Secretary of the Arts

In light of my New Year's blog post, I felt it was necessary to post this: http://www.petitiononline.com/esnyc/petition.html

This is an online petition for our new President, Barack Obama, to appoint a Secretary of the Arts. This is something we've needed for a long time, and in the current financial climate, the arts are getting struck harder than before. Arts education programs in schools are being cut like never before and the new voices of the arts are finding it even harder to make themselves heard. We need the help wherever we can get it. The exciting part of this news is that so far there are 221565 signatures on the petition. I also read an article stating that a new petition has recently been formed against the appointment of a Secretary of the Arts. As of the writing of the article, that petition has six signatures. I think we all feel the way poster #221517, Laura Hope-Gill, feels: "It's time."

Expect new posts in the very near future, and as usual if you know of any exciting new theatre happening in the New York area, please let me know! feel free to comment here or drop me an e-mai: rigano.reviews@gmail.com.

Drawn to Mary Fishburne

I promised you all an update on the concert given by my friend--a fantastic singer/actress--Mary Fishburne. The show was called Drawn to You, a clever title for a cabaret act of songs created for a slew of legendary characters... cartoon characters. Mary opened the show with a silver-voiced interpretation of "What Can I Do for You?", a song by Edward Heyman and Sammy Timberg that was introduced to the world by the croaking voice of Popeye the Sailor Man. (Fishburne proceeded to muse that, although it is taboo to sing a song that was introduced by such a legend, she felt she brought a new quality to the song--singing.)

This proved to be a fantastic and charming opening for a fantastic and charming show. First of all, Ms. Fishburne is a delight. She brings an air of Southern charm combined with New York know-how, a stunning mix, to this performance. This is most apparent in her performance of the Alan Menken song "Pink Fish," a song about a Southern girl in New York discovering bagels and lox.

The other thing she and writer/director Jeffrey Sweet brought to the evening was a sense of sincerity. This was not a gimmick show. While they gave us the requisite jokes comparing Ms. Fishburne to the likes of Minnie Mouse and Olive Oil, she also brought a grounding--dare I say it?--third dimension to the material.

With material ranging from silver-screen Disney to classic television and back, the show, accompanied by the amazing Rick Hip-Flores, married whimsy to true human (or in some cases, animal) emotions for a beautiful show. Kudos to producer Jeff Landsman (of the York Theatre's Developmental Reading Series) for finding these artists and bringing them together.

In attendance the night that I saw the show was the daughter of legendary cartoon composer Sammy Timberg (of the Popeye opening number), who was there to see her father's material celebrated. We chatted beforehand and she asked me if I was Mary's boyfriend. I thought to myself after seeing the show, I should just lied and said "Yes!"

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Happy New Year, all! I hope you all had sufficiently raucous December 31st celebrations. Mine were filled with theoretical discussions of theatre while making brand new friends (I kid you not).

I've got a few things to cram into this post. The first is a very belated review of a production of You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown that I saw at Marymount Manhattan College. Directed by Jesse Marchese, this production utilized--in many ways--found objects representing the scenery and props dictated by the script, much the way the original Off-Broadway production did. Jesse's theory, he told me, was that kids can make a performance space out of anything. His production certainly proved that point. Rather than recreating the 'Peanuts' characters of the cartoons, as the most recent Broadway revival did, this production--staged in a non-traditional space--gave the impression of kids putting on a show in their backyard.

The performances astounded me. As a teacher of young people (a number of my students came to see the show with me!) I've seen several children perform material from Charlie Brown. But there's something so thrilling about adults letting themselves go and embodying these small children with these big ideas. The best example of this would have to be Katie Hutchison's Sally Brown, characterized in equal parts by her capriciousness and her precosiousness. Austin Wolf was delightful as the put-upon title character, his optimism all but forcing you to root for him throughout the whole show. It was a joy to watch Melissa Benoist (who I named last year's break-out performance of the year) lose herself in the egomaniacal Lucy VanPelt, and even more a joy to hear her sing. The necessary air of maturity and sophistication was supplied by Kevin O'Malley who portrayed a Snoopy that one might find more suited to sipping martinis with the likes of Noel Coward or Alexander Wollcott than hanging out with that round-headed boy.

