A Doll’s House @ Playhouse Square, August 8- August 27

Review by Laura Kennelly

Photo by  Bob Perkoski

Welcome to the cozy parlour of Thorwald and Nora Helmer, two citizens evidently enjoying a conventional, prosperous marriage in 1879 Norway. Cleveland’s five-year-old Mamaí Theatre Company takes advantage of the “Helen” Lab Theatre’s close quarters to turn Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House into an engrossing and intimate drama about marriage and choices.

Take a seat near the living area and watch as Nora sets it on fire (metaphorically speaking, of course) when she realizes that the childish dream she’s been living has turned her into a creature she can no longer be. Yes, the play’s been claimed by feminists, but it’s that and more. It also shows the duties and pressures social assumptions place on both men and women.

Director Christine McBurney’s evident attention to pace makes life at the Helmer’s move swiftly, at times humorously, as the Helmers and their friends celebrate Christmas and then fall apart the day after. This is the version “modernized” (in the 1930s) for American audiences by Thornton (Our Town Wilder), and even though language has changed (yet again), the story still rings true.

When we first meet her, Nora Helmer seems a perfect airhead. Anjanette Hall’s Nora, juggling parcels and popping sweets into her mouth at a furious pace, sweeps into the living room like a scatterbrained beauty afflicted with a serious shopping disorder. She’s assisted into the house  (packages, toys, and all) by Anna (Mary Alice Beck), the stalwart servant who manages the (always) off-stage children as well as everything else in the house.

Nora’s only real job is to take care of husband Thorwald (Abraham Adams). Adams’ Thorwald, while sometimes an outrageously drunk mansplainer (in a delicious after-the-party scene), manages to show a sympathetic, vulnerable presence not always seen in other productions of this play.

Life begins to get complicated when Nora’s old friend Christina Linden (Rachel Lee Kolis) drops by, asking for help finding a job. As Christina, Kolis convincingly manages her character’s alternating confidence and desperation.

Next Nils Krogstad (John Busser) drops in and attempts to call in a favor that Nora owes him. Now we learn that she’s been keeping a big secret from her husband, one she justifies by claiming she’s protecting not only his health, but his ego. Meanwhile, family friend Dr. Rank (a charming Tim Keo who sports a dashing long-haired look) continues his role as Nora’s best friend and confidant (her husband simply condescends to her).

It’s a small, first-rate cast that makes each character live and the observer care about them. I had a little trouble at the drama’s conclusion when Hall’s voice and demeanor switched from playing Nora as a child to showing her as a lecturing, door-slamming woman. It was as if Cate Blanchett suddenly replaced Kate Hudson. The change would have come, but in time, not so dramatically, so quickly.

The beautiful set allowed good views from both sides of the L-shaped seating area and costumes and props contributed greatly to the Victorian-era effect. Kudos to scenic designer Don McBride, costume designer Kristine Davies, lighting designer Marcus Dana, sound designer Richard Ingraham, and properties designer Monica Plunkett.

Bottom Line: An excellent production in a perfect venue that should delight just about anyone--even those who are afraid of classic Norwegian drama or establishment feminism. This is neither--it’s just great theatre.

For tickets go to playhousesquare.org or 216-241-6000.

City of Angels

City of Angels @ Beck Center, July 7-August 13, 2017

Review by Laura Kennelly

Photo by Kathy Sandham

The Beck Center’s ambitious summer musical, City of Angels, wins a few, loses a few. Directed by Scott Spence, this clever and comic Tony Award-winning musical (1990) celebrates, literally, two storylines at a time and, much of the time, this works.

What works best? The music, thanks to a talented cast and an offstage orchestra directed by Larry Goodpaster, the score by Cy Coleman with lyrics by David Zippel, comes across loud (but not too loud) and clear. When Mallory, a gorgeous curvey blonde played by Madeline Krucek, sings the sultry “Lost and Found,” we see why guys might like to find her. Songs reminiscent of the era include “What You Don’t Know About Women” (amusingly presented by Leslie Andrews as Gabby and Brittni Shambaugh Addison as Oolie), and “You Can Always Count on Me” (with Addison this time playing two parts one against the other as Donna and Oolie).

Adding to the atmosphere, the Angel City 4 (a smartly attired, tuneful quartet composed of Steven Huynh, Erin Niebuhr, Brianna O’Boyle and Robert Pierce) voice stylized period pop songs, usually during scene shifts.

