This is my first blog here at David's Theatre Reviews. For the past few months I have been the theatre critic at Marymount Manhattan College's newspaper, the Marymount Monitor. As my time at Marymount comes to a close, I will be transferring all of my reviews over to this blog, and continuing to review exciting new theatre.
Stay tuned for my upcoming archive of theatre reviews and new upcoming reviews. If you or someone you know will be in a production you'd like me to review, send an e-mail to rigano.reviews@gmail.com with all of the information.
Monday, April 28, 2008
Life is a Labyrinth
The theatre is one of the few places where truly anything can happen. We suspend our disbelief long enough to go on a journey with the characters, and we don’t need realism in order to take us on the ride.
When word got out that recent Marymount Manhattan College graduate Cathy Thomas was to mount a full-scale Broadway production of the 1986 Jim Henson epic musical Labyrinth, the New York theatre crowd called it impossible, but ‘impossible’ was a word that Ms. Thomas did not know. In fact, when I asked her about the reaction she said, “What does that mean?”
Ms. Thomas went on to explain, “If they could make The Lord of the Rings and Carrie into successful musicals, then why not Labyrinth? Besides, it already is a musical. The trick is bringing it to the stage.”
It would seem that if adapting the screen musical to the stage is Ms. Thomas’s only worry, she has little to worry about. The original cult classic movie about a teenage girl who must save her younger brother after making a dubious pact with a goblin was written by Terry Jones and scored by David Bowie. She has brought in to adapt the script and score some of Broadway’s current brightest. Adapting the movie script for the stage will be a joint effort between playwright Doug Wright, who was awarded a Pulitzer Prize for his play I Am My Own Wife before adapting Disney’s The Little Mermaid, and Thomas Meehan, who originally penned the book to Annie but more recently has collaborated on The Producers, Young Frankenstein and Bombay Dreams. Filling in the gaps in the score is Broadway newcomer, Tony Award winner Duncan Sheik.
“How could we possibly go wrong?” Ms. Thomas asks.
I was lucky enough to catch a reading of this new musical with an all-star Broadway cast, including Michael McGrath, Ernie Sabella and Annie Golden. I was chatting with Ms. Thomas before the performance. I asked her the question I’m sure we had all been anticipating: Who was going to play Jareth, King of the Goblins, the role made famous by David Bowie in the original movie? I was told I’d just have to wait and see like everyone else, which led me to believe she had possibly gotten Bowie himself to come back for the stage version.
What a surprise we all got when who should leap onto the stage singing a new Duncan Sheik song—I won’t give the hilarious title away for you—but the one and only Johnny Depp. Ms. Thomas confided in me afterwards that when she first saw Depp in Sweeney Todd she thought his singing voice had been dubbed by Bowie. “When I found out that it was his own voice,” she said, “everything just clicked!”
As this is a project still in development, I can’t say much. But don’t worry, theatre-goers, Depp gives a performance comparable to Bowie’s original and can, in fact, fill a theatre with his voice. As for the quality of the new script and updated score, I enjoyed myself, but you’ll have to wait and see, as Cathy Thomas would say, “like everybody else.”
This article was written for The Marymount Monitor's April Fools issue.
When word got out that recent Marymount Manhattan College graduate Cathy Thomas was to mount a full-scale Broadway production of the 1986 Jim Henson epic musical Labyrinth, the New York theatre crowd called it impossible, but ‘impossible’ was a word that Ms. Thomas did not know. In fact, when I asked her about the reaction she said, “What does that mean?”
Ms. Thomas went on to explain, “If they could make The Lord of the Rings and Carrie into successful musicals, then why not Labyrinth? Besides, it already is a musical. The trick is bringing it to the stage.”
