Peninsula Community Theatre: Forbidden Broadway

Go... and see the faults in your favorite shows!

Gerard Alessandrini's Forbidden Broadway is a long-running musical revue that has existed in various incarnations since opening Off-Broadway in 1982. The format is simple: change the lyrics to Broadway's most well-known show tunes to parody the biggest shows and the most popular stars. There is neither an underlying plot nor anything to tie one scene to the next. It is simply a series of hilarious comedy sketches performed to music. It is basically Broadway's version of "Weird Al" Yankovic - and the lyrics are just as witty. Like Yankovic with popular music, Alessandrini has adapted with Broadway and continues to write fresh parodies of the latest hits to critical - and audience - acclaim. Since its inception in 1982, Forbidden Broadway has been performed over nine thousand times, released thirteen albums, and won multiple Drama Desk Awards as well as a special Tony Award.

Peninsula Community Theatre is currently performing Forbidden Broadway's Greatest Hits. The most significant advantage to having over 30 years of material is the ability to appeal to multiple generations. This version of the show is a collaboration of some of Alessandrini's best parodies that spoof shows and personalities from the 1930s through the 2000s. It has scenes that should appeal to everyone, whether they prefer the "Golden Age of Broadway" or the long-running musicals of today.

The quality of PCT's production is... well, you'll have to see for yourself! The Theater Stud can't review it because he's in it!

The cast is talented and contains a nice mix of a dozen local veterans and newcomers. In alphabetical order, you will see Damiano Girona, Ingrid Holzer-Miller, Becky Krantz, Stephen Maney, Stephen Mason, myself, Lisa Parker LeBlanc, Joe Philipoom, Jennifer Thomas, Maddie Tisdel, Judy Triska, and Triston Westphal. Shannon Walker plays the piano for every scene and is on stage throughout the show as well.

The show is directed and choreographed by Dana Margulies Cauthen with music direction by Betsy Forrest. Jeffrey Corriveau doubles as Scenic Designer and Dramaturg. John Wilt, Light Design; Bill Hogge, Wigs; Jym Newton, Costumes Coordinator; Robert Kyle, Makeup; Sandy Brockman, Production Manager; Nina Martin, Stage Manager.

Final Thoughts: This is a well-written, clever show that has something for everyone. The running time is less than two hours, so you will have plenty of time to do more with your evening or drive back if you are coming from the south side. Laughs are guaranteed by director Dana Margulies Cauthen, who is willing to wager them against a glass of wine at intermission.

Jonathan McCormick

Performances run thru August 22^nd, Friday – Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2:30 p.m.

at the Peninsula Community Theatre,

10521 Warwick Boulevard, Newport News, Virginia 23601.

Tickets are $18 (with discounts available for seniors, students, and military) and can be obtained by

calling the box office at (757) 595-5728 or online at pctlive.org.

Williamsburg Players: Oliver!

Go... and see a talented group of kids!

Like Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice before it, Charles Dickens' 1830's novel, Oliver Twist, is a bit of a literary double-edged sword. It has been the subject of innumerable film and stage adaptations - including the 1968 Best Picture-winning Oliver!, adapted from a Best Original Score-winning musical of the same name. It has also long been the subject of racial controversy surrounding the portrayal of one of the main antagonists - Fagin. In the original novel, Fagin, like Shakespeare's Shylock, is an offensively rendered Jewish caricature described by Dickens as "a very old shrivelled Jew, whose villainous-looking and repulsive face was obscured by a quantity of matted red hair." Dickens' initial publications contained illustrations, provided by George Cruikshank, that epitomized Jewish stereotypes. Dickens even refers to Fagin as "The Jew" more often than by his name, often in a pejorative manner. The anti-Semitic nature of the character has been intentionally toned down over the years, and Lionel Bart redefined him as a charismatic antagonist worthy of our sympathy in his musical adaptation, Oliver!

The Williamsburg Players' production of Bart's Oliver! has some strong performances, but is marred by technical issues and an unfortunate depiction of Fagin. While the character's makeup and prosthetics are successful from a technical standpoint, the design appears to be based on the  caricature illustration in Dickens' original novel. Patrick Soderholm is talented, but his cartoonish, Muppet-like vocal choices only exacerbate the lampooning roots of the character. The Theater Stud wishes The Players had made Fagin a much more realistic character, as Bart intended, to avoid any unintentional connection to Dickens' problematic, racially insensitive character description.

