Merrimack Rep Brings a Literal Supermom to Life

May 3, 2018May 3, 2018 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

Review by James Wilkinson

The Villains’ Supper Club – Written by Lila Rose Kaplan. Directed by Sean Daniels. Scenic Design: Apollo Mark Weaver. Costume Design: Arthur Oliver. Lighting Design: Brian J. Lilienthal. Sound Design: David Remedios. Projection Design: Elizabeth Dombek. Illustrator: Chad Cunningham. Fight Director: Angie Jepson. Presented by Merrimack Repertory Theatre, 50 East Merrimack Street, Lowell through Mat 20^th

The fact that Merrimack Repertory Theatre’s production of Lila Rose Kaplan’s The Villains’ Supper Club is opening on the same weekend Avengers: Infinity War is being released is either a wonderful bit of serendipity or a brilliant marketing ploy. Either way, it’s a win for us. I have to confess that superhero stories are not exactly my forte. I think I’ve seen about three of the movies in the Marvel cinematic universe and I’ve leafed through only maybe a handful of comic books in my life. So when I went to this production, I went without any real attachment to the genre. I can therefore report back that if you can’t quite keep who Doctor Strange and Iron Man are straight in your head, you shouldn’t let that deter you from seeing this fiercely intelligent production. Playwright Kaplan and director Sean Daniels have concocted a wonderfully fun evening of theater that also manages to inject some topical issues on representation and motherhood into the proceedings.

Trinity’s “Ragtime” a Breathtaking Musical Extravaganza

May 1, 2018 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

Reviewed by Tony Annicone

Welcome to the turn of the century with “Ragtime”, the closing musical of Trinity Rep’s season. This 1998 hit musical is based on E.L. Doctorow’s novel. Trinity begins the show in a contemporary room setting and from there we go back in time to 1905 with the epic sweep of this musical being captured in the opening prologue, a nine minute kaleidoscope of fictional characters mingling with historical figures from the early twentieth century. The cast is in current day costumes during most of Act 1 to reflect that what happened back then is happening now, too. As the story continues, we meet pianist Coalhouse Walker Jr. and his child’s mother, Sarah being taken in by a respectable WASP family in New Rochelle, NY. This family is ruled by “Father”, a patriarchal figure who dominates his household and submissive wife, “Mother” with his overbearing presence. Parallel storylines of the Jewish Latvian immigrant Tateh who unwittingly finds himself involved in the birth of the motion picture industry after inventing a flipbook for his young daughter as well as the real life entertainer, Evelyn Nesbit, the magician Harry Houdini, J.P. Morgan and the anarchist Emma Goldman eventually mingle and merge. This epic production boasts stellar performances from this talented cast with phenomenal insight and direction by Curt Columbus, Trinity’s artistic director, musical director, Michael Rice and choreographer, Sharon Jenkins as they capture the flavor and essence of the early 1900’s being comparable to current day happenings. Their combined expertise garners the entire cast a resounding standing ovation at the close of this breathtaking musical extravaganza.

A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC (URI)

April 27, 2018April 27, 2019 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

