A Staged Reading of "The Last Five Years" by Silver Slipper Productions at Bryant-Lake Bowl

Last weekend was a pretty great and busy theater weekend. I saw five shows in three days, including two exciting new works as part of History Theatre's Raw Stages festival, and the opening of two great shows - Sandbox Theatre's Big Money at Park Square Theatre, and Theatre in the Round's A View From the Bridge. And the icing on the cake that was my weekend was a little show called The Last Five Years.

"Musical Mondays" at Hell's Kitchen, January 2017

What better way to ring in the new year than with Musical Mondays at Hell's Kitchen? This monthly cabaret series, featuring great local talent singing a selection of showtunes around a common theme, can always be counted on for a fun and celebratory evening. Last night's show, with a theme of new beginnings, was just what I needed to mark the turning of the year. We had a lovely "goodbye 2016" song and a hilarious and terrifying election response song. But most of all there was a feeling of hope that if we continue making and supporting theater, music, and art, and coming together as a community, we can make 2017 better than 2016.

"Happy Days" by Minneapolis Musical Theatre at New Century Theatre

In the space of 24 hours I traveled from 1960s Detroit to 1950s Milwaukee, separated by about 400 miles and 10 years, but worlds apart. Penumbra Theatre's Detroit '67 is a sobering look at the musical highs and violent lows of that time and place, while Minneapolis Musical Theatre's production of the musical adaptation of the TV classic Happy Days presents an idealized version of the past, where people can't imagine the price of gas going above 12 cents, the worst insult is "sit on it," and fights are settled with a pie in the face and a wedgie. As such, it's faithful to the beloved TV show that I, and many Americans, grew up with. Not surprising since it was written by the show's creator Garry Marshall, with songs by Paul Williams, who's written many hits for The Carpenters and others. While the plot's a bit thin (it is based on a sitcom, after all), the familiar characters are there with their signature catch phrases and the songs are catchy in that '50s style, resulting in a fun and frivolous evening of happy nostalgia theater.

In what amounts to an extended episode of Happy Days, our gang is facing a crisis when beloved diner hangout Arnold's is in danger of being bought out by a large corporation. Richie and Fonzie and friends come up with a couple of ideas to raise money to match the bid, including a dance contest and a wrestling match. (How they're supposed to raise thousands of dollars through this, I'm not entirely sure, but I'll go with it.) Fonzie's ex, the super cool motorcycle-riding Pinky, returns to judge the dance conflict, and tensions run high with unfinished business between them. Fonzie agrees to wrestle his nemeses the Mallachi brothers, despite a secret shameful weakness - he has a bum knee. (Fonzie's getting old? How disappointing.) It takes Richie longer than his usual 30 minutes to solve this problem, but in the end our gang comes out on top and continues living those happy days.

Highlights of the show include:

Pinky and the Fonz
(Quinn Shadko and John Zeiler,
photo by Heidi Bohnenkamp)

• The six-piece band just to the right of the stage sounds great playing these '50s pop tunes, both uptempo and ballad, as directed by Lori Maxwell.
• The large cast is talented and enthusiastic, bringing great energy to the show.
• Fonzie and Pinky are the most recognizable and specific characters. Quinn Shadko is a standout as Pinky. She always sounds lovely, but she also has Pinky's attitude, walk, and voice down pat - tough and smart on the outside, hiding a tender heart underneath. John Zeiler is her match as Fonzie, channeling Henry Winkler. Together they have a sweet and spicy chemistry as the central love story.
• As boy next door Richie, Eric Heimsoth has the red hair, earnestness, and likeability needed for the character. Richie and his pals Ralph Malph (an expressive Matthew Englund), Potsie (an appropriately reserved Andrew Newman), and Chachi (a charming Kory LaQuess Pullam) create some great doo-wappy four-part harmony.
• Lisa Denninger's Mrs. C and Briana Patnode's Joanie are a believable mother/daughter pair, and bring sweet harmony to the song "What I Dreamed Last Night."
• I don't know anything about motorcycles, but what looked to be an authentic vintage bike was rolled out onstage, rounding out the character of Fonzie.
• The musical is chock full of catch phrases, familiar to anyone who's watched the TV show: Richie's angry "bucko," Ralph Malph's gleeful "I still got it!," Chachi's admiring "waa waa waa," and of course, the Fonz with his "aaayyyy," "correctamundo," thumbs up, and signature comb movement.
• While the mostly empty set leaves something to be desired, the period costumes are fun and bright; the leather jackets, blue jeans, bobby socks, poodle skirts, and saddle shoes perfectly represent the era. If some of the girls' dresses look like bad prom dresses, perhaps that's appropriate. Pinky outshines the rest in her fabulous pink frocks, as she should.

