Dobama stages the first local production of THE HOT WING KING, the 2021 Pulitzer Prize winner for Drama

Roy Berko

(Member:  Cleveland Critics Circle, American Theatre Critics Association)
 
Since THE ROPE DANCERS, the first play it produced over 60 years ago, Dobama has been known for staging alternative works that would not otherwise be seen in Cleveland. 

Their stages have been lit up by such plays as TRUE WEST, CATCH 22, ROOTS, GOD OF CARNAGE, 4000 MILES, THE FLICK, AN OCTOROON, HAND TO GOD, and the first professional area production of ANGELS IN AMERICA.

Cleveland’s off-Broadway theatre is now presenting the 2021 Pulitzer Prize for Drama THE HOT WING KING.

Though the Katori Hall script received mixed receptions in early stagings, the Pulitzer recognition citation described the play as "a funny, deeply felt consideration of Black masculinity and how it is perceived, filtered through the experiences of a loving gay couple and their extended family.”

When I think of Pulitzer Prize winning plays, such classics as OUR TOWN, A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE, DEATH OF A SALSESMAN,’night Mother, PROOF and WHAT THE CONSTITUION MEANS TO ME come to mind.  Though it has some poignant moments, THE HOT WING KING is not a script of that quality.

The play follows Cordell (Wesley Allen), his boyfriend, and their friends in Memphis preparing for the annual "Hot Wang Festival.”  Cordell’s kitchen is a flurry of activity as his boyfriend, Dwayne (Corin B. Self), their close friends Isom (Charles Mayhew Miller) and Big Charles (Syrmylin Cartwright), are busy marinating, frying, and carrying on in a bid to make him a winner of the annual hot wing competition. 
 
When Dwayne’s nephew, TJ (Prophet Seay), the son of his sister who died of an overdose, shows up, the subject of Cordell’s marriage to a female and his two sons come-forth, it becomes a recipe for angst.

“I am thrilled to further the conversation around what makes a family in Northeast Ohio, especially in the black queer community,” says Director Sheffia Randall-Nickerson. “Navigating my own blended and chosen family these several years made the story behind THE HOT WING KING especially compelling!”
 
Dobama’s production is basically well-conceived…many performances are on-point.  The emotional levels, especially in the dramatic scenes when Cordell and Dwayne clash over their relationship, and the subject of whether they will allow TJ to move into their house comes up, the play hits its emotional peaks.  
 
Other times there is almost a begging for laughs.  Part of this is the cause of the uneven script, other times overdone flamboyance takes over and takes away from the script’s message. 
 
Cameron Caley Michalak’s realistic whole house set is meticulously designed and executed.  Vanessa Cook did an outstanding job of acquiring the many authentic props.  
 
As is often the case at the extremely long and narrow Dobama acting space, speeches were lost due to the lack of consistent projection.
 
CAPSULE JUDGMENT:  The 135- minute play, with intermission, is filled with many moments of laughs and angst, enough to hold the audience’s attention.  In spite of this, the sometimes soap opera-like script just doesn’t garner the quality to be expected from a Pulitzer Prize winning script.  Go, see, but realize that ANGELS IN AMERICA this is not!  
 
Performances are Thursdays through Sunday from January 24-February 16, 2024. Evening performances are at 7:30pm and matinees at 2:30pm. For a complete performance schedule, ticket prices, and reservations, call the Dobama Theatre box office at 216-932-3396. Ask about the "pay-what-you-can" performances.


Some forthcoming area productions include:  
 
2/14-3/9—Beck Center--WAITRESS-- Baldwin Wallace Music Theatre Program Collaboration directed by Victoria Bussert.  The story of Jenna, the titular waitress and expert pie-maker who dreams of a way out of her small town and rocky marriage.
 
2/7th-23—Ensemble--HENRIK IBSEN’S ‘ENEMY OF THE PEOPLE’ A RUSTBELT ADAPTATION-- What inspires people to action? Can scientific discovery mobilize outcomes when economic opportunities are at stake and fear is pervasive? Will a scientist sacrifice everything, her job, her friends, her family--for the truth? Or is she just the enemy of the people?

2/7-3/2—Great Lakes Theater--PETER AND THE STARCATCHER— Set sail to explore the Neverland you never knew with this Tony Award-winning prequel that charts a course through Peter’s untold escapades. A dozen actors portray over 100 unforgettable characters in this high-flying adventure bursting with imagination and ingenious stagecraft.

2/6-3/2—Ohio Shakespeare Festival--ROMEO & JULIET--Two dignified households, two star-crossed lovers, and one famous balcony.
 
