Bars and Measures

“Bars and Measures,” by Idris Goodwin, is a new play commissioned by B Street’s producing artistic director Buck Busfield after seeing Goodwin’s award winning “How We Got On,” a coming of age story of teenagers finding identity in the suburbs using hip hop duels in parking lots.

Busfield envisioned a musical play, based on true events, which would focus not on hip hop, but on jazz and the dueling of two brothers, one a classical pianist and one a jazz bass player.    The idea was sparked by a 2007 article Busfield read about the brothers in the New York Times. “It caught my attention because so rarely is real life more interesting than art,” Busfield said.

Bilal (Jahi Kearse), a passionate jazz musician recently converted to Islam, is serving time in prison on charges of conspiring with terrorists.  Brother Eric (Darian Dauchan) is a Christian and a budding classical pianist.

The love these brothers feel for each other is communicated through their common language, music, on Eric’s regular visits to the prison.  Eric wants Bilal to teach him the meaning of swing and break him out of the rigidity of his training. Their scat duets are some of the high points in this play, as Eric learns the rhythms, but Bilal is trying to get him to embody the feelings in his soul.  Their sessions are what is helping Bilal retain his sanity, while stuck in solitary confinement.  He is writing his story in jazz and he hopes Eric will be able to pass it along to the world.

Noah Agruss is the composer and musical director for this play and his work is crucial to the power and the fluidity of the story.

At the same time that Eric is working musically with Bilal, he is also working to get him freed on all charges, as Bilal declares his innocence and feels that the charge was an example of anti-Islamic profiling.

As the play progresses and the brothers come closer to the date of Bilal’s trial, the breakdown of Bilal becomes more visible, his nerves more in evidence and his body broken by anti-Islamic attacks, mental and physical, within the prison.

It becomes, then, much more than just a play about music, but a play that embodies family, race, religion, politics, and justice. 

The supporting cast includes Jazmine Ramay and Jimmy Sidhu, both of whom play several minor characters.  Both are particularly good in the trial scene.

But it is the powerful performances of Dauchan and Kearse, under the direction of Jenny Koons, which elevate this musical play from the ordinary to the extraordinary.

Scenic designer Samantha Reno has created a simple geometric set which, aided by the spectacular lighting design of Stephen Jones lends stark realism to each of the scenes.

The audience gave the opening night performance an enthusiastic standing ovation.

Following its run in Sacramento, “Bars and Measures” will continue on with a National New Play Network Rolling World Premiere at Boston Court Theater in Pasadena, Prop Theater in Chicago and Jungle Theater in Minneapolis. I predict that it will have a long life.

Hair

Cast members of “Hair,” produced by Music Circus at the
Wells Fargo Pavilion through Sunday, perform one of their
memorable, lively numbers. Charr Crail/Courtesy photo

The moon must have been in the seventh house and Jupiter aligned with Mars because peace was guiding the planets and there was a whole theater full of very happy old hippies for the opening of the Music Circus’ final show of its 63rd season, “Hair.”

They came in tie dye shirts and dresses, in love beads, in headbands with flowers in them, and all over the theater these grey and balding folks were flashing peace signs at each other and grinning in anticipation for the start of this 1967 Tony-award-winning “Tribal Love Rock Musical,” with book and lyrics by James Rado and Gerome Ragni and music by Galt MacDermot, directed by Glenn Casale.

They were not disappointed. With 38 songs (most quite short), many of which have become part of rock music history, there was lots to enjoy. Songs like “Aquarius,” “Donna,” “Hair,” “Good Morning Starshine,” and “Let the Sun Shine In” should bring back memories for just about everyone in the audience.

The mood was set before the first person walked on stage, with beautiful multi- colored and shaped lanterns hanging all over the stage, creating a magical environment from the moment one entered the theater. Cell phone cameras were raised all over the place before the lights went down. In addition to the lanterns, cloth banners were hung in the back above each section of the house, onto which special effects would be projected throughout the evening. Scott Klier (scenic design) and David Neville (lighting design) worked in harmony beautiful to create a total experience for the audience.

While this show, described as a “ground-breaking musical that defined a generation and introduced rock ‘n’ roll to Broadway,” is more about music than plot, at its core it’s the story of a community struggling to find its voice, to question authority, and to change the world to fit what they feel would make things better.

One would think that with a topical show written in 1967 and centered on the Vietnam War that it might be a bit stale by today’s standards, but with the protests about ending the war and reducing toxic pollution and other issues (though I suspect the “save water, folks” sign may have been new!), the struggle seemed as fresh as if it had been written today.

This is an ensemble show more than a star vehicle, but if there is any plot, it is the struggle of Claude, the nominal leader of the tribe, who has received his draft notice. Does he go off to war, or does he burn his draft card? Oliver Thornton gives an unforgettable performance as first the devil-may-care guy who wants to be from Manchester, England, to the mellow, free-loving guy smoking pot and having acid trips, to the young man agonizing about what to do about the draft. He does it all brilliantly.