The set, designed by Steve Olson, is aesthetically pleasing but not always practical or realistic. The set is large and sprawling and allows the actors generous opportunity to interact. Scene changes, however, often involve lengthy blackouts and musical vamps as sections of the wall are laboriously unfolded to reveal different parts of the city. Fagin hides his valuables in a secret compartment with a hinged door in a brick wall. Oliver runs across the bridge to escape a police officer, who catches him by simply walking across the lower level of the stage indicating that the bridge has no actual reason to be there. More focus on the practicality of the set would be welcomed.

The live orchestra sounds great and is blended well with the ensemble, which is a testament to musical director Mike McCoy. The orchestra's room-filling sound is welcome, but results in a need for working microphones on solo numbers, which isn't always the case. Kimberlyn Williams-Middleton (Nancy) suffered the most at my performance, as her microphone didn't seem to work for the entirety of Act One.

When Williams-Middleton's microphone worked in the second act, she was very well-received. "As Long As He Needs Me" is one of the better performed songs in the show, despite her tendency to slide between notes. Her stage presence is strong enough to carry her scenes, even when her microphone was not functioning.

Ronnie Littman makes an endearing Oliver with a sweet, straight-toned singing voice. Ryan Schoenberg - who plays The Artful Dodger - looks far older than Littman, which takes a little away from the intended relationship between the characters. He sings his songs an octave lower than written, but performs them well and with an energy that makes the age disparity excusable. All of the young actors are quite good. The opening number, "Food, Glorious Food" showcases the plethora of young talent as the children energetically sing, dance, and perform flips while enthusiastically interacting with each other.

Adam Stillwell's Mr. Bumble is appropriately intimidating and commanding of the stage, most notably when Oliver asks for more food. His pairing with Starla Kramer (Widow Corney) is not always successful. Both actors have proper energy and vocal ability, but Kramer defaults to over-acting and delivers her lines with an unplaceable hodgepodge accent. Alex Bedont has a nice baritone voice and is fittingly brooding and formidable as the violent Bill Sykes.

Alex Stachowiak's choreography is energetic and fun, and makes good use of the athletic and acrobatic dancers in the cast; however, some of the songs suffer from repetitive dance moves that are tedious by song's end. "Consider Yourself" is presented with high-energy dance by the entire company across the large stage, but keeps returning to the same set of motions: slap your knees, move to the side, jump in the air and clap under your leg. By the time the encore came, we didn't care to see it again.

Final Thoughts: The kids in this cast are high energy and more than worthy of our community support. Otherwise, there is a lot of "good, but not great" happening here. Strong performers tend to be undermined by technical issues or staging flaws and the show has an overall unpolished feel. Often a throwaway song, "Who Will Buy" is one of the most polished, well-balanced scenes in the entire show. In his director's notes, Peter Natale mentions that this production had several weeks less rehearsal time than is customary. The Theater Stud wishes they had those extra weeks to polish up the show and do a little more research into Fagin's history. This show could have been much better.

 Jonathan McCormick

Limited Run

Performances run thru August 2nd, Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m.

Saturday and Sunday at 2 p.m.

at the James-York Playhouse, 200 Hubbard Lane, Williamsburg, Virginia 23185.

Tickets are $20 for adults, $12 for children and students with ID and can be obtained by

calling the box office at (757) 229-0431 or online at williamsburgplayers.org.

Little Theatre of Virginia Beach: Young Frankenstein

Go... and see a live black-and-white film!

Mel Brooks' hit 1974 film Young Frankenstein is a satirical homage to the 1931 James Whale monster movie, Frankenstein. Like most of Brooks' works, the film employs generous use of broad comedy, but it is one of his funniest and is more grounded than many of his others. This is partly due to Mel Brooks' decision to film the movie in black-and-white. He was so firm in this decision that his original deal to make the film fell through when the studio didn't agree. Brooks is quoted as having said "We said, 'if we make the monster green, it'll be [like] a Halloween mask. It will not have the gravity. It won't have the depth. It won't have the power of the James Whale movie."