2/4-23—Key Bank Series--PARADE-- The Tony Award-winning musical drama is based on the true story of the trial and lynching, in early 20^th-century Atlanta, of Jewish factory manager, Leo Frank, who was accused of murdering a teenaged factory girl the day of the annual Confederate Memorial Day parade.
 

“Electrifying PARADE pays homage to the pain of prejudice!

 

PARADE, which is now on stage at the Palace Theatre as part of the Key Bank Broadway series, is a musical with a book by Alfred Uhry and music and lyrics by Jason Robert Brown.   It is a dramatization of the 1913 trial and imprisonment, and 1915 lynching, of Jewish-American Leo Frank. But the story goes well-beyond what appears on stage.  Besides encapsulating the pain of American history, and paying homage to a man convicted and murdered for a crime he did not commit, it lays forth the tale that reinvigorated the Ku Klux Klan and brought about the birth of the Anti-Defamation League, a Jewish international non-government organization based on civil rights law and the defense against the defamation of Jewish people. The musical premiered on Broadway in December, 1998, and won Tony Awards for Best Book and Best Original Score.   The show was Brown's first Broadway production. The show’s music, has been noted as, "subtle and appealing melodies that draw on a variety of influences, from pop-rock to folk to rhythm and blues and gospel.”  The intriguing sounds and words are one of the most superb story-telling blending of melodies and compositions yet created in the dramatic tales presently being highlighted on theatrical stages.   Like such modern classics as RENT, DEAR EVAN HANSEN, CABARET, A CHORUS LINE, NEXT TO NORMAL, COME FROM AWAY, RAGTIME and HAMILTON, PARADE uses the art form to tell a tale of significant importance.   While other musical dramas take-on mental health, historical events, social causes, and sexual orientation this script confronts the modern-day angst of prejudice. PARADE takes the audience from the events which lead up to, and then through the 1913 trial of Leo Frank, a New York-native who is the superintendent of a pencil factory in Atlanta, who was convicted of the murder of a 13-year-old girl.   With Frank convicted in the first act, the second act takes us through the appeals of the verdict and his ultimate murder.    When, in 1915, Frank's death sentence was commuted to life in prison by the departing Governor of Georgia, John M. Slaton, due to his detailed review of over 10,000 pages of testimony and possible problems with the trial, Leo Frank was transferred to a prison in Milledgeville, Georgia, where a lynching party kidnapped him. Frank was taken to the victim’s hometown of Marietta, Georgia, and hanged from an oak tree.  The musical's story implies that the likely killer was the factory janitor Jim Conley, the key witness against Frank at the trial. The other villains of the piece are the ambitious and corrupt prosecutor Hugh Dorsey (later the governor of Georgia and then a judge) and the rabidly antisemitic publisher Tom Watson (later elected a U.S. senator). The touring company, a follow-up to the show’s recent Broadway revival, is meticulously staged by Tony Award winning director, Michael Arden.   He has taken the rewritten script and added his own interpretation of the staging concept. Shaker Heights native, Max Chernin, is nothing less that astounding as Leo Frank.  He does not portray the character; he inhabits his persona.  His up-tight, hand-wringing, Yankee frustration with Southern tradition, especially the Jewish southern attitudes, is encompassing.  He does not give a copy of Ben Platt, who recently played the role in the 2023 Broadway revival, he presents his own impressive interpretation.  His vocals "How Can I Call This Home?" and "It's Hard to Speak My Heart!" were spell-binding. Though, at times, it seems like Talia Suskauer, who plays Franks wife, Lucille, shows little depth of love for her husband, her powerful “You Don’t Know This Man,” is a show highlight. The rest of cast forms an excellent support for the tale, with strong southern values and loyalties.  The vocalizations are all excellent. Dane Laffrey’s set, which uses every inch of the stage, seems too busy, large and overly decorated for the space, giving an almost a cluttered feeling.  Capsule judgment:  In the present era of rising antisemitism in this country, PARADE stands as a vivid reminder of the past history of such hideous actions.  The touring company, headed by local actor Max Chernin, is a compelling production that deserves respect and accolades by paying homage to the pain of prejudice. PARADE continues through February 23, 2024.  Tickets are currently still available for all performances and can be purchased by calling 216-241-6000 or online at playhousesquare.org

 

Broadwayworld-CLE BRAVO RECOGNITIONS—2024

 

Roy Berko, BW-Cle Reviewer

 

At the end of each year, Broadwayworld-CLE elects to recognize productions, performers and technicians to be recognized from Cleveland, OH stagings.  The format for these acknowledgments is being altered.  Starting with the 2004 production year, attention will be given, in the form of BRAVOS, rather than to specific classifications (e.g., Best Performer, Best Musical).