Reviewed by Tony Annicone

The closing musical at the University of Rhode Island is Stephen Sondheim’s “A Little Night Music.” The music and lyrics are by Sondheim while the book is by Hugh Wheeler. The musical was inspired by Ingmar Bergman’s “Smiles of a Summer Night” and is set in Sweden at the turn of the twentieth century. It concerns lives, affairs and entanglements of several couples. The original Broadway show opened on February 25, 1973 and ran for 601 performances. It won The Tony Award and The Critic’s Circle Award for Best Musical and was revived in 2009 with Catherine Zeta Jones as Desiree and Angela Lansbury as Mme. Armfeldt. The main character Fredrik Egerman, a lawyer is married to 18 year old virgin, Anne who is enamored of his son, Henrik. When spurned while to trying to consummate their marriage after 11 months, Fredrik seeks solace in the arms of a former love interest, Desiree who secretly had his child, Fredrika many years before. Add a pompous Count Magnus who is having an affair with her, his jealous wife, Charlotte who seeks revenge, Desiree’s elderly mother who courted royalty to gain her wealth, the young innocent, Fredrika and Petra, the promiscuous maid of the household to the mix. Also a Quintet sings many numbers, entering as a Greek chorus in and out of the scenes and you have the makings of this show. Director Paula McGlasson hones her college students into these complicated characters and elicits splendid performances from them. Musical director Lila Kane and her 4 piece orchestra bring out the lushness of the score while multitalented choreographers Dante Sciarra and Valerie Ferris create inventive dances with “A Weekend in the Country” as the standout number. Their combined efforts not only wins the cast a standing ovation, it also helps the audience to learn how the summer night smiles three times, once for the young, next for the fools and finally for the old.

McGlasson blocks the show expertly and also blends the dramatic and comic elements of the script together to garner them praise. The show begins with the cast waltzing together with the wrong partners but eventually by show’s end they are with who they really belong. Lila not only plays the piano for the show, conducts the orchestra but also taught the cast the difficult and intricate Sondheim score to them. Dante who is now a full time nurse, starred in many professional musicals in the past and definitely knows how to choreograph a show. Valerie is also a chorographer for the show. The whole cast appears and dances in “Weekend in the Country” as they arrive at the Armfeldt estate to have their secret desires and longings revealed to the audience as well as the Quintet does in numbers. The harmonies of the Quintet soar during the scene as they enter scenes and comment on the proceedings in music and dance. The members are Their numbers include the overture, “Perpetual Anticipation”, “Remember” and “The Sun Won’t Set.” The gorgeous period costumes are by Alison Walker Carrier especially impressive are the ladies gowns. The turn table set is by Renee Surprenant Fitzgerald which gives the scene changes a smooth transition from one scene to the next..

Leading the cast as Desiree is Emily Carter who is splendid. She captures the spirit of this much older woman who has lived her life in the theatre and enjoyed many men in her past. Carter’s singing voice sells her description of her life in the theatre in the joyous “The Glamorous Life” and later on tugs on your heartstrings in the poignant “Send in the Clowns” when she realizes how foolish she’s been in letting Fredrik slip out of her life all these years. The scene when she’s caught between her two lovers of the past and present is hilarious as Desiree holds Fredrik’s wet shirt and pants as the jealous dragoon Count who considers her his property, looks on. I last reviewed her as Ilse in “Spring Awakening” back in 2016. The role of Fredrik is played by J. Edward Clarke whom I last reviewed in “Unnecessary Farce” last summer. He does a great job in this more substantial role. The opening Trio of “Now”, “Soon” and “Later” with Anne and Henrik is terrific. Clarke’s other two numbers include the comic “You Must Meet My Wife” with Carter and “It Would Have Been Wonderful” with the Count in the second act.

The beautiful Emily Turtle plays the virginal Anne who is afraid to consummate her marriage to the older Fredrik. She has a glorious soprano voice which soars in her numbers. Turtle captures the naivete of the character perfectly. I last reviewed her as Mary Poppins last year. Brooks Shatraw plays the pensive seminary student Henrik who is the grown up son of Fredrik. He has a mad crush on Anne who is closer to his age than his father’s age. Shatraw’s strong tenor voice blends superbly with Clarke’s baritone and Turtle’s soprano to create beautiful harmonies together. I last reviewed him at URI as Bert in “Mary Poppins” last year.

