Hagen (the multi-Tony award winning actress). She does an excellent transition from young ingénue at the start of the play to mature actress at the conclusion.

Emmy Award winning Mariette Hartley is spot on as Lunt’s drama queen mother. She has a great time with both the satirical and manipulative scenes. Gail Rastorfer suffers wonderfully as Lunt’s put upon step-sister. Jeremy Kendall as Lunt’s step-brother Carl, gets all he can from his limited role. Michael McCarty not only has the Greenstreet girth, but hints at the real life person without doing an imitation.

Jordan Baker never seems to totally grasp the underbelly of Lynn Fontanne. This is a hard role to portray. It requires being the passionate Fontanne of on-stage life, while being the dispassionate Fontanne of real life. In addition, there needs to be precise timing in order to get laughter from the sarcastic lines. Somehow, in spite of some excellent moments, Baker just doesn’t give complete texturing to the role.

Set changes, musical choices which are era correct, and lighting effects are all quite good.

The Second Stage is a completely flexible theatre. For this production, the configuration is theatre-in-the square, meaning the stage is completely surrounded by the audience. Only 6 rows deep, there are no bad sight line problems seats. Be warned, however, that if you are not steady on your feet, that requesting front or back row seats is advisable. You can get to the ground row via an elevator by requesting help of the house manager. You enter the theatre, which goes down from the entrance, so anyone can easily get to the top row. (Sounds confusing, but once you get into the theatre you’ll understand.) In addition, the 19 steps down to the seating rows are quite narrow, as are the spaces between rows, resulting in some people expressing fear of falling.

CAPSULE JUDGMENT: Even if it’s not of the same quality as the company’s first three shows in their new home, audiences should generally like CPH’s TEN CHIMNEYS. It’s very worth seeing.

Hair

2012-01-19T17:49:00.002-05:00

No bombs greet this version of HAIR at Playhouse Square

Theatre is representative of the era from which it comes. Seeing a play that reflects a specific time period reveals the cultural attitudes of the people and society of that instance.

Seeing HAIR, “The American Tribal Love-Rock Musical,” gives a vivid film clip of the 1960s and early 70s in the U.S. It was the era of the anti-war movement, rebellion against traditional societal patterns. It was the time of sit-ins on college campuses, hippie communes, flower children, pot smoking, tie-dye wearing, long hair, swearing and public nudity. It was a period of rage against the military-industrial complex. It was the time of a clear generational divide. If the young people could find a way to upset their elders, it was the “in” thing to do.

Written by Gerome Ragni and James Rado, the show’s book was put to music by Galt MacDermot. Its slim story was based on the authors’ personal experiences. It centers on Claude, a member of the hippie community, who sells out and allows himself to be taken into the Army rather than burn his draft card or go to Canada. The play concludes with Claude laying in a death-like pose on an American flag.

When the show first opened, it engendered strong protest. In fact, on April 25, 1971, a bomb exploded in front of Cleveland’s Hanna Theatre during the Age of Aquarius show’s run at that venue.

HAIR broke all sorts of theatrical traditions. Members of the cast, known as the “tribe,” constantly jumped off the stage and interacted with members of the audience, invited patrons to dance with them, and they gave flowers and hugs to the unsuspecting. The U.S. flag was used as parts of costumes and burned. There was full-frontal nudity. Swearing, sexual acts, pot smoking, mocking of parents, a dance-in after the curtain call invited everyone to come forward and “be themselves.” There was an intentional ignoring of theater’s proverbial “fourth wall,” a separation of the stage actions from the audience.

This is not a well-written book musical. The plot meanders, the songs don’t fit into the story, often doing nothing to move the plot along. Again, a break from the traditional musical of the day. Though often referred to as the “grand daddy of the rock musicals,” its really a mélange of music and imagery. The music changes from rock to country to ballad to African American rhythms.

The show intends to incite strong reactions. How could a script which includes such lines as represented by signs carried during a protest which state “I saw god (note the small g) and she’s black,” “It’s a war that sends blacks to kill yellows for whites who stole their lands from the reds,” and “lay don’t slay,” not bring about reaction…especially in the 1960s?

The highlight of action centers on Claude’s hallucinatory drug trip in Act II where a series of horrifying visions, loaded with historical figures who are presented in the oddest contexts. It’s a microcosm of the whole show, which essentially unfolds like a tune-filled acid trip that gives HAIR its distinctive period edge.

So, how does the show wear over 50 years? The times they have changed. Reaction to swearing, smoking of pot, nudity, and protest are mundane by today’s standards. Many of the references are beyond the knowledge of the younger members of the audience. Unless you are an uptight conservative or an evangelical, who are not candidates to attend this show, the goings on won’t evoke much reaction. Only the wonder of “what was all the fuss about?”

Some of the music has lost its luster. Aquarius didn’t send me off onto a journey of effervescence. In fact, as sung by Phyre Hawkins, it wasn’t compelling. Hashish, in this age of rampant drug usage, is just a song. On the other hand, I Believe in Love, Easy to be Hard, and Good Morning Starshine, have held up. Of course, having the luminous Sara King singing them helped as did their themes which aren’t era bound. Other highlights were Manchester England, Black Boys/White Boys, Donna, and Where Do I Go?.

The cast is good. Handsome, charismatic Marshal Kennedy Carolan, who was substituting in the role of Claude on opening night, displayed a fine singing voice and made for a sympathetic character who gave in to the system, rather than standing with his “tribe.” Baldwin Wallace grad, Steel Burkhardt, was sensual, sexual and like a kid with ADD as he yelled, screamed and cavorted all over the stage and into the audience as he sang up a storm as Berger. Sara King mesmerized as Sheila. Will Blum was a stitch as a cross-dressing Margaret Mead. Ryan Link was effectively spaced-out as Woof.

The on-stage musicians, some of whom seemed bored after the long road tour, still produced an effective sound and underscored the singers, rather than playing a rock concert and drowning out the important words. The sound system made hearing words an easy task.

CAPSULE JUDGEMENT: HAIR is a classic musical, which entered the theatre into an era of reflection of the turbulent era of the 60s. For those who want to relive the era, or who want to discover what was going on during those times, it’s a good nostalgic trip. A little tired from a long road trip, this isn’t a great production, but it is entertaining.

A Song for Coretta

2012-01-14T21:30:00.005-05:00

Ensemble’s A SONG FOR CORETTA points spotlight on the other civil rights King

The recent dedication of the Martin Luther King, Jr. memorial in Washington, DC, draws further attention to the person credited with being the father of the African American civil rights movement. Often, the effect of his wife, Coretta, seems to be ignored.

Coretta Scott King was a leader, author, and the founder and former president of the King Center. She was a recipient of the Congressional Gold Medal and the Gandhi Peace Prize. Many also know that Mrs. King was a trained singer who was preparing for a career as a vocalist when she met a young preacher, Martin Luther King in the 1950s. Together they helped change history.

Pearl Cleage, in her play A SONG FOR CORETTA, now in production at Ensemble Theatre, explores the impact Mrs. King had on the lives of black women, and the connections they can build with one another through honoring her memory and legacy.

It’s Atlanta, Georgia, on a rainy afternoon in 2006 in front of the Ebenezer Baptist Church, where the body of Coretta Scot King is lying in state. She has died at age 78 after battling ovarian cancer and the effects of a stroke.

A bench center stage is emblazoned with a sign stating, “A seat for those who walked in Montgomery in 1955.” The march that, along with the bus strike that brought Rosa Parks to fame, and the restaurant sit-ins, resulted in breaking the back of segregation in the U.S.

The play centers on five women who are in line to pay their respects to the woman who many think of as a saint of the black community.

Fifty-seven year old Helen, a pious, up-tight, and proud Negro woman, met Mrs. King several times when, as a child, her parents took her to civil rights activities. She rode on the Montgomery bus the day the transit company gave in and let Blacks sit wherever they wanted in the vehicles.

Helen knows her civil rights history and is concerned with the decline of young peoples' values and their lack of interest in the history of the struggle for equal rights. Her fears are confirmed when she meets Gwendolyn, a 17 year old, who has just left an abortion clinic where she had gone to void herself of her second pregnancy. Lil Bit, Gwendolyn’s nick name, knows the words to rap music, but is unaware of any civil rights songs or the purpose or impact of the movement.

Zora is a 22-year-old journalism student who hopes her interviews with people waiting in line will be aired on National Public Radio.

Mona Lisa, a 40-year-old artist who survived the destruction and human horror of Hurricane Katrina, lost almost everything, and lives in her car.

Gwen is a traumatized Iraq war veteran, who is questioning the purpose of the war and the folly of service to her country.

Their serendipitous meeting brings them together and helps each to gain some understanding of how their lives are intertwined and have been influenced by Coretta Scott King.

Taylor’s script is purposeful and filled with the educational material that makes it a good choice for Black History month. It consists mainly of dialogue, with little action. There is some humor mixed in with history lessons and drama.

Ensemble’s production, under the direction of Margaret Ford Taylor is quite acceptable, but sometimes lacks the proper pacing and character development to bring out the impact of the script. In general, the actors stay mainly on the surface, feigning emotion and meaning, though there were moments of depth of motivation. Generally, however, they present characterizations rather than becoming the people they portray. It’s sometimes hard to feel the pain each of these women feels because our emotions aren’t stimulated.

We needed more of the emotional involvement displayed by Sonia Bishop (Gwen), when she exposes us to the horrors she experienced in the middle east.

CAPSULE JUDGEMENT: A SONG FOR CORETTA sets its focus on CORETTA SCOTT KING. It’s worth seeing Ensemble’s production to gain the seldom exposed tale of this important American history icon.

Steel Burkhardt....Berger in Touring Company of HAIR

2012-01-11T09:35:00.003-05:00

The Steelman of HAIR, a BW product!

He has a superman inked logo on his arm with flashes of fire shooting out around it. He devotes huge amounts of energy working out at the gym. He spends a lot of time in public with either no clothes on or clothed only in a loin cloth. Fans are drawn to his charisma. Is he a super hero? No, he’s Steel Burkhardt, who plays the role of Berger in the touring production of HAIR, which is going to be playing at the Palace Theatre in downtown Cleveland from January 17th through the 29th.

Burkhardt, whose nickname is Steelman, is from Union, New Jersey. His local claim to fame is his attendance and graduation from Baldwin Wallace College.

How did he get from the Garden State to tiny Berea, Ohio?

During a recent phone interview, Burkhardt indicated that when he started his search for the “right” college, he was drawn to BW because of it’s ranking in the top five college musical theatre programs. During his first visit he instantly fell in love with the beautiful campus with places to ride his bike, the curriculum’s emphasis on self-empowerment and self-growth, the supportive rather than competitive nature of the program, and the quality of instruction.

He praises such faculty members as voice professor, Timothy Mussard, one of America’s most distinguished Heldentenors; Janeice Kelley-Kiteley, the dynamic, now retired dance instructor; Dr. Ellen Posman, Associate Professor of Religion; and, of course, Victoria Bussert, the heart of the music theatre program.

Bussert returned the admiration when she said of Steel, “I loved having him as a student -- always fun, generous and grounded.”

Burkhardt found that the BW stress on a music background, classical training and a balanced program allowed him to soar. It allowed him to present himself to potential agents and casting directors when he performed in the 2007 Senior Showcase in New York. It was from this experience that he got his agent and eventually was cast in the Central Park production of HAIR, which was followed by his performance in the revival of the show on Broadway, the London production, and now, the lead role of Berger in the touring production.

Ironically, Brukhardt’s introduction to HAIR was when he appeared in the show at BW.

Answers to questions he’s asked about the touring production:
•Yes, the famous nude scene, which caused bomb threats and pickets during the NY and touring show, climaxed on April 25, 1971, when a bomb exploded in front of Cleveland’s Hanna Theatre during the Age of Aquarius show’s run. Cast members are encouraged but not required to take off their clothes.
•The long tresses he displays on stage are his own…no extensions or a wig. He washes his hair once a week and just shakes it out and he’s ready to go.
•The show is Claude’s journey through free love and is personified by his love affair with Burger, which is implied but never really acted out on stage.
•The dance party at the end of the show when the audience members are invited up on stage to rock away is always energizing and is a celebration of life which encourages audience members to be “who you are.”
•The tour ends, ironically, in Cleveland, and then Burkhardt is back to New York to try out for hopefully a major role in another show.

An online bio summarizes Steel Burkhardt and HAIR. “Once upon a time Steel graduated from a school called Baldwin Wallace. He was shy in a small concert, then got naked in Central Park, was nude on a Broadway stage, then bared it again on the West End. Now he is ready for America…then perhaps the World!”

Special note: For a enlightening backstage tour of HAIR conducted by Steel Burkhardt go to: http://www.broadway.com/shows/hair/buzz/157333/hair-star-steel-burkhardt-invites-you-on-an-exclusive-backstage-tour/

Review of Reviewer's reviews--Stuart and Joyce Wallace

2012-01-10T21:11:00.003-05:00

Thank you for your continuous marvelous reviews.

Stuart and Joyce Wallace

Baldwin Wallace College/A source for Broadway Talent

2012-01-02T22:09:00.003-05:00

Cleveland’s Baldwin Wallace Musical College a source for Broadway Talent

There are many music theatre programs in the country. One of the repudiated “top five” is tucked away in tiny Berea, Ohio, a southwest suburb of Cleveland.

Yes, Baldwin Wallace College is exploding with talent that it unleashes upon the professional theatre world. There are a double digit of BW grads performing in, or getting ready to open in Broadway shows. Numerous others are running theatre companies, appearing in various professional theatre productions around the country, appearing on London's West End, and are trodding the boards on cruise ships and theme parks.

It’s the goal of the BW Music Theatre program to prepare students to compete successfully, and to sustain careers, as performers on national and international stages. The program offers an Intensive Conservatory-style training in Music (theory, solo & ensemble voice, and instrumental performance), In addition, Acting (for the stage and on-camera), and Dance (ballet, jazz and tap) help comprise the core performance instruction. The program has a very competitive entrance procedure, a limited enrollment, and strong academic rigor. Besides the Music Theatre major there are dance and Arts Management tracks.

The BW program has partnered with Cleveland’s PlayhouseSquare in both performance and arts management, as well as with the Beck Center for the Arts in suburban Lakewood.

The 2011-12 theatre season has seen or will see these BW grads on stage: Steel Burkhardt - HAIR (starred last summer on Broadway and is currently the lead in the National Tour); Kyle Post – SPIDERMAN; Hillary Elk – MEMPHIS; Cassie Okenka -- BONNIE AND CLYDE; Corey Mach – GODSPELL; Libby Servais - WICKED and LYSISTRATA JONES; Kevin David Thomas --REBECCA (opening in February); David Cameron Anderson – REBECCA; Trista Moldovan - PHANTOM OF THE OPERA (took over as the primary Christine on Broadway, December 9, 2011); Jen Noble -- GHOST, JR Bruno--national tour of THE BOOK OF MORMON; and Jill Paice--DEATH TAKES A HOLIDAY.

Victoria Bussert serves as the Director of the Music Theatre program. She is also a Resident Director at Great Lakes Theatre, while Scott Plate is the Department Chair.

Times Theatre Tributes--2011

2012-01-02T10:30:00.003-05:00

TIMES THEATRE TRIBUTES--2011

Greater Cleveland is blessed with a vital theatre scene. It is the purpose of the TIMES THEATRE TRIBUTES to recognize theatrical experiences that, in the mind of this reviewer, were excellent and deserve recognition.

Only shows performed in 2011 which I reviewed were considered. Selections were limited to locally produced stagings, so none of the professional touring shows are recognized, though actors, directors and technicians who were imported by local theatres were considered. Actors are not separated by gender, equity or lack of union affiliation, or leading or supporting roles.

2011 BEST DRAMATIC PRODUCTIONS:
THE TRIP TO BOUNTIFUL (CPH)
INSOMNIA THE WAKING OF HERSELVES (CPT)
HUCK AND HOLDEN (Ensemble)
RACE (Beck)
THE LIFE OF GALILEO (CPH)

2011 BEST MUSICAL THEATRE PRODUCTIONS:
A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC (FPAC)
CHICAGO (Porthouse)

2011 BEST CHOREOGRAPHY IN A MUSICAL THEATRE PRODUCTION:
Céspedes, Martin , JOSEPH AND THE AMAZING TECHNICOLOR DREAMCOAT (Beck)

2011 BEST PERFORMANCES IN A THEATRICAL PRODUCTION:
Mitchell, Lizan, THE TRIP TO BOUNTIFUL (CPH)
Kendall, Jeremy, A STEADY RAIN (Dobama)
Caraballo, Daniel, HUCK AND HOLDEN (Ensemble)
Hart, Dana, ST. NICHOLAS (Ensemble)

SPECIAL RECOGNITION:
Roe Green for her major contribution and underwriting of the Fusion Festival at the Cleveland Play House.

The staff, Board of Directors and management of the Cleveland Play House for their farsighted move to Playhousesquare.

Gina Vernaci, in working with New York’s Dodger Productions, to bring the developmental project, THE FAT CAMP to the Hanna Theatre.

Cleveland Play House, PlayhouseSquare Center, Cleveland State University for the re-creation of the Allen Theatre.

Jeremy Paul, Theatre Ninjas, for continued creativity in development of new and creative theatrical presentations.

Celeste Cosentino for giving new life to Ensemble Theatre.