 

THE 2024 BW-CLE BRAVOS ARE AWARDED TO:

 

·      VICTORIA BUSSERT FOR HER FOCUSED DIRECTION OF INTO THE WOODS (GREAT LAKES THEATER), RIDE THE CYCLONE (BALDWIN WALLACE/BECK CENTER) AND ORDINARY DAYS (BALDWIN WALLACE/PLAY HOUSE SQUARE).

 

·      TERRI KENT, DIRECTOR & MARTIN CÉSPEDES FOR THEIR EXECUTION OF JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR (PORTHOUSE/KENT STATE UNIVERSITY).

 

·      CELESTE COSENTINO FOR HER DIRECTION OF A VIEW FROM THE BRIDGE (CAIN PARK) AND THE PROSPECT OF EQUALITY (ENSEMBLE THEATER).

 

·      DEIDRU RING, SOMETHING CLEAN, (DOBAMA THEATER), DANNY BÓ, ORDINARY DAYS (BALDWIN WALLACE UNIVERSITY/PLAY HOUSE SQUARE), MATTHEW GITTINS, JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR (PORTHOUSE/KENT STATE UNIVERSITY), REESE HENRICK, BEAUTIFUL (BECK CENTER), DANIEL PARKER, THE MERRY WIVES OF WINDSOR (GREAT LAKES THEATER) AND ANJANETTE HALL, A DOLL’S HOUSE-PART II, (BECK CENTER) FOR QUALITY OF PERFORMANCES.

 

·      POTUS (DOBAMA THEATRE) FOR QUALITY OF PRODUCTION AND RELEVANCE TO PRESENT-DAY POLITICS.

 

·      TRAD BURNS FOR THE SCENIC AND LIGHTING DESIGNS FOR RIDE THE CYCLONE (BALDWIN WALLACE UNIVERSITY/BECK CENTER).

 

·      RACHEL ZAKE, THE PROSPECT OF EQUALITY (ENSEMBLE THEATRE), LISA LANGFORD, BREAKFAST IN THE BOOKSTORE (KARAMU HOUSE THEATRE) AND TANIA BENITES, ALTER (CLEVELAND PUBLIC THEATRE/ TEATRO PÜBLICO DE CLEVELAND FOR THEIR DEVELOPMENT OF QUALITY NEW SCRIPTS.

 

·      CHARLES FEE FOR THE LENGTH AND QUALITY OF HIS SERVICE AS ARTISTIC DIRECTOR OF GREAT LAKES THEATER.

Creative, thought-provoking LIFE OF PI captivates at the Connor Palace

Yann Martel is noted for his ability to write tales filled with adventure, survival and spirituality.  His novel, LIFE OF PI, sold more than 15 million copies and won numerous awards. The novel has been translated into a film and now a stage play by Lolita Chakrabarti.  It is on stage at the Connor Palace Theatre, as part of the Key Bank Broadway Series. The play premiered in June, 2019 in Sheffield, England and was transferred to London’s West End in November, 2021.  It went on to win numerous awards.  It came to Broadway in 2023 and had a healthy Big Apple run. The story centers on Piscine (Pi) Patel, a teen boy from India.  His family owns a zoo.  In the 1970s the country was swept with political and economic unrest.  In order to ensure a better life for the children, they sold the zoo.  The parents and their two children, along with some of the more exotic animals, boarded a cargo ship to Canada.    A storm sinks the ship in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.  All are lost except for Pi, who is marooned on a life boat with a Bengal tiger (named Richard Parker), a zebra, a hyena and an orangutan.  Over the next 227 days, the question of existence becomes paramount.  How does one deal with hunger, thirst, and dangerous animals in such a confined environment?    In order to live, Pi has to face conflicts of man versus nature, man versus self, and man versus animal.  An added element is the role of faith and the role of “God.” David Greene, the Senior Vice President of Programming for Playhouse Square, states in the well-crafted show’s program notes, “The immersive sensory experience created left me entranced.”  I totally agree.  I was mesmerized by the quality of the production.   The cast is excellent.  Taha Mandviwala is masterful as Pi.  His physicality, emotional immersion and total believability is awing.      Mandviwala is no stranger to the Cleveland area.  In 2019 he starred in two Great Lakes Theater productions, TAMING OF THE SHREW and WITNESS FOR THE PROSECUTION.  In addition, his brother is a doctor at University Hospital.    He states of LIFE OF PI, “On the surface it is just a very simple story, about a young boy who is ship-wrecked and just trying not to die.”  He further states, “However, it’s more than a survival story, the production dives into deeper themes about family, nature and faith, challenging audiences to ponder what it means to believe when you have every reason to give up.”    Is the tale one of truth or fiction?  “In the author’s note to the book, Martel states that he met a man named Francis Adrubasamy at a coffee shop.  Francis told Martel he had a story that would make Martel believe in God.  That story ended up being the basis for the book.   Is the story fact or fiction?  Does it matter?  In the hands of a masterful writer, it makes for a wonderful book, movie and theatre production!   The staging by director Max Webster is creative.  He places demands, not only by the actors to create reality, but for technical creativity and expertise that go far beyond the usual performance.   The puppet designs are by Nick Barnes and Finn Caldwell.  The puppeteers performing as Richard Parker were Austin Wong Harper, Jon Hoche and Betsy Rosen.  They render a master class in puppetry.  The special lighting effects by Tim Lutkin and Tim Deiling, video and animation design of Andrzej Goulding and sound design by Carolyn Downing, help create compelling effects.   Capsule judgment:  It is difficult to watch such a combination of writing, acting and special effects and not be swept up in the wonder of live theatre.  The written story made for a thrilling experience in imagination. The film version added the visual experience.  The stage presentation offers an immersive experience that goes well beyond either of the other formats.  Do yourself a favor and see this production of LIFE OF PI.    LIFE OF PI runs at the Connor Palace through January 26, 2025. Tickets are available for all performances and can be purchased by calling 216-241-6000 or go online to playhousesquare.org.