Other players who were everything from gangsters to cops to good guys included Greg Violand, Leslie Andrews, Woodie Anderson, Brian Altman, Carlos Cruz, Sonia Perez, Paul Hoffman, John Stuehr, Michael Knobloch, Kyle Burnett, Mike Karban, Ryan Mayer and Simon Sedmak.

Ensemble performers were Emma Beekman, Sara Bogomolny, Lanie Davis, Shaun Dillon, Richie Gagen, Ines Joris, Benjamin Mowrer, Abby Riley, Emily Shipley, Leah Smith and John Webb.

Since City of Angels is a musical tribute to film noir, a genre which was the rage in the 1940s (think Bogie and Bacall or Sidney Greenstreet — Maltese Falcon, etc.). If those names mean nothing to you then you are likely going to have a harder time following the storyline created by Larry Gelbart than if you remember the old -chool “hard-boiled” fedora-wearing detective who is always getting beaten up, but somehow survives.

So what works less well? The storyline can get confusing because it’s a double plot concerning “reality” and “reel-ality” at the same time on the same set. We see script writer Stine (a comically sympathetic Jamie Koeth) at his typewriter (that should be of interest to those who have never seen one!) as he tries to transfer his story to the screen. As he does so, the story itself plays out on the opposite side of the stage, showing Stone, the detective he’s writing about (good tough-guy portrayal by Rob Albrecht) acting out Stine’s story.

There’s a voice-over (Albrecht) that guides some of the action as the detective “tells” his story, but as Spence says in the “Director’s Note,” following the story offers “challenges” since many of the parts are double-cast and if characters veer off their section of the stage then it’s hard to tell who they are supposed to be.

One minor (and funny) difficulty the actors had, which warms my ex-smoker’s heart, was in convincingly smoking cigarettes — a staple in film noir. But it’s just as well that flirting with a cigarette (whether waving or lighting) is becoming a lost art.

The striking Mackey Theatre set, designed by Jordan Janota, makes use of three panels that spell out “Hollywood” in huge letters. As the scenes shift, projected photos shift as well, instantly changing the background.

Bottom Line: Of the lines heard clearly, many were funny, the play is witty, the “rewrites” are cute, and I’d have enjoyed catching even more of the patter tossed helter-skelter across the stage. Understanding what’s going on and who is who is not really necessary — just relax and let it wash over you — you’ll be fine just basking in the music.

Tickets can be purchased at beckcenter.org or 216-521-2540.

Rock of Ages

Rock of Ages @ Cain Park, June 8-25

Review by Laura Kennelly

Photo/Steve Wagner

Douglas F. Bailey as Lonnie reminds the characters that this is a play, after all!

If your teen soundtrack included 1980s rock and you loved concerts with blasting music and bright lights, then you’ll feel awesome at Rock of Ages in the Alma Theatre.  Director Joanna May Hunkins and a lively ensemble cast pay homage to the good old days. Those who have been missing hearing “Anyway You Want It,” “Can’t Fight this Feeling,” “I Hate Myself for Loving You,” or any of the over thirty tunes on the song list can sit back and cruise down memory lane.

We learn most of the paper-thin storyline from Lonny (Douglas F. Bailey). Bailey, energetic and comic,  serves as both narrator and character. He steered us along musical byways via well-delivered (i.e. I could understand every word) remarks both funny and serious.

The action turns on whether or not LA Sunset Strip bar owner Dennis Dupree (gravel-voiced and kindly Philip Michael Carroll) can be forced to close his bar. Pushing to clean up the area  are developer Hertz Klinemann (a distinguished Kevin Kelly) and his son Franz (a shamelessly comic David Turner, who camps it up and has one of the funniest lines in the story--which I won’t share because revealing it would spoil the fun).

Yes, there’s also a love story. Drew, a feckless lad who yearns to make it big as a performer (played by a likeable Shane Lonergan) and Sherrie (played by powerhouse vocalist Lauren Berry) find, lose, find, etc. each other over the course of the musical.

Others in the story include Neely Gevaart (as city planner Regina, who makes a comic joke of her name), Connor Bogar O’Brien (as Stacee Jax, sexy rock star and rat with women), Trinidad Snider (as Justice, likeable owner of a “gentleman’s club”), and Jack Keith (the bumbling Mayor).

For the “big numbers” (and there were plenty of them) ensemble members Natalie Girard, Alec Chock Irion, Brooke Turner, and Meredith Zahn danced and sang as did band singers Tony Heffner and Grace Hunt. A small band, conducted by Jordan Cooper played from an upper level behind the main stage.

