Review: ELEPHANT AND PIGGIE Play at the Kennedy Center

I was sitting in the Family Theatre at the Kennedy Center and was getting ready to watch Elephant & Piggie' We Are In A Play, and there was a young boy sitting next to me who did NOT want to be there. Crying and screaming, his dad finally took him out, as he calmed down and came back in the show was starting. And for the next 55 minutes, he sat mesmerized at the stage. That is the magic of live theater.

Of course a lot of the magic had to do with Jerry Whiddon's revival of his 2013 Kennedy Center production, which here has a different cast and is getting ready to go out on tour. Caldecott and Emmy award winning author, Mo Willems, adapted his own books for the stage, along with local favorite Deborah Wicks-LaPuma's jaunty score which keeps the kids entertained and even participating along.

As the title character of Piggie, Shayna Blass excels as the loveable swine. Ms. Blass is a very much in demand performer, having just finished an acclaimed run in Rep Stage's Technicolor Life, and here, in a very different role, shows her versatility as an actress. Her big voice (and even bigger hair) is the highlight of the show, something that the adults accompanying the little ones will enjoy a top notch performance.

The other title character, Joe Mallon as Gerald (the elephant), is very lovable in a Seussian-pachyderm sort of way. While Gerald is not sitting on an egg like another lovable elephant, he is very much a tender heart who wants to love and be loved and Mallon exhibits those qualities. The ensemble of "Squirelles" played by Jamie Eacker, Ashleigh King, and Allie Parris, all do a remarkable job as the doo-wop trio with tight harmonies and girl group choreography.

Live theater is so essential to instilling the arts in young people and seeing a top notch production like this at the Kennedy Center is a great way to introduce the arts or continue their appreciation. Just like the little boy sitting next to me, you will be enthralled once the lights go down.

Elephant & Piggie' We Are In A Play, is running through January 3, 2016 at the Kennedy Center Family Theater. Click on the link above for tickets or call the Kennedy Center box office at 202-467-4600.

Photo credits: Teresa Wood

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