Mostly Musical Theatre

Touring production of ‘Jackie Robinson’ comes to the Croswell stage

The life of Jackie Robinson, the pioneering athlete who helped end racial segregation in professional baseball, will be dramatized for young audiences at 11 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 27, at the Croswell Opera House in Adrian.

The performance is part of the Croswell’s Spectacular Saturday Series for children and families. A free preshow craft will be offered starting at 10 a.m.

Robinson was born in an era when much of American life, including professional sports, was strictly segregated. He broke baseball’s color barrier in 1947 when he became the first baseman for the Brooklyn Dodgers. He was frequently the target of racial slurs and even physical violence.

The educational play is presented by Bright Star Touring Theatre, which has previously visited the Croswell with shows like last year’s “Rosa Parks and Forgotten Friends” and “The Velveteen Rabbit.”

The play will take young audiences on a journey from Robinson’s childhood, including the valuable lessons he learned from his mother, to his successful 10-year career with the Dodgers. Volunteers will even be able to join Robinson on stage as he learns to overcome bullying without violence.

“This is such an inspiring story about finding your talent, following your dreams and never giving up,” said Jere Righter, artistic director of the Croswell.

Righter added that Bright Star Touring Theatre has become a favorite with families who have attended the Croswell’s Spectacular Saturday Series.

“Their shows are meant for kids, but there’s really something for everyone in them,” she said. “I think the parents come away from these shows having enjoyed them just as much as the kids did.”

The play will last just under an hour.

Admission is $5 per person. Tickets may be purchased at the door, by calling 517-264-7469, or by going to croswell.org.

For more information about the show, as well as a downloadable study guide parents and teachers can use to discuss the show with children, visitcroswell.org/jackierobinson.

If you go

What: “Jackie Robinson”
Where: The Croswell Opera House, 129 E. Maumee St., Adrian
When: Saturday, February 27, at 11 a.m. (with free preshow craft starting at 10 a.m.)
Admission: $5 per person
More information: croswell.org

Acting Out Productions presents “Legally Blonde Jr. the Musical”

Acting Out Productions in Taylor presents the musical Legally Blonde Jr. with an all-student cast on February 12th, 13th, 19th and 20th @ 7:30 p.m. with a 3:00 p.m. Matinee on February 14th. Tickets are $15 for Adults and $12 for Students 18 and under. Friends and Family can take advantage of $10 tickets by visiting actingoutdownriver.com/jazzhands.

The production takes place at the Trillium Academy 15740 Racho Road in Taylor, MI.

Based on the award-winning Broadway musical and the smash hit motion picture, Legally Blonde JR. is a fun journey of self-empowerment and expanding horizons. The show’s songs are filled with humor, wit and sass – leaving cast members and audiences alike seeing pink!

Directed by Kelly Klug of Taylor, Assistant Directed by Janine Pauly Goethe-Brown of Southgate, Vocal Director Sarah Leonard of Allen Park and Choreographers Jenna Perugi of Trenton and Madeline Balavitch of Wyandotte.

The all-student cast features Moira McCardell of Trenton as Elle Woods and Tyler Goethe of Southgate as Warner Huntington III. The rest of the cast are: Jenna Chapa of Riverview, Ciara Miner of Flat Rock,, Melanie Huslander of Trenton, Olivia Murphy of Southgate, Ariel Parks of Taylor, Alex Baker of Lincoln Park, Brendan Siddall of Allen Park, Donte Bankston of Taylor, Lucas Klug of Taylor, Ryan Boos of Allen Park, Justin Hernandez of Wyandotte, Bethany Fink of Allen Park, Joe Oliveri of Taylor, Abbey Demorow of Allen Park, Emily Hunt of Riverview, Haley Hinzmann of Southgate, Kaylei Brewer of Belleville, Harold LeBeau of Taylor, Maddi Goethe of Southgate, Angela Soderquist of Taylor, Kennedy Klauza of New Boston and Henry Ramsey of Dearborn Heights.

Acting Out Productions is a theatre company focused on offering on-stage and backstage opportunities for theatre lovers of all ages in the Downriver area. In addition to the Holiday Extravaganza, the rest of their 2015-2016 season includes: ‘Night Mother, 9 to 5 the Musical, Disney’s Cinderella Kids, Yes &, and Disney’s Tarzan.

