Iowa City - According to director Jeffrey Mead, due to a number of contributing factors, including insurmountable competition for musicians and technical staff, the Iowa City Community Theatre Board has elected to postpone their production of Honk! until January, 2012. Final dates will be announced at a later time.
Honk! had been scheduled to open September 9, which is also the opening night of Hairspray, City Circle's first major production in the Coralville Center for the Performing Arts.
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Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Auditions for Red Hot Lovers this weekend
Iowa City - Auditions for the Iowa City Community Theatre’s production of Neil Simon’s Last of the Red Hot Lovers will be held at the Robert A. Lee Rec Center on Saturday, 27th, at 6:00 and Sunday, 28th, at 2:00. One man (40’s) and three women (25-45) are needed. The auditions will consist of readings from the script. Copies are on reserve at the Iowa City Public Library. Other times for auditions may be arranged by contacting the director Rich Riggleman at r.riggleman@mchsi.com or 319-341-8749.
Monday, August 22, 2011
All in a Day Play fest on Sunday
Coralville — For the fourth year in a row, City Circle Acting Company and Dreamwell Theatre team up to present the All-in-a-Day Play Festival. The fourth annual festival will be presented August 28th at 7:30 p.m. at the Coralville Center for the Performing Arts. Tickets are $8 and are available at the door only. The Center is located at 1301 5th St. Coralville, next to the Coralville Public Library.
The evening before the event, seven writers, seven directors and thirty-five actors will meet to receive script assignments including characters, themes and locations. The writers are tasked to produce a 10-minute script by 8 a.m. the next morning, leaving the actors and directors to work like mad to create seven brand new plays for Sunday's 7:30 p.m. performance.
The past years' shows have ranged from comedy to drama to fantasy and slapstick, creating a fast-paced and spontaneous evening of excitement that keeps the audience, and the actors, on their toes. The works will be judged and given awards at the end of the evening.
This unique collaboration between several area arts groups was awarded the Winner of the 2009 Icky Award for Innovative Excellence. This production is co-produced by Dreamwell Theatre and City Circle Acting Company of Coralville.
(Photo from last year's event.)
Friday, August 19, 2011
Rabbit Hole is a Rare Treat
By James E. Trainor III
Cedar Rapids - Peter Brook said he could take any empty space and call it a bare stage. Urban Theatre Project brings this claim to life in a very practical way. As Cedar Rapids' "gypsy theatre," UTP will create theatre anywhere someone will let them land for a few weeks. The aesthetic dispenses with all the spectacle of a proscenium stage and a dazzling lighting rig, focusing instead on the basics: actors performing powerful scripts with intention and clarity.
For Rabbit Hole, the Cook House has offered to be UTP's home. It's quite a home, too; a beautiful 7-bedroom mansion built in 1915. The large living room on the ground floor fills in for the home of the fictional Becca and Howie, and if you happen to like the surroundings when you visit them, you're in luck: the property is on the market.
Leaving aside the novelty of combining an open house with a night of engaging theatre, the atmosphere of the Cook house is ideal for the very level realism that characterizes this production. The acting, direction, costumes and props are straight-forward, under-emphasized and naturalistic - often painfully so. Also, the open house works itself into Rabbit Hole's story: Becca and Howie are also selling their house.
They've put their house on the market because Becca (Leslie Charipar) can no longer cope with the daily reminders of their dead son, Danny. Howie (Jason Alberty) is reluctant at first but goes along with the plan. Danny was four when he died in a car accident, and each partner is struggling with grief in a very different way. They try to keep their marriage intact despite the shocking blow. They have support from family, however: Nat, Becca's mother (Cherryl Moon Thomason) is on-hand to offer support and advice - whether it's wanted or not. Izzy, Becca's sister (Sarah Jarmon), reminds us that life goes on in the face of loss: she's having a unplanned baby with her boyfriend, which causes some tension between the sisters.
The final character is Jason (Nick Ostrem), the teenager who hit Danny with his car. He is very contrite, and is dealing with the shock the only way he knows how: he writes a science-fiction story and dedicates it to Danny. The gesture is the beginning of the crack in Becca's armor, and she begins to open up and express herself. The relationship between Becca and Jason is characteristic of the warmth and compassion in David Lindsay-Abaire's somewhat dark script, as two strangers on opposite ends of a life-changing incident try to be there for each other.
The show is expertly acted, with all the nuance and realism a naturalistic script deserves. The show is slow and takes a while to build, but the actors are with it the whole while, developing the relationships between each other, settling in and living the whole story. For a piece as emotional as this one, the characters have to be real people, and this company, under Angie Toomsen's direction, does a phenomenal job of fleshing them out. It's a rare treat to see such talented actors focus their skills on a script like this.
Leslie Charipar is strong as Becca. She is very stiff and reserved at the beginning, as if she is afraid what she might say if she truly allows herself to express her grief. She creates a great deal of tension in the early scenes, especially when the others are offering to share her burden and she won't budge. When Becca is retreating into herself, becoming stubborn and vicious, Charipar vigorously pushes the energy of the piece forward. When Becca starts to heal a bit, especially in the second act, we see the humor and compassion that makes Becca a truly sympathetic character.
Her relationship with Jason Alberty as Howie is at the core of Rabbit Hole's success. These two are easily believable as a married couple; they've taken the discussions and arguments penned so carefully by Lindsay-Abaire and given them a lot of life. They trust each other as scene partners and inform each others' characters: a look from Howie tells us more about Becca than a monologue of backstory, and vice versa. The result is an almost magical realism: sitting five feet away from the action, set so appropriately in a real living room, one almost has the impulse to jump in, to tell Becca to lighten up a bit, or remind Howie to give her some space.
It's not that often one gets to see Alberty in a dramatic role, and with a strong script like this, it's definitely something to see. He's very down-to-earth, very contained, and when the anger begins to boil over in later scenes, it comes from a very natural place. He's also a great scene partner and listens very well on stage.
Sarah Jarmon is equally amazing as Izzy. Though the first scene takes its time establishing the relationship, the connection between Jarmon and Charipar is very real. Jarmon is also great at listening to her scene partners, and her range of facial and vocal expression is very creative and endearing. Izzy is an easily likable character, rough around the edges but ready to take her role as a new mother seriously. When the whole family gets together, she fits right in as both sister and daughter, and adds a lot to the realism of the piece.
Cherryl Moon Thomason is very likable as Nat, the practical but compassionate mother to Becca and Izzy. She also lost a son, and tries to share her experience with Becca, but Becca, at first, is not willing to listen. Nat is relentless in her first scenes, dispensing slightly tipsy wisdom. Thomason's job is to come on and open a window for the undercurrent of dread that has chilled the last few scenes, and she does a terrific job. Again, the company is working quite well together: Thomason talks on, driving the action, picking at scabs that haven't healed, the other members of the cast responding silently but with great attention to the stakes. In later scenes, Nat and Becca come to terms with their mutual grief, and these are quite lovely.
Nick Ostrem rounds out the cast as Jason. Ostrem may not be as experienced as the other members of the cast, but he holds his own with very energetic scene partners such as Alberty and Charipar. Jason is subdued and contrite for much of the play, but when Becca agrees to see him, Ostrem wakes up a little bit: Jason explains the scientific basis for his fantastic story and we see the excitable teenager in him. We also see Becca's hope revive: Ostrem and Charipar share the energy in this scene quite well, and it's an awkward but touching encounter.
This is a hard-working cast that brings a lot of skill to the stage, and director Angie Toomsen knows it. It is clear that she has led them to opening night with commitment and respect, trusting in their abilities but pushing them for their very best in each scene. There isn't really a moment in this production where the bottom drops out and we see actors struggling to pick up the thread. That sounds like it should be taken for granted, but it shouldn't: what I'm talking about is absolute attention to the story and to each other - the kind of focused intent in performance that makes an imaginary dead toddler a tangible presence in the audience's lives. That sort of thing is great acting: invisible acting, acting that looks and sounds like just talking, and it takes a lot of work to get it to seem so seamless.
