Into the Woods

“And they lived happily ever after...”

Isn’t that the way fairy tales end?

Not necessarily. “Happily ever after” comes at the end of the first act for Stephen Sondheim & James Lapine’s “Into the Woods,” at Music Circus this week..

What happens to all those folks who live happily ever after? Do they really live happily ever after? That’s the story Sondheim and Lapine set out to explore, which is given an outstanding treatment in this production directed by Glen Casale with musical direction by Craig Barna.

From the moment one enters the Wells Fargo Pavilion, one is in this magical world. Scenic Designer Evan A. Bartoletti has created what may be the most elaborate Music Circus set to date, a forest heavily laden with leafy branches, trees that stand tall, and then disappear out of sight, and a rocky forest floor which lends itself nicely to separating the “families” of this tale into their own space.

Sound Designer Robert Sereno fills the theater with the sounds of birds and other woodland creatures while the audience members are taking their seats so that by the time the lights go down, you are already in the mood and ready to jump into the story.

The story centers around the Baker (Jeffry Denman) and his wife (Vicki Lewis) and the curse put on the Baker’s father and all of his family years ago by the Witch (Yvette Cason), which has left the young couple childless. In order to break the spell, the Baker must gather four things – a cow as white as snow, a red cape, a golden shoe, and a lock of blonde hair.

How convenient, then, that their neighbors include Little Red Riding Hood (Tracy Katz Paladini), Cinderella (Kim Huber), Jack (of beanstalk fame) (Matthew Wolpe) and Rapunzel (Savannah Smith-Thomas).

One would be hard pressed to find a weak performance in this cast. They are each generally outstanding. Denman gives the character of the Baker an endearing quality and his “No More” is filled with pain.

Paladini, who played Little Red Riding Hood in the national tour, is perfect as the know-it-all moppet who is as matter of fact about swiping sweets from the Baker as she is about meeting Grandma (Karen Culliver) in the belly of the wolf (Jason Forbach).

The stage lights up whenever Cason steps on it. As the witch under a spell in the first act, she is menacing, and her on-stage transformation, hidden by pillars of smoke, into the glamorous witch is impressive.

The brother princes, Cinderella’s (Gordon Goodman) and Rapunzel’s (Jason Forbach) are deliciously over the top, self-centered, and very funny in their “Agony” duet.

There are not a lot of familiar tunes in this show, but it is filled with some beautiful moments, such as “No One is Alone,” sung by Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, the Baker and Jack when it seems that all is lost.

Likewise, the Witch’s “Stay with Me,” a plea to her daughter Rapunzel, is hauntingly lovely.

We sat next to a woman and her small child, who left the show at intermission. This surprised me, since I felt the show was so good, but on reflection I decided that this may be the perfect way to share this production with a small child. At the end of Act 1, it looks like every thing has turned out well for everyone and perhaps it’s best not to disillusion small children by staying for Act 2.

Act 2 is filled with betrayal, the death of beloved characters, sexual indiscretions, and the graphic sounds of the kinds of things that an angry giant on a rampage can do to puny human beings. The survivors do, in fact, ultimately look like they will have a happily ever after but the whole act might be a bit too disturbing for younger children.

This is the best Music Circus production thus far this season and is highly recommended.

Sweeney Todd

If you are looking for diversity in your summer entertainment, The Music Circus is certainly the place to find it this year. How can there be two more different musicals than the season’s opening “Sound of Music” and this week’s “Sweeney Todd,” Stephen Sondheim’s dark story of revenge and murder.

It’s a first for Music Circus, which has never presented “Sweeney Todd” before. But it was apparent from the start that they have made up for lost time with an outstanding production, directed by Glenn Casale.

This is the story of a 19th century London barber, Benjamin Barker, who is married to his beloved Lucy and the father of their baby Johanna. However, the villainous Judge Turpin has his eye on the lovely Lucy and so sends Barker to the penal colony at Botany Bay in Australia on some trumped up charge so that he can have Lucy all to himself.

Many years later, Barker escapes and manages to get back to London, where, under the name Sweeney Todd he begins his plan to get revenge on the people who destroyed his life.

Tony award nominee Mark Jacoby is magnificent as Todd, a broken man filled with rage for the wife he thinks is dead and determined to revenge those who drove her to commit suicide.