While there are a couple of strange jokes that didn't land well (including one about Bill Gates, who was 4 years old in 1959), and the show goes a bit too far into camp territory at times, on the whole it's joyful homage to a beloved TV show and iconic characters. These Happy Days are yours and mine, and continue at the New Century Theatre through May 17.

the Dial Tones - Kory LaQuess Pullam as Chachi, Eric Heimsoth as Richie,
Andrew Newman as Potsie, and Matthew Englund as Ralph Malph
(photo by Heidi Bohnenkamp)

"Christmas of Swing" at the History Theatre

The holiday season has begun, at least on theater stages across the Twin Cities. Since I was out of the country for the opening of the Guthrie's A Christmas Carol this year, my first taste of Christmas (other than the bitterly cold weather) is History Theatre's WWII-era musical review Christmas of Swing, featuring the Minnesota trio The Andrews Sisters. The return of this popular show is a fun and peppy showcase of 40s-era popular music (also featuring appearances by Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye), that incorporates real letters from WWII soldiers, paying homage to our veterans of this and other wars.

For the most part Christmas of Swing is a light-hearted show, with a few somber moments acknowledging the hardship of the soldiers. But The Andrews Sisters’ job was to entertain and uplift, not wallow in the sorrows of war, and that they do in abundance. The play, written by Bob Beverage and Artistic Director Ron Peluso, is set at a dress rehearsal for a 1944 Christmas Eve show at a VA Hospital for wounded soldiers. This allows us to see all of the great numbers, as well as witness the banter between the sisters and their band and manager between songs. It also has the light and easy feel of a dress rehearsal; the efforts of the cast do not seem labored, but loose and effortless.

Some highlights of the show are:

The Andrews Sisters (Ruthie Baker,
Stacey Lindell, and Jen Burleigh-Bentz)
read a soldier's (Bryan Porter) letter home
(photo by Scott Pakudaitis)

• Ruthie Baker, Stacey Lindell, and Jen Burleigh-Bentz as the sisters Patty, Maxene, and LaVerne are just perfection in voice, movement, and personality, all of which blend together beautifully to create some tight harmonies and precise dance numbers. Ruthie gets most of the solos as lead singer Patty, but we also get a chance to hear the other ladies’ voices on their own, and all are lovely solo or in harmony.
• Bill Scharpen channels Bing Crosby in songs such as "Christmas in Kilarney" and "Here Comes Santa Claus," and Eric Heimsoth does a wonderful impression of the lanky and goofy Danny Kaye.
• Bill Scharpen also generates some laughs with Mark Rosenwinkel as the comedy duo Abbot and Costello.
• Bryan Porter and Eric Heimsoth (again) portray many different soldiers as the sisters read their letters, bringing the desperation, longing, and joys of these long ago men to life.
• The fairly simple set by Michael Hoover features some elaborate pieces that are wheeled out, including a sleigh and a huge two-sided cutout for an amusing number with the sisters and Danny Kaye.
• The choreography by Jan Puffer is a highlight – fast, sharp, concise, with that 40s swing action, effortlessly performed by the cast.
• The ever-busy Raymond Berg plays the piano while sitting in for the sisters' actual band leader Vic Schoen, leading the four-person band in a swingin' big band sound.
• I'm a sucker for period costumes, and these costumes (by Kelsey Glasener) do not disappoint! I love the sisters' black dresses with varying-sized polka dots and red trim and shoes, accented with long black coats with fur trim, red jackets, or authentic military green jackets. The men (who, for a change, have to change costumes much more frequently than the women) are dressed in authentic period uniforms and suits, as well as costumes for their various roles in the show.
• The sisters sing many Christmas songs, familiar and lesser known, and close the show with their most well-known song, the crowd-pleasing "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy." 

The History Theatre’s Christmas of Swing, playing now through December 22, is a great choice for a holiday show this year. Filled with the Christmas spirit (which I for one am not quite ready for, until Thanksgiving is over and/or we get our first big snowfall), humor, great songs and dancing, an energetic and entertaining cast, and respect for and celebration of vets, it’s a fun and feel-good show.