Daniel Greene plays the chauvinistic pig, Count Magnus who mistreats every woman he’s been with. His song “In Praise of Women” is a tribute to himself and how he lords it over all of them. He is tall, blond and handsome and is excellently cast as this cad. I last reviewed him as Fred in “Noises Off” in December where he played a farcical role. Emily MacLean shines as Charlotte, the long suffering wife of the Count who must put up with his horrible bullying and mistreatment of her. Her song “Every Day, a Little Death” reflects how she deals with the situation of her life and why she puts up with her boorish husband. Maclean has many clever and witty one liners that she makes hit pay dirt. Lauren Janetti plays the oversexed maid, Petra who wants to take Henrik’s virginity away from him but ends up settling for the butler, Frid. Her song “The Miller’s Son” is the 11th hour number of the show that leaves the audience laughing merrily at her naughty and bawdy antics.

The sage of this show is Maria Day as Mme. Armfeldt who explains all the proceedings to her granddaughter and the audience. She imparts many words of wisdom along the way and stops the show with her enigmatic number “Liaisons” where she recounts her affairs of the heart splendidly. 10 year old Kate Rocchio does remarkable work as Fredrika. She gives the role the energetic portrayal of a young girl yearning to know about the ways of life that lie before her and hopefully learn from the mistakes of her mother and grandmother along the way. So for a marvelous rendering of one of Sondheim’s earlier musicals, be sure to catch “A Little Night Music” at URI before the cast waltzes its way out of town. I have pleasant memories of seeing the original cast in this show back on Broadway in 1974.

A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC (18 to 28 April)

URI, Studio J, Fine Arts Center, 105 Upper College Road, Kingston, RI

1(401)874-5843 or web.uri.edu/theatre

Boston Children’s Theatre’s “1984” Captures Current Zeitgeist (Quick Take)

April 26, 2018April 29, 2018 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

1984 – Written by George Orwell; Adapted for the stage by Robert Owens, Wilton E. Hall Jr., and William A. Miles; Directed by Burgess Clark; Boston Children’s Theatre’s New England Theatreworks’ production of 1984 runs through April 29 at the Calderwood Pavilion at the Boston Center of the Arts, 527 Tremont St, Boston through April 29.

As anyone who saw Boston Children’s Theatre’s powerful production of The Diary of Anne Frank (I did) or last year’s controversial production of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (I did not), knows that BCT ain’t just for kids. So it should come as little surprise that the company is taking on this challenging work, given its relevance to what is going on politically in our own country and around the globe. Nearly 70 years after the book’s publication, 1984 still paints a chilling portrait of what may come to be, and director Burgess Clark and his young cast do a credible job of creating that sense of impending doom that re-emerges with each fresh news cycle.

GBSC’s “THE LEGEND OF GEORGIA McBRIDE”

April 20, 2018December 27, 2018 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

By Sheila Barth

BOX INFO: Greater Boston Stage Company presents the Boston premiere of multi-award winning playwright Matthew Lopez’s 100-minute, one-act, musical comedy through May 20: Thursday, 7:30 p.m. Friday, Saturday, 8 p.m., Sunday, 2 p.m. 395 Main St., Stoneham. Includes adult language and content. $45-$55; seniors,$40-$50; students with valid ID, $20. 395 Main St., Stoneham. greaterbostonstage.org, 781-279-2200.

Directed and choreographed by Russell Garrett, Matthew Lopez’s one-act play, “The Legend of Georgia McBride,” currently at Greater Boston Stage Company, brought last Wednesday afternoon’s audience to its feet, applauding enthusiastically.

Although the play is classified as a musical comedy, the actors primarily lip-synch, excluding co-star Jared Reinfeldt’s strumming an acoustic guitar and singing his original love song to his fiancé Jo. For me, though, seeing the show was a little bittersweet, especially after learning Boston iconic actor-director Tommy Derrah originally was supposed to helm this show. Unfortunately, he died after a brief illness on Oct. 5, 2017, at Mt. Auburn Hospital, Cambridge.

Hub Theatre Searches for Meaning Out West

April 18, 2018 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

Review by James Wilkinson

True West is presented by Hub Theatre Company. Written by Sam Shepard. Directed by Daniel Bourque. Set Design by Ben Lieberson. Lighting Design by Chris Bocchiaro. Costume Design by Nancy Ishihara. Sound Design by Jay Mobley. Props Design by Cesara Walters and Valerie Tracy. Fight Director: Samantha Richert. Presented by Hub Theatre Company at First Church in Boston, April 13-28, 2018.

