Our Lady of 121st Street

Our Lady of 121^st Street

Signature Theatre

The Pershing Square Signature Center

May 5, 2018

Photo courtesy of Signature Theatre

The opening line of Our Lady of 121st Street asks, “What kind of world is this?”  Playwright Stephen Adly Guirgis then proceeds to show us a world of hurt, fear, guilt, and betrayal, juxtaposed with intimate care and sincere longing.  Mr. Guirgis’ characters are multi-layered and locked into life-long relationships based on intense, shared experiences.  Phylicia Rashad directs a phenomenal cast of actors in this Signature Theatre production.  Together they create a driving sense of urgency that propels the audience into a profound understanding of their existence and an insight into their desperate need for connection.

Joey Auzenne and John Proccino
Photo courtesy of Signature Theatre

Sister Rose’s death has strongly impacted the lives of the people in the Harlem community she served.  Mourners travel back to the neighborhood from all over the country to pay their respects, only to find that someone has stolen her body from the funeral home.  As they meet and talk, they face their shortcomings and denials while confessing their suppressed feelings.  For some, this becomes a healing transformation.  For others, it is another reason to sink deeper in despair.

Quincy Tyler Bernstine, Hill Harper, Dierdre Friel, & Kevin Isola
Photo courtesy of Signature Theatre

Every member of this ensemble builds truthful characters from Mr. Guirgis’ writing.  Hill Harper and Quincy Tyler Bernstine develop a fluid arc with the characters of Rooftop and Inez.  Their feelings of pain, betrayal, and sorrow erupt, shaking the foundation of their characters’ beliefs and propelling them forward.  Erick Betancourt and Maki Borden beautifully portray brothers trapped in layers of guilt and dependence.  When they meet Stephanie Kurtzuba’s character Marcia, sparks fly and opportunities for connection and change are abruptly shot down.  Jimonn Cole and Kevin Isola play a gay couple brutally facing their denial and inner selves.  Joey Auzenne is magnificent as Balthazar, a NYC Police Detective suffering under layers of pain and disappointment.  Powerful performances are also delivered by John Procaccino, John Doman, Paola Lazaro, and Dierdre Friel. 

Our Lady of 121^st Street is playing at the Pershing Square Signature Center through June 10.  Don’t miss it! 

Domenick Danza

The Amateurs

The Amateurs

Vineyard Theatre

February 17, 2018

Photo courtesy of Vineyard Theatre

In his new play, The Amateurs, Jordan Harrison examines a number of compelling themes and concepts about the human experience throughout the ages.  There are many layers and points of entry in this new work.  The superb Vineyard Theatre production allows the audience to engage and journey through them all, and emerge with a broader view, a release, a purifications… or as they say in the play, a catharsis.

The play opens in the 1300s in the middle of a morality play.  A group of traveling players are portraying the seven deadly sins, when one falls ill with the black plaque.  He quickly dies and is left behind to be buried in a communal grave.  His sister, Hollis (played by Quincy Tyler Bernstine), is more affected by this than the rest of the traveling troupe.  Larking (played by Thomas Jay Ryan) continues to push his cast in getting ready to present their new play about Noah’s flood for the Duke.  When the players are visited by the ghost of their deceased colleague, the action of the play ceases and the playwright (played by Michael Cyril Creighton) enters to offer context to the dilemma and review a number of options for how to continue.  The ideas and questions he brings up are fully realized when the journey of the traveling players resumes.

Photo courtesy of Vineyard Theatre

Michael Cyril Creighton fills the twenty or so minute section as the playwright with depth, poignancy, impeccable timing, and serious humor.  He shares the character’s personal experiences of being bullied in middle school, learning to be afraid of AIDS in high school, and addresses the fact that Noah’s wife refuses to board the arc in the morality play.  He is joined in this middle section of the play by Quincy Tyler Bernstine, who steps out of her role as Hollis and shares with the audience an enlightened experience she once had while playing Mrs. Cratchit in a regional theatre production of A Christmas Carol.  She equally matches Mr. Creighton’s poignancy and humor.  This section frames the entire experience of the play and focuses the audience to view and understand the themes and messages.  These two actors masterfully bring to the fruition what this magnificent writing deserves.