"My Fair Lady" at Bloomington Civic Theatre

Wouldn't it be loverly? Just you wait, 'Enry 'Iggins! The rain in Spain stays mainly in the plain. I could have danced all night! On the street where you live. Get me to the church on time! I've grown accustomed to her face.

I'd forgotten how many familiar and endlessly singable songs are in the classic Lerner and Loewe musical My Fair Lady until I saw it again yesterday, at the Bloomington Civic Theatre. I've actually only seen it on stage once, well, not so much on stage as in a rehearsal room at the MN Opera Center in a beautifully sparse production by Ten Thousand Things. But that's not a fair comparison, because what Ten Thousand Things does is incomparable. The current production at BCT is the first fully staged production of this classic musical that I've seen, and they do a wonderful job with it - from the full pit orchestra conducted by Anita Ruth, to the delightful costumes and set, to the talented and spirited cast. Yes, it's a little long, with some songs going on and on, and then coming back for more, but it's thoroughly enjoyable.

I'm sure everyone's familiar with the story. And even if you think you aren't, you know it. It's been retold many times, from the original Shaw play Pygmalion, to the Julia Roberts movie Pretty Woman. A gentleman takes a lower class woman and transforms her into a "lady." In this case, the gentleman is Professor Henry Higgens, who studies phonetics and is intrigued by "flower girl" Eliza's poor accent, and makes a bet with his colleague Colonel Pickering that he can transform her into a lady in six months time. Eliza does indeed learn to be a "lady," but retains her spirit and even teaches 'Enry 'Iggens a bit about being a human being in the process.


A few highlights of the show:

• Jim Pounds is everything you want Higgins to be - elegant, curmudgeonly, sophisticated, exasperated, stubborn, with a heart hiding somewhere deep inside.
• Rachel Weber plays Eliza with such energy and spirit, she fairly leaps off the stage! At times proud and strong, at times weepy and needy, she's a real heroine with a lovely voice to match her spunk.
• Michael Fischetti is also good as Colonel Pickering, with a wonderfully silly laugh.
• Fred Mackaman provides the comic relief as Eliza's father in the songs "Get Me to the Church on Time" and "With a Little Bit of Luck."
• Mary Kay Fortier-Spalding is a bit of a scene-stealer as the Professor's sophisticated mother who grows to love this young woman, who seems to be the only one who can teach her son a lesson or two.
• Eric Heimsoth doesn't have much to do as Freddy, other than sing the most beautiful song in the show, "On the Street Where You Live," and he does it justice.
• The scene at the races is a feast for the eyes. The women are decked out in elaborate period dresses in various patterns of black and white, the men in tails and top hats (costumes by Ed Gleeman), all holding themselves primly still until Eliza shouts out "move your bloomin' arse!" And watching Eliza put on her act while telling stories about her drunken aunt is hilarious.
• This may be the most elaborate set I've seen at BCT, with the walls of Higgins' stately home rolling in and out (sets by Robin McIntyre).
• The large and capable ensemble performs several group dance numbers, choreographed by Lewis E Whitlock III, who also directs.

Eliza Doolittle (Rachel Weber) sells flowers to
Professor Henry Higgins (Jim Pounds)

BCT's musical line-up for next season looks like another good one, featuring the tap-dancing extravaganza 42nd Street, a Sondheim show I've been dying to see - Sunday in the Park with George, one of my favorite musicals - Cabaret, and Leonard Bernstein's On the Town. I think that's going to be worth the drive across town.

"You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown" at Bloomington Civic Theatre

You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown at Bloomington Civic Theatre is an energetic, fun, sweet, colorful, and downright adorable show.  All I knew about this musical before I saw it is that Kristin Chenowith won a Tony for her role as Sally.  Based on the classic comic strip Peanuts by Minnesotan Charles Schultz, it was originally produced in 1967 and revived in 1999.  There's not much of a plot to the show, it's more like a series of vignettes that bring to mind the comic strip.  With just a six-person cast, this is the smallest show I've seen at the BCT.  There's no room for weak links in such a small cast, and there are none here.  Each character is a familiar friend, and these actors bring them to life in front of us.  I happened to go on a "talk-back" day, which is always fun for me, and one of the actors commented that their characters are bigger, more exaggerated versions of themselves.  I'm not sure if that's true, but it sure could be judging from their performances.