It would seem that if adapting the screen musical to the stage is Ms. Thomas’s only worry, she has little to worry about. The original cult classic movie about a teenage girl who must save her younger brother after making a dubious pact with a goblin was written by Terry Jones and scored by David Bowie. She has brought in to adapt the script and score some of Broadway’s current brightest. Adapting the movie script for the stage will be a joint effort between playwright Doug Wright, who was awarded a Pulitzer Prize for his play I Am My Own Wife before adapting Disney’s The Little Mermaid, and Thomas Meehan, who originally penned the book to Annie but more recently has collaborated on The Producers, Young Frankenstein and Bombay Dreams. Filling in the gaps in the score is Broadway newcomer, Tony Award winner Duncan Sheik.
“How could we possibly go wrong?” Ms. Thomas asks.
I was lucky enough to catch a reading of this new musical with an all-star Broadway cast, including Michael McGrath, Ernie Sabella and Annie Golden. I was chatting with Ms. Thomas before the performance. I asked her the question I’m sure we had all been anticipating: Who was going to play Jareth, King of the Goblins, the role made famous by David Bowie in the original movie? I was told I’d just have to wait and see like everyone else, which led me to believe she had possibly gotten Bowie himself to come back for the stage version.
What a surprise we all got when who should leap onto the stage singing a new Duncan Sheik song—I won’t give the hilarious title away for you—but the one and only Johnny Depp. Ms. Thomas confided in me afterwards that when she first saw Depp in Sweeney Todd she thought his singing voice had been dubbed by Bowie. “When I found out that it was his own voice,” she said, “everything just clicked!”
As this is a project still in development, I can’t say much. But don’t worry, theatre-goers, Depp gives a performance comparable to Bowie’s original and can, in fact, fill a theatre with his voice. As for the quality of the new script and updated score, I enjoyed myself, but you’ll have to wait and see, as Cathy Thomas would say, “like everybody else.”
This article was written for The Marymount Monitor's April Fools issue.
Five Flights Finds Complexity in Simplicity
The Cast of Don't Step on the CracksPhoto by Bert Berat
To say that Five Flights Theater Company’s new production of Don’t Step on the Cracks is “simply wonderful” would be to do the company a grave disservice. Though the play is mostly inspired by children’s books and poems, there is nothing simplistic about it.
Created entirely by the members of the newly formed Five Flights Theater Company, Don’t Step on the Cracks is about growing up and looking back. The very talented cast, made up entirely of Marymount students and alumni, takes us through a series of skits examining the moment when you realize it’s time to grow up.
From the very start, the introduction to the show—expertly written and choreographed by Eryck Tait—mixes the worlds of youth and adulthood together, weaving original lines from the play with familiar verses from Shel Silverstein poems to accentuate the shift into maturity. It sets up the events to come as we watch our own childhoods mature in the characters and themes presented during the show.
The characters and situations are familiar—bits of our childhood shown back to us under the lens of experience. Will Lacker exposes the “truth” behind Puff the Magic Dragon’s relationship with Jackie Paper. Sara Lukasiewicz navigates the everyday life of Amelia Bedelia, who takes things too literally. Jake Bartush, Eryck Tait, and Adam Delia take us on a journey in a flying shoe with Ickle Me, Pickle Me and Tickle Me, too. Other sketches give examples of moments in the lives of twenty-somethings faced with real grown-up problems.
At its core, Don’t Step on the Cracks analyzes loss. Loss of innocence, but also loss of friends, family, pets, even childhood idols. In the incredibly poignant “Goodnight, Moon” (written and performed by Jake Bartush) a high school student comes to terms with the suicide of a classmate, and the realization that “he was simply the first one to succeed.”
This production is actually a re-mounting of their premiere production, which played at Center Stage on West 21st Street last July. I was lucky enough to catch both productions, and am happy to say that this show has only gotten stronger. Most noticeably stronger are Sara Lukasiewicz’s “Amelia” monologues, written and directed by Five Flights Stage Manager Alli Taylor. Ms. Lukasiewicz’s sense of innocence in these pieces brings adult issues to light through the lens of youth in a refreshing opposition to the rest of the show.