Bottom Line: This show might not be the best choice for the intimate environs of the Alma Theatre. Bright lights in the eyes, plus blaring sound, distracted from some very good instrumental and vocal efforts. On a larger stage all that energy would have worked better. But if the 1980s and 1990s are part of your scene, then rock on! All is awesome and bodacious! Oh, and if the ticket office asks if you want to “Sit up close,” be sure you know what that means. Opening night we had some very good sports sitting, basically, onstage. Props to them!

ROA_finale:

Lonny the Narrator (center, Douglas F. Bailey II) ties up all the loose ends in Cain Park’s regional premiere of ROCK OF AGES directed by Joanna May Hunkins that runs through June 25 in the Alma Theater. Showtimes are Thursdays-Saturdays at 7pm, Sundays at 2pm. Cain Park 216-371-3000. Photo/Steve Wagner

Really, Really @ The Beck Center, June 2, 2017

Really, Really @ Beck Center for the Arts, June 2-July 2, 2017

Review by Laura Kennelly

Olivia Scicolone and Molly Israel, photo by Andy Dudik

 

Getting drunk, casual sex, self-interest, lying, manipulation all play a part in Paul Downs Colaizzo’s Really, Really, the latest Beck Center Studio Theater offering. The play, which premiered at the Signature Theatre in Arlington, Virginia in 2012, is directed by Donald Carrier.  It’s pretty much a “He said/She said” story where the truth may not ever be fully figured out. Both major witnesses, in other words, the couple who may or may not have had sex, sex which may or may not have been consensual, have reasons to lie.  

Davis, (the He, played by Daniel Scott  Telford) and Leigh (the She, played  by Molly Israel) were so drunk (or so they claim) neither is truly sure what happened the night of the riotous party in question. Other people at the party can’t be sure either since they were also drunk and were not in Davis’ bedroom with the two. That doesn’t stop them from forming opinions based on their own self-interest.

Leigh’s fiancé Jimmy (an earnest Randy Dierkes), her political-reformer roomie Grace (Rachel Lee Kolis), and Jimmy’s pals Cooper (Chris Richards) and Johnson (Jack Schmitt) all seem familiar college stereotypes as they try (or indifferently avoid trying) to sort out what happened.

It’s only in the second act, when Leigh’s boisterous sister Hayley (a delightfully over-the-top Olivia Scicolone) swirls into the story like a trailer-park tornado, that hidden aspects of Leigh’s character appear. Hayleys’ appearance instantly perks up the action and one has to wonder if Leigh’s goal of getting a college education, a rich husband, and all that is really worth the price she is prepared to pay. Hayley seems to be living a more honest, full, and generous life.

Cameron Caley Michalak’s cleverly designed set for the Studio Theater employs a turntable in the corner that creates instant changes as the action moves between “Her” place and “His.” Stage manager Jamie R. Benetto, costume designer Jenniver Sparano, sound designer Angie Hayes, and lighting designer Trad A. Burns, all caught the “student apartment” vibe.

Bottom Line: We may never know what happened, but it’s sure fun to discuss later. While it’s set in college, it would be a mistake to see it as an indictment of “today’s generation.” It could happen anywhere hormones and alcohol, ambition and selfishness overwhelm common sense and kindness.

Really, Really runs through July 2, 2017 at the Beck Center for the Arts. For tickets or information go to  beckcenter.org or call 216-521-2540 x 10. Beck Center for the Arts is located at 17801 Detroit Avenue in Lakewood.

Photo credit::

Forever Plaid @ Playhouse Square, Hanna Theatre, May 5-21, 2017

Review by Laura Kennelly

The Plaids (actors, from left to right, James Penca, Mack Shirilla, Andrew Kotzen and Mickey Patrick Ryan) 

Great Lakes Theater signs off the current season with Forever Plaid, a Stuart Ross and James Raitt musical directed by Victoria Bussert. It’s a sweetly nostalgic look at 1950s pop music and early 60s quartets (Four Freshman, etc.) through the eyes of The Plaids, four young men who were on their way (maybe) to fame and fortune in 1963. Alas, they died when their car collided with a bus full of Catholic school girls (on their way to the Ed Sullivan Show to see that new group, The Beatles, ).

