"Six Dead Queens" Get the Royal Treatment at Mobtown

SHOW INFORMATION:  Through March 8 – Fri and Sat at 8PM, select Sundays at 4PM.  Mobtown Players perform at their Meadow Mill space, 3600 Clipper Mill Road in Hampden.  Tickets are $15 general/$12 students and seniors.  Information at www.mobtownplayers.com or www.sixdeadqueens.com.

 

◊◊◊◊◊ out of five.  90 minutes, no intermission.  Adult language and situations.  Not recommended for children.

In its U.S. premiere, Six Dead Queens and an Inflatable Henry could have faced insurmountable obstacles, most of which have to do with suppositions about the show based on its title.  So from the outset let me demystify the play.  First, it is not bout ghostly guys in drag, nor is it about sex toys used by said drag queens.  Second, while it is about six actual queens who lived (and died) under the rule of one Henry VIII, it is not a museum quality trip through history, nor is it a stagy pageant of Smithsonian tableaus come to life.  Third, and most importantly in my mind, it is not a play aimed at a particular niche audience – you needn't be an Anglophile, a Ren Fest enthusiast, nor a PhD candidate in English History to understand or appreciate this work.  No, it is actually an extremely accessible, light and hilarious evening full of smart, witty and sophisticated dialogue, razor sharp timing, and enough bawdy comedy to make Benny Hill blush.  More to the point, Mobtown Players, where this winner plays through March 8, has a hit of, well, historical proportions on its hands.

It is nice for a change that a production meets and exceeds the expectations set up by the media hype which surrounds it.  Six Dead Queens has been on my radar for more than six months, a gargantuan amount of publicity time for a local production.  I've gotten subtle messages – little subscript lines at the end of emails; overt messages – several press releases and art quality photos; and the play is everywhere – posters, postcards at all the local theatres and eateries.  And now, at last it has opened, and all of the "ado" was actually about something!  Director Erin Riley (known to local audiences for her star turn in Fat Pig last season) shows that her talents lie on both sides of the spotlight – she has directing, design and acting credits of significance on her resume.  That she has talent is really indisputable, but what really makes this production work far beyond being good is her drive and passion for the piece.  It seems her exposure and subsequent love for this play started several years ago when she saw it in Britain while studying theatre there.  From then on it became her personal mission to see that it make its way across the pond to Yankee shores.  And boy, are we lucky that she chose to bring it here!  Everything about the production screams quality of a professional scale, from the creative direction to the lavish setting and costumes to the marvelous cast of women.

Ms. Riley is clearly no fool when it comes to getting what she knows needs to be on stage.  And she has surrounded herself with a top notch staff.  Much kudos goes to her executive producer, Y. Maria Welch and her publicity people, Amy Thacker and Karen Moul.  I can't recall the last time a local show had this much on the street recognition, nor the comfort of an opening night sell out weeks in advance.  Part of that publicity machine is also the lovely portraits of the actors and play done by Will Kirk. Then there are the production values of a caliber rarely if ever seen at this level of theatre, and certainly a new benchmark for the Mobtown Players.  The setting, a compact bedroom/sitting room fit for six queens at once – dominated by a hilarious and elegant bed that is WAY beyond queen or king sized – is designed by Laurie Brandon.  Carefully appointed in well approximated period furniture, the set also benefits from some lovely stenciling (by Tiger Torre) and some brilliant projections (by Laurie Brandon and Justin Thillman).  Mr. Thillman also designed the quaint, regal lighting.  To complete the look, the visually stunning costumes are designed by Tori Walker, who is a master of period costumes full of rich textured fabrics.  I have seen – no exaggeration- less quality on Broadway.  The costumes are fully appointed with hand beading, jewelry (by Denise Davis) and an array of hats (designed by Tina Patterson).  Rounding out this wonderfully collaborative staff are choreographer Stephanie Ranno and fight choreographer Melissa McGinley.  It is hard to describe in words the level of true theatrical collaboration that is evident in this production.  Indeed it represents that intangible "it" thing that separates the good from the great.