He rents his old apartment, over the pie shop of Mrs. Lovett (Tony Award nominee Mary Gordon Murray) who, by her own admission, bakes “the worst pies in London.” His plan is to lure Judge Turpin (Michael G. Hawkins) and his Beadle (Roland Rusinek) to his barber shop and slit their throats.

But things don’t go quite as planned at first and the Judge slips through his fingers. Todd’s anguish at losing him is acute as he sings his “Epiphany,” where he revises his plan, “I will get him back even as he gloats / In the meantime I'll practice on dishonorable throats.”

Sondheim’s brilliance in the creation of the character of Sweeney Todd is that, as menacing as he is, as heinous as his killing spree is, those who surround him are so much more evil that we feel empathy with Sweeney, we care about him, and we hope for his success in avenging the terrible things that were done to him.

The affable Mrs. Lovett, never one to let opportunity pass her by, hates to see all that good “meat” go to waste as Todd begins his killing spree (“Seems an awful waste... / I mean, with the price of meat / What it is, / When you get it, / If you get it...”) and so they work together to improve the quality of her pies, which soon become the talk of London.

Their duet, “A Little Priest” is one wonderfully macabre moment of lightness in an otherwise very dark musical.

Murray is delightfully coquettish as Mrs. Lovett, enjoying her newfound success as a pie baker, and attempting to woo Todd and move him out of London.

A side story revolves around the young sailor, Anthony Hope (Max Von Essen), who rescued Todd at sea and who, coincidentally, has found Todd’s daughter, living as the ward of Turbin, and fallen in love with her. Anthony and Johanna (Carolann M. Sanita) remain symbols of goodness in an evil world which swirls around them.

Also important to the plot is the beggar woman (Heather Lee) who seems to be the only one aware that terrible things are happening in the pie shop, but her mind is so far gone, nobody will believe her.

Outstanding in the minor role of Tobias Ragg, a simple young man who is devoted to Mrs. Lovett, is August Emerson, whose final scene is one of the most poignant in the play.

The ensemble fill a variety of small roles (almost all of the men's throats become targets of Sweeney's razor) and also to function as the Greek chorus Sondheim has employed to chilling effect, giving deadpan delivery to “telling the tale of Sweeney Todd.”

Scenic Designer Evan Bartoletti has made maximum use of the Wells Fargo Pavilion, turning the entire theater into a section of London. The set-up for Sweeney’s infamous barber chair is ingenious.

It is good to see Music Circus taking a chance on meatier (pun intended) fare than the usual frothy musicals. Judging from the audience reaction, it was a good decision.

A Funny Thing Happend on the Way to the Forum

This was printed in The Davis Enterprise on 8/16/06

There’s only one word to describe Music Circus’ production of “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum,” which opened Tuesday night: Zany.

This 1963 Tony award winner, with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, book by Burt Shevelove and Larry Gelbart, and direction by Marcia Milgrom Dodge is based on the comedies of the ancient Roman playwright Plautus, and the humor is bawdy and fast-paced. (“If I've told you once, I've told you a hundred times; do not fan the girls when they're wet! But you'll never learn, you'll be a eunuch all your life.”)

Set in a time where everybody had slaves, eunuchs were commonplace, courtesans were for hire, and virgins were seen as objects to be conquered, the action centers around three homes, the house of citizen Senex (Walter Hudson), his domineering wife Domina (Jessica Sheridan), and their love-struck son Hero (Ryan Driscoll); the house of Lycus (Ron Wisniski), a buyer and seller of courtesans; and the house of Erronius (Jim Lane), an old man who has been roaming the world for the past twenty years, looking for his son and daughter, stolen in infancy by pirates.

This is a stellar cast, but head and shoulders above the rest is James Brennan as the slave Pseudolus, slave to Hero. Pseudolus is a man who desperately wants his freedom and is always looking for a way to get it. Brennan has a list of theatrical credits as long as your arm, boundless energy, and brilliant comic timing. He also plays well with the audience and handles unexpected situations with aplomb.

Head slave in the house of Senex is the appropriately named Hysterium, a Charles Nelson Reilly-esque portrayal by the very funny John Scherer.

When Pseudolus learns that his master, Hero, has fallen in love with the courtesan, Philia (Ashleigh Davidson, daughter of John Davidson), he sees a way to win his freedom by getting the girl for him. ( “People do not go around freeing slaves every day.” “Be the first. Start a fashion.”)