Thanks to the following for making the 2011 theatre scene in the Cleveland area stimulating and memorable:

PLAY/MUSICAL
A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC (FPAC)
A STEADY RAIN (Dobama)
CHICAGO (Porthouse)
COMPANY (Fairmount PAC)
DARWINII (CPT)
DADDY LONG LEGS (CPH)
HUCK AND HOLDEN (Ensemble)
INSOMNIA THE WAKING OF HERSELVES (CPT)
JOSEPH AND THE AMAZING TECHNICOLOR DREAMCOAT (Beck)
MY NAME IS ASHER LEV (CPH)
PASSING STRANGE (BW/PHSQ)
RACE (Beck)
RENT (BW)
THE LIFE OF GALILEO (CPH)
THE MIRACLE AT NAPLES (congruence-continuum)
THE TRIP TO BOUNTIFUL (CPH)
TRYING (Cesear’s Forum)
WOODY GUTHRIE’S AMERICAN SONG (Actors’ Summit)

DIRECTOR
Bobgan, Raymond, INSOMNIA THE WAKING OF HERSELVES (CPT)
Bussert, Victoria, PASSING STRANGE (BW/PHSQ)
Bussert, Victoria, RENT (BW)
Caird, John, DADDY LONG LEGS (CPH)
Cesear, Greg, TRYING (Cesear’s Forum)
Céspedes, Martin and Spence Scott, JOSEPH AND THE AMAZING TECHNICOLOR
DREAMCOAT (Beck)
Cosentino, Celeste, HUCK AND HOLDEN (Ensemble)
Douglas, Timothy, THE TRIP TO BOUNTIFUL (CPH)
Edwards, Michael Donald, THE LIFE OF GALILEO (CPH)
Hammer, Joel, A STEADY RAIN (Dobama)
Hoffman, Geoffrey, MIRACLE AT NAPLES (congruence-continuum)
Kent, Terri, CHICAGO (Porthouse)
Kepley, Laura, MY NAME IS ASHER LEV (CPH)
May, Sarah, RACE (Beck)
Paul, Jeremy, MY BARKING DOG (Cleveland Public Theatre)
Paul, Jeremy, THE EXCAVATION (Theatre Ninjas)
Sternfeld, Fred, A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC (FPAC)
Sternfeld, Fred, COMPANY (Fairmount PAC)
Thackaberry, Neil, WOODY GUTHRIE’S AMERICAN SONG (Actors’ Summit)

PERFORMER
Anderson Boll, Heather, MY BARKING DOG (Cleveland Public Theatre)
Arnold, Curt, VALPARAISO (convergence-continuum)
Bergeron, Ryan, JERRY SPRINGER THE OPERA (Beck)
Bestic, Tricia, TRYING (Cesear’s Forum)
Black, Maryann, CHICAGO (Porthouse)
Brault, Pierre-Jacques, DR. DOOLITTLE (Mercury Summerstock)
Bredeson-Smith, Lucy, VALPARAISO (convergence-continuum)
Bruner, Sara, THE TAMING OF THE SHREW (GLT)
Caraballo, Daniel, HUCK AND HOLDEN (Ensemble)
Carthens, Kyle, HUCK AND HOLDEN (Ensemble)
Cataan, Ursula, COMPANY (FPAC)
Cleveland, Adrianna, DREAMGIRLS (Cain Park)
Colerider, Glenn, TRYING (Cesear’s Forum)
Culver, Tim, CHICAGO (Porthouse)
Domingue, Nina, YA MAMA! (CPT)
Eckstrom, Brittany, HAIRSPRAY (Beck)
Emeka, Justin, RACE (Beck)
Emerick, Sandra, CHICAGO (Porthouse)
Esposito, Scott, ASSASSINS (Lakeland)
Farrell, Diana, JERRY SPRINGER THE OPERA (Beck)
Floyd, Aric Generette, THE LIFE OF GALILEO (CPH)
Gehlert, Rachel, TIGERS BE STILL (Dobama)
Gorell, Andrew, PRESENT LAUGHTER (CWRU/CPH AC)
Grandillo, Sean, big, THE MUSICAL (FPAC)
Hammer, Joel, THE SEAFARER (Dobama)
Hancock, Robert Adelman, DADDY LONG LEGS (CPH)
Hart, Dana, ST. NICHOLAS (Ensemble)
Holsinger, Holly, INSOMNIA THE WAKING OF HERSELVES (CPT)
Hudak, Zac, FIVE BIRDS (convergence continuum)
Hudak, Zac, THE MIRACLE AT NAPLES (convergence continuum)
Kelly, Kevin Joseph, HAIRSPRAY (Beck)
Kendall, Jeremy, A STEADY RAIN (Dobama)
Keyster, Brett, DARWINII (CPT)
Kline-Messner, Paula, BECKY’S NEW CAR (Actors’ Summit)
Koesters, Nick, MY BARKING DOG (Cleveland Public Theatre)
Lawrence, Rod, PASSING STRANGE (BW/PHSQ)
Leach, Andrea, RENT (BW)
Learned, Brint, ASSASSINS (Lakeland)
Lee, Heather, BACKWARD IN HIGH HEELS (CPH)
Little, Kristi, HUCK AND HOLDEN (Ensemble)
Mackay, Donald Sage, SOMETHINGS AFOOT (CPH)
McEvoy, Anne, INSOMNIA THE WAKING OF HERSELVES (CPT)
McGinnis, Meg, DADDY LONG LEGS (CPH)
Mitchell, Lian, THE TRIP TO BOUNTIFUL (CPH)
Morgan-Moyer, Cerris, LEGACY OF LIGHT (CPH)
Nehring, Larry, THE SEAFARER (Dobama)
Patterson, Tracee A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC (FPAC)
Patterson, Tracee, COMPANY (Fairmount PAC)
Pedlow, Amelia, LEGACY OF LIGHT (CPH)
Perrotta, Laura, CABARET (GLT)
Plate, Scott, A STEADY RAIN (Dobama)
Ratell, Dylan, CHICAGO (Porthouse)
Scerbak, Erin , GRIZZLY MAMA (Dobama)
Sage, Donald Mackay, THE GAMES AFOOT (CPH)
Scott, Aungelique, RACE (Beck)
Seibert, Chris, INSOMNIA THE WAKING OF HERSELVES (CPT)
Simon, Clyde, THE BOYS IN THE BAND (convergence continuum)
Stump, Tina, HAIRSPRAY (Beck)
Taylor, Myra Lucertia, THE LIFE OF GALILEO (CPH)
Thompson, Matthew Ryan, JOSEPH AND THE AMAZING TECHNICOLOR DREAMCOAT
(Beck)
van Baars, Eric, HELLO DOLLY (Porthouse)
Violand, Greg, THE UNDERPANTS (Beck)
White, Jon, RENT (BW)
Whitworth, Paul, THE LIFE OF GALILEO (CPH)
Woodson, John, CABARET (GLT)
Woodward, Tom, RACE (Beck)

Composite cast
A STEADY RAIN (Dobama)
DADDY LONG LEGS (CPH)
HUCK AND HOLDEN (Ensemble)
INSOMNIA THE WAKING OF HERSELVES (CPT)
MONSTER PLAY (Theatre Ninjas)
MY BARKING DOG (CPT)
MY NAME IS ASHER LEV (CPH)
THE MARVELOUS WONDERETTES (Beck)
THE MIRACLE AT NAPLES (convergence continuum)
THE GAME’S AFOOT (CPH)
THE TRIP TO BOUNTIFUL (CPH)
WOODY GUTHRIE’S AMERICAN SONG (Actor’s Summit)

TECHNICIANS
Borski, Russ, costume design, DREAMGIRLS (Cain Park)
Burns, Trad, lighting design, JERRY SPRINGER, THE OPERA (Beck)
Burns, Trad, lighting design, JOSEPH AND THE AMAZING TECHNICOLOR DREAMCOAT
(Beck)
Burns, Trad, set design, A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC (FPAC)
Conway, Daniel, scenic design, THE GAMES AFOOT (CPH)
Gantose, Benjamin, light design, MONSTER PLAY (Theatre Ninjas)
Gould, Richard, set design, RACE (Beck)
Horvitz, Joan, set design, INSOMNIA THE WAKING OF HERSELVES (CPT)
Ingraham, Richard, MY BARKING DOG (Cleveland Public Theatre)
Metheny, Russell, set design, TWO GENTLEMEN OF VERONA (GLTF)
Mitchell, Joseph, set design, HUCK AND HOLDEN (Ensemble)
Needham, Ben, scenic design, THE MARVELOUS WONDERETTES (Beck)
Richards, Matthew, light design, LEGACY OF LIGHT (CPH)
Studley, Christopher, lighting design, THE TRIP TO BOUNTIFUL (CPH)
Tucker, Craig, costume design, A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC (FPAC)

MUSICAL DIRECTION
Anderson, Michael, WOODY GUTHRIE’S AMERICAN SONG (Actors’ Summit)
Garret, Ryan Fielding, PASSING STRANGE (BW/PHSQ)
Goodpaster, Larry, THE MARVELOUS WONDERETTES (Beck)
Krol, John, ASSASSINS (Lakeland)
Swoboda, Jonathan, CHICAGO (Porthouse)
Swoboda, Jonathan, COMPANY (Fairmount PAC)
Swoboda, Jonathan, HELLO DOLLY! (Porthouse)
Webb, Matthew, TWO GENTLEMEN OF VERONA (GLTF)
Williams, David, A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC (FPAC)

CHOREOGRAPHY
Black, Maryann, CHICAGO (Porthouse)
Céspedes, Martin, HAIRSPRAY (Beck)
Céspedes, Martin, JOSEPH AND THE AMAZING TECHNICOLOR DREAMCOAT (Beck)
Crawford, John, HELLO DOLLY! (Porthouse)
Daniel, Gregory, RENT (BW)
Daniels Greg, DREAMGIRLS (Cain Park)
Reilly, Caitlin Elizabeth, THE MARVELOUS WONDERETTES (Beck)
Robertson, Pandora, THE LIFE OF GALILEO (CPH)
Weinberg-Katz, Bebe, COMPANY (FPAC)

If any names are spelled incorrectly or there are errors in identifications please let me know so I can change the permanent record on my blog.

If you would like to read any of my reviews for the year, please go to www.royberko.info, enter the blog and click on “2011 Reviews” or click on the name of the producing theatre and scroll through their performances. Reviews from previous years may also be accessed.

NOTE: THOSE WHO WOULD LIKE A CERTIFICATE ATTESTING TO THEIR RECOGNITION SHOULD E-MAIL ME @ royberko@yahoo.com. PLEASE INCLUDE THE ADDRESS TO WHICH THE CERTIFICATE(S) SHOULD BE MAILED!

Review of Reviewer's reviews--Claire and Mort Beal

2011-12-23T21:12:00.002-05:00

Special tribute to you, Roy, for your perceptive and "right on the button" reviews. We rely on you to get us to the best theater "on time!" My all time favorite in many years was "Trying." If not for you, we'd have missed it as would have many of our friends to whom we recommended it. Wish it would have a rerun. I'd see it again!

Claire and Mort

Winter Theatre Offerings--2012

2011-12-18T23:34:00.002-05:00

Cleveland, Ohio theatre--a list of early winter theatre offerings--2112

It’s Cleveland, it’s going to be cold and snowy in the coming months. It’s a perfect time to go to live theatre and escape from all the stress. Here’s a partial list of what’s on the boards:

CLEVELAND PLAYHOUSE
216-795-7000 or go to www.clevelandplayhouse.com.

January 13-February 5
Presented in CPH’s new Second Stage Theatre, Allen Theatre complex
TEN CHIMNEYS, a heart-warming backstage comedy

February 10-March 4, Allen Theatre
RADIO GOLF, the final chapter in August Wilson’s 10-play cycle chronicling African-American life in the 20th century

DOBAMA
216-932-3396 or dobama.org

February 24-March 18
MIDDLETOWN, Will Eno’s new comedy exploring the universe of a small American town

PLAYHOUSESQUARE
216-241-6000 or go to www.playhousesquare.org.

January 6, 7, 27, 28
14th Street Theatre
JOSHUA SETH’S BEYOND BELIEF: AN INTIMATE EVENING OF PSYCHOLOIGCAL ILLUSION, mindreading, magic and hypnosis.

January 6, 7, 13, 14, 20, 21, 27, 28
Kennedy’s down under
FLANAGAN’S WAKE, an interactive Irish wake which takes the audience to Ireland for an evening of tales, singings and mourning.

January 17-29
Palace Theatre
HAIR, revival of the peace and love era musical, featuring Aquarius, Starshine, nudity and adult subject matter.

January 28-29
INBAL PINTO & AVSHALOM POLLAK DANCE COMPANY, conceived by Israeli choreographer Inbal Pinto, includes circus-world wandering street acrobats and oddly beautiful creatures.

Beck Center
216-521-2540

February 3-March 4
SPRING AWAKENING, winner of 8 Tony Awards, is a rock musical adaptation of the controversial 19th century German play that explores with poignancy and passion the turbulent journey from adolescence to adulthood. (Produced in cooperation with BW College’s Music Theatre Program.

Actor’s Summit
330-374-7568 or go to www.actorssummit.org.

January 19-February 5
BULLY, one actor portrays the life of Teddy Roosevelt!

CLEVELAND PUBLIC THEATRE
216-631-2727 or go on line to www.cptonline.org

January 5 - February 18
Big Box '12, provides local artists with the opportunity to create and produce new work. includes eleven world premiere workshop showings of theatre, dance, music and genre-defying performances.

January 19 - February 4
At-TEN-tion Span, the 10-minute play series returns, exploring different themes of politics, love and personal struggle in innovative ways.

February 23-March 10
ANTEBELLUM, a provocative play that resonates with the entwining realities of Nazi cruelty and Hollywood dreams.

KARAMU THEATRE
216-795-7070

February 3-26
The Bluest Eye, Nobel Prize-Winning Toni Morrison’s story about the tragic life of a young black girl in 1940’s Ohio. (This production contains adult language and themes.)

LAKELAND THEATRE
Lakeland Community College
440-525-7526

ANYONE CAN WHISTLE, a Steven Sondheim musical about a fight to save a fictional bankrupt town.

ENSEMBLE THEATRE
216-321-2930

January 12-29
SONG FOR CORETTA, examines five fictional African American women who find laughter and hope while waiting in the rain to pay tribute to the recently deceased Coretta King.

February 2-9
LOWER NINTH, a play of exploration of faith, survival and mutual redemption which finds two men and a corpse stranded on a roof after Katrina.

Playwriting in Cleveland

2011-12-11T13:05:00.002-05:00

Original Plays Have a Home in Cleveland

Theatres in the Cleveland area are producing local, regional and national premieres. Included are the recent productions of Ken Ludwig’s THE GAME’S AFOOT at Cleveland Playhouse (world premiere), Conor McPherson’s THE SEAFARER at Dobama Theatre(regional premiere), and Joanna McClelland Glass’s TRYING at Caeser’s Forum(local premiere).

An additional trend is presenting works in development such as Randy Blair, Timothy Michael Drucker and Matthew roi Berger’s FAT CAMP at Playhouse Square and newly minted plays like Jeremy Paul’s MONSTER PLAY at Cleveland Public Theatre.

The two most prominent of the local writing groups are the Cleveland Play House Playwright’s Unit and Ensemble Theatre’s Stagewrights. In addition Cleveland Public Theatre creates new and original works in a less organized manner.

A look at one of these units showcases the new development and play process.

The Playwrights’ Unit is a group of experienced, accomplished playwrights from the Cleveland area who receive creative and administrative support from Cleveland Play House. The Unit meets regularly with Associate Artistic Director Laura Kepley to read their works-in-progress and provide each other feedback.

As early as 1918 local writers developed works for and within CPH. Starting in 1927, the theatre started to feature readings from what became known as the Playwrights’ Workshop.

In 1988 a Lab Company was developed to expand the number of plays created. In 1990-91 a collaboration with Ohio University MFA acting students added to the literary department. Plays were produced under the title: CPH NEXT STAGE NEW PLAY FESTIVAL.

By 1966 the membership in the group altered with new members added. Again in 2008 new members replaced some of the retiring writers.

Numerous writers from the group have had their works staged locally and by regional, national and international amateur theatres. The success of the venture can be illustrated by examining long time member Eric Coble’s success. His BRIGHT IDEAS received a CPH main stage production, was moved to off-Broadway, and won the AT&T Onstage Award. In 2010-2011 Coble saw over 60 shows receive national and international productions. Several of his new works will be staged by area theatres during the upcoming year. He has been commissioned to write a new main stage holiday show for CPH for next year’s season.

In addition, Eric Schmiedl’s FRANKENSTEIN has been commissioned for adaptation by the Denver Center Theatre. His MY HEMISPHERE AND YOUR HEMISPHERE LIVE ACROSS THE STREET was developed with an Aurand Harris Fellowship from the Children's Theatre Foundation of America 2010. Schmiedl has been commissioned by CPH to create a new show.

Deborah Magid’s THE WEDDING NIGHT was announced as the winner of the 6 Women Playwriting Festival in 2009, produced by Louisa Performing Arts Center, in Colorado Springs, and staged by the Santa Fe Playhouse Benchwarmers.

The excitement of local writers emerging to have their works presented on area, national and international stages continues. It’s just another aspect of what makes the Cleveland area a hub for the creative arts.

The Seafarer

2011-12-11T10:29:00.002-05:00

THE SEAFARER, an Irish saga at Dobama

The Irish are noted for, among other things, being hearty drinkers, tellers of tall tales, participants in physical conflict, and believers in fantasy, redemption, fate, Catholicism, and escapes from reality.

THE SEAFARER by Conor McPherson, one of the newer Irish playwrights, is now in production at Dobama Theatre. McPherson has proven with his naturalistic style of writing, that he can follow in the paths of Shaw, Singe, Joyce and Beckett in creating a story that fits true Irish traditions.

In THE SEAFARER, McPherson writes a dark Christmas fable which reflects despair and a descent into oceanic depths of drunkenness. It concerns characters who spend their lives in alcoholic hazes, dependent upon each other to get through life. These are men who find it necessary to use booze as an anesthetic to protect themselves from reality.

It’s Christmas evening in Baldoyle, a coastal settlement north of Dublin. The setting is the run-down, unkempt home of Richard Harkin and his brother Sharky. The duo has a long history of sibling rivalry. Sharkey has recently returned home after being sacked from his chauffeuring job for being involved with his employer’s wife. The tale reaches its apex when a drunken quartet of men, and a mysterious stranger, play a game of poker with more than money at stake.

As we observe, many of the characters are rudderless and blind. In the case of Richard, his blindness is real. On Halloween he fell in a dumpster causing the physical damage. His younger brother, Sharky is blinded by living life transitioning from one drunken rage to another. Ivan, a constant presence in the house, feels his way through life, hiding constantly from reality. Ivan has lost his glasses and can’t see clearly. This lack of clarity causes a major plot turn. Nicky, who is spending time with Sharky’s ex, acts and dresses flamboyantly, is a constant bane for Sharky, and seems blind to reality.

Who is the mysterious Mr. Lockhart, a man of refined appearance, with a stiff exterior. He has a secret, that centers on an action which transpired 25 years ago while Sharkey was in prison for killing a vagrant.

Dobama’s production, under the direction of Scott Miller, is on one hand compelling, on the other, inconsistent. Miller fails to aid some of the actors in texturing their performances. Several yell throughout with little inner motivation. There is also some inconsistency in pacing and consistent accents. On the other hand, the quality of writing, the plot development and several fine performances keep the long play interesting.

Joel Hammer makes the rage-filled Sharky, totally his. The underlying and expressive rage are well developed and textured. This is an excellent portrayal.

Larry Nehring is compelling as the pathetic Ivan. He clearly portrays the husband, father and drunk, who has difficulty with the realities of life.

Bernard Canepari’s Richard is properly frustrated, but the actor fails to vary his performance. He yells and yells and yells. There is also the problem of his stumbling over the lines.

Tom Woodward makes for an acceptable Nicky, but doesn’t create a crystal clear character. Who Nicky really is doesn’t come out.

Charles Kartali feigns as Mr. Lockhart. He looks stern and unyielding, presents his lines with fidelity, but misses the needed underlying devilish quality. There are times when he sounds more east coast U.S than Irish.

David Tilk’s set design works well as does Marcus Dana’s lighting.

Capsule judgement: THE SEAFARER is an Irish play which gives a vivid picture of the frustrations of life on the Emerald Isles. Dobama’s production has some fine performances. Though it is very well worth seeing, some may find it overlong and lacking in clarity.

Santaland Diaries

2011-12-10T14:05:00.007-05:00

THE SANTALAND DIARIES and LOUSH SISTERS at 14th Street Theatre

Author and entertainer David Sedaris has a knack of finding what’s funny and ironic about life. He’s at his best when he takes on the mundane and less dramatic incidents of existence.

Christmas is one of those times that brings out the best and the worst in people. This is very evident in THE SANTLAND DIARIES, a rendition of which is now on stage at the 14th Street Theatre in PlayhouseSquare, which is cosponsoring the production with Cleveland Public Theatre.

The playlet concerns Sedaris, experiencing life as a struggling writer in New York, who seeks out and secures a job as an elf at Macy’s flagship department store. He’s 33-years old and takes on the role of Crumpet, dressed in red and white stripped stockings, green tights, tasseled cap, and an oh so gay holiday tunic.

The show illuminates Sedaris’s dark comic observations on human life including the threats of parents when their kids aren’t thrilled about sitting on Santa’s lap, the drunk Santas, the kids who urinate in the fake snow, the fellow elf who can’t figure out why she can’t have the job on an all year basis, and what happens when the “real” Santa appears.

There are various ways of interpreting the role of Crumpet. Kevin Joseph Kelly, this season’s elf, with the help of director Elizabeth Wood, decides sarcasm is the right route.

Now, it has to be understood that KJK is at his best when he is cross-dressing. He’s made a career of putting his size 14 feet into high heels, adding some padding to a bra, and stuffing his ample body into a dress. He’s been Albin, the drag queen in LA CAGES AUX FOLLES. He’s portrayed Edna, an over-sized woman played by a man, in HAIRSPRAY. And he makes an appearance in a spangling dress in THE LOUSH SISTERS, the second act of this SANTALAND DIARIES. He’s at his best in drag. Hmm, wonder what would have happened if he and Wood had decided to take a different approach and let Kelly do his drag thing? That’s something to ponder for future presentations.

But the duo stuck to the traditional, so we have Kelly, as a sarcastic Crumpet, a Paul Lynde with too tight tighty-whities. That approach doesn’t get all the laughs that are inherent in the script. It’s not that Kelly is bad, he’s quite okay. It’s just that the play tends to work better with a more adorable or curmudgeonly approach. As the lady sharing the table with me said, “I thought this was going to be cute and funny.”