Peter Saide as Berger establishes rapport with the audience the minute he drops his pants (asking someone in the audience to help him get his leg out) and shows his fringe loincloth. He’s the guy who wants to enjoy all of his tactile and sexual pleasures without paying a price.

Others who deliver impressive performances are, Stephanie Mieko Cohen as the pregnant Jeanie, Laura D’Andre as Sheila, in love with Berger, who sings the emotional “Easy to be Hard,” Bryonha Marie Parham as the powerful Dionne, who takes the lead in “White Boys,” and James Michael Lambert as Woof, who carries the torch for Mick Jagger.

The 24-member tribe is exuberant and have such a joyful camaraderie with each other that it’s difficult not to get caught up in their enthusiasm. In fact, at the finale, several folks were picked out of the audience to come up on stage and dance with the cast.

And yes, for those who know the show and wonder if family-friendly Music Circus was going to include the brief nude scene that ends Act 1, yes they do, and it’s done very quickly and very tastefully — and the show is better for it.

Take a step back to the 1960s and see how relevant the problems of that era are to today, and how well those old songs hold up. The opening-night house was full so tickets may be going fast, but it’s well worth your time to check it out.

Three Days of Rain

Photo by Yarcenia Garcia

Siblings Walker (Eric Baldwin) and Nan (Beth Edwards) are the central figures in Richard Greenberg’s engrossing drama, “Three Days of Rain,” now at Big Idea Theater, directed by Shaleen Schmutzer-Smith. It is about what Walker and Nan believe about their family history, particularly the mind of their emotionally distant world famous architect father, and what they want to find out, based on the father’s enigmatic journal Walker has found, which gives tantalizing hints about their parents’ past.

When the father’s will gives his prized accomplishment, a famous home once featured in Life magazine, to Pip (Ryan Snyder), the son of his collaborator, it is a blow that none of the trio can understand.

Act 2 is set 35 years earlier, with the actors playing their parents and giving the audience answers to the some (but not all) of the questions posed in Act 1.

This is a strong trio of actors.  Baldwin gives and honest and gut wrenching performance as Walker, but it is as Ned, his reserved, stuttering father, where he really shines.

Edwards is a strong Nan, who loves her brother, but can’t quite trust him, since he has disappointed her so often.  As mother Lina, she is less like the described “Zelda Fitzgerald’s less stable sister” and it is difficult to see how she became the mentally needy, alcoholic mother described in Act 1.

Snyder is wonderful as the suave handsome TV idol Pip, and also deftly plays the emotionally unstable Theo, whose untimely death will affect everyone forever.

Though the second act seems rushed, trying to fit in too much too quickly, following the more solid first act, this is a compelling drama certain to satisfy.

Four Stars

Mary Poppins

With just "A Spoonful of Sugar" Mary Poppins (Jori Gonzales)
can make even an unpleasant task a treat for Jane (Marley Michel)
and Michael (D.J. Michel) Banks in the Woodland Opera House production
of "Mary Poppins."  Courtesy Photo

“Prac-ti-cally perfect” is what Mary Poppins might have called the Woodland Opera House production of the Disney and Cameron Mackintosh version of “Mary Poppins.”

The show starts with the wonderful set by Mark and Christine Deamer. Things come down from the top, up from the bottom and slide in from side to side, thanks to the efficient and unobtrusive set crew.

Costumes by Denise Miles are either subdued period costumes or over-the-top fantasy costumes in a rainbow of bright colors for numbers like “Supercalafragilisticexpealidocious.”

Director Angela Baltezore is also the show’s choreographer and the dances are such fun, in addition to the aforementioned “Supercalafragilisticexpealidocious” with its ridiculously complicated hand, foot and arm movements, to the chimney sweeps’ tap dance, “Step in Time” which brings down the house and gives a much deserved and earned encore.

And then there is the cast. Jori Gonzales is more than practically perfect as Mary Poppins. From the moment she floats into the Banks household we take her into our hearts and believe in her magic.

F. James Raasch, in his first Woodland Opera House production, is the consummate Bert, the chimney sweep who has a special relationship we never quite understand with Mary. The man sings beautifully, dances wonderfully and is a magnetic force on stage. (My only complaint is that for someone who works in soot and ashes, his costume is entirely too pristine.)

Jeremy and Tamalisa Carlson make it a real family affair as George and Winifred Banks (their real-life children Kathryn and Brenden are members of the ensemble as Fannie and Danny). Jeremy, as George makes the transition from staid, stuffy banker to caring, carefree father beautifully, while Tamalisa holds the family together with her love for her husband and her children, though in “Being Mrs. Banks” lets us know the price she pays trying to balance her duties as a society wife and loving mother.

Real-life brother and sister Marley and D.J. Michel play the Banks children, Jane and Michael. (8-year-old D.J. was just nominated for an Elly award for his performance as Charlie in “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory”). These kids are amazing, considering that they are in nearly every scene and act, sing and dance beautifully.