Toomsen and company have spend a lot of time and considerable talent bringing a really good story to the stage. Lindsay-Abaire's script is a well-expressed exploration of grief, and though it's very dark at times, it's also humorous and truly human. The structure of the play is that of a Greek tragedy flipped upside-down; the characters start at the bottom, and must find their way out of the rabbit hole of grief. It's a long journey from the slow and heavy tones of dread at the beginning of the piece to the comparatively lighter scenes of compassion and acceptance at the end, and Toomsen doesn't rush it. The cast, and the audience, are totally with her, and the result is a very moving night of theatre.
There's still time to see this show: it's running two weekends and it's only $10. I strongly urge you to look here here and find out more. It's not that often you get so much theatrical talent in one place, and so carefully and passionately employed. It's one of the best types of dramatic theatre: a simple but meaningful story, simply but meaningfully told, by artists who throw the weight of their experience and attention into creating something beautiful. Go see it.
Cedar Rapids - Peter Brook said he could take any empty space and call it a bare stage. Urban Theatre Project brings this claim to life in a very practical way. As Cedar Rapids' "gypsy theatre," UTP will create theatre anywhere someone will let them land for a few weeks. The aesthetic dispenses with all the spectacle of a proscenium stage and a dazzling lighting rig, focusing instead on the basics: actors performing powerful scripts with intention and clarity.
For Rabbit Hole, the Cook House has offered to be UTP's home. It's quite a home, too; a beautiful 7-bedroom mansion built in 1915. The large living room on the ground floor fills in for the home of the fictional Becca and Howie, and if you happen to like the surroundings when you visit them, you're in luck: the property is on the market.
Leaving aside the novelty of combining an open house with a night of engaging theatre, the atmosphere of the Cook house is ideal for the very level realism that characterizes this production. The acting, direction, costumes and props are straight-forward, under-emphasized and naturalistic - often painfully so. Also, the open house works itself into Rabbit Hole's story: Becca and Howie are also selling their house.
They've put their house on the market because Becca (Leslie Charipar) can no longer cope with the daily reminders of their dead son, Danny. Howie (Jason Alberty) is reluctant at first but goes along with the plan. Danny was four when he died in a car accident, and each partner is struggling with grief in a very different way. They try to keep their marriage intact despite the shocking blow. They have support from family, however: Nat, Becca's mother (Cherryl Moon Thomason) is on-hand to offer support and advice - whether it's wanted or not. Izzy, Becca's sister (Sarah Jarmon), reminds us that life goes on in the face of loss: she's having a unplanned baby with her boyfriend, which causes some tension between the sisters.
The final character is Jason (Nick Ostrem), the teenager who hit Danny with his car. He is very contrite, and is dealing with the shock the only way he knows how: he writes a science-fiction story and dedicates it to Danny. The gesture is the beginning of the crack in Becca's armor, and she begins to open up and express herself. The relationship between Becca and Jason is characteristic of the warmth and compassion in David Lindsay-Abaire's somewhat dark script, as two strangers on opposite ends of a life-changing incident try to be there for each other.
The show is expertly acted, with all the nuance and realism a naturalistic script deserves. The show is slow and takes a while to build, but the actors are with it the whole while, developing the relationships between each other, settling in and living the whole story. For a piece as emotional as this one, the characters have to be real people, and this company, under Angie Toomsen's direction, does a phenomenal job of fleshing them out. It's a rare treat to see such talented actors focus their skills on a script like this.
Leslie Charipar is strong as Becca. She is very stiff and reserved at the beginning, as if she is afraid what she might say if she truly allows herself to express her grief. She creates a great deal of tension in the early scenes, especially when the others are offering to share her burden and she won't budge. When Becca is retreating into herself, becoming stubborn and vicious, Charipar vigorously pushes the energy of the piece forward. When Becca starts to heal a bit, especially in the second act, we see the humor and compassion that makes Becca a truly sympathetic character.
Her relationship with Jason Alberty as Howie is at the core of Rabbit Hole's success. These two are easily believable as a married couple; they've taken the discussions and arguments penned so carefully by Lindsay-Abaire and given them a lot of life. They trust each other as scene partners and inform each others' characters: a look from Howie tells us more about Becca than a monologue of backstory, and vice versa. The result is an almost magical realism: sitting five feet away from the action, set so appropriately in a real living room, one almost has the impulse to jump in, to tell Becca to lighten up a bit, or remind Howie to give her some space.
It's not that often one gets to see Alberty in a dramatic role, and with a strong script like this, it's definitely something to see. He's very down-to-earth, very contained, and when the anger begins to boil over in later scenes, it comes from a very natural place. He's also a great scene partner and listens very well on stage.
Sarah Jarmon is equally amazing as Izzy. Though the first scene takes its time establishing the relationship, the connection between Jarmon and Charipar is very real. Jarmon is also great at listening to her scene partners, and her range of facial and vocal expression is very creative and endearing. Izzy is an easily likable character, rough around the edges but ready to take her role as a new mother seriously. When the whole family gets together, she fits right in as both sister and daughter, and adds a lot to the realism of the piece.
Cherryl Moon Thomason is very likable as Nat, the practical but compassionate mother to Becca and Izzy. She also lost a son, and tries to share her experience with Becca, but Becca, at first, is not willing to listen. Nat is relentless in her first scenes, dispensing slightly tipsy wisdom. Thomason's job is to come on and open a window for the undercurrent of dread that has chilled the last few scenes, and she does a terrific job. Again, the company is working quite well together: Thomason talks on, driving the action, picking at scabs that haven't healed, the other members of the cast responding silently but with great attention to the stakes. In later scenes, Nat and Becca come to terms with their mutual grief, and these are quite lovely.
Nick Ostrem rounds out the cast as Jason. Ostrem may not be as experienced as the other members of the cast, but he holds his own with very energetic scene partners such as Alberty and Charipar. Jason is subdued and contrite for much of the play, but when Becca agrees to see him, Ostrem wakes up a little bit: Jason explains the scientific basis for his fantastic story and we see the excitable teenager in him. We also see Becca's hope revive: Ostrem and Charipar share the energy in this scene quite well, and it's an awkward but touching encounter.
This is a hard-working cast that brings a lot of skill to the stage, and director Angie Toomsen knows it. It is clear that she has led them to opening night with commitment and respect, trusting in their abilities but pushing them for their very best in each scene. There isn't really a moment in this production where the bottom drops out and we see actors struggling to pick up the thread. That sounds like it should be taken for granted, but it shouldn't: what I'm talking about is absolute attention to the story and to each other - the kind of focused intent in performance that makes an imaginary dead toddler a tangible presence in the audience's lives. That sort of thing is great acting: invisible acting, acting that looks and sounds like just talking, and it takes a lot of work to get it to seem so seamless.
Toomsen and company have spend a lot of time and considerable talent bringing a really good story to the stage. Lindsay-Abaire's script is a well-expressed exploration of grief, and though it's very dark at times, it's also humorous and truly human. The structure of the play is that of a Greek tragedy flipped upside-down; the characters start at the bottom, and must find their way out of the rabbit hole of grief. It's a long journey from the slow and heavy tones of dread at the beginning of the piece to the comparatively lighter scenes of compassion and acceptance at the end, and Toomsen doesn't rush it. The cast, and the audience, are totally with her, and the result is a very moving night of theatre.
There's still time to see this show: it's running two weekends and it's only $10. I strongly urge you to look here here and find out more. It's not that often you get so much theatrical talent in one place, and so carefully and passionately employed. It's one of the best types of dramatic theatre: a simple but meaningful story, simply but meaningfully told, by artists who throw the weight of their experience and attention into creating something beautiful. Go see it.
Thursday, August 18, 2011
Rabbit Hole opens tonight
Cedar Rapids - Urban Theater Project of Iowa (UTP) presents David Lindsay-Abaire’s Rabbit Hole, opening August 18 thru 28 in a beautiful, early 20th century mansion located at 222 Crescent St. SE, Cedar Rapids, IA.