The second act is Liz Conway and Sheffia Randall Dooley as the Loush sisters. The mixed race “sisters” put out full effort, do a nice job of singing a blend of various holiday and non-Yuletide songs, get some laughs, and do some cute shticks. The highlight was Kelly’s appearance as the sisters’ sequins dressed full-figured mama and his version of Rose’s Turn from GYPSY.

The act is one of those segments of entertainment that when it ends, is quickly forgotten. That’s not a slam, just a comment on what was…okay, but no brass ring.

CAPSULE JUDGEMENT: THE SANTA CLAUS DIARIES is an evening of looking at life through the eyes of life commentator David Sedaris, which gets an acceptable presentation.

Nutcracker

2011-12-09T12:22:00.001-05:00

ROYAL WINNIPEG BALLET’S NUTCRACKER disappoints

It might come as a shock to some to know that NUTCRACKER, whose performances have become a world wide Christmas tradition, was dismissed as “completely insipid,” “corpulent,” and “pudgy” when the ballet was first performed in St. Petersburg, Russia, in 1892. Obviously, views have changed!

There was never any question of the quality of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s music, but the story was deemed to be incoherent and hard to follow.

Canada’s Royal Winnipeg Ballet is back in Cleveland to present its version of the fantasy story of Clara, a young Canadian girl in this version, and her love affair with a nutcracker prince.

As the fine orchestra played the overture, which highlights the themes of the great score, an outdoor hockey game, snowball fight and the arrival of guests, is portrayed.

Yes, it’s the night before Christmas and everything and everyone is stirring, including guests, mice, a giant stuffed bear, a dream of a sugar plum fairy, dancing snowflakes, angels, waltzing flowers, and a nutcracker prince.

The Canadian company puts out full effort, but they fall short on fantasy. All the elements are there, just the dance quality and creative choreography are missing. The usual squeals of delight of the children in the audience, especially, the young girls, were not present. The usual Cleveland standing ovation was not garnered. No “bravos” were shouted after the showcase Grand Pas de Deux. This was a rather slow moving, unspectacular, if adequately danced program.

The first act was especially slow moving. There was a lot of walking around and posing. Drosselmeier lost his magic touch and was nothing more than a master of ceremonies. The much anticipated Christmas tree was there, but it was not eye popping and its usually visually entrancing growth was rather unspectacular. The battle between the Nutcracker prince and his soldiers, and the Mouse King and his henchmen, was boring. Even the cannons didn’t create much of a boom. The highlight was the Dance of the Snowflakes, which was nicely performed and the presence of 50 child locals portraying various parts.

The second act picked up a little with some fine performances by the Pas deQuatre and the Arabian duo. The Sugar Plum Fairy danced adequately well, but did not mesmerize and many of the other specialty dances did not compel attention.

As I sat watching this performance, my mind scrolled back to the days of the Cleveland-San Jose Ballet and Dennis Nahat’s glorious version of the NUTCRACKER which was often performed on the same State Theatre stage. It often starred the luminous Karen Gabay and Raymond Rodriquez, her real life prince. Those were the presentations which elicited the “ohs,” “ahs,” and “bravos.”

Canada’s Royal Winnipeg Ballet is an adequate company, but did not display the quality of dancing and creative choreography to make it a world class troupe. The women dancers often didn’t stick point, and sometimes stood at odd angles as they attempted to hold poses. The lead dancers were adequate, but not of the quality that should be expected.

Capsule judgement: Canada’s Royal Winnipeg Ballet lacked the necessary excitement, fantasy and fine dancing to make its’ NUTCRACKER a compelling evening of dance.

Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat

2011-12-04T17:02:00.002-05:00

Céspedes’ choreography makes Beck’s JOSEPH special

The format for JOSEPH AND THE AMAZING TECHNICOLOR DREAMCOAT, a version of which is now on stage at Beck Center, makes the show unique. In contrast to almost all musicals, the show has no script. There is music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Tim Rice, but no spoken format for dialogue, no hints on how to stage the piece. Therefore, each production is dependent upon the creativity of the show’s stagers.

Usually, since the show is so filled with potential great dance opportunities, the burden falls on the choreographer. And, in most cases, the dance conceivers take their cues from the sounds of the music and produce appropriate moves. Every once in a while a show is blessed with a super creative and talented choreographer and the production explodes into a cacophony of visual moving bodies in dynamic movements. This is the case with Beck’s JOSEPH.

Beck’s JOSEPH is better than almost any production I’ve seen. Why is this production special? MARTIN CÉSPEDES! Yes, Céspedes, one of the area’s best choreographers, has outdone himself in this show. He threw out all of his previous visions and created new ones. The young kids of the chorus, explode with precision and glee. The older teens and adults have a ball doing synchronized and dynamic moves. There’s calypso, rock ‘n roll, western, serpent dance, the dip, and the twist. Even the action curtain call rocks!

They are helped by bright, ever changing lighting effects created by Trad Burns, who has also envisioned a pleasing set.

Musical Director Larry Goodpaster has reinterpreted some of the music to make the sounds fresh. Allison Garrigan’s costumes work well, especially the visually beautiful coat of many colors.

The sound is problematic. Squealing mikes and levels which are set so high that the voices are over-amplified, squelching words. The lack of balance makes for uncomfortable moments. This is not a rock concert, it is a musical in which the words to the songs must be heard.

Matthew Ryan Thompson is “Joseph right!” His rock ‘n roll voice adds an up-to-date sound to songs, his phrasing patterns create meaning to the words. He’s a floppy haired bleached blonde charmer. His rendition of Close Every Door had a beautiful plaintive sound.

Josh Rhett Noble, he of swiveling hips and the Elvis smirk and snarl, is point on as the Pharaoh, stopping the show with his Song of the King.

Tricia Tanguy has a big and trained singing voice. Unfortunately, there are times when she sings words rather than meanings. She needs to go over the words and figure out what they are saying and adjust her interpretations accordingly.

The show has proved to be a holiday success for the theatre. Audiences have flocked to Lakewood every time the show is reprised. And, it has been reprised there a great number of times, since their production “way, way back many centuries ago” when Rob Gibb lit up the stage as the lead in the show.

CAPSULE JUDGEMENT: Beck’s JOSEPH AND THE AMAZING TECHNICOLOR DREAMCOAT is a delight. Go, Go Joseph!

Conni's Avant Garde Restaurant

2011-12-03T11:40:00.005-05:00

CONNI’S AVANT GARDE RESTAURANT, back by audience demand, at CPT

It’s dinner and theatre, but not traditional dinner theatre. It’s a play, but not a play. It’s avant garde, but not avant garde. There is male nude streaking and lots of references to various body parts, but it isn’t raunchy or lewd. It’s ad-libbed, but scripted. What is it? It’s one hell of a good time! It’s CONNIE’S AVANT GARDE RESTAURANT, now being performed at Cleveland Public Theatre.

The inspiration for this evening of bizarre, delightful, and a little thought provoking theatricality, was supposedly brought about by the accidental sighting by the cast of a touring Shakespeare company with a sign over an abandoned diner in a small town where they were performing. It read, “Conni’s Restaurant.” The group, bored, and in a creative mood, started to fantasize about what it would be like if they owned and operated such an establishment. Voilá, the inspiration for the mayhem that presently fills the flexible CPT main theatre.

As you walk into the lobby, you are met by a number of “nurses” who take your coat (don’t worry, you’ll get it back), costumed performers, hors d’oeuvres and wine. You get to chose your name for the night. You can be “Not so Tiny Tim,” “The Abdominal Snowman,” “Sweet Child of Wine,” or something as mundane as “Nice.” That’s your i. d. for the rest of the evening.

During the cocktail party you are entertained by the performing troop, who sing, emote and serve. A minor incident requires a doctor, who is whisked away into the bowels of the theatre. You are tempted by performance tidbits of what is to come and exposed to who is going to present it.

You are ushered into a banquet hall decorated with chandeliers made of plastic champagne glasses and utensils. Tables of 8 are set with “fine” plastic dishes and silverware. There is an operating kitchen, where much of your “gourmet” dinner will be prepared by a “chef.” (The quote marks are very relevant!) You self-seat, meet your table mates.

Then all hell breaks loose. The “doctor” charges through the audience, sans clothing. During the next four hours there is continuous eating (of surprisingly tasty food), entertainment and mayhem. The cast continues to remind you, through a series of elaborate vignettes and songs, that the evening is devoted to “the ongoing celebration of the work of Conni Convergence, the beloved (fictional) icon of stage and screen."  As the evening proceeds, members of the audience are involved in contests, interactions with the performers, viewing of a baby being transferred from the insides of one woman to another (I kid you not!). There’s a ballet interlude by a pregnant ballerina interpreting The Black Swan. There’s the shooting of a deer, which then is transformed before your very eyes into a salad (well, not really). You are entertained by the company’s interpretation of Hans Christian Anderson’s THE LITTLE MATCH GIRL. You’ll learn the secrets of the rhythm method of acting. Then there’s the “Dance of the Kitchen Utensils” and the making of an erotic fruit salad.

I could go on, but why ruin the experience for those who are going to partake?

Capsule judgement: For the non-up tight, those willing to let lose and go with the chaotic and often hysterical flow, CONNI’S AVANT-GARDE RESTAURANT is a hoot. This is not your traditional theatre production. It is one evening of unbridled fun and mayhem.

The Game's Afoot (Or Holmes for the Holidays)

2011-12-02T22:43:00.008-05:00

THE GAME’S AFOOT delights at CPH

How often does a theatre extend the run of a show before it even opens? Well, since pre-sales were so strong, the Cleveland Play House has added a week of stagings for their world premiere of Ken Ludwig’s THE GAME’S AFOOT (or Holmes For the Holidays).

It appears that the doomsayers, who said that the move to downtown would bring about the demise of CPH, were very wrong! So far, the opening season has been an artistic and financial success, and the company’s next show, TEN CHIMNEYS, will inaugurate a new theatre, The Second Stage. It will the first CPH show that has ever been presented in the round.

Ludwig is a well known playwright whose musical, CRAZY FOR YOU, ran over four years on Broadway and in London. In addition, he wrote the oft produced LEND ME A TENOR. He’s also the scribe of MOON OVER BUFFALO, TWENTIETH CENTURY and THE ADVENTURES OF TOM SAWYER.

Ludwig’s THE GAME’S AFOOT is billed as a comedy thriller in which we meet famed stage actor William Gillette at his Connecticut home, recovering from an attempt on his life during the curtain call of his renowned play, SHERLOCK HOLMES. Several weeks later he invites the members of the cast and a reporter/critic who is doing a story about him, to spend the holidays in the elaborate home occupied by Gillette and his mother. The castle-like structure is filled with electronic gadgets and hidden rooms. It’s a perfect place for an Agatha Christie-type mystery.
Of course there is a murder and the fun real begins.

More farce than comedy, there are enough early hints of “who did it” so that the revelation of the killer isn’t a great mystery, but the fun is so sharply developed through prat falls, exaggerated situations, and over done shticks, that the whole darn thing works well.

William Hooker Gillette was, in fact, a famous actor in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries who is best remembered for his enactments of Sherlock Holmes. He was a proponent of grand stage designs and added many special sound and lighting effects into his productions. His wearing of a deerstalker cap and the smoking of a large curved pipe, became the visual pattern for all who were to play Holmes in other plays, movies and on television. A life-long resident of Connecticut, he actually built a grand castle-like home in that state that is still open for tours.

CPH’s production, under the direction of Aaron Posner, is a delight.

The cast is wonderful. The well-paced timing keys the laughs. Daniel Conway’s set is so impressive that spontaneous applause broke out when it was first revealed. Thom Weaver’s lighting effects, especially the falling snow and quick blackouts, and James Swonger’s sound effects, all added to the wonderment, though one might wonder, besides trying to create a spooky effect, why there was booming thunder during a snow storm. But, that matters little. This is a farce more concerned with affect then effect.

Donald Sage Mackay is Holmes. His tall, lanky physique, pointed nose, and Holmesian attitude are all spot on. Patricia Kilgarriff is a hoot as his curmudgeon mother, who almost kills their dog in her attempt to punish Daria Chase (Erika Rolfsrud) the bad, bad lady theatre critic.

(Why is it that at present there are two shows running in the area which damn theatre critics…this production and Ensemble’s AT NICHOLAS? We are kind hearted people who even give positive reviews to plays that damn us!)

Back to the cast. Rolfsrud makes for a great villain. She even got some complimentary boos during the curtain call. It’s amazing she isn’t all black and blue from the slamming down and around that happens to her.

Sarah Day is delightful as mannish Inspector, Harriet Gorin. She’s Miss Marple (The Agatha Christie character) and Jessica Fletcher (MURDER, SHE WROTE) all rolled into one.

Rob McClure is boyish ingénue-right as Simon Bright. Though she physically fits the role of the blonde innocent, Aggie Wheeler, Mattie Hawkinson’s high pitched voice becomes grating after a while.

Lise Bruneau (Madge Geisel) and Eric Hissom (Felix Geisel) are fine as a bickering couple.

Capsule judgement: THE GAME’S AFOOT is a perfect holiday treat that will delight audiences. It’s a go-see fun evening of theatre.

Cleveland's Groundworks and Inlet Dance

2011-11-30T15:52:00.003-05:00

Cleveland’s GROUNDWORKS and INLET DANCE

When, eleven years ago, Cleveland San Jose Ballet, due to poor artistic and financial management, snuck out of town to become the San Jose Ballet, the doomsayers predicted that that was the end of dance as a Cleveland area art form. Nothing was further from the truth.

No, the area has no large ballet company, but that void was replaced by some small, vibrant modern and contemporary dance groups. Included in the list are Verb Ballets, Dancing Wheels, GroundWorks Dance Theater, Ohio Dance Theatre, Greene + Medcalf Movement Project, and Inlet Dance. The latter two just had very different, but outstanding programs, so, not to slight any of the others who will get future coverage, here is a quick view of Groundworks and Inlet.

GROUNDWORKS DANCETHEATER

Founded in 1998, GROUNDWORKS DANCETHEATER is the creative child of David Shimotakahara, who serves as the company’s Artistic Director. The excellent five person company (Felise Bagley Damien Highfield, Gary Lenington, Sarah Perrett and Kathryn Taylor), along with Artistic Associate Amy Miller and Music Director Gustavo Aguilar, have made it their goal to not only create creative and proficient programs, but make the entire Northeastern Ohio area their home.

GROUNDWORKS has no home of its own, but performs in various venues, going to the people, rather than having the people, per se, come to them. Performances have been held at Trinity Cathedral, dancing on a stage erected between the gothic spires, The Akron Ice House, performing in the vast vertical space that once served as an ice block and storage site, Cleveland Public Theatre, in a black box space, and the Cleveland Botanical Gardens.

Under the banner, Imagination you can see, the company enters its second decade, having been called “one of Cleveland’s cultural gems,” “one of the country’s leading contemporary dance companies,” “one of the year’s 25 to watch in the dance world,” and, “a company that is setting the standard for small dance ensembles in Northeastern Ohio.”

Beyond performances, the company does education outreach to the Cleveland Metropolitan School District, connecting to over 1000 students each year. Outreach and Educational Coordinator Mark Otloski was recognized with the Yaneo 2010 Sunshine Award in recognition of his commitment to arts education in the community.

The company’s next public presentation will be Groundworks at Breen Center on February 3 and 4. The program will include the world premiere of a commissioned work by Ronen Koresh, and Hindsight, Lynne Taylor-Corbett’s homage to Chrissie Hynde of the Pretenders. Breen Center is located at 208 West 30th Street in Cleveland.

INLET DANCE THEATRE

Founded in 2001, Bill Wade’s INLET DANCE THEATRE, operates under the goal of “creating life affirming new work, often pulling our topic based choreography from the communities we serve.” They are also a company without a permanent home, reaching out to the community by performing in schools, parks and dance festivals.

The company works with such community organizations as The Nehemiah Mission, which, based on the biblical Nehemiah who rebuilt Jerusalem, has the purpose of rebuilding the lives and homes of the physically and fiscally challenged of Cleveland by bringing in over 1000 volunteers per year to complete around 100 projects in private homes and churches.

Wade’s company, which has two of the area’s best male dancers (Joshua Brown and Justin Steintz) has fine female company members, Makenzie Clevenger and Elizabeth Pollert, an apprentice, Dominic Moore-Dunson, and six trainees.

Several years ago the company did a dance exchange with the residents of Easter Island (a commonwealth of Chile), one of the most remote islands of the world. The Inlet company traveled to Chile to learn dances and customs of the Rap Anui people and several members of that culture travelled to Cleveland. The local company created a series of dances, which were performed to authentic music and costumes designed to imitate the cultural pattern of the island residents.

Wade’s philosophy embodies a longstanding belief that “dance viewing, training and performing experiences serve as tools to bring about personal growth and development.”

Inlet’s education programming includes teaching dance at The Music Settlement, an annual Summer Dance Intensive, which attracts students from as far away as Central America, and residencies throughout Ohio as part of the Ohio Arts Council’s Artist in Residence Program.

Inlet’s next performance will be at 7 pm on Friday, February 24. Entitled An Intimate Evening with Inlet Dance Theatre, it is a fundraiser to be performed in the third floor ballroom of a South Park Boulevard landmark home. Attendance is limited to 40. For information go to info@shakerartscouncil.org

Yes, dance is alive and well in the Cleveland area.

The Internationalist

2011-11-27T09:18:00.002-05:00

Convergence continuum’s THE INTERNATIONALIST is a linguistic challenge

There’s Spanish, German, Hebrew and Italian. Now there is Washburnspeak.

Much of The Internationalist, a play now in production at convergence continuum, is spoken in a language that is alien to the ear, yet has a strange familiar authenticity. Every once in a while a Yiddish, English or French word pops in making the listener assume that what is being said makes sense. Forget it. It’s author Anne Washburn’s linguistic invention. To make matters even more interesting, or frustrating, depending on your point of view, is that there are no super-titles.

The wisp of a plot centers on Lowell, an American on a business trip. We don’t know what the business is, where he is, or why he is there. In fact, by the time the play is over, depending on your imagination, you might not even know why you went to see this play.

Lowell is met at the airport by Sara, a beautiful assistant from the company he is visiting. After spending a night of supposed amour, the real adventure starts. The task is figuring out what’s going on. Is their internal robbery, international espionage, insider trading, terrorism? Who knows. As it turns out, who cares.

Originally conceived as a one-act, cc’s production is a newer two-act version which takes about one-and-a-half hours with a ten minute intermission. It matters not. The play misses out on a wonderful chance to take on the typical American who goes to foreign lands with little or no knowledge of the verbal and nonverbal customs of the area and expects the natives to adjust to the ego-centered American. Or, possibly to show the difficulty of communication. Washburn doesn’t accomplish either of those goals. If you want to see that well-developed, go to New York and see CHINGLISH.

The convergence cast is good. Especially considering that most of their lines are gibberish. It’s hard to take cues when the lines don’t make sense, or play off each other when the understanding is missing. Tom Kondilas (Lowell), Laurel Hoffman (Sara), Geoffrey Hoffman, Laura Starnik, Ray Caspio, and Robert Hawkes all try hard to make sense of what they’ve been given, and put up a valiant but unfortunately losing fight.

Capsule Judgement: Convergence-continuum’s Artistic Director Clyde Simon is noted for often picking off-the-wall plays. THE INTERATIONALIST is way off. So much so, that one can only ask what, except its obtusenesss, Simon saw in this script.

Trying

2011-11-20T21:07:00.002-05:00

TRYING, a fine history lesson woven into an interesting story

What happens when a man noted as a national and world leader faces the reality of his demise? This is the premise of Joanna McClelland Glass’s TRYING, now in production at Cesear’s Forum.

TRYING is based on the real story of Francis Biddle, the Attorney General under Franklin D. Roosevelt and Chief Judge at the Nuremberg trials which examined the evils of individual Nazis following World War II. The play was based on Glass’s own experiences as Biddle’s personal secretary from 1967 through 1968.

Biddle, is a traditional prep school, Ivy league educated conservative Republican until he presides over a case of the coal unions in Pennsylvania. He moved by the experience and does a complete about face and declares, “I’ve come to right a wrong. That’s why God invented Democrats.” From there on he championed liberal causes.