Longtime area favorite, Lenore Sebastian is a veritable gorgon as Miss Andrew, George Banks’ old nanny (“the old horror”). Almost unrecognizable behind the fabulous makeup, there’s no mistaking that forceful voice as she belts out “Brimstone and Treacle.” Even members of the audience may shrink in fear.

Likewise, seven-time Chesley Award winner Nancy Agee delivers on my personal favorite, “Feed the Birds.” as the street woman, sitting on the courthouse steps selling her bags of bird seed for “Tuppence a bag.”

Particular mention goes to J. Hunter LaMar as Neleus, the statue that comes to life. He holds his pose for a very long time and then gives full rein to his dance, both solo and with the other Hyde Park statues. My only comment on this character is — can someone please do something about that unsightly material bunching in an inconvenient place as Neleus stands facing away from the audience?

There is an eight-piece orchestra, which plays beautifully, but in venues like the Opera House, with no orchestra pit, the music seems to always be competing with the voices on stage. In particular, when sitting closer to the orchestra (we were in row B), the music under the spoken dialog almost always drowned out what was being said. This kind of battle has been waged in community theater houses for decades and there is no real solution, but it deserves mentioning again.

I don’t know if “Mary Poppins” is the most ambitious production Woodland has ever presented, but if not, it certainly must be near the top. It’s a huge production, but done practically perfectly.

Elly Nominations

Kevin Caravalho, as the curmudgeonly green ogre Shrek,
and David Ewey, as the overly enthusiastic Donkey,
perform a scene from last September's DMTC
production of "Shrek, the Musical."
This role landed Carvalho an Elly Award
nomination for lead actor.
Courtesy photo

Local theaters are among more than 430 Elly nominees for the 2014-15 season, which were announced at an informal nomination reception Sunday.

During the 2014-15 season, 240 shows were submitted by 76 theaters. Davis Musical Theatre Company and The Woodland Opera House led the field of local nominees with eight nominations each. Art Theater of Davis received its first-ever nominations — three.

Davis Musical Theatre
Company’s performing nominations went to Kevin Caravalho, lead actor, “Shrek, The Musical”; Jessica Mckillican, lead actress, “Shrek, The Musical”; Joel Porter, supporting actor, “Anything Goes”; Mike Mechanick, supporting actor, “Anything Goes”; Ana Chan, lead actress, “Peter Pan”; and Arieh Simon, supporting actor, “The Velveteen Rabbit.”

DMTC technical nominations went to Kaylin Scott for choreography for “Anything Goes” and LeAnne Carlisle for costume design for “The Velveteen Rabbit.”

For WOH, acting nominations went to Rodger McDonald, supporting actor in a comedy, “A Flea in Her Ear”; Erik Catalan, lead actor in a young people’s play, “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory”; D.J. Michel, youth lead actor for the same play; and Frances Thayer, youth supporting actress.

Woodland also picked up technical nominations: Darcie Neill for lighting design for “The Miracle Worker”; Denise Miles for costume design, “Hello, Dolly”; Mark and Christine Deamer for set design, “Disney’s My Son Pinocchio”; and John Bowles for sound design, “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.”

DMTC lead-actor nominee Caravalho, who won the Elly in 2009 for “Seussical the Musical,” had not done theater in a long time “because we had more babies.” But in looking for something for his 3-year-old to watch on TV, he came across “Shrek, the Musical.” It became her favorite show.

He started getting the itch for theater again. “I thought, ‘Wouldn’t it be fun if Daddy could be Shrek?” He checked the DMTC website and found out that the company was planning to do “Shrek” next, so he auditioned and got the role.

“To this day, every time my daughter sees anything with Shrek, she says ‘Daddy.’ My performance came from the heart. I did it for my kids. I am forever enshrined in the ‘cool camp’ because of it,” he said, laughing.

The Elly nomination, though, does take a back seat to another event in his life — three weeks ago he became the father of twins, bringing the family’s number of children to six.

A newcomer to Elly nominations was the Art Theater of Davis, which garnered a supporting actress nomination for Joanna Johnson in “Hay Fever” and two nominations for group founder Timothy Nutter in “Hay Fever,” for costume design and set design.

Nutter was delighted to hear the news, as he had not attended the ceremony. Art Theater of Davis recently lost its theater, but, undaunted, is rehearsing for “Uncle Vanya” to be presented in the Veterans’ Memorial Theater starting Sept. 24. He hopes that YoloArts will be able to take the fledgling group under its wings.

It was also Johnson’s first nomination. Her casting in “Hay Fever’ was almost an accident, but she had lost a role in a musical she hoped to do and was free, so auditioned and was cast as the housekeeper, Clara.

“I loved the show,” she said. “It was a dream to work on. So much fun.”

Anita Ahuja and Dona Akers were both nominated in the supporting actress category for the Winters Theatre Company’s “Best Christmas Pageant Ever.” Winters has been nominated a couple of times in the past, manager Howard Hupe said, but not in many years.