But wait! Here they are, each bearing a lit candle down the stairs as they enter the Hanna Theatre with a stage waiting in readiness for them (each mic covered with a tiny white shroud), an audience looking at them, expecting a show. Is it heaven or hell or purgatory or merely a waiting station before the next stage?

Doesn’t matter. It’s meant to be a funny premise and it is, as the lads don’t seem fraught with grief over their ironic end (although they are more than a little bit annoyed).  All the quartet wants to do is perform the concert they were enroute to present. And that’s a great excuse for a show!

And perform they do, much to our delight. Francis  (Mack Shirilla), Sparky (Andrew Kotzen), Jim (Mickey Patrick Ryan), and Smudge (James Penca) croon and belt over two dozen hits that rocked every car radio and school dance back in the day. Shirilla (as Francis) strongly serves a pivotal role as the one who consistently urges his friends to seize the moment. Penca’s comic Smudge overcomes his initial reluctance to even walk onstage and by the end belts out (in his uniquely deep bass voice) that paen to heavy labor, “Sixteen Tons.” Kotzen and Ryan add light, romantic, and even comic touches in turn. Just for laughs (and nostalgia) one sequence involves recreating the Ed Sullivan Show in approximately three minutes. (Imagine “America’s Got Talent” in three minutes and you got it.)

Featured golden oldies include, “Cry,” “Lady of Spain,” “Three Coins in a Fountain,” “Love is a Many Splendored Thing,” “Heart and Soul” (with Shirilla on piano and a little help from an audience member who raised her hand when asked “Who knows this?”), “Dream Along with Me,” and...oh just think of a hit song from that era and it’s likely in the show.

The numbers are delightfully choreographed by Gregory Daniels (especially one where plungers  become mic stands). Matthew Webb (conductor/piano) and Timothy Powell (bass) provide accompaniment from one corner of the stage.

Bottom Line: In the end we never know exactly what happened to the lads after their show, but we do know we just shared a relaxing look back at another musical time. Recommended for light summer fare and a pleasant evening out.

Forever Plaid continues through May 21. For tickets go to GreatLakesTheater.org or call 216-640-8869.

Photo: Roger Mastroianni

Something Rotten!

Something Rotten! @ Playhouse Square, April 26-May 14

Review by Laura Kennelly

‘Tis a happy occasion for the provinces (AKA Cleveland, to put it in Elizabethan style) when [Broadway] Royalty visits. And, make no mistake, Something Rotten! offers a very very happy occasion--it’s one of the best new musicals around. The National Touring Company of  Something Rotten! (the Broadway show closed January 1st) brings rich and silly merriment to the Connor Palace.

This musical, directed and choreographed by Casey Nicholaw, offers light-hearted fun perfect for spring. Yes, there’s satire, but set so far in the past that no one will mind (not even English teachers) having a bit of fun at The Bard of Avon’s expense. As the first extravagant production number jokes, “Welcome to the Renaissance where everything is new.”  Based on appearances (lush, witty, totally extravagant costumes, clever adaptable sets), there’s nothing second rate about this touring hit.

If you love Shakespeare, and hate musicals, you’ll love it; if you hate Shakespeare and love musicals, you’ll love it (one of the best songs is “God, I Hate Shakespeare”). If you love both (hand raised here), then you are in heaven.

Neither the iconic Renaissance bard nor the musical theatre culture escapes loving mockery. When Shakespeare puts on a show, it’s in the park (as in popular community productions today featuring “Shakespeare in the Park”). When the brothers discuss writing a “A Musical,” enough well-crafted allusions to famous musicals seep in (sometimes just a chord or two, sometimes a set or a light) that everyone will likely recognize favorites.

The premise sounds as if it might inflict serious historicity upon us. Fear not, facts are few, but it’s wonderful to consider the possibilities: What if amongst Shakespeare’s rivals (and he did have many) were two bumbling brothers, Nick and Nigel Bottom, who ran into a soothsayer named Nostradamus who told them the next new stage fad in Renaissance England would be musicals?

Turns out he’s not the best of soothsayers, but he does have a vision--of sorts. That’s the plot and the inspiration that leads to a riot of silliness and some pretty catchy tunes by Wayne Kirkpatrick and Karey Kirkpatrick (who perhaps drew on life experience as a brother-duo writing team when creating the show’s Bottom brothers). For a look, see [http://www.broadway.com/videos/156167/video-go-behind-the-music-of-something-rotten-with-karey-wayne-kirkpatrick/]

Three key members of the cast were in the Broadway show (Adam Pascal as Shakespeare, Rob McClure as Nick Bottom, and Josh Grisetti as Nigel Bottom).  With rockstar swagger Pascal’s Shakespeare flaunts and struts his way through crowds of fainting fangirls. And his eyes? Well, David Bowie has nothing on Pascal for eyeliner. Tres chic.