Top Notch “Avenue Q” by Stagecrafters, Royal Oak (review)

You know, just when you think you’ve seen the ultimate regional production of Avenue Q (and I’m talking about the Croswell Opera House two years ago) along comes a near perfect gem at Royal Oak’s Stagecrafters proving one wrong.

What a thrill when everything comes together just right for a show: gorgeous set work; perfect lighting: top-notch sound design; spot-on projection work; and a simply spectacular cast.

Leading the production is Kevin Kaminski, the perfect Princeton. Kaminski is quickly becoming one of the most sought-after young singer/actors in SE Michigan and this performance is a good example of why. Right on his heels, are great performances by Hilary Dudek as Kate Monster, and a stunning Nicky played by Jeff LaMothe whose physical and voice work is outstanding.

The humans on this Avenue Q are played by Tom Pagano as Brian, Lynette Yeager as Christmas Eve (where are you Asian American actresses? I have yet to see a single Asian American actress play this role — an Asian American — in any of the seven or eight productions I have now seen locally), and Michael Adams as Gary Coleman. Rounding out the cast are Christopher Smith as Rod (His “My Girlfriend who Lives in Canada” is sharp and diction-perfect), Matthew Dudek as Trekkie Monster (his antics in the nightclub are hilarious!), Sara Rydzewski as the perfect Lucy the Slut, Jenny Boyle as Mrs Thistletwat; and Brian Moultrup and Kellie Kafantaris as the hilarious Bad Idea Bears.

The entire production is energetically directed by Deborah Landis-Sigler. Musical Director Debbie Tedrick has done a great job with the vocals and diction, and her 7-piece orchestra sounds full and well-drilled. Sound design is wonderful. If you haven’t seen a production in the Baldwin Theater in Royal Oak, then you don’t know how difficult a task is to make sound, lighting, and video work in a space that was built in 1922. The tech work is terrific in this production.

Congratulations to Stagecrafters on a truly remarkable production.

Note that Avenue Q is not for younger humans. It isn’t even for some older humans. Take all the warnings on their posters at face value. For the rest of us, it is a hilarious show with a lot of heart, and this production is first rate.

Very Highly Recommended.

Stagecrafters’ Avenue Q continues at the Baldwin Theatre in Royal Oak through February 7th. All remaining performances are sold out.

Unmissable “Sondheim on Sondheim” at Encore Musical Theatre Company (Review)

The educational theater person in me wants to scream “SEE THIS SHOW” for you to better understand what goes into the craft of writing musicals and music for musicals. The Sondheim lover in me wants to scream “SEE THIS SHOW” for the remarkable (and rare) video footage of Sondheim talking about his craft, his colleagues, and his life. The musical theatre lover in me just simply screams “SEE THIS SHOW” because its darn terrific.

“Sondheim on Sondheim” opened at the Encore Musical Theatre Company last night and it is as slick and professional as anything you can expect from them in the excellent season they are having this year. Originally called “Moving On” and later “Opening Doors” the review was reworked and retitled by James Lapine in 2010 for a limited Broadway run (remember all those 80th Birthday celebrations on PBS?). The idea here is that a cast of performers present musical numbers from Sondheim’s 66 year career but the narration (provided vis-a-vis video clips, film clips, and rare television footage) is provided by Sondheim himself. The production uses the Broadway projections.

There is your theater lesson for the day — to learn about Sondheim, go directly to the source. He describes how he writes songs, who taught him, how songs are rewritten, added, and thrown out. An added hilarious bonus is his description of what types of pencils he uses and how to best sharpen them.

Musical Director (and pianist for the evening) Tyler Driskill has done outstanding work with his ensemble cast. He sits at the grand piano (nice!!) in Sarah Tanner’s striking NYC Sondheim’s Living Room set, and is occasionally joined by second off-stage piano as well. When you have such a piano virtuoso as Driskill, its wise to feature him center stage. The wonderful cast is comprised of Peter Crist, Leah Fox, Daniel A Helmer, Lauren Norris, Kelsey Pohl, Thalia V Schramm, Jim Walke and Adam Woolsey.