Winner of the 2007 Pulitzer Prize, Rabbit Hole is a transcendent exploration of grief and hope.
Eight months after the loss of their young son in an auto accident, Becca and Howie Corbett redefine their lives. While Howie attends a support group and clings to precious details, Becca seeks to escape daily reminders of her son. When Becca’s irresponsible sister reveals she is pregnant—and Becca’s mother attempts to instruct Becca how best to grieve—Becca struggles to find a way back to an existence that still holds the possibility of laughter and beauty.
“The remarkable thing about this piece is that, despite the emotionally harrowing circumstances, it’s not overly sentimental—it’s alternately heartbreaking and hilarious,” says director Angie Toomsen. “These are real people, trying to move forward after the unimaginable. The depiction of that survival by this veteran crew of actors is honest, raw, funny and inclusive.”
Leslie Charpiar, artistic director of Theatre Cedar Rapids and UTP founder, steps into role of the Becca. Actor/director/writer, Jason Alberty, portrays Howie. Area favorites Cherryl Moon Thomason (Nat), Sarah Jarmon (Izzy) and Iowa City actor Nick Ostrem (Jason) round out the cast.
One of the hallmarks of UTP is that they present shows in non-theatrical settings. The house-which would make an incredible bed and breakfast-is actually on the market. The Cook family has graciously allowed UTP to use the family mansion. The extra cool part? Audiences get to take a look around the whole house before the show and during intermission, if desired. Guests are also welcomed into the dining room for complementary wine and chocolate torte.
Performance dates are August 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 27, 8:00 p.m. curtain. House opens at 7:00 p.m. Tickets are available at the door, but seating is limited. $10 General Admission. To make a reservation e-mail boxoffice@urbantheaterproject.org or call 319-431-2110.
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Working Group Theatre winds up International Summer
Iowa City — Working Group Theatre, a local professional theatre whose work often takes on local topics such as race in Iowa City or treatment of Iowa Veterans, expanded its focus this summer to international collaborations.
Producing Director Martin Andrews traveled to Barcelona in July where he Co-Directed the Freedom and Focus International Voice Conference. Working Group was a sponsor of the 5-day event, which attracted over 50 participants and teachers from seven different countries. "It was pretty amazing to have people at the Institut Del Teatre in Barcelona talking about Working Group Theatre and Iowa City." said Andrews. "I hope that a future International Conference can be brought home to Iowa."
Andrews was not the only one carrying the Working Group banner across the world. Artistic Director Sean Lewis and Associate Artistic Director Jennifer Fawcett spent three weeks in Rwanda volunteering at the Agahozo-Shalom Youth Village with the International Theatre & Literacy Project. In just ten days, Fawcett, Lewis and poet, Didi Goldenhar, helped twenty-five teenagers create an original play about a girl, orphaned by the genocide, who travels across the country in search of her father. The play premiered in Kigali at the Centre X Centre International Theatre Festival and was one of the highlights of the festival. The students have been asked to perform the play at the University of Rwanda and the Kina Festival, a theatre festival for youth. In addition, two of the young actors were invited to perform for Rwandan President, Paul Kagame. While at the Festival, Fawcett and Lewis also taught a Play Creation workshop with participants from Sweeden, Uganda, Rwanda, South Africa, Kenya and America. Agahozo-Shalom is located outside Kigali and home to 375 teens who have been orphaned by the genocide and/or otherwise labeled at risk. For a more detailed account of the adventures in Rwanda, check out the blogs at www.workinggrouptheatre.org.
Producing Director Martin Andrews traveled to Barcelona in July where he Co-Directed the Freedom and Focus International Voice Conference. Working Group was a sponsor of the 5-day event, which attracted over 50 participants and teachers from seven different countries. "It was pretty amazing to have people at the Institut Del Teatre in Barcelona talking about Working Group Theatre and Iowa City." said Andrews. "I hope that a future International Conference can be brought home to Iowa."
Andrews was not the only one carrying the Working Group banner across the world. Artistic Director Sean Lewis and Associate Artistic Director Jennifer Fawcett spent three weeks in Rwanda volunteering at the Agahozo-Shalom Youth Village with the International Theatre & Literacy Project. In just ten days, Fawcett, Lewis and poet, Didi Goldenhar, helped twenty-five teenagers create an original play about a girl, orphaned by the genocide, who travels across the country in search of her father. The play premiered in Kigali at the Centre X Centre International Theatre Festival and was one of the highlights of the festival. The students have been asked to perform the play at the University of Rwanda and the Kina Festival, a theatre festival for youth. In addition, two of the young actors were invited to perform for Rwandan President, Paul Kagame. While at the Festival, Fawcett and Lewis also taught a Play Creation workshop with participants from Sweeden, Uganda, Rwanda, South Africa, Kenya and America. Agahozo-Shalom is located outside Kigali and home to 375 teens who have been orphaned by the genocide and/or otherwise labeled at risk. For a more detailed account of the adventures in Rwanda, check out the blogs at www.workinggrouptheatre.org.
TCR Underground Auditions Aug 28-29
Cedar Rapids - Theatre Cedar Rapids announced the lineup for the Underground Festival, two weekends in November of original shows. Auditions are going to be August 28 and 29. With more than 60 roles available, there is a role for almost everyone. The festival includes 10 minute plays, one act plays, and full length plays. Some of the shows will receive staged readings and some will receive full productions. The three full length plays that will receive full productions are Escape from the Underworld by TCR's Program Participation Coordinator Erica Jo Hoye, The Summerland Project by TCR's Marketing Director Rob Merritt and Truth or Consequences by Ryan Rausch.
For information about all of the plays that were selected, as well as details about auditions go to the TCR website.
Saturday, August 13, 2011
History Comes to Life at ITAC
By James E. Trainor III
Amana - ITAC's Woody Guthrie's American Song, conceived and adapted Peter
Glazer, is one part history lecture and one part rousing sing-a-long. However, this unique musical show has a very engaging dramatic structure, as the songs are arranged to tell us the story of the life of this incredible American.
Woody Guthrie was born in Oklahoma in 1912. He spent his early years working odd jobs and developing his passion for music. He was soon pushed west with many others, due to the Dust Bowl, and found much to sing about in California, chronicling the lives of struggling workers in the mythical American West. Soon he crossed the country to New York and became involved in the folk music community there. He began writing songs about WWII and Germany, and even did a stint in the Merchant Marines. Guthrie died in 1967 of Huntingson's disease, but his short career was very prolific. Today he is an American institution; his songs, most notably "This Land Is Your Land," are still popular today, and both his son Arlo and his granddaughter Sarah Lee are folk musicians.
Woody Guthrie's American Song tells his story primarily by singing his songs - a seven-piece band sits in front of a welcoming porch on one side of the stage, and a slide show featuring pictures of Guthrie, notable events, or picturesque American landscapes on the other. They talk between songs, telling in Guthrie's words what he said about his music, sometimes giving historical context, but mainly they just sing - and quite well, too - filling the works with their original passion and vigor.
Guthrie was very generous about sharing his music, and talked about "borrowing words" from the people he listened to during his travels. He was delighted to hear people singing things he had written, and was very involved in the communal nature of folk music. ITAC dramatizes this idea quite well, by giving us three Guthries throughout the night. Through a simple change of a hat, Ryan Westwood gives the storytelling mantle over to Mark Wilson, who later passes it on to Randy Sandersfeld.
Westwood embodies the young Guthrie quite well. He's sweet-faced and easy to like, talks in a friendly, casual way, and is very energetic as the first few songs kick off and we see Guthrie's star rising. The joy of the young artist finding his place in the world is clear in Westwood's face and in his voice. When he is forced to go west and endure trials ("This Train Is Bound for Glory," "Dust Bowl Refugee"), the fear and determination in his performance is compelling. During "This Train," the most basic of staging is quite effective: a drunk kicks him off of the stage (and thus the train), and Westwood sings the rest of the song down-center, clutching his guitar for dear life. It's the Hero's Journey without any need for bells and whistles, and it's quite inspiring.
