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"Old Fashioned Prostitutes(A True Romance)" - A Different Plane of Consciousness

noreply@blogger.com (Byrne Harrison) — Thu, 16 May 2013 10:27:00 +0000

By Judd Hollander

Photo by Joan Marcus

The first thing one must understand when attending a Richard Foreman play is that terms such as "liner" and "sequential" often have no meaning. Such is the case with his latest work, Old-Fashioned Prostitutes (A True Romance). A piece he wrote, directed and designed and which is now having its world premiere at The Public Theater.

The show begins and ends with a mysterious voice saying "end of play." The meaning of that phrase however, is, like so many other things presented here, open to interpretation. Has an unseen play just finished moments before with a new one on stage about to begin? Or does it refer to the same play, the story being presented again and again as some type of eternal cycle?

Said story, as best as can be explained, deals with an aging man named Samuel (Rocco Sisto), who is unhappy with how his life has turned out. Looking back over the choices he made and the paths he has taken he wonders what would happened had he instead gone in a different direction. Samuel, who at times almost seems to revel in his failures the way others delight in their successes, often making his comments to two elegantly-dressed ladies of the evening - Suzie (Alenka Kraigher) and Gabriella (Stephanie Hayes). Women who exist both together in time with him as well as at different places and points in existence, though their clothes recall the 1920s. The ladies' actions often punctuated by comments from the afore-mentioned voice, or perhaps it's Samuel's own consciousness or past calling out.

This non-linear feeling continues when one looks at the different aspects of the various characters. Such as the possibility that Samuel and his friend Alfredo (David Skeist) are actually the same person at different points in their life - even though they're talking to each other or through each other at various moments. There's also the mysterious Michelin (Nicholas Norena), a silent type who appears every now and again to bang on a drum. Said action often causing the story to change direction.

Watching the action on stage gives one the feeling of seeing a dream unfolding where different thoughts, memories and people from a person's life who have no business being together in the waking world are able to co-exist here. Also like a dream, there is a certain disjointedness and choppy sensation to the proceedings, leading to sudden shifts of narrative yet still staying within the overall impression of what had been shown before.

Sisto does well as Samuel, an aging dreamer/loner trapped in his memories, while talking about avoiding his destiny and blaming himself for doing just that. There is also more that a bit of faded gentility among him, as he talks about his beautiful coquettes and mentioning a leisurely promenade through the dark streets of a city almost dead. His words also suggest a hint of Tennessee Williams, and of not-quite faded bitterness of what has come before. Kraigher and Hayes play off Sisto nicely as the coquettes in question. The women, like Samuel, seemingly trapped on a mobius strip of what is, what was and what will be. Suzie, supposedly the one Samuel's been searching for all his life, gets to have her own dreams of being admired and of being in a pretty dress on a sun drenched boulevard. But are these really her own dreams or are they Samuel's dreams for her or about her?

Foreman, who came out of retirement to create this work, knows what he is trying to present, with everything being carefully set out for one reason or another. This care is evident in the seemingly chaotic yet quite deliberately chosen set, with a performing area dressed up with bits of string, a blackboard and a supposedly haphazard collection of letters. Also tossed into the mix are photographs, newspapers and flowers - all offering tantalizing hints to what's about to be shown. Directorially-wise, Forman does a good job with the action, keeping things moving carefully and concisely while taking great pains so the work will not overstay its welcome.

Offering a wonderful presentation of the avant-garde where nothing is what it seems or perhaps it's all so straightforward one can't see the explanation, Old-Fashioned Prostitutes is an example of theatre that refuses to spoon-feed the audience a story, forcing them instead to try to figure it out on their own. Those who find something like this intellectually stimulating should make tracks to The Public Theater immediately, and for those who don't well, there's certainly enough mindless alternatives out there to choose from.

Old-Fashioned Prostitutes (A True Romance)

Featuring: David Skeist (Alfredo), Stephanie Hayes (Gabriella) Alenka Kraigher (Suzie) Rocco Sisto (Samuel), Nicholas Norena (Bibendum (aka Michelin)

Written, directed and designed by Richard Foreman
Performed in association with Ontological-Hysteric Theater
Costume Design: Gabriel Berry
Lighting Design: Yael Lubetzky
Production Stage Manager: Lee Micklin
Stage Manager: Michael Ulreich

The Public Theater
425 Lafayette Street
Tickets: 212-967-7555 or www.publictheater.org
Running Time: 65 Minutes, no intermission
Closes: June 2, 2013

"Mass" at the Brick Theater

noreply@blogger.com (Byrne Harrison) — Sun, 28 Apr 2013 23:15:00 +0000

By Rob Hartmann

Mass, currently finishing its run at the Brick Theater in Williamsburg, is a rock musical which explores the contemporary art world and the lengths to which artists will go to make their mark.

The story, set in 2015, begins with Mary, a painter weeks away from finishing her masters degree in art, who has gone to church to escape the looming pressure of completing her thesis; the people surrounding her at mass begin to echo the self-doubting voices in her head.

When Mary and her lover, sculptor Françoise, fail their art-school juries (the withering questioning of the faculty panel, played by the chorus all in identical yellow-framed glasses, will induce PTSD in anyone who has gone after an MFA), they hatch a plan to urinate on Marcel Duchamp’s “Fountain” at MOMA, to make a statement about their frustration with the art establishment. When alarms go off, Françoise bolts, leaving Mary to be detained by the police.

Mary’s gallery-worker sister, Kate, arrives to bail her out. Kate has been supporting Mary – a perpetual student – by doling out money from their parents’ estate. Tensions flare between the sisters, and Kate declines to rescue Mary (as one guesses she has had to do before.) Mary proposes to Françoise, and convinces her that they should return to Françoise’s hometown of Vancouver. There, Mary finds an ever-deepening connection to the beauty of nature, while Françoise turns to performance art – creating a song, “Punk For Beauty.” “I am art/I am beauty/I am enough/I’m a slut for beauty.”

Mary and Françoise argue passionately about art and the role of the artist; the struggle eventually becomes physical, and Mary is accidentally injured in a way that evokes the famous confrontation between Van Gogh and Gauguin which led to Van Gogh slicing his ear. Françoise departs.

A few years later, Kate is a successful art agent in Shanghai. Françoise has come to pitch herself and her art to Kate, who agrees to bring Françoise into her “family” of artists. (“It’s not a stable – are you a horse?” purrs the elegant Kate.) Mary arrives unexpectedly, with a proposal for a shocking performance art piece that will test the limits of her relationship with Françoise and Kate – as well as her own physical endurance.

The three lead performances are all outstanding, with each actor working in her own particular style. Moira Stone brings a fierce intensity to Mary, who seems to be tortured by the strength of her own thoughts, always on the verge of physical collapse. Stone has a particular gift of being able to make complex dialogue completely clear and natural, finding unique rhythms in the ebb and flow of the words.

Esther Crow skillfully details Françoise’s transformation from sleepy-eyed complacency, to vibrant performance artist complete with “international accent”, to a Warhol-meets-Karl Lagerfeld-meets Marina Abramovic grandeur. (One of the highlights of Act Two is Crow’s number in which she riffs improv-style off members of the audience – at this particular performance, admiring a gentleman’s velvet jacket with increasing appetite until she was practically snarling with desire.)

Rebecca Gray Davis, as the savvy Kate, is the personified essence of art-gallery chill. In her first song, sung in fragments as she works the door at a gallery opening, she finds the knives lurking just beneath the surface of a perfectly modulated, endlessly repeated “welcome… welcome … welcome.” In her Shanghai-glam outfit in Act Two, she gets mileage out of the clank-clank of her gold bracelets as she ponders the PR benefits of renaming Françoise to the more marketable “Pablo.”

The sleek set, designed by Lianne Arnold, cleverly draws on museum motifs – sheer white fabric stretched over frames, glossy white boxes on casters – to evoke locations from art-school workroom to museum to Shanghai penthouse. Joe Levasseur’s lighting design subtly and effectively underscores Mary’s many emotional states, most effectively when she is bathed in sunlight, almost hypnotized by the beauty of the Vancouver landscape.

Director Leah Bonvissuto keeps the action moving fluidly, focusing on the evolving relationships among the three women. Even as the work changes form – wheeling freely between realistic relationship drama to absurdist comedy to rock-show performance art – there is a sense of a director’s guiding hand, keeping the emotional narrative on track. The use of the toga-clad Greek chorus is especially effective: Melissa DeLancey, Kaitlin Emery, Amanda LaPergola, Tracy Shar and Phoebe Silva each have sharply etched moments on their own (as fellow art students, a waitress, Kate’s art-agent assistant), as well as a hilarious turn as a fluttery group of art-student interns working for Françoise. Watching them prepare a cup of tea for a visitor – each of the five taking a small part of the task – is like a small performance art piece itself. They execute Sarah Doudna’s imaginative choreography effectively.

Perhaps the most striking production element is the video design by Daniel McKleinfeld (who works under the name VJ Fuzzy Bastard – www.VJFuzzyBastard.com) Mary’s emotional reveries take psychedelic shape in Mr. McKleinfeld’s projections, which are fascinating (while never upstaging the onstage action.)

Music director Maria Dessena ably leads the 5 piece band (Ryan Ferreira and Michael Rafalowich on guitar, Derek Davidson on bass, Sparkie Sandler on drums, with Ms. Dessena on piano and accordion) in a variety of styles from simple folk-style recitative, to full-blast rock.

The piece itself, written by Robert Honeywell (book, music and lyrics) reflects its subject matter by playing with form. The idea, asserted by Françoise in the script, that art is whatever we say it is – that the art is the act of the artist telling us where and how to look – is embodied in the way the script defies expectation of form and genre. Mr. Honeywell gives each of his characters depth and nuance: Kate could easily be a caricature of the art gallery owner as soulless art-pimp, but Mr. Honeywell finds the wit, anger and vulnerability which keeps her real.

A standout set piece in the dialogue is when Françoise begins to tell a story of a trip to the grocery store, which somehow morphs into her account of being with the subjects of Seurat’s painting Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte and then into the sinking of the Titanic.

Mr. Honeywell’s songs, which span a range of styles within the world of progressive art rock, find their own forms, following the dramatic flow rather than falling too neatly into conventional patterns. One of the most moving moments of the score is sung by Ms. Crow a cappella – a beautifully undulating melody. “Nature’s what I say it is… Europe’s what I say it is…” He pushes the actors to explore all registers of their voices – Ms. Stone in particular journeys from the lowest reaches of her range, through a sharp pop-belt, to a lighter folk sound in her middle range, up to an operatic soprano register in more extreme moments.

Mass seeks to make us look anew at our relationship to art and artists – Tilda Swinton sleeping in a glass box at MOMA, David Blaine subjecting himself to quasi-torture for public view. With a mix of musical and dramatic styles, and a trio of fierce, visceral performances, the piece does exactly that.

Mass, April 13 – 30, 2013, at the Brick Theater in Williamsburg:
579 Metropolitan Avenue, Brooklyn NY 11211, between Union Avenue and Lorimer Street. $18. www.bricktheater.com for information and tickets.

Music, book and lyrics by Robert Honeywell

Directed by Leah Bonvissuto
Music direction by Maria Dessena
Set design by Lianne Arnold
Lighting design by Joe Levasseur
Video design by Daniel McKleinfeld
Sound design by Emma Wilk
Costume design by Iracel Rivero
Choreography by Sarah Doudna
Special effects by Stephanie Cox-Williams and Melissa Roth
Assistant Dir. & Stage Management by Raffaela Vergata

Featuring: Esther Crow, Rebecca Gray Davis, Melissa DeLancey, Kaitlan Emery, Amanda LaPergola, Tracy Shar, Phoebe Silva, and Moira Stone.

And the band of: Derek Davidson, Maria Dessena, Ryan Ferreira, Michael Rafalowich and Sparkie Sandler

He Sang, She Sang: "The Last Five Years" at the Signature Theatre, Arlington, Va.

noreply@blogger.com (Byrne Harrison) — Sun, 28 Apr 2013 23:08:00 +0000

Review by Mark A. Newman

Has it really been a decade since I saw the original version of The Last Five Years, the two-person Jason Robert Brown tuner, off-Broadway? Yeah, it has. Oddly, as much acclaim as it garnered “back in the day,” the show didn’t stay around that long. Its original stars have gone off to quite acclaimed careers – Norbert Leo Butz has two Tonys on his mantle and Tony-nominated Sherie Renee Scott is a household name (in certain Broadway-loving households, that is).

The show itself – seemingly a master class of audition tunes for both males and females – has gained quite a reputation in the intervening decade. Make no mistake, the songs are fantastic but maybe, just maybe the show’s chief conceit – telling the same story from different perspectives and timeframes – may also be its biggest flaw. For anyone who’s never heard of the show, it goes like this: Jamie and Cathy are a couple. They’ve been together five years (hence the title). He’s a successful author; she’s a not-so-successful actress. But here’s where it gets complicated: Cathy sings her songs from the end of the relationship to the beginning while Jamie sings his songs chronologically from the beginning of the relationship to the ending.

The only time the two doomed lovebirds are together are smack dab in the middle when Jamie proposes in Central Park.

I am very familiar this structure, have had the original cast album since it was released, and have now seen the show performed live three times. And STILL I find myself getting confused as the musical unwinds. Maybe that’s just my muddled brain, which is likely. Maybe it’s the author’s dependence on the audience’s memory that is the real problem. For example, after the proposal a reference to a trip to Ohio in the second half confused me because it seemed like Cathy took two trips to Ohio for god-awful summer stock productions. But when she wrote Jamie a letter, things seemed to be okay. Was she in Ohio then? The second trip to Ohio (the first one in the musical) Jamie was obviously being sung to by Cathy and things were not going well at all.

The storytelling doesn’t quite make it clear where the relationship hit the skids and each other’s reaction to it because what happens in “act one” is often not referenced until “act two.” The so-called act one gun is Kathy’s opening number “Still Hurting” immediately followed by Jamie’s “Shiksa Goddess.” While she’s lamenting the courtship’s downward spiral, he’s rejoicing over finding a non-Jewish girl to love. This juxtaposition either sets the tone for the audience or royally confuses them. Probably a little of both.

As Jamie, James Gardiner is excellent. In his first number – the aforementioned “Shiksa Goddess” – he tried to shove in every over-the-top bit of comic timing he cab and it borders on being too much but as the show goes on and you get to know Jamie, you realize he would totally do that. Unfortunately you don’t have that knowledge right away so you think he’s just a very overly enthusiastic Jewish guy. And you’d be right.

The yin to Gardiner’s Jamie’s yang is Erin Weaver, recently nominated for a Helen Hayes award for her remarkable turn in Signature’s production of Xanadu last season. Even though she’s not on skates this time, she still keeps on rolling along as we see Cathy evolve (or devolve) from lonely, sad, and newly single to downright giddy when she meets the man of her dreams as the final curtain falls.