You will have your favorite moments and they will most likely be different from those sitting near you — because that is how Sondheim works. For me, the stunners of the evening were “Something Just Broke/Gun Song” from Assassins (which Encore will present in June), and “Ah, But Underneath” (a rarely heard gem written for Diana Rigg in the West End production of Follies) which also shows off Matthew Brennan’s understated but slick choreography at its best.

Dressed in muted but stylish clothing (by Sharon Larkey Urick) in blacks, grays, and shades of blue/purple/turquoise the cast works its way through the multiple numbers in solos, duets, and groups over the course of the (too long at 2:45) evening. That length for a review is understandable when you have stars like Barbara Cook on Broadway, but quite frankly just too long when you do not. Still, there isn’t a dull moment in the show, and those video clips are so outstanding you don’t want to miss a word. A nice touch is the new body-mics worn by the cast.

Well-directed by Dan Cooney, the production is simply not to be missed (whether you go for the music, or the videos, or the cast) — you are in for a stylish evening of remarkable musical theater songs.

Very Highly Recommended

Sondheim on Sondheim continues at the Encore Musical Theatre Company through February 21st. Tickets at 734-268-6200, their website at theencoretheatre.org or the box office at 3126 Broad Street, Dexter, MI

Real Life Cinderella Story at The Full Monty, Downriver Actors Guild (Review)

When the actor normally playing a role ended up in the emergency room hours before the second show of The Full Monty at Downriver Actors Guild, Denny Connors was faced with the ultimate decision many of us directors are faced with: do I cancel? In steps small-character part cast member Thomas J Koch II, who with under an hour of rehearsal went on to fill in the role of Malcolm, and not only did so without book and with all lyrics memorized and dance steps learned, but also turned in one of the finest all-around performances of the evening. The announcement wasn’t made until after the show, and it was a heartwarming moment all around: It is why we do theater. It is what every chorus boy and girl waits for – that moment. And it was splendid.

That being said, there is a very funny production of The Full Monty playing there as well. Long considered the Best Musical favorite in 2000 (and losing when that juggernaut called The Producers opened just under the Tony cut-off wire and went on to will everything that season), there were a lot of sad eyes at the awards. Audience favorite by far, its a hard show to do on an amateur level.

You probably know the tale (transplanted from the movie’s British setting to blue collar Buffalo, NY) which concerns a group of joe schmoe unemployed average guys trying to make some big bucks when they learn how much women are willing to pay to ogle a few dancing men at a local club. An unwise dare lands the guys with a date to go the full monty (i.e. naked). Lets face it, this show has always been about the last three minutes of striptease, and when it gets there DAG’s production number is a doozy to be sure.

But what makes the show really click is the clever script by Terrence McNally and the hilarious music and lyrics of David Yazbek. And when you have 6 guys firing on all cylinders the show skyrockets the audience to a rousing, um, climax. (I’m sorry, I had to go there, its that kind of show).

That also means that the show has a very heavy demand: it needs six guys who are acting singing dancing triple-threats. Well, in this production all of the guys have at least some of those qualities. It works just fine, and dance numbers look better than straight out vocal numbers where folks get pitchy, and keys are generally too high for most. (Aside for DAG: MTI offers Transpositions-on-Demand which might have been a good option in this instance.)

Jack Reilly plays handsome Jerry who masterminds the plan. His overweight buddy Danny is played very well by Kenny Kono. There’s aforementioned suicidal momma’s boy Malcolm beautifully created by Thomas J. Koch II last night, and well-endowed enthusiastic Ethan performed by Nathan Vasquez. Leo Babcock plays solid and established Harold, and the group is rounded out by “old man” Horse, played by young John Criswell. In a terrific opening strip number, ensemble member Mike Suchyta gets the ladies going right from the start.

The women fare better in the vocals department and are hilarious to boot: especially Lucinda Cross as Danny’s wife Georgia, and Leah Paige Cooley as Harold’s wife Vicki. When the women’s ensemble is together on stage, they look like real-world people, and talk like truckers.

They particularly come to life in the musical number “The Goods.” There’s also a very funny turn by Dee Morrison as piano player Jeanette (“she just showed up along with her piano”).

Choreography by Spencer Genrich is good throughout. Technical aspects are generally solid (though there were some missed mic cues and some slow lighting cues as well as one glaring light-programing problem during a quiet moment on stage).

