Andria Tieman - Page 5

Shakespeare can be a hard sell sometimes. His plays are long, they're frequently hard to understand, and often going to one seems like something you should do, rather than something you want to do. Well, Trinity Rep's production of A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM is the spoonful of sugar that makes the cultural medicine go down. Every detail of the sets and the costumes of this production is so well thought out that they create the perfect mashup of 1980's high school culture, which suits the storyline of the play to a T. After all, so many of Shakespeare's plays are about teenagers in love, why not set them at a prom in the 80's? Similar to Beowulf earlier this season, the cast and crew hold absolutely nothing back and this production is a cascade of color, glitter and Aqua Net with some excellent musical choices that need to be on their own mixtape.

Based on the best-selling book of the same name, THE CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHT-TIME debuted in London in 2012 and went on to win a slew of awards as well as capture the respect of experts in set and lighting design for creating a world that perfectly captures the mind of a hyper-sensitive teen.  There is something so unique and magical about this production that the audience really feels like they are experiencing it, rather than merely viewing.  Compared to the traditional Broadway musical, this is a wholly different type of play that seems at the outset like it shouldn't work, but actually succeeds in surprising and touching ways.

Lillian Hellman's THE CHILDREN'S HOUR is a classic play, which premiered in 1934 and is just as timely and relevant today.  The Gamm's production is a near-flawless retelling of this disturbing story about how much words matter and how the power of a lie can have repercussions far greater than expected.  The intricate and methodical script comes to life under the talents of Madeleine Lambert and Gamm resident actor Karen Carpenter and as two women who run an all-girls boarding school and find themselves with a pupil who seeks to destroy anything that gets in the way of her agenda.

THE MOUNTAINTOP by Katori Hall, reimagines Martin Luther King's last night in a Memphis hotel room with an unexpected amount of humor and some magical realism.  It is daunting to take on the task of humanizing such a larger-than-life figure, but Joe Wilson Jr.'s portrayal is compelling, endearing and perfectly captures both the challenge and the pain that comes with being a public figure called to tackle a seemingly impossible task. This two-person production also stars Mia Ellis as Camae, the hotel maid who delivers coffee to King's room and who quickly becomes a friend and confidant. This is an intimate production that manages to avoid getting too preachy, delivering a night of excellent theatre.

Epic Theatre Company kicks off the new year with a delightful twist on the classic Tennessee Williams play CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF.  Under expert direction from OUT LOUD Theatre's Kira Hawkridge the talented cast bring this complicated story to life with minimal fuss and a strong focus on making the dialogue shine--as it should.

ONCE, the award-winning stage musical based on the award-winning film of the same name, is an obvious addition to Broadway.  Featuring songs written by Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova, who also starred in the film, this production seems like it can't miss.  Unfortunately, despite excellent music and vocal and musical performances from an obviously talented cast, this production's book, by Irish playwright Enda Walsh,  seems to assume that the only people who would be interested in this show are those who have seen the movie.  Therefore, there is next-to-no character development, and random scenes inserted that make no sense to anyone not intimately familiar with the source material.  Since this is a show about music and musicians, one would think that story goes out the window then in favor of reworking this as almost a musical revue, rather than a traditional narrative.  That would have worked, since the story is a sweetly simple one and doesn't require much, but the choice was made instead to shoehorn in extra scenes of dialogue, most of which take far longer and meader far more than necessary to advance the plot, and wind up creating something that is just dull and lazy.

James Franco and Me is an idea that could only have come from the brain of Kevin Broccoli.  Set in a hospital waiting room as the protagonist waits for his father to die, this play becomes a kind of meta commentary on life, celebrity, loss, failure and friendship.  Featuring 13 different actors as James Franco with each production completely unrehearsed, there's almost a sinister 'what if it all goes wrong' feeling that the audience has.  That also adds to the drama in a completely unexpected way, especially when the viewer gets completely wrapped up in the performances and then reminds herself that these two people, on this night, have never done this before, and it seems seamless.  One of the things that still gives me chills is the thought that when you're viewing a live production, the performers and the audience are sharing a moment that no one else will ever get to experience.  Broccoli has blown that up into 13 moments, and it's hard to not feel a little frustrated to have missed out on 12 of those.

THE FLU SEASON is a darkly funny, incredibly touching and thoroughly strange production.  At its core, it's a simple story about love and relationships. The setting of a mental hospital, with additional commentary from two men known as Prologue and Epilogue, who are dueling over creating the story as it unfolds for the audience, complicates things and interjects unexpected twists and turns.  Burbage Theatre Company has never been afraid to take on the surreal and strange, and with The Flu Season, they have proven once again that odd little stories are in very good hands.  Under the expert direction of Wendy Overly, this simple premise becomes wholly immersive and heartbreaking.

As a theatre reviewer, I have the privilege of watching all kinds of productions. Everything from Shakespeare to locally-written original works is up for grabs. Occasionally, though, one needs to bring in an expert, which is what I opted to do for my review of The Final Voyage of X Minus One at AS220's Black Box theatre. It's not that this production is hard to understand, or less entertaining to those who are not intimately familiar with sci-fi, but genre works tend to have a lot of subtle nods and winks that may go over the layperson's head, and I was concerned about missing something important. So I brought in a ringer, in the form of my geeky husband Ryan Michney, and I've included his thoughts below.

Once again Festival Ballet has put together an Up Close on Hope fall program that is both beautiful and exciting. This year the focus was on shorter pieces, many choreographed by resident choreographer Viktor Plotnikov, as well as Yury Yanowsky and resident dancer Ty Parmenter. While the short pieces are mostly very strong, at times they almost feel too short. Such is the mark of fine performance, the Up Close on Hope series always leaves one wanting more.

