39 Steps

39 Steps

Union Square Theatre

August 5, 2015

Photo courtesy of 39 Steps

Director Maria Aitken’s remounted 2008 Tony Award winning production of 39 Steps is now playing at the Union Square Theatre.  It is a highly entertaining and farcical rendition of the Alfred Hitchcock 1935 thriller.  It is a must see for theatre goers who enjoy creative, out-of-the-box interpretations of classic, well know works.

The script is adapted by Patrick Barlow.  The Hitchcock suspense is surpassed by tongue in cheek humor and slapstick comedy.  The stage effects are low-tech, created by smoke and lighting.  Events like hanging off the side of a train, dangling from a bridge, being hunted down by a pair of biplanes, a crowded wild party in an adjoining room, and a chase scene on the roof of a train car are all cleverly achieved through pantomime, shadow puppets, and bold and focused reactions by the actors. 

Photo courtesy of 39 Steps

The advertisement boasts that four actors play 150 roles.  Arnie Burton, Billy Carter, Robert Petkoff, and Brittany Vicars are delightful, amazing, and funny.  Their characterizations are crisp and their timing is impeccable. 

The production has a style of its own.  It is witty and charming.  Take a friend and have a fun night out.

Domenick Danza

Something Rotten!

Something Rotten!

St. James Theatre

August 4, 2015

Photo courtesy of Something Rotten!

Unique!  Brilliant!  Witty!  Intelligent!  Bold!  Bawdy!  Crisp!  Ingenious!  Yes, I have seen Something’s Rotten! and those are only a few words to describe it.  It’s a farce, a parody, a slapstick comedy, a musical.  It’s Shakespeare meets the Carol Burnett Show (I mean that in a good way).

The plot is original and surprising.  The play takes place in 1595 in the South of London, where William Shakespeare is the most revered playwright of the day.  The Bottom Brothers, Nick and Nigel, want to write a play that supersedes the work of the Bard.  When Nick’s wife announces she is going to have a baby, he begins to feel desperate.  He employs a soothsayer to look into the future to see what the next popular theatre style will be.  He sees something new and different… the musical.  Zaniness ensues as the soothsayer’s visions become vague and muddled, leading the Bottom Brothers on a journey to perplexing hilarity.

Brian d'Arcy James as Nick Bottom
and Christian Borle as William Shakespeare
Photo courtesy of Something Rotten!

Brian d’Arcy James as Nick, John Cariani as Nigel, and Christian Borle as William Shakespeare are all amazing.  Their characters are boldly written and their portrayals are skillfully tremendous.  Heidi Blickenstaff, as Nick’s wife Bea, and Kate Reinders, as Nigel’s love interest Portia, bring the perfect blend of tenderness and humor to their roles.  The only way to mention other strong performances would be to list every name in the program.  The stage consistently exudes vibrant energy, as every cast member does an impeccable job delivering top notch material.

Photo courtesy of Something Rotten!

The production is superbly directed and choreographed by Casey Nicholaw.  The book and lyrics, by Karey Kirkpatrick, John O’Farrell, and Wayne Kirkpatrick, are highly intellectual and witty.  The Shakespeare references are right on and the musical theatre spoofs are priceless.  The score, by Wayne Kirkpatrick and Kary Kirkpatrick, is excellent.  It delivers a pace and tone that makes you tap your feet and sway in your seat.  Sets, by Scott Pask, and costumes, by Greg Barnes, are designed with broad strokes and bright humor.  They take you back to Shakespeare’s time grinning with delight.

Something Rotten! is sure to be a long running favorite.  No matter how much you pay for your ticket, it is worth five times the price.

  

Domenick Danza

Macbeth

Macbeth

The Drilling Company

Shakespeare in the Parking Lot

August 1, 2015

Photo courtesy of
The Drilling Company

The Drilling Company is batting a thousand this summer with their twenty-first season of Shakespeare in the Parking Lot.  Macbeth opened on July 30 in the parking lot behind The Clemente Soto Velez Cultural and Educational Center (located at 114 Norfolk Street - east side of Norfolk Street between Delancey and Rivington Streets).  The production, directed by Jesse Ontiveros, had a very strong and haunting opening weekend.  It has a limited run, so don’t miss it.