And, yet, another examination of Peter Pan at Dobama, but . . .

 

Peter Pan, lovingly known to many as the mischievous young boy who can fly and never grows up, is the cultural iconic symbol of never-ending childhood.    Peter’s fictional life on the mythical island of Neverland, which is populated by fairies, pirates, indigenous people and mermaids, was formed in the imagination of J. M. Barrie, a Scottish novelist and playwright.   Though he continued to write other literary works, Peter and his adventures overshadowed Barrie’s other works. Pan has become so important that it has become a cottage industry.  Besides “The Little White Bird (1902, with chapters 13–18 published in Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens in 1906), and the West End stage play Peter Pan; or, the Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up (1904, which expanded into the 1911 novel Peter and Wendy), the character(s) have been featured in a variety of media and merchandise, both adapting and expanding on Barrie's works. These include numerous films and a television series. Yes, Peter Pan and Wendy and Tinker Bell clothing, figurines, posters, Halloween costumes, and jewelry, as well as books and magazines bannering the images of the beloved characters.  A statue of Peter Pan by the sculptor George Frampton, was erected in Kensington Gardens in 1912 as a surprise to the children of London.  Six other statues have been cast from the original mold and displayed around the world. In 2002, Peter Pan was featured on a series of UK postage stamps issued on the centenary of Barrie's creation of the character.  As an explanation of why Dobama chose to do PETER/WENDY, Jeremy Bloom’s adaptation of the Barrie story, Nathan Motta, the theater’s Artistic Director and director of this production, states in his program notes, “As adults, it can be thought-provoking and rewarding to look back at the world of Neverland and find new meaning in the text.”    In response to those who may think that with all the new, thought-provoking scripts available, why would Dobama use a major segment of its season to produce yet another version of the over-exposed tale, Motta states, “PETER/WENDY is meant to be whimsical, immersive, and joyful for all ages, while lifting up some of the larger ideas for those who are interested in exploring the deeper parts of Neverland.” Bloom’s adaptation is being produced for the first time on a professional stage in Cleveland.   The author describes PETER/WENDY as his “dream project” and explains, “My goal with it is to be most simple and sleek of all and tell the story as purely as it has ever been told, not skewed in any way, not towards an audience of children or with any particularly un-Barrie-ish take.” He elaborates, “It's not some new crazy adaptation, but the story stripped down to its bare elements.”   Other stagings of the script have garnered such critical comments as, “The charming story may well feel, to some, like that nice, warm virtual hug very much needed during this harsh, cold winter,” and “Engagingly explores the questions of innocence, friendship, family and loss that have made the story a classic for more than a century.”   The local staging is blessed with a talented well-rounded gender-blind cast (Peter is played by she/they) Kelsey Angel Baehrens, Wendy by (she/her) Mikaela Ray and Tiger Lily by Diwe Augustin-Glave (they/them).   Other members of the fine assemblage include Charles Mayhew Miller (Lost Boy/Mermaid), Abigail Jarvis (Tinkerbell), Lara Mielcarek (Mrs. Darling/Hook), and Trey Gilpin (Mr. Darling/Smee). Nathan Motta’s creativity can be seen all over the stage.  This is not a conventional staging.  Like the tale, the audience is forced to use their imaginations, clapping when they are asked whether they believe in fairies (in order to save Tinker Bell, who has taken poison in order to stop Peter from ingesting the liquid placed in a vial of “medicine” by evil Captain Hook), to see Peter and Wendy fly, and accept a blue laser as Tinker.   Production Design by Jeremy Paul, Sound Design by Angie Hayes, Costume Design by Angelina Herrin, and Props by Vanessa Cook, all enhance the staging.   Capsule judgment:  Yes, PETER/WENDY is yet another version of the tale of the boy who refuses to grow up, but it adds a creative element that other stagings don’t.  On the intimate Dobama stage, it will involve and entrance you.  It’s well-worth your time to think happy thoughts and let your inner child soar!   Performances are Thursdays through Sunday from December 6-29, 2024.   For tickets go Dobama.org or (216) 932-3396   Next up at Dobama: The Pulitzer Prize winning THE HOT WING KING (January 24-February 16, 2025).