We meet Biddle as a sharply cantankerous, ailing 81-year-old, who has become fussy, overbearing and impossible to live with. He is trying to everyone he deals with. He hires and fires secretaries on a regular basis. That is, he fires the ones who make it through the first day of working for him without running out in tears. In desperation, his wife finds a 25 year-old Canadian girl, whose life has been hard and has caused her to learn not to take abuse from anyone. The duo spars as they try to learn how to communicate with each other and gain mutual respect and a binding connection.

The play was originally produced in Chicago and then moved to Off-Broadway in 2005. Both in the Windy City and New York, it starred Tony Award winner Fritz Weaver and Kati Brazda.

Glass’s writing is natural and real, not theatrical or overblown. It gives the illusion allowing the audience to of peek in on a real place, with real people, with real consequences.

The production, under the direction of Greg Cesear, is nicely textured. The performances are first rate. We watch Glenn Colerider, as Judge Biddle, take his stubborn stands, but begin to wilt as the strain of aging and illness take over his mind and body. Though there are a few line flubs here and there, this is a fine performance. Tricia Bestic is completely real as Joanna. She even has the pregnant walk down pat. Colerider and Bestic play off each other with compassionate fidelity.

Capsule Judgement: TRYING is a fine script which shares historical knowledge woven into a nicely textured story. It gets a fine production at Cesear’s Forum.

St. Nicholas

2011-11-20T13:17:00.001-05:00

Dana Hart shines in Conor McPherson’s ST. NICHOLAS at Ensemble

The Irish are noted as vivid and imaginative writers (think Bram Stoker, James Joyce, Jonathan Swift, Samuel Beckett, Sean O’Cassey and Brian Friel). They are also noted as being verbose in their creations, as well as being prodigious drinkers, spinners of tall tales, philosophers and womanizers.

Conor McPherson is one of the new breed of Irish writers who creates in his heritage’s tradition. In 1990, The Dublin born McPherson’s THE WEIR, won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Play. His 2004 play, SHINING CITY, prompted the London Telegraph to describe him as "the finest dramatist of his generation.” THE SEAFARER, which opens this week at Dobama Theatre, opened in London and New York to rave reviews. Both SHINING CITY and THE SEAFARER were Tony nominees.

It should come as no surprise that McPherson, the author of ST. NICHOLAS, now in production at Ensemble Theatre, writes a rather long diatribe about a hard drinking writer who spins a preposterous tale of vampires, women, drinking and finding redemption. And, much in the Irish tradition of the likes of G.B. Shaw, McPherson asks, "Vampires or theater critics—which are more repellent? Tough call when they’re bloodsuckers, the lot of ’em.” (And, the man got great reviews in spite of skewering us critics.)

The play takes us on a journey with a jaded Irish theater critic who is mesmerized by a beautiful young dancer/actress from the famed Abbey Theatre in Dublin. Following the young actress to London, the critic is drawn into a world of big-city “vampires” – a world that is elegant, sophisticated, and in the end, soulless. It is a tale of self-discovery, in the typical overly dramatic Irish way, that assaults modern culture, where greed and self-gratification are paramount and where the “vultures” try to suck the life right out of us.

Dana Hart is outstanding as the lone-actor in this two-act almost two-hour show. There are hundreds of lines, a subtle Irish brogue, a necessary twinkle in the eye, the need to portray a drunk who is not slapstick or maudlin, being able to confront the audience directly and play for the seriousness and mirth of the ideas, while making us question whether the goings on are real, or Irish blarney. Hart does is all with ease. This is a tour-de-force performance!

Director Sarah May has worked with Hart to create a believable story-telling realism, while transporting us to a philosophical world of illusion.

Is this a Christmas tale as might be assumed from the play’s title? There is one Christmas tree on stage, but it is neither referred to in the dialogue or gets paid any attention. The holiday’s name gets mentioned once in the script, but again, for no particular reason. The title? As is the Irish custom of creating illusion, McPherson has given each of the viewers a wonderful gift from St. Nick, a holiday present in the form of this play!

CAPSULE JUDGEMENT: ST NICHOLAS is an actor’s show. In this case, actor Dana Hart gives a performance that deserves to be seen and appreciated.

2011-11-16T18:41:00.007-05:00

Cleveland’s Ensemble Theatre, prediction of demise, premature!

When both Lucia Colombi-Cosentino and her twin-sister Licia Colombi, the founders of Cleveland’s Ensemble Theatre died, the prediction was for the demise of the theatre as well. Well, the pall bearers were wrong. Instead of fading away, Ensemble is back, and not only stronger than ever, but looking for a larger part in the area’s theatre firmament.

The theatre’s new Artistic Director, Celeste Cosentino, is the daughter of Lucia. As she puts it, “Ensemble was my incubator.” She was often brought to the theatre, which was then located in the Civic in Cleveland Heights. Her babysitters were the theatre’s actors and technicians. She intends to keep her heritage not only alive, but thriving.

After 18 years at the Civic in Cleveland Heights, the rental cost was raised beyond what the theatre could afford. The troupe became a tenant of the Cleveland Play House. This year, with CPH moving into their new home at the Allen Theatre in downtown Cleveland, the old facility was closed, and Ensemble was homeless.

Recently, Ensemble made an arrangement with the Cleveland Heights-University Heights Board of Education to rent space in the closed Coventry Elementary School. They retrofit a thrust theatre into the former gymnasium space. The present lease goes until the end of December and plans are to sign another 2-year agreement. According to Cosentino, if a long term arrangement can be worked out, the theatre plans to go on a capital fund raising project to further develop the facilities and expand their programming.

Ensemble has a history of proving that the arts are an essential and meaningful part of life; therefore, the theatre offers an important forum for stimulating and provoking thought about the issues of contemporary life, and it is a place for communal experience. It is under that umbrella that Cosentino, and her newly constituted board, are looking forward to continuing to produce vital and important theatrical works.

Their recent production of Clifford Odets’s 1930 labor play, WAITING FOR LEFTY, is a script that is as relevant today as it was back then in light of the attacks on labor unions by some state governments and governors. As part of their WAITING FOR LEFTY production, talk back discussions were held to discuss Ohio issue 2, which proposed to eliminate the anti-union bill voted in by the state legislature. The attendance was excellent and the play received positive reviews.

What’s in the future? Cosentino hopes that Ensemble will continue their present programs, such as Stagewrights, a group of writers and interested people who meet on Wednesdays of each week to create and develop new works. In addition, there are plans to continue their children and youth workshops. There will be a New Plays Festival (the scripts will be those developed by the Stagewrights) and talks are underway to develop interactive relationships with other theatre companies. There is a desire to develop Ensemble into an all-inclusive arts facility, much like Beck Center and Lakeland Center for the Arts to not only do theatrics, but also reach out to the other arts.

The 2011-2112 productions will include: ST. NICHOLAS (Conor McPherson); A SONG FOR CORETTA (Pearl Cleage), lower ninth (Beau Willimon), THE COLOMBI NEW PLAYS FESTIVAL (DANCING WITH N.E.D. by Tyler Whidden, DESTROYING THE LIGHT by Sasha Thackaberry, GROUNDS FOR DISMISSAL by Cindy Dettelbach); and GRUESOME PLAYGROUND INJURIES (Rajiv Joseph). Joseph is the author of Ensemble’s highly praised spring production, HUCK AND HOLDEN.

Cosentino believes that theatre has, through words, the power to make change. She intends to guide Ensemble to be a vehicle to help make that change.

For information about Ensemble Theatre go to: www.ensemble-theatre.com

Ya Mama!

2011-11-12T23:04:00.002-05:00

NINA DOMINGUE, superb actress, proficient author!

The Cleveland area has many fine actresses. One of the area’s female theatrical gems is Nina Domingue. She has proven over and over her versatility and ability to mesmerize an audience.

In YA MAMA! Domingue not only fills the stage with a multiple number of characters, but has written an emotional biopic as well.

In the extended one-act YA MAMA!, Domingue, with the help of director Cathy Hartenstein, showcases the pain and joy of being Nina. The action is up close and personal in Cleveland Public Theatre’s Storefront Studio where no seat is more than three rows from the performer. And, for the run of the show, there was almost never an empty seat.

Domingue takes her viewers on a journey from her New Orleans birth place, through the suicide of her mother, a victim of Post Partum Syndrome, to a short period of living in Cleveland with her mother’s family, back to New Orleans when her father remarries, to the abusive treatment at the hands of her step-mother, to her return to Cleveland where she finally finds a place of acceptance, and flashbacks to what happens when Katrina hits the Big Easy. We experience the birth of her three children, and her burgeoning career as an actress and a mother. Though the play is not quite as polished as her performance, it’s quite a ride.

The set is simple. A series of stools. On each surface a symbolic item is placed. As the plot unfolds, items like the bottle of Drano that her mother drank to kill herself, an apron, and a strap, are picked up as symbols of the items of importance in the actresses life.

Domingue a master of facial, body and vocal expression. At the blink of an eye she transforms herself into a child, her four-year old son, Nina as a mommy, and a victim of abuse. She gives a masterful performance.

Capsule judgement: YA MAMA! is a short evening of revelation and self-discovery presented by one of the area’s most proficient performers. Ya Nina!

La Cage Aux Folles

2011-11-12T16:50:00.004-05:00

Disappointing LA CAGE AUX FOLLES at Palace

 When LA CAGE AUX FOLLES opened on Broadway in 1983, the gay rights movement was in its infancy. Harvey Fierstein’s book and Jerry Herman’s lyrics and music brought the subject of long term gay relationships, drag queens, societal attitudes toward same sex couples, and homosexual parenting to the fore. The show, which received nine Tony Award nominations, was, in the minds of some, very controversial and opened many topics for discussion and action.

The times, they have changed, and now the subject matter carries little, if any debate, but the themes are still significant. Most gays accept the philosophy of the song, I Am What I Am, which has become the homosexual communities’ unofficial national anthem. The song is a defiant statement of the need for self pride: It's my world, That I want to have a little pride, My world, And it's not a place I have to hide in, Life's not worth a dam, Till I can say, I am what I am.

LA CAGE focuses on a gay couple in a committed, long term relationship. It’s Saint-Tropez, France. Georges, the manager of a nightclub featuring drag entertainment, and Albin, the star attraction, must deal with their son Jean-Michel’s impending engagement. The boy, George’s biological son, the result of a drunken tryst, has been mothered by Albin. What to do when the fiancée’s father is an ultra-conservative politician, and has insisted on meeting the parents. Of course farcical situations ensue, interlaced with moving emotional moments.

The show’s melodic and memorable score includes A Little More Mascara, With Anne on My Arm, Look Over There, The Best of Times, and the title tune.

I like musicals with a message, and, since LA CAGE is filled with vital themes for life including the need for positive self-esteem, the stand against narrow minded thinking, and homophobia, it ranks as one of my favorite shows.

Therefore, the version now on stage, being presented as part of the Broadway series, was a major disappointment.

On the positive side, Christopher Sieber’s Albin is top notch. Sieber has a great voice, sings meaning just not words, plays both comedy and drama to the hilt, and creates a consistent characterization. Billy Harrigan Tighe gives a nice textured performance as Jean-Michel. Allison Blair McDowell is a charming Anne. Petite Gay Marshall adds a lot personality to the proceedings as restaurant owner Jacqueline. The orchestra is good, with special attention to trumpet player Bill Dowling.

On the other hand, in the original production the Les Cagelles, were a gorgeous line of dancers whose gender was guessed at until they removed their wigs at the end of the show. Not so in this whittled down production. The six dancers were masculine and played for laughs rather than creating illusion. This is typical of Terry Johnson’s directing. He seems more interested in farce and slapstick than in the show’s meaningful themes.

Jeigh Madjus knows no restraint as Jacob, the family’s “maid.” He goes so overboard that he becomes a caricature who blows the natural humorous lines by overdoing the fey.

Lynn Page’s choreography was uncreative and generally plodding, even in the usually spectacular birdcage number.

The biggest flaw in the production, was the wooden performance of George Hamilton as Georges. He displayed about as much charisma as his cardboard cutout in the theatre’s lobby. It’s a wonder that Sieber could develop such a fine Albin playing opposite a performance which made so little attempt to build rapport between the two.

 CAPSULE JUDGEMENT: In spite of a wonderful script, great music, and a fine performance by Christopher Sieber, LA CAGES AUX FOLLES is a disappointment. The barebones production lacks the dynamic soul to make it a meaningful and fully entertaining evening of theatre.

The Mountaintop

2011-11-08T23:09:00.011-05:00

THE MOUNTAINTOP opens questions about Martin Luther King, Jr.

What was Martin Luther King, Jr. like as a person? With all the death threats that King received, what was his last night alive like? What did he believe was going to be his ultimate role in the Black rights movement?

Katori Hall, a playwright and performer from Memphis, Tennessee, who wrote the award winning play HURT VILLAGE, attempts to answer these questions in THE MOUNTAINTOP, which is now getting its Broadway showing at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre. It is a thought provoking, but not an epic script.

The play takes place on April 3, 1968. It is a “what/if” reimagining of the night before King’s assassination. King returns to room 306 at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis after delivering his soon to become famous I've Been to the Mountaintop speech.

He’s exhausted, alone, out of cigarettes, and a storm rages outside. He calls for room service. A young lady (Camae) appears with coffee. Since King was hinted to be a womanizer, Camae’s presence opens supposition of what might come. He flirts with her, bums several Pall Malls, drinks some of her whiskey and, affectionately uses the n-word.

As the short one-act unfolds, she becomes the instrument by which King, at least in Hall’s vision, is forced to confront his destiny and his legacy.

Hall presents a real King, a chain smoker, the possessor of smelly feet who wears a sock with a hole in the toe, and, who, in spite of his bravado, has fears. This is a King who carries the burden of the civil rights movement, is weary from being away from his family and his church for so long, and is getting a cold. She gives us a different figure than the powerful man who has become the bigger than life legend.

Director Kenny Leon does a good job of keeping the show well-paced and the characters accessible. He isn’t going for epic here, he’s going for understanding a real man, with real life problems. He also, with the author’s help, presents an unknown presence who gives us cause to pause and ponder whether Camae is real or a figment of the imagination.

Samuel L. Jackson gives us King-lite. Only at the end, when King is preaching, do we see the bigger than life person. Jackson wisely sticks to a speaking tone and pronunciation pattern that doesn’t attempt to mimic King’s preaching.

Angela Bassett is effective as a cross between a typical television smart aleck African American character and a sassy street-wise lady. Interestingly, when the Broadway opening was announced, Halle Berry was confirmed as Camae. It is interesting to conjecture how the role would have been interpreted with Berry in the role.

Capsule judgement: THE MOUTAINTOP is not an easy play to watch, especially since we know what is going to happen the next day on the balcony outside that room. That is not to say the play is depressing. It’s not. It is filled with vivid imagery, humor and some preposterous ideas. It is well worth seeing.

Freud's Last Session

2011-11-08T16:13:00.003-05:00

FREUD’S LAST SESSION a fascinating look at belief or lack of belief

The badge on my jacket says, “I’ve had a session with Freud!” Yes, that Freud…Sigmund. Wait, he’s dead. How did I have the session?

Sigmund Freud founded the discipline of psychoanalysis. His concepts centered on sexual drives, parental influences, transference, dream interpretation and unconscious desires. Known as an atheist, he was not without religion. He was an assimilated secular Jew.

C. S. Lewis was a novelist, academic, medievalist, literary critic, essayist, lay theologian and Christian apologist who wrote such works as The Screwtape Letters and The Chronicles of Narnia. At age 15 he declared himself an atheist. At 32 he returned to the Anglican Communion and fervently re-embraced God and Christianity.

What would have happened if these two men had met to discuss their conflicting ideas? To find out you need to see FREUD’S LAST SESSION, a two-character "what-if" play now on stage at New World Stages in New York.

It’s also where, if you happen to have been in the theatre on the day they were collecting donations for Broadway Fights Aids you could purchase the chance to try out Freud’s famous couch and get a picture with the great man himself. Well, a prop version of the sofa and his acting substitute.

The play is based on the best selling book The Question of God by Dr. Armand M. Nicholi, Jr. Playwright Mark St. Germain became intrigued with Freud's meeting with an unnamed Oxford don. Was this unnamed visitor really C.S. Lewis?

The setting: Freud’s study in his London house. It’s September 3, 1939, and, as the room’s radio informs us, the war between England and the fatherland is about to break out. As the two debate, air raid sirens wail and Freud, a life long smoker, is pain-ripped due to mouth cancer which requires him to wear an uncomfortable oral prosthesis.

Freud purported that those who believed in God were suffering from obsessional neurosis.

Lewis thought that human existence depended on the belief in a supreme being. A lively, contentious yet joke-filled debate takes place, and though they approach ideas quite differently, they find themselves bonding in ways they might not have expected.

Hanging over the end of the play is whether Freud will, as he has indicated, destroy himself before the cancer can do it. We do know, in fact, that two weeks after the date of the play, Freud, assisted by his doctor, did end his own life. This adds to the intrigue of the play as Freud tells Lewis that if Lewis is right about his belief in the afterlife, he can tell Freud about it in heaven, but if Freud is right, then neither of them will ever know the truth.

The 90-minute intermissionless production, which is mainly talk with little action, is excellent.

Tyler Marchant’s direction keeps the dialogue moving right along. Martin Rayner, not only looks like Freud, but he speaks with a slight Viennese accent, and is totally believable. Mark H. Dold makes C. S. Lewis very real. The duo play well off each other.

Brian Prather’s well-appointed set, a reproduction of Freud’s Vienna office, is finely detailed and makes for a perfect setting for the action.

Capsule judgement: FREUD’S LAST SESSION is fascinating theatre for anyone who is interested in a philosophical thought laced drama with laughter and fine acting.

WarHorse

2011-11-07T19:47:00.006-05:00

Mesmerizing WARHORSE brings new dimensions to the stage

World War I, the war to end all wars, was a bloody battle in which an estimated 10 million soldiers lost their lives. An overlooked fact is that, since the conflict was highlighted by cavalry battles, eight million horses were slaughtered. The mighty steeds were cut down as the weapons of warfare, including barbed wire, machine guns, cannons and armored tanks, became the weapons of destruction. Animals were no match for these instruments.

WARHORSE, now on stage in at the Vivian Beaumont Theatre at New York’s Lincoln Center, is the story of the bond between Albert, a British farm boy, and Joey, his magnificent horse. It is based on a novel by Michael Morpurgo, as adapted by Nick Stafford.

The plot travels from the English countryside to the fields of France and Germany. Joey, a colt, which was bought by Albert’s father in a drunken bidding contest, has developed into a prized horse. At the start of the war, the father, enticed by money, sells the animal to the British military. Distraught, underage Albert enlists in an attempt to search out and save his steed. Through a series of searing battles we see how horse and boy eventually are reunited.

WARHORSE won 2011 Tony Awards for best play, directing, scenic design, lighting and sound design, plus a special award for Handspring Puppet Company for creating all the realistic animals. Every one of those citations was well deserved.

The visual elements of the production are finely honed. The battle scenes are realistic. The death and carnage of humans and animals is engrossing. Projections and physical elements, barbed wire, bomb explosions, poison gas attacks and tanks fill the thrust stage. Birds fly, a goose cavorts, weather changes, people and animals die.

Nothing is more impressive than the life-sized puppet horses. They are magnificent creatures which are ridden, change in physical size as they become malnourished, whinny, display unique personalities, and become living creatures before our eyes.

Even the musical interludes, which help tell the story, are focused and encompassing.

Nicholas Hytner and Nick Starr’s direction is flawless. Not a detail is missed. The staging is mind-boggling.

The cast is excellent. Seth Numrich makes Albert so real that his agony becomes ours. Alyssa Breshahan as Rose Narracott, Albert’s mother, personifies a woman caught between her love for son and the need to find a way to live with her often drunk and sullen husband. Matt Doyle is fine as Albert’s cousin, who is forced to go off to war by his controlling father. Kat Pfaffl, as Song Woman and Liam Robinson, as Song Man create numerous emotional moments with their music. In the huge cast, there is not a weak performance.

The audience appreciation was evident by the resounding curtain call. The human actors were applauded, the horses got an extended standing ovation, and even the goose got screams of approval.