“We used to actively participate, but don’t do that any more,” he said.

Ahuja, nominated for her acting, her first Elly nomination, also directed the show.

“That was not the original plan,” she said, but her original actress had a family emergency and had to drop out three weeks before the show opened. Ahuja stepped into the role, which was more like art imitating life, since her role was that of a wife having to direct a Christmas pageant because the original director broke her leg.

“In my personal life I have directed pageants at my church, so to do it on stage was such a hilarious experience,” she said. “I loved the show. I adore working with children and we had close to 20 children working.”

Named for the late Eleanor McClatchy, a devoted patron of the arts and former publisher of the Sacramento Bee, the Elly Awards celebrate excellence and the outstanding achievements of community theaters and artists in the greater Sacramento area.

Created 33 years ago by local community actors, the Elly Awards have grown from a local Sacramento tradition to now include theaters within a 70-mile radius.

In honor of the 33rd annual Elly Awards, Sacramento Area Regional Theatre Alliance will host two ceremonies this September. The Youth Elly Award ceremony will begin at 7 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 13, at Cosumnes Oaks High School Performing Arts Center in Elk Grove. The Adult Elly Award ceremony will follow at 7 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 27, at the Elks Lodge No. 6 in Sacramento (Pocket).

For more information, visit www.sarta.com or call 916-443-8229. SARTA is a nonprofit theater arts service organization.

The Best Brothers

Will Springhorn Jr., left, and Christian Martin star
in the B Street Theatre's production of "Best Brothers."
Courtesy photo

The lobby of the B Street Theatre was filled with dogs from Sutter Medical Center’s pet therapy program on opening night of “The Best Brothers,” a play by Daniel MacIvor, directed by Buck Busfield. The promotional material for the play promised that we would leave the theater wanting to get a dog. Sadly, the lobby dogs were the best part of the evening.

Billed as a “bittersweet comedy,” this play is more bitter than sweet, and comedic only sporadically. It tells the story of two brothers, Kyle Best (Will Springhorn Jr.) and Hamilton Best (Christian Martin) — both actors are making their B Street debut — brought together by the sudden death of their mother, Bunny, at a gay pride event involving a drag queen named Piña Colada.

As the estranged brothers meet to plan her funeral, they can’t agree on anything, from the writing of the obituary (should they call her “loving” or “beloved”?), to the date of the viewing (one day? two days? Should there be food?), who will give the eulogy (which ends up a physical struggle in front of the mourners), to what is going to happen to the third “son,” Enzo, the Italian greyhound Bunny adopted, who was her whole life.

It appears that this is a classic tale of “mom always liked you best,” as both men felt the other was her favorite for one reason or another, and Hamilton blames Kyle for their mother’s death. If Kyle weren’t gay, she wouldn’t have been at a gay pride event in the first place.

From time to time, each brother dons one of their mom’s hats and gloves and gives a soliloquy as Mother, which gives us insights into her life, and especially into the men in her life. The actors also briefly each play the invisible dog.

As they come together to go through the contents of her house, more is uncovered about the brothers and secrets are revealed about the relationship of each brother with their mother.

Perhaps the reason this play seemed so wooden was because it appeared that the actors were stumbling over their lines in part. Perhaps as the play progresses, things will smooth out.

The set by Shawn Weinshank was utilitarian, some chrome-framed chairs that moved around a lot. Costumes by Paulette Sand-Gilbert nicely gave a clue to the character of the two brothers, from Hamilton’s clean-cut suits to Kyle’s loud pastel plaid shirt with pink tie.

In the end, the best that can be said about this play is that it is only one act, and so is over in 90 minutes.

And I did not leave wanting to add another dog to our family.

West Side Story

The Jets perform one of their many exuberant dance numbers for “West Side Story,”
produced by Music Circus at the Wells Fargo Pavilion through Sunday, Aug. 9.
Charr Crail/Courtesy photo

 There was a lot of testosterone bouncing off of the Music Circus stage during the opening number as “West Side Story,” directed by Bob Richard opened this week.

The Tony Award-winning musical — with book by Arthur Laurents, music by Leonard Bernstein and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim — may be one of the most energetic musicals around these days. With choreography by Diane Laurenson, based partly on the original choreography by Jerome Robbins, this taxes the dancers to the limit, and the Music Circus cast is equal to the task.

The men flew through the air over and over and over again, climbed structures, rolled on the ground, popped back up and then flew through the air again. The ladies stomped, kicked their heels in the air and got spun around by the guys.

Without even thinking about acting or singing, the show is a hit on dancing alone.

This is, of course, a modern-day Romeo and Juliet story, modernized and set on the streets of New York. It revolves around the running feud between the Sharks (immigrant Puerto Ricans) and the Jets (native New Yorkers). Some of the material (particularly the barely censored language, such as “Gee, Officer Krupke — krup you”) seems a bit dated, but the hatred between gangs is, sadly, even more relevant today.