Due to the show’s structure, it’s sometimes hard to tell exactly where the relationship went wrong. Suffice to say that due to his burgeoning literary success Jamie became impossible to deal with, at least according to Kathy. However, it also seemed like Cathy could not be happy for Jamie because of her own lack of success as an actress. Okay, this is a given. But where the relationship really hit the skids is hard to tell. What was the breaking point, the proverbial last straw? We don’t really know.

Then again, it’s not all that important. What is important is that this delicate, two-person show walks a fine line between the two witnesses to a relationships decline while never pointing a finger of blame at either. That’s the audience’s job. Due to the fairly typical circumstances of this bad romance, most people will have strong feelings of empathy over the course of this 90-minute show.

As with a low-key chamber musical such as The Last Five Years, the show’s design aspects should be equally subdued. The lighting by Andrew F. Griffin is striking in its simplicity as is the off-the-rack costumes by Kathleen Geldard. The sound design by Matt Rowe perfectly captures the show’s intimacy to the point it felt as though the audience was eavesdropping on a relationship that was alternately crumbling and growing from song to song. Daniel Conway’s delicate scenic design was capped by the flourish that rose from Jamie’s writing desk and into the rafters. A twisted sculpture of clocks and manuscript pages tenuously tangled, this set piece was always the visual center of attention, signaling how easily time slips out of our hands.

It should be noted that the show comprises some of the smartest and well written theatre songs of the last 20 years. Just to hear the songs performed live is reason enough to get yourself to Arlington, Virginia to witness one of the best crafted shows Signature has put on the last year or so. The direction by Aaron Posner is sublime, shifting the focus from him to her and back effortlessly in a production that is as eloquently crafted as a ballet.

We may never figure out if we should blame Jamie’s self-destructiveness or Cathy’s insecurities that doom this Manhattan love story, but you only have yourself to blame for missing this jewel of a musical shining ever so brightly in Northern Virginia.

Music and lyrics: Jason Robert Brown
Direction: Aaron Posner
Lighting: Andrew F. Griffin
Costumes: Kathleen Geldard
Sound: Matt Rowe
Scenic design: Daniel Conway
Music direction: William Yannesh
Music supervision: Jon Kalbfleisch

Featuring: James Gardiner (Jamie) and Erin Weaver (Cathy).

Tickets: Ticketmaster (703) 573-SEAT (7328)
Signature Theatre • 4200 Campbell Avenue • Arlington, VA 22206
http://www.signature-theatre.org

"The Lying Lesson" - A Lesson Not Learned

noreply@blogger.com (Byrne Harrison) — Sun, 28 Apr 2013 23:01:00 +0000

By Judd Hollander

Playwright Craig Lucas makes a bit of a misstep with his intriguing but unfortunately one-note work The Lying Lesson at the Atlantic Theater Company, offering a story with initial possibilities but one which ultimately fails to connect.

In a remote seaside town in 1981 Maine, a mysterious and somewhat cantankerous elderly lady named Ruth Elizabeth (Carol Kane) has arrived in the dead of night to purchase a house. Staying there alone while a storm rages outside, she waits for daylight in order meet with the real estate agent to sign the final papers. Suddenly, her silent reverie is interrupted when, in the midst of a power failure, a mysterious figure climbs through the window. The intruder turns out to be Minnie Bodine (Mickey Sumner), a young woman who looks after the place for the current owners. As for Ruth, she soon reveals herself as the Hollywood actress Bettie Davis who plans on buying the home not only for a sort of refuge from her Hollywood life, but also to be near a very special person whom she knew growing up. Someone who was Ruth's first love and the one that got away. Ruth leaving him to pursue her acting career and who now has returned to possibly rekindle that old romance.

Minnie, a somewhat odd sort, offers to help the older woman by running errands and doing odd jobs while Ruth begins to settle into her new surroundings. Minnie has also never heard of the actress, something Ruth finds quite refreshing. As time passes, the two women settle into a sort of mentor-servant relationship. Minnie offering up some gossipy tidbits as to the makeup of the community and its citizens, the area being a kind of Peyton Place with all that goes on and Ruth regaling Minnie with tales of the Hollywood of old. That is until Ruth begins to suspect her new companion has perhaps not been as forthcoming with certain information as Minnie would have her believe.

The Lying Lesson is a show about people searching for something. Be it safety, peace of mind, or possibly a second chance. Ruth is trying to take a break from her acting life and see if she can go back to where she started, while Minnie sees in Ruth something she has never really had - someone she can talk to. Which she very happily proceeds to do; telling Ruth about such people as the local realtor who may be out for a quick buck, and of course about the actresses' long ago love and what he's up to now. Minnie also talks about her own life, including a husband who may be abusing her.

Unfortunately the piece lacks the depth to make either of the participants all that sympathetic. Kane does a nice job with the public perception of Davis, spinning tales about her celebrity life, such as her relationship with director William Wyler and her legendary feud with Joan Crawford, but there is little behind the much-parodied persona that allows the audience to get inside the head of the character. Though with a little more work, Kane would probably be able to pull off a nice one-person show about the actress. There's even the obligatory line tossed in about Bettie Davis eyes. Funny at times, accusatory at others, there eventually becomes too much of a sameness regarding Kane's actions. She also never comes off as world weary as the script would have one believe. On a more positive note, Kane does indeed look like Davis did during that time period, with the hair and mannerism almost letter perfect, although she never gets the voice quite right. Her own trademark vocal tones coming though even though there is an attempt to disguise them.

There are similar clarity problems when it comes to the character of Minnie. Sumner gets the New England accent down nicely, but she must also deal with a script which only offers hints about Minnie's background until the very end, the resulting portrayal being pretty much of a one-note offering. The character never really getting angry or desperate until the final denouement is made. There's also the disadvantage that while the Bettie Davis character has a well-documented history from which the audience can draw upon, Minnie is a blank slate when first seen and little is done to help fill in the missing pieces. For example we never find out why Minnie is seemingly ostracized by most of the townspeople, or the story behind her noticeable limp, although there are vague hints as to the latter. Additionally, the ultimate explanation offered really doesn't ring true with the ending feeling sort of tacked on in an attempt to manipulate the audience just before the curtain comes down rather than letting events unfold naturally and easily.

Pam Mackinnon's direction nicely sets the tension and keeps the audience guessing for a while as to what's going on, but like the actors, she can only do so much with what she is given to work with. Though a scene with a gun, an old memento of Davis', doesn't come off as nail-biting as it should. Neil Patel's set of the somewhat rundown home Ruth wants to buy is okay. The hair and wig work by Charles LaPointe is especially good, as is the lighting effects by Russell H. Champa.

The Lying Lesson ultimately fails to deliver because it offers only glimpses of ideas and questions of what is to come without ever really following through on its initial promise.

Featuring: Carol Kane (Ruth Elizabeth), Mickey Sumner (Minnie Bodine)

The Lying Lesson
By Craig Lucas
Sets: Neil Patel
Costumes: Ilona Somogyi
Lights: Russell H. Champa
Original Music and Sound: Broken Cord
Hair & Wigs: Charles LaPointe
Dialect Coach: Kate Wilson
Violence Consultant: J. David Brimmer
Casting: Telsey & Company, Will Canter, CSA
Production Stage Manager: Charles M. Turner III
Press Representative: Boneau/Bryan-Brown
Production Manager: Michael Wade
Directed by Pam Mackinnon

The Atlantic Theater Company
Linda Gross Theater
336 West 20th Street
Closed: March 31, 2013

"Happy Birthday" - Frosting Without a Cake

noreply@blogger.com (Byrne Harrison) — Sun, 28 Apr 2013 22:51:00 +0000

By Judd Hollander

Photo by Hunter Canning

The Actors Company Theatre (TACT) has dipped into the theatrical archives and revived the Anita Loos work Happy Birthday which was a Broadway hit for Helen Hayes in 1946. However this time around a less than stellar cast cannot hide the problems of this lightweight vehicle, which moves forward in fits and starts rather than sailing jauntily toward its conclusion.

It's a rainy night in Newark, NJ as the regulars start to come into The Jersey Mecca Cocktail Bar, the place being owned by Gail (Karen Ziemba). The staff includes Herman (Ron McClary) who holds court as a bartender, and June (Leslie Shires), girlfriend to Gail's son Don (Tom Berklund), Don being off in the merchant marines.

(L to R) Victoria Mack, Todd
Gearhart, Mary Bacon

A place with a bit of an unsavory reputation, the Mecca is a place for quiet assignations and where business can be conducted away from prying eyes. Such as when Gabe (Joe Tippett) is looking to get a quickie divorce so he can marry his girlfriend Bella (Hanna Cheek) before she becomes too much in the family way. Thanks to the help of a perennially soused Judge (Anderson Matthews), this matter just might get quickly resolved. There's also the issue of Paul Bishop (Todd Gearhart), a bank teller spending some quality time with his girlfriend Maude (Victoria Mack), a woman who may also have another man on the side.

Into this mix comes the somewhat prim and proper Addie Bemis (Mary Bacon), a librarian and a woman who is clearly out of her comfort zone. It seems she told her dad (Matthews), a notoriously mean drunk, that she's been seeing Paul and now her father is coming here to confront him. Addie, who made the entire thing up, now just wants to warn Paul of the danger and then quickly depart.

Of course things don't go the way she plans, as Addie begins to get drawn into the lives of those she meets in the Mecca. Addie also harbors a secret love for Paul and finds herself sticking around and trying to get to know him. One thing leads to another and when Addie, a lifelong teetotaler, gets talked into a having her first sip of alcohol - a Pink Lady to be precise - it's not long before her inhibitions get tossed in the dustbin and she starts behaving in a rather wild manner, carrying the other denizens in the establishment along for the ride.

The Loos' script has a lot of layers to it, many of which may not have been readily apparent to a 1946 audience. Such as how quickly one can go from being a happy drunk, and the life of the party, to a pathetic one. There's also the issue of how some people have to buy their friends in order to keep them around. Another topic to be considered is that of generational conflict, as seen in the interactions of Gail, Don and June. All interesting possibilities to be sure, but ultimately, none of which really come together.

It helps tremendously if the setting presented has some colorful characters or a good period atmosphere. But this production of Happy Birthday has neither. The people inhabiting the Mecca never really leaping off the page into the audience's consciousness and certainly not into their hearts. There are also several plotlines that are introduced and quickly dropped, like Gail's relationship with her son and how June figures into it all, as well as the previously mentioned problems of Gabe and Bella, with what happens to them being a plot point that's left hanging. Though Tot (Darrie Lawrence) and Emma (Nora Chester), two somewhat gossipy ladies who egg Addie on in terms of alcoholic consumption, come off nicely; as does Myrtle (Margot White), a lonely woman pinning for her married lover, who's busy spending time with his wife. Also quite good is Anderson Matthews in the duel roles of The Judge and Addie's father.

Another problem is that one never feels the story is taking place in the time period indicated. Things start off nicely with some boogie-woogie music, but except for some occasional mentions about specific events, there's nothing to really anchor it to any particular place and time, the sets and costumes doing nothing to help add to that specificity. On the plus side, Brett J. Banakis' set does give the playing area a nice homely feel and the costumes by Campbell Baird are fine as far as they go. There are also some good lighting effects by Paul Hackenmueller and the sound design by Bart Fasbender is nicely executed. However one particular stage effect meant to show Addie and Paul alone together might have done better with a simple spotlight on them and the rest of the characters frozen in darkness instead of what's actually used.

It also doesn't help that the lead character is rather bland. A definite star vehicle for whomever is playing Addie, Bacon isn't up to what the role demands, at least not as directed by Scott Alan Evans. Her portrayal being too much of a one-note offering, whether Addie is the midst of an alcoholic haze or just wanting desperately to talk to someone. The only time Bacon is able to break through is when Addie is talking to her father about what has befallen her. Sadly by this time this happens, the show is almost over. Had this inner strength been brought to the forefront earlier, things might have worked better. Bacon's co-star Gearhart also doesn't fare that well as Paul. A square-jawed and honorable fellow, he comes off as tired and boring without making any significant impression.

Direction by Evans is rather slipshod. He has all the pieces of the story available, but isn't able to bring them together with enough energy or zest to really put the show over the top. He does a decent job with what he attempts, but it's not nearly as good enough as it needs to be.

Happy Birthday, the title applying to one of the characters in the story, is one of those shows with a lot of potential, but in this particular case it ultimately fails to deliver where it counts.

Also in the cast are Joseph Masi and James Prendergast.

Happy Birthday

Featuring: Karen Ziemba (Gail Hosmer), James Prendergast (Dad Malone), Joe Tippett (Gabe Darcy), Hanna Cheek (Bella Lane), Ron McClary (Herman), Margot White (Myrtle), Lesley Shires (June), Mary Bacon (Addie Bemis), Victoria Mack (Maude Carson), Tom Berklund (Don Hosmer), Anderson Matthews (The Judge/Homer Bemis), Todd Gearhart (Paul Bishop), Joseph Masi (Policeman/Mr. Nanino), Darrie Lawrence (Tot), Nora Chester (Emma)

Written by Anita Loos
Production Stage Manager: Jeff Meyers
Assistant Stage Manager: Andrew Slater
Dramaturge: Matt Herzfeld
Casting Director: Kelly Gillespie
Press and Publicity: Richard Hillman PR
Marketing: The Pekoe Group
TACT General Manager: Cathy Bencivenga
Wig & Hair Design: Tommy Kurzman
Associate Costume Design: Nicole Wee
Props: Lauren Madden
Choreography: Valerie Wright
Music Programming: Joe Trapanese

"I Haven't Got A Worry in the World"
Music by Richard Rodgers
Lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II

Sound Design & Original Music: Bart Fasbender
Musical Direction & Original Music: James Cunningham
Lighting Design: Paul Hackenmueller
Costume Design: Campbell Baird
Scenic Design: Brett J. Banakis
Directed by Scott Alan Evans

Presented by The Actors Company Theatre
The Beckett Theatre at Theatre Row
410 West 42nd Street
Tickets: 212-239-6200 or www.tactnyc.org
Running Time: 1 hour, 50 minutes (no intermission)
Closed: April 14, 2013

Brooke Davis in “I’m So Sorry… For Everything” at the Metropolitan Room, March 25th, 2013

noreply@blogger.com (Byrne Harrison) — Fri, 05 Apr 2013 22:35:00 +0000

By Rob Hartmann

Cabaret at its best allows the singing actor to create an evening which flows effortlessly and inevitably from their own stage personality. It’s no surprise that some of the most interesting cabaret performers are those who, for one reason or another, do not fit handily into any existing musical theater mold.