The full cast of "The Amateurs"
Photo courtesy of Vineyard Theatre

The entire cast is amazing.  Kyle Beltran (as Brom), Greg Keller (as the Physic), Jennifer Kim (as Rona), and Thomas Jay Ryan (as Larking) bring richness and dry humor to this unprecedented play.  Director Oliver Butler finds the perfect pace that allows the impact of the themes to pop.  Scenic design by David Zinn and lighting design by Jen Schriever create a weighty atmosphere of encumbrance, mystery, and wonder.

Playwright Jordan Harrison examines the development of the individual identity as the root of the survival of humankind.  He clearly puts it out there that there are no safe places to hide from catastrophic events, such as the black plague, the great flood, the AIDS crisis, or anything else we might presently be facing.  He then sums it up in the succinct statement that “life is long.”  The Amateurs runs at the Vineyard Theatre through March 18.  It is definitely a MUST SEE! 

Domenick Danza

Small Mouth Sounds

Small Mouth Sounds

The Pershing Square Signature Center

July 3, 2016

Photo courtesy of Small Mouth Sounds

Small Mouth Sounds, written by Beth Wohl, follows six people during a week-long, silent retreat.  Each character’s story is revealed with little to no speaking.  They each sign up for the retreat for different reasons, ranging from seeking enlightenment or inner peace to grieving over a loss or conquering a serious illness.  Each is changed by their silent experience, though not necessarily the change they signed up for.  Director Rachel Chavkin skillfully weaves subtle detail with bold gesture, allowing this fearless ensemble to create truthful moments and achieve a dramatic arc with very few words.

Photo courtesy of Small Mouth Sounds

The set design, by Laura Jellineck, seats the audience on two sides of a long rectangular playing area.  Seated in the same folding chairs as the characters and enveloped by video (designed by Andrew Schneider) and sound (designed by Stowe Nelson), audience members become additional participants in the retreat.  The beauty of this design is that the Teacher’s lessons, humor, and disorganization are experienced directly, as well as through the bonding with the characters.  This effect heightens the emotional connection to the journey of the characters by personalizing the content of the teachings through the individual point of view of audience members.  

Small Mouth Sounds is a unique and daring concept that delivers an unexpected outcome.  This Ars Nova production showcases very strong performances by Max Baker, Babak Tafti, Brad Heberlee, Marcia DeBonis, Quincy Tyler Bernstine, Zoe Winters, and  Jojo Gonzalez.  Bess Wohl’s script is bold, funny, and daring.  The show runs through September 25 at the Pershing Square Signature Center.  If you are in the mood for something totally different, check it out. 

  

Domenick Danza

Peer Gynt

Peer Gynt

Classic Stage Company

May 22, 2016

Photo courtesy of Classic Stage Company

Peer Gynt, Henrik Ibsen’s five act play written in verse and loosely based on a Norwegian fairy tale, is presently in production at Classic Stage Company.  Ibsen’s script is said to “blend poetry with social satire and realistic scenes with surreal ones.”  This holds true in this production, especially the social commentary, which rings relevant to our present day political dilemma.  Directed and adapted by John Doyle, these moments are strongly focused, yet he has omitted the depth and expanse of the main character’s experiences on his journey by diminished the show to a mere one hour and fifty minutes without an intermission. 

Peer Gynt (played by Gabriel Ebert) longs for greatness.  To be specific, he yearns to be emperor.  He rides a wild stag and steals the virginity of the bride of a fellow townsperson.  He gains wealth and dubs himself a prophet.  He is told he has become an emperor, but only of himself.  This achievement is not enough for him.  In the final moments he realizes he has not been true to himself, and is therefore not able to receive the rewards he desires.

Gabriel Ebert as Peer Gynt
Photo courtesy of Classic Stage Company

The actors (Gabriel Ebert, Quincy Tyler Bernstine, Becky Ann Baker, Adam Heller, Jane Pfitsch, Dylan Baker, and George Abud) all do an amazing job creating true characters whose objectives are clearly and realistically motivated.  The final section of the play (Act 5 from Ibsen’s script) is powerful and provocative, yet outweighs the surface skimming of the previous sections.  The most memorable scene is when Peer Gynt peels an onion trying to find the center.  He compares each of the layers to an experience he had on his journey.  When he realizes there is no center to the onion, only continual layers, he feels a sense of despair.  His response offers an understanding that he was searching for something deeper all along.  The production, however, lacks the heightened sense of adventure and visceral connection needed to make that moment, and others like it, compelling and meaningful.

Peer Gynt runs at ClassicStage Company thought June 16.

Domenick Danza