Dancing, singing, high farce makes SOME LIKE IT HOT an audience pleaser!

 

The film, SOME LIKE IT HOT, was ranked number 1 on the American Film Institute’s list of “The 100 Funniest American Movies of all Time.”  What is not generally known, according to David Greene, The Senior Vice President of Programming at Play House Square’s notes for the musical version of the film, which is now on stage at the Connor Palace as part of the Broadway Series, is that the film pushed the boundaries of strict moral guidelines that governed the motion picture industry from the mid-1930’s until the mid-1960s.” 
 
SOME LIKE IT HOT, the movie was released without approval from the Motion Picture Production Code, became a commercial hit, was nominated for six Academy Awards and was the major cause of the end of the restrictive freedoms for the entire film industry.
 
What was so controversial?  The topics of crossdressing, illusion of transgender desires of one of the lead characters and sexual promiscuity, were all either dealt with or hinted at.
 
The transition from film to stage musical, entitled, SOME LIKE IT HOT (Broadway’s Great Big Musical Comedy), according to Greene, was brought about by director and choreographer, Casey Nicholaw’s “willingness to express bold ideas, ability to bring comedy and heart equality to the stage, and the way blended traditional Broadway elements with fresh, contemporary style.”
 
The musical script “gives characters more depth, deepens the context of relationships and contempomizes the themes.”
 
The musical harks back to the musical comedies of the Golden Era of Broadway shows such as 42ND STREET, ANYTHING GOES, ON THE TOWN, THE BOY FRIEND, GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDS, ON THE TWENTIETH CENTURY, and THOROUGHLY MODERN MILLIE.
  
The story?  After witnessing a Mafia murder, Joe and his long-suffering buddy, Jerry, improvise a quick plan to escape from Chicago with their lives. Disguising themselves as women, they join an all-female jazz band and hop a train bound for California. While Joe pretends to be a millionaire to win the band's sexy singer, Sugar, Jerry, in full-drag, finds himself romantically pursued by a millionaire.   The mobsters follow them.  The police follow the mobsters.  A major farcical chase of the bad guys, the good guys and all the women, results in a happy-ever-after conclusion.
 
The wonderful score, which doesn’t really include a hit song but features one show-stopper after another, not only exhausts the dancers, requiring a twenty-minute between acts intermission so the poor kids can catch their breath, but includes such wild interludes as “Tip Tap Trouble,” “Dance the World Away,” “Poor Little Millionaire,” “Take It up a Step,” and “I’m California Bound.”
 
The outstanding touring cast is headed by tall, sensual Tavis Kordell (Jerry/Daphne) and dynamic Matt Loehr (Joe/Josephine).  Both have outstanding singing voices and dancing skills.  Each creates a well-honed character.  
 
Though her shouting sometimes overshadows her pronunciation, Tarra Conner Jones (Sweet Sue) belts her songs with dynamism.
 
Lovely Leandra Ellis-Gaston is perfectly cast as Sugar. 
 
The rest of the hard-working cast displays great singing and dancing skills.
 
Greg Barnes costumes are period correct and beautifully designed!
 
Capsule judgment:  SOME LIKE IT HOT is full of dynamic modern and tap dancing, grand costumes and sets, lots of extended farce with doors slamming, double identities and physical schticks, enfolded in big jazzy full-orchestra sounds. If you enjoy musicals of a flashback to the old, just sit back and have an enjoyable experience.
 
The show runs through November 24, 2024 as part of the Key Bank Broadway Series.  For tickets call 216-241-6000 or go to www.playhousesquare.org.  