I’m gonna miss Sam Shepard like hell. I never met the man, but I’ve been reading and rereading his plays since discovering them in college. Before his death in 2017 he had written over fifty plays in a career that spans just as many years. In that time he managed to leave his own distinct mark on American theater, providing a theatrical vision inspired by the myths of the American west. In much of his best work he examines and deconstructs what should be comforting and stable environments to expose an undercurrent of violence waiting to explode. And he does this while also occasionally taking the time to be howlingly funny. To the best of my recollection, it’s been a while since Boston theater has seen a production of a Shepard play, (I offer my profound apologies if there’s a production that I have overlooked/forgotten). Thankfully, Hub Theatre Company has taken up the cause with their fantastic new production of Shepard’s True West, now playing at First Church in Boston. For Shepard fans, the production is a gift. For those unfamiliar with his work, now’s the time to get on board.

Making America German Again – Moonbox “Cabaret” Will Take Your Breath Away

April 18, 2018April 18, 2018 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

By Beverly Creasey

You can’t experience Moonbox’s stunning version of Kander & Ebb’s CABARET (@ BCA through April 29th) without thinking of the Neo-Nazis who marched in Charlottesville. The current president and his nationalist (that’s nazionalist auf Deutsch) followers are fanning the flames of white supremacy with every other tweet. CABARET was shocking in 1966 for its dark eroticism but director/choreographer Rachel Bertone creates a chilling resonance in the Moonbox production which is “take-your-breath-away” devastating.

“Moon Over Buffalo” (Providence College)

April 17, 2018April 17, 2019 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

by Tony Annicone

Welcome to the madcap world of Ken Ludwig’s “Moon Over Buffalo”, the closing show of Providence College’s Blackfriar’s Theatre season. This farce is set in 1953 at the Erlanger Theatre in Buffalo, New York. George and Charlotte Hay are on tour doing “Cyrano” and “Private Lives” in repertory. Famous director Frank Capra wants them both to star in a movie version of The Scarlet Pimpernel and is headed to the theatre to catch the show. Only problem is that George is drunk and doesn’t know which of the two shows is being performed. So at times he delivers lines from both of them as well as swearing up a storm. There are hilarious misunderstandings and madcap adventures that occur during this comic romp. Director Brett Epstein keeps the pace of the show in constant motion. He is aided by the incredible sets by Josh Christofferson and the beautiful 1950’s and character costumes by Jessie Darrell Jarbadan. Their combined expertise gives the show the necessary ingredients to ensure the enjoyment of the audience all night long.

A Beguiling “Anna Christie” at Lyric

April 13, 2018 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

By Michele Markarian

‘Anna Christie’ – Written by Eugene O’Neill. Adapted and directed by Scott Edmiston. Presented by Lyric Stage Company of Boston, 140 Clarendon Street, Boston, MA, through May 6.

Eugene O’Neill won his second Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1922 for Anna Christie. Originally a four-act play with far more actors than Edmiston’s stripped down five, it must have been shocking and sordid in its day. Anna Christie is a story of a prostitute believing herself to be too far gone for redemption reuniting with her father, a frightened former boson convinced that the lure and lull of the sea is a curse for him and his family. “This is a very weird play,” I said to my husband as we left, but somehow, this excellent cast makes it all seem hazily credible. Weirder still – and I assure you this never happens – I dreamed I was conversing with some of the play’s characters the night I saw it. If that’s not a sign that a play hasn’t gotten under your skin, I don’t know what is. Scott Edmiston has an eye for mise en scene, which helps.