There is a wonderful cast. Justin Matthew Sargent is a handsome Tony, with a powerful voice that has a smoothness of butter as he croons songs like “Maria” and “Something’s Coming.” Tony is determined to quit the Jets and find a normal job, and the fact that he has fallen instantly in love with a beautiful Puerto Rican girl strengthens that resolve.

Maria is played by Carolann M. Sanita. She has a glorious voice, and beautifully portrays the innocent excitement of a young girl falling in love for the first time. It is never more evident than in her giddy “I Feel Pretty,” as she prepares for her date with Tony, followed by the anguish of a young woman who feels her life crashing in around her.

German Alexander was the last Bernardo that Arthur Laurents cast, and so originated the role on the first national revival tour. He has a bravado and a swagger that work for his character and he is definitely the guy in charge.

Desiree Davar is a fiery Anita, Bernardo’s girlfriend. Her duet with Maria (“A Boy Like That”) was outstanding, as she struggles to balance her grief at Bernardo’s death, her anger at Maria for being in love with his killer, and her love for Maria, understanding the depth of the girl’s feelings for Tony.

Naomi Morgan is Rosalia, living in America, but still longing for her native Puerto Rico. Her duet with Anita (“America”) and the spirited dance of the women singing about the joys of living in their new country, compared with the problems of the country they left behind, was outstanding.

Shane Rhoades, reprising his 2005 role, is Tony’s best friend, Riff. Riff is the leader of the Jets and is passionate about wiping out the “P.R.s,” as they call the Puerto Ricans, always itching for a fight with a hair-trigger temper.

Rich Hebert is Lt. Schrank, with a deep hatred of the Puerto Ricans. And though he doesn’t much like the Jets either, he’s willing to give them a pass as long as they don’t kill anybody. He’s backed by David Pierini (familiar to B Street Theatre audiences) as Officer Krupke.

Gary Lee Reed is Doc, the owner of the drug store that’s the Jets’ hangout. His anguish and anger following the deaths resulting from the “rumble” came from the depth of his soul.

Maria Briggs is “Anybody’s,” a diminutive tomboy who desperately wants to be a Jet and to prove she’s every bit as good as any of the guys. Her rumpled clothes and unkempt blond hair are in stark contrast to just about everyone else in the cast.

Scenic designers Scott Klier and Jamie Kumpf do a wonderful job creating the back streets of New York on a set in the round, with stairs that go up into the lights and set pieces that drop down from the ceiling to create other indoor scenes. The scene under the freeway — aided by lighting by David Neville and sound by Joe Caruso Jr. and Robert Sereno — is particularly effective.

“West Side Story” is classic American theater, and this Music Circus production does not fail to delight. Opening night seemed to have a full house, so tickets may be difficult to get, but it’s definitely worth your while to try.

Argonautika

In her notes to Acme Theatre Company’s production of “Argonautika,” director Maddy Ryen says the story is basically a road-trip tale. Road trips follow essentially the same format — a bunch of buddies get together to go off on adventures, whether by motorcycle (“Easy Rider”), cars (“Blues Brothers”) or maybe on “Trains, Planes, and Automobiles.”

This dramedy by Mary Zimmerman, who has been making a name for herself updating many of the old classic stories, gives us Jason, who gathers a bunch of his buddies, hops on a boat and sails off for many adventures. These include chase scenes, battles, sexy babes, a lot of ingested substances, a monster or two to be defeated and a bittersweet, if not quite as expected, return.

This show closes Acme’s 35th season. While I am usually impressed with what a group of young people can do, the closing shows of any season are usually the best, when the newcomers have had a year to hone their skills and learn how it all works. Thus, this show, which seems to have a cast of thousands, doesn’t have a weak performance in the bunch.

One of my perpetual complaints is that not everyone knows about “projection” and dialog is often difficult to hear, but placing the audience on the stage of the Brunelle Theater gives the cast a full house, and makes it almost impossible to miss any line of dialogue in this lively production.

The plot is pretty silly, but I’m sure it meant something to the Greeks at the time. Jason (Trevor Rinzler), the rightful heir to the crown of Thessaly, is sent by one tyrant king, Pelias (Tina Simson, in an amazing beard that looked left over from a Christmas display), to the kingdom of another tyrant, King Aeetes of Colchis (Chris Monheit), to retrieve the golden fleece — which looks like a table mat-sized piece of sheep’s hide, but which is the symbol of authority and kingship.

Pelias expects that Jason will be killed on the journey and thus be no longer a threat to his throne, but the adventurer is assisted by the gods Hera (Callie Miller) and Athena (Meili Monk), who help him and his buddies out of many scrapes.

All of these actors give wonderful performances, with Rinzler the zealous, committed young hero; Simson, her gender hidden by her long beard and white hair, suitably conniving; and Monheit deliciously strong and evil.