But quite frankly, this show is about that last three minutes. The audience was cheering and howling its way through the very energetic show and it happily gets to that climax, bumps (and grinds) and all. Highly entertaining — a great night out is guaranteed for all. Go for the stripping, stay for the awesome show along the way. Oh, and leave the kids at home — its definitely adult fare only.

Recommended.

The Full Monty continues at Downriver Actors Guild’s Theater on the Avenue at 2656 Biddle Ave, Wyandoote, MI through January 24th. Tickets at downriveractorsguild.net or 734-407-7020.

Very strong cast in Dexter’s Hilarious “Avenue Q” (Review)

There is a very strong cast in Dexter Community Player’s Avenue Q, now running at the Copeland Auditorium in Dexter, Michigan. Ok, I thought, I’ve now seen so many productions of this show, what could another add to the canon? Well, it is a strong, hilarious cast that makes this production soar.

Under the fast-paced direction of Jason Smith and the excellent musical directorship of Jonathan Sills, the production barrels along with it’s outrageous songs (and lyrics), and it’s foul-mouthed over-sexed puppets (this is absolutely NOT a show for kids, no matter how cute those puppets might be).

N. Leo Snow is superb as Princeton, and Jamie Lynn Buechele a knock-out as Kate Monster. Her “Fine Fine Line” is simply sublime as it ends Act I on a bittersweet note. There’s a big big heart beating inside Avenue Q (one of the reasons it won Best Musical over Wicked), and this cast finds that quickly and isn’t afraid to share it throughout. But the entire cast is terrific — witness Erik Olsen’s excellent Nicky, Jared Hoffert’s over-the-top Trekkie Monster, and Katrina Chizek’s Lucy the Slut.

Rounding out the great cast are: Chris Bryant as Brian, Stacey Smith as his wife Christmas Eve and Keshia Daisy Oliver as Gary Coleman (like Sesame Street, they are the three non-puppet “people” that live in the neighborhood); Antonio Argiero as closeted Rod; Mary Rumman as school teacher Mrs Thistletwat; and the other characters (Bad Idea Bears, singing boxes, Ricky, etc): Amanda Burch, Neil Clennan, and Eric Redfern.

Sills’ 6-piece combo band sounds great. The set by David Chapman is Avenue Q pretty. The costumes by Kristi Kuick look sharp. And then there are those amazing puppets.

What didn’t click? Well, sound design is in a word awful. Mics drop in and out consistently (most noticeably on Erik Olsen). Cues are missed throughout so that actors starting speaking offstage are unheard, then come blaring on. There were multiple feedback problems on opening night. Tires squealed instead of a phone ringing. Ironically, the phone rang when a toilet flush is supposed to be heard. The actors cleverly covered those mistakes, but they mar an otherwise excellent production. Also missing on opening night were projections, which I am assured will be there for future shows. I’m hopeful they’ll iron out these problems as the run continues this week and next.

But don’t let that scare you off — this cast is great; and in that small intimate house you can hear (most) of it without the mics. Its a hilarious evening of entertainment that you should not miss.

Highly Recommended.

Avenue Q continues through January 24th at DCP — tickets at dextercommunityplayers.org

Funniest TV Quotes 2015

As usual, my disclaimer: I have not seen every single tv show in the world!…But these are my favorite funny quotes of the year from the shows that I DO watch…

“Im calling double BS — I haven’t called double BS since the “cleared history” dispute of 2012” — Marry Me

“We have more people coming to our door than a moderately attractive hooker at Comic Con” – 2 Broke Girls

“Who threw my painting in the toilet? (pointing at moat)” – Galavant

“He went into ‘The Enchanted Forest’ and never came out”

“Um, the other way around” — Galavant

“I love that you’re alive – that is one of my favorite things about you” – The Muppets

‘It’s not fair…the people who never go crowd out the people who sometimes go…We’re going to end up in the second overflow room…it’s church jail” – The Middle

“If there was a list of things that made me more comfortable, “Lists” would be on the top of that list” — The Big Bang Theory

“I think you’ve said everything you wanted to say, and maybe a few things you didn’t” – The Muppets

“Wait a minute, Im getting outta here to take care of desperately not wanting to be here” – The Librarians