Overall, the production was a delight and my students from The Children's Acting Academy had a wonderful time. I hope to post photos from the production as soon as I can.

On a more serious note, New York is currently recovering from The Great Broadway Massacre of 2009, a day that will go down in infamy as that day that saw the simultaneous closing of nine Broadway shows (and put a number of friends of mine out of work). January 4, 2009, left a staggering number of Broadway houses dark, and while new shows are coming in, they're going much more swiftly. It could be argued that some of the shows that have left my friends on unemployment (Hairspray, for example) have stayed their welcome and met with a timely demise, while others (Spring Awakening, anyone?) were more difficult to fathom.

In any event, right now more than ever in recent memory, we need to support the arts however we can. We need to go to Broadway shows, Off-Broadway shows, tours, regional theatre, community theatre. We need to show our solidarity for the up-and-coming talent out there. The arts have never been an easy field to break into. But due to the current recession, performers, writers, creators of all kind are finding that there are fewer and fewer venues for their voices to be heard.

So, here's my New Year's resolution: I will go to see as many performances [especially of new talent] as my wallet will allow [comps are always welcome] and I will spread the word right here.

Here's how you can do your part: PLEASE let me know of shows that you or your friends are doing so that I can plug them and review them. And please, pass this blog on to your friends so that the word can spread even faster. Let's join forces to support the insane amount of talent that is out there all over the country waiting to be heard!

On that note, I have a few things to plug. First: the insanely talented Mary Fishburne will be performing in her new cabaret Drawn to You, featuring music from some of her favorite cartoons. The show opens December 7 (TOMORROW) and runs until December 11. It's sure to be a sensational evening, and you're sure to hear more about it from me.

I also have to give a shout-out and a big Thank You to The Fabulous Jennifer Wren (that's her full name) who hosts the bi-monthly open-mic/cabaret Big Night Out. Jenny is a big part of the coallition to give new voices a chance to be heard. Every other Thursday at their new home at Dillon's Lounge, she and Musical Genius Bill Zeffiro (that's his full name) can be found hamming it up and allowing others to do so, as well.

That having been said, I have a belated Christmas/New Year gift for you all. On December 17th, Jenny and Bill hosted a Holiday Extravaganza, and I was honored to be among the truly amazing composers and performers. Here is a video of me singing my song "(Let's Go) Under the Mistletoe."

'What a Life' Transcends

Laurel Casillo, Steve Yates and Sara Lukasiewicz in What a Life.

There's no doubt that the most transformative performance in The Five Flights Theater Company's debut production of Don't Step on the Cracks was Laurel Casillo as the aging 'Nanny' in a sketch by Adam Delia. Casillo and Delia have teamed up to expand this character and explore her life in their new play What a Life, which premiered this weekend in a production by The Five Flights Theater Company.

Under Delia's direction, and with Casillo as the star, Nanny (who has been named 'Lucy') reaches new heights as a theatrical character. She is a tour-de-force, ripe for any actress with the chops to handle her. And this actress has. If Casillo transformed herself for Don't Step, she transcends in this performance. Here, we follow Lucy from age 6 to 94, and Casillo is believeable all the way up.

Special attention must also be paid to the task placed on the shoulders of Steve Yates in the role of Anthony, Lucy's grandson and currently the only constant in her life. Yates provides the lens through which we view Lucy--that which much be broken down so we can see everything she really is and was. He gives a sensitive, powerful and most importantly honest performance.

With such detailed attention given to Lucy and Anthony, the rest of the characters (skillfully played by Sara Lukasiewicz and Eryck Tait) are sometimes given a short shrift in terms of development. Still, there is always an air of humanity and truth about the play. Lukasiewicz and Tait give nuanced and varied, often chameleon-esque, performances. They seem to shed their own skins for those of the characters, especially when they swap genders as Lucy's comical neighbors in her nursing home.