It is no secret that I have worked with the majority of the people in this company in the past and am a vocal fan of their work. I may seem biased in this instance. Still, the reception to the performance I was at and the sold out three-performance run at Center Stage speaks for itself.
I think a lot of the success can be credited to the unique nature of the company itself. Formed in a five-flight walk-up (hence the name) they started as a bunch of theatre artists with an idea for a show. The sketches were written, some were handed off to directors, all were assigned to actors, rehearsed and put back together again to create the show. “It’s the only form of communism I’ve seen that works,” company member Claire McGinley commented.
For me, the heart of the show and of the company can be summed up in one line from a piece by Ms. McGinley. In the final scene of the play, Eryck Tait turns to Laurel Casillo and says, “You know we can’t live forever.” She responds: “But I’ve always wanted to try.” This is a company that—if I may make a prediction—will be around for a long time and will produce important pieces of new theatre. I hate to gush, but I mean it when I say I highly anticipate great new works to come out of Five Flights in the future.
Still, I think that Don’t Step on the Cracks may just turn out to be Five Flights’ staple. Its resonance hits a place that we all need to go to every now and then, and I won’t be surprised to see this show pop up in new productions, just when we need it most. You’ll be certain to find me there every time.
Don't Step on the Cracks is no longer running.
Normal? Or Next To It?
It’s got a song about “Costco.” You’d think this would be the making of a happy musical! Off-Broadway’s new musical Next To Normal, which opened at Second Stage this month, is an off-kilter look at suburbia which exposes the truth behind a family’s struggle for normalcy. Costco is just one of the many items on the chopping block.
The show, with a wonderful score by Tom Kitt (High Fidelity) and libretto by Brian Yorkey (Making Tracks), boasts the six person ensemble of Adam Chanler-Berat, Jennifer Damiano, Brian D’Arcy James, Alice Ripley, Asa Somers and Aaron Tveit under the masterful hand of director Michael Greif (Rent, Grey Gardens). The story centers around the marriage of Dan and Diana (D’Arcy James and Ripley) which is on the rocks—partly because of Diana’s overmedication. As a result, their teenage daughter Natalie (Damiano) is often neglected. She even has trouble dealing with the attention and affection of classmate Henry (Chanler-Berat) who tries to help her cope. As the adults become more and more unavailable due to Diana’s constant doctor visits, Natalie lashes out, leaving Henry to catch her when she falls. But who will be there to catch Dan and Diana?
Ripley and D’Arcy James, both veterans of the Broadway and off-Broadway stage, give powerful performances with nuance that is often reserved for non-musicals (think Mamet). But the young’uns more than hold their own. Ms. Damiano plays the role of Natalie with the tension of a firecracker trying desperately not to explode as Mr. Chanler-Berat’s quirky charm and sincere friendship ease her out of her rigidity. Asa Somers brings a refreshing dose of supposed sanity as Diana’s therapist Dr. Madden (and all of her other doctors).
The highlight for any Marymount student will definitely be Adam Chanler-Berat’s performance as Henry, the jazz pianist who gives Natalie her first toke of freedom. Chanler-Berat has graced the MMC stage with his offbeat wit in STAM’s production of Stephen Sondheim’s Assassins as well as improv performances with MMC’s resident improv troupe “Nutz and Boltz.” His seemingly effortless transitions from comedy to drama are rivaled only by his seemingly effortless singing.
This stellar cast is guided through the story of love and loss by Michael Greif, who is no stranger to characters in pain and longing. Greif’s direction combines the best elements of his staging of Rent (which I admittedly did not love) and his staging of Grey Gardens (which I loved every minute of). Of course, he brings in some new tricks for this production, which are enhanced by Mark Wendland’s three-tiered fiberglass set and Kevin Adams’ literally electric light design.