Miller is a beautiful Hera, who pledges herself to Jason after he carries her across a stream, while Monk, resplendent in red, the perfect partner to Hera.

All of Jason’s buddies are excited about the upcoming adventure, but head and shoulders among them all — literally and physically — is Ricky Houck as Hercules. He gives a powerful, yet funny performance as a kind of not-too-bright jock whose strength is crucial to the start of the journey. But his devotion to and love for his partner Hylas (Colin French), is beautiful to watch, and painful to experience his later loss.

Houck later becomes the feet to sister Bella Houck as Boreas, the fearsome giant with the huge fists who does battle with Jason.

Sarah Zaragoza-Smith makes an impression as she joins the Argonauts midway through their journey as Dymas, and Mikaela Manzano as the Son of Pelias also brings a bright enthusiasm to the group.
Camila Ortiz is a demure Medea, daughter of Aeetes, before she became the monster we all remember. She is loving toward Jason, after being shot by an arrow from Eros (Elise Turkovich).

Good work by costume designers Cassaundra Wages and Eliza Buchanan for the arrow Medea wears for the rest of the show and for the white gown that gets redder and redder as she appears to bleed for the next several years.

Eden Tomich and Benton Harshaw have designed a beautiful ship for Jason, split in half to allow for fight scenes and an amazing pre-journey chant sequence.

Katie Sanger and Meli Monk provide the original music while Andres De Loera Brust and Wil Forkin’s lighting design is a great help in many scenes.

Though the story of Jason and the Golden Fleece may be one of the oldest tales in the world, it still has a message for today. Though we may not be dealing with monsters, harpies and gods, the story of feuding kings sending their young men off to die for the cause still rings true.

Peter Pan

Jenn Colella as Peter Pan and Maria Briggs as Jane take to the skies
as Jennifer Hope Wills as Old Wendy watches in “Peter Pan,”
produced by Music Circus at the Wells Fargo Pavilion
through Sunday. Charr Crail/Courtesy photo

With a little magic, a lot of fairy dust and some really strong overhead wires, “Peter Pan” bursts through the nursery window of the Wells Fargo Pavilion to thrill children and adults in this week’s first-rate Music Circus production of the J.M. Barrie classic.

The Tony Award-winning 1998 version, which also was made into an A&E TV special, is directed by Glenn Casale, with delightful choreography by Patti Colombo and additional flying-sequence choreography by Paul Rubin.

Three of the actors in this Music Circus production also were part of the A&E production — Paul Schoeffler (Mr. Darling/Captain Hook), Michael Nostrand (Smee) and Kim Arnett, a member of the ensemble.

Jenn Colella, recently co-starring with Idina Menzel on Broadway in “If/Then,” is an energetic Peter Pan — brash, physical, petulant, endearing. She has the swagger of a young boy, and flies through the air with the greatest of ease, sprinkling fairy dust in her wake.

The Darling children, who fly with Peter to Neverland, are Aidan Winn as John, Joshua Davis as Michael and Lori Eve Marinacci as Wendy. Winn is adorable, clutching his teddy bear in his footed jammies. Davis has a Harry Potter-ish appearance with his big glasses. Marinacci is a warm and caring Wendy, ready to be mother to the lost boys of Neverland, until she realizes that she really needs her own mother.

Jennifer Hope Wills is Mrs. Darling, who sings the children a beautiful lullaby (“Tender Shepherd”). Her husband is played by Paul Schoeffler, who also plays Captain Hook.

Schoeffler, who is returning to Music Circus after a long hiatus, has a long performing history with the group. He is simply marvelous, particularly as Hook, roaring orders at everyone, but reduced to a quivering mass of fear when faced with his nemesis, the crocodile, who has already bitten off one hand and wants to come back for the other.

The crocodile (Jake DuPree) is very realistic (and terrifying). DuPree is also the guy inside the Nana the Dog costume back in the nursery and is as believable as a dog as he is as a crocodile.

Michael Nostrand plays Hook’s right-hand man, Smee, the perfect sycophant ready to serve Hook at the drop of a hat.

Colombo’s choreography is outstanding, particularly the dances for the Indians, led by the Indian Princess Tiger Lily (Desiree Davar). Each of the Indian dances was a show-stopper, particularly the somewhat less-than-politically correct “Ugg-a-Wugg.” (Many believe the song employs outdated stereotypes about the American Indian language and culture, both musically and lyrically, and the lyrics were changed for the recent TV special).

Politically correct or not, this drum-infused dance number brought down the house on opening night.
The plot of the frenetic life on Neverland seems to be that the Indians hate the lost boys, as do the pirates, who also hate the Indians. It seems that everyone is chasing everyone at one time or another, though “Ugg-a-Wugg” celebrates a new liaison between Indians and Boys after Peter Pan rescues Tiger Lily from a rock where she was left by the pirates to die.

Suffice to say there is a lot of running and chasing and yelling and the kids in the audience loved it. I personally would have liked the volume of the sound, which can be ear-splitting, be turned down a smidge, but this is a show for the kids, not for grumpy adults.