Lukasiewicz is strongest--not surprisingly--in the role given the most stage time, that of Susan, Lucy's daughter, who we follow through her life with her mother. Her initial appearance is reminiscent of Marisa Tomei's performance in My Cousin Vinny but the more we watch, the more we see both the pain and love that exist in her life. Tait pulls off the delicate dichotomy of Frank, Lucy's ne'er-do-well husband. In his few scenes with the character we see his obvious charm, his troublesome behavior and his undying love for his wife.

If a few Italian phrases get garbled, it can be forgiven. If there are a few cheesy epithets (such as the repeated "Sometimes life hands you a different kind of fairy tale") it can be chalked up to the era the characters come from. If the final scene gets a little too sappy a little too fast (the sudden onslaught of "I love you"s does seem a little gushy), the play still earns its final moment. I was forwarned that this production would be unlike anything I'd seen from Five Flights, but I was not warned that the play would have the entire audience in tears by the end.

The production, aptly stage managed by Will Lacker, is as graceful, poignant, nostalgic and filled with yearning as an old Italian love song. If I were you, I'd keep my eyes open for future productions of this play. It comes chock-full with something for everyone from age 6 to 94.

Laurel Casillo and Eryck Tait in What a Life.

'What a Life' is no longer running. For more information on The Flive Flights Theater Company and future Five Flights productions, visit www.fiveflightstheatercompany.org.

Juneau: the musical?

This is not a political blog, it's a theatrical blog... so I'll try to keep this entry as much about theatre as I possibly can.

If someone were to write a play about Republican Vice-Presidential candidate Sarah Palin announcing that her 17-year-old daughter is pregnant, I wonder if it would be a tragedy or a comedy. Sarah Palin is an advocate of 'abstinence-only' education. For those of you unaware, this means teaching students that abstinence is the only way to avoid pregnancy and not teaching them about other forms of birth control. Our play already has dramatic irony, in that Bristol Palin has proven that teens who are taught to abstain from sex will have sex anyway. And, our play may also have a happy ending, as Sarah Palin has announced that Bristol plans to keep the baby and marry the child's father. This upholds strong family morals (despite one small indiscretion), though given the media attention thrust upon her by her mother's political campaigning, it's rather tragic that Bristol and her boyfriend seem to have no real choice in the matter. But this brings about more irony, as 'choice' was never something that Republicans have been fond of.

I cannot tell the outcome of this play at this date. I suppose we shall have to wait until November to see. But, luckily for those of you who can't wait, there is a musical on Broadway that might satiate your need for closure on this matter. Spring Awakening is a show that deals with a teenage girl who finds herself unexpectedly pregnant after the adults in her life refuse to give her the necessary information about the facts of life... but I won't spoil the ending for those who haven't seen it.

Edit: Okay, now it has to get blatantly political. In re-reading this entry, I realize that it can come across as mean-spirited, which was not my intent. I feel for Bristol Palin, especially given the sudden media attention she's getting during what is, no doubt, a trying time for her. This entry was in no way intended to be an attack on her or her privacy. And I most certainly do not wish on her the fate of the character of Wendla from Spring Awakening. In light of recent developments, I wish to state that I agree with Senator Barack Obama that families of the candidates should be off-limits politically. However, I regard this event and how the GOP has spun it as a result of Sarah Palin's politics, and those are under scrutiny at the moment.

Second edit: Now, several months, several SNL sketches and one election after the Palin debacle, we have a new president in office and his VP is not Sarah Palin. This was written very early in the campaign, just after Senator John McCain chose Palin as his running mate, when it seemed that everyone was looking for some way to nail this inexperienced pageant princess. She very quickly proved to us that we did not need to turn to teen pregnancies to find faults in her campaign. She did that all on her own. If this post weren't so darn clever (if I do say so myself) I'd just delete it.