Brooke Davis, in her show “I’m So Sorry … For Everything”, which played March 25^th at the Metropolitan Room in Manhattan’s Flatiron District, takes the traditional “story of my life” theme and gives it a hearty twist. From the opening moments - a mini radio play in which we listen in to the delivery room, as stunned doctors (“are those the shoulders?”) bring a trilling baby Brooke into the world – it’s clear that Davis is making the cabaret form her own. The title refers to Davis’s habit of apologizing for taking up too much space in the world – having grown to six feet by age ten. With musical director Darren Cohen and director Barbara Grecki, Davis has crafted a hilarious evening which intertwines song with comic set pieces in which she creates an entire supporting cast of characters.

From a well meaning wide-eyed drama teacher (“ooooh my! You’re a big girl,”) who introduces Brooke to the wonders of theater, to a Dolores Umbridge-style professor who brings every conversation back to her own career, to a woman who drags Davis’s husband aside at a bar mitzvah to comment on the six-foot shiksa – the characters pop effortlessly out of the well-honed dialogue. First time cabaret performers sometimes veer too far to one extreme or another with their spoken material – either coming across as too tightly scripted, or else fumblingly winging it. Davis strikes exactly the right balance – the narrative has clear structure, but with the sense in the off-hand delivery that Davis is sharing it with you over a martini (or three.)

Most impressive is how smoothly Davis transitions into and out of the songs. Musical director Darren Cohen has created gorgeous, sophisticated arrangements – including a striking transformation of “In My Own Little Corner”, the cheery Rodgers & Hammerstein classic, into a darker, meditative jazz piece unwinding from an insistent bass ostinato. (Mr. Cohen, at the piano, is joined by Matt Sharfglass on upright bass, and Jeff Roberts on drums.) The song selections range from more Rodgers & Hammerstein (“Shall We Dance”), to Maltby & Shire (“A Girl You Should Know), to Sondheim (the sharply driving “See What It Gets You” from Anyone Can Whistle, and a hilarious re-contextualization of “Beautiful Girls” from Follies.) Davis also takes a turn through R&B (“Shop Around”) and even Pink’s “Glitter in the Air”, wrapping her crystal-clear mezzo around each style equally well.

One of the highlights of the evening is the Beatrice Lillie classic, “There Are Fairies at the Bottom of our Garden.” Brooke Davis in many ways is a modern version of the madcap Ms. Lillie (who made her name in comic revues and in the works of Noël Coward), mixing a sense of elegant arched-eyebrow absurdity with a strain of Will Rogers plain-speaking (owing to Ms. Davis’s Arizona upbringing.) Ms. Davis is like an alchemist’s combination of the dry humor and depth of Allison Janney; the bubbly warmth of Judy Kaye; the vaudevillian silliness of Jo Anne Worley; and the elegance and vulnerability of Barbara Harris. Her voice is a pure, youthful mezzo mix, which rises with ease to clear high notes, and becomes warm and clarinet-like in the low register. At times, she evokes the crystalline, heartbreaking sound of the great Victoria Clark (with whom Ms. Davis has studied, and who was in attendance on Monday night). But Ms. Davis always puts her own particular spin on the music, singing with true authenticity.

Director Barbara Grecki deftly shapes the evening with lighting that underscores the changing moods, while never intruding. The Metropolitan Room, as always, provides smart, attentive service in a comfortable venue.

Brooke Davis has appeared most places you’d expect to find up and coming New York actors: turns on Law & Order, One Life to Live (before its untimely demise), and appearances in regional and touring productions. One can hope that wise casting directors can find a way to bring Ms. Davis’s unique combination of wicked wit, sweet vulnerability and boisterous humor to New York audiences soon.

Brooke Davis in “I’m So Sorry … For Everything”, March 25^th, 2013. Musical direction by Darren Cohen. Directed by Barbara Grecki. Mr. Cohen on piano, Matt Scharfglass on bass, Jeff Roberts on drums. Metropolitan Room, 34 West 22^nd Street, New York City.

--Rob Hartmann is a writer/composer/lyricist based in New York City.

“The North Pool” - Where no one is who or what they seem

noreply@blogger.com (Byrne Harrison) — Fri, 05 Apr 2013 22:29:00 +0000

By Judd Hollander

Perception or the misinterpretation of it is the key in Rajvi Joseph's tension-filled The North Pool at the Vineyard Theatre. It's April, 2007 in Middle America and the beginning of spring break at a public high school when Khadim Asmaan (Babak Tafti), a Syrian-born student, is summoned to the office of Dr. Danielson (Stephen Barker Turner), the vice principal. Danielson, a sort of overbearing fellow who always tries to have his finger on the pulse of things, starts asking Khadim leading question about the young man's life, his parents and why he suddenly transferred from a prestigious private institution to his current location, which is definitely a step down on the academic status ladder. For Khadim's part, he tries to answer Danielson's questions simply and calmly, but there is no denying the white elephant of smoldering anger in the room; kind of like a bomb waiting to go off. Though exactly when or under what circumstances this will happen is unknown.

This uncertainty is the hinge on which this riveting two-character play turns. The not knowing where the narrative is going or which of these two people is in the right or wrong of the matter. Tafti and Turner do an excellent job with their characters and also play off each other wonderfully, as one waits to see who just will come out on top of their verbal gymnastics covering such subjects as small talk, school history, bomb shelters, off-campus parties, drugs, first amendment rights, Arab-American relations and the death of another student, one with which both Khadim and Dr. Danielson had close ties.

The script provides numerous twists and turns with common stereotypes at times running true to form while at other moments being turned completely on their heads. Danielson for example seems to be more than a little obsessive concerning his love for the school, harboring a feeling of protectiveness for his perceived fiefdom as well as a bitterness for not receiving what he sees as a well-deserved promotion. Yet he is also rather intelligent and intuitive with little going on around him of which he is not aware. Also, like Khadim he plays his cards close to the vest, not showing his hand until his opponent provides him an opening through which to strike.

As for Khadim, over the course of the play he undergoes a metamorphosis from a scared 18 year-old to someone with a swagger in his voice who takes delight in always having the upper hand. Tafti imbues the character with intelligence, purpose, anger and sensitivity. Particularly interesting, and again this goes back to a matter of perception, is the fact that Khadim was assigned a locker in the basement of the school, with both Khadim and Danielson having conflicting opinions as to why this was so.

Joseph's script is also tautly brought to life by the show's director, Giovanna Sardelli, who not only keeps the play moving nicely with the tension continually on the rise, but is also able to add feelings of claustrophobia and isolation into the mix. The school is completely empty except for these two characters, with Danielson's office often feeling more like an interrogation room than anything else. The scenic design by Donyale Werle is especially good in this regard, the playing area looking like a cluttered but somewhat ordered school office.

Well acted and presented, with no extra padding or extraneous speeches The North Pool is definitely a play worth watching and one which offers the audience a chance to realize, as the two characters in the show ultimately do, the dangers of taking both matter and people at simple face value.

The North Pool

Featuring: Babak Tafti (Khadim Asmaan), Stephen Barker Turner (Dr. Danielson)

Written by Rajiv Joseph

Scenic Design: Donyale Werle

Costume Design: Paloma Young

Lighting Design: David Lander

Sound Design: Daniel Kluger

Dialect Coach: Stephen Gabis

Production Stage Manager: Megan Smith
Production Manager: David Nelson

Press Representative: Sam Rudy Media Relations

Casting: Henry Russell Bergstein, CSA

Directed by Giovanna Sardelli

The Vineyard Theatre

108 East 15th Street

Closed: March 24, 2013

“The Old Boy” - Powerful and Riveting

noreply@blogger.com (Byrne Harrison) — Fri, 05 Apr 2013 22:25:00 +0000

By Judd Hollander
Photo by Carol Rosegg

When making a statement, sometimes the simplest messages are the best, as brilliantly shown in the Keen Company's quietly powerful revival of A.R. Gurney's 1991 play The Old Boy, the story providing a strong reminder of a time not that long ago, and packing as powerful a wallop as when it was first produced on stage.

Sam (Peter Rini), a rising political star who is probably going to get the Republican nomination for governor, has abruptly changed his schedule to give a commencement speech at his former prep school, said institution located in New England. His decision made much to the consternation of his political speechwriter and trusted right-hand man Bud (Cary Donaldson), who wants Sam to distance himself from his preppy, a.k.a. privileged, past as much as possible.

Upon reaching the school, Sam is surprised to find Harriet (Laura Esterman) the mother of his old school chum Perry (Chris Dwan) waiting to see him. Sam was the "Old Boy" to Perry, a prep school tradition where a new student is placed in the care of an older one in order to help the new arrival get used to the school. While Sam and Perry became great friends, the two eventually lost touch and Sam is shocked to hear Perry has since died. Harriet plans to give the school a huge bequest in her son's memory and wants Perry to mention the gift in his upcoming speech. Also with Harriet is Perry's widow Alison (Marsha Dietlein Bennett), a woman who used to date Sam before Perry came into the picture.

However Sam soon discovers, after the ever-suspicious Bud does some fact-checking, some rather startling facts about Perry and how he died; the genesis of which is explored in flashback sequences where Perry is revealed to be an earnest and sensitive young man with a passion for music and acting, but who is pushed into sports by Harriet, who turns out to be quite the domineering mother. It's a path which Sam also urges Perry to follow, seeing athletics as a manlier thing to do. There is also the question of Perry's possible homosexuality, a subject his mother refuses to discuss or even consider, a topic which at the time, was also completely repellent to Sam.

As the audience is offered glimpses of just who Perry was, the present-day Sam begins to question not only how he treated Perry back then, and the part he played in bringing Perry and Alison together, but also his own future path and the driving ambitions he has held for so long. Ambitions which probably destroyed his first marriage and are about to end his second.

As Gurney notes in this intimate and somewhat time-capsule of a tale, there are consequences in every action one takes. A reality both Sam and to a lesser degree many of those around him are finally forced to acknowledge. What makes the story so affecting is that the characters come off not only as real people, but also as symbols of attitudes that were prevalent in the time show was set and which still exist today. This is personified best in the strong performance by Rini, his character not so much a bigot but rather one quite probably ignorant of a lifestyle he knew nothing about other than what he was told in locker rooms or local bars. Sam was also much more concerned with his own self-interests, often treating people like pieces on a chessboard to be moved as per his whims. It's not until Sam takes a good look at the man he was that he understands his role in it all and delivers a speech that is both elegant in its simplicity and quietly shattering.

Also doing a great job is Esterman as Harriet, one of those mothers from hell, going from being just a tad overbearing to someone determined to protect her son's memory, and her own illusions at any cost. Bennett is fine as Alison, a woman who may have a bit of a drinking problem and who realizes her entire life has been based on a lie. There's still an attraction between her and Sam, but it may be undone if she learns just how much he figures into events in her own past. Donaldson is good as Bud, trying to juggle his own personal life with his belief in Sam and wanting to push him along politically to the very top. Tim Riis Farrell does a nicely subdued job in the role of Dexter, an Episcopal Minster at the school. Dwan cuts an appealing figure as the conflicted Perry, a boy whose inner turmoil becomes more and more apparent as the play progresses.

Jonathan Silverstein's direction is excellent, keeping the story moving nicely and effortlessly blending the flashback scenes with the present day moments. Steven C. Kemp's set of the suite where Sam stays on campus is nicely opulent without going overboard, and the costume by Jennifer Paar are appropriate to the setting.

Timely and effective, The Old Boy is a work that deserves to be seen. Both for the production itself and as a lesson to all aspiring playwrights that when making a statement, sometimes a few choice sentences can be much more effective than entire paragraphs devoted to the issue.

The Old Boy

Featuring: Tom Riis Farrell (Dexter), Cary Donaldson (Bud), Peter Rini (Sam), Laura Esterman (Harriet), Chris Dwan (Perry), Marsha Dietlein Bennett (Alison)

Written by A.R. Gurney

Directed by Jonathan Silverman

Production Stage Manager: Theresa Flanagan

Scenic Designer: Steven C. Kemp

Costume Designer: Jennifer Paar

Lighting Designer: Josh Bradford

Original Music: Ryan Rumery

Sound Designer: M. Florian Staab

Casting Director: Calleri Casting

Fight Director: Paul Molnar

Props Designer: Ricola Wille

House Manager: Ryan Hudak

Presented by the Keen Company

Theatre Row Studios

410 West 42nd Street

Information: www.keencompany.org

Running time 1 hour, 15 minutes no intermission

Closed: March 30, 2013

“Passion” - Passion and Problems

noreply@blogger.com (Byrne Harrison) — Fri, 05 Apr 2013 22:22:00 +0000

By Judd Hollander

There is a fine line between love, hate, obsession and disgust. Such is the ground explored in the 1994 musical Passion (music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, book by James Lapine, based on the film Passione D'Amore, directed by Ettore Scola, originally directed on Broadway by James Lapine) now being presented Off-Broadway by the Classic Stage Company. While the story and indeed the entire cast tackle the subject head-on, a key plot point and some directorial missteps threaten to derail the emotional impact of the production.

In Milan, Italy, Giorgio Bachetti (Ryan Silverman), a young Army Captain is happily enjoying the company of his married mistress Clara (Melissa Errico), when he reveals he is to be transferred to a remote outpost. Promising to write to her every day, the two being madly in love, he departs and soon finds himself in his new surroundings. A non-drinker and avid book reader, Giorgio doesn't quite fit in with the other officers, all nice fellows, if a little boorish - men who spend their free time talking about women, repeating the latest rumors and good-naturedly complaining about the cooking of Sergeant Lombardi (Orville Mendoza). Giorgio does however catch the attention of the company commander Colonel Ricci (Stephen Bogardus), a rather genial sort with an appropriately authoritative air. Giorgio also soon learns of the existence of Fosca (Judy Kuhn), Ricci's terribly withdrawn and sensitive cousin and a woman battered by illnesses, both physical and emotional. She is also, to put it mildly, rather plan and drab looking. Seeing in Giorgio a kindred spirit, the two both knowing the value of a sunrise or the beauty of a flower, Fosca becomes less of a recluse in order to spend time with Giorgio, the young man gallantly offering his hand to her in friendship.

But Fosca has more than friendship on her mind, having fallen in love with Giorgio at first sight. Her desperate and cloying attitude towards him repels Giorgio to no end. Yet as Tambourri (Tom Nelis), the company doctor, explains, it is Giorgio's visits with Fosca that are literally giving her the will to live and a reason to struggle on against her various debilitating conditions. Finding himself between the proverbial rock and a hard place, Giorgio soon finds himself becoming smothered by Fosca's attempts at affection, ones which soon begin to take their toll on his mental health and which also threaten his relationship with Clara.

Passion is an intensely intimate and personal tale and works wonderfully in a technical sense as presented in the relatively small CSC space, making one feel as if they're right in the midst of the action; whether it is Giorgio or Clara making love - a moment which opens the show - or in Fosca's private chamber during one of many confrontations and realizations. Sondheim and Lapine pull no punches here, showing in words and music how quickly one's emotions, feelings and perceptions of another can change, with reason all too often going by the wayside to follow a course one knows deep down is the right thing to do, even if no one else may see it that way.