Mark Wilson is a more mature Woody, working in California and further growing as a musician. He's more relaxed, more humble, but still has that creative spark. Wilson is excellent in showing us the compassion Guthrie had for the people he met in his travels, a bold but simple compassion that lives on in his songs. In this period we hear Guthrie's tales of labor struggles ("Union Maid"), migrant workers ("Pastures of Plenty"), and WWII ("The Reuben James"). He sings loud and clear about things we might not want to hear, but Wilson doesn't come off as a rabble-rouser; he's a kind man with a great big smile on his face who loves to hear people sing and see people dance. He's a man who wants to bring a little healing to the world.
Randy Sandersfeld gives us Guthrie at the end of his career. Most striking is his deep voice and his soulful, expressive face. He is most effective on the lonesome blues numbers such as "Nine Hundred Miles." He's got a humor to him, too, though, and the same compassion as the others; he tells how music should inspire and kicks off the closer, an energetic rendition of "This Land Is Your Land."
Meg Merckens, Paul Roberts, Joy Ward, and Karenza Yoder round out the ensemble. Playing a variety of instruments and sharing singing duties, this group works incredibly well together, and everyone is really into the music. On opening night, the crowd wasn't afraid to sing along when encouraged by these friendly, energetic performers.
Enjoying folk music has always been a social thing, so the sing-a-long fits right in. As amusing as it is to see ITAC encouraging a crowd of 21st-Century Iowans to sing "I'm sticking to the Union," this show also allows us to reflect on what the work of folk music actually is. There's a lot of suffering and atrocity that's glossed over in our high school history books, and I'm not convinced we'd remember things like the Ludlow Massacre if not for people like Guthrie who wouldn't shut up about them.
A portrait of an American life in the 1930s and '40s is not only an inspiring tale of the American spirit; it is often a chilling picture of a nation reeling from a series of economic, social, and geopolitical blows. It is not entirely unlike the America of today, but we sometimes forget this due to the aesthetic distance our textbooks and documentaries allow us. Guthrie takes that distance away from us; he's at the core a voice of dissatisfaction, blown out of its complacency by the Oklahoma dust. He wants to tell very direct, very emotional stories about people suffering, and those stories still ring true, decades after the fact.
The most striking example of this in ITAC's show is "Deportee (Plane Wreck at Los Gatos)." Joy Ward and Karenza Yoder lead a haunting a capella version of this song which literally brought tears to my eyes. As in "Pastures of Plenty," Guthrie expresses his anger at the hypocrisy of an America that denies a slice of the pie to those migrant workers who harvest the crops that make that pie. The newspaper article names the four Americans who died in the crash, but didn't name the twenty-eight "deportees." Guthrie gives them names, chanting
"Goodbye to my Juan, goodbye, Rosalita,
Adios mis amigos, Jesus y Maria;
You won't have your names when you ride the big airplane,
All they will call you will be 'deportees' "
It is a very somber moment, not only because of the highly effective emotional content of the song itself, but because, as late as 2011, we're still having this same conversation. A lot of the rhetoric flying around in the American Southwest is just as racist and just as dismissive as the newspaper article that stirred Guthrie's blood sixty-three years ago. We like to think that this sort of thing has gone the way of lynchings and segregated drinking fountains - has, in other words, been relegated to history - but history doesn't move quite as quickly as we like to think it does.
So we still, even in our enlightened age, need folk singers. Or, to use Guthrie's words from the show, when he responds in American Song to a skeptic in New York who tells him "folk songs are on the way out:"
"As long as their are floods, disasters, trade union troubles, politicians...folk songs is on the way in."
Woody Guthrie's American Song runs through August 28th, Fridays at 7:30 pm, Saturdays at 1:30 pm and 7:30 pm, and Sundays at 1:30 pm. Tickets are $20 and can be ordered here.
Amana - ITAC's Woody Guthrie's American Song, conceived and adapted Peter
Glazer, is one part history lecture and one part rousing sing-a-long. However, this unique musical show has a very engaging dramatic structure, as the songs are arranged to tell us the story of the life of this incredible American.
Woody Guthrie was born in Oklahoma in 1912. He spent his early years working odd jobs and developing his passion for music. He was soon pushed west with many others, due to the Dust Bowl, and found much to sing about in California, chronicling the lives of struggling workers in the mythical American West. Soon he crossed the country to New York and became involved in the folk music community there. He began writing songs about WWII and Germany, and even did a stint in the Merchant Marines. Guthrie died in 1967 of Huntingson's disease, but his short career was very prolific. Today he is an American institution; his songs, most notably "This Land Is Your Land," are still popular today, and both his son Arlo and his granddaughter Sarah Lee are folk musicians.
Woody Guthrie's American Song tells his story primarily by singing his songs - a seven-piece band sits in front of a welcoming porch on one side of the stage, and a slide show featuring pictures of Guthrie, notable events, or picturesque American landscapes on the other. They talk between songs, telling in Guthrie's words what he said about his music, sometimes giving historical context, but mainly they just sing - and quite well, too - filling the works with their original passion and vigor.
Guthrie was very generous about sharing his music, and talked about "borrowing words" from the people he listened to during his travels. He was delighted to hear people singing things he had written, and was very involved in the communal nature of folk music. ITAC dramatizes this idea quite well, by giving us three Guthries throughout the night. Through a simple change of a hat, Ryan Westwood gives the storytelling mantle over to Mark Wilson, who later passes it on to Randy Sandersfeld.
Westwood embodies the young Guthrie quite well. He's sweet-faced and easy to like, talks in a friendly, casual way, and is very energetic as the first few songs kick off and we see Guthrie's star rising. The joy of the young artist finding his place in the world is clear in Westwood's face and in his voice. When he is forced to go west and endure trials ("This Train Is Bound for Glory," "Dust Bowl Refugee"), the fear and determination in his performance is compelling. During "This Train," the most basic of staging is quite effective: a drunk kicks him off of the stage (and thus the train), and Westwood sings the rest of the song down-center, clutching his guitar for dear life. It's the Hero's Journey without any need for bells and whistles, and it's quite inspiring.
Mark Wilson is a more mature Woody, working in California and further growing as a musician. He's more relaxed, more humble, but still has that creative spark. Wilson is excellent in showing us the compassion Guthrie had for the people he met in his travels, a bold but simple compassion that lives on in his songs. In this period we hear Guthrie's tales of labor struggles ("Union Maid"), migrant workers ("Pastures of Plenty"), and WWII ("The Reuben James"). He sings loud and clear about things we might not want to hear, but Wilson doesn't come off as a rabble-rouser; he's a kind man with a great big smile on his face who loves to hear people sing and see people dance. He's a man who wants to bring a little healing to the world.
Randy Sandersfeld gives us Guthrie at the end of his career. Most striking is his deep voice and his soulful, expressive face. He is most effective on the lonesome blues numbers such as "Nine Hundred Miles." He's got a humor to him, too, though, and the same compassion as the others; he tells how music should inspire and kicks off the closer, an energetic rendition of "This Land Is Your Land."
Meg Merckens, Paul Roberts, Joy Ward, and Karenza Yoder round out the ensemble. Playing a variety of instruments and sharing singing duties, this group works incredibly well together, and everyone is really into the music. On opening night, the crowd wasn't afraid to sing along when encouraged by these friendly, energetic performers.
Enjoying folk music has always been a social thing, so the sing-a-long fits right in. As amusing as it is to see ITAC encouraging a crowd of 21st-Century Iowans to sing "I'm sticking to the Union," this show also allows us to reflect on what the work of folk music actually is. There's a lot of suffering and atrocity that's glossed over in our high school history books, and I'm not convinced we'd remember things like the Ludlow Massacre if not for people like Guthrie who wouldn't shut up about them.
A portrait of an American life in the 1930s and '40s is not only an inspiring tale of the American spirit; it is often a chilling picture of a nation reeling from a series of economic, social, and geopolitical blows. It is not entirely unlike the America of today, but we sometimes forget this due to the aesthetic distance our textbooks and documentaries allow us. Guthrie takes that distance away from us; he's at the core a voice of dissatisfaction, blown out of its complacency by the Oklahoma dust. He wants to tell very direct, very emotional stories about people suffering, and those stories still ring true, decades after the fact.