If you told me I had to find one fault in the show, I would tell you that it is a little long—at the preview performance I attended, the first act ran almost an hour and a half—and a couple of the songs overstay their welcome. The one that immediately comes to mind has the wonderfully powerful Aaron Tveit repeating two words over and over to the point where one assumes the song could easily be cut down. The show can also be rather heavy-handed in its condemnation of medical procedures, including anti-depressants and electro-convulsion therapy, that have proven helpful in a majority of cases.
Still the point does come across that American society relies too heavily on chemical treatment—prescribed and not—to make our problems and our unpleasant emotions go away. We are reminded that getting rid of the bad feelings often means getting rid of the good, as well. Through stirring music, plot twists, and a healthy dose of cynical comedy the show emphasizes how striving for normalcy can result in numbness. Head over to Second Stage to see if this not-so-normal family can settle for next to normal.
Next to Normal is no longer running.
The show, with a wonderful score by Tom Kitt (High Fidelity) and libretto by Brian Yorkey (Making Tracks), boasts the six person ensemble of Adam Chanler-Berat, Jennifer Damiano, Brian D’Arcy James, Alice Ripley, Asa Somers and Aaron Tveit under the masterful hand of director Michael Greif (Rent, Grey Gardens). The story centers around the marriage of Dan and Diana (D’Arcy James and Ripley) which is on the rocks—partly because of Diana’s overmedication. As a result, their teenage daughter Natalie (Damiano) is often neglected. She even has trouble dealing with the attention and affection of classmate Henry (Chanler-Berat) who tries to help her cope. As the adults become more and more unavailable due to Diana’s constant doctor visits, Natalie lashes out, leaving Henry to catch her when she falls. But who will be there to catch Dan and Diana?
Ripley and D’Arcy James, both veterans of the Broadway and off-Broadway stage, give powerful performances with nuance that is often reserved for non-musicals (think Mamet). But the young’uns more than hold their own. Ms. Damiano plays the role of Natalie with the tension of a firecracker trying desperately not to explode as Mr. Chanler-Berat’s quirky charm and sincere friendship ease her out of her rigidity. Asa Somers brings a refreshing dose of supposed sanity as Diana’s therapist Dr. Madden (and all of her other doctors).
The highlight for any Marymount student will definitely be Adam Chanler-Berat’s performance as Henry, the jazz pianist who gives Natalie her first toke of freedom. Chanler-Berat has graced the MMC stage with his offbeat wit in STAM’s production of Stephen Sondheim’s Assassins as well as improv performances with MMC’s resident improv troupe “Nutz and Boltz.” His seemingly effortless transitions from comedy to drama are rivaled only by his seemingly effortless singing.
This stellar cast is guided through the story of love and loss by Michael Greif, who is no stranger to characters in pain and longing. Greif’s direction combines the best elements of his staging of Rent (which I admittedly did not love) and his staging of Grey Gardens (which I loved every minute of). Of course, he brings in some new tricks for this production, which are enhanced by Mark Wendland’s three-tiered fiberglass set and Kevin Adams’ literally electric light design.
If you told me I had to find one fault in the show, I would tell you that it is a little long—at the preview performance I attended, the first act ran almost an hour and a half—and a couple of the songs overstay their welcome. The one that immediately comes to mind has the wonderfully powerful Aaron Tveit repeating two words over and over to the point where one assumes the song could easily be cut down. The show can also be rather heavy-handed in its condemnation of medical procedures, including anti-depressants and electro-convulsion therapy, that have proven helpful in a majority of cases.
Still the point does come across that American society relies too heavily on chemical treatment—prescribed and not—to make our problems and our unpleasant emotions go away. We are reminded that getting rid of the bad feelings often means getting rid of the good, as well. Through stirring music, plot twists, and a healthy dose of cynical comedy the show emphasizes how striving for normalcy can result in numbness. Head over to Second Stage to see if this not-so-normal family can settle for next to normal.
Next to Normal is no longer running.
Maximum Entertainment at Minimum Wage
The show starts off with
Minimum Wage is no longer running
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