Five Flights on the Fringe

Not a review, just a plug.

It has come to my attention that the fantastic NYC based Five Flights Theater Company is performing at the Woodstock Fringe Festival through August 30. They will be performing both of their original works, You Are Cordially Invited to the Wedding of Andrew Pepperidge and Allison Short and their staple Don't Step on the Cracks. If you did not get a chance to see either of these shows in their New York runs and are looking for an end-of-summer getaway (possibly to upstate NY?) I urge you to check out the work that these exciting and inspiring artists are doing.

For more information, go to www.woodstockfringe.org or www.fiveflightstheatercompany.org.

Cutting 'Edge' at the Cherry Lane Theatre

Those of us who were in high school on September 11, 2001, remember what it was like to have a wrench thrown into our teenage years. We also remember what it was like to try to have a ‘normal’ high school experience through the code-red drills the rest of our adolescence.

The characters in Edgewise, a new play at the Cherry Lane theatre, do not remember when the world turned upside-down. They have been living through war, panic and air strikes their entire lives. For them, it’s just the world. The play, written by Eliza Clark, takes place in the near future and its characters—high school seniors in the play—are probably in seventh or eighth grade right now.

Marco (Justin Levine), Ruckus (David Gelles-Hurwitz) and Emma (Jessica Howell) all work at Doogle, a hamburger chain. Ruckus has just become manager—because his father is the owner. Marco arrives early, but falls asleep on the job. Emma arrives to find that nothing’s been done. Just an ordinary day in war-ridden New Jersey. That is, until an unidentified stranger in army boots covered in dirt and blood stumbles in and collapses. (We will later learn that this man—played by Jedadiah Schultz—is named Louis.)

So, what to do now? This is the question that playwright Eliza Clark poses to her audience. In war times who can you trust? How can you tell who is the enemy and who is not—especially when the radio just said two soldiers of the enemy are on the loose?

The play offers many different perspectives about war. Ruckus can’t wait to join up. Marco lost his father to a group of traitors. Emma’s mother has just been called up. Louis has seen more than he can bear. And more than that—Louis remembers the way things used to be. All of these stakes and emotions are guided skillfully by director Lila Neugebauer. The staging is daring, often giving us actors’ backs—a Grade A No-No that Neugebauer utilizes with grace and power.

The performances carry great weight and energy in the three protagonists who are diverse characters with a feeling of unified ensemble. Shultz brings the necessary gravity to the piece in his role as an older and wiser soldier who brings not only years, but real life experience. A surprising comic turn comes about half way through with the entrance of Eric Gilde as a seemingly innocent customer. The necessary relief of tension lasts only long enough for us to catch our breath before the action starts up again.

There are a few flaws, I’m sorry to say. They are minor in the grand scheme, but glaring in comparison to the excellence of the rest of the play. Far too often characters would disappear—frequently to the bathroom—for extended periods of time, allowing for expository one-on-one scenes for those still in view. Not a terrible convention if they weren’t gone so long. Too frequently the absences would be longer than one would assume they ought to be, convenient for them and for those still onstage, but odd, especially given the circumstances. The second comes in a specific moment when Emma, just after closely escaping a pair of scissors in her throat, offers her attacker an Advil. The exchange has no clear dramatic purpose and makes the audience wonder just how nice a person can actually be.

Still, the point of the play is vibrantly clear in this energetic and powerful production. Clark gives us a world that is much like our own. The daily lives of these teens are much like every day life now. But the climate is tense. She reminds us that life in a police state is not normal, even for people who grew up with it.

It is not the first play to discuss where we are in danger of heading if we’re not careful. The genius of the play lies in the constant reminder of war’s affect on civilian life. The main cast is comprised of a generation of kids who only know war. Perhaps not quite what Senator McCain had in mind when he proposed that we stay in Iraq for a hundred years.


For more information on Edgewise, go to www.CherryLaneTheatre.org.