There’s just one little problem with the plan. Philia, a virgin newly arrived from Crete, has been promised to the warrior Miles Gloriosus (Christopher Carl, last seen as Carl-Magnus in the recent production of “A Little Night Music”), whose name reflects his inflated opinion of himself.

Madness and mayhem ensue, including the plague, leprosy, a magic potion, a soothsayer, body snatching, a bride who is not as dead as everybody thinks she is, “and a happy ending, of course” as the opening number, “Comedy Tonight” promises.

The show could not keep up the rapid pace that it does without “the Proteans,” Venny Carranza, Brant Michaels, and Peyton Royal, who play dozens of roles, from the giggling eunuchs of the house of Senex to the warriors who accompany Miles Gloriosus, and everything in between. They are leaping, tumbling, rolling, running bundles of energy and masterful physical comedy. They were brilliant and hilarious.

Likewise, the courtesans of the house of Lycus each had her own moment to shine, and shine they did as Tintinabula (Melanie Haller), Panacea (Ann Cooley), the cat-like Vibrata (Mindy Haywood), the twins Geminae (Shiloh Goodin and Katie Russell) and the dominatrix Gymnasia (Alison Mixon).

Marcia Milgrom Dodge understands directing for theater in the round and kept her cast moving at all times, never once favoring one part of the audience over another. She worked well with choreographer D.J. Salisbury.

“A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum” is fun, plain and simple. A funny book, fun songs, great energy, and a splendid cast. It’s the perfect divertissement for a summer evening.

A Little Night Music

This appeared in the Davis Enterprise on 8/2/06

“The smile for the fools was particularly broad tonight,” says Mme Armfeldt (Barbara Rosenblat) at the conclusion of Stephen Sondheim’s “A Little Night Music,” making its Music Circus debut this week.

I don’t know if those who remained for the entire performance were fools or not, but there were certainly smiles aplenty for those experiencing this near-perfect production. I can only assume that the seats left vacant after the intermission were either because of the chilly temperatures inside the Wells Fargo Pavilion (pay no attention to the outside temperatures; bring a light wrap to avoid being chilled by the air conditioning!) or because this may, perhaps, be the most “operatic” of offerings yet presented by The Music Circus in its 56 year history, which may not suit the tastes of some faithful Music Circus patrons.

Whatever the reason, the real fools were those who did not return following intermission.

Based on Ingmar Bergman’s “Smiles of a Summer Night,” the plot of “A Little Night Music” could rival any modern day soap opera and hold its own. Fifty-ish year old attorney Fredrik Egerman (Paul Schoeffler) has married 18 year old Anne (Carolann M. Sanita), who is still a virgin, 11 months into the marriage. Anne finds herself attracted, not to her husband, but to her stepson, the religiously zealous Henrik (Jim Poulos), a young man with racing hormones and eyes for his stepmother, but hands and other body parts for Petra, the chambermaid (Melissa Dye), and guilt for any sexual feelings at all.

Meanwhile, Fredrik has never gotten over his old love, the famed actress Desirée Armfeldt (Nancy Opel), who has an out of wedlock daughter (Paige Silvester) and a jealous lover named Carl-Magnus (Christopher Carl), who ignores his own bitter wife, Charlotte (Elizabeth Ward Land), who is not only aware of his affair, but is willing to help him sort things out. All of these mismatched lovers convene for a weekend at the luxurious home of Madame Armfeldt, Desirée's crusty old mother, where romance, comedy and wonderful music ensue.

Director Stafford Arima has brought together some terrific principal performers, starting with the Liebeslieder Quintet – Quentin Darrington, Laurie Mitchell, Emily Herring, Michael Scott Harris and Allison Blackwell – who act as a kind of Greek chorus, setting the stage for the action which is to come, or augmenting the action that is taking place. The quintet opens the show, encircling the theater in a very effective, “Night Waltz,” which repeats throughout the show.

As Fredrik Egerman, the middle aged attorney trying to recapture his youth with a child bride, Paul Schoeffler is outstanding. He’s handsome, he has a magnificent voice, and his feeling for his lost love Desirée is palpable.

Carolann M. Sanita is hauntingly beautiful as the young Mrs. Egerman (Anne), who thinks she loves her husband but just isn’t quite ready for the physical aspects of marriage. (“You can’t force a flower,” Fredrik explains to Desirée in “You must meet my wife.”) Anne is struggling to find the maturity to be the wife of a prominent attorney, but prefers giggling with the maid over girl stuff instead.