The 2007 full-color stage musical version is a faithful adaptation of the movie with a nearly identical script. In a bold move, to pay homage in turn, director James Bryan decided to recreate the black-and-white portrayal for LTVB's production. Making black-and-white work in a live stage production requires every aspect of the show to comply to grayscale and work in perfect continuity. The costumes - designed by Kay Burcher and Karen Buchheim - are astounding. The Theater Stud can't imagine the amount of work that had to go into keeping the costumes consistent in period, color scheme, and scene-appropriateness. The costumes run the gamut from a simple cloak to a glittery formal dress to a horse head, and all but one - a green-tinted dress towards the end of the show - fall perfectly into the black-and-white aesthetic. Ellen Moore's lighting design is similarly confined to shades of white. Any colorful spot lens would ruin the scene. And yet, the lighting is active and constantly changes throughout the show, brightening and opening the stage with appropriate opportunity. Then there is the set.

The path of least resistance would be to minimize the set and allow the costumes, lighting, and actors to do the heavy lifting to maintain the integrity of the black-and-white. Instead, we are treated to a set - designed by Donna Lawheed with scenic design by Tom Coffey and Jessy Davis - that demands its own accolades. The Theater Stud cannot say enough about this set. The opening scenes are played far downstage making use of the black curtain behind the actors. As the cast approaches the castle, the curtains open up to a gate with large doors. After they gain entry to the castle, the set piece rotates to display a study with bookcases and turning walls. They are expertly painted. The fully-stocked book shelves appeared to be a painted wall until Dr. Frankenstein (Joe Siejak) reached in and pulled on one of the many black-and-white books to find the secret passage. The set further opens up once the secret passage is discovered, and it is beautiful. There is a plethora of detail in every turn of the set, all painted within the grayscale, but looking as three dimensional and interesting as the most colorful of sets. There is gray smoke that pours out of the chambers as Igor (Matt Downey) pulls the levers on top of the two level set. There is a gray curtain stage-right that conceals yet another black-and-white painted room. The fine detail, special effects, multiple sprawling and expanding layers all stay within the black-and-white scheme to create possibly the best set The Theater Stud has ever seen.

The final piece of the black-and-white puzzle is the makeup, designed by Wendy Roache. The majority of the cast has grayscale wigs and well-blended makeup. Most of the actors look like they came directly out of a black-and-white film onto the stage. Most is not all, however, and curiously the makeup is very poorly done on the two main characters - Dr. Frankenstein (Joe Siejak) and The Monster (Robert Shirley). Neither Siejak nor Shirley is wigged and both have obviously brown hair, which is distracting and odd as the ensemble has wigs. Siejak's face makeup looks caked on haphazardly and is absent from his neck, hair line, hands, and arms. Shirley was inexplicably green, which is a glaring contradiction to everything else on stage and is directly at odds with Brooks' rationale.

Siejak is in his element as Dr. Frankenstein. He comfortably commands the stage with charisma and humor. His dancing is smooth while maintaining his character and humor, and he frequently uses his tall, lanky physique to bring an element of physical comedy to the role that notably separates his performance from Gene Wilder's in the film. His singing isn't nearly as strong as his other tools, but is adequate for the role. Matt Downey is a hilarious and energetic Igor with golden comedic timing. It is truly hard to keep your eyes off of him while he's on stage. Molly Morneault is a lovely Inga with a strong voice and good chemistry with Siejak. Her yodeling hayride deserves special kudos. Kathy Hinson's impressive voice is on full display as Elizabeth, particularly during "Deep Love." She also has an outstanding ability to ground the over-the-top comedy to a more nuanced, still-hilarious character, as evidenced by her rare capacity for taking one-joke songs (three of them, to be exact) and making them consistently funny. Kay Burcher delivers some of the funniest moments of the night as Frau Blücher (neigh). Her rendition of "He Vas My Boyfriend" is show-stopping. Vincent DeSanto (Victor von Frankenstein) and Cliff Hoffman (The Hermit) are both capable character actors with lots of energy in their scenes. Robert Shirley is hilarious, but an atypical choice for The Monster, given the fact that he isn't as tall as Siejak - even in 6 inch platform shoes - and the fact that when he sings "Deep Love (Reprise)" in the final moments of the show it is evident that he has the best male voice in the cast. He successfully avoids copying Peter Boyle's iconic film performance of "Puttin' on the Ritz" - but manages to be just as funny - and makes the character's stark transition at the end of the show seamless.