All of this technical know how and expertise would mean almost nothing without a script and cast to back it up.  The Foursight Theatre Company in Britain came up with this concept: the six wives of Henry the Eighth have been sentenced to spend eternity together in one room, sharing one bed, and waking each morning to argue about which of them is the true queen.  All six put up viable arguments, but ultimately come to the conclusion that they are all valuable and that old Henry is the scumbag of British history – fame and achievement aside.  What is truly great about this show is that you can go in cold, knowing nothing about it, and come away with a cursory knowledge of six truly great women, but you never feel like you are at a history lecture.  And, gentlemen, this is the rare "girl power" piece that we can all attend and leave feeling ok about being a man and not fearing for our genitals on the way home.  No, this piece is wisely both ultra-feminist and ultra-humanist.  I won't give away how poor Inflatable Henry comes into play here, but I will say that as a man, I can report that he gets what he deserves (and I wouldn't have minded helping the girls do what they do, either)!  Best of all, there are delightful bits of anachronism throughout the play that give it a modern feel and also help us make more universal connections – Jane Seymour, third queen, laments that she was "voted off Dancing with the Stars last season," while others breathe sighs of relief that the likes of Paris Hilton and Britney Spears make their notoriety pale in comparison, and there are many other allusions to modern pop culture (a Star Wars pose was my personal favorite).  And any really British cultural references are cleverly explained in the projections which appear over the bed.

But the cast…oh the cast!  Readers often write to me for an explanation about what I mean when I refer to the "Ensemble Acting" in a play.  It is, I suppose, another of those really indefinable things, but I can say that a superb example of it is currently onstage at Mobtown.  I haven't seen a company this tight in months.  The six ladies who are the titular queens represent four actresses I've seen before and two completely new to me.  All six give what I suspect will be career defining performances.

Virginia Weeks, as Catherine of Aragon, gives a cheekily dignified performance full of royal pomposity.  Her accent is Latin, but hilariously so, and her whole physicality is both a tribute and a parody.  And what comic timing!  She has a wonderful bit that involves a prop and a, um, specific part of her lady parts…  Then there is Stephanie Ranno, an actress I've long admired – good no matter what she's doing – as Anne Boleyn, the second wife, famous for having six fingers on one hand, a rumored third nipple and mostly for having her head chopped off.  True, she did give us England's most important ruler, Elizabeth I, but I digress.  Ms. Ranno's accent is pitch perfect, and as always her timing is impeccable.  But what really separates this performance from her pervious ones is her constant attention to detail and nuance.  Within even a single turn of phrase, she can show us an Anne that is a bitch, a wise woman, and a razor sharp wit.

Self-appointed purity in a corset, Jane Seymour, the third wife, is played with snooty glee by Melissa McGinley.  Her large expressive eyes and her overtly dainty ways gives off as much character as her well-executed lines, allowing us to be amused and annoyed by her often at once.  Her physical approach to the role is appropriately over the top and great fun, but never at the expense or overshadowing the others.  Anne of Cleves, Germanic fourth wife to Henry, is played with a mischievous eye and a blistering delivery by Kristen Zwobot.  Man, is she funny, even when she is in the background!  Her accent, though thick, is entirely understandable and her body language is a laugh out loud funny.

Hannah Marr, playing the youthful, somewhat slutty fifth wife, Katherine Howard, manages to bring a fun bawdiness to the role, but fleshes it out nicely when the script reveals that Katherine wasn't so much a tramp, but rather a girl who enjoyed her sexuality, and would have saved it all for one man who she truly loved.  Miss Marr, a senior at Loch Raven High School, shows the finesse of a seasoned actress, and uses her youth to the advantage of the character only – you would NEVER guess she is not an adult actress.  Finally, with thick brogue and Scottish brio, Kerry Brady brings a high level of energy and panache to the role of Catherine Parr, Henry's last wife.  Knowing that Parr virtually raised all of the other wives' children, published books under her own name in the 16^th century, and was wealthy beyond compare informs Ms. Brady's excellent interpretation of the least famous of the wives.  She has several moments, but she is particularly hilarious during a sequence that ends with her bellowing, "I am a Highlander!"

As if thick accents and extremely physical, non-stop performances weren't enough, these ladies must also sing several songs, all in the madrigal style of the period.  Under Michael Tan's musical direction (and keyboards, along with James Gummer on percussion and Laura Weatherington on flute) the songs succeed in adding another layer to this sumptuous cake of theatrical delights. 

Taken as a whole, Six Dead Queens succeeds in every way.  There is simply nothing left to chance, and not a weak link in the chain.  But it is the tiniest details, attended to by every member of this company, the wonderfully apparent camaraderie amongst the cast, and the loving, detailed direction by Ms. Riley that truly sets this production apart.  It is, I think, one of those productions that people will talk about for years, some remembering it fondly, other regretting having missed it.  Don't be in the latter group.  Snatch up any remaining tickets for the next two weekends.  Productions this good don't come up that often.

PHOTOS by Will Kirk.  TOP to BOTTOM: The Six Dead Queens: Top Row: Kerry Brady, Stephanie Ranno, Melissa McGinley; Bottom Row: Hannah Marr, Virginia Weeks, and Kristen Zwobot; The Cast with Kerry Brady center; Kerry Brady and Melissa McGinley; Stephanie Ranno and Hannah Marr; The Company.