Nancy Opel is a marvelous Desirée, an aging, but still charismatic actress, who has finally realized that Fredrik is her one true love. She gives a classic performance of the haunting signature song from this show, “Send in the Clowns.”

Christopher Carl is a bombastic Count Carl Magnus, totally insensitive to his wife, Charlotte (Elizabeth Ward Land), as he rants to her about his jealousy upon learning that his mistress has been seeing her former lover.

Jim Poulos is splendid as Henrik, tormented by his desire to give himself to God, yet wracked with temptations of the flesh, to which he guiltily succumbs.

As the family matriarch, a woman who has numbered kings among her lovers, Barbara Rosenblat gives a very regal performance. Madame Armfeldt alerts her granddaughter to watch for the summer night to smile. "It smiles three times," she says, "first, for the young, who know nothing; second, for the fools, who know too little; and third, for the old, who know too much."

Paige Silvester does an outstanding job of playing the child who is often more mature than her mother, who knows more of life than most children her age

Scenic Designer Michael Schweikardt created some beautiful scenes, with hanging tapestries for the drawing rooms and a magnificent forest for the outdoor scenes in Act 2.

“A Little Night Music” is a story about love and growing old without the one ‘true’ love for which everyone is searching. It’s about realizing too late that the one that got away was the one most needed.

This production by Music Circus is simply outstanding, and will leave you, along with the other fools, smiling particularly broadly at its conclusion.

Into the Woods

After all the hopes, the dreams and the plans. After years of stop and start progress and frustrating delays, Jan and Steve Isaacson finally welcomed Davis Musical Theater Company’s loyal audience to the first production in the new Hoblit Center for the Performing arts, at 607 Pena Street in Davis on Friday night.

There was the smell of fresh paint throughout the building, and places that still need to be painted or stained or carpeted. The curtains had only been hung the night before and the wrinkles were still falling out of the grand drape. The acoustic designer won’t get to work until everything is in place, but the show must go on, and go on it did.

“Into the Woods,” with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by James Lapine, was the opener. Sondheim shows are not necessarily easy under the best of circumstances and I fully expected there would be lots of glitches with this opening night performance and was prepared to be forgiving because of all the work that the company has been putting in trying to get the theater ready.

I was pleasantly surprised. If there were glitches, other than a couple of faulty light cues, I was unaware of them. The set, designed by Woodrow & IvyMoss, with its stark spiky trees for the forest and the traditional wagon sets for Cinderella’s home (later the palace), the home of Jack (of Beanstalk fame), and the bakery where the baker and his wife long for a child were perfect for the Hoblit stage. (And the scene change from houses to forest was great!)

The DMTC orchestra, under the direction of Erik Daniells, now has its own pit and the difference in sound was amazing. I’ve never heard them sound better.

There will be some adjustments that will have to be made as the performers learn how to project out over an orchestra rather than one which is backstage on a platform, as it has been for years. Some of the actors handled this change better than others. Most could use a bit more oomph in their delivery for spoken lines.

However, that said, this is a good production.

“Into The Woods” was Stephen Sondheim’s attempt to prove that not everything he wrote had to be heavy, loaded with gloom and doom and psychological undertones, and that he could also write light hearted material.

Act One weaves together the stories of many familiar tales from our childhood. Cinderella (Rosie Babich) sits at home with her stepmother (Monique McKisson) and two stepsisters (Dannette Vassar and Stacia Truesdale), longing to go to the Prince’s ball.

Next door, Jack (Steven Ross) and his mother (Jannette Kragen) are arguing over selling Jack’s beloved cow, Milky White (playing herself).

Rounding out the families is the Baker (Ryan Adame) and his wife (Kristen Wagner), who are disappointed that they have not yet conceived a child.

Into the mix comes Little Red (Jocelyn Price) on her way to bring goodies to Granny (Melissa Tolley). There are a couple of princes, Cinderella’s Prince (Bob Olson) and Rapunzel’s Prince (Ryan Favorite). And of course Rapunzel is there too (Jessica Hammon) along with the witch who is keeping her captive (Marguerite Morris). Binding it all together is Steve Isaacson, as the Narrator

It is an excellent cast with few weak performers. Those who rise above the rest are Price, whose Little Red is energetic and cute as a button. Babich as Cinderella gives an outstanding performance, as do Adame and Wagner, as the Baker and his wife. Both princes have strong voices and are quite regal on stage (well, perhaps except for that rolling around on the floor in an illicit encounter business).