Special kudos must be given to the ever-efficient Music Circus tech crew, who did yeomen’s duty hauling big set pieces on and off the stage in the dark. Scenic designers Scott Klier and Jamie Kumpf have done a great job particularly in creating the nursery with its overhead shelves lined with toys.

It’s hard to do a bad production of this popular story, and this version by the Music Circus is definitely popular with everyone in the audience, which had a high number of children.

Next to Normal

Andrea Thorpe's character Diana shows her extreme highs and lows in "Next to Normal,"
presented through Aug. 16 by Runaway Stage Productions.
Courtesy photo

 A rock musical that brings mental illness out of the closet is now being presented by Runaway Stage Productions at the West Sacramento Community black-box theater.

For those of us who grew up with musicals by Rodgers and Hammerstein or Meredith Willson, there is a certain formulaic expectation in our musicals, which basically were love stories with a bit of conflict thrown in, which was usually resolved by the finale.

Jonathan Larson shattered that illusion when his “Rent” premiered on Broadway; it was a raw rock opera about AIDS and drugs and lots of not very pretty things. It took Broadway by storm. Then came “Spring Awakening” about puberty and suicide, another blockbuster. They opened the door to other musicals that don’t end happily ever after.

Now, along comes “Next to Normal,” a rock musical by Tom Kitt (music) and Brian Yorkey (book and lyrics), under the direction of Bob Baxter, about bipolar disorder.

The piece began in 1998 as a short sketch about a woman undergoing electroshock therapy and originally was titled “Feeling Electric.” Over the next 10 years it grew and developed and finally opened off-Broadway as “Next to Normal” in 2008 and won the Outer Critics’ Circle award for Outstanding Score and Drama Desk award nominations for Outstanding Actress and Outstanding Score.

After a run in Washington, D.C., it reopened on Broadway in 2009 and was nominated for 11 Tony awards and won three (Best Original Score, Best Orchestration and Best Performance by a Leading Actress). It also became the eighth musical in the history of the Pulitzer Prizes to win a prize for drama.

Mental illness is not pretty and it affects not only the person suffering, but the family as well. Andrea Thorpe (whom Davis Comic Opera Company patrons may remember from her portrayal of Fantine in last year’s “Les Miserables”) plays Diane Goodman, who has suffered from bipolar depression since the death of her son many years ago. This is a tricky role in which the character runs the gamut from confusion to pain to rage, but still must be sympathetic so the audience cares about her. Thorpe carries it off beautifully.

She has a very supportive husband in Dan (Darryl Strohl-DeHerrera), who is willing to help her try many treatments, and try every new medicine that comes along. The emotional toll of Diana’s illness on Dan gradually becomes apparent, as her mood swings begin to wear him down.

Kristina Dizon is perhaps the saddest character, Natalie, the child born after the death of her brother, who has been ignored all of her life and we see how this has affected her. Even her new boyfriend Henry (Tylen Einweck), who doesn’t realize what he is getting into and is very naive in his introduction to mental illness, can’t quite bring happiness to her life.

Outstanding is Michael Roivas as hallucination of the now grown-up dead child, Gabe. His song “I’m Alive” taunts Diane to believe that he is real again.

I am more than memory, I am what might be / 
I am mystery / 
You know me / 
So show me
When I appear it’s not so clear 
if I’m a simple spirit or I’m flesh and blood

Taylor Presnall plays two different therapists with two different approaches to Diane’s problem, neither of whom really seems to understand her problem.

The black-box theater is tiny, making the audience really a part of the family (at one point I considered leaning over and turning off the table lamp that was shining in my eyes!), and with everyone squished in so tightly, moving large set pieces down the narrow aisles is an experience, especially for those sitting on the aisle. But the intimacy adds another dimension to the appreciation of what is happening on stage.

The seven-piece orchestra, under the coordination of keyboardist Deann Golz, is distributed across the two levels of the stage and mostly performs well, except for a couple of spectacular glitches that made the audience jump.

At the conclusion of the play, we have examined everything from electroshock therapy to faulty medication and see the frustration not only for the patient but also for the family. There is a possibility of a happily ever after, but it would take a sequel to know exactly how it all comes out.

Grounded

The lights in B Street’s small B3 Season theater go up to reveal Alicia Hunt, The Pilot, in the current production of “Grounded.” She stands tall and proud with eyes shining, because she has just completed a bombing run.

She dares you to take your eyes off of her as she strides around the stage. She exudes confidence and pride that she, a woman, is a Top Gun in the male-dominated Air Force. She is accepted as one of the guys. They go up in their planes, hit their targets and then go to the local bar to drink together, the camaraderie of soldiers in a war.

She revels in her love of “the blue.” She is proud of the “blood and sweat and brains” she has expended in earning her uniform, and she speaks with excitement as she talks of delivering her deadly payloads, “pounding minarets into dust.”