Capsule judgement: Filled with amazing puppetry, stirring music, a riveting story, compelling graphics, and fine acting, WARHORSE is mesmerizing theatre. It is a once in a lifetime theatrical experience.

The Book of Mormon

2011-11-07T18:39:00.004-05:00

A hilarious THE BOOK OF MORMON

THE BOOK OF MORMON is an irreverent look at all things holy. It is the brainchild of Trey Parker and Matt Stone, the conceivers of the animated television comedy, SOUTH PARK. Add to the mix, Robert Lopez, who co-wrote and composed the Tony Award winning AVENUE Q, and the result is a script that takes on organized religion and traditional musical theatre.

Why did they do the take off on Mormonism? According to the creators, they have a lifelong fascination with the religion. And, as becomes apparent in the script, they found a lot of subject matter to make fun of within the structure of the Latter Day Saints, including the golden tablets, the door-knocking missions of the clean scrubbed males of the clan, and the fervent attempt to convert the world populace to believers.

THE BOOK OF MORMON centers on the story of two young Mormon missionaries who are complete opposites. Elder Price, is a poster boy for the religion. He’s a clean scrubbed, pious, over-achiever. Elder Cunningham is a chubby misfit who has a flaw…he makes up imaginative tales when it strikes his fancy. Instead of being assigned to Orlando, Florida, where Price prays to be, the boys are sent to a remote village in northern Uganda, where a brutal warlord is threatening the local population. The natives are worried about staying alive, famine, poverty, and AIDS, while the Mormons are interested in saving their souls and making them converts. That’s not a good match for success.

So the stage is set for some of funniest songs since MONTY PYTHON’S SPAMALOT. The song list includes: You and Me (But Mostly Me), Hasa Diga Eebowai (the translation is unfit to print), Spooky Mormon Hell Dream, Joseph Smith American Moses, and All American Prophet. These, and others, are contained in the best selling Broadway cast album in over four decades.

After nearly seven years of development, the show opened on Broadway in March 2011 to rave and vivid reviews. It was called, "the filthiest, most offensive, and—surprise—sweetest thing you’ll see on Broadway this year,” and “quite possibly the funniest musical ever.” Amen!

To say I loved the show is an understatement. I howled at the take offs on THE LION KING, THE KING AND I, WICKED, and all the other less-than-subtly inserted slams at Broadway shows. The irreverent Mormon inclusions from the Adam Smith-God tableau opening, to Christ’s commentary, to Elder Cunningham’s imaginative relating of principles of The Book of Mormon, are priceless. The song lyrics are clever. The music is catchy and ear pleasing.

The cast is marvelous. Josh Gad (Elder Cunningham) is hilarious. He is a bouncing bundle of hyper-active glee. Angelic looking Andrew Ranells (Elder Price) properly makes pious sincerity look like a burden to bear. He has a marvelous singing voice and develops a clearly defined character. Nikki James won the Tony for her role as Nabulungi, a young Ugandan girl, and well deserved it. The rest of cast is also excellent.

Casey Niholaw’s choreography is creative, using African movement, combined with rock infusion and tap dancing, to wow the audience.

If you are going to see THE BOOK OF MORMON there are some givens: (a) if you are an uptight religious zealot, you are probably going to be driven right out of the theatre, (b) if four letter words make you nutsy, you are probably going to go totally bonkers, (c) if you have a sense of humor, you may lose control of your bladder from laughing, and (d) if you love delightful music you are going to dig the score.

Capsule judgement: THE BOOK OF MORMON is one fun ride that takes on religion, the Broadway musical, life and strife, and comes out the winner. It’s a precious laugh delight.

Ch'ing•lish

2011-11-07T10:39:00.007-05:00

Ch’ing•lish delights while probing cultural differences

The Sapir-Whorf Principle theorizes that we are the language we use, that our beliefs, attitudes and values all center on our ability to use verbalization. Misunderstandings are created when there is a clash of languages used by communicators.

Tony winner David Henry Hwang’s Ch’ing•lish, now on stage in New York’s Longacre Theater, is a delightful and insightful proof of Sapir-Whorf.

Chinglish refers to spoken or written English that is influenced by the Chinese language. It is commonly applied to ungrammatical or nonsensical English in Chinese contexts.

"Be careful not to slip and fall” in English translates to “slip carefully” in Chinglish. “False Alarm!” becomes “The Siren Lies!,” “Don't Feed the Birds!” is stated as “The Fowl Cannot Eat,” and “quiet please“ is translated as “no noising!” Want to know how well you understand Chinglish? Go the play’s website and take a test: http://chinglishbroadway.com/chinglish-translation

In the play’s opening scene, Cleveland businessman, Daniel Cavanaugh (Gary Wilmes) is giving a presentation to fellow Ohio entrepreneurs about his experiences in obtaining a contract in a small Chinese city.

As we observe, a series of scenes portray the difficulty of overcoming the Chinese-English language barrier and customs, including the concept of guanxi (the social networks that operate in the Chinese business world). Interestingly, the production is presented in a mix of spoken English and Mandarin with the use of subtitles flashed on the scenery. This is surely a first in the history of Broadway.

The production, under the direction of Leigh Silverman, is delightful. The opening scene is nothing short of hilarious, as are all those segments in which the Chinese interpreters attempt to translate what Cavanaugh is saying. The chaos that results cannot be described, it has to be experienced to be appreciated.

Wilmes is believable and develops a textured character. Stephen Pucci, as Cavanaugh’s so-called business consultant, is excellent as he transforms from aide to fake. His breakdown scene is a laugh riot. Jennifer Lim, as Cavanaugh’s adversary turned lover and help-mate, gives a fine performance. The rest of cast is equally strong.

David Korin’s set design is intriguing. It’s fascinating watching the set pieces flow seamlessly on a turntable and wagons to form numerous settings.

Capsule judgement: Ch’iNg•lish is a fascinating and delightful study of the clash of cultures based on the languages we use.

Theatre in Cleveland, feature story

2011-10-31T14:33:00.006-05:00

CLEVELAND, THE SURPRISING HOME OF LOTS OF THEATRE

Feature story to: Arts America

The woman on the deck of the cruise ship looked at me and asked, “What do you do?” I responded “I’m a theatre and dance reviewer in Cleveland, Ohio.” “Oh,” she responded, “you must not have a lot of work to do.” When I told her I cover an average 3 or 4 productions a week, and that’s only the professional theatres and dance companies, and don’t get to the twenty or so community theatres and college productions in the area, she looked at me in shocked surprise.

Yes, as is the case with many other things, the Cleveland’s arts scene, is under appreciated, but booming. Yes, booming, even in these times of recession. For example, five theatres and a dance company have moved into new venues in the past several years.

Cleveland is the home of the second largest arts complex in the country. Only New York’s Lincoln Center is larger than PlayhouseSquare, with its assemblage of the Palace, Ohio, State, Allen, Hanna, 14th Street, and Kennedy’s Down Under theatres. This complex plays home to the Broadway touring series, Page to Stage (a program in which theatre writers and producers are invited to develop Broadway-aimed productions), a joint effort between Baldwin Wallace’s nationally recognized musical theatre program and PlayhouseSquare, as well as the Cleveland Play House, Cleveland State University’s drama program, and Case Western Reserve University/Cleveland Play House MFA in Acting program.

Professional theatres include CLEVELAND PUBLIC THEATRE, located in the transforming Detroit-Shoreway area, which not only stages traditional performances, but does many new and experimental works. It is the home of Springboard, a  staged reading program of new scripts by local writers.

CLEVELAND PLAY HOUSE, which was founded in 1915, CPH, is America’s oldest regional theater in America. It produces new and classic works in its newly refurbished home in the Allen Theatre in Playhouse Square. It’s new play development program has produced numerous well-known playwrights. The MFA program, which is affiliated with Case Western Reserve University has a growing national reputation.

DOBAMA THEATRE, in the Lee Road area of Cleveland Heights, is dedicated to the production of new and recent plays. The theatre recently celebrated its 50th anniversary by moving into a new facility. It is the home of the Marilyn Bianchi Kid’s Playwriting Festival.

BECK CENTER produces a combination of traditional musicals and cutting edge plays, as well as children’s productions. It is housed in the inner rim community of Lakewood. It recently refurbished its Studio Theatre.

ENSEMBLE THEATRE believes that the arts are an essential and meaningful part of life; therefore, the theatre offers an important forum for stimulating and provoking thought about the issues of contemporary life, and it is a place for communal experience. This fall it found a home by retro-fitting the gym of a former elementary school in the Coventry area of Cleveland Heights.

GREAT LAKES THEATER was founded by Arthur Lithgow (father of John Lithgow) in 1950. Formerly known as the Great Lakes Shakespeare Festival, it has remolded its it programming to fit into its brand new space in the Hanna Theatre in PlayhouseSquare. Operating on a $3.7 million dollar-a-year budget, it produces it produces Shakespeare, the classics and modern day musicals. GLT
shares a resident company with the Idaho Shakespeare Festival. On its main stage, GLTF connects approximately 85,000 adults and students to the classics each season. The theatre’s lobby bar is named for Tom Hanks who started his acting career here.

ACTORS’ SUMMIT, located in Akron, is home to a dynamic mom and pop theatre family, whose purpose is to present professional theater created by Ohio artists for the entertainment and enrichment of its diverse community.

MERCURY SUMMER THEATRE, recently relocated to the campus of Notre Dame College, was founded by graduates of the Baldwin Wallace College’s musical theatre program. It stages summer theatrical productions.

KARAMU opened in 1915 and is the country’s oldest African American theatre. Housed in the inner city, the mission of Karamu House is to provide a joyful place of gathering where all people can learn about and experience multicultural arts, foster an awareness of cultural diversity, and inspire an appreciation for the richness of African American cultural heritage. It gave the first voice to Clevelander Langston Hughes.

CONVERGENCE CONTINUUM, a quirky theatre, with a resident company, stages non-traditional productions in the Liminus, a former car repair garage turned theatre in the Tremont area of Cleveland. As the artistic director states, “What if, instead of going to the theatre to watch a play, you crossed the threshold into the world of the play to experience it? Theatre that expands the imagination and extends the conventional boundaries of language, structure, space, and performance that challenges the conventional notions of what theatre is?” That is convergence-continuum.

PORTHOUSE Theatre, located on the grounds of Blossom Center, the summer home of the Cleveland Orchestra, is the warm weather residence of Kent State University’s theatre program. It produces three summer offerings each year with student and local professional actors.

LAKELAND Civic Theatre is housed on the campus of Lakeland Community College, in Kirtland. Its goal is to provide a learning environment that fosters aesthetic literacy and expressive capability through the cultivation of artistic techniques and skills and the exploration of creative traditions and possibilities . Sondheim shows often grace the theatre’s stage.

THEATRE NINJAS, the brainchild of artistic director Jeremy Paul, was founded to create accessible and entertaining live performance while attracting new and young audiences to the theater. Ninjas performs original works and interpretations that draw on elements of film, dance, improvisation, physical theater, graphic novels and music. They are a vagabond troupe who appear in various venues, from art galleries to actual theatres, according to the physical needs of a production.

FAIRMOUNT PERFORMING ARTS CONSERVATORY, located in Mayfield Village, is the professional wing of a thriving student theatre training school. The adult productions center on musicals and traditional comedies and dramas.

Yes, to the surprise of many, theatre is alive, well and thriving in Cleveland!

A Little Night Music

2011-10-30T15:23:00.003-05:00

Silver, Patterson, Wright and Sondheim—A LITTLE LIGHT MUSIC at FPAC

Some theatre goers have a love-hate relationship with Stephen Sondheim. His music is often beautiful, but complicated to play and sing. His lyrics often have hidden meanings. His plots usually are not the escapist surface level tales from which musical comedy is made. With few exceptions, his style is sophisticated and most appealing to theatre-wise audiences. A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC, a production of which is now on stage at Fairmount Performing Arts Conservatory (FPAC) is no exception, but in the hands of director Fred Sternfeld, it gets an audience-friendly approach.

Inspired by an Ingmar Bergman film, Smiles of a Summer Night, LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC opened on Broadway in 1973, and ran for 601 performances. It was directed by Harold Prince and had a cast which included Glynis Johns and Hermione Gingold. The script has experienced several revivals and was made into a film staring Elizabeth Taylor.

The beautiful score includes Night Waltz, Now/Later/Soon, Remember, A Weekend in the Country, The Sun Won’t Set and It Would Have Been Wonderful.

A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC is set in 1900 Sweden. It is a romp focusing on the sexual dalliances of some obviously badly matched couples. The result is a series of love triangles. It is these triangles that gave Sondheim the idea of writing the entire score in ¾ time, thus creating a series of waltz movements that carry over not only in the sound of the music but in the dialogue and lyrics.

The poorly matched couples include an 18-year-old self-absorbed virgin (Anne) who is married to a 50-something lawyer (Frederick), who is still in love with an actress (Desiree) with whom he unknowingly has a daughter (Fredericka). Complicating matters is that his uptight teenage son (Henrik) is in love with Fredrik’s wife. Then there is the affair between Desiree and Count Magnus-Malcolm, who has a wife (Charlotte), who decides to make her husband jealous by pursing Frederick. A maid, who is Henrik’s lover, and a butler are also having a romp in the hay. Sound complicated? Actually, on stage it isn’t. First, the characters are clearly identified, the alliances easy to follow, and the Liebesslider Singers act as our Greek chorus to guide us through the experience and help bring order to mismatched lovers while helping them find the right mate.

The FPAC production, under the direction of Fred Sternfeld, has charm and humor. The cast mainly has fine voices and the character development is generally clear. Even the technical elements are finely tuned.

Doing Sondheim is not an easy task. As a performer said, “Just to understand Sondheim has been a good challenge, just figuring out what it means. There’s a lot of hidden depth in his work. There’s a little laughter, a little tears, a whole gamut of emotions.” Sternfeld and his cast get the meaning and open up the audience to those ideas.

The lead performers are sound, performance and picture perfect. Dorothy Silver, the grand dame of Cleveland theatre, is endearing as Madame Armfeldt, Desiree’s mother, and the spinner of wondrous tales. Silver sing-talks her songs with fidelity and attention to creating meanings from the words with a musical undertow.

It’s worth going to the see the production if for no other reason than to hear Tracee Patterson’s rendition of Bring in the Clowns. Patterson gives just the right serious yet playful interpretation to Desiree.

Matthew Wright is well cast as Frederick, the lawyer going through middle age crisis. He is properly conflicted as a man in a sunrise-sunset relationship who is still in love with a woman from his past. Wright has a fine singing voice.

William Clarence Marshall, Claire Connelly, Bernadette Hisey, Justin Williamson and Lydia Hall, the Liebeslieder (love song) Singers, not only have well-trained voices but carry their acting roles with ease.

Natalie Green is delightful as Petra, a free-spirited young lady who dreams of love in the well sung, The Miller’s Son. Katherine DeBoer is excellent as Charlotte Malcolm.

Though some of the supporting performers have difficulty in creating realistic characters, the strength of the leads and the quality of the singing make those weaknesses fade.

The play’s title is an English translation of the German name for Mozart's Serenade No. 13 for strings in G major, Eine kleine Nachtmusik. Scenic designer Trad Burns has taken this theme and created the set by constructing walls covered with musical notes of Mozart’s score. It is a perfect backdrop for the goings on. Craig Tucker’s costume designs and execution are era right and beautiful in detail. Benjamin Gantoe’s warm lighting helps create the perfect love moods.

David Williams’ orchestra plays well, especially considering that shortly before opening night curtain, the violin player broke her wrist and had to be replaced. Yes, the old adage, the show must go on, was in force.

CAPSULE JUDGEMENT: The FAPC production, under the creative direction of Fred Sternfeld, makes for a wonderful theatrical experience. Go see!

Tigers Be Still

2011-10-29T14:24:00.004-05:00

TIGERS BE STILL…a slight comedy about depression

Have you ever had an American cheese, mayonnaise and white bread sandwich? You finished it and for a while are satisfied, but never thought much about it afterwards? That’s my reaction to TIGERS BE STILL. I saw it, left the theatre, walked to my car with a friend and talked about our dinner that evening, got into the car, listened to the seventh game of the World Series on the way home, and didn’t think about the play again until the next morning, when I saw the platbill on my desk.

This is not to say TIGERS BE STILL is bad. It’s perfectly okay…like an American cheese, mayonnaise and white bread sandwich. It’s just not exciting or memorable. The message of “you are responsible for your own actions” is clear, the plot flows right along with some quirky inserts, but nothing screams out, “pay attention to this.”

Playwright Kim Rosenstock said, of TIGERS BE STILL, that she “wanted to write a comedy about depression.” She did. Not a great comedy about depression, but a less than depressing comedy about depression.

TIGERS BE STILL examines the lives of a mother, two sisters, a former beau of the mother who is now a junior high principal, and his son. All are dysfunctional. The mother has a disease, which forces her to take a drug that causes severe weight gain. A former beauty, she crawls into bed, has not come out of her room for months, and communicates with her daughters, who live in the same house as the mother, by telephone. Her husband walked out when she became bedroom bound.

Her oldest daughter has called off her impending wedding because her fiancé cheated. She is in deep depression, drinking and eating with abandon, and lying on the living room couch watching over and over again a Depends commercial, and a video of TOP GUN, while having a sexual fling with the octogenarian mailman.

The youngest daughter, who just completed her MA in art therapy, has been hired to teach at a junior high by her mother’s ex-boy friend and also to counsel his angst-filled and angry son. She is as needy as the rest of her psychotic brood.

The principal is grief stricken and acting off-kilter due to the sudden death of his wife. The son, who was responsible for his mother’s death, when he lost control of the car he was driving, has a rage problem. Guess what? They are both depressed.

The play ends with the line, “And, that’s how my mother got out of bed.” That gives a broad hint of how the whole saga works itself out.

Dobama’s production, under the direction of Mark Moritz, is fine. The pace, movements, idea development, and characterizations are all on track. Nothing great, nothing bad.

Rachel Gehlert is like the Energizer bunny on speed. She is delightful, quirky and makes Sherry, the art therapist, fun. Well, as fun as a depressed person can be.

Kristy Cruz, is fine as the depressed older sister. She appropriately makes depressed look depressing.

Mark Mayo adds a quirky twist to the role of the Principal, but one can only wonder why a school board would continue to employ someone “so out of it.” But, this interpretation of a principal seems to be the trend…think Principal Figgens in GLEE.

Joe Dunn gives a nice interpretation to the role of the guilt-ridden teenager. His “why I didn’t shoot the tiger speech” is excellent.

Oh, the title. A tiger has broken out of the local zoo and the citizenry is very depressed over what might take place if someone is confronted by the animal.

Capsule judgement: TIGERS BE STILL, which gets a nice production at Dobama, isn’t the kind of play that will long be remembered. It’s not a don’t see nor a must see kind of offering.

Daddy Long Legs

2011-10-27T21:34:00.008-05:00

DADDY LONG LEGS…charming and harmonic at CPH

Daddy Long Legs, a novel by the American writer Jean Webster, Mark Twain’s great grandniece, has had a glorious trek. Originally published in 1912, it was transformed into a play in 1914 starring Ruth Chatterton, into a 1919 Mary Pickford movie, a 1931 film staring Janet Gaynor, a 1935 movie called CURLY TOP starring Shirley Temple, a 1952 British stage musical dubbed Love from Judy, then the 1955 film Daddy Long Legs (starring Fred Astaire and Leslie Caron).

Most recently, it became a musical with a book by Tony and Olivier Award-winner John Caird (Nicholas Nickelby, Les Miserables) and music and lyrics by Tony-nominee Paul Gordon (Jane Eyre). Not bad for a plot that is as thin as a pencil lead and whose conclusion is telegraphed within the first minute of play.

The Caird-Gordon rendition is presently on stage at Cleveland Play House.

The script, like most female writing around the turn of century, centers on a sentimental girl heroine. Think Kate Douglas Wiggin’s REBECCA OF SUNNYBROOK FARM, Eleanor Porter’s POLYANNA and Louisa May Alcott’s LITTLE WOMEN.