Marguerite Morris gives her usual first-rate performance. She is at her best when singing, but needs to work more on projection in her spoken lines.

Melissa Tolley is the offstage voice of the wife of the Giant that Jack killed. It is unfortunate that some sort of amplification was not used for the voice. It should have sounded more scary.

Act 2 of “Into the Woods” shows us that there really is no “happily ever after,” and many characters meet horrible ends. However, for purposes of this production, they all died gloriously.

Director Jan Isaacson was beaming in the lobby after the show ended, saying “I just can’t believe we’re finally here.” After all this time, she must feel like she is living her own kind of fairy tale. It is this reviewer’s hope that, unlike most of the characters in “Into the Woods,” the Davis Musical Theater Company has finally found its “happily ever after” and that they, along with their loyal patrons, can enjoy it for years to come.

Into the Woods

Into The Woods was Stephen Sondheim’s attempt to prove that not everything he wrote had to be heavy, loaded with gloom and doom and psychological undertones, and that he could also write light hearted material. He succeeded--half way.

A production, with book by James Lapine, music and lyrics by Sondheim, opened this weekend at Wyatt Pavilion, produced by Studio 301.

Act One of Into the Woods is the “happily ever after” portion, where Sondheim and Lapine blend several familiar fairy tales – Cinderella, Jack in the Beanstalk, Little Red Ridinghood, Rapunzel, and The Baker and His Wife central among them. Each is dealing with a problem--Cinderella wants to go to the King’s festival, Jack and his mother need money, the Baker and his wife wish for a child, and Little Red Ridinghood wants to go to Grandma’s house. Throw in a witch and a mysterious stranger and a bit of magic and by the end of Act 1, everyone is living happily ever after. Or so we think.

But does anyone ever live happily ever after? Sondheim reverts to type in Act 2, with murder, destruction, agony, and enough melancholy to satisfy the most ardent of Sondheim fans.

There are strong performances in this production from actors who appear to be trained singers. Then there are the trained actors who also happen to sing and here the results are sometimes less than perfect, and in one or two cases downright painful to the ear, as notes are sung out of the singer’s register and at least one performer seemed to have trouble staying on key. Sondheim’s music is very tricky and may have been a bit ambitious some of the performers. It may also explain why there didn’t seem to be a lot of sparkle to the production.

Studio 301 is a student drama group, unaffiliated with the university’s Theater and Dance Department. In answer to the question “Why doesn’t Studio 301 do musicals?” producers Katie Baad, Molly LeGoy, and Syche Hamilton, with the assistance of a generous donor, purchased the rights to the Sondheim musical.

A company statement reads, “The production team has continued to expand, bringing on students of different backgrounds and strengths as we have learned what is necessary.
While we base our system on that which we know best - the UC Davis Theater and Dance Department - it still has taken trial and error for us to become the team we are today...and we expect to further shape ourselves as we move through the stages of production.”

With that explanation, Into the Woods has its strengths and it has its weaknesses, but it makes one want to follow the progress of Studio 301 as they continue to shape themselves.

Performances worthy of note are John Mothershead as the Baker and Jennifer Nelson as his wife. David Sawyer was a good Jack, with fun comic relief by Drew Phillips as his cow, Milky White. (Phillips also doubles as Red’s granny.)

Katie Baad was outstanding as Little Red Ridinghood, with a strong voice and commanding presence and Anna Rozzi was a scary witch.

Carter Mills was a lovely Rapunzel, while the two princes, Mario Castro and Jeffrey Frieders (who also plays the wolf in act 1) were wonderfully droll.

Brian Turner held things together nicely as the narrator. He also played the “mysterious man.”

Others in the cast include Molly LeGoy as Cinderella, Chelsea Kashin as Jack’s Mother, Casey Ledwith as Cinderella’s Stepmother, Natasha Tavakoli and Rosa Threlfall as the ugly stepsisters, Joe Ferreira as Cinderella’s father, Alissa Steiner is the Giant.

Director Syche Hamilton has handled the difficult structure of the Wyatt Pavilion stage well, with excellent use of the theater’s many levels, including placing the orchestra behind a curtain, their image projected on the back of the theater, to allow the performers to follow musical director Philip E. Daley.