The most striking example of this in ITAC's show is "Deportee (Plane Wreck at Los Gatos)." Joy Ward and Karenza Yoder lead a haunting a capella version of this song which literally brought tears to my eyes. As in "Pastures of Plenty," Guthrie expresses his anger at the hypocrisy of an America that denies a slice of the pie to those migrant workers who harvest the crops that make that pie. The newspaper article names the four Americans who died in the crash, but didn't name the twenty-eight "deportees." Guthrie gives them names, chanting
"Goodbye to my Juan, goodbye, Rosalita,
Adios mis amigos, Jesus y Maria;
You won't have your names when you ride the big airplane,
All they will call you will be 'deportees' "
It is a very somber moment, not only because of the highly effective emotional content of the song itself, but because, as late as 2011, we're still having this same conversation. A lot of the rhetoric flying around in the American Southwest is just as racist and just as dismissive as the newspaper article that stirred Guthrie's blood sixty-three years ago. We like to think that this sort of thing has gone the way of lynchings and segregated drinking fountains - has, in other words, been relegated to history - but history doesn't move quite as quickly as we like to think it does.
So we still, even in our enlightened age, need folk singers. Or, to use Guthrie's words from the show, when he responds in American Song to a skeptic in New York who tells him "folk songs are on the way out:"
"As long as their are floods, disasters, trade union troubles, politicians...folk songs is on the way in."
Woody Guthrie's American Song runs through August 28th, Fridays at 7:30 pm, Saturdays at 1:30 pm and 7:30 pm, and Sundays at 1:30 pm. Tickets are $20 and can be ordered here.
Friday, August 12, 2011
Theatre this weekend...
What are you doing this weekend? How about checking one of the theatre offerings in our area? Maybe head down to the Englert for the fundraiser for the Iowa City Community Theatre? A concert version of The Sound of Music will be performed tonight and tomorrow. Support the oldest theatre in the Iowa City area - they're 56 year old! All the details are here.
Or you can slide over to Amana and experience some folk music by checking out Iowa Theatre Artist's Woody Guthrie’s American Song. This theatre is only a few years old, but they've already won an Icky award! All the information is here.
And don't forget, Old Creamery's Suds continues this weekend. They are celebrating their 40th anniversary this year. Check out the review.
A writing opportunity
Iowa City - We received this from one of our readers.
"My name is Rae and I'm a student in the Iowa Writers' Workshop here. This year I'll be hosting a Radio Drama Hour on KRUI's The Lit Show. This hour will strictly feature drama: live readings of radio plays by contemporary writers. So this is a call to those writers. Plays need to be no more than 55 minutes in length and must have more than one character and call for more than one voice actor. Plays with edgy, experimental, or political content are particularly encouraged but we will look seriously at every submission. Rolling submission deadline, as the show is monthly. The first batch should be submitted by August 15, the second batch by September 1. Anyone interested in submitting a play to be read by actors on The Lit Show should email me here at raewink@gmail.com with their questions."
"My name is Rae and I'm a student in the Iowa Writers' Workshop here. This year I'll be hosting a Radio Drama Hour on KRUI's The Lit Show. This hour will strictly feature drama: live readings of radio plays by contemporary writers. So this is a call to those writers. Plays need to be no more than 55 minutes in length and must have more than one character and call for more than one voice actor. Plays with edgy, experimental, or political content are particularly encouraged but we will look seriously at every submission. Rolling submission deadline, as the show is monthly. The first batch should be submitted by August 15, the second batch by September 1. Anyone interested in submitting a play to be read by actors on The Lit Show should email me here at raewink@gmail.com with their questions."
Thursday, August 11, 2011
Casts for Superior Donuts and Damn Yankees
Cedar Rapids - Theatre Cedar Rapids has announced the casts of its next two shows: Superior Donuts by Tracy Letts and Damn Yankees, book by George Abbott and Douglass Wallop, music and lyrics by Richard Adler and Jerry Ross. TCR describes Damn Yankees as "Faust meets professional baseball." The lesser known Superior Donuts is "a heart-warming and humorous tale of unlikely friendships in one of Chicago’s most diverse neighborhoods." Superior Donuts opens September 23 in TCR's Grandon Studio. Damn Yankees is in the main auditorium beginning October 7.
Cast for Superior Donuts:
Nathan Bowden - Kevin
Nicolette Coiner-Winn - Randy
Scott Davidson - Luther
Brandon McDaniel - Franco
BJ Moeller - Lady
Steve Weiss - Arthur
Ward Grant - James
Steve Worthington - Max
Cast for Damn Yankees:
Greg Smith - Joe Boyd (Old Joe)
Janelle Steichen - Meg Boyd
Mike Wilhelm - Applegate
Jordan Hougham - Lola
Mike Cervantes - Van Buren
Casey Prince - Joe Hardy (Young Joe)
Susan Scharnau - Gloria
Rick Swan - Welch/Husband
Tracie Hodina - Doris
Stephanie Shaffer Martinez - Sister
Carol White - Wife/Various Roles
Rick Titus - Husband/Various Roles
Doug Jackson - Husband/Various Roles
Randal Jones - Husband/Various Roles
Aaron Canterbury - Ballplayer/Eddie
Brian Glick - Ballplayer
Danny Mulka - Ballplayer
Jay Burken - Ballplayer
Matt Russell - Ballplayer
Ryan Watters - Ballplayer
Zach Johnson - Ballplayer
Zach Parker - Ballplayer
Cast for Superior Donuts:
Nathan Bowden - Kevin
Nicolette Coiner-Winn - Randy
Scott Davidson - Luther
Brandon McDaniel - Franco
BJ Moeller - Lady
Steve Weiss - Arthur
Ward Grant - James
Steve Worthington - Max
Cast for Damn Yankees:
Greg Smith - Joe Boyd (Old Joe)
Janelle Steichen - Meg Boyd
Mike Wilhelm - Applegate
Jordan Hougham - Lola
Mike Cervantes - Van Buren
Casey Prince - Joe Hardy (Young Joe)
Susan Scharnau - Gloria
Rick Swan - Welch/Husband
Tracie Hodina - Doris
Stephanie Shaffer Martinez - Sister
Carol White - Wife/Various Roles
Rick Titus - Husband/Various Roles
Doug Jackson - Husband/Various Roles
Randal Jones - Husband/Various Roles
Aaron Canterbury - Ballplayer/Eddie
Brian Glick - Ballplayer
Danny Mulka - Ballplayer
Jay Burken - Ballplayer
Matt Russell - Ballplayer
Ryan Watters - Ballplayer
Zach Johnson - Ballplayer
Zach Parker - Ballplayer
Monday, August 8, 2011
Suds: the Rocking 60's Musical Soap Opera
by LaDawn Edwards
Old Creamery Theatre Company opened its 40th season to an appreciative house Friday night with a Main Stage production of Suds: A Rocking 60’s Musical Soap Opera.
I don’t think folks came for the show itself (which I’d never heard of), the washer-dominated set of the Suds-o-Rama Laundromat, or the house band (since the accompaniment was prerecorded.) No, the driving force that put the people in the seats, and on their feet for the final bows, was the return of Molly Hammer.
Music lovers who saw either Old Creamery run of Always. . .Patsy Cline will remember the marvelous melodies she spun and the sincere connection she created with audiences. Given that fan base, I can understand why director Sean McCall cast her, somewhat improbably, as the naively romantic fluff and fold girl Cindy, who (in true 60s soap opera fashion) was dumped by her pen pal boyfriend on her birthday.
Adaptable T.J. Besler, who plays the postman, a very Elvis-like washer repairman, a pocket-protector salesman, pipe-gesturing Fred McMurray clone from My Three Sons and everybody else, starts off the hits by prompting “Mr. Postman.” I recognize that every plot, however thin, requires plot exposition so we know who’s who, but when the bad news started flowing and Besler’s silly costumes and overdone mugging seemed to increase in intensity I found myself wondering impatiently ‘When’s the next song coming up?’