Choreography (Karen Buchheim) was energetic and tight. There are many ensemble dance scenes in the show and the choreography is enthusiastic and generally well-executed, although out of rhythm in the tap scene. It doesn't help that the music is pre-recorded tracks at a set tempo, seemingly only coming from the house-left speakers. The tracks are often muddled and are played at inconsistent volume which hurts ensemble vocal energy. Music direction, provided by Laura Oliver, is made more difficult by a weak sound system. Solo and duet songs are usually performed well, while the group numbers are less consistent, but still enjoyable.

Final Thoughts: Young Frankenstein is a great time with a funny, enjoyable cast with several standouts. James Bryan's direction is solid, and his research into making the black-and-white theme come to life pays dividends. If the lead actors' makeup had been smoother, The Theater Stud would have gotten lost in the show forgetting that it was being portrayed in grayscale. Expect the sound system to be a little weak, but also expect a night full of belly-laughs. The show is well worth it.

-Jonathan McCormick

 

Performances run thru August 9th, Friday - Saturday at 8 p.m. and

Sundays at 2:30 p.m. at the Little Theatre of Virginia Beach

550 Barberton Drive, Virginia Beach, Virginia 23451.

Tickets are $20 ($17 for matinees, $8 for children) with discounts for seniors, students and active military.

Reservations can be obtained by calling the box office at (757) 428-9233 
or online at ltvb.com 

 

Generic Theater: Kiss of the Spider Woman

Here we are. My first review. It may take a few reviews to get the kinks out and come up with a format that works well. So for the time being, I will emulate the style used by The Theater Babe, including jestfully referring to myself in the third person and ending with all of the theater's info. So of course, we must start with big blue letters...

Go... and see vision come to life!

There we go, that's out of the way. Onto the show.
 

Kiss of the Spider Woman takes place in a 1970s Latin American prison in the shared cell of prisoners Molina and Valentin. Molina, a flamboyant, openly gay window dresser, was arrested for having sex with a minor, and Valentin is a hardened Marxist revolutionary with conspiracy plans. Over time, the two unexpectedly become close friends, and (SPOILER) when faced with a life-or-death decision, Molina ultimately chooses to sacrifice himself rather than betray Valentin. The show won the Tony for Best Musical in 1993 and was critically revered for its intelligence and progressivism. As time goes by and the culture at large becomes more and more accepting of homosexuality, the show risks the possibility of losing a bit of punch. When the show first premiered, it may have seemed more shocking to mainstream audiences that an effeminate gay man would do something as "manly" as give up his life in such a manner, and the climax slightly leans on that idea. It is still a relevant problem, and the show is written intelligently enough that even if one day we are free of homophobia, the show can be incredibly effective under the foundation of a solid, grounded relationship between leads. Garney Johnson's direction tells that story beautifully, and a moving show is the result. 

When entering the theater, you notice the innovative and professional set design. There is a movable jail cell that starts on the right side of the stage, which is complemented by a large movie screen above the left side of the stage. The sound is also well-designed. Too often in local shows the music is far too quiet behind the stage and you don't feel like, as a viewer, you are part of the experience. Here, the music is not only played beautifully but seems to come from all sides at an appropriate volume - the experience is reminiscent of being in a movie theater. The actors use body microphones, and their volume is well-matched to the music, which should happen more often in local theater. Lighting is generally dark and drab to accentuate the melancholy events, but brightens up when necessary to highlight the fantasy scenes.

The show effectively opens and closes with film-style credits. The movie screen is used regularly throughout the show to enhance Molina's frequent fantasy sequences, and is best utilized when playing very well-shot and edited cinematic clips of the film star Aurora - and when Molina is fantasizing about being in Aurora's place. The sporadically-used animated graphics, e.g. the spiderwebs and morphine hallucinations, came off as cheesy and gratuitous compared to the far more effective film scenes. The Theater Stud would have preferred the production to forego superfluous dancing graphics and actually use the movie screen for cinematic images more frequently throughout the show. The film sequences really were brilliantly executed and left me wishing there were far more of them.