Dan Teachout is solid as Macbeth.  His guilt-ridden downward spiral into destruction is clear and complex.  As Lady Macbeth, Sheri Graubert portrays an insatiable hunger for power that leads to obscure madness.  Together these two actors lead the audience into the depths of Shakespeare’s most haunting play.  Other strong performances are Lucas Calzado as Malcolm, Veronica Cruz as Lady Macduff, Kineta Kunutu as Hecate, and, for most needed comic relief, Bill Green as the drunken Porter. 

Macbeth (Dan Teachout) and the Witches
(Gracie Winchester, Kineta Kunutu, and Llewie Nunez)
Photo by Jonathan Slaff and courtesy of The Drilling Company

Costumes, by Lisa Renee Jordan, and set, by Leontine Greenberg, are simple and effective.  Sound design, by Anna Grossman, adds just the right texture needed to transform the informal parking lot into a dark castle, a witch’s forest, and a bloody battlefield.

Macbeth runs Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at 8:00 PM through August 15.  Admission is FREE, so get there!  The final show of the Shakespeare in the Parking Lot season will be The Taming of the Shrew at Bryant Park September 4 – 20.  Mark your calendars!  It is sure to be another classic sensation from The Drilling Company.

Domenick Danza

The Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey

The Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey

Westside Theatre / Downstairs

July 14, 2015

Photo courtesy of
The Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey

The reason I got a ticket to see The Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey was because the blurb on TDF says, “with original music by Tony Award-winning composer Duncan Sheik.”  When I got to the box office to pick up my tickets, I read the poster in the lobby.  It is not a new musical, but a one man show written and performed by James Lecesne.  It is touching, poignant, important, entertaining, and much more.  It is a skillfully crafted and warm-hearted piece of not-to-be-missed theatre.

The piece is based on a true story.  It tells of the disappearance of Leonard Pelkey, a flamboyant adolescent who stood out in his small New Jersey town.  James Lecesne creates numerous characters, all changed not only by their contact with Leonard, but by his unexplained disappearance.  Every monologue

James Lecesne in one of his many characters.
Photo courtesy of
The Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey

is written with detail, nuance, and heartfelt humor that makes them distinct and memorable.  Mr. Lecesne instantaneously transforms as he embodies each well-defined character.

The show is running for a twelve week limited engagement.  It is sure to be popular and pick up an audience through positive word of mouth (like this – spread the word).  If you want to feel hopeful and believe in positive outcomes of human connection, go see it.  Oh yeah, Duncan Sheik’s music, although in the background, is as good as expected.

Domenick Danza

As You Like It

As You Like It

The Drilling Company

Shakespeare in the Parking Lot

July 11, 2015

Photo courtesy of
The Drilling Company

There is only one thing better than free outdoor Shakespeare in New York City, and that is free outdoor Shakespeare produced by The Drilling Company and performed in the middle of a New York City parking lot.  As You Like It marked the opening of Shakespeare in the Parking Lot’s twentieth season and was greeted with an enthusiastic audience reaction.  The Drilling Company consistently and successfully creates an intimate performing venue in an open, public space where everyone can experience and appreciate the poetry of classic theatre.

Artistic Director Hamilton Clancy is an expert in making Shakespeare accessible in this informal setting.  He has gathered together an extremely skilled ensemble of sixteen actors who bring heart and soul to this venture.  Highlights are Jane Bradley’s Rosalind paired with Ahmed A. Kouddous’ Orlando, and matched by Elaine Ivy Harris’ Celia.  Scott Baker delivers a touching Seven Ages of Man Speech, while Bill Green depicts tenderness in the manservant Adam.  Alessandro Colla and Hayley Louise Simmonds are both vibrant as Touchstone and Audrey.  Eric Paterniani will

The cast of As you Like It
Photos courtesy of The Drilling Company

make you laugh as both LeBeau and William.  Brandon Reilly’s idealistic Silvius plays well against Rachel Collins’ vivacious Phoebe.  All in all, the cast is astounding.