Cue the guardian angels! Dee Dee (Deborah Kennedy, back for her 11th season) and Marge (Jessica Brandish) swoop in with towering laundry baskets to interrupt a halfhearted suicide attempt while doing “The Loco-Motion.” They stick around to offer self esteem pep talks and cheesy advice like “I’d buy another ticket to the Tunnel of Love if the right guy came along.” Costumer Marquetta Senters deserves special kudos for Dee Dee’s gold lame circle skirt cocktail dress with pearls that is worthy of Donna Reed’s laundry day. Marge’s outfit featured the black Capri pants regularly seen on The Dick Van Dyke Show and a fuzzy red top with rhinestones straight out of Laverne & Shirley. Cindy’s pink plaid dress with full can-can slip reminded me of square dancing, but she is no style icon, so it worked.
Once established that Cindy needs to get a life, the duets, trios and—yes, eventually—close harmony quartets, come thicker and faster. Dolling up Cindy for her “Mystery Date” was the moment I decided I was glad I’d come—as the guardian angels took a turn as fairy godmothers a la Bewitched and I Dream of Jeannie, trading her canvas sneakers for high-heeled Mary Janes and slipping the birthday girl into a sequined cardigan. The second act started strong with a smoking post-party “Town without Pity” and built from there.
I loved Besler in “Secret Agent Man”—all gold and white tux and 007 super confident lady’s man! As Wolfman Jack used to say, ‘the hits just keep on coming,’ including plenty of Detroit sound like “Chapel of Love,” “I Say a Little Prayer,” and “Walk on By.” Brandish bares her soul in “You Don’t Have to Say You Love Me,” demonstrating that she can hold her own with the two equity actresses she’s partnered with. I expect this young lady to be going places far beyond Amana, Iowa.
I’ll confess that I personally experienced only the last four years of the 60’s, but several beloved music teachers, my mother’s record collection and—let’s face it—the Dirty Dancing soundtrack kept them alive for me. A few deep cuts that I hadn’t heard outside of late night “Greatest Hits” commercials include: “Don’t Make Me Over,” “Big Man” and “Today I Met the Boy I’m Gonna Marry,” all delivered admirably by Kennedy.
I would guess the Molly Hammer fans may have been disappointed that Cindy didn’t have more big numbers to showcase her beautiful voice. She did a great job with a comedic “These Boots Are Made for Walking” in galoshes, but most of her solos were montages or excerpts that frustratingly stopped just as the audience was getting into them.
My gripes here are with the play itself, not the performances. The director might have trimmed the first half hour to speed up the time machine transporting his audience, but in the end Suds put us in the sound environment of 60’s America, right where we want to be.
Old Creamery Theatre Company opened its 40th season to an appreciative house Friday night with a Main Stage production of Suds: A Rocking 60’s Musical Soap Opera.
I don’t think folks came for the show itself (which I’d never heard of), the washer-dominated set of the Suds-o-Rama Laundromat, or the house band (since the accompaniment was prerecorded.) No, the driving force that put the people in the seats, and on their feet for the final bows, was the return of Molly Hammer.
Music lovers who saw either Old Creamery run of Always. . .Patsy Cline will remember the marvelous melodies she spun and the sincere connection she created with audiences. Given that fan base, I can understand why director Sean McCall cast her, somewhat improbably, as the naively romantic fluff and fold girl Cindy, who (in true 60s soap opera fashion) was dumped by her pen pal boyfriend on her birthday.
Adaptable T.J. Besler, who plays the postman, a very Elvis-like washer repairman, a pocket-protector salesman, pipe-gesturing Fred McMurray clone from My Three Sons and everybody else, starts off the hits by prompting “Mr. Postman.” I recognize that every plot, however thin, requires plot exposition so we know who’s who, but when the bad news started flowing and Besler’s silly costumes and overdone mugging seemed to increase in intensity I found myself wondering impatiently ‘When’s the next song coming up?’
Cue the guardian angels! Dee Dee (Deborah Kennedy, back for her 11th season) and Marge (Jessica Brandish) swoop in with towering laundry baskets to interrupt a halfhearted suicide attempt while doing “The Loco-Motion.” They stick around to offer self esteem pep talks and cheesy advice like “I’d buy another ticket to the Tunnel of Love if the right guy came along.” Costumer Marquetta Senters deserves special kudos for Dee Dee’s gold lame circle skirt cocktail dress with pearls that is worthy of Donna Reed’s laundry day. Marge’s outfit featured the black Capri pants regularly seen on The Dick Van Dyke Show and a fuzzy red top with rhinestones straight out of Laverne & Shirley. Cindy’s pink plaid dress with full can-can slip reminded me of square dancing, but she is no style icon, so it worked.
Once established that Cindy needs to get a life, the duets, trios and—yes, eventually—close harmony quartets, come thicker and faster. Dolling up Cindy for her “Mystery Date” was the moment I decided I was glad I’d come—as the guardian angels took a turn as fairy godmothers a la Bewitched and I Dream of Jeannie, trading her canvas sneakers for high-heeled Mary Janes and slipping the birthday girl into a sequined cardigan. The second act started strong with a smoking post-party “Town without Pity” and built from there.
I loved Besler in “Secret Agent Man”—all gold and white tux and 007 super confident lady’s man! As Wolfman Jack used to say, ‘the hits just keep on coming,’ including plenty of Detroit sound like “Chapel of Love,” “I Say a Little Prayer,” and “Walk on By.” Brandish bares her soul in “You Don’t Have to Say You Love Me,” demonstrating that she can hold her own with the two equity actresses she’s partnered with. I expect this young lady to be going places far beyond Amana, Iowa.
I’ll confess that I personally experienced only the last four years of the 60’s, but several beloved music teachers, my mother’s record collection and—let’s face it—the Dirty Dancing soundtrack kept them alive for me. A few deep cuts that I hadn’t heard outside of late night “Greatest Hits” commercials include: “Don’t Make Me Over,” “Big Man” and “Today I Met the Boy I’m Gonna Marry,” all delivered admirably by Kennedy.
I would guess the Molly Hammer fans may have been disappointed that Cindy didn’t have more big numbers to showcase her beautiful voice. She did a great job with a comedic “These Boots Are Made for Walking” in galoshes, but most of her solos were montages or excerpts that frustratingly stopped just as the audience was getting into them.
My gripes here are with the play itself, not the performances. The director might have trimmed the first half hour to speed up the time machine transporting his audience, but in the end Suds put us in the sound environment of 60’s America, right where we want to be.
Auditions for Superior Donuts and Damn Yankees Tonight!
Cedar Rapids –Theatre Cedar Rapids will hold a second night of combined auditions for Superior Donuts and Damn Yankees, the next two shows of the theatre’s 2011-12 Season, tonight at 7 p.m.
Auditions will be held in TCR’s home in the Iowa Theater, 102 Third St. SE. Auditioners for Damn Yankees will be asked to sing, dance and read from the script. Trevor Debth is directing and choreographing the show, with music direction by Damon Cole. The show performs Oct. 7-29. Leslie Charipar is directing Superior Donuts, with performances Sept. 23-Oct. 15; auditioners for this play will be asked to read scenes from the script.
Superior Donuts is a humorous and heartwarming tale of friendship in one of Chicago’s most diverse neighborhoods, by the author of August: Osage County. The play features roles for a variety of ages and ethnicities.
Damn Yankees is a musical about what happens when a man sells his soul to the Devil for the chance to lead his favorite team, the hapless Washington Senators, against their nemesis the New York Yankees in the race for the World Series. But in the course of chasing the victory, Joe hardy begins to miss the life that he left behind – and look for a way to outsmart the Devil (and get the girl). The musical features many roles for men and women of all ages.
Callbacks for the two shows will be held Tuesday. To learn more about available roles or about TCR auditions in general, visit www.theatrecr.org.