The actors are well-directed, and there are genuine relationships formed between all of the characters. Jeffrey Seyller as Molina is the standout of the production, in a role that seems tailor-made for him. Seyller has a lovely, smooth singing voice and embodies Molina with clear, honest emotions, giving the character several authentic moments of pathos. He also plays up Molina's flamboyancy well without resorting to a mincing stereotype - we are given a fully-developed, multidimensional character. Rico Robinson proves a worthy foil as Valentin, and, aside from a few strained high notes, sounds perhaps the best I have ever heard him sound. His acting offers a strong counterpoint to Seyller, and the arc of their relationship feels real, which is vital to the success of the show. The Theater Stud only wishes Robinson's accent would have been a bit more consistent.

Karla Robinson as Aurora/Spider Woman has a well-trained voice put to good use throughout the show. Her Aurora is more "beautiful, elegantly tenured queen of the screen" than "fiery seductress" but it works, especially when complemented by the beautiful film footage. Angelica Yankauskas as Valentin's love, Marta, and Toni Zito as Molina's mother both perform their roles admirably with strong vocals and well-acted relationships that successfully further the respective arcs of their leading men's stories. The ensemble is strong both collectively and individually - they are beautifully blended as a team (hats off to music director Roy George) and the score offers several opportunities for solos, many of which are quite impressive. The vocals of Geoffrey Klein in "Over the Wall" are of particular note, as is his brief turn in "Gabriel's Letter" as Molina's unrequited former love.

Shon M. Stacy's choreography does a great job of highlighting two well-trained dancers in the cast (AJ Palacio and Llangston Redford), while allowing the rest of the ensemble to have their moments as well. I don't recall the last time I saw modern dance utilized in a show and it was a welcome change of pace to highlight the fantastical nature of the musical numbers.

 

Final Thoughts: Kiss of the Spider Woman is a powerful show that is expertly produced with high energy at the Little Hall under the Chrysler. The seats down there are painfully uncomfortable, so prepare accordingly. The Theater Stud would also recommend sitting in either the front row or in the risers - the seats in the second and third rows have obstructed views due to being on the same level as the seats in front of them. My view was obstructed to the point that I couldn't see the titular kiss from Aurora, largely because it was strangely staged behind the ensemble, near the stage-right exit. Once you pick a good seat and make yourself comfortable, sit back and enjoy. It's well worth it.     

 

-Jonathan McCormick

 

 

Performances run thru June 28^th

Thursday – Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 2:30 p.m.

at the Generic Theater

215 St. Paul's Boulevard, Norfolk, Virginia

(under Chrysler Hall – access through lower level of parking lot)

Tickets are $18 with discounts for students, seniors and military.

Reservations can be obtained by calling the box office at (757) 441-2160

or online at http://www.generictheater.org

Hello Theater Friends!

ONCE UPON A TIME...

Our community theater shows were consistently reviewed by the local newspapers and arts magazines. For the most part, those days are now behind us. Although AltDaily and a few other places review the occasional show on the south side, far too many shows go by without ever being reviewed or publicized. A few years ago, someone came up with a solution: the idea to create a theater blog, reviewing shows under the pseudonym The Theater Babe. After a short time, another unsigned review blog popped up called The Anonymous Theatre Goer. Both blogs provided fairly insightful reviews, likely from people within our own acting community who did not want to expose their true opinions. Over time, both have apparently faded away which recently gave way to Drama Dandy. The most recent anonymous reviewer sparked a renewed outcry on Facebook for reviewers to start signing their names to reviews. I don't expect any of those reviewers to break their anonymity, so I have decided to create a blog to break the mold. I will follow in the footsteps of the previous blog reviewers, with a blog style lovingly and ironically borrowed from the most famous of the bunch, The Theater Babe. The only difference? I will gladly sign my name at the bottom of my reviews.

As I state in the "About Me" section, don't take what I say too seriously. Although I feel like I have plenty of theatrical experience to critique a show, I am still offering just one person's opinion. If I didn't like you, the person next to me may have loved you. I plan to give a fair assessment of what I see, even if we are best friends. In return, I will gladly accept discussion via Facebook messaging. Attempting to undermine my opinion by saying things like "you sucked in the last show I saw you in anyway" doesn't really add anything to the conversation and gives merit to the reviewers that we have ostracized for remaining anonymous.

I've had a lot of discussion with people who have said they wish we had a consistent reviewer again. So here it is. Enjoy it for what it is. Use it to publicize your shows. Don't take it too seriously. Break legs, and most importantly HAVE FUN. After all, that's why we do theater, right?

Jonathan McCormick