Review Roundup: Immersive CARRIE THE MUSICAL Opens at La Mirada Theatre

La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts, Jack W. Batman, Bruce Robert Harris and the Transfer Group present the Los Angeles premiere of the all-new, reimagined, environmental and completely immersive theater production of the legendary musical CARRIE THE MUSICAL. Opening night was March 18.

Based on the acclaimed novel by Stephen King, this production reunites the original creative team and included a revised book by Lawrence D. Cohen (screenwriter of the classic film), lyrics by Academy Award winner Dean Pitchford (Fame, Footloose), and music by Academy Award winner Michael Gore (Fame, Terms of Endearment).

Directed by Brady Schwind, and with choreography by Lee Martino, the cast features Emily Lopez as Carrie White, Misty Cotton as Margaret White, Kayla Parker as Sue Snell, Jon Robert Hall as Tommy Ross, Valerie Rose Curiel as Chris Hargensen, Jenelle Lynn Randall as Miss Gardner, Garrett Marshall as Billy Nolan, Bryan Dobson as Mr. Stephens and Reverend Bliss, Michael Starr as George Dawson, Adante Carter as Dale "Stokes" Ullman, Ian Littleworth as Freddy "The Beak" Holt, Kimberly Ann Steele as Helen Shyres, Rachel Farr as Norma Watson, Teya Patt as Frieda Jason with Carly Bracco, Lyle Colby Mackston, Kevin Patrick Doherty, Chris Meissner and Amy Segal.

Taunted by her peers at school and terrorized by her religious zealot mother at home, CARRIE THE MUSICAL tells the haunting tale of 17-year-old Carrie White. Lonely and tormented, Carrie discovers she has a shocking secret power. But when a prank at her high school prom goes horribly wrong, everyone finds just how powerful a secret can be.

Let's see what the critics had to say...

Don Grigware, BroadwayWorld: Onstage Carrie The Musical brings out so much more. It really zeroes in on the problem of bullying among teenagers and shows the psychological consequences...Hardly your ordinary seating arrangement, but it definitely puts you smack dab in the middle of the playing field. You are there, feeling what the characters are feeling, almost a part of the action...Stephen Gifford's scenic design for the entire show is awesome as is Schwind's staging of the actors, who are literally everywhere within the space, putting audience at arm's length for every experience, good and evil...Lopez makes a wonderfully smart Carrie, never overplaying, but coming to terms with herself and others in a completely natural manner. Cotton offers a truly remarkable portrait of Margaret who really loves her daughter but clings to the bible to dictate her every move.

Jordan Riefe, The Hollywood Reporter: Determined to rewrite the show's bloody history, La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts has revived it yet again, this time with immersive scenic design and innovative staging. Now if they could just do something about that score...In the titular role, Lopez demonstrates full physical and emotional commitment, employing a dynamic range in her singing that serves Carrie well. She's strong when she needs to be but also vulnerable and wary, especially in her scenes with Misty Cotton (Miss Saigon) as her homicidal evangelical mother. Cotton approaches her part with the seriousness of Lady Macbeth, pairing her rich though sometimes raspy mezzo voice with Lopez's soprano in "And Eve Was Weak," her biblical explanation for what happened in the shower...If a musical is to be judged by its music first and foremost, then no matter how smart and innovative Stephen Gifford's scenic design, or how authentically acted or symphonically sung by the cast, Carrie will always be hamstrung by its score...Under Brady Schwind's superlative direction and in the hands of his devoted and determined cast, it may never see a better staging.

David C. Nichols, Los Angeles Times: Never underestimate the power of stagecraft. Case in point: "Carrie: The Musical," now receiving a mind-blowing immersive production at La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts...Set designer Stephen Gifford outdoes himself, including a breathtaking coup at the climactic prom reveal...Moreover, Schwind has assembled an agile, avid ensemble, starting with the luminous Emily Lopez as its benighted heroine and a superb Misty Cotton as her psychotic parent. Although Lopez's resemblance to the young Vanessa Redgrave is inadvertently distracting, she gives a fiercely committed performance, and Cotton meets her beat for beautifully sung beat...However, "Carrie" is a better musical than before, but it's still not a great one...That will scarcely matter to audiences craving a full-throttle theatrical experience -- Cirque du Soleil meets Disneyland, with pig's blood -- and musical theater cultists should flock.

Jason Niedle, Orange County Register: "Carrie the Musical," in its local premiere at La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts, is a sensational production -- yet not because of sensationalism...Schwind and choreographer Lee Martino make full and brilliant use of the play itself and of a superb cast of 19...At every turn, "Carrie the Musical" puts the angst of teendom on full display, its climax a stunning, bloody explosion of chaos and mayhem. La Mirada's intimate staging is at once gripping, horrifying and beautifully moving. It's also one of the best shows you'll ever see anywhere -- one not to be missed...Lopez is a gawky, delicate Carrie...As a singer, she's no Broadway belter, and thank goodness for that -- her down-to-earth style suits the show and its unshowy songs. Misty Cotton is well cast as Carrie's mom Margaret. She and Lopez are both slight, fair and have long, curly hair. In songs like "Evening Prayers" and "When There's No One," Cotton captures every ounce of Margaret's fervor and her fire-and-brimstone intensity yet also evokes our sympathy.

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Photo Credit: Jason Niedle (tethos.com)

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