 

Preview: THE MUSICAL THEATRE PROJECT presents 1962 ON STAGE AND SCREEN

 

The Musical Theatre Project was formed about 25 years ago with the mission of preserving and honoring 20^th-century American musical theater in songs, stories and social history through local live performances and in national radio broadcasts, online discussions and recordings. 

The organization’s next live program, 1962 ON STAGE AND SCREEN, is to be presented at 3:00 pm on Sunday, November 10, 2024, at Wiley Auditorium, 2181 Miramar Blvd in University Heights. 

It will feature selections from Stephen Sondheim’s A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO THE FORUM, a musical farce which tells the tale of Ancient Rome in which Pseudolus, a slave, schemes to win his freedom by helping his young master Hero win a beautiful courtesan.   Songs of the delightful show include “Lovely, ““Everybody Ought to Have a Maid” and “Comedy Tonight.”

Another musical of 1962 featured in the program is Anthony Newley and Leslie Bricusse’s STOP THE WORLD—I WANT TO GET OFF, which places the spotlight on the much-put-upon Littlechap.  Each time something unsatisfactory happens in his life, he calls out "Stop the World!."  It features the classic song, “"What Kind of Fool Am I?" which won the Grammy Award for Song of the Year.

NO STRINGS is a Richard Rodgers and Samuel Taylor's romantic musical which broke new ground as the first Broadway musical to depict an interracial love story.  It centers on a successful Black American fashion model who, while in Paris, meets and falls in love with a Pulitzer Prize-winning white American writer.   The Broadway production starred Diahann Carroll and Richard Kiley and featured such songs as “The Sweetest Sounds” and the classic, “No Strings.”

THE MUSIC MAN, with book, music, and lyrics by Meredith Willson, concerns con-man Harold Hill, who sells band instruments and uniforms to naïve Midwestern townsfolk, promising to train the members of the new band. Prim librarian and piano teacher Marian sees through him, but when Harold helps her younger brother overcome his lisp and social awkwardness, Marian begins to fall in love with him.  He risks being caught to win her heart.  The libretto includes “Goodnight My Someone,” “Seventy-Six Trombones,” and “Till There Was You.”

GYPSY is a musical fable with music by Jule Styne, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and a book by Arthur Laurents.  It is loosely based on the memoirs of strip tease artist Gypsy Rose Lee, and focuses on her mother, Rose, whose name has become synonymous with "the ultimate show business mother.”

The musical contains many songs that became popular standards, including "Everything's Coming Up Roses," "Small World," "Together (Wherever We Go)", "You Gotta Get a Gimmick", and "Let Me Entertain You."  It is frequently considered one of the crowning achievements of the mid-twentieth century's conventional musical theatre art form.

The program will be co-hosted by Founding Artistic Director Bill Rudman and Nancy Maier and features Eric Fancher and Cindy Smith.

For tickets go to:  https://shop.musicaltheaterproject.org/products/1962-on-stage-and-screen

Next up:  A CHRISTMAS CABARET

From beloved Yuletide standards such as “Winter Wonderland,” “Let It Snow” and “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas,” to forgotten gems like Irving Berlin’s 106-year-old salute to Santa Claus that only The Musical Theater Project could dig up, every generation will be singing along with this joyous, warm celebration! Get in the spirit of the season as outstanding vocalists perform tributes to Rudolph, Frosty and that mean Mr. Grinch. With Founding Artistic Director, Bill Rudman, providing engaging and insightful commentary interspersed throughout.

December 13 & 14, 2024. Friday, December 13 at 7:30 pm and Saturday, December 14 at 2 pm, $20 per person.   Lorain County Community College, Stocker Arts Center, Cirigliano Studio Theatre, 1005 N. Abbe Road, Elyria, OH.

December 15, 16 and 17 at the Cleveland Skating Club there will be diner and a show for $95 per person.  Dinner @ 7, show at 8.  For information and reservations go to:  https://musicaltheaterproject.org/a-christmas-cabaret-at-cleveland-skating-club/

 

 

Underwhelming MEAN GIRLS, is a trip back to the worst experiences of high school

 

BYE BYE BIRDIE, HAIR, GREASE, CARRIE, 13 (MUSICAL), DEAR EVAN HANSEN, MEAN GIRLS.  What do all these Broadway musicals have in common?  They placed the spotlight on teen angst.

 

OMG!  Think back to high school, specifically the cafeteria, at lunch time.  Depending on the institution you attended there was probably the table of math geeks.  Another of drama kids.  The testosterone-laden jocks held out over there and the cheerleaders were right next to them.  Then there was the nasty yet revered queen bee and her small swarm of drones.  The mean girl and her attack team.  They are perfectly coiffed, expensively dressed, spoiled, and lacking in empathy.  No one was willing to cross them!