“They broke up two months ago. His partner Jamarkus got all of his friends, and Raymond got all the confidence to go shopping in his pajamas” — Modern Family

“Whenever I hear anyone sing like that I suffer a headache from a severe medical condition I have called “ears” — Undateable

‘it’s why I left England…it reminded me too much of her…cold, gloomy, and easily accessed by a Frenchman through a tunnel” – The Big Bang Theory

“Miss Piggy does not intimidate me…In Wild, I did my own walking…so…” – Reese Witherspoon, The Muppets

“What is this, Downtown (sic) Abbey?” — The Middle

“I didn’t fight in two wars to tell my daughter what to do…you tell her for me” — Life in Pieces

“She crazy” — Modern Family

“Let’s face it. We played sex chicken and lost.” — The Middle

“We’ve only been roommates for one week and I have already befouled your kitchen” — Sleepy Hollow

“How very Miss Havisham” — Zoo

“We are like parental beater-cars.” – The Middle

“I can’t believe I am saying this for only the second time in 7 years of marriage, but please put the gun down” — Modern Family

“Can you do your job overseas?” — Life in Pieces

“I once saw her lift a piano to get a half-eaten Moon Pie” – The Muppets

“What is wrong with this family?”

“That is not a question we are going to delve into tonight” – The Middle

“I don’t want to burden you with my problems, but I think I have outgrown my boat” – Modern Family

“I wish your mother would shove a sandwich into my pants” — Life in Pieces

“Does it ever get cold on the moral highground?” – Downton Abbey

“From this moment forward you shall be my work-husband” – Kevin from Work

“You make my life a bacon-wrapped hell on Earth” –The Muppets

“I could have saved him” — Sharknado 3

“Bitter Party of One, Bitter Party of One” — Descendents

“Trust me…once you let go of hope, it’s very freeing” –The Middle

“This is Palo Alto…People go crazy about people who smoke…we don’t enjoy the freedoms you do in China…where people smoke all the time” — Silicon Valley

“God bless America, and its magnificent Broadcasting Company” – The Muppets, on ABC

“Just let it be…and let it be not in our house” — The Middle

“Athlete of the Month? What? Was it a written test? Cause that has been discussed.” — The Middle

“Did this Hooli phone piss off anyone else?”

“Is it Vista bad? Zune Bad? Apple Maps bad?” — Silicon Valley

“As much as it scares me to go into international cuisine I have to say chop suey intrigues me” — Sue Hecht on career choices…The Middle

“I bit my tongue because in this family they think I’m a Columbian hothead, which is crazy because a Columbian hothead is when you set somebody’s head on fire. Smells terrible, but it sends a message” — Modern Family

“Shit no, I’m not afraid of the lawsuit. I have three nannies suing me right now, one for no reason” — Silicon Valley

Frankie — “Give me a minute she feels insignificant”

Mike — “We all do!” — The Middle

“The Year of Sue is turning into the Year of Suck” — The Middle

“Oh my God, that’s a 500 dollar bottle of wine…that’s like 100 bottles of your wine” — Modern Family

Wedding Dress Clerk: “That dress is one of a kind”

Caroline (relieved): “Oh, so you only have one?”

Wedding Dress Clerk: “No, we have two” — 2 Broke Girls

“My gaydar is very sensitive — in fact, I need to move it away from you right away before it explodes” — Modern Family

“Great party — the only think that would make it better would be if Batman made an appearance, but I heard Batman’s mother made him return the costume” —The Middle

“Bro’s disclose…bro him back!” — Silicon Valley

“Are you feeling well? Do you need protein?” – Silicon Valley

“I said we had to meet clandestinely…instead I see you brought the entire Charming softball team, and their Pirate mascot” — Once Upon a Time

“Looks like someone had an appointment at the Angry Salon for a mad-icure” – The Middle

“Life’s a journey….no flash photography” – The Middle

“If you are brewing tea, don’t bother – your stuffed animals called and said they can’t make the party” – Undateable

“Do we have to keep every remote we’ve ever owned?” [presses button]…Somewhere in a landfill a laserdisc just ejected.” -Modern Family

“This is worse than the class-hamster hostage standoff” – Cougar Town

“What’s going on with you? We already have one weird kid, that slot is filled” — The Middle

“Cruella Deville”

“Nobody calls me that here”

“Cruella Feinberg doesn’t have the same ring to it” – Once Upon a Time

Manny: “I promise to bring back the bike”

Girl on Street: “Aww, that’s what you said about my mom’s humidifier” — Modern Family

“This is my margarita pool”

“Oh, do you swim in it?”