Scenic Designer Chris Allison created a lovely fairyland, sparse enough to prevent the scenery from obscuring the view of the patrons in that always-difficult theater, but rich enough to set the scene. I particularly liked the way they handled Red Ridinghood’s grandmother’s house and her demise.

Allison’s design was nicely complemented by the lighting design of David Goldin.

Costumes by Molly Legoy and Lynly Saunders were quite good. My particular favorite was the costume for the wolf, vaguely in the vein of Julie Taymor’s Lion King (the look was less effective for Milky White)

Into the Woods is an ambitious project for this student company but the end results are very promising. It is definitely an enjoyable evening, though the production is not without its flaws.

Sweeney Todd

Rape, kidnapping, murder, cannibalism.

Hardly the stuff of musical theatre.

And yet, out of these elements, Stephen Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler have created the highly powerful, popular musical, "Sweeney Todd," currently running at Davis Musical Theatre Company.

Based on a Victorian melodrama, this is the story of Benjamin Barker, a young, newly married barber who has set up his home and business in London. His beautiful young wife catches the eye of a lecherous local Judge, who has Barker sent off to a penal colony in Australia on a trumped up charge. He rapes the wife, and adopts their year old daughter.

When Barker returns to London, fifteen years later, it is under the new name of Sweeney Todd and he is bent on revenge. With the help of Mrs. Lovett, a tavern owner who bakes "the worst pies in London," he re–establishes himself as a barber and sets out to destroy his foes, one by one.

But how does one dispose of the bodies? Well, if you live over a bakery with a nice big oven, run by a woman who is hard up for meat for her pies, the answer seems logical. Mrs. Lovett soon becomes the toast of the town for her wonderful meat pies, and Sweeney Todd continues to supply her with fresh meat.

A barrel of laughs, no? Well, this isn't exactly a comedy but there are enough laughs in it to keep the audience awake.

Unfortunately, this is a very verbal show and a lot of plot exposition and some of the humor is lost by articulation difficulty with the chorus in particular. While they do a decent job, one could wish for more precision in diction.

This production, directed by Steve Isaacson, has some very strong points and some weaker ones. Heading the list of strong points are Patrick Stratton, a wonderful Sweeney Todd. Stratton's pain, anger, and angst are palpable. Without a strong Sweeney Todd, this is a show that goes nowhere.

Equally important is a strong Mrs. Lovett, and Lenore Sebastian more than fills the bill. She is a strong comedic presence and her duet with Todd, "A Little Priest" is particularly delightful.

Jason Stevens also gives a sincere performance as Anthony Hope, the sailor who has befrended Todd and who later falls in love with his daughter, Johanna (a lovely, sweet soprano of Pheonix [sic] Vaughn).

Carl Dvorcek in the small role of the rival barber, Pirelli, is a bit over the top, but handles the role well. His sidekick, Tobias Ragg (Seth Arnopole), however, suffered from projection difficulties and was very difficult to hear.

Others in the cast included Richard Spierto as Judge Turpin, Michael Campbell as the Beadle, and Megan O'Laughlin, the beggar woman, earning her living as a whore, whose secret is crucial to the play.

Sarah Bray has designed a wonderfully versatile set which rotates in all sorts of directions, and Isaacson has cleverly stationed chorus members, as street people at various places around the stairs and walls to hold the piece in place. It works very well.

The barber chair, originally designed by Walt Sykes, has been refurbished by Ben Wormeli and still works very well--how it works is probably best left a surprise.

There is a new fog machine and it's difficult to know what to say. While the effect is fine, it distracts from action on stage because it makes a whooshing sound whenever a puff of fog is emitted. Distribution is also a problem, since it seemed to concentrate in one point on the stage and eventually the fog got so thick that it totally engulfed the performers, making it briefly impossible to see them at all.

(Actors might also take note of the fact that dead bodies do not reposition themselves inside trunks!)

Mark Allen's lighting design creates a gloomy London and effectively sets the tone for the choir narration.

There is a seventeen piece orchestra playing for this show, which is amazing, given the small backstage quarters, but they do a fine job.

The show is not without its problems. (The tempo seemed a bit slow on opening night, but hopefully this will pick up as everyone settles into their roles.) However, in spite of the problems, it's a worthwhile show, defintely not for younger children, but for those with sophisticated tastes, it should provide an entertaining evening.