Other players include  Maggie Lakis as Nick’s much-put upon wife, Bea; Blake Hammond as the befuddled Nostradamus (related to, but not the famous prophet “Nostradamus”);  Autumn Hurlbert as gifted poet Nigel’s sweetly girlish love, Portia; Scott Cote as the pompous Puritan Brother Jeremiah, and Jeff Brooks as unofficial producer/backer Shylock.

Kudos, too, to Nick Rashad Burroughs, as the minstrel who strolls onstage to open the show and welcome us to the Renaissance “where everything is new.”

Something Rotten doesn’t stint on special numbers, well-executed dancing, and spunk. Much of the show’s merriment is carried by what seems to be hundreds of different characters, all played by the quick-stepping and enthusiastic ensemble. The ensemble cast includes Baldwin Wallace University’s Lucy Anders, class of 2015, as well as Kyle Nicholas Anderson, Daniel Beeman, Mandie Black, Pierce Cassedy, Drew Franklin, Juliane Godfrey, Leah Hofmann, Kristie Kerwin, Ralph Meitzler, Patrick John Moran, Joel Newsome, Con O’Shea-Creal, and Tonya Thompson.

Praise also to those who see to the little details that make things work: Scott Pask (scenic design), Gregg Barnes (costume design), Jeff Croiter (lighting design), Peter Hylenski (sound design), Josh Marquette (hair design), Phil Reno (music director/conductor), Glen Kelly (arrangements), Larry Hochman (orchestrations), Steve Bebout (associate director).

Bottom Line: Clever, involving, funny, and fresh. Highly recommended.

 Freaky Friday@Allen Theatre, Playhouse Square, April 15-May 20

Review by Laura Kennelly

Never mind “being in someone else’s shoes.” How about exchanging bodies? That’s the premise of Freaky Friday, the Cleveland Play House’s last show of the 2016-2017 season. This Disney pop/rock theatrical production takes a light look at the common “You just don’t understand” wail that often comes from both mothers and daughters.  After  Disney movies plus TV shows based on the idea (and in this musical’s case, specifically on Mary Rodger’s novel, Freaky Friday), the comic story itself won’t surprise.

     Magic happens and a mother and daughter suddenly find themselves inhabiting each other's body. They only have one day to switch back because the mother is getting married the next day (‘nuff said there).

    Thanks to clever and very talented leads, Heidi Blickenstaff (as Katherine, the super-busy mom who uses her own wedding partly as a marketing ploy) and Emma Hunton as Ellie (Katherine’s rebellious teen daughter), the opening night show brought laughs plus a few sighs, looks, and  nudges amongst the mother-daughter pairs who filled the Allen Theatre.

Among the highlights in this frothy comedy: Biology class. There, Chris Ramirez as Adam, (Ellie’s secret crush) brings back memories of how easy it was to fall for “hot” guys back in high school. Hunton’s expressions as she sings “Oh Biology” (in Biology Class of course) with Ramirez are priceless. Suddenly, she (now with her mother’s mind) remembers “Oh yes, that’s what it’s like to host all those new hormones.” And, since she has her mother’s knife skills, she wows her biology teacher and class with her efficient dissection technique.

    Of course (it’s Disney), after almost two dozen musical numbers (likely nothing that will make the top charts, but pleasant enough) and a bit of easy dancing poses, the story ends happily. Both mother and daughter gain new respect for each other’s lives after living them for a day.

    The small orchestra, led by Andrew Graham, provided upbeat music as they played on stage behind a screen.

Bottom Line: Empathy gained via magic, quick funny, and efficient. Blickenstaff and Hunton win highest marks for excellent character switching--adding comedy and a bit of pathos to an otherwise familiar joke.

Freaky Friday, directed by Christopher Ashley, with a new book by Bridget Carpenter and a pop‐rock score by Tom Kitt and Brian Yorkey, plus choreography by Sergio Trujillo plays at the Allen Theatre through May 20, 2017

Photo:

From left to right: Emma Hunton (Ellie) and Chris Ramirez (Adam). Photo credit: Jim Carmody.