“I swim in it, I drink it…there’s really no wrong way to use a margarita pool” – Last Man on Earth

“Your outfit is perfect if you are applying to lumberjack school…and majoring in having your cats eat you when you die” — Modern Family

“How does she breast feed him if she doesn’t let him near plastic?” Modern Family

“And these awards are presented to you for, well, let’s call it work” – 2 Broke Girls

“What do you think of the baby name Fimonique?”

“Um, closer, but no.” — The Mindy Project

“Why are you running behind me? Are you trying to run away from that body spray you have on?”

“It’s McConaughey by McConaughey for Men” — The Middle

“I’ve never seen Andy this sad…he looks like a cross between my childhood Saint Bernards and a Cuban Eeyore” – Cougar Town

“I raised two fully competent children”

“do you have two children I haven’t met?” Modern Family

“I threaten to quit every week and you never gave me a going away party…except for a couple times” — The Mindy Project

“I’m a stay-at-home mom with a full-time nanny…I get up to stuff” — Cougar Town

“Your secret is safe-ish with me” – The Mindy Project

“I’ve been television cheating for years…Kevin likes to ask questions while we’re watching tv, and I like not beating him with a hammer when he does so” — Marry Me

“Lets leave him alone and see what he can become…he’s in his 30’s so probably nothing” — Mindy Project

“Gal, can I call you Gal?”

“Well, I don’t love it”

“Did you hear what I just said?”

“Sorry, I don’t always listen when you talk” — Galavant

“Okay, let’s go save that jumper”

“Too late, he’s dead”

“Okay let’s go get a hotdog” –Marry Me

“Someone is framing the Western Dragons…see, the things that pop out of my mouth don’t even bother me anymore” — The Librarians

“Maybe Your Not the Worst Thing Ever” — Galavant song

“There’s a version in here in which you don’t have to be angry at me because I am so angry at myself” – Marry Me

“How long should I wait to accept a friend request?”

“Oh, you should jump on that, it could have been a mistake” — The Middle

AACT’s “Company” is solid, entertaining (review)

Love it or hate it, Sondheim and Furth’s musical “Company” makes a solid and entertaining appearance at Ann Arbor Civic Theatre this weekend. Tinkered with more than any other of Sondheim’s shows, the current version of the script isn’t necessarily the best, but it is what MTI has chosen to license. Ann Arbor Civic Theater takes some liberties with it that further water-down the central dilemma, but its nothing if not entertaining.

I am not going to review the script — you either know it, or don’t. There isn’t much to it — diverse vignettes tying together a loose story of a guy not sure why all his married friends want him to couple up as well. Back in 1972 when originally written, it had some resonance with upscale New Yorkers who attend musical theater (even then the reviews were not all positive). As rewritten more recently, with our changing sexual mores and gender fluidity, the question really is no longer why is he not coupled-up, but why would he want to be?

There are some truly terrific cast members in director Rachel Francisco’s production. Some have mighty voices (Robert Griswold as Bobby, Trisha Fountain as Jenny, Amy Bogetto-Weinraub as Joanne). Others have mighty acting skills (Nick Boyer as Peter, Marci Rosenberg as Amy). Rounding out the strong ensemble cast are Jodi-Renee Giron as Sarah, Paul Clark as Harry, Madison Merlanti as Susan, James Christie as David, Amanda Bynum as “Paula”, Matt Steward as Larry, Kate Papachristou as as Marta, Kimberly Elliott as April, and Chris Joseph as “Kevin”.

Jennifer Goltz has done her usual excellent work as musical director, and the 4-piece jazz-infused orchestra sounds both larger than it is, and provides lovely music throughout.