ONE FLEA SPARE is a play with a deceptively simple premise, but one that becomes almost overwhelmingly complex as secrets are revealed, motivations get murky and time takes its toll on people. Mr. and Mrs. Snelgrave are upper class Londoners during the plague. As they're quarantined in their home, the acquire two additional people who are then forced to stay in the Snelgrave home to avoid spreading the disease. Morse, a young girl, and Bunce, a retired sailor shake up the staid Snelgrave dynamic and as the four of them are forced to remain in close quarters, class distinctions break down and skeletons come out of the closet. This is a very spare production, set in a black box theatre in the round, but once that is made incredibly compelling through exceptional performances and tight, complex writing. What few props and costumes there are become larger than life and perfectly communicate the heightened and somewhat frantic circumstances the characters find themselves in. By stripping away all the distractions, the performances create an intimacy with the audience that is palpable and electric.

APPROPRIATE is a show that manages to be both genuinely funny, but also somewhat hard to watch.  At its core, it's about family, legacy and secrets, but it manages to become something much larger and more complicated and messy than that.  Author Branden Jacobs-Jenkins manages to punctuate moments of extreme discomfort with the perfect injection of levity to avoid this turning into something that is exclusively difficult to watch, and excellent performances from Trinity resident actors Phyllis Kay, Fred Sullivan Jr. and Angela Brazil keep the dark narrative compelling even when it's squirmingly uncomfortable.

BILLY ELLIOT, the musical based on the movie of the same name, follows the development of a dance prodigy in Northern England during the 1984 miner's strike.  The story examines the juxtaposition between the working class world of mining and the posh world of dancing, along with traditional masculine ideals and family sacrifice.  The musical version features some truly fantastic dancing and standout vocal performances that create a show that is both dazzling and heartwarming to watch.

Arcadia is considered by many to be one of the best plays in the English language and it manages to walk the line between humor and tragedy very well all while maintaining delightful and rapid reversals of fortune punctuated by moments of real insight. It's interesting to watch a play that is at its core about research and learning, but still come away entertained rather than feeling lectured to.  The Gamm has done admirably taking on this potentially daunting work, and though there are a few hiccups and missteps, the overall production is well executed and thought-provoking.

The musical WICKED is officially 12 years old, but it isn't showing its age in the slightest.  If anything, in the current political climate, the far away Land of OZ feels more real than ever, and the political issues that drive Elphaba to become The Wicked Witch, draw a spooky parallel with current news stories.  That's not to say that this show is all doom and gloom, but rather just an incredibly smart prequel to the much-loved Wizard of Oz with some of the catchiest and most powerful songs ever.  Marry an excellent story with a phenomenally talented cast, fantastic sets and a powerful orchestra and you have a production that continues to amaze even through multiple viewings.  The national tour of Wicked has resulted in nearly 17 million people watching this show, and it's a pretty safe bet that most of those people would like to see it again.

The thought of seeing a dramatic version of the epic poem Beowulf may make many people cringingly remember the sweaty days of undergrad and trying to parse meaning out of Olde English while being lorded over by a condescending professor and at least one overly enthusiastic classmate who won't shut up about it. Or maybe that's just me. The good news is that Tritnity Rep's production of BEOWULF: A THOUSAND YEARS OF BAGGAGE is not only hilarious, but 100% accessible even to those who have never read, and maybe don't want to read, the book.  This play is half academic lecture--but funny, and half manic musical fever dream, which come together beautifully to create a spectacle of light and sound.  Punctuated by dramatic, towering sets and scowling warrior maidens, it feels like Mad Max meets Bladerunner set in a wholly new dystopia.  This is a play that is fully immersive and unlike anything else out there.  It's so exciting to know the basic plot of a story, but still be surprised with what comes next, and this production is unexpected and unique in the best way.

Theatre By The Sea finished out an exceptional season with a heart-warming, hilarious and perfectly executed SISTER ACT. This production is the cherry on top of an incredible season full of phenomenal performances, stunning costumes and mind-blowing sets.  With SISTER ACT, Theatre By The Sea firmly establishes themselves a destination for theatre on par with the best in the region.  This a show with heart and soul that will stay with the audience long after the last curtain drops.

After last year's uproarious The Boys of St. Matthew's Present Tartuffe, Epic Theatre Company's boys are back in town with THE BOYS OF ST. MATTHEW'S PRESENT LES LIAISONES DANGEREUSES.  For those who may be unfamiliar with the premise--the boys of St. Matthew's are a pack of Catholic school boys with a penchant for performing raunchy theatre, despite being told by their head of school, Father Frank, that they are not allowed to.  The result is a play-within-a-play jammed with jokes and visual gags that will leave audiences gasping for air between guffaws.

It's a bit of a risky proposition to take on a classic story that is a huge part of most people's childhoods. Do you try to change it up? Do you try to keep it true to the movie or book? How do you capture the wonder that a child would feel seeing it for the first time?  I don't know exactly how one does that, but Theatre by the Sea certainly managed it handily with their new production of THE WIZARD OF OZ.  Even a story as well-known as The Wizard of Oz seemed fresh and new but still perfectly timeless.  Fantastic performances, amazing vocal talents and elaborate sets and special effects take this world of imagination and bring it right to life.

The first offering in Epic Theatre Company's Summer of Sex is a hilarious, unexpectedly touching and no holds barred original production called THE BEDROOM PLAYS.  This series of ten short works gets increasingly racy with each offering, and the members of the audience have the option to tag themselves out in between each, if they feel like they can't handle the next one.  Those that make it all the way through proudly get to share the social media hashtag #10for10.  While some plays in this collection are stronger than others, as a whole it deserves praise for taking chances, equal opportunity nudity and an incredibly brave and talented cast who make every joke shine.