“GYPSY” (Salve Regina University Theatre)

April 11, 2018April 11, 2019 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

Reviewed by Tony Annicone

Salve Regina University Theatre’s closing show of their season is the hit 1959 musical “Gypsy” with music by Jule Styne, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by Arthur Laurents. This musical is about the true story of famous striptease artist, Gypsy Rose Lee. It’s the biography of Gypsy whose real name was Louise and her mother, Momma Rose. It’s about the Louise’s life from her early days in vaudeville with her younger sister, June Havoc. It shows after the death of vaudeville it led to her successful career in burlesque. However the star of this show is her tyrannical mother, Rose and director Tom Gleadow picks the incredible triple threat performer, Madisyn Mugavero, a multitalented actress to fill this role played by Ethel Merman, Angela Lansbury, Tyne Daly, Bernadette Peters and Patti Lupone on stage and Rosalind Russell and Bette Midler on film. Momma Rose pushes her two children into to show business at any cost, to fulfill the dream of stardom she never achieved herself. “Gypsy” is a story of ambition, suppressed dreams and sacrifice. Tom fills the show with many comic moments mixed with some poignant ones to flesh out this well known script. Madisyn, fellow Senior, Vanessa Sciolto as Louise and Junior student, Bradley Simpson as Herbie and their supporting cast fill this theatre with their vocal, acting and dancing skills to please the enthusiastic and appreciative audience on a brilliant masterpiece.

Gleadow directs and blocks this talented cast excellently. The many scene changes are handled superbly, meshing one scene into the next, keeping the show in constant motion with it spanning twenty five years. The marvelous scenic and lighting design is by Pippin McGowan while the gorgeous multitude of 1920’s costumes is by David Costa-Cabral especially terrific is the closing number outfit worn by Patty Lupone on Broadway. Also Joe Rossi changes the appearance of these college students with his make up and wigs, making them appear older then they are. Choreographer Kim Calore-Sedlak handles the transformation scene from younger children to older ones during a strobe light dance as well as tap dancing, Charleston, soft shoe and the hilarious strip numbers brilliantly. These dances give the show the energetic boost to carry the musical numbers forward. Outstanding dance numbers include the Tulsa dance, the Broadway section with hats and canes, Louise’s strip numbers, soft shoe dance by Rose and Herbie and the Toreadorables number. Another humorous aspect of this show is that Rose keeps the same music over and over again, but only changing the lyrics. The fabulous musical direction is by Jennifer Christina who plays keyboards and conducts a eleven piece orchestra and taught all the tongue twisting Stephen Sondheim lyrics and Jule Styne music to the talented vocalists. What a terrific way to close out Salve’s theatre season.

Madisyn delivers a tour-de-force performance as Momma Rose, the stage mother of all mothers. She runs rough shod over her two daughters because she was never given the opportunity they have. Rose explains that is because her mother left her at an early age. Current day psychologists would have a field day with this real life woman. Madisyn makes this role her own, making it fit perfectly as well as making you forget anyone else you’ve seen playing this part. Her acting prowess is superb because she can have you laughing hysterically one minute and sobbing uncontrollably the next. Her strong voice shines in her numbers. “Some People” where she decides to leave Seattle with her girls and head to L.A. and the show stopping “Everything’s Coming Up Roses” where she has a mini nervous breakdown when June elopes with Tulsa. She also excels in “Together”, the trio number where she realizes that she, Louise and Herbie must stick together and her shining moment of glory in “Rose’s Turn”, a long soliloquy that stops the show with power and punch, leaving the audience cheering in the aisles. Madisyn also handles her romantic duets beautifully in “Small World” when she first meets Herbie then gives it a poignant rendition in Act 2 when he finally leaves Rose after she lets Louise become a stripper as well as the soft shoe “You’ll Never Get Away From Me” done in a Chinese restaurant. The tears flow profusely after Herbie leaves her during the reprise of “Small World” so poignantly One of her funniest numbers is “Mr. Goldstone” where she sings and the children hurl props at the booking agent and march around her, leaving the audience laughing merrily. Madisyn is marvelous in this role, delivering the goods in a whirlwind of energy from her first entrance coming down the aisle, to the final curtain where she and Vanessa as Gypsy leave the stage arm in arm. Brava on a job very well done!