Auditions will be held in TCR’s home in the Iowa Theater, 102 Third St. SE. Auditioners for Damn Yankees will be asked to sing, dance and read from the script. Trevor Debth is directing and choreographing the show, with music direction by Damon Cole. The show performs Oct. 7-29. Leslie Charipar is directing Superior Donuts, with performances Sept. 23-Oct. 15; auditioners for this play will be asked to read scenes from the script.
Superior Donuts is a humorous and heartwarming tale of friendship in one of Chicago’s most diverse neighborhoods, by the author of August: Osage County. The play features roles for a variety of ages and ethnicities.
Damn Yankees is a musical about what happens when a man sells his soul to the Devil for the chance to lead his favorite team, the hapless Washington Senators, against their nemesis the New York Yankees in the race for the World Series. But in the course of chasing the victory, Joe hardy begins to miss the life that he left behind – and look for a way to outsmart the Devil (and get the girl). The musical features many roles for men and women of all ages.
Callbacks for the two shows will be held Tuesday. To learn more about available roles or about TCR auditions in general, visit www.theatrecr.org.
Saturday, August 6, 2011
Mystery at the County Fair - Sweet as Pie!
by Rachel Brown
Iowa City - Android GPS is only as smart as you tell it to be. So, if for some reason you manage to type in the wrong address, it seems likely that you will find yourself on the wrong side of the city looking for a farm that just isn’t there. The show was a minute from starting as I finally arrived at the farm where Mystery at the County Fair was being held. With a sigh of relief and a silent “Thank You” to the sky for letting the rain stop, I took my seat in front of the large wrap-around porch decorated in American flags and patriotic paraphernalia. It was a step right back to the county fairs of my youth.
Writers Kate Aspengren, Mary Vasey and Janet Shlapkohl brought to life a glimpse of rural Iowa tradition and tailored their work to the lives and memories of anyone who has knowledge of small town life and county fairs. The characters are people that could have been pulled right out of my own head. They were relatable, realistic and funny!
Throw in some adorable goats and there are more than enough laughs and “awwws’ to last all evening.
There were many actors in the show who were just a blast to watch. Mary Vasey, playing Nancy, the wife of the fair organizer. With her slowly emptying bottle of hard cider, she showed a feisty, down-to-earth view of life. Rip Russell and Kathy Maxey, who played 2 Hollywood TV producers in search of Americas Best County Fair, wandered into the first scene much like myself, with unusable GPS-enabled cell phones.
They each gave their best to play the out of place “city folk” Katherine Smith as Agnes Lola Hammer - always second best - showed her character's sweetness and frustration as she struggled to understand why she was destined to be the runner-up in everything she endeavored.
This is the first time I have ever experienced this particular style of show. Each scene was played at a different location around the farm and as the actors moved through the farm the audience followed. We were led to each destination by a barbershop style quintet. The intermittent music in this show was enjoyable and fitting. Several of the main characters were given small songs to sing during each scene, adding a nice variety to the show and keeping the audience entertained and on our toes.
This is a short show, shorter than I expected, and I found this refreshing! Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy a 3-hour musical as much as the next thespian but I don’t feel that every piece of theatre needs to be long and complicated to be enjoyable. There weren’t any unnecessary scenes to draw out the action, the characters all rounded out their purposes and the audience got an hour-long slice of theatre - forgive the expression - sweeter than apple pie.
With only one more show Saturday August 6th at 7:00PM, I highly recommend you take an hour of your evening and drive out to see this great little show. Mystery at the County Fair is playing at 3418 Osage st SW, Iowa city, just a short drive off of Hwy 1. Tickets are available at the gate and more information about Combined Efforts Theatre can be found at www.combinedefforts.org.
Friday, August 5, 2011
Incredible Cast of Young Actors in TCR's 13
by Andrew Juhl
Cedar Rapids - At several points in the evening I thought, “Wow, that’s a bit salacious to be coming out the mouth of a 12-year-old.” But, in truth, no—it wasn’t. It was just jarring to hear tweens talk the way you know they probably talk when there aren’t any adults around. That true-to-life dialogue and interaction (at the heart of obviously contrived plot mechanics requisite in every musical) make 13 enjoyable and identifiable to a wide range of audience members. Also helping: it’s a truly funny story.
The musical concerns a boy, Evan Goldman, who has a perfect and popular 12-year-old existence in New York City… until his parents get divorced and he is forced to move to a small town in rural Indiana. Now the new kid in town, about to turn 13 and celebrate his Bar Mitzvah, all he wants is to be a part of the popular clique again, no matter what it takes to do so. What follows is a funny, fantastical, familiar and fully ineffable evening of musical comedy.
Bentlee Birchansky handles himself admirably as the lead ‘Evan Goldman.’ (I want to give him special props for totally nailing his (albeit small section of the) haphtarah.) And young actress Kennedy Wilson positively shines as his new best friend and obvious will-be love interest, ‘Patrice.’ Wilson’s voice is powerful yet quaint, blending shyness and probity in perfect amounts for the role.
Harry Daubitz, as jerk-jock ‘Brett’ turns in a good performance, hitting the laugh button and the douche button at the just right times. You never really like him, but you also never really dislike him until the point where the musical expressly wants you to; it’s an estimable subtlety that Daubitz brings, allowing the audience to resolve, along with Evan Goldman, just how pointless this meathead’s approval really is.
Perhaps my favorite performances of the evening, however, came from supporting actors Connor Schulz (‘Archie’) and Nikki Stewart (‘Lucy’). Schulz is positively ebullient as a lovelorn teen suffering from muscular dystrophy; this kid really knows how to work a punchline. Though at times perhaps a little too hammy, Schulz’s character is, to be fair, the one character that can get away with it. And Stewart… wow. Just… wow. ‘Lucy’ is a devious, bitchy little slut, and Stewart plays her to a tee; you can just tell Ms. Stewart is having a great time playing bad, and a similar “Ain’t this fun!?” vibe effuses throughout the cast whenever she’s onstage. Additionally, her back-and-forths with best frenemy ‘Kendra’ (actress Rachel Wirth) were clippy and tight; it was an absolute treat whenever the two interacted.
Additionally, I need to recognize the hilarious contributions of Cole Cooper and Brennan Urbi as the comic duo of “Malcom & Eddie.” These two little tramps were fabulously funny, their movements and hormone-centric harmonies elicited ear-to-ear smiles from this reviewer whenever they were onstage.
Director Casey Prince has pulled together a remarkable show, helped in no small part by the simple, effective choreography of Lovar Davis Kidd. This being TCR, the set design was no-less-than-expected: complex though unobtrusive, detailed though inconspicuous, the maximum effect from a minimalist assembly. And pulling everything together is delectably precise musical accompaniment from the pit, directed by Ryan Deignan.
The one distraction of the evening was several mic cut-outs, crackles, and pops. I rail on these “mistakes” whenever I see them in a production because they always remove me from the show. There were some crackles and pops so loud on opening night that they made the singers onstage noticeably flinch—that’s simply unfortunate and should be addressed as soon as possible.
Overall, however, this is an amazing show. TCR continues its reputation of excellent productions with incredible casts. Please, go and support these young actors and actresses. They’ve definitely worked hard to earn your patronage.
Cedar Rapids - At several points in the evening I thought, “Wow, that’s a bit salacious to be coming out the mouth of a 12-year-old.” But, in truth, no—it wasn’t. It was just jarring to hear tweens talk the way you know they probably talk when there aren’t any adults around. That true-to-life dialogue and interaction (at the heart of obviously contrived plot mechanics requisite in every musical) make 13 enjoyable and identifiable to a wide range of audience members. Also helping: it’s a truly funny story.
The musical concerns a boy, Evan Goldman, who has a perfect and popular 12-year-old existence in New York City… until his parents get divorced and he is forced to move to a small town in rural Indiana. Now the new kid in town, about to turn 13 and celebrate his Bar Mitzvah, all he wants is to be a part of the popular clique again, no matter what it takes to do so. What follows is a funny, fantastical, familiar and fully ineffable evening of musical comedy.