For those of you who have experienced Shakespeare in the Parking Lot before, you need to know they have changed locations.  The new parking lot is behind The Clemente Soto Velez Cultural and Educational Center (located at 114 Norfolk Street - east side of Norfolk Street between Delancey and Rivington Streets).  As You Like It runs Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at 8:00 PM through July 25, followed by three weeks of Macbeth.  The Drilling Company is also

Shakespeare in the parking Lot
Photo courtesy of Eric Paterniani

producing Romeo & Juliet at Bryant Park from July 17 through August 2.  All performances are FREE!  Take advantage of these great opportunities to see quality work by a quality company.

Domenick Danza

The Qualms

The Qualms

Playwrights Horizons

July 3, 2015

Photo courtesy of Playwrights Horizons

The Qualms by Bruce Norris takes an intense look at human nature, personal freedoms, and the need to compete, dominate, and submit.  It is a political and social encounter that is relevant, funny and, at times, awkward.  It forces you to look at those disconcerting moments and assess your deep-seated beliefs.

When Gary (played by John Procaccino) and Teri (played by Kate Arrington) met Chris (played by Jeremy Shamos) and his wife Kristy (played by Sarah Goldberg) on vacation, they invite them to a partner-swapping party they regularly host with two other couples.  As the party gets heated up, Chris gets uptight.  It gets ugly fast as everyone’s hot button issues are revealed and insecurities are enflamed.  The ensemble cast is sharp and tight.  Their timing is perfect and their characters are realistic and fully grounded.  Each has an individual moment of reveal that is genuine and true, and keeps the audience riveted.

Kate Arrington, Jerremy Shamos, and Sarah Golberg
in The Qualms at Playwrights Horizons
Photo courtesy of Playwrights Horizons

Bruce Norris won the Pulitzer Prize for his play Clybourne Park.  The Qualms has the same rhythmic dialogue that packs a punch.  In this play he has written eight distinct characters who reflect different points of view.  This creates connection, debate, and engagement on numerous levels.  Director Pam MacKinnon finds each of these levels and magnifies their significance.  She has skillfully orchestrated the rise and fall of the action to create a naturalistic setting with humorous, realistic, and uncomfortable moments.  The open floor plan of the set by Todd Rosenthal allows the movement needed for the characters to take sides when the action builds.

The cast of The Qualms at Playwrights Horizons
Photo courtesy of Playwrights Horizons

“Shit is complex,” states Gary blatantly in a philosophic moment of near the end of the play.  That sums it up in a heartbeat.  Bruce Norris truly knows how to encapsulate complex issues into a ninety minute script.

                           Domenick Danza

On the 20th Century

On the 20^th Century

Roundabout Theatre Company

American Airlines Theatre

July 2, 2015

Photo courtesy of
Roundabout Theatre Company

RoundaboutTheatre Company has outdone itself with their production of On the 20^th Century.  The cast, the sets, the costumes, the direction, the choreography – all brilliant!  It makes you remember what Broadway is all about.

The musical comically entwines the desperate need of a failing Broadway producer with a glamourous Hollywood starlet as they travel aboard the Twentieth CenturyLimited, the high speed train of 1937, which sped its passengers from Chicago to New York in just sixteen hours.  The score, by Cy Coleman, drives the play with rhythm and speed of the famous steam engine.  The book and lyrics, by Betty Comden and Adolph Green, provide the hilarity and screwball comedy that keeps the plot alive on the journey.  Director Scott Ellis finds every second of comic timing.  Together with choreographer Warren Carlyle, they create a stylistic work of genius.

Photo courtesy of Roundabout Theatre Company

The cast of Kristin Chenoweth, Peter Gallagher, Andy Karl, Mark Lin-Baker, Michael McGrath, and Mary Louise Wilson is strong and funny, vocally tremendous, and engaging on every level.  The entire ensemble moves vigorously and smoothly throughout the show with extraordinary vocal expertise.  The four porters steal every moment they are in, and perform the best tap dancing on Broadway. 

The sets, by David Rockwell, fill the moderately sized stage of the American Airlines Theatre with sharp, mesmerizing art deco designs.  William Ivey long’s costumes capture the time period and exude a richness that sets the characters apart on this luxurious mode of transportation.

Kristin Chenoweth & Peter Gallagher
Photo courtesy of Roundabout Theatre Company

On the 20^th Century is scheduled to close on July 19.  Treat yourself to this monumental production while you still can!

Domenick Danza