Some of the pacing is too slow. Long scenes (the show is very talky) seem dragged out at times even longer than they need to be. The opening number (Company) felt like it was twice as slow as written, and that leads to a less-than-energized opening sequence (which gets much better as the show goes along). Some might call the slower pace leisurely and contemplative — though I am not sure those are qualities that make a production of “Company” soar. At times too much of the staging faces the center section at the expense of house right and left audience seeing backs and sides.

There are fun surprises in the show – and I won’t even begin to describe what Nick Boyer does with a beer bottle.

All in all, it is a very entertaining (though slowish) evening. Recommended.

Company continues at the Arthur Miller Theatre on University of Michigan’s North Campus through Sunday January 10th. Tickets at a2ct.org or at the door.

Newsies is spectacular at the Detroit Opera House (Tour) – Review

Those who know me already know that I love Newsies. In fact, I was sorely disappointed when Once (which I did not like) won the Tony for best Musical in 2012. Newsies walked away with Tonys for Best Choreography and Best Score, though it should have won for Best Set, Best Direction, Best Costume Design, and best Lighting Design. It probably should have won Best Musical, but who am I to argue with the folks who thought Once deserved the win since it needed help at the Box Office and future tour.

All that notwithstanding, Newsies arrives on its National Tour in Detroit, and it is as fresh as it was during its first weeks in New York. See my original review here:

https://a2view.wordpress.com/wp-admin/post.php?post=792&action=edit

What’s different? Well, the set has been adopted a bit for the tour — its lighter (but still weights 6 tons); the solid wall proscenium for the theater scenes has been replaced by a lighter curtain unit. But Tobin Ost’s remarkable set and Sven Ortel’s projections are there in all their glory. There are also some slight blocking and choreography changes — and one added scene: Crutchie now gets a song in the second act called “Letter from the Refuge” (which gives him something to do in the second act once he’s been snatched off the streets).

To say that this current touring cast is outstanding is an understatement — between the time the show opened in NYC and had trouble casting (some of us had nicknamed it “Man-sies” since the boys were in their late 20’s and 30’s) and now when it really is boy-sies (this cast looked like kids though they aren’t for the most part) and guys flock to auditions — the show has also smartly been auditioning cross-country as it tours to find new, young dancing talent.

And dance these Newsies do — these dancers are outstanding, and Christopher Gattelli’s award-winning choreography is beautiful and ultra-athletic at the same time. Joey Barreiro plays an excellent Jack Kelly and he rivals Jeremy Jordan in every way. He has a terrific career ahead of him back in NYC after this tour concludes. Steve Blanchard is a delightfully full-voiced evil Pulitzer. Morgan Keene acts a clean, simple Katherine that is a joy to watch. The entire ensemble cast earns its salary nightly — where does that energy come from for that near non-stop 2.25 hours on stage? (There is also a 15 minute intermission bringing the show in at 2.5). Jeff Calhoun is my directing idol — and that he took the time to talk to me and advise me on some blocking for Bonnie & Clyde has endeared him even more.

The musical runs at the lovely Detroit Opera House and if you don’t already have tickets (and thousands and thousands of SE Michigan folks already do — this show is nearly as popular as Wicked from an audience point of view) by all means get them.

Newsies continues through Sunday the 27th of December — and tickets are available at Ticket master ($39.00 to $90.00).

Very very highly recommended.

“The Light in the Piazza” – University of Michigan (Review)

This is going to be a really short and bitter review of University of Michigan School of Music Musical Theatre Program’s “The Light in the Piazza”. In short, the student cast is remarkable, although the show doesn’t work well without actors of the correct ages playing the parts. But without mentioning a single name of the production staff involved, I will simply say that I hated this minimalistic production of the show, and have no idea why someone would direct one of the lushest and most romantic musicals written in the past couple decades in this manner.

I will also state that I can not review the entire show because I left about 30 minutes into it, I hated it that much. And I almost never walk out on shows, even stinkers like this one. But I also wasn’t going to waste my time watching this disaster of a production of one of my favorite musicals ever.

There is educational theater, which forgives many things. Then there is educational professional theater, which is less forgiving. And this production of The Light in the Piazza short-shrifts the audience at every turn, no matter how well it might be educating its students (of whom, almost none will appear in a production such as this in the future, so I am not sure its helping them a whole lot either).

Not recommended. Listen to the cast album, or find a bootleg of the Broadway production when it was broadcast on PBS.