Our Charlie Brown is Adam Qualls, who was so good as the baker in Into the Woods last year.  He again does a wonderful job as our hapless hero, for whom nothing ever goes quite right.  Adam's Into the Woods wife is now his adversary/friend Lucy.  Colleen Somerville was last seen as one of the hilariously evil stepsisters in Cinderella at the Ordway, and is everything you'd want Lucy to be - relentless and pushy and selfish, and somehow loveable.  Charlie Brown's cute, spoiled, and not very studious little sister Sally is played by Courtney Miner, who, as she joked in the talk-back, gives Kristin Chenowith a run for her money!  She's adorable and fun to watch, especially chasing rabbits with Snoopy and in her big song "My New Philosophy."  Also great are Andrew Newman as the blanket-carrying, thumb-sucking Linus, whose intelligence and eloquence contrast with his babyish ways; and Eric Heimsoth as the classical music obsessed Schroeder, who gets to sing one of the funnest songs, Beethovan Day!

Last but not least, stealing every scene he's in, is Tyler Michaels as Snoopy.  He completely inhabits this canine character with great physicality and energy, in the way he moves and dances as well as how he reacts to what's going on around him.  He said in the talk-balk that he studied physical theater, which is obvious in his performance.  According to Tyler's website he will soon be playing my favorite character, Moritz Stiefel, in the highly anticipated (by me) Spring Awakening by Theater Latte Da.  It's the first bit of casting news I've seen, and I'm very excited to find out that someone I now know and like will be playing my sweet, troubled Moritz.

A few more great things about the show: colorful, oversized children's clothing that makes the adult actors look like kids; cartoonish sets that look like the comic strip come to life; delightful, childlike choreography by Joe Chvala who also directed; and really fun, catchy songs accompanied by the fabulous six-person pit orchestra led by Anita Ruth.  I saw a lot of kids in the audience who seemed to be having a good time, but the Peanuts characters are timeless and relatable at any age.  The final song is the familiar refrain "Happiness is...", listing all the wonderful and seemingly trivial little things that add up to make life worth living.  This production definitely captures the bittersweet life-is-tough-but-wonderful feeling of the comic strip.

I saw my first show at BCT just last year, and it kills me that I missed some of my favorites (like Light in the Piazza and Urinetown) in previous years.  Longtime Music Director Anita Ruth talked about how BCT is a stepping stone for young actors between college and some of the bigger stages around town.  Most of the actors have "day jobs," and the experience they receive at BCT is invaluable and will surely lead them to bigger things.  BCT seems to be the place to spy young up-and-coming talent, in addition to seeing some great theater.

"A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum" at the Jungle Theater

Since hearing Stephen Sondheim talk about his life in musical theater last year, I've been on a mission to see more of his shows.  And I've done pretty well so far: A Little Night Music on Broadway last year, Into the Woods at Bloomington Civic Theatre earlier this year, and the filmed concert version of Company at my local movie theater last week.  A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum is definitely the lightest of these pieces.  Nothing serious or thoughtful about it, just a ridiculously good time.

As usual, the Jungle puts on a wonderful production.  I wasn't sure how they would fit a big musical onto their tiny stage, but it works!  As Jungle Artistic Director Bain Boehlke said to director John Command when he asked about the space limitations, "well, Rome is crowded."  But the show doesn't feel crowded, it feels intimate and immediate, as if we were all gathered in some ancient Roman theater, watching the spectacle unfold before us.

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum is based on Roman farces, but also includes a few jokes about the current state of affairs.  Featuring slaves, whores, soldiers, long-lost children, and mistaken identities, the plot is completely silly, and really less important than the songs and performances.  The most familiar song is "Tragedy Tomorrow, Comedy Tonight," the lyrics of which very accurately sum up the show:

Something familiar,
Something peculiar,
Something for everyone:
A comedy tonight!

The cast of 20 features real life married couple Richard Ooms and Claudia Wilkens as married couple Senex and Domina.  Richard is hilarious and slightly creepy as "That Dirty Old Man," and Claudia is a commanding presence as his wife.  Senex has two slaves, the dedicated Hysterium (Jon Whittier), who only wants things to return to normal, and our narrator Pseudolus (Christopher Teipner), who dreams of being "Free!"  It's this dream that spurs on the action of the play, as Pseudolus finagles and manipulates to bring together Senex's sweet and earnest son Hero (Eric Heimsoth, who also appeared in Into the Woods) with his love Philia (Amanda Schnabel).  If he succeeds, Hero promises to give Pseudolus his freedom. 