Sadly, much of what is presented is ultimately undone by a key plot point that doesn't really work. When Giorgio is in Milan on leave, Clara, who has learned all about Fosca through her lover's letters to her, as well as seeing the stress and emotional toll it's taking on him, begs him not to go back. However Giorgio refuses saying it's his duty to keep taking care of Fosca. Yet moments before this scene, Giorgio demonstrated his extreme disgust of Fosca's obsession with him as well as his desperate desire to get away from her. As such, his subsequent reactions do not make sense. Seeing those two scenes, one after the other, makes one feel as if something was cut from the play; the immediate effect of which being the sudden removal of the audience from the immediacy of the situation. It's a problem from which the show never fully recovers.

The three leads are all excellent. Kuhn steals the show as Fosca, a beaten-down woman who has suffered great heartbreak throughout her life and, as she says to Giorgio at one point, doesn't know how to love. The actress delivers a superlative portrayal here with her every step and movement showing the pain she is carrying inside. While Fosca's actions towards Giorgio may be way over the line – in reality she's not far removed from being a stalker – she does cause Giorgio to realize that love is more simply a word to be bandied about in the heat of passion. Rather, it's one which is linked irrevocably to reasonability and commitment. Situations Giorgio had never seriously considered before now.

Errico fine as Clara, seemingly little more than a pretty woman in the beginning, but one who has a keen intuition and who begins to see, long before Giorgio does, the effect Fosca has on him. Clara's also terribly realistic when it comes to her trysts with Giorgio. Loving him whenever she can steal away from her husband, but fearful of what would happen if their relationship became known.

Silverman makes a good Giorgio. A bit bland in the beginning, and perhaps deliberately so, he quickly bring forth a character with the soul of a poet. He's also a person caught between two very different women, while struggling with feelings he cannot fully comprehend. A scene between Giorgio and Fosca concerning the writing of a love letter is particularly wrenching to watch.

Elsewhere, Bogardus does fine work as the officious and congenial Colonel Ricci, while Nelis is very good as Doctor Tambourri - someone who wants to make sure Fosca has the best care possible, but who have may have overstepped his bounds while trying to do so. The rest of the cast, all of whom are pretty interchangeable, do their jobs quite well.

John Doyle's direction is a bit of mixed bag. While he keeps the story moving well and has a firm grasp of the material, he's unable to get the show past the plot problem mentioned above. There's also a somewhat strange moment early on where Giorgio smiles noticeably while relating to Clara his pity and contempt for Fosca after their first meeting. It's an action which is incongruous to the character and also rather distracting. One wonders whether the actor or director came up with the idea and why it was ultimately used.

The Sondheim score is enjoyable to hear, though none of the musical is particularly memorable. Orchestrations by Jonathan Tunick are excellent. It also helps that all of the actors have strong singing voices, with the entire cast - especially Errico, Kuhn, Silverman and Bogardus - bringing forth the emotional elements of the songs. Doyle's design of the show is fine and the costumes by Ann Hould-Ward are a joy to behold. Lighting by Jane Cox is nicely effective, as is the sound design by Dan Moses Schreier.

Passion is a musical that has a lot to say about the human heart, about the true meanings of beauty and responsibility and most of all, about love. Yet for the tale to truly work it must be continuously believable and for one glaring moment at least, it fails in that regard. The performances, though, definitely make this a show worth seeing.

Passion

Featuring: Stephen Bogardus (Colonel Ricci), Jeffry Denman (Lieutenant Barri/Mother), Melissa Errico (Clara), Jason Michael Evans (Private Augenti/Mistress) Ken Krugman (Lieutenant Torasso/Father), Judy Kuhn (Fosca), Orville Mendoza (Sergeant Lombardi) Tom Nelis (Doctor Tambourri), Will Reynolds (Major Rizzolli/Ludovic), Ryan Silverman (Giorgio)

Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim

Book by James Lapine

Based on the film Passione D'Amore, directed by Ettore Scola

Originally Directed on Broadway by James Lapine

Costume Design: Ann Hould-Ward

Lighting Design: Jane Cox

Sound Design: Dan Moses Schreier

Music Coordinator: Seymour Red Press

Associate Costume Design: Christopher Vergara

Associate Lighting Design: Bradley King

Associate Sound Design: Nicholas Pope, Joshua Reid

Associate Set Design: David L. Arsenault

Associate Music Design: Greg Jarrett

Associate Director: Adam John Hunter

Make-up Design: Angelina Avallone

Hair Consultants: J Jared Janas & Rob Greene

Casting: Calleri Casting

Press Representative: The Publicity Office

Production Supervisor: Production Core

Managing Director: Jeff Griffin

Production Stage Manager: Adam John Hunter

Associate Stage Manager: Claudia Lynch

Orchestrations by Jonathan Tunick

Musical Direction by Rob Berman

Directed and Designed by John Doyle

Presented by Classic Stage Company

136 East 13th Street

Tickets: 212-352-3101 or www.classicstage.org

Running Time: 1 hour, 50 minutes, no intermission

Closes: April 19, 2013

“It's a Bird....It's a Plane...It's Superman” - Soaring High

noreply@blogger.com (Byrne Harrison) — Fri, 05 Apr 2013 22:16:00 +0000

By Judd Hollander
Photo by Joan Marcus

More than four decades before everyone's favorite wall-crawler debuted on the great white way, another comic book character did the same thing in 1966's It's A Bird...It's a Plane.. It's Superman (music by Charles Strouse, lyrics by Lee Adams, book by David Newman and Robert Benton), which ran for 129 performances at the Alvin Theatre (now the Neil Simon). Basically forgotten today except by the most avid musical theatre buffs, there is a lot to recommend in this satiric and somewhat kooky look at the Man of Steel and the world that then surrounded him in a vehicle that was recently resurrected for the Encores! series at New York City Center.

The city of Metropolis, like every other major metropolitan locale, is awash with crime, but evildoers are kept at bay thanks to the never-ending efforts of Superman (Edward Watts), an indestructible - as the audience is continually reminded - visitor from another planet. In his guise as the meek and mild Clark Kent (Watts), a reporter for the newspaper The Daily Planet, Superman keeps one eye out for trouble and one on reporter Lois Lane (Jenny Powers), who has a habit of getting into danger. Lois is madly in love with Superman and Superman is in love with her, though our hero can't reveal his feelings, his mission of "doing good" which is also his mantra and motto, getting in the way of him having any kind of personal life. There's also the pesky question of whether Lois actually loves Superman for himself rather than for his having super powers.

Superman also has to contend with the evil genius Dr. Abner Sedgwick (David Pittu), a ten-time Nobel Prize loser. Also seeking to get the Man of Steel in his crosshairs is the egocentric Max Mencken (Will Swenson), The Daily Planet's gossip columnist, who is determined to discover Superman's identify and reveal it to the world.

Throwing in elements of psychoanalysis and asking if there is such a thing as true altruism in the world; as well as dealing with issues of true love and learning to let go of one's quest for the unobtainable - not to mention a subplot about Communism - the story moves both quickly and satisfyingly. It also helps that the production team is able to pull together an appropriate 1960s feel for the show while lovingly recreating the eye-popping and cartoon world of the Superman comic book; presenting an atmosphere and setting that is both nostalgic and just a bit off-kilter in terms of reality. Great work by scenic consultant John Lee Beatty, as well as by Paul Tazewell on the costumes. The Superman flying effect, using a cardboard cutout, also provides an appropriate touch to the proceedings.

If there is one problem in the production it would be Watts' portrayal of the title character, who comes off as perhaps a bit too square and also rather naive in the ways of the world. The last being something Superman never was in any of his incarnations. While the character's somewhat stilted speeches come off well, his more intimate moments do not - the show not being able to effectively humanize a character who by definition is not human. Watts' song "The Strongest Man in the World" for example, which is supposed to show the angst and pain of the character instead provokes laughs. It would also have helped had there been a bigger difference between the Clark Kent and Superman personas than was shown on stage.

Other than this one issue, the entire cast works pretty much perfectly. Powers makes a wonderful Lois Lane, combining romantic infatuation with intelligence and a talent for getting into trouble, yet also eagerly exploring the possibility of a relationship that has nothing to do whatsoever with Superman. Powers also has a very good singing voice and is nicely endearing in such numbers as the ballad "It's Superman," as well as the comic duet "We Don't Matter At All". The latter in which she shares the stage with Adam Monley, who plays a technician at a the Metropolis Institute of Technology.

Swenson is a hoot at the scenery-chewing Max. A fellow who thinks he's God's gift to woman, he has excellent chemistry with his various co-stars and does well in several musical numbers such as "You've Got What I Need" - a hilarious bromantic turn with Pittu; "The Woman For The Man" - which matches him with Powers; and "Ooh, Do You Love You!", where he plays a non-singing straight man to his warbling assistant Sydney (Alli Mauzey). Mauzey meanwhile, turns in a performance that would qualify her for a Tony nomination for Best Supporting Actress had the show been playing Broadway. In addition to having letter prefect comedic timing, she steals the show with the song "You've Got Possibilities," where she tries to get Clark to unbend a bit.

Chewing the scenery in sometimes wild abandon, Pittu offers a deliciously over the top portrayal of a mad scientist, or at least one with some serious ego issues. The character being motivated solely by revenge, which is also the title of a song Pittu hilariously delivers. It's a testament to the actor's ability that he makes this character both one the audience loves to hate, while at the same time giving him a bit of an woebegone quality.

The score by Strouse and Adams is quite enjoyable, offering a nice mix of fast and slow numbers, with a few period pieces tossed in, including the title tune. Also offered are at least a few hummable songs, an increasing rarity on Broadway these days. The orchestrations are wonderfully done and the Encores! Orchestra, under the music direction and baton of Rob Berman is superb.

Special commendation must also go to the strong choreographic work by Joshua Bergasse and the acrobatics of The Flying Lings (Craig Henningsen, Suo Liu, Jason Ng, Scott Webber), a group of individuals who ostensibly turn to crime to take revenge on the Man of Steel, but who, like their boss (James Saito), have a more nefarious purpose than simple payback. Except for the problem concerning the characterizations of Superman and Clark Kent, John Rando's direction works very well, Rando having a mostly firm grasp on the material.

Its a Bird...It's a Plane...It's Superman is a welcome addition to the Encores! repertoire, showing the piece to be one of those forgotten tuners which deserves a second look. In an era where musicals that are filled with meanings, messages and overlong preaching, it's nice to see something a bit more simple, clean and just plain fun - and clocking it at a scant two hours, it all goes by faster than a speeding bullet.

It's a Bird...It's a Plane...It's Superman

Featuring: Edward Watts (Superman/Clark Ken), Will Swenson (Max Mencken), Jenny Powers (Lois Lane), Alli Mauzey (Sydney), David Pittu (Dr. Abner Sedgwick), Adam Monley (Jim Morgan), James Saito (Father Ling), Craig Henningsen, Suo Liu, Jason Ng, Scott Webber (The Flying Lings), Wendi Bergamini, Ward Billeisen, Sam Bolen, Stephen Carrasco, Hannah Florence, Sara Jean Ford, Miles Johnson, Max Kumangai, Samantha Massell, Skye Mattox, Kenita R. Miller, Michael Mindlin, Jessica Lea Patty, David Scott Purdy, Manuel Stark, Charlie Williams, Kirsten Wyatt, Samantha Zack (Ensemble - Policemen, Crooks, College Kids and Various Citizens of Metropolis)

Music by Charles Strouse

Lyrics by Lee Adams
Book by David Newman and Robert Benton

Based Upon the Comic Strip "Superman"

Broadway Production Produced by Harold Prince in association with Ruth Mitchell

Directed for the Broadway Stage by Harold Prince

Scenic Consultant: John Lee Beatty

Costume Consultant: Paul Tazewell

Lighting Designer: Ken Billington

Sound Designer: Nevin Steinberg

Concert Adaptation: Jack Viertel

Music Coordinator: Seymour Red Press

Original Orchestrations by Eddie Sauter

General Management Services: Over-Sky Productions

Production Stage Manager: Tripp Phillips

Casting: Jay Binder Casting

Choreography: Joshua Bergasse

Featuring: The Encores! Orchestra

Music Director and Conductor: Rob Berman

Associate Music Director: Joel Fram

Assistant Music Director: Josh Clayton

Fight Captain: Suo Liu

Director: John Rando

Presented by New York City Center Encores!

New York City Center

151 West 55th Street

Performed from March 20-March 24, 2013

Interview with Joan Kane - Director of "I Know What Boys Want"

noreply@blogger.com (Byrne Harrison) — Thu, 21 Mar 2013 22:50:00 +0000

By Anthony Host

Joan Kane was named one of 2011 People of the Year in indie theatre by nytheatre.com. She directed “Play Nice!” Off-Broadway at the 59E59 Theaters, “Aliens with Extraordinary Skills” by Saviana Stanescu at Theater 54, “Safe” in the 2012 the Planet Connections Theatre Festivity, and “Pizza Man” at the Bridge Theater. She has directed plays and readings at the Lark Play Development Center, Ensemble Studio Theatre, Theater for the New City, the Samuel French Short Play Festival, the Midtown International Festival, the Dramatists Guild, The Lambs Club, The Players Club, the Actors Studio, and for the Scandinavian American Theater Company. She has an MFA in Directing from The New School, an MS in Museum Education from Bank Street College and is a member of the Dramatists Guild, the Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers and the League of Professional Theatre Women.

What led you to being director?

I was originally an actress & dancer. As a teen I toured the five boroughs in a dance company that performed in New York City parks in the summers through the CETA program that gave jobs to underprivileged New York City youth. I went to Performing Arts High School (now LaGuardia). Then I went to the Neighborhood Playhouse and worked in various Off-Off Broadway shows, mostly on the Lower East Side. In the late 1970s I was a founding member of the all-female company Lupa Productions, where I directed plays, readings, site specific and devised works. Later I found it very hard to juggle duties as a parent and artist. I was on the verge of giving up theatre when Gayle Stahlhuth, artistic director of East Lynn Theatre Company in Cape May, NJ offered me an SDC contract to direct “The Awakening.” Since then I have been developing and directing plays by current playwrights in the U.S. and Europe.

How did you come to help create Ego Actus?

While I was attending the Director’s Symposium in Spoleto, Italy I met Ellen “LaMama” Stewart. I had a discussion with her about being a theatre artist in the 21st Century. Inspired by her, my partner Bruce A! Kraemer and I started our company, Ego Actus, in 2009. We had have been doing shows, together and as individual, for decades. My sons went off to college and I had stopped being distracted by them, I went and got an MFA in Directing and started doing a lot more of what I was doing anyway.

You were selected as one of 2011’s People of the Year by nytheatre.com. What was that like for you, and has it had an impact on your work?