(One last note--real meat pies are sold in the lobby at intermission--order them before you go in for act 1--Steve Isaacson assures me that no real people were used in the filling.)

A Funny Thing Happend on the Way to the Forum

A funny thing happened on the way to the Varsity Theatre. And an even funnier thing happened inside the theatre, as Davis Musical Theatre Company kicked off its 17th season with "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum," book by Burt Shevelove and Larry Gelbart and music by Stephen Sondheim

Director Bobby Grainger addressed the audience before the show began. "I've assembled a wonderful cast," he beamed. He had every right to be proud. The cast for "Forum" is one of the consistently strongest DMTC has seen. It would be difficult to find a weakest link.

Stephen Sondheim's most tuneful musical is a madcap musical sex farce set in ancient Rome and based on the comedies of Plautus (254-182 BC). It's presented as a play within a play and we watch the actors on stage get into character, begin the story, and step out of character from time to time for interaction with the audience.

The story centers around a crafty slave named Pseudolus (Brian K. McCann, Sr.), who desires his freedom and discovers a way to get it.

McCann provides the quality performance DMTC fans have come to expect from an actor who has given such memorable interpretations as Mr. Bumble in "Oliver!" and Juan Peron in "Evita." Pseudolus is the quintessential con artist and McCann plays him to perfection.

Balancing McCann's bombast is Hysterum (Aaron Gaines), the eunich who runs the house of Senex (Steve Isaacson), father of Hero. Gaines gives an interpretation which is believable and just effeminate enough, without going overboard.

Pseudolus' young master, Hero (Jason Stevens), is in love with Philia (Pheonix Vaughn [Derrick--yes it is "Pheonix", not Phoenix], a would-be courtesan (though still a virgin) in the house of Marcus Lycus (David Holmes). Pseudolus makes a bargain with Hero that if he can get Philia for him, Hero will grant his freedom.

The choice of Vaughn to play Philia was a perfect one. With ivory soap clear skin and wide eyes, framed by curly blonde hair and dressed in virginal white, she is the picture of innocence. When she sings "I'm lovely," we believe her.

Philia has already been sold to the great warrior Miles Gloriosus (Jeremiah Lowder), which means Pseudolus has a lot of conniving and weaseling to do if he's going to capture the girl for Hero and win his own freedom. Lowder is an experienced hand at doing "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum," as this is his third production of the show. He was previously seen as a protean in one production and in another production as Hero.

Steve Isaacson tickles the funnybone as the henpecked Senex, a dirty old man who wants to sew a few wild oats while his wife Domina (Becky Luther) is out of town. His "Everybody ought to have a Maid" (sung with Pseudolus, Hysterium and Marcus Lycus) is one of the evening's highlights.

Adding to the fun is a series of mistaken identies and interesting chases which resemble a French bedroom farce. And, since this is a comedy, there's a happy ending, of course.

There are no minor roles in this show. The "Proteans," (Clocky McDowell, James Stark, Tim O'Laughlin, Aaron Rogers ) are jacks of all trades, performing all the smaller roles such as citizens and soldiers (but they are particularly effective as cupids) and are very funny.

There is also a houseful of wonderful courtesans--Laura Nelson as Tintinabula, Keri Newton and Kristen Heitman as the Gemini Twins, Lori Jones as Vibrata, Abby Johnson as Panacea and the statuesque Amy Graves, in the tallest-heeled leather boots imaginable, as Gymnasia.

Dick Mangrum as Erronius makes the very most of a small part and each time he appears on stage it is to a bigger laugh.

Mark Allen has created a delightful set, which combines the stately manor of Senex with the wildly decadent brothel of Marcus Lycus, which could easily have been plucked from San Francisco's Haight-Ashbury district during the 60s.

As always, the 8-member DMTC orchestra kept the tempos brisk, though there were moments throughout when the volume made it difficult to understand some of the lyrics.

Costumer Jean Henderson had a lot of fun designing this show, with togas for the citizens, military costumes for Miles Gloriosus and his men, and the wonderful costumes for the courtesans. A little body make up could have been used to cover up 21st century tan lines, but it's a minor complaint in an otherwise good looking show.

DMTC has picked a rousing start to its new season. It's a show with no message, except to sit back, relax, and forget about the troubles of the world for a couple of hours. You won't be disappointed.