 

With that in mind, depending on your place in the pecking order, you may or may not be ready to immerse yourself into MEAN GIRLS, the stage-show with music by Jeff Richmond, lyrics by Nell Benjamin, and a book by the queen of television comedy, Tina Fey.

 

The musical is based on Fey’s popular 2004 film which was inspired by Rosalind Wieseman’s book, “Queen Bees and Wannabes.”

 

Fans of the movie should be relieved that nothing important has been purged from the story.   Those who went through the horrors of slam/shame books, hazing, verbal abuse and general “hell” at the hands of the mean girls at their high schools will be happy to know that, in the musical, the queen and her swarm get their stingers removed.  (Yeah, revenge for the high school “nerds.”)

 

In the musical, Cady, fresh from a life in Kenya (Africa), is a new girl in town.  She is taken on a tour of her now educational institution, an Illinois high school, and exposed to the ways of its pecking order, by “good guys,” Janis and Damian. 

 

The J and D duo have taken the attitude of not being affected by self-selected school royalty and nasty-girl Queen Bee Regina George and “the Plastics” (Gretchen and Karen), her lackey hangers-on.  They caution Cady to be careful in deciding where she belongs in the school’s social fabric.

 

And, wonder of wonders, for an unexplained reason, Cady is invited to sit with “the Plastics” on a one-week trial.  (Hmm…what do the terrible trio have in mind?)

 

Everything goes well for Cady until she meets “dreamy” Aaron in honors math class.  She falls for him.  But, horror of horrors, Aaron has recently broken up with Queen Regina.  (You know this is going to make life for Cady a horror show.)

 

In order to “keep” Aaron’s interest Cady plays dumb, turning to him for unneeded “extra” help.

 

 A bus accident, a Burn Book which slams students by commenting on their weight (“hips like a Hippo”), parents’ infidelities (“the only reason he made the team is that his mother slept with the coach”) and eating habits (“Vegan freak”), Cady taking over Regina’s place as Queen of the Plastics, Cady being elected Spring Fling Queen and her surprising act of sharing the crown, all lead to a happy-ever-after feel-good ending.  (Hey, this is a Tina Fey written high school Broadway musical, what did you expect?)

 

Though it received 15 Tony nominations, MEAN GIRLS, as evidenced by the fact that it won no statues, it is not a great musical.    This is definitely not DEAR EVAN HANSEN quality.

 

It can be, however, enjoyable and, it has caught on and has developed its cult following.  (Be ready for every high school and community theatre producing the script as soon as it is released for general consumption.)

 

The serviceable score, the Tina Fey sharp tongued satire and one-liners gave a general positive vibe to the goings on.

 

This tour is composed of mainly recent college grads who have little to no Broadway or even off-Broadway experience.  Unfortunately, the lack of experience shows.   Many characters are not well-developed, the singing is adequate, the dancing is often stilted and has been “dumbed down” from the Big Apple production and even the touring show, which appeared locally several years ago.  The laughs are there, but limited.  The show-stoppers, such as “Where Do You Belong,” don’t explode with the needed energy.  It isn’t until “Do This Thing” and “I See Stars,” the last two songs of the show, that the dynamics are turned on.

 

As the young lady sitting next to me, who professed to be “MEAN GIRL fanatic, commented: “I am disappointed.  I know every line of the movie.  I know all the songs.  This is less than I expected.”  I must agree with her.

 

Capsule judgment:   MEAN GIRLS is filled with music, characters and Tina Fey satire that will appeal to younger audiences.  The production is not the quality expected of a professional tour.  Too bad, it really has the potential to be a really fun show!

 

NEXT UP AT PLAYHOUSE SQUARE:  11/5-24—SOME LIKE IT HOT (Key Bank Series) --The rollicking musical, based on the hit movie, of two musicians forced to flee the Windy City after witnessing a mob hit.

 

 

PLEASE VOTE YES ON ISSUE 55:  Cuyahoga Arts & Culture (CAC), which was approved by voters in 2006 and reapproved in 2015 allows CAC to fund millions of arts and cultural experiences for residents each year.

Oh, woe is me…POTUS is must see theatre at Dobama!

 

 
Once upon a time, in the very near land of the U S of A, there lived a POTUS.  

According to such a source as the New York Times, he never was a good person, but “With the passage of time, the president’s speeches have grown darker, harsher, longer, angrier, less focused, more profane and increasingly fixated on the past, according to a review of his public appearances over the years.”