It was amazing and I am totally grateful to Martin and Rochelle Denton. I had never received any sort of prize or award in my life and it felt great to be acknowledged for my work. I felt encouraged that there was hope that somebody appreciated what I was doing.

How did “I Know What Boys Want” come into your life?

I directed Penny’s play “Safe” in the 2012 Planet Connections Theatre Festivity where it won Best New Script. I find working with Penny to very stimulating and collaborative. We both belong to The League of Professional Theater Women, and both of Penny’s plays that I have directed, “Safe” and now “I Know What Boys Want,” really focus with what I consider currently a toxic environment for young women today - be it society's pressures to be thin and beautiful or bullying, in school or through the Internet. “Boys” was created because Penny read a news story about a young girl in Staten Island who threw herself in front of the subway because of a video of her having sex with several football players went viral on the web. She discussed this story with me and I suggested she write a version where the girl is NOT the victim. Then the Steubenville, Ohio sexual assault case occurred, with the teenage boys involved videotaping and tweeting about the incident, and we knew that this was an issue that needed to be dramatized for social awareness.

What drew you to the piece?

I have been a victim of bullying and I have learned that to avoid being a victim you have to take charge of your own life. That is exactly what the lead character is trying to do.

Who else is involved in this production?

I am grateful that I was able to gather a group of awesome artists as my production and design team. The set is being designed by Starlet Jacobs (Best Set in the 2011 Planet Connections Theatre Festivity for the Ego Actus production of “The God Particle”). The costume design is by Cat Fisher (Best Costumes in the 2012 Midtown International Festival for the Ego Actus production of “Hamlet, Bound and Unbound”). The lighting design is by Bruce A! Kraemer. The sound design is by Ian Wehrle who has designed sound for at least five shows for me. The fight choreographer is Andrew Kenneth Moss who did the same for “Safe.” Of course my cast is fearless and portray their characters with ease and depth.

Having recently directed “Safe,” are you taking a different approach to your direction for this play, and will there be any similarities?

These are very different plays. “Safe” is about a timid, lonely girl looking for love and someone to belong with. I took the approach that she would reach out for love and the opportunities would be snatched away from her. “Boys” is about a young woman who has been attacked by a bully who uses the internet. Her journey is to try to repair the damage he has done to her. She is one of the high school mean girls and I am directing her to use that toughness and take charge of what happens to her.

Since this play directly deals with the younger generation, a generation completely involved with several technical gadgets, is it your hope that some will see this show and that it will make them think twice about how they may act or what they may do?

I am certainly hoping that the audiences who see this play realize that posting, even what seems innocuous, things on the Internet can have far ranging, unintentional consequences. It used to be that you would send your friend a chatty postal letter about people you know. The information would be strictly between the two of you. Now you tell a little story on a social networking site and somebody wants to sue you, or worse yet, someone can never get a job again.

Is this your first production that primarily deals with a cast of primarily younger individuals, and if so, how do you approach getting what you need from them?

I have worked with a very wide range of performers from grade school children to the elderly. I have found that individual personality is much more of a determining factor in how I work with someone than chronological age. Some actors are very introspective and I have to work differently with them than the heart-on-the-sleeve types. I have found that to be true of people of every age.

On a personal note, what are some of your current or recent favorite productions that are (or were) happening in the region?

One of my favorite shows that I saw recently was when Kneehigh’s production “The Wild Bride” came to St Ann’s from the United Kingdom. The concept of this fairy tale was expertly conceived and I loved the execution of the ideas through the scenery, music, dance and acting. I also loved “Follow” by Crystal Skillman, which was directed by Daniel Talbot. It took place in an apartment on the Lower East side that seated 10 audience members. Daniel has inspired me and through his example I have come to believe that as an indie artist we can create stunning, meaningful work and tell epic fascinating stories.

Do you have any projects in development in the next coming months?

I will be directing at least four other productions this year. “100 Saint You Should Know” by Kate Fodor will open at Urban Stages on May 9^th. In June I will direct “what do you mean” by Bruce A! Kraemer in the Planet Connections Theatre Festivity. In July we will open “Safe” at the 59E59 theaters before we take it to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. In November we will present Norway Nights with Scandinavian American Theater Company at the Theater for the New City. I will direct “More” by Maria Tryti Vennerod in that.

"I Know What Boys Want" plays at the WorkShop Theater (312 W. 36^th Street, 4^th FL.) from Thursday, March 28 through Saturday April 13. Performances are Thursday through Saturday at 8 PM with Saturday matinees at 3 PM. A Talk Back with Martin Denton (Founder, Editor and Chief Reviewer of nytheatre.com) is scheduled for Sat. Mar. 30 following the 3PM matinee and another with Heather Berlin (noted neuroscientist) will take place following the Thurs. April 11 show. All tickets are $18. For tickets go to brownpapertickets.com or call (1-800) 838-3006.

Limited Number of Tickets Available for Tonight's "Broadway Backwards"

noreply@blogger.com (Byrne Harrison) — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 18:27:00 +0000

BROADWAY BACKWARDS

OFFERS DAY-OF RUSH TICKETS

SELECT SEATS ONLY $20

ONE-NIGHT-ONLY EVENT

BENEFITS BROADWAY CARES/EQUITY FIGHTS AIDS

AND THE CENTER

MONDAY, MARCH 18 AT 8 PM

AT BROADWAY’S PALACE THEATRE
(302 WEST 45^TH STREET)

An extremely limited number of $20 rush tickets to this year's star-studded BROADWAY BACKWARDS will be released for sale at 6:30 PM Monday, March 18, 2013. The rush tickets will be sold in the lobby of the Palace Theater (1564 Broadway). They will not be available at the box office. Tickets will be sold on a first-come, first-served basis, cash only and are limited to two tickets per person. The show begins at 8 PM.

BROADWAY BACKWARDS is a one-night-only performance produced by Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS and benefiting BC/EFA and The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center of New York. Now in its eighth year, BROADWAY BACKWARDS is an annual celebration where gays and lesbians see their stories onstage, told through the great songs of musical theatre, sung by their favorite Broadway performers.

This year's star-studded line-up has been honored with five individual Tony Awards, 34 Tony nominations, seven Emmy Awards, 25 Emmy nominations and one Academy Award.

This year's performers include Ward Billeisen (Encores! It's A Bird...It's A Plane...It's Superman), Stephanie J. Block (The Mystery of Edwin Drood), John Bolton (A Christmas Story, The Musical), Jake Boyd (Rock of Ages), Mo Brady (The Addams Family), Daniel Breaker (Passing Strange), Jim Brochu (Zero Hour), Ashley Brown (Mary Poppins), Tituss Burgess (The Little Mermaid), Len Cariou (Sweeney Todd and TV's "Blue Bloods"), Robert Creighton (The Mystery of Edwin Drood), Victor Garber (Damn Yankees, Argo), Malcolm Gets (Amour), Anita Gillette (Chapter Two, TV's “30 Rock”), Judy Kaye (Nice Work If You Can Get It), Jose Llana (The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee), Kyle Dean Massey (Wicked), Jan Maxwell (Follies), Brian Stokes Mitchell, Stacey Oristano (TV's "Bunheads," “Friday Night Lights”), Estelle Parsons (Nice Work If You Can Get It), Eve Plumb, Doris Roberts, Tony Sheldon (Priscilla Queen of the Desert), Howie Michael Smith (Avenue Q), Anthony Warlow (Annie), Josh Young (Jesus Christ Superstar), Karen Ziemba (Curtains), comedian/writer Bruce Vilanch, former Paul Taylor Dance Company principal dancers Patrick Corbin and David Grenke, and teen poet sensation Noah St. John.

Advance tickets are sold out. A limited number of regularly priced orchestra, mezzanine and balcony tickets may be available the door.

BROADWAY BACKWARDS creator Robert Bartley will again direct and choreograph with music supervision by Mary-Mitchell Campbell and music direction by Tim Rosser. The creative team includes co-choreographer Amy Jones, additional music directors Laura Berquist, Mat Eisenstein, Brad Haak and James Sampliner, lighting designer Paul Miller, costume designer Ryan Moller and sound designer Lucas Indelicato.

The presenting sponsor of BROADWAY BACKWARDS is Lifetime Networks with generous support from The New York Times and United Airlines.

ABOUT BROADWAY CARES/EQUITY FIGHTS AIDS

Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS is one of the nation’s leading industry-based, nonprofit AIDS fundraising and grant-making organizations. By drawing upon the talents, resources and generosity of the American theatre community, since 1988 BC/EFA has raised more than $225 million for essential services for people with AIDS and other critical illnesses across the United States.

Broadway Cares awards annual grants to more than 450 AIDS and family service organizations nationwide and is the major supporter of the social service programs at The Actors Fund, including the HIV/AIDS Initiative, the Phyllis Newman Women’s Health Initiative and the Al Hirschfeld Free Health Clinic.

For more information, please visit Broadway Cares online at broadwaycares.org, like us on Facebook at facebook.com/BCEFA, follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/BCEFA, watch us on YouTube at youtube.com/BCEFAtv and pin us on Pinterest at pinterest.com/BCEFA.

ABOUT THE CENTER

Established in 1983, the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center is at the heart of the LGBT community in New York City, providing quality health and wellness programs in a welcoming space that fosters connections and celebrates our cultural contributions. We strive to serve the LGBT community with a full-service, multi-faceted approach to programming, from hosting arts and entertainment events, advocacy groups and family gatherings to offering youth, recovery and overall wellness programs. Each year, the Center welcomes more than 300,000 visits to our building in the West Village neighborhood of Manhattan from people who engage in our life-changing and life-saving activities. We are proud to be your community Center. To learn more about our work, please visit gaycenter.org.

Album Release Party - What Time Is It, Mr. Fox?

noreply@blogger.com (Byrne Harrison) — Sat, 09 Mar 2013 23:12:00 +0000

What Time Is It, Mr. Fox? will perform at Dixon Place for a CD release musical circus will include boylseque, animation, trapeze, and videos all illustrating the lyrics and meanings behind the songs, with lead singer, 3rian King’s gender-defying voice scaling the walls between Antony Hegarty and Aretha Franklin. What Time Is It, Mr. Fox? delivers the gospel on subjects from love and identity to sex and murder. Guest highlights include, boylesque from Matt Knife and friends from Homo Erectus, aerial by Eileen Little (Fight or Flight), and "The Ladies' Tree" a new animated film by Award-winning filmmaker, Ruth Lingford, for the band's song about Joan of Arc. The new CD “Little Bit Of Blue” co-produced with Tony Goddess (Papas Fritas) showcases the breadth of this ten-piece ensemble, which blends soul, R&B, and cabaret with baroque and medieval flair.

What Time Is it, Mr. Fox? originally formed in 2005 as a trio with 3rian King on voice, guitar and piano; Nathan Cohen on violin and trumpet, and Mike Leggio (Walter Sickert & The Army Of Broken Toys) on upright bass. The band quickly became a staple in Boston’s cabaret and burlesque scene, adding drummer Nate Greenslit (HUMANWINE), organist Lori Perkins (Seks Bomba), and five female back-up singers affectionately known as The Furies. In 2008, New Orleans soul legend, Irma Thomas, covered their song “Cold Rain” on her Grammy-nominated CD, “Simply Grand,” with the track earning high praise from Rolling Stone, USA Today, and The Village Voice. Mr. Fox’s own version of “Cold Rain” is featured on the new album. The act consistently sells out venues like Club Passim and Oberon in Cambridge MA and The Duplex in NYC, earning the Critic’s Pick in Time Out NYC. Adam Feldman of Time Out NYC advises, “Catch him as his star rises,” while the Boston Herald declares that the “Time has come for Mr. Fox.”

What Time Is It, Mr. Fox? began recording the new album back 2011, starting with more than 25 songs. In a concerted effort to retain the vitality of their concert performances, many of the instruments were recorded together live.

A string section, children’s choir, accordionist, and singing saw player add the cinematic sense of drama and lushness to the album.

The title track “Little Bit Of Blue” opens with an a cappella version of the 18^th century French nursery song “Au clair de la lune” sung by a children’s chorus, laying the unexpected foundation for a soul/R&B anthem in the tradition of “Stand By Me.” Lead singer and songwriter, 3rian King explains this unlikely pairing was a natural process,

“’Au clair de la lune’ was the song used in the very first recording of the human voice. The lyrics refer to Pierrot, the traditional sad clown. He tries to win the hand of Columbine by offering her moonlight in his hand, but she rejects him for being a dreamer. Something about that image struck me as being about genuine emotion and connection, so one day I quite spontaneously began singing these new words over the French melody in a soul blues style. The resulting song is really about remembering that feeling vulnerable can be a good thing; it opens you up.”

The first single off the album is “Humpty Dumpty Girl” which is currently receiving radio play on Boston radio. This track tells the tale of a woman who is losing her identity, constantly breaking into pieces that are reassembled into something unrecognizable. It’s a commentary on celebrity, since the character in the song struggles to meet the expectations and desires of a scrutinizing public.

The third track, “The Ladies’ Tree” sounds like a war song from the woods of medieval France, which is fitting since the lyrics are sung from the viewpoint of Joan of Arc awaiting execution. According to historical records, the heroine was repeatedly questioned about a famous tree in her village which young girls used to dance around. The song contrasts this innocent image with the hypocrisy and corruption surrounding her trial. The song has been turned into a short animated film by Ruth Lingford, professor of animation at Harvard University.

The complete track listing:

1. Little Bit Of Blue

2. Humpty Dumpty Girl

(single available at whattimeisitmrfox.bandcamp.com)

3. The Ladies’ Tree

4. Deep Waters

5. December

6. Helium

7. You Must Be Wrong For Me

8. My Valhalla

9. Paper Airplanes

10. Little Dead Rotting Wood

11. Peppermill

12. Cold Rain

13. Wrong Boy

Members:

3rian King – voice, piano, guitar

Nathan Cohen – violin, trumpet

Mike Leggio – upright bass

Nate Greenslit – drums

Lori Perkins – Hammond organ, piano

The Furies – background vocals

Aura Valdes

Elizabeth Bean

Norah Solorzano

Ruth Lingford

Shana Cahill

WHEN: March 9, 2013 10pm

WHO: What Time Is It, Mr. Fox? With special guest, Chelsea Berry

WHERE: Dixon Place, 161 Chrystie St. NYC. www.dixonplace.org

COST: https://web.ovationtix.com/trs/pe/9754949 All ages $12 for members, $10 students/seniors $15 at door.

CD RELEASE: On March 19^th, 2013 the album will be available for download on iTunes and whattimeisitmrfox.bandcamp.com and CD available for purchase at band concerts and on CDBaby.com.