Bentlee Birchansky handles himself admirably as the lead ‘Evan Goldman.’ (I want to give him special props for totally nailing his (albeit small section of the) haphtarah.) And young actress Kennedy Wilson positively shines as his new best friend and obvious will-be love interest, ‘Patrice.’ Wilson’s voice is powerful yet quaint, blending shyness and probity in perfect amounts for the role.
Harry Daubitz, as jerk-jock ‘Brett’ turns in a good performance, hitting the laugh button and the douche button at the just right times. You never really like him, but you also never really dislike him until the point where the musical expressly wants you to; it’s an estimable subtlety that Daubitz brings, allowing the audience to resolve, along with Evan Goldman, just how pointless this meathead’s approval really is.
Perhaps my favorite performances of the evening, however, came from supporting actors Connor Schulz (‘Archie’) and Nikki Stewart (‘Lucy’). Schulz is positively ebullient as a lovelorn teen suffering from muscular dystrophy; this kid really knows how to work a punchline. Though at times perhaps a little too hammy, Schulz’s character is, to be fair, the one character that can get away with it. And Stewart… wow. Just… wow. ‘Lucy’ is a devious, bitchy little slut, and Stewart plays her to a tee; you can just tell Ms. Stewart is having a great time playing bad, and a similar “Ain’t this fun!?” vibe effuses throughout the cast whenever she’s onstage. Additionally, her back-and-forths with best frenemy ‘Kendra’ (actress Rachel Wirth) were clippy and tight; it was an absolute treat whenever the two interacted.
Additionally, I need to recognize the hilarious contributions of Cole Cooper and Brennan Urbi as the comic duo of “Malcom & Eddie.” These two little tramps were fabulously funny, their movements and hormone-centric harmonies elicited ear-to-ear smiles from this reviewer whenever they were onstage.
Director Casey Prince has pulled together a remarkable show, helped in no small part by the simple, effective choreography of Lovar Davis Kidd. This being TCR, the set design was no-less-than-expected: complex though unobtrusive, detailed though inconspicuous, the maximum effect from a minimalist assembly. And pulling everything together is delectably precise musical accompaniment from the pit, directed by Ryan Deignan.
The one distraction of the evening was several mic cut-outs, crackles, and pops. I rail on these “mistakes” whenever I see them in a production because they always remove me from the show. There were some crackles and pops so loud on opening night that they made the singers onstage noticeably flinch—that’s simply unfortunate and should be addressed as soon as possible.
Overall, however, this is an amazing show. TCR continues its reputation of excellent productions with incredible casts. Please, go and support these young actors and actresses. They’ve definitely worked hard to earn your patronage.
Thursday, August 4, 2011
ICCT presents concert of Sound of Music to raise funds
Iowa City — The hills are alive with The Iowa City Community Theatre (ICCT) as they announce a benefit performance of Rogers & Hammerstein’s classic musical The Sound of Music at the Englert Theatre. On Friday, August 12th at 7:30pm an exclusive opening night red carpet event will give a limited number of guests the chance to support ICCT. Additional shows will be at 2pm and 7:30pm on Saturday, August 13th.
This fundraiser is a staged reading, in which the songs from The Sound of Music will be sung choral-style, with connecting dialogue in between. The unique format was chosen because it maximizes the amount of the ticket proceeds and donations that will go directly toward preserving Iowa City’s historic theater group.
Just as Julie Andrews performed for audiences 45 years ago on-screen and made a historic mark, ICCT intends to do the same. However, like many non-profit organizations in these difficult economic times, ICCT is in the process of combating a financial crisis, even as its members eagerly look forward to producing its 56th season. The board of directors has initiated an ambitious campaign to overcome ICCT’s troubled finances and launch it into the 2011-12 season, including this August’s Sound of Music.
Holding the event at the Englert Theatre also celebrates the long-standing relationship between ICCT and that historic venue. Many of ICCT’s great productions over the last half-century have been performed at the Englert, including Fiddler on the Roof, My Fair Lady, and The King and I.
Tickets are available through the Englert Box Office at (319) 688-2653 ext. 1, or their website, www.englert.org.
This fundraiser is a staged reading, in which the songs from The Sound of Music will be sung choral-style, with connecting dialogue in between. The unique format was chosen because it maximizes the amount of the ticket proceeds and donations that will go directly toward preserving Iowa City’s historic theater group.
Just as Julie Andrews performed for audiences 45 years ago on-screen and made a historic mark, ICCT intends to do the same. However, like many non-profit organizations in these difficult economic times, ICCT is in the process of combating a financial crisis, even as its members eagerly look forward to producing its 56th season. The board of directors has initiated an ambitious campaign to overcome ICCT’s troubled finances and launch it into the 2011-12 season, including this August’s Sound of Music.
Holding the event at the Englert Theatre also celebrates the long-standing relationship between ICCT and that historic venue. Many of ICCT’s great productions over the last half-century have been performed at the Englert, including Fiddler on the Roof, My Fair Lady, and The King and I.
Tickets are available through the Englert Box Office at (319) 688-2653 ext. 1, or their website, www.englert.org.
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
ITAC Presents Show about Woody Guthrie
Amana - The Iowa Theatre Artists Company (ITAC) will present the Iowa premiere of the musical based on the life of Woody Guthrie, Woody Guthrie’s American Song, opening Friday, August 12 at 7:30 pm. The story of Woody Guthrie as told through an ensemble of local professional actors, musicians, and singers along with a myriad of his famous folk songs, will run for three weekends through August 28. The twelve performances include Fridays at 7:30 pm, Saturdays at 1:30 pm and 7:30 pm, and Sundays at 1:30 pm. This schedule is slightly different from the regular ITAC schedule with a Saturday matinee replacing the Friday matinee for this production. Reservations are strongly encouraged. A Special Opening Night Ticket price is offered at $18, with regular ticket prices being $20 for Adults and $10 for Students for the remainder of the run. There is also a "Theatre Lovers Club" offered at the opening Sunday matinee performance only. Single Ticket buyers are able to become part of a special "Group Price" for the 1:30 pm performance on Sunday, August 14. Please call the ITAC Box Office (319-622-3222) for details. Woody Guthrie’s American Song boasts seven musical performers who will sing, play guitar, banjo, fiddle, and mandolin while also serving as the narrators of Guthrie’s story. The story begins in his home state of Oklahoma, continues with his travels to escape the hardships of the Dust Bowl Days, his life in California and his eventual journey east to New York City. Guthrie’s songs reveal much about life in America during the 1930’s, ‘40’s and ‘50’s with many of his best-known songs included in the show: This Land Is Your Land, So Long It's Been Good To Know Yuh, Pastures Of Plenty, Hard Travelin', and Bound For Glory. Woody Guthrie once wrote in his autobiography entitled Bound for Glory (1943), “My eyes has been my camera taking pictures of the world and my songs has been my messages that I tried to scatter across the back sides and along the steps of the fire escapes and on the window sills and through the dark halls...”
The ensemble of local professional actors/singers/musicians includes: Meg Merckens (South Amana), Paul Roberts (Sharon Center), Randy Sandersfeld (Amana), Joy Ward (Tiffin), Ryan Westwood (Bettendorf), Karenza Yoder (Wellman) and Mark Wilson (Hills) who also serves as Music Director.
Known for airing his beliefs and convictions through his music, Woody Guthrie once said, "There's several ways of saying what's on your mind. And in states and counties where it ain't any too healthy to talk too loud, speak your mind, or even to vote like you want to, folks have found other ways of getting the word around. One of the mainest ways is by singing. Drop the word 'folk' and just call it real old honest to God American singing. No matter who makes it up, no matter who sings it and who don't, if it talks the lingo of the people, it's a cinch to catch on, and will be sung here and yonder for a long time after you've cashed in your chips. If the fight gets hot, the songs get hotter. If the going gets tough, the songs get tougher." Woody Guthrie’s songs have certainly stood the test of time and are still sung today by young and old alike across this nation that he loved.
For more information and reservations, call: 319-622-3222 or email: itac@southslope.net
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