Set in early 1900 New England, this is the story of Jerusha Abbot, a bright orphan sent to a prestigious college by an anonymous benefactor she nicknames Daddy Long Legs. Revealed through witty and insightful letters sent to a man she supposedly never sees, it is a delightful look at her journey to womanhood.

The spoken and sung lines are so blended together that the entire effect carries the audience into a state of serene smiles and the feeling of happy escape. The music is often intoxicating. The song titles give clear clues to the story, The Oldest Orphan in the John Grier Home, Who is This Man?, Things I Don’t Know, What Does She Mean By Love?, and I Couldn’t Know Someone Less.

The song, The Secret of Happiness, which carries the script’s theme, is a tribute to how a person can have a series of personal revelations that result in her finding her true self. As Gordon states, “It’s about how people come together in a quite interesting and magical way. Don’t be afraid to be different. Be yourself. Just work your hardest to get your own ideas out there and do what you can in the world and shine.”

The staging and interpretation is creative. John Caird’s direction is spot on. There are two glorious performances. Add an effective lighting design, a purposeful set, finely tuned music which supports and does not drown out the lyrics, and the result is a wonderful theatrical experience.

The CPH production is a resurrection. Caird previously staged the show at numerous venues, with the same cast, starting with its world premiere in 2009.

Megan McGinnis is effervescent as Jerusha. The beautiful young lady has a wonderful singing voice, is a fine actress and lights up the stage with her presence. She is the prototype of the Broadway leading lady.

Tall, handsome and talented, Robert Adelman Hancock is the perfect partner for McGinnis. He sings well, develops the right vulnerability, and the duo appears to be made for one another.

In an interview McGinnis said, "I can't tell you how much I love this piece. It's a brilliant and beautiful show — so well crafted. Jerusha is the most human character I've ever played. She is fallible and opinionated and real. You watch her develop into this wonderfully strong and independent woman, as she falls in love with knowledge and learning, and also falls in love with a man! It's certainly a journey I don't mind taking every night."

Capsule judgement: Though some may call it a bit of sentimental fluff, a staged chick flick with formulaic music, I’d term it a charming tale, developed with clear characters, set to melodic music with beautiful harmonic blends, that is well staged and performed. DADDY LONG LEGS is an absolute must see!

Waiting for Lefty

2011-10-24T15:18:00.003-05:00

Ensemble initiates its new home with classic WAITING FOR LEFTY

In this era of Wall Street sit-ins and the politicizing of unions, as represented by Kasich’s administration’s passing of a non-negotiation bill, a return to examining the reason for, and the rise of unionism, is appropriate. Probably no play better looks at the subject of U. S. union confrontation then Clifford Odets’ WAITING FOR LEFTY.

Based on the true story of the 1934 unionization of New York City cab drivers, the organizing efforts, dubbed by opponents as “the promotion of the communist revolution in America,” is a vivid example of “agit-prop” theatre. Agit-Prop was a form of writing with the intent of agitating, propagandizing and spreading ideas, which was popularized by Bertolt Brecht and U. S. social action writers, such as Clifford Odets.

Odets’s writing style, as is that of others of his era, is somewhat outdated by modern standards, due to its stylized language and over-dramatized situations, but it is appropriate to highlight the rage that was seething during the depression in the United States. This was an era of using the power of drama and the other arts to push a specific political cause and create what has commonly been dubbed in drama history as “people’s theatre.” And, since theatre is representative of the era from which it comes, it is only appropriate that Odets’ words spew forth and be heard in this, a decade of parallel social unrest.

The story centers on a hotly-contested strike vote in which a corrupt union leader (Harry Fatt) tries to discourage the membership from walking out. His motives are anything but pure, and definitely not in the interest of the membership. In a series of 8 vignettes, the tale is told through the words of union members. The climax of the play comes when word arrives that Lefty Costello, the leader of the strike faction, has been killed. This pushes the assemblage over the top, and cries of, “strike,” “strike,” “strike” are heard as the play comes to a shattering conclusion.

In the analogues of theatre history, “Waiting for Lefty is seen as an important dramatic work that offers historical evidence of the social power and aspirations of theatre.

Ensemble’s production, being performed on a thrust stage in their new home in the reconfigured gym of the former Coventry Elementary School, lends itself to the up-close and in-your-face format of the script.

The performance, under the direction of Ian Hintz, is generally excellent. The pacing is even, the idea development clear, the use of graphics to bridge the various eras of history are creative, and the music is appropriate. The ending, however, which didn’t quite build to the desired climax, could have been more frenetic and emotionally keyed, adding to the cry for change, for action.

The large cast, only two of whom are professional actors, does a very creditable job of generally creating the right atmosphere. Especially strong performances were presented by Skip Corris, Layla Schwartz and James Rankin.

CAPSULE JUDGEMENT: WAITING FOR LEFTY is an important American play which reflects not only the depression era, but is relevant in today’s chaotic times. Odets’ script gets a strong performance at Ensemble Theatre.

2011-10-22T10:56:00.004-05:00

RACE, a must see at Beck

David Mamet, the Pulitzer Prize winning author, is noted for his ability to create vivid images with his use of language. His writing style is so distinct that it has been officially dubbed “Mamet Speak.” That fast paced, direct, in-your-face flow of words, which often forces the actors to overlap ideas, cut each other off, and use terms that grate on moralist’s ears, is clearly displayed in his script, RACE, which is getting its regional premiere at Beck Center.

RACE, which ran on Broadway from 2009 to 2010 and featured James Spader, David Alan Grier, Kerry Washington, and Richard Thomas, is a thought provoking, often incendiary piece which follows three attorneys, two black and one white, who grapple with defending a wealthy white man accused of raping a black woman. As the story unfolds, the characters and the audience are faced with examining their definitions, thoughts and feelings about race.

Mamet has said that the play is not only about race but “the lies we tell each other, and ourselves, about the subject.”

Because of the complex language and character development, a production of the script requires not only a focused director, but a superb cast that works as a well oiled unit. Fortunately, Beck has the creative and exacting Sarah May as the show’s director. The award winning May not only understands the requirements of how to make Mamet live, and the necessity of finite timing, but how to work with actors to get the desired outcome.

The production is also blessed with a fine cast. Justin Emeka, an equity member and professor of theater at Oberlin College, is compelling as Henry Brown, one of the black attorneys. He immerses himself in the role, giving human reality to the part.

Tom Woodward, another equity actor, is at his finest as Jack Lawson, the white lawyer. The character’s personal struggle between being racially tolerant, and being unclear of his underlying motivations, is well developed.

Aungelique Scott balances the duality of the role of Susan, a young newly hired member of the law firm, who has both racial and personal agendas, which temper her participation in the legal process. Scott has the ability to distance herself, early on displaying a lack of outward emotion in her eyes and body, that gives clues of what will come in the startling ending of the play. Her emotional transition in the final scene is finely honed.

Brian Pedaci does an acceptable job of portraying Charles Strickland, the wealthy white man accused of raping a black woman. Additional arrogance might have helped build a more conflicted real person. This could have helped heighten the concluding scene.

Richard Gould’s upscale law office set is well conceived, with small details and props creating the required realism. Jenniver Sparano’s costume designs are questionable. Strickland’s suits and ties were definitely not the Brooks Brothers quality that would be worn by a wealth man and Susan’s clothes seemed questionable for an ivy league lawyer to be wearing.

As is Mamet’s hallmark, the play’s conclusion, a twist of what might be expected, encourages the audience to leave the theatre to discuss and dissect what they’ve just experienced.

CAPSULE JUDGEMENT: David Mamet’s RACE, under the fine directing hand of Sarah May, gets an outstanding production at Beck! It’s one of this season’s MUST SEE highlights.

Monster Play

2011-10-19T17:22:00.002-05:00

MONSTER PLAY, Jeremy Paul’s imagination again goes wild

When Jeremy Paul, the creator and director of MONSTER PLAY, now getting its world premiere at Cleveland Public Theatre, was a child, he was afraid of monsters. A normal kid would be afraid of bats, witches, thing under the bed, or the boogey man. As has been demonstrated in many of his previous productions, Paul’s fertile imagination doesn’t follow the “normal” path. Believe it or not, his monsters were robots. Yep, robots.

As I said in a previous Theatre Ninjas’ review, “being inside Paul’s head must be like being in a labyrinth of a fun house. Weird visions must swirl around and around. The result of Paul’s creativity is usually fascinating and confounding theatre.” MONSTER PLAY, his latest invention, is true Paul.

The evening starts out with the author, sounding like Bela Lugosi of Count Dracula film fame, warning the audience to turn off their cell phones and not dare to crinkle candy wrappers. Or else! You have been warned. The bizarre is about to begin.

Paul creates a combination of monsters, fantasies and haunting metaphors. Andrew Kaletta’s set, is a canopy of fabrics draped over the theatre-in-the-round playing area. Large blood covered tarps often enshroud the actors making them into a solo monster, and other times individual actors are wrapped in the cloth. Startling Benjamin Gantose lighting effects, including a strobe light, add to the visual illusions. Blood inked actors assault the senses.

Paul inserts comic routines that delight, including a walking version of the shower scene from the movie PSYCHO, a macabre segment from Little Red Riding Hood, and several Grimm’s fairy tales.

Paul doesn’t just stop at getting you ready for Halloween, he also takes on the real monsters: religion, doctors, and parents.

Yes, as the conceiver warns, “Monsters haven’t gone anywhere, they still wait outside our houses, our closets, beneath old bridges, and in the grills of cars as they run stop lights.”

The cast is well versed and trained. They consume the stage and the imagination. Ray Caspio, Stuart Hoffman (adorned in a hair shirt), Val Kozlenko, Jenni Messner and Lauren B. Smith morph from role to role with ease in their grubby blood and dirt stained rough-clothed costumes.

Since the audience is no more than 15 feet away from the performers, the cast’s grunts, moans and smells are up front and personal. It all adds to the bizarre effect.

A pre-tween girl watching the performance I saw, spent most of the evening clinging to her father, being devoured by Paul’s imagination. I’m sure she spent a sleepless night.

CAPSULE JUDGEMENT: MONSTER PLAY is a fun, confounding and psychologically disrupting experience. It should be on the must see list for every warped teenager, and will also appeal to adults who are fascinated by things that go bump in the night.

Woody Guthrie's American Song

2011-10-17T09:57:00.001-05:00

WOODY GUTHRIE’S AMERICAN SONG educates and delights at Actors’ Summit

If Woody Guthrie, America’s rambling troubadour were alive today, he’d probably be mixing in with “his folk” at the Occupy Wall Street Movement rallies. Yes, Guthrie, who is the subject of WOODY GUTHRIE’S AMERICAN SONG, now on stage at Akron’s Actors’ Summit, would be strumming his guitar and telling the tales of the people he knew and whom he told song stories about.

Woodrow Wilson Guthrie was born in 1912 in Okemah, Oklahoma. Though he was forced by dust storms and droughts to leave his Okie homeland, he never let the taste of the raging sands, the financial hardships and his love of the real people, fall far from his attention.

Guthrie took to the road early in life and became an itinerant folk singer, telling the tales of those hit hard by the fury of nature and the Great Depression. He clearly developed a vivid musical history of the farm workers, union members, illegal immigrants, labor strikers, and big and small town people. His lyric poems of praise and protest, classics such as So Long It’s Been Good to Know You, Pastures of Plenty, Union Made, and This Land Is Your Land, have engraved him as an indelible part of Americana.

The Actor’s Summit production, under the creative guidance of director Neil Thackaberry, makes for a delightful evening of theatre. The musical arrangements by Michael Anderson, and the talented cast, bring Guthrie’s ideas to life and teach his lessons well.

Rather than using the traditional narrator introduces songs which are sung as individual units, Thackaberry has all of the cast speak the story lines, alternating and often blending the words with the song lyrics. There is no backup orchestra, the actors play all the musical instruments. The music is integrated into the whole. This is a play about the people, performed by the people, for the people!

The entire cast is excellent. MaryJo Alexander, Ryan Anderson, Scott Davis, Sally Groth, Dana Hart, Mark Leach, Emma Pitch and Keith Stevens all have the right spoken sound of the people and sing with meaning. Even the costumes, shades of the muddy ground, are era and setting correct. The railroad car, saloon and thrust stage setting all enhance the atmosphere.

CAPSULE JUDGEMENT: WOODY GUTHRIE’S AMERICAN SONG is both an educational, theatrical, and pleasing experience. It’s very well worth the trip to Akron!

The Boys in the Band

2011-10-16T23:05:00.002-05:00

Con-con’s THE BOYS IN THE BAND fun, but lacks needed consistent realism

Mart Crowley’s THE BOYS IN THE BAND, now on stage at convergence-continuum, holds a unique and important place in theatrical history. It was the first professional hit play to examine life for homosexuals before the Gay Revolution. It played over 1000 performances off-Broadway, an unheard of success for a show that appealed to a niche audience.

To truly get in touch with the script’s intent, it is necessary to understand the era from which it comes. It’s 1968, a time when intimacy between same sex people was illegal. Where gays and lesbians had no legal rights regarding jobs or housing, and gay hate ran rampant. It’s a year before the Stonewall riots the event that ushered in a drive for gay and lesbian human rights. A revolution that has brought about legal changes, the elimination of restrictions against homosexuals in the military, achieved gay marriage or civil unions in many states, and created a general lessening of negative attitudes towards those attracted to members of the same sex.

A group of eight gay men are assembled for a birthday party in a New York apartment. There’s Michael, the party’s host, an alcoholic who turns to excessive buying and religion to try and hide himself from himself, and Donald, his weekend guest, who escapes to the Hampton’s to spend his time constantly reading and going to his therapist to fill a psychological void. There’s the flamboyant Emery, who uses sarcasm and outrageous humor to deflect his true feelings. Another attendee is Larry, an artist who finds satisfaction in multiple lovers, much to the angst of his boyfriend, Hank, who has left his wife to be with Larry and wants relational fidelity. Bernard is a black man who plays the “yasa boss “roll of allowing others to taunt him for not only his blackness, but his everlasting love for the Caucasian son of his mother’s employer; and the birthday boy Harold, who describes himself as “a pock-marked Jew fairy.”

As the play evolves, one wonders how and why this group are friends. They appear to not like each other, and, in fact, spew dislike. But, there is a bond, a bond of desperateness. These are all men who cling to each other because of their need for reassurance, even if it’s negative, in order to deal with their self-doubts and self-hatred.

Con-con’s production, under the direction of Tyson Douglas Rand, is inconsistent. This is a drama that requires fidelity and realism. Though filled with laughs, it seriously focuses on these men and their angst filled lives.

Clyde Simon steals the show as the flamboyant Emory who can hardly keep his wrists from going limp, hips from swaying, hands from flailing, and voice from screeching. Zac Hudak is natural and believable as the introspective Donald. Dan Kilbane, as Hank, the man who left his family for a new life, is real, both properly pathetic and vulnerable.

Jonathan Wilhelm has all the right snarky moves and right biting vocal sounds as the self-loathing Harold. Though he does a nice job of acting as the air-headed Cowboy, a hustler who has been purchased for the evening as a gift for Harold, Benjamin Gregg is missing the physical brawn and beauty that is a requirement for the role. Bobby Williams creates a credible Bernard.

Neither James Jarrell, as Alan, Michael’s former college roommate who accidentally walks in on the goings on, nor Scott Zolkowski, as Hank’s promiscuous lover, develops a consistent persona. Both speak words, not meanings.

A major cause of the show’s lack of true believability is Curt Arnold (Michael) not having control of his lines. It’s a minor problem in the first act, but his stumbles, repeats, and breaking character, takes the wind out of the highly emotional second act as he fails to realistically lose control as he falls deeper and deeper into drunkenness. His line flubs effect the interactions of all on stage and throw roadblocks to the realism.

The Liminus has a postage stamp stage that makes all the action up close and personal. Actors can literally touch and speak to the audience, which they often do. It supplies a greater cry for realism than if this were a performance with some distance of separation.

The costumes leave much to be desired. Many are not era correct, jackets don’t fit, supposedly expensive sweaters have holes in the sleeves.

Capsule Judgement: THE BOYS IN THE BAND is an important play filled with images of being homosexual in the U.S. before the gay revolution. The production is fun, but to be totally successful it needed to be consistently realistic. It’s okay, rather than being great!

Side note: With the sold performances that THE BOYS IN THE BAND is getting, artistic director Clyde Simon should consider doing at least one gay-themed show a season. No venue in the area makes an effort to satisfy the interests of this large niche audience. Numerous proven scripts are available or, if Simon wants to do originals, he can turn to Chicago’s Great Gay Play Contest for material.

Million Dollar Quartet

2011-10-15T11:44:00.005-05:00

MILLION DOLLAR QUARTET….great balls of fire!

Part concert, part history lesson, a lot of rock ‘n roll, and a heck of good time-- that’s MILLION DOLLAR QUARTET, now on stage at the Palace Theatre in PlayhouseSquare.

The second largest entertainment center in the United States is playing host to
Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins and Johnny Cash. Well, four performers portraying those icons of rock and roll, in a stage show that attempts to duplicate the one time that the four actually did get together for an informal rock session. The event took place in the recording studios of the legendary Sun Records on December 4, 1956.

To make the whole experience of even greater importance, this production in the Rock and Roll capital, is the first venue for the touring version of the show. Yes, MILLION DOLLAR QUARTET’s trip around the country is being launched right here!

It’s fifty-five years ago, four emerging music icons, all of whom were good old Southern boys, identified and molded by Sam Phillips, were in his Memphis Sun Studios. They ad-libbed an evening of gospel, blues and rock ‘n roll music. The event was chronicled by a reporter from the Memphis Press-Scimitar. The next day the article discussing the event stated, “This quartet could sell a million.” Little did the reporter realize that though that number sounded like a lot, this quartet would go on to sell many millions, and become individual musical icons.

Whether the actions happened exactly as portrayed is not known, but the fact that there was such a jam session is a reality. A recording of the session, and a picture of the four, documented the event and became the basis for the musical with a book by Colin Escott and Floyd Mutrux, and musical arrangements by Chuck Mead.

The production team was at Thursday’s press opening and was introduced by Gina Vernecci, PlayhouseSquares’ Vice President of Theatricals.

It is only right that the production started its journey here. Presley and Lewis were among our Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame’s charter inductees, and were soon joined by Perkins and Cash.

The touring production, under the direction of Eric Schaeffer, who I worked with at Signature Theatre in Arlington, Virginia (a suburb of DC), is right on target. He knows how to stage and inspire a cast. The production is exciting, enveloping, filled with well-timed humor and a little drama. And, of course, there is a Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On.

The stage literally explodes with hit after hit, including Blue Suede Shoes, That’s All Right, Sixteen Tons, I Walk the Line, Great Balls of Fire and Party. Then, there was a curtain call which features the likes of Hound Dog, Riders in the Sky, and See You Later Alligator.

The cast is outstanding. The quartet not only sings well, but plays their own instruments, and acts with realism.

Cody Slaughter not only eerily looks like Elvis, but has the snarl, the hip swivels, the pelvis thrusts and the famous heavy eye-lidded stare. A true son of the south, Slaughter was named “Elvis Presley Enterprises’ Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist of 2011.” Appropriately, the last line heard from the stage at the conclusion of the production was, “And Elvis has left the building.”

Martin Kaye makes for the perfect undisciplined, dynamic, uber-talented pianist and singer, Jerry Lee Lewis. He is electric on stage, hardly able to contain the character’s twitching, jumping, ADHD persona.

Derek Keeling has the perfect Johnny Cash voice and sultry looks. Dressed in Cash’s signature black uniform, his deep voice, and smoldering personal underbelly, makes for a complete characterization.

Lee Ferris develops well the conflicted Perkins, whose fame was eclipsed by Presley, all the way from the King taking Perkins’ Blue Suede Shoes and making it into a hit that exceeded the original author’s recording, but generally overshadowing the man known as the King of Rock-a-billie.

Christopher Ryan Grant gives a human portrayal of Sam Phillips, Kelly Lamont is fine as Presley’s girl friend of the moment, and bass player Chuck Zayas and drummer Christopher Ryan Grant, are excellent musicians who add much to the show.

Capsule judgement: MILLION DOLLAR QUARTET is one of those special evenings of theatre. It’s filled with great music and fine performances that led to screaming, yelling, clapping, multi-standing ovations given by the opening night audience. Yes, Memories Are Made of This!