For more information about What Time Is It, Mr. Fox?

visit www.whattimeisitmrfox.com

--
website: http://www.whattimeisitmrfox.com
listen/buy: http://whattimeisitmrfox.bandcamp.com
facebook: http://www.facebook.com/whattimeisitmrfox
twitter: https://twitter.com/mrfoxinfo

Interview with Scott Casper, Artistic Director of taxdeductible theatre

noreply@blogger.com (Byrne Harrison) — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 04:30:00 +0000

By Byrne Harrison

Scott Casper is a playwright, actor and Artistic Director of taxdeductible theatre. Through The Dare Project (an evening of ten minute plays, written on a dare), he has written, directed or performed in every one of the company’s 20 NY installments of the event to date, which has created nearly 100 world premiere plays since 2006. His full-length play #hero had its world premiere in February and runs through Saturday, March 9th.

Tell me a little about the genesis of #hero.

#hero originated out of our recurring series of ten minute plays, The Dare Project. Since 2006, we have produced 21 of these events and created nearly 100 short plays in the process. The plays are written on a dare: a raw idea given to us by our community, which we use as the foundation to develop the plays on the page and in the rehearsal hall.

Building on what we learned, we started our first full-length project with a dare as well:

“We fight about the little things, so we can ignore the big things.”

Over a year and a half, we developed that idea in the rehearsal hall, incorporating the voice of every member of our company. We also put the work in front of our community, showing parts of the work as it progressed at each Dare Project—and adding their feedback into the story at every chance.

The process engaged all of our voices from the inception of the idea all the way through to production. The collaborative evolution of the piece ensured that while every word of the play was written by me, through all of our effort, it has been authored by taxdeductible theatre.

What is #hero about?

Robert Larkin
Photo by Nicholas Alexiy Moran

#hero follows NYPD Officer Norman Burrows and his wife Grace. After Norman saves a woman who falls on the subway tracks, he becomes a social media sensation. As his public profile grows, their private life unravels, until the hero must expose his own myth.

With the play, I’m trying to ask: have we lost touch with ourselves in a hyper-connected world? Do our public acts define our private lives? It's easy to connect with everyone; but is it worth it to connect with anyone?

Celebrity culture has always been around, but it seems to have gone to extremes for the last decade of so. What do you see as the dangers of this?

It’s not the celebrity culture itself, as much as the exponential rate of expansion of the connected culture that I find most alarming. And that sounds counterintuitive.

L. to R. Wendy Bagger,

Robert Larkin, Bryn Boice
Photo by Michael Poignand

The democratization of fame seems like it is a good thing. The technology allows us to find ways to participate in the culture ourselves, to engage more fully with one another as we celebrate “REALITY” more than anything else. But that attention amounts to empty calories. You may feel good while you consume them (“Gee, those Crab Fisherman really do have a hard way to make a living,” “Those COPS are really doing us all a service by incarcerating that shirtless fellow,” etc.), and it allows you think on both sides of the equation (the viewer and the performer) that we’re all gaining a deeper understanding of one another. But it’s a myth. And since it is so easy, and since the content is so pervasive and so prevalent (in our pockets and purses), it feels like the myth is the way it’s supposed to be. Social media allows us an opportunity to be closer in a distant world, right?

So, your actual friendships get supplanted for your Facebook “friendships,” and your conversations lose nuance and compromise as they need to be limited to 140 characters, and the end goal of being feels like it should be amassing as many hits as you can, without recognizing the isolation that each one of those clicks represents.

So what message do you want the audience of #hero to take home with them after the show?

The real conflict is that after the show, I’d like the audience to plug in, log on and tweet, and post, and share, and like everything about #hero to pitch the play to as wide an audience as they can to make the promotion of the play viral. But, after they hit send, and do us all the favor of incorporating our idea into a broader world? I hope there’s an appreciation of the problem of the easily interconnected world. You can’t put the genie back in the bottle, and I don’t think anyone really wants to. And yet. Are we better off? If we get a few more tickets sold, I won’t complain, necessarily.

Tell me a little bit about taxdeductible theatre. How long have you been working together?

The company has been around and producing since 2005. We started first by pursuing readings of plays that had fallen through the cracks in the NY theatre scene, but quickly discovered that we were most passionate about developing new plays. Primarily, we have pursued this goal through our ten-minute play series, The Dare Project, world premiere plays written on a dare. It’s a laboratory for collaborative artists to develop a play from the raw idea all the way through a finished production.

We are dedicated to developing the uniquely theatrical expression of our community and our collaborative artists. We create new plays that celebrate the theatrical event of sharing space with our audience and we honor their impact on the work well before they enter the lobby and well after the final curtain.

And that’s really the mission of the company. We share new voices. We create memorable experiences. We challenge ourselves and our community to follow one basic rule: demand bold theatre

Do you have any more full-length shows that are being developed out of The Dare Project?

Right now, the working plan is to take the lessons we’ve learned on development from #hero, and apply them to a new project. As it stands now, the company has a blank page staring at us, waiting for it to be filled in with a new idea, which is both terrifying and invigorating. The joy of developing with taxdeductible theatre is that it allows us all to push our boundaries of creativity while holding one another accountable for the work. As we approach the close of this production, we have every confidence that we can once again succeed by going back to square-zero. That confidence doesn’t replace the fear of the blank page, though. On the other hand, the people within the company, and the prospect of working together in a rehearsal hall, makes us all eager to fill the first page, so we can get to second one and beyond.

What else is coming up for taxdeductible theatre?

The next project which we do know about will be our twenty-second installment of The Dare Project. It’s going to be a big one for us, as it will be our first effort following the success of #hero, it will allow us all to refocus on new ideas to propel us forward, and it will mark our one hundredth world premiere ten minute play. We’re still working on securing dates, but the tentative plan is to hold The Dare Project #22 sometime in the late spring/early summer to close out our season in style. Stay tuned for more details!

L. to R. Allyson Briggs, Wendy Bagger, Robert Larkin,
Christopher Sutton, Alex Pappas, Bryn BoicePhoto by Nicholas Alexiy Moran

#hero runs through March 9

Wed-Sat at 8pm

Sundays at 2PM

At the Chain Theatre

21-28 45^th Road, LIC

For more information and tickets, please visit: www.taxdeductibletheatre.org

FRIGID New York Announces the 2013 FRIGID Hangovers Schedule

noreply@blogger.com (Byrne Harrison) — Mon, 04 Mar 2013 19:18:00 +0000

By Byrne Harrison

The FRIGID New York Festival has announced it FRIGID Hangover schedule. Featuring the best of the festival, Hangover lets audiences catch some of the shows they may have missed the first time around. The Hangover series begins today and runs through Saturday the 9th at The Kraine Theater (85 East 4th Street between 2nd Ave and Bowery). Tickets ($18/$15 students & seniors) may be purchased online at www.FRIGIDnewyork.info or by calling Smarttix at 212-868-4444.

FRIGID Hangover Schedule

Love in the Time of Time Machines

Presented by The Theatre Elusive – Toronto, Ontario

Written by David Tichauer, Net Petrie, & Gillian English Klein and Gabrielle broke up. That was it. OR WAS IT?! Yes, it was. OR WAS IT?! When time's arrow spins like a compass, do our actions amount to a hill of beans? What do the beans amount to? I don't know, you're the bean expert! Point being...Time Machines!

Monday, March 4 @ 7pm

Little Pussy

Written & Performed by John Grady – New York, NY

John Grady's true tales of being picked on, chased down, and beat up, from his youth to adulthood. Will he ever stand and fight? Are bullies and the bullied destined to find each other? If so, who will save him? From the creator of the fringe hit, Fear Factor: Canine Edition.

Monday, March 4 @ 8:45pm

Generic Magic Realism

Presented by Temerity Theatre – Brooklyn, NY

Written by Ed Malin, Directed by DeLisa White, Starring Nat Cassidy

What happens when the magical world of your average South American person is transplanted to a more northern, less magical, more real location? Join Octavio as he discovers poetry, satire, love, birds, chocolate, hippies and explosives on the way from the Andes to San Francisco during the fragrant 1960s.

Thursday, March 7 @ 7pm

36 Hours

Presented by aWe Creative Group - New York, NY

Written by Amy E. Witting, Directed by Bricken Sparacino

Four years after a brief rendezvous Annie and Patrick reunite at Heathrow Airport and discover how life-changing 36 hours can be.

Thursday, March 7 @ 8:45pm

Commencing

Presented by Estraña Theatre Company - Brooklyn, NY

Written by Jane Shepard, Directed by Christina Massie

The beautiful Kelli eagerly anticipates the blind date her friends have set her up on. To her dismay, it turns out her date is one very disappointed lesbian named Arlin. Mutually appalled, yet appallingly intrigued, they proceed to pull the screws loose on both straight and gay women's culture, to find the common ground between them in the search for true love and self acceptance.

Friday, March 8 @ 7pm

A Day in the Life of Miss Hiccup

Presented by Shoshinz – Tokyo, Japan

Written & Performed by Yanomi

The mysterious Miss Hiccup lives alone, but is definitely not lonely. She is forever accompanied by a raucous cast of sounds and music that make her life an absurd adventure. A hilarious and beautiful story by an award-winning Japanese performer.

Friday, March 8 @ 8:45pm

The God Box

Written & Performed by Antonia Lassar – Brooklyn, NY

A "bagels and schmeaaah" mother discovers her daughter wasn't a practicing Jew. The God Box is a hilarious and poignant tale of how faith is passed on, and what happens when it isn’t.

Saturday, March 9 @ 7pm

The Vindlevoss Family Circus Spectacular

Presented by Animal Engine– New York, NY

Written by Carrie Brown & Karim Muasher

Directed by Mark Gindick

The mustachioed Professor Penelope Vindlevoss discovers Edward the Zombie on her recent anthropological expedition, and takes it upon herself to domesticate him. What is Edward’s final lesson? To put on a circus, of course! Physical comedy and undead logic collide in this quirky fable about how to be truly human.

Saturday, March 9 @ 7pm

# # # #

www.FRIGIDnewyork.info

www.horseTRADE.info

"That's Her Way" - FRIGID New York Festival

noreply@blogger.com (Byrne Harrison) — Sat, 02 Mar 2013 00:44:00 +0000

By Byrne Harrison

I'm not sure what I like best about Kathleen Warnock's entry in the FRIGID Festival, "That's Her Way." Warnock tells a good story--old lovers reunited after years, one of whom stayed behind in their small hometown and one of whom left. Her dialogue is full of the awkward and strained moments that are typical of people who were once so familiar to each other, but are now little more than strangers. Director Vivian Meisner is adept at letting the story slowly reveal itself, never forcing the pacing, just peeling away scenes like skinning an onion. The actors, Danielle Quisenberry and J. Stephen Brantley, are remarkable, playing younger and older versions of their characters in the various scenes. Even the jumping back in forth in time, which can be a hokey device, is handled very effectively here.

All of these combined lead to a satisfying, though sad short play about a moment in a couple's lives, and a decision made in high school that was a betrayal to one and an attempt at salvation to another.

Ferro (Danielle Quisenberry) was a serious and ambitious science-oriented girl in high school, too smart to be popular. Stuckey (J. Stephen Brantley), her boyfriend, was a jock, and though he hides it, was one of the smart kids too--he was more socially adept. Reunited when Ferro returns to her hometown as her mother nears death, they begin the awkward process of getting to know one another again. But years haven't erased the damage done when Ferro left, and try as they might, they can't forget or move on.

Quisenberry and Brantley really get to shine in their parts. They play the adult versions of their characters with such wariness. From the first moment they meet at Ferro's mother's house, there is tension, and it is a pleasure watching them slowly work through it. When they get to play high school versions of their characters, there is a sweet tentativeness to their interactions, mimicking the tension in their adult version, but for completely different reasons. The early blush of love instead of the pain caused by their decisions. Brantley in particular does an outstanding job bringing a youthful physicality to the younger Stuckey, while Quisenberry excels as the older Ferro.

That's Her Way is my first show at this year's FRIGID Festival, and if it is any indication, this is going to be a good year.

That's Her Way
By Kathleen Warnock
Directed by Vivian Meisner

Featuring: Danielle Quisenberry (Ferro) and J. Stephen Brantley (Stuckey)

Production Stage Manager: David Bishop
Production Associate: Donna J. Bungo
Sound Design: Ned Thorne
Photographer: Amy C. Dreher

Bernadette: A Broadway Treasure

noreply@blogger.com (Byrne Harrison) — Thu, 28 Feb 2013 22:42:00 +0000

By Anthony James Host

Theatre practitioners are opinionated… I think we all can agree with that. We all have our favorite performers and those who we always anxiously await to see what they will be doing next. There are several people who are on the Broadway scene today whose careers I am looking forward to watching in the upcoming years, but there is still one performer I wish were around a little more and would be given a new original musical or just another powerhouse vehicle. This person (and you already know who it will be by the title; I know I am not holding anybody in suspense) is truly unique and always has such an emotional attachment to her work and I always watch her work in amazement as she handles comedy and drama with seeming ease.

Bernadette Peters is someone who stood out to me even as a little kid. I was bizarre as a child because I always watched and preferred more adult programming than children’s television. One of my favorite things was watching reruns of The Carol Burnett Show. One afternoon, a musical number came on with this very petite, sultry woman signing the then-new show tune “All That Jazz,” and I just remember that I was transfixed by her. Around that same time, Ms. Peters was featured as a spokesperson for Ocean Spray on television and I made the connection that she was the same person as the one I'd seen on Carol Burnett. One of my mentors at the time told me that Bernadette was a theatre legend--thus began my education on her career.

I have only ever seen Bernadette perform live once and that was in her second Tony Award-winning performance in Annie Get Your Gun, a show that she made work wonderfully. It is still an experience that I treasure highly.

As I got older, I watched more of her cabaret and concert appearances (thanks, YouTube!) and also watched the filmed productions of Sunday in the Park With George and Into the Woods. What makes me love her in these settings is how she takes “her moment” before each song and then comes around to the microphone--making it seem she has lived the life of that character for years. I think the strongest example of this is when she sings “Not A Day Goes By” from the underrated Sondheim score of Merrily We Roll Along.”

If there was ever a musical showcase for her that showed the ability of how great she could command a stage and show off her versatility it was another underrated musical: Mack and Mabel. In this show, she went from being cutesy and peppy ("Look What Happened to Mabel)" to angry and bitter ("Wherever He Ain’t") to her final heartbreaking 11 o’clock number ("Time Heals Everything"). I also think she may possibly be the strongest Rose to ever come out on the Broadway stage for bringing her usual slinky alluring quality to someone who was normally seen as a monster by many people.

For reasons that I still can't exactly explain, my favorite performance of hers is the dual role of Dot/Marie in Sunday in the Park with George. From her first moment on stage, she steals the scene from Mandy Patinkin (who is definitely strong in his own right), and continues to steal it throughout Act One, particularly with her little moments in “Color and Light,” and then her two huge numbers, the underrated “Everybody Loves Louis” and then her emotional blow-up “We Do Not Belong Together." Dot and Marie may not be the main focus of the story, but she manages to steal the show. I think she was truly robbed of the Tony Award from Chita Rivera in The Rink.