Playing the role of Louise who became Gypsy Rose Lee is Vanessa Sciolto. She displays her strong acting prowess when she makes the transition from shy teenager into a sophisticated young woman during the course of the show. Vanessa’s lovely voice is heard in “If Momma Was Married” with June where they wish their mother would marry Herbie and leave them alone, “Together” trio with Rose and Herbie and solos in the most poignant song in the show, “Little Lamb” where she sings that she doesn’t know how old she is. She also displays the depth of the character as she grows more confident as an ecdysiast during the “Let Me Entertain You” segment in which became the real Gypsy Rose Lee’s signature number wherever she danced including Minsky’s. Vanessa is dynamite in the final confrontation scene with Rose when she finally tells her off at the end of the second act. Kudos on a terrific job. Best of luck to both Madisyn and Vanessa in the real world after their graduation this May.

Bradley does a marvelous job as Herbie, the sympathetic booking agent who falls madly in love with Rose. He gives the role great depth with his acting prowess. His voice is heard in the romantic duets with Madisyn and in the trio “Together” where he displays his dancing moves. Bradley has many comic moments but his best dramatic ones occur when he threatens Pastey when she swears in front of Rose and Louise in the burlesque theatre and when he finally develops a backbone to stand up to Rose’s bad behavior and obsession of being a stage mother after all these years and finally walks out on her. He delivers a gut punch to the audience and wins their applause as he leaves the stage. Dakota Benson is splendid as Dainty June. Her marvelous voice and dancing skills are observed as she dances up a storm with the boys. Dakota sings and dances with them in “Caroline” which also has a comical dancing cow and again in “Broadway” where she realizes that she can’t abandon Caroline after all and does marvelous splits in them. She also displays her powerful voice with Vanessa in “If Momma Was Married” as well as her excellent acting prowess as they wish Rose would marry him and leave them be. The younger June and Louise are excellently played by Annie and Rosie Rossi who are both in middle school. Both of them appeared at Theatre by the Sea two years ago in “The Music Man” and last year sang “God Bless America” together at Fenway Park.

The biggest scene stealers in this show are the three strippers in the second act played fabulously by Jillian Teresha as the trumpet playing Mazeppa, Maggie Corbutt as the twinkling, Electra and Jillian Brooks-Duval as Tessie Tura who was a former ballerina. They sing “You Gotta Get a Gimmick” which says you don’t need any talent but these three ladies have oodles of talent, dancing skills and singing voices. Another senior, Julia Curtin does a comic bit as the secretary in Act 1 and plays the mean spirited Pastey who yells at Rose and the girls in the strip club. Julia is a hoot in both roles. Another comic performer is Skyler Lasit who plays Cigar, L.A. and Mr. Weber and makes each of them different with his vocal talents in changing the timbre of his voice. A fabulous dancer in the show is Danny Landino as Tulsa. He uses his strong tenor voice to sell “All I Need Now Is the Girl” but it is Danny’s dancing skills that will leave you the most impressed. Another scene stealer is Abbie Burchard as Agnes in the second act. She’s a Toreadorable and delivers her comic one liners with glee. I have many happy memories of this show, having played Pastey back in 1979 for Warwick Players and also having seen Angela Lansbury as Rose in “Gypsy” in Boston back in 1974 in the Broadway revival. Kudos to everyone who worked on the magnificent musical. So be sure to catch “Gypsy” at Salve Regina Theatre, before Momma Rose and her gang leave town for good. Tell them Tony sent you to see this marvelous musical of this spring season.

GYPSY (10 to 14 April)

Salve Regina Theatre, Casino Theatre, 9 Freebody St, Newport, RI

1(401)341-2250 or web.ovationtix.com/trs/cal/29095