Cabaret

2011-10-10T17:44:00.005-05:00

No standing ovation for CABARET at Great Lakes Theatre

CABARET. It’s 1931 in Germany, a country of unrest. We find ourselves at the Kit Kat Klub, a seedy cabaret, a place of decadence and emotional abandonment. Hanging over the entire scene is the growth of the Nazi party and the impending reign of terror.

CABARET. A musical loosely based on John Van Druten’s play I AM A CAMERA, which was adapted from Christopher Isherwood’s GOODBYE TO BERLIN, with music by John Kander and lyrics by Fred Ebb.

CABARET. A glimpse at Sally Bowles, a young English cabaret singer, her seedy life as a performer, her doomed relationship with American writer Cliff Bradshaw, and a strong subtext of another doomed relationship between German boarding house owner Fraulein Schneider and her suitor Herr Schultz, a Jewish fruit vendor. Not to be overlooked is the Master of Ceremonies at the Kit Kat Klub, who oversees the entire affair, not aware that he is also on a doomed path.

CABARET. A version of which is now on stage at Great Lake Theatre.

The musical opened on Broadway in 1966. Immediately upon entering the theatre, the audience was struck by the difference between this and other shows. The curtain was up, a large convex mirror reflected each person out of proportion as s/he walked down the aisle. Lights and the theatre’s brick walls were all exposed. Ironically, the staging was reflective of exiled German Jewish playwright Bertolt Brecht’s theory of theatre: alienation (awareness that you are watching a theatrical production), epic (that which was presented is bigger than life), and historification (a message from the past, which the viewer was to bring into the present, and learn from the experience).

The original cast included award winning Clevelander Joel Grey as the Emcee. Grey went on to also star in the 1972 movie version which featured Liza Minnelli as Sally.

In the London revival of 1993, under the direction of Sam Mendes, the show took on a new persona. The emcee morphed from an asexual, malevolent character to a highly sexualized homosexual (brilliantly portrayed by Allen Cummings) who, at the ending of play, along with all the other “decadents”—Jews, Communists, the physically disabled—are taken off to the concentration camps. Other changes added references to Cliff's bisexuality, including a scene where he kisses one of the Cabaret boys. A 1998 Broadway revival, which also starred Cummings, further refined the script, added wandering musicians to bring out the alienation and identifying each character with a musical sound.

The Great Lakes Theatre production, under the direction of Victoria Bussert, works on some levels, stumbles on others. Basically using the Mendes rewrite, the general staging is acceptable, creating many of the right highlighting to illustrate the impending horror. On the other hand, some questionable casting, pedestrian choreography and a costume glitch, produce problems.

Neil Brookshire develops a believable character as American writer Cliff Bradshaw. Laura Perrotta, is properly both hard and tender as Fraulein Schneider, whose purpose in life is to survive at all costs. John Woodson is wonderful as Herr Schultz, the Jew who thinks he is a German and naively assumes that the forces that are coming will assume the same.

Perrotta and Woodson’s versions of It Couldn’t Please Me More and Married, Perrotta’s So What and What Would You Do?, and the wrenching Tomorrow Belongs to Me were the production’s vocal highlights.

Danny Henning (Bobby), with a snarl and a sneer, makes for a fine Kit Kat male dancer and one of Cliff’s former lovers. Jim Lichtscheidl (Ernst) is properly despicable as a scheming Nazi. Sara Bruner is spot on as Fraulein Kost, Fraulein Schneider’s roomer, who offers sexual favors to numerous sailors.

On the other hand, Eduardo Placer feigns at being the Master of Ceremonies. The performance is all on the surface, filled with vocal and physical gimmicks, never giving a clue that he understood the power of his character. The same can be said for Jodi Dominick’s Sally. Besides having difficulty singing the marvelous songs that the role is given, she never gives a clear reading of her basis for desperateness, the vulnerability that is covered by bravado. The flailing hands, high pitched vocal adventures into trying to dispilay desperateness, didn’t help create a believable character. Don’t expect to hear an emotionally moving version of the theme song Cabaret.

Gregory Daniels’ choreography was efficient, but never developed the underlying sensuality of the Kit Kat girls, nor the power needed to create the impending issues, nor was there any clear distinctive style displayed.

Charlotte Yerman’s costumes were era correct and worked well, but her yellow stars for the Jews and pink triangles for the homosexuals, were so small that unless a viewer knew what was going on, there was no way to catch the meaning in the quick last scene. In fact, while exiting the theatre, a woman was overheard saying, “I didn’t know the MC was Jewish,” which obliterated part of Mendes’ rewrite highlighting that more than Jews were taken to their deaths.

Capsule judgement: CABARET gets a serviceable, yet flawed production at Great Lakes. The very fact that the production I saw received light applause, not a Cleveland automatic standing ovation, gives a clear message that director Victoria Bussert did not get the most out of the script.

The Taming of the Shrew

2011-10-03T08:56:00.001-05:00

Farcical THE TAMING OF THE SHREW entertains at GLTF, but…

Though it is billed as a comedy, Shakespeare’s TAMING OF THE SHREW, a version of which is now on stage at Great Lakes Theatre, is a play of controversy.

To understand the hullabaloo, knowledge of the plot is necessary.

The tale, which is set in Hollywood, California, in this version, finds Lucentio, a rich young man, arriving in the city with his servants, Tranio and Biondello, to attend a local university. Lucentio’s center of attention changes when he sees and instantly falls in love with the beautiful Bianca. As happens in such tales, there are problems. In this case, Bianca already has two suitors and, most importantly, her wealthy father will not let Bianca be courted until her older sister, the ill-tempered Kate, has married. Petruchio, a suitor for Kate comes along, and we are carried into Shakespeare’s tale of how the shrew is “tamed.”

The quote marks around the word “tamed” are not by accident. That word is the center of the script’s ability to inflame strong reaction.

The controversy centers on the play’s ending, when the strong-headed Kate does, or appears to buckle into the will of society, in this case, the will of her husband and declares, “The husband is the lord,” indicating the misogynistic and patriarchal view that women are persons to be controlled by men. This concept, of course, does not sit well with modern women. It reeks of the views of the rulers of such countries as Saudi Arabia and Iran and males who abuse and denigrate women.

While feminists and their followers declare that the play’s ending needs to be dropped, altered, or that Kate’s lines should be coded to indicate that what she is saying is not what she means, others have defended the play by highlighting the play's sentiments are not meant to be taken at face value, that the entire play is, in fact, a farce.

This disagreement places a clear obligation on each production’s director to choose an interpretation of Kate’s final speech, as it is this scene, which in the end defines the meaning of the entire production. The director has at least four choices: (1) Kate's speech is sincere and Petruchio (her husband) has successfully tamed her or she has come to see that they're well-matched in temperament; (2) Kate’s speech is ironic: she is not being sincere in her statements but sarcastic, pretending to have been tamed when in reality she has completely duped or is humoring Petruchio; (3) Kate's speech cannot be taken seriously due to the farcical nature of the play; (4) Kate’s speech both satirizes gender roles and emphasizes the social need for wives to be obedient to their husbands.

In the GLT’s production, there is no satirical verbal or nonverbal hint of tongue in cheek, there is no wink as Sara Bruner (Kate) is stating her speech, there is no overdone farcical aspect to the scene as was present in much of the production. So, does this mean that Young, a woman, opted for option 1? Since she writes no program notes, the viewer has no way of knowing.

As to the rest of the production, Young has pulled out all the shticks to produce a staging that will delight all those who love the Three Stooges, Saturday morning cartoons, and productions that are way bigger than life.

Young has set the production in 1980, with many references to Tinsel Town. There are tourists going on home tours of the stars, mention of Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, and Ralph Loren clothing designs. Slang, rock music, nonverbal gestures and somewhat era correct clothes waft across the stage.

The wedding scenes are each delightful, the elevator thrust stage is used effectively to make set pieces and people appear and disappear before our very eyes, the music is fun, the choreography properly over the top, and the fights are of well staged. The first act is let loose fun; the second stanza seems to run out of steam.

Sara Bruner goes totally overboard as Kate. How she gets through a performance without getting hurt from the flips, rolling on the floor battles, and headlocks, is amazing. She is beyond real, obviously creating a character true to her director’s desires. As such, she is a delight.

Her Petruchio, (Jim Lichtscheidl) a gentleman of Montana, who is used to roping wild things, wrestles and abuses his Kate into submission by withholding food, holding her captive and generally taming her. Unfortunately, he is somewhat inconsistent in his character development.

Reggie Gowland makes for a handsome and realistic love-sick Lucentio. Kjerstine Rose Anderson is adorable as the cheerleader perky Bianca. Neil Brookshire and Danny Henning, as Lucentio’s servants, are delightful.

Michael Locher’s steel-clad set is distracting. The doors don’t always work well as devices of quick exits, the constant changing of pictures and window coverings on the second floor rooms is distracting, and the straight line walls seems to get in the way of the action, rather than helping it.

Capsule judgement: Great Lakes Theatre’s production of TAMING OF THE SHREW will be a delight for those who like their theatre and Shakespeare over the top. It well may infuriate those who champion women as equals of men.

November

2011-10-01T13:14:00.005-05:00

NOVEMBER is relevant but humorous rather than hysterically funny at Lakeland

The dialogue writing style of David Mamet, the author of NOVEMBER, which is now being staged at The Civic Theatre at Lakeland Community College, is so unique that it actually has a name all its own.

Mamet speak is a cynical, street-smart, edgy way of talking. In his writing Mamet often uses italics and quotation marks to highlight particular words. The intent is to make the actors aware of how to stress certain terms, and that many sentences won’t be completed, and in speaking his ideas the performers need to overlap their speeches. A production of his works requires glib and fast-paced speaking.

He doesn’t write pretty, he writes blunt. He uses four letter words, not to shock, but in the natural flow of speech. He states things that many would find outlandish, but, in reality, are truths (or his version of the truth) and thought provoking. Ideas come from the mouths of his characters, ideas that many think, but few say. Many of his thoughts are outlandish, laugh-out-loud, and obscene in words and connotation.

NOVEMBER opened on Broadway in 2008 to mixed reviews. The positive comments included: "savage merriment . . . delightful . . . wild . . . brilliant." It was dubbed "vaudeville meets current events.”

The script is filled with satirical stabs at American politics, the public, special interest groups, women, and about everything else that Mamet’s darts happen to hit.

Meet President Charles Smith, of Shaker Heights, Ohio, the most corrupt, inept, unliked scheming buffoon ever to sit in the Oval Office. It's the final days of his bid for a second term. The country is a mess, his poll numbers are "lower than Gandhi's cholesterol count" and defeat is certain. He needs to get money for his Presidential library, his political party won’t help, and he’s so broke that he wants to take the sofa in the Oval Office with him when he departs.

Add to this his lesbian speechwriter longing to marry her sweetheart on national television, a cynical chief of staff, Thanksgiving turkeys awaiting to be pardoned, and a wife who almost causes the third World War because she spreads the rumor that there is going to be a nuclear attack on or by Iran, and you have the potential for hysteria.

Unfortunately, the Lakeland show, under the direction of Martin Friedman, doesn’t live up to the potential of the script.

In the Broadway show Nathan Lane, who played the President, was credited with being "glib and jaunty" and “knowing exactly how to pitch such lines, with a time-honed style that allows him to put the maximum spin on poisonous zingers and still keep the audience on his side.” Though he puts out full effort, Robert Hawkes doesn’t have Lane’s comic timing or bigger than life presence.

Andrew Narten as Archer Brown, Smith’s chief of staff, underplays the role. There is no Chaney evilness or Carl Rowe slithering here. It would have helped.

Anne McEvoy is fine as Clarice, the speech writer. She develops a consistent and believable character. Abigail Brace Allwein stays on the surface with little character development as Turkey Gal and the same can be said for Robert McCoy as Dwight Grackle, the Indian chief.

The show lacks precise timing and doesn’t lead up to and stress the comic aspects of the lines. It plays safe. It needs to be outrageous. The cast needs to let loose, thus insuring the audience has fun. As is, it’s smile material.

The Oval Office of the White House is well depicted here, but the view out the window is wrong. Having worked at the White House, I’m aware that the windows look out over the Rose Garden and the massive back lawn, not at the Capitol Building which is miles away and east, not south of the White House.

CAPSULE JUDGMENT: NOVEMBER is a script full of biting satire and sharp dialogue. The Lakeland production is humorous, but needed to be outrageously funny.

Shaw Festival--2012 preview

2011-09-28T11:58:00.001-05:00

THE SHAW FESTIVAL announces its 2012 season

It may appear to be too early to think about it, but The Shaw Festival, which is located in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Canada, has announced its 2012 season.

Many Clevelanders take the four-hour drive up to The Shaw, as it is called by the locals, to participate in theatre, tour the “most beautiful little city in Canada,” shop, and eat at the many wonderful restaurants.

The upcoming season includes:
•Ragtime, Terrence McNally-Lynn Ahrens-Stephen Flaherty’s musical about the U.S. melting pot as it relates to immigrants, racism, and Euro Americans in the early 20th century. It is based on E. L. Doctorow’s ground-breaking novel.
•Present Laughter, Noel Coward’s farcical play which the author describes as "a series of semi-autobiographical pyrotechnics."
•His Girl Friday, John Guare’s “screwball comedy of politics and corruption,” which is an adaptation of the film, The Front Page.
•Hedda Gabler, Ibsen’s theatre of realism epic in which the lead character takes on society in her fight for women’s rights.
•The Millionaires. A seldom done Shaw comedy about the richest woman in the world, and the complications she discovers in her search for love.
•Trouble in Tahiti, Leonard Bernstein's jazzy opera of love and longing in U. S. America’s 1950s suburbia.
•A Man and Some Women, a world premiere by little known, but noted British playwright Githa Sowerby.
•Come Back, Little Sheba, William Inge’s story of a wife clinging to the past and a husband clinging to a bottle.
•French Without Tears, Terrance Rattigan’s longest running London show which is billed as “a sexy comedic romp set in the south of France
•Misalliance, a play about marriage, which author G. B. Shaw describes as a long debate in which “the curtain will be lowered twice. The audience is requested to excuse these interruptions, which are made solely for its convenience."
•Helen's Necklace (Le Collier d'Hélène), Carole Fréchette's poetic exploration which has been described as, “A play that is a metaphor of loss and suffering at different levels.
•The Shaw's Reading Series, which explores provocative contemporary plays from all over the world. Dates and details to be confirmed.

It’s a good idea to make both theatre and lodging reservations early, especially with the B&Bs on weekends. Our home away from home is the beautiful and well-placed Wellington House (www.wellington.house@sympatico.ca), directly across the street from The Festival Theatre. For information on other B&Bs go to www.niagaraonthelake.com/showbedandbreakfasts.

The Niagara area is dotted with wineries, many of which, besides offering wine tastings and sales, have fine dining facilities.

There are some wonderful restaurants including the Dining Room located at the Niagara Culinary Institute (www.niagaracollege.ca/dining. And my in-town favorite, The Grill on King Street (905-468-7222, 233 King St.)

For theatre information, a brochure or tickets, call 800-511-7429 or go on-line to www.shawfest.com. Ask about packages that include lodging, meals and tickets. Also be aware that the festival offers day-of-the-show rush tickets and senior matinee prices.

Go to the Shaw Festival! Find out what lovely hosts Canadians are, and see some great theatre!

A quick critique the Allen Theatre home of the CPH

2011-09-23T20:02:00.003-05:00

The Allen Theatre...new home of the Cleveland Play House

I have been asked by inquisitive readers to make some comments about the new facilities.

•I find the new Allen warm and enfolding.

•I love that the designers kept the beautiful old world look of the lobby. The clever use of contemporary carpeting design, which is in the same tones as the ornate walls and decorations, was a stroke of genius to blend the new with the old.

•Inside the theatre, I like the use of metallic scrim to allow for seeing the decorative walls, but blocking them out once the show starts.

•I am disappointed in the seating. In the permanent seats section the rows are somewhat tight. Unlike the redone Hanna, you can’t walk to your seat without others getting up. Because of the shallow raking of the first set of rows, smaller people will have trouble seeing over those sitting in front of them. (My 4’ 10” wife had to sit on two folded coats in order to see the stage clearly.) More than one person complained of hitting their knees on the cup holders which jut into the rows, making for awkward dodging around fellow row members on exits and entrances.

•I did not park in the attached garage so I cannot comment on ease of traversing the walkway into the theatre.

The Life of Galileo

2011-09-23T19:58:00.003-05:00

CPH inaugurates its new home with an intriguing look at Galileo

Cleveland Play House is basically all new. It has a new name--no The in its title-- and is housed in a marvelous new facility that blends the traditions of great opulent, old-age architecture with new age modernism.

First to the facility. The Allen Theatre was built to be a movie house. No theatrical trappings were included. It was a long skinny theatre. No attention was given to sight lines, backstage or wing space, or a fly gallery for scenery or set pieces. It was beautiful, but anyone who saw a theatrical production in the space quickly became aware that the acoustics, the ability to clearly see the stage from the hinterlands of the very deep seating areas, were lacking. All that has been changed.

The new Allen is everything that the old Allen wasn’t, except for its initial beauty and the adjustments that have been made to transform the space into a warm, audience friendly contemporary theatre. And, to make things even better, shortly, there will be two more theatres added. This will give CPH something it has never had…flexible spaces that will allow for the selection of a broad range of plays which can be performed in an intimate proscenium, and a flexible black box which can be configured to the needs and wants of the director. Yes, theatre in the round, thrust theatre or any configuration needed. The audiences will be close to the action, the lighting and other theatrical necessities will be top notch and the newest in design. It’s a new beginning for America's first professional regional theatre.

CPH opens its inaugural season in downtown with a compelling production of THE LIFE OF GALILEO. Director Michael Donald Edwards pulled out all the stops to show off the new space. Actors rise off the floor thanks to the rigging system, the stage is displayed in its nude and set adorned modes, projections enhance the visual effect, the closeness of the audience to the stage is used as a device to get the viewers emotionally involved.

THE Life of Galileo, also known as Galileo, is a play by the twentieth-century German dramatist Bertolt Brecht. The play went through various versions from its 1937 beginning to its 1955 rebirth. The latter version became necessary in Brecht’s mind because of the dropping of the atom bomb on Hiroshima, which, according to him, “transferred the positive aspects of science to became a study that was irrational and harmful.”

The story focuses on Galileo, known by many as the father of modern science. Galileo, who is short on cash, adapts “a queer tube thing,” which is being sold on the streets of Amsterdam, into a scientific tool which allows for viewing the stars. Of course, delving into the sciences is dangerous in any country under the control of the Catholic church. Copernicus attempted to explain the solar system in non-God centered ways and wound up being martyred. But, undeterred, Galileo goes forth. When challenged, he stands his ground, but eventually sells out to the church, much to the dismay of his loyal followers. Apparently old and broken, Galileo defies the church and gives one of his former students Two New Sciences, a volume containing his newest discoveries. The book is smuggled out of Italy, and into Lutheran Germany, and becomes the basis for a new age of science.

Though the script is long (about two and a quarter hours) and consists more of talk than action, the CPH production is excellent. The special effects add to audience interest. The high quality of the performances adds to the success.

Paul Whitworth makes for a fine Galileo. He develops a clear and believable character. He wraps himself in the personage of the person who was one of the world’s great thinkers. He elicits both humor and pathos.

Youthful Aric Generette Floyd is delightful and real as Andrea Sarti, a boy who becomes a faithful follower of the great man. Interestingly, he is far more proficient than Sheldon Best, who plays the role as a grown man.

Myra Lucretia Taylor is spot on as Andrea’s mother and Galileo’s trusted servant.

It is nice to see that CPH is using local talents in their new home, including Charles Kartali, Jeffrey Grover, Robert Ellis, Aric Generette Floyd, Eva Gil, Bob Goddard, Andrew Gorell, Dan Hendrock, Michael Herbert, Jeremy Kendall, Kim Krane, Christian Prentice, Jonathan Ramos, Kelli Ruttle, Yan Tual, and Thomas Weil.