When she finally won for Song and Dance in 1986, I almost feel that it was an opportunity to reward her for a good performance in a year where she had virtually no competition, even though she had done much stronger in previous years. Then you had the category confusion of Into the Woods, in which some debated whether or not she was the lead or a featured player as the Witch . Of course, Joanna Gleason was in the same boat as she won the Drama Desk Award as a featured player, then got won as lead at the Tonys, while Bernadette was nominated for the Drama Desk as lead, then was snubbed at the Tonys. Despite the snub, I still think Bernadette will forever be the definitive Witch; no one has yet to come close to her.

Bernadette Peters is always good in whatever she does, even in weaker shows like The Goodbye Girl, George M! and On the Town. She wiped the floor with Catherine Zeta Jones when she replaced her in the revival of A Little Night Music.then played a very commendable Sally in the recent revival of Follies (though she was overshadowed by the stunning Jan Maxwell).

I am always glad that Bernadette Peters comes back to the theatre, especially after she her forays into film and television, standing out in movies like “The Jerk,” “Annie,” and “Pennies From Heaven." She, like other Broadway standouts such as Angela Lansbury and more recently Audra McDonald, always come back to the theatre, and it is where she belongs.

Making a Difference Through Song - Vandy Students Give Back

noreply@blogger.com (Byrne Harrison) — Thu, 28 Feb 2013 04:59:00 +0000

By Byrne Harrison

Thanks to a Facebook posting by Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, I found out that a group of students at my alma mater, Vanderbilt University, recently made a significant donation to the organization. I had a feeling it would be one of the theatre groups. After a little sleuthing, I discovered that it was made by Vanderbilt Off-Broadway (VOB), a student-run theatre group founded several years after I graduated.

I reached out to Michael Greshko, Vanderbilt class of '14 and the current president of VOB, to find out more and to congratulate the group on supporting one of my favorite charities.

Vanderbilt Off-Broadway started a number of years after I graduated from Vanderbilt. Tell me a little bit about the group.

Vanderbilt Off-Broadway--or VOB, as we're commonly known--is a performing arts troupe at Vanderbilt University that prides itself on being the only student organization at Vanderbilt that produces full-length, fully student-produced musicals. Born out of a brainstorming session at a 1997 fraternity party, VOB has gone on to put on nineteen productions, performing everything from massive, classic shows like Guys and Dolls--our first production--to modern, more intimate works like The Last Five Years. Now in our fifteenth season, we pride ourselves on doing everything with student talent: Our shows are student-directed, student-produced, student-designed, student-choreographed, and feature a top-notch student orchestra.

Do the VOB members have hopes of making it to Broadway, or do they just share a love of performance and musical theatre?

We're fortunate to have a diversity of people join VOB; some people in the group are gunning for careers in professional theatre, while others are more interested in it as an artistic and social extracurricular activity. What binds everyone together, though, is a deep love of musical theatre and performance, a bind that reflects itself in VOB's tightness. It becomes a second family to many of its members, myself included.

What are some of the shows VOB's done recently?

Since 2011, we've offered two shows a year: a larger mainstage production in January and a smaller second show in April. In the last few years, we've done mainstage productions of Urinetown, Nine, and Reefer Madness, keeping it pretty modern. This past January, we put on our 2012-2013 mainstage production, The Drowsy Chaperone, setting attendance records in the process. Our second shows have included I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change and The Last Five Years.

Tell me a little bit about your recent Athenian Sing performance.

Photo by Jessie Rodriguez

Athenian Sing is a time-honored tradition at Vanderbilt. Founded in the late 1930s by then-student Dinah Shore, the event has become a massive performing arts showcase and friendly competition for charity. A panel of judges, assembled from Vanderbilt's faculty, rank the acts, with the top three places winning money for their charity of choice. In the past, VOB hasn't performed at Athenian Sing; the event's in October, and we usually don't have anything ready from our upcoming January show. This year, though, we decided to put together a performance of "Pandemonium," from The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, as VOB's act in Athenian Sing. After some fly-by-the-seat-of-our-pants rehearsals and clever closet-mining for costumes, we performed it to delightfully excited reactions from the audience and judges. It was a ton of fun, and I'm glad we did it; not only did we have a blast our first time out, but we also came in second place!

Your second-place finish led to a $1,000 donation to BC/EFA. Why did you choose that charity?

Since VOB's early days, we've been committed toward joining our professional brethren in supporting BC/EFA for the tremendous work that they do in supporting the performing arts community and broader populations threatened by HIV/AIDS. It's amazing to be even a small part of what BC/EFA does, and we're proud to support them through our fundraising and educational efforts. We hope do do even more with BC/EFA and its local Nashville partners in the years to come.

I understand you'll be making another donation using proceeds donated by the audience of one of your recent shows. What was the show?

Yes, we used our closing performance of The Drowsy Chaperone in January to raise money for and awareness of BC/EFA.

What kind of reaction did you get from the audience when you asked them to donate?

Our audience was incredibly generous and receptive to learning more about BC/EFA. Not only did we collect over $450 for BC/EFA in one night, but through material in all of our programs and a pre-show speech about BC/EFA from an esteemed Vanderbilt music professor, we did a lot to get BC/EFA's message out to our audience. For me, that's the most rewarding thing.

What is coming up for VOB for the rest of the semester?

In early April, we'll be putting on one of Nashville's first local productions of Spring Awakening, which is a thrill for us. We'll also be performing in several on-campus showcases throughout the spring, and there's a chance that we'll be performing parts of an original, student-written musical in mid to late April.

Photo by John Boyd

If you're in Nashville and want to check out a VOB show, you can see Spring Awakening on April 4, 5 and 6 at the Sarratt Student Center Cinema. Performances are at 8 PM and are free for Vanderbilt undergrads. All others pay $5.

"Love, Redefined" Tonight - New work based on traditional love poems

noreply@blogger.com (Byrne Harrison) — Wed, 27 Feb 2013 19:38:00 +0000

By Byrne Harrison

Poetic Theater Productions brings back it's popular Love, Redefined for a final salute the Valentine's season.

Expect to see some amazing work.

I spoke with Alex Mallory and Jeremy Karafin, Co-Artistic Directors of Poetic Theater Productions, about the production.

I understand the original Love, Redefined was Poetic Theater Productions' first show in 2010. How did it come to be?

Alex: Jeremy moved to New York in 2009 and reconnected with former California poets Daniel Silber Baker, Edward McWilliams and Christine Hatch who introduced him to the New York poetry scene. In February of 2010, he recruited several of them to do a show that would provide an alternative to the traditional Valentine's Day commercialized concept of love. This seed of connection between poets and theater and the extremely positive feedback from both artists and audience launched the concept of Poetic Theater Productions, so Love, Redefined has a very special place in our company's history.

How has the show developed over the years?

Jeremy: We skipped Love, Redefined in 2011, when Alex came on board and we began a shift towards producing more theater, and brought it back in 2012 with the idea of using traditional sonnets as inspiration for new work. The unique thing about this event was that it offered the opportunity for actors to perform poetry - both classical and brand new, and create their own theatrical moments within it, in addition to the infusion of music, dance, multimedia and the fantastic Josh Henderson on hip-hop violin playing the transitions.

We were so thrilled with the results that we decided to keep the structure this year and are thrilled to incorporate many of last year's artists performing new pieces as well as an incredible array of artists we have been wanting to work with and those new to our community.

How many artists will be participating in this year's version?

Alex: 42 artists performing 40 pieces including playwrights, poets, actors, singers, a dancer, a beatboxer and musicians on violin, guitar and ukulele.

The artists will be performing original pieces based on poems by a variety of poets. Who's work will be used for inspiration?

Jeremy: William Shakespeare, Pablo Neruda, John Donne, Ghandi, George Herbert, Elizabeth Barrett Browning and E. E. Cummings.

What kind of audience are you looking for and what sort of reaction do you want from them?

Alex: There's something for everyone in this show - whether you love Shakespeare or think he is theater's most famous impostor, whether you're deeply in love or despise the word. We are looking for people who want to be inspired by the incredible wealth of talent this city has to offer and the funny and heartbreaking stories they have to tell.

Poetic Theater Productions presents

Love, Redefined

Remixes, Re-imaginings and Riffs on Non-Commercial, Non-Traditional Love

Join us for a thrilling evening of familiar sonnets turned into original spoken word poetry, theater, dance and music!

featuring new work by
Mia Anderson, Scotty Arnold, Mickey Bolmer, Mahogany L. Browne, Darian Dauchan, Maurice DeCaul, Sarah Duncan, Safia Elhillo, Madeline Fendrick & Brian Peck, Kate Foster & Anna Gothard, Nicole Goodwin, Ish Islam, Joell Jackson, Ryan F Johnson, Kashi Johnson, Teniece Divya Johnson, David Trevor Lawson, Mary McCarthy, Margaret McCarthy, Christine J. Schmidt, Vassilea Terzaki, Tanaya Winder, Catherine Weingarten, and Donte Wright da Storyteller

based on traditional sonnets and love poems by William Shakespeare, Pablo Neruda, Ghandi, John Donne, George Herbert, Elizabeth Barrett Browning and e. e. cummings.

also featuring Jenny Aaron, Amanda Berry, Samantha Cooper, Dontonio Demarco, Karen Eilbacher, Kristen Islas, Wade Ray, Alyson Leigh Rosenfeld, Temesgen Tocruray, Nabil Viñas, Leal Vona and more!

with Josh Henderson on Hip Hop Violin and beats by Leal Vona

Wednesday, February 27 at 8PM
The Wild Project – 195 East 3rd Street

"The Man Who Laughs" - A silent film brought to the stage

noreply@blogger.com (Byrne Harrison) — Wed, 27 Feb 2013 02:09:00 +0000

By Byrne Harrison
Photos by Carrie Leonard

Have you ever had one of those moments when you are so enthralled by something that you quit noticing time's passage? I had one at the recent production of The Man Who Laughs, Stolen Chair's "silent film" version of Victor Hugo's novel "L'Homme qui rit." From the moment I walked into the theatre to the sounds of the cool American songbook classics provided by Margi & The Dapper Dots, time seemed to pause.

The opening act, as good as it was, only hinted at what was to come. The Man Who Laughs was a visual treat from start to finish, and Kiran Rikhye's adaptation was a wonderful surprise.

Gwynplaine (Noah Schultz as the young version and Dave Droxler as the adult version) was disfigured by criminals who wanted to force him into a sideshow act; his face is in a permanent grin. Later abandoned by his abductors, he saves the life of a young blind girl, Dea (Molly O'Neill) and is taken in by a crotchety ventriloquist, Ursus (Jon Froehlich). Dea and Gwynplaine join Ursus's ventriloquist act, a generally satisfying life. But Gwynplaine wants more. He rebels against constantly playing a grinning clown in Ursus's show. He knows he can be taken seriously as a dramatic actor, if the audience just gets a chance to see him perform.

Naturally, things do not turn out as Gwynplaine hopes, and his foray into dramatic acting takes a tragic turn when he encounters the bored and decadent Duchess Josiana (played with Theda Bara sexiness by Rebecca Whitehurst) and her paramour Lord David Dirry-Moir (Raife Baker). Repulsed and attracted by Gwynplaine's disfigurement, she attempts to seduce him. It ends badly for everyone.

The story is melodramatic, but enjoyable. The true strength of this production is the outstanding way that the director, designers and actors recreated the feeling of a silent film. Julie Schworm's costumes and Jaclyn Schaefer's makeup recreated the sepia tones of old movies (extra praise for Schaefer's kewpie doll lips for Dea, a perfect touch). Lighting effects by Daniel Winters and Michael Minahan's sets (especially his use of a scrim) helped create the grainy feel of old film. Winters in particular used some marvelous lighting effects to create a stage equivalent of a tight closeup. Eugene Ma's live music was the icing on the cake.

Stephanie Cox-Williams, one of the most creative visual effects designers working in the Off-Off Broadway community, created some excellent special effect makeup for the show.

The superb ensemble of actors adapted well to non-verbal performance. Their use of exaggeration, large gestures, mime, broad physical comedy, and other techniques seemingly lost in modern film was excellent.

Jon Stancato's direction was strong, and his knowledge of the techniques of silent films showed through. If there can be said to be anything that could use some tweaking, it would be that some of the set changes were overly long. A very minor complaint.

I, for one, would love to see The Man Who Laughs have another run. This was a thoroughly enjoyable production.

The Man Who Laughs
Written by Kiran Rikhye
Directed by Jon Stancato
Music by Eugene Ma
Set Design by Michael Minahan
Costume Design by Julie Schworm
Lighting Design by Daniel Winters
Dramaturgy by Emily Otto
Makeup by Jaclyn Schaefer
Special Makeup Effects by Stephanie Cox-Williams
Props & Graphic Design by Aviva Meyer
Fight Choreography by Noah Schultz
Stage Management by Colin Miller

Featuring: Noah Schultz (Young Gwynplaine), Jon Froehlich (Ursus), Dave Droxler (Gwynplaine), Molly O'Neill (Dea), Josiana (Rebecca Whitehurst), Raife Baker (David Dirry-Moir)

Closed Feb. 24th

FRIGID New York Interview - Lucas Brooks of "VGL 5'4" Top"

noreply@blogger.com (Byrne Harrison) — Mon, 25 Feb 2013 02:36:00 +0000

By Byrne Harrison

Name: Lucas Brooks
Show: VGL 5'4" Top
Website: www.Lucas-Brooks.com

Lucas Brooks (Playwright/Performer) is a writer, performer, and sex educator living in Brooklyn. He holds a BA in The Arts from Eugene Lang College, The New School for Liberal Arts, where he appeared in Operetta, Firefall, and Love's Labours Lost, and directed The Vagina Monologues. His first one-man show, VGL 5'4" Top has been performed at the LGBT Community Center and the Stonewall Inn in New York City, as well as the San Francisco Fringe Festival in 2012. His second show, Fame Whore made its debut last summer at Dixon Place's HOT Festival. He is also the creator of the blog "Top to Bottom" where he analyzes gay culture and sexuality.

What’s your show about?

For starters, for those of you who don't speak gay hook-up lingo, let me break down the title of my show for you. "VGL" stands for 'very good looking.' 5'4" is clearly my height, and a 'top' is one who gives penetration in a gay sexual situation. The show itself chronicles my struggle with body image throughout my many attempts at internet dating.

What inspired you to write it?

When I first moved to New York almost eight years ago, I dove right into true adulthood by taking up internet dating. I met some truly lovely men this way, but even more often I found myself being rejected, ignored, or flat-out insulted because the expectations men had of me didn't match the way I looked. Because I have this young face and boyish frame, guys assumed that I was an effeminate, dim-witted bottom boy. This still happens from time to time, and I've made it my mission to prove to the world, and the gay community in particular, that you can't fully know someone based on a few checked boxes. These are the guys who should know this better than anyone else, but in my experience they are often the guiltiest party.