Yes, this “fictional” person, who is the subject of the very farcical play, POTUS, which is now on stage at Dobama Theatre, has had a history of being a womanizer, purveyor of lies, an attacker of those people who were not like him (blacks, browns, religious minorities, and females, among others) while living in a fantasy world seemingly centered on himself.  He fires people at will, attacks with vitriolic glee, and often destroys for the sake of just destroying.  He seemingly leads an insurrection, yet sees it not as such.  Oh, woe is me!
 
In spite of what some would say are despicable actions, there are those who adore him, worship him, follow his view of his world-of-fantasy, though they often know not why. They even wore uniforms, mostly hats of raging red, to identify themselves.  Oh, woe is me!
 
The sub-title of the show is, “Or, Behind Every Great Dumbass Are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive,” for good reason.  
 
In Selina Fillinger’s portrait of POTUS, this ogre is surrounded by seven beleaguered women whom he relies upon to keep him out of trouble.  They try and extract him from creating yet another global crisis due to his unwittingly spinning a public relations nightmare as he refers to his wife as a “cunt,” insults a leader of an Arabic country, offends a group of honored women, generally attempts to bully the rest of world for his own gain, while bringing his latest bimbo into the nation’s home for his sexual pleasure.  
 
The ladies are forced to hide his sexually induced disease, cover yet another series of transgression, and even cover over what may be his death.  Oh, woe is me! 
 
POTUS is now getting its area premiere.  That staging is done at a most logically selected venue, Dobama, Cleveland’s off-Broadway theatre, known for its more liberal look at the contemporary world.

A review of a previous production of the show stated, “I am woman, hear me roar — with laughter, at … playwright Selina Fillinger’s delicious feminist farce.”
Nathan Motta, Dobama’s Artistic Director says, “This show is the laugh-out-loud comedy that we all need right now.” POTUS is packed with farcical hijinks and a stage full of woman power. In times such as these, perhaps only laughter can provide some temporary relief.”
 
In interviews, Fillinger has said that she hopes POTUS audiences “have a wonderful night of laughter and joy. Then I hope they wake up the next day and put their money, time, and votes towards equity and freedom for all.” Fillinger’s goal is that the play will create solidarity and “intergenerational dialogue between women,” saying, “We can only build movements and coalitions when we debate, converse, and learn from each other. There is a false notion that solidarity and conflict are mutually exclusive. The goal should not be to avoid conflict, it should be to lovingly engage with differing beliefs and experiences so that everyone may bring their best self to the common cause.”
 
Dobama’s production, under the creative directing of Carrie Williams, is nothing short of hysterical.  Hysterical and, to many, shocking.  
 
The script is full of outlandish situations and actions.  Doors slam, prat-falls and stage slaps abound.  Visual and verbal hijinks overflow.  The ridiculous reigns.  The sad part is that one finds oneself laughing through tears and sadness.  This is the pathetic world in which we live.  Oh, woe is me!
 
The opposite of laughing is not crying, but indifference.  You cannot watch this chaotic, brilliantly written play and be indifferent!  
 
The play clearly focuses its microscope on the political world, but brings the reality of that world into shocking detail by using such vocabulary dialogue as, “ass play,” “cunt,” “dildo,””” blow job,” and “dick,” just to highlight a few!  
 
If you are a language prude, or only want to look to the world through sterilized ideas, this is not going to be your “cup of tea.”
 
Does the script go too far, at times, to make its point, thus emphasizing the ridiculous?  Sure, but it’s worth the over-kill.  It makes us laugh instead of lecturing us, which is a better way to gain attention.
 
The cast is superb.  There is not a weak link in this chain of pure talent.  The ensemble includes Kristy Cruz (Harriet), Nina Domingue (Jean), Natalie Green (Stephanie), Chennelle Bryant-Harris (Chris), Nicole Sumlin (Margaret), Katherine Nash (Dusty), and Amiee Collier (Bernadette).
 
It’s impossible to separate one for attention as they form a whole that is inseparable. Each molds and shapes her part! Hurrah!!!
 
Capsule judgement:  The night I saw the production a number of John Carroll students were in attendance as a class assignment.  They howled, laughed, shouted and applauded as their reality played out on the stage.  These young people got it!  This is the world which the present older generation has left them.  Oh, woe is me!   This is absolutely must-see theatre!  
 
For tickets to the show which runs through November 3 go to:  BoxOffice@dobama.org or call 216-932-3396.
 
PLEASE VOTE YES ON ISSUE 55:  Cuyahoga Arts & Culture (CAC), which was approved by voters in 2006 and reapproved in 2015 allows CAC to fund millions of arts and cultural experiences for residents each year.