Pandora Robertson has done an excellent job of adding both dance and creative movement into the production.

CAPSULE JUDGMENT: THE LIFE OF GALILEO, a thought-provoking probe into the life of one of the world’s great scientists, gets a well developed, focused, creative, often funny production at CPH. It’s a fine opener for the inauguration of a wonderful new chapter in the theatre’s history.

You Got Nerve!

2011-09-19T18:40:00.004-05:00

YOU GOT NERVE!, a work in progress at Karamu

In 1915, Russell Jelliffe and Rowena Woodham, a pair of Oberlin graduates, opened The Playhouse Settlement House at the corner of East 38th and Central Avenue. Little did they realize that besides getting people of all races and creeds to share common ventures, they were laying the foundation for what today is the oldest African American theatre in America. A theatre that has helped hone such luminaries as actors Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee, Robert Guillaume, Dick Latessa and Ron O'Neal, as well as playwright and poet Langston Hughes. Cleveland legends Dorothy and Reuben Silver served on the organization’s staff for 21 years.

The Playhouse Settlement was renamed Karamu, a Swahili word meaning "A place of enjoyment in the center of the community,” in 1941. It is indeed a place of enjoyment which has many community building traditions, such as members of the audience being personally thanked by the entire cast during a procession following each show. And, each show starts with a homey interaction between the vivacious Vivian Wilson, the organization’s Marketing Director, and the audience.

In honor of its 97th anniversary, which is named “The Season of Joy and Perseverance,” Karamu Theatre, is presenting a world premiere of a play by its Playwright in Residence, Michael Oatman. A native Clevelander, Oatman, who is a member of the Playwrights Unit at the Cleveland Play House, has written a number of plays including LET IT BLEED, which was premiered at The New Work, New Ways Festival at the University of Nebraska, and BEFORE I DIE; THE WAR AGAINST TUPAC SHAKUR presented at CPH’s Fusion Festival. This year, he was the recipient of the Cleveland Arts Prize “Emerging Artist Award.”

The basic story of YOU GOT NERVE! centers on a group of inner city kids who hassle students at the Cleveland School of the Performing Arts, when the school’s campus is moved into an area that lacks safety. As a result of a fight which ensues, both groups are assigned to community service in the senior citizen’s home which was trashed as it became the uninvited host for the conflict.

As often is the case with the presentation of a new script, YOU GOT NERVE! needs further development. There are some nice moments, such as relating the history of such issues as the poll tax and the connection between the youth and the seniors, but it is definitely a work in progress. some of the language is not that used in natural speech. Lines often sound like written rather than oral language. There are just too many side topics that cause story to lack focus. Teenage love, homelessness, Alzheimer’s, inner city/suburban differences, the African American class system, youth-elderly lack of understanding, historical Black music and entertainers, all come and go within the play’s framework, with none completely developed. What’s the author’s intent and purpose? Specifically, what is he expecting us to carry from the theatre?

The large cast, many of whom are students at the School of the Performing Arts, puts out full effort. There are some nice performances, including those by Chelsea Anderson, who develops a consistent identity as Claire, a bright young lady who lives to sing; Brenda Adrine, as Ms. Adrienne, one of the home’s senior residents, has a nice grasp of the character; and, Antaune Rogers, though playing a character way beyond his years, correctly speaks ideas rather than just words.

On the other hand, there are overdone characterizations with the performers feigning the characters, rather than being the person. Many of the lines seem read, rather than spoken. There is a lack of projection by some actors, so ideas get lost. Director Terrence Spivey needed to work with the cast on realistic performance and idea development. Most of the cast are performers in training, and needed more assistance.

Capsule judgement: YOU GOT NERVE! is a work in progress, both as a script and a production. It’s nice to see Karamu using students from The School of the Performing Arts and blending them with community members to help them broaden their experience base.

The Marvelous Wonderettes

2011-09-18T10:51:00.005-05:00

THE MARVELOUS WONDERETTES is an escapist delight at Beck

Last spring Beck Center presented the musical, JERRY SPRINGER THE OPERA. The production was met with pickets and much controversy. Beck need not worry about hullabaloo with their present production, THE MARVELOUS WONDERETTES, unless there is a cat-fight between two audience members wearing the same cotton candy colored prom dress or your candidate for queen doesn’t get elected. (Hey, suggestion to the Beck public relation’s people… have a “wear your prom dress and get in free night.”)

THE MAREVELOUS WONDERETTES is one of those escapist review shows that features familiar music usually sandwiched between some spoken lines that attempt to tell a rather far-fetched story. No one goes to learn anything. It’s all about enjoying the songs and the musical sounds.

And, in this William Roudebush production, there are a lot of songs and musical sounds to enjoy. The voices are good, the costumes era correct, and there is enough humor to get the most stodgy member of the audience to tap his feet and sing along with the 1950s and 60s songs.

The review was the brain child of Roger Bean, whose mother was a varsity song leader, the precursor to the present show choirs (think Glee). The participants entertained at school functions and dreamed of becoming celebrities. A local Brush High School group, The Poni Tails, actually succeeded in having a number one song on the national charts, several more hits, and a brief career.

In 1998, Bean was asked to write a new musical. Supposedly inspired by his mother's past, he assembled a number of era songs and set them into a theme of best friends, singing at their prom, and the ensuing teen-age conflicts. Eventually, The Marvelous Wonderettes opened in New York City in 2008 where it ran until 2010.
Those of you who are old enough, think back to 1958. Those not old enough, this was the era of chiffon, prim and proper, and no worry about recessions or The Tea Party. Travel back to the fictitious Springfield High School prom where we meet the Wonderettes, four girls with crushes, hopes and fantasies as big as their crinoline skirts and hair! Don’t worry about the story line, it is incidental. Just focus on such songs as “Lollipop,” “Dream Lover,” “Stupid Cupid,” “Lipstick On Your Collar,” “Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me,” and “It’s My Party.” And finish the evening off by moving forward 10 years, where the group is reassembled for their tenth class reunion.

The quartette consists of the zaftig, outspoken, sensitive Betty Jean (Amiee Collier); the pretty, boy friend-stealing Cindy Lou (Nikki Curmaci) whose dream in life is to be the prom queen; the prim and proper moral leader of the group, Missy (Theresa Kloos); and Suzy (Caitlin Elizabeth Reilly), a gum chewing cutie.

The Beck cast sings well, develops consistent characterizations, moves well and is delightful. Cast members get to vote for the prom queen and get selected to be a teacher heart throb or the French teacher.

The gym prom setting, complete with homemade crepe paper decorations, is perfectly created by Ben Needham. David Glowe’s costume designs are era correct. Caitlin Elizabeth Reilly’s choreography emulates the 50s and later the 60s—the twist, the pony, stroll, hand jive, monkey and the Madison. Musical director Larry Goodpaster has the girls in good voice and the orchestra in perfect tune…underscoring, rather than drowning out the voices.

CAPSULE JUDGEMENT: Beck’s THE MARVELOUS WONDERETTES is one of those feel good evenings of theatre that is slight on story and long on escapist entertainment. It makes for a delightful evening of nostalgia.

Grizzly Mama

2011-09-17T08:49:00.002-05:00

GRIZZLY MAMA at Dobama, truth may be stranger than fiction

In George Brant’s GRIZZLY MAMA, now on stage at Dobama Theatre, the fictional Deb Marshall moves into the house next to Patty Turnback, an Alaskan Tea Party leader (think Sarah Palin) in order to destroy her. Deb is the daughter of the titular leader of the 20th century women’s movement (think Gloria Steinem) who has supposedly pledged, on her mother’s death bed, to get rid of the ultra-right Turnback. Turnback (note the “clever” play on words) has moved the women’s movement back into the dark ages, the days-of-old when women were homemakers and protected their young against wild animals (liberals). Yes, Grizzly Mamas.

Think the idea is preposterous? Well, think again. On September 20, a new book about Palin will be released by author Joe McGinniss. McGinnis has been studying Palin for three years. He even moved next door to her home to dig up dirt. His purpose? To destroy her by killing the lady’s reputation. So, truth can be stranger than fiction.

On the surface, Brant’s play seems like a farcical, overstated, unbelievable dark comedy of spiteful revenge. It rolls out as a script about murder, motherhood, moose and a bunny rabbit. A little mental digging reveals a study of the relationships between mothers and daughters and how they bond, conflict, love and betray each other.

Brants’ character’s are overdone. Deb is written as a divorced out-of-control suburban mom who reimagines herself as a righteous liberal avenger. Her motivations and actions seem unrealistic. Her daughter, Hannah, is an overdrawn self-centered texting teenager who gets wrapped up in the hunt when she becomes friends with the Grizzly Mama’s daughter. A daughter with a major problem, especially for the daughter of a religious ultra-conservative.

The script was commissioned by Dobama to compliment the political atmosphere in which we find ourselves and is about to explode even larger. It is filled with many clever lines and ideas. Daughter Hannah, for example, explains that she is going to a high school where she is taking an AP (advanced placement) course in Intelligent Design and is writing a required paper on Jesus and the Dinosaurs. Deb goes to a local gun store, where she is sold an Uzi-type gun and gets a free handgun thrown in. In order to stop her daughter from texting, Deb nukes the girl’s cell phone in the microwave, but Hannah’s fingers just keep texting away, even without the phone, assuming that the messages will get to her friends back home by cosmic energy. And, Laurel, Turnback’s daughter, complains because her chastity ring has gotten too tight for her finger due to her unwed pregnancy.

On the other hand, the characters don’t ring true, the lines are often forced, there are so many text message references that, as one member of the audience whispered, “If I hear one more omg, lol, or wuzup, I’m going on stage and strangle someone. (The program has a page listening texting terminology for those who are interested.) The logical bridges between scenes aren’t always clearly developed. One must wonder whether the author is aiming at high comedy, farce, or has some really strong message which gets lost because of the lack of a clear rudder.

There are some excellent performances. Erin Scerbak develops a clear Laurel. She is believable in being conflicted and vulnerable. She often develops meaning beyond what her lines say. Caitlin Lewins (Hannah) plays teenage angst and hysteria with ease. Heather Anderson Boll has some problems developing a consistent character as Deb, but much of that appears to be the lines she is given, not her acting.

Laura Kepley’s direction is generally on-target, but there are some lag times in the pacing.

Jill Davis’s log cabin house design gives the right feel and leaves lots of room for the characters to move with ease. Sound designer Richard Ingraham’s use of “I Am Woman” as background and scene change music, is a stroke of genius.

CAPSULE JUDGEMENT: GRIZZLY MAMA is not well written, but there is enough humor and nice acting to make it a pleasant evening of theatre that could incite some interesting going home discussions.

Ten Most Incrediblt College Theatres

2011-09-02T08:03:00.003-05:00

Online Colleges, http://www.onlinecolleges.net/2011/09/01/the-10-most-incredible-college-theaters/, has posted a visual and explanatory article featuring ten college theatres which they refer to as "incredible." It is quite informative.

Fall dance calendar 2011

2011-08-27T19:18:00.005-05:00

Dance, dance, dance—Fall in Cleveland

Fall is near and the Cleveland dance scene is about to bust loose! Here are some local early autumn offerings:

VERB BALLETS
American Lore
September 23, 2011 8:00 p.m.
Breen Center for the Performing Arts
Tickets: 216-397-3757 or verballets.org
  Based on the theme, “America is a land rich with stories, a place for rebels and pioneers,” the program includes: Billy the Kid, choreographer Ginger Thatcher premiere of a new take on this outlaw; a revival of Martha Graham's Appalachian Spring; and a revival of Terence Greene's The Gathering.

Dance Showcase
Palace Theatre
September 9, 2011 7:30 p.m.
Free: No tickets required.
The annual PHSquare celebration of dance features a selection of Northeast Ohio’s finest professional companies: The Dancing Wheels Company, Dance/Theater Collective, Inlet Dance Theatre, MorrisonDance, Ohio Dance Theatre, Shri Kalaa Mandir, Travesty Dance Group, Verb Ballets and Sara Whale.

GROUNDWORKS DANCETHEATRE
September 16 and 17 8:00 p.m.
Ice House, 129 North Summit Street, Akron
Tickets: 216-691-3180 or groundworksdance.org
Two world premieres: a commissioned work by former company member Amy Miller and a new work by Artistic Director David Shimotakahara.
DANCING WHEELS
September 9
Dance Show Case (see details above)

September 16, 17 & 18
Ingenuity Festival; Detroit-Superior Bridge
For details go to: http://ingenuitycleveland.com/

DANCE CLEVELAND
Presented by: DANCE Cleveland, EJ Thomas Hall & University of Akron Dance Program
MOMIX
Saturday, October 1st 8:00 PM
 EJ Thomas Hall, Akron
Tickets: http://www.dancecleveland.org/performances
Known internationally for presenting works of exceptional inventiveness and physical beauty, MOMIX is a company of dancer-illusionists under the direction of Moses Pendleton. MOMIX will present the evening-length work Botanica, a spectacular piece that follows the rhythms of the seasons, the evolution of the world and the passing of a day. Fabrics, colors, costumes, projections and props create a landscape populated by the creations of Pendleton's original, whimsical, mythical imagination.

Presented by: DANCE Cleveland and PlayhouseSquare
ASZURE BARTON AND ARTISTS
Saturday, October 29 8:00 PM
Ohio Theatre
Tickets: http://www.playhousesquare.org or 216-241-6000
Baryshnikov protégé Aszure Barton has a distinguished reputation for producing striking choreography for stage and film. Her company will present Barton's Busk which explores aspects of what it means to perform.

Five Flights

2011-08-21T16:05:00.005-05:00

Convergence continuum’s FIVE FLIGHTS stumbles on opening night

In its New York run, Adam Bock’s FIVE FLIGHTS was called “an intricately constructed comedy about love and grief that is incredibly funny, surprisingly touching and soaring with joyful humanity.” I wish I could say the same thing about the convergence continuum production. Unfortunately, on opening night, with some members of the cast fighting to just remember, let alone make sense of their lines, the pauses, stumbles, and oft panicked looks on their faces, took much of the very breadth out of the production.

The script which is about religion, belief, love, and loss is divided into four sections: "The Narrative", "A Vision", "The Mad Scenes", "The Conclusion . . .plus,” and " A Little Dance.”

The plot revolves around three adult siblings whose father, in an act of devotion to his recently dead, bird-loving wife, builds an aviary in his wife’s honor to house a bird which landed on him during her funeral. He perceives the feathered creature to be his wife’s reincarnation. After both the bird and the father die, a decision must be made about what to do with the now decaying edifice, which, in reality, is a metaphor for the various flight patterns each of the lives of the participants takes.

The decision is left to three siblings, two of whom we meet during the play. The deciders are sensitive Ed, who was hurt by a gay relationship gone bad; his sister Adele, who is steered into decisions by her love for Olivia, a fanatical preacher of charismatic religion who wants the site for her church; and Jane, the compulsive wife of Bobby, the never seen brother. The confusion is compounded by the entrance of Tom, a hockey player who falls in love with Ed.

Zak Hudak (Ed) and Clinton Elston (Tom) shortly after first meeting look at each other. Hudak with his huge deer-caught-in-the-headlights eyes, Elston in his macho way, move forward, try and figure out how to wrap their arms around each other, awkwardly move their bodies in formations that would create the right contact points, figure whose nose goes to the right and whose to the left, and awkwardly kiss. Then all hell breaks loose and the duo is a tangle of flying body parts. It is a classic bit of theatricality…hysterically funny yet sensual.

Besides the kissing scene, Clyde Simon’s direction gives a fun interpretation to viewing a ballet in which the characters’ eyes and heads bob in time to Tchaikovsky’s music. Unfortunately, the timing was not exactly right, so the effect was somewhat lost.

Simon, who relishes titillation, inserts a nude locker room and shower scene. Though it may appeal to some of the con con audience, the nudity adds little to the development of the play, itself.

Hudak gives a nice textured performance as the conflicted Ed. A master at facial comedy, he creates a humorous, often pathetic yet appealing characterization. Elston, as Ed’s want-to-be lover, is convincing, and has both the physicality and the macho hockey player mannerisms needed for the role. They play well off each other well.

Elaine Flagler is overly strident as Jane. She screams most of her lines in a hysterical high pitched whine. The usual competent Laura Hammer (Olivia), stumbles through her lines. It’s hard to tell whether the blank spaces in dialogue are caused by her forgetfulness or she is getting the wrong cues. Jaclyn Cifranic (Adele) has some nice moments, but never seems comfortable in the role. Robert Branch, as Andre, Tom’s hockey playing buddy, has some funny moments, but has an off-putting accent.

Capsule Judgement: Based on the opening night performance, it’s pretty hard to judge con con’s FIVE FLIGHTS. After the cast learns their lines, the delightful and meaningful script might take flight. As of now, it, like the aviary in which it takes places, is in need of some repair.

Show Boat

2011-08-14T14:22:00.005-05:00

SHOWBOAT, the first musical play, sails courtesy of Mercury Summerstock

Pierre-Jacques Brault, Artistic Director of Mercury Summerstock, is not known for thinking small. He confronts projects that other theatre producers wouldn’t even think of undertaking. No matter that he is working on a shoestring budget, is using a tiny stage, and his company consists of one professional actor and a small group of dedicated performers. Brault “just keeps rolling along,” ignoring the odds.

SHOWBOAT is a musical with music by Jerome Kern and book and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II. It was based on Edna Ferber’s novel of the same name.

SHOWBOAT is one of the most important musicals ever written. It was responsible for the transition of the American musical theatre from simple minded operettas, follies, musical revues and shows that featured vaudeville acts. It was not, as OKLAHOMA would be some years later, a true, well-integrated musical in which all the elements—story, songs and dancing—blended together in a way that one was totally dependent on the other, but it laid down the path to be followed. It ushered in a new genre for the theatre, the musical play.

The plot chronicles the lives of those living and working on the Cotton Blossom, a Mississippi River show boat, from 1880 to 1927. Like so many of the Hammerstein stories to follow, the show's dominant theme is social justice. In this case, racial prejudice. And it ushered in another Hammerstein theme, that of tragic and enduring love. (Think CAROUSEL.)

Kern’s libretto is exceptional, especially considering the era from which it comes. Classic songs include Make Believe, Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man of Mine, Life Upon the Wicked Stage, You Are Love, Why Do I Love You? and After the Ball.

The Mercury cast, especially the African American performers and chorus, are outstanding. Brain Keith Johnson’s version and reprises of Old Man River brought extended cheers. Kelvette Beacham (Queenie) was a total delight presenting Queenie’s Bally-Hoo and Mis’ry’s Comin’ Aroun’.

Brian Marshall has the handsome looks needed for Gaylord Ravenal the river gambler who wins the heart of Magnolia, the daughter of the riverboat’s owners. He used his excellent singing voice well, but for some reason kept switching accents (e.g., Southern, Irish, general American) and started out playing the role as a caricature and then switched to realism.

Jennifer Myor (Magnolia) has a lovely voice and nice stage presence. Maria Thomas Lister, as the mixed race Julie, sang her role well, but never got below the surface in developing a characterization.

Hester Lewellen was a fine, stiff-backed Parthy, Magnolia’s mother. Mark Seven feigned facial and line stereotypes as Captain Andy. Kaitlyn Dessoffy made for a lovely Kim, Magnolia’s daughter. She has a nice stage presence and fine vocal abilities.

Ryan Neal’s musical direction brought a good sound from his limited sized orchestra, but needed to inspire volume control when underscoring speaking scenes.

Brault’s staging was impressive, especially considering that the show is usually done with numerous massive sets, a huge cast, lots of period costumes and a full orchestra.

CAPSULE JUDGEMENT: SHOWBOAT is a big, important script that is seldom performed because of the cost and staging necessities. It gets a very acceptable production at Mercury. It’s worth going just to hear Brain Keith Johnson curl your toenails as he sings Old Man River.

Review of the Reviewer's Reviews: Joanne Adelman

2011-08-14T10:10:00.002-05:00

Wow!! As a proud grandmother of Dani (as well as my other six grandchildren), I just want to thank you for those incredible words you wrote about her. I've always read your columns, but after reading this one, I promise I will no longer skip straight to the capsule judgements any more!!

Thank you so much!!

Joanne Adelman