Who else is involved with the show?

It's just me an my director, Matthew Klein. I write, perform, and produce the show, and he makes sure I look good doing it. He's had my back on this project from the very beginning and he's absolutely terrific. We've both grown so much since the first production and I can't imagine a more perfect pair for a project like this.

Who is your dream audience for this show?

When I first wrote this show four years ago, I really wanted to lure in the men who inspired me to write it in the first place; the guys who for some reason couldn't fathom the fact that I might not be the twinky bottom they imagined I'd be. However, over the handful of productions I've done of this show, I've mostly attracted the eyes and ears of other men who have experienced the same pigeon-holing that I have. I am so glad to be able to inspire them and have their support. But…just once… I would like to perform to a crowd that really needs to hear what I'm saying. It would be terrifying and amazing.

Who are your biggest influences?

David Drake is the man who inspired me to pursue solo performance in the first place. I performed a selection from his one-man show "The Night Larry Kramer Kissed Me" for Forensics in high school, and I knew that one day I wanted to create my generation's equivalent of that show. "VGL" definitely is not that, but it's been a terrific start. I also draw inspiration from Alan Cumming and John Tartaglia, who are not only some of the most talented people on earth, in my book, but absolutely delightful men.

What other shows are you planning to see at FRIGID?

iMime, My Pussy's Purrin' Again, My BoX, JonBenet Ramsey: Murder Mystery Theater… just to name a few! I hope I get to see at least thrice as many as that. One of the best parts of doing a fringe festival is LOTS OF FREE THEATER!

What's next for you after FRIGID?

Later this year I'll be taking "VGL" to the University of Illinois for my first campus performance, which I'm super excited about, and in July I'll be performing in the Toronto Fringe Festival. Until then, New Yorkers can see me as a regular face in the burlesque circuit under the name of Lucky Charming. You ought to catch me amongst a huge flock of naked mens in the second annual New York Boylesque Festival on April 26th and 27th.

Lightning round

Paper or plastic? Reusable tote

Comedy or drama? Comedy

Beach or mountains? Beach

Black box or proscenium? I love both, but I'm going with proscenium because I'm a Leo and like big stages.

Glee or Smash? "Glee".

Cats or dogs? DOGS! Big, fluffy ones!

Musical or straight play? No disrespect to straight plays, but I'll usually choose a musical.

VGL 5'4" Top plays at The Red Room on the following dates:

Feb 26, 10:45PM
Mar 01, 10:50PM

FRIGID New York Interview - Bricken Sparacino of "Sisters Grimm: Fables of the Stage"

noreply@blogger.com (Byrne Harrison) — Mon, 25 Feb 2013 02:20:00 +0000

By Byrne Harrison

Name: Bricken Sparacino
Show: Sisters Grimm: Fables of the Stage
Website: www.bricken.org

Bricken Sparacino is an award winning/nominated performer, writer and director. She was one of nytheatre.com’s People of the Year ‘08.

You might recognize Bricken from last year's FRIGID “audience choice award winner” Death: it happens. A girls guide to death. Other highlights include: the two person show, MEDICATION for the NYC Fringe Festival which was selected by BACKSTAGE as a highlight for the theatre season. She was nominated for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Musical for her original character Cherry On Top (Planet Connections). Her first solo show, I’m Not Sure I Like the Way You Licked Me, was a great success. The Wonder Twin in Are We Freaks (Frigid Festival), Senior News Anchor in Weekly Review (Caroline’s Comedy Club), Natalie in Lenny Bruce Lives Inside My Shirt (NJ REP), The Crossing Guard in Respect the Vest (24 hour Play Fun), Bridgeet Lolalolalo in American Treacle (MITF). Bricken can be seen on the internet as part of the Key Of Awesome and AMCTV.com’s Sci-fi department. She is proud to be a part of the Frigid again this year representing in two shows! Sisters Grimm: Fables of the Stage, began at 24 hour play fun and she is very happy it has grown to be a play. You can see more of her directing in 36 Hours at the UNDER St. Marks Theater. Go to www.bricken.org to read more.

What’s your show about?

Our show is a comedy with hints of bed room farce about theater and fairy tales. We make fun of the genre and auditions and actors and what happens backstage.

What inspired you to create it?

Amy E. Witting and I both had 10 minute shows about fairy tales and the life of actors. We created them for the 24 hour Play Fun. I always loved both shows. They thematically fit together, but were only 20 minutes together. I challenged myself to expand my section (Pointy the Starfish) and Sisters Grimm was born. We pull inspiration from our own lives as performer/writers and I also take things from my day job working at the Central Park Zoo's touring children's theater company.

Who else is involved with the show?

We have a fantastic cast of 7 hilarious actors: Elisabeth Furtado, Brandon Schraml, Bill Bria, Derby Thomas, Adam Sullivan, Lori Kee and I'm in it too. We have two great composers we worked with to create the musical life of the show: Ethan Bailey and Eric Chercover. Elizabeth Chaney's Set Design and Starfish costume put the finishing touches to the production. Lori and I are co-directing, so someone is keeping an eye on both of us.

Who is your dream audience for this show?

People who love to laugh.

Who are your biggest influences?

The ladies of Absolutely Fabulous and real life.

What other shows are you planning to see at FRIGID?

36 Hours by Amy E. Witting, Two Lovely Black Eyes by Chris Harcum, My Box, written and performed by Killy Dwyer and The Spectator & The Blind Man by Dr ML Godin.

What's next for you after FRIGID?

I'm working with Gregory Levine for the Mini-Frigid in the summer. It will be a one-man show (mostly) about Gregor of Berlin. The play will be a tragicomedy, both with absurdly big laughs and heart-breaking poignance, arrogance and sorrow, as various segments come together to spin the tale of his journey from Berlin to Paris to NYC. Or something like that.

Lightning round

Paper or plastic? Paper- don't forget to recycle

Comedy or drama? Both

Beach or mountains? BEACH

Black box or proscenium? Black Box

Glee or Smash? I plead the 5th

Cats or dogs? Dogs

Musical or straight play? Straight play

Sisters Grimm: Fables of the Stage plays at The Kraine Theater on the following dates:

Feb 26, 7:05PM
Mar 02, 2:05PM
Mar 03, 5:15PM

FRIGID New York Interview - Karim Muasher of "The Vindlevoss Family Circus Spectacular!"

noreply@blogger.com (Byrne Harrison) — Mon, 25 Feb 2013 02:04:00 +0000

By Byrne Harrison

Name: Karim Muasher

Show: TheVindlevoss Family Circus Spectacular!

Website: animalengine.com

Karim Muasher is a director, performer, and teacher of original devised theatre. His work has been seen at venues all over the world, from the London Sprint Festival to the PUNCH Puppet Slam in New York. He currently teaches at both Borough of Manhattan Community College and the Brooklyn College Community Partnership. A graduate of the London International School of Performing Arts, he trained under pedagogues Thomas Prattki and Amy Russell.

What’s your show about?

It’s about a mustachioed lady Professor Penelope Vindlevoss and her domesticated zombie Edward putting on a circus all by themselves. And what it means to be human.

What inspired you to create it?

I discovered on Halloween that I loved wearing fake teeth and pretending to be a silly zombie. My collaborator Carrie came up with Professor Vindlevoss as a way to complement that character. And she looks great in a mustache. At the same time we were watching the documentary “Circus” on PBS, and found that whole world fascinating. Mix all that together and POOF! a show is born.

Who else is involved with the show?

It’s me, my collaborator Carrie Brown, and our director Mark Gindick. Mark is the latest addition to the team, and he brings a lot of experience to the show from clowning with both Ringling Bros. and the Big Apple Circus.

Who is your dream audience for this show?

Parents with their kids. Teenagers. People in their 20’s. We’ve gotta create the next generation of theatregoers.

Who are your biggest influences?

I grew up with my eyes glued to the TV.

What other shows are you planning to see at FRIGID?

A Day in the Life of Miss Hiccup. Everyone who’s seen her has told me she’s fantastic.

What's next for you after FRIGID?

It’s onward and upward to our next two person show, Petunia and Chicken. It’s going to be an epic love story set against the backdrop of a Willa Cather inspired world of cornfields and Czech accents. We think.

Lightning round

Paper or plastic? Paper. Does anyone ever answer plastic?

Comedy or drama? Comedy-drama.

Beach or mountains? Beach AND mountains.

Black box or proscenium? Black box, baby. It’s all I know.

Glee or Smash? Smash. So much drama!

Cats or dogs? Cats AND dogs.

Musical or straight play? Play with music.

TheVindlevoss Family Circus Spectacular! plays at UNDER St. Marks on the following dates:

Feb 27, 10:15PM
Mar 01, 5:30PM
Mar 02, 6:50PM

FRIGID New York Interview - Seth Lepore of "Losing My Religion"

noreply@blogger.com (Byrne Harrison) — Mon, 25 Feb 2013 01:54:00 +0000

By Byrne Harrison

Name: Seth Lepore

Show: Losing My Religion:Confessions of a New Age Refugee

Website: sethums.com

Seth Lepore (Writer/Performer) holds a BA in Interdisciplinary Studies, focus: Creativity in Education from Naropa University in Boulder, CO. Since 1996 he has created several self-produced one-man shows. I am not Fragile: A Confessional (1996); 5 Perspectives on Public High School (1997); Jobs Galore (1998) which was performed in tandem with a one-act play entitled Versus which Lepore wrote and directed. Two Minutes to Midnight (1999) was the last monologue Lepore performed before taking a ten year break to focus on several music collaborations especially his solo project Older Than Hours.

In 2010 he embarked on a parallel trilogy of solo shows about the underbelly of the self-help movement. The first installment, Losing My Religion: Confessions of a New Age Refugee, has been self-produced in black box theaters and fringe festivals throughout the country. The show won an Encore Award at both the Boulder and Minnesota Fringe Festivals as well as being named one of the top ten plays of 2011 by the Twin Cities Daily Planet. The second part of the trilogy, SuperHappyMelancholyexpialidocious premiered in the Spring of 2012. Kicking Ass and Taking Names, the third part of the installment is in development for 2014.

Lepore also tours War/Peace, a weeklong installation and participatory performance project involving community members throughout the United States.

What’s your show about?

A hysterical romp through America's spiritual enterprise exploring the blurry line between self-help and faith.

What inspired you to write it?

I was entrenched in the new age/self-help world for over a decade. Even though I was always cynical about the results I finally saw that the dogma was just as rigid as any extreme religious movement so I decided to make a whole trilogy of shows about it. This one is the first in the series.

Who else is involved with the show?

Thomas Griffin directed it.

Who is your dream audience for this show?

Anyone who considers themselves a secular Humanist, agnostic, questioner, skeptic and/or recovering fill-in-the-blank is perfect for this show.

Who are your biggest influences?

Mike Daisey, Spaulding Gray, a bunch of people no one has ever heard about but will sooner or later.

What other shows are you planning to see at FRIGID?

All of them.

What's next for you after FRIGID?

I'm doing a residency of War/Peace in Easthampton, MA. It's a participatory installation which examines our ideologies and belief systems around these two concepts.

Lightning round

Paper or plastic? Paper.

Comedy or drama? Comedy.

Beach or mountains? Beach.

Black box or proscenium? Black Box.

Glee or Smash? Glee.

Cats or dogs? Dogs.

Musical or straight play? Neither.

Losing My Religion:Confessions of a New Age Refugee plays at The Red Room on the following dates:

Feb 26, 9:10PM
Feb 28, 7:35PM
Mar 01, 9:15PM
Mar 02, 3:10PM

FRIGID New York Interview - Molly Ballerstein of "The Sandman's Coming"

noreply@blogger.com (Byrne Harrison) — Mon, 25 Feb 2013 01:45:00 +0000

By Byrne Harrison

Name: Molly Ballerstein

Show: The Sandman’s Coming

Website: www.brainmeltconsortium.com/

Molly is a proud member of Brain Melt Consortium and very happy to be debuting her first conceived/created work in New York with the Frigid Festival. New York credits include: Smacker and the Highway (Planet Connections Festival), Daughters of Lot (Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Frigid Festival), Stein/Holum's Chimera (Under the Radar Festival), Anna Fishbeyn's Sex In Mommyville (The Museum of Motherhood). In addition to directing, her design work has been seen at premieres in the Edinburgh Fringe Festival as well as Boston's New Repertory Theater. Molly received her B.A. in Theatrical Production at Northeastern University. Thank you to the entire team and my friends for all your support in making this happen!

What’s your show about?

The Sandman’s Coming is about one man’s journey to separate his addiction from his identity. The story is told with flashbacks fading between dreamlike and authentic, familiar and outlandish. While his physical memory unfolds before us on stage, we are hearing an interview about the experience of being an addict. The story weaves dance, multi-media, and text into an entanglement

What inspired you to write and direct it?

I was inspired to write and direct The Sandman’s Coming after many run-ins with addiction. Family, friends, and even I have faced how addition attaches itself to your identity and the consequences it can have on relationships. I am always intrigued to work on a story that serves as an exploration of an experience and this piece has helped me to explore the links between addiction and identity.

Who else is involved with the show?

The team for The Sandman’s Coming is a mix of people from those that I have worked with and taught me about theatrical tech in college to current college students. The acting team consists of Anya Gibian, Nelson Patino Jr, and Lantie Tom. Dede Booth, Dana Boll, Dan Lance, Tony Lepore, Joel Rudzinski, Rachel Kerry, and Kristin Dwyer make up the rest of the production team.

Who is your dream audience for this show?

My dream audience for The Sandman’s Coming is broken down into two groups; the first is adults that have had addiction affect them. The second is young adults and teenagers that (although also could have dealt with this already) are coming to an age where friends and loved ones are more prone to becoming addicts.

Who are your biggest influences?

My biggest inspirations and influences in the theatre world right now are Deborah Stein and Suli Holum of Stein/Holum Projects. I have been blessed to work with them on one show in the past and am continuously inspired and impressed by their work.

What other shows are you planning to see at FRIGID?

I have collaborated before with the writer of The Dreamer and the Acrobat so I’m looking forward to seeing her piece.

What's next for you after FRIGID?

After FRIGID I am working with Writopia Lab. Writopia Lab is a writing school for children age 6 - 18 which produces plays written by its students.

Lightning round

Paper or plastic? Paper

Comedy or drama? Drama

Beach or mountains? Beach

Black box or proscenium? Black box

Glee or Smash? Smash

Cats or dogs? Dogs

Musical or straight play? Straight Play

The Sandman's Coming plays at UNDER St. Marks on the following dates:

Feb 27, 5:30PM
Feb 28, 8:40PM
Mar 02, 2:05PM