One big obstacle keeping the lovebirds apart is the soldier Miles Gloriosus, who has already "bought" the lady in question.  Bradley Greenwald (one of my favorite local actors) plays Miles in all his pompous splendor.  What first drew me to Bradley was his incredible voice, but he's also a very fine actor.  He brought such depth to his performance as the emcee in Frank Theatre's Cabaret earlier this year.  But there's nothing deep about Miles Gloriosus, he's all bravado.  And Bradley steals every scene he's in, with just the look on his face or the way he walks across the stage in his full and glorious armor.  My favorite comedy moment is when he imitates a Glockenspiel.  If you get the joke, it's hilarious.  Bradley and the Jungle are reprising the show I Am My Own Wife, for which he received an Ivey Award, later this season, which I'm very much looking forward to.

The rest of the cast is entertaining as well.  I particularly enjoyed "The Proteans" - five men who play various roles and also perform some impressive and inventive choreography.  Josiah Gulden is the smarmy, overly tan, mustachioed owner of the whorehouse, in which half a dozen lovely and diverse "courtesans" reside (reminding me of another Sondheim show, Gypsy - “You Gotta Get a Gimmick”).  The whole cast plays together beautifully and hilariously.

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum is playing through the end of July.  It's a fun, light, entertaining, ridiculous, great summer show.


P.S. Topping my Stephen Sondheim wishlist are Sunday in the Park with George and Assassins, in case any local theaters are looking for Sondheim shows to fill their schedule next season.  :)

"Into the Woods" at the Bloomington Civic Theatre

Into the Woods at the Bloomington Civic Theatre was the first show on my list of productions I wanted to see this year.  There are two reasons I wanted to see it: 1) my New Years' resolution to see more Sondheim; and 2) I've been hearing good things about BCT lately, particularly in the bios of some of my favorite new actors, so I was curious to check it out.  I was not disappointed on either count.  As music director Anita Ruth pointed out before the show, Into the Woods is one of Sondheim's happier musicals, and this company of actors, musicians, and designers did a wonderful job with it.  There was a "talk back" after the show (love that!) where Anita and most of the actors came out on stage to discuss this show and the theatre in general.  BCT program director Bonnie Erickson was also available to answer questions.  Most of the actors have "day jobs," which makes their fine work with this challenging piece all the more impressive.  I hope to see some of them again, either on the BCT stage or on professional stages in the area.  Anita and Bonnie talked a little about the challenges of programming a season of musicals, balancing classic, familiar pieces that a portion of the audience wants, with more innovative and original pieces that appeal to another part of the audience (like me!).  It was interesting to hear about the life of this theatre and the work that they do.

Into the Woods, featuring music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by James Lapine, was first produced in 1986.  The plot is a mash-up of several well-known fairy tales, including Little Red Riding Hood, Cinderella, Jack and the Beanstalk, and Rapunzel, as well as an original story about a baker and his wife who want to have children but are cursed by a witch.  In the first act, the baker and his wife go on a quest to have the spell reversed and intersect with the tales of the other characters, all of whom go "Into the Woods" to begin their journey.  By intermission, everyone seems to have gotten what they wanted, but the second acts delves into what happens after the "happily ever after."  Sometimes the consequences of getting what you wanted are not all good.  As Glinda says in Wicked, "Getting your dreams, as strange as it seems, is a little, well, complicated."  The music is typical Sondheim: unusual and beautiful melodies with clever and fast-paced lyrics.

Highlights in the cast include Karen Weber as the witch, who later has her youth and beauty restored but her power taken away (you can't have everything).  She gets to sing the most well-known song, "No One is Alone," and does so beautifully.  Adam Qualls as the baker duets with the witch on that song, and is quite charismatic and natural on stage.  Colleen Somerville is his equal partner and wife, until she's charmed by the prince in the woods.  Laurel Armstrong is the Cinderella who comes to realize the fairy tale prince may not be the answer to her dreams after all.  Aleks Knezevich and Eric Heimsoth are the charming princes in "Agony" who, once they find their princesses, are not entirely satisfied.  Courtney Miner is a spitfire of a Red Riding Hood, and Joshua Hinck sings beautifully as the addle-brained Jack whose best friend is a cow, and who sets off a chain of events he didn't see coming.  The set was colorful and whimsical with moving pieces that functioned as beds, rocks, or trees depending on the scene.

Now that I've discovered BCT I'll definitely be keeping on eye on their schedule.  Their next show is the Cole Porter musical Kiss Me, Kate this spring, which might also be worth checking out.  I was very impressed with the all-around quality of the show and am glad to add BCT to my rotation of theaters.