She is a loner, she explains, because men are usually intimidated by her job, but then one night she meets Eric, who is not intimidated. They start seeing more of each other and the inevitable happens: She’s pregnant.

She can’t fly pregnant, and the Air Force grounds her and assigns her to what she calls the “Chair Force,” doing office work. After she marries Eric and gives birth to daughter Samantha, she stays at home to be with the baby for three years.

Eventually, the job of a housewife and stay-at-home mom is no longer enough and she starts yearning for the blue again.

With Eric’s blessing, she returns to her unit, expecting to be reunited with her beloved F-16 fighter plane. But she discovers things have changed. She will no longer be flying a jet over the desert, she will be sitting in an air-conditioned trailer in the Nevada desert piloting a drone flying somewhere in the Middle East, while looking down on her targets and getting orders from a disembodied voice in her ear.

She no longer lives in the blue, but in the “gray” of the drone room. She gets up in the morning, feeds Samantha and takes her to school, then drives an hour to the trailer, works her 12-hour shift blowing up “bad guys” in the desert, then is home in time for dinner and to put Samantha to bed.

There is no more camaraderie and she can’t even share her work with her husband because it’s all top-secret. She no longer feels the power that she felt when flying a plane and under constant threat of death.

The longer she does this job, the more surreal it seems, especially when she discovers that she now sees her targets much too clearly, watching body parts fly into the air as the bombs explode. This brings up a very real question for those of us watching about modern warfare, where kids are just playing video games … but with real lives. It definitely has an effect on our Pilot.

This is a masterful, emotionally charged performance by Hunt, an Equity actress working in Los Angeles and New York, who is a Davis native. She grew up in the Acme Theatre Company, Barnyard Stage, Davis Musical Theatre Company and at other local performing venues.

Director Lyndsay Burch keeps things focused with no lag time in the crisp dialog of The Pilot.

If there is a negative to this production it is the scenic design by Samantha Reno. There is a large cartoon-like sand dune sweeping across the back of the stage, looking somewhat like Donald Trump’s hair, which might have worked well except that video projections are an important part of this story, and they tend to get lost in the busy-ness of the backdrop.

It was a shame to lose so much of that part of the show.

Bye Bye Birdie

Larry Raben as Albert Peterson, left, Amanda Jane Cooper as Kim MacAfee, Nathaniel Hackmann as Conrad Birdie, Sainty Nelsen as Ursula Merkle, Kathryn Mowat Murphy (Mayor’s wife) and Steve Geary (Mayor) perform with the company in “Bye Bye Birdie,” produced by Music Circus at the Wells Fargo Pavilion through Sunday, July 12. Kevin Graft/Courtesy photo

 In 1957, rock-and-roll idol Elvis Presley was drafted into the Army, sparking a media circus that probably was tame by today’s standards. Millions of teenage girls went into mourning that their idol was going away to serve his country for 18 whole months.

Writers Michael Stewart (book), Charles Strouse (music) and Lee Adams (lyrics), who had been trying to work out the plot for a new musical, took Presley’s induction and ran with it. The musical “Bye Bye Birdie,” now at the Music Circus, was nominated for eight Tony Awards that year, and won four, including the award for Best Musical.

The Music Circus has presented this delightful show four times before, but not since 1999, so it was fun to see it back on stage.

The rock-and-roll hunk, Conrad Birdie in this production, is Nathaniel Hackmann, who bumps and grinds with the best of them, and sings in that Elvis way that knocks girls (and some married women) off their feet. Hackmann is a little more subdued than some Birdies I’ve seen, but he gets his point across.

Conrad is a little short in the smarts department and relies on his agent, Albert Peterson (Larry Raben), to manage his career. This is the role that made Dick Van Dyke a superstar, and while Raben doesn’t have the pizzazz of Van Dyke, his smooth performance and his nimble toes make this a very likable Albert indeed. His “Put on a Happy Face” with Sad Girls Ashley Anderson and Sarah Marie Jenkins was very sweet.

Peterson’s right-hand woman is Rosie Alvarez. Janine DiVita gives a stellar performance. She takes command of the stage from the moment she steps on it and the stage lights up every time she returns. She is simply outstanding.

Rosie has come up with a great plan to make Conrad’s entry into the Army a highlight of his career and suggests that Albert write a song called “One Last Kiss,” which Conrad will sing to one of his millions of teenage fans, picked at random.

Kim MacAfee of Sweet Apple, Ohio, is the lucky girl. Amanda Jane Cooper is amazing. To watch her on stage, you’d think she was a bright-eyed, fresh-faced teenager, totally convincing as one of Conrad’s worshippers. In fact, according to her bio, Cooper is a theater veteran who has a lengthy performing résumé, including playing Glinda in the first touring production of “Wicked.”

Rebecca Baxter is Kim’s mother, a solid performance that would do credit to Beaver Cleaver’s mother. She’s the perfect 1950s housewife, complete with heels and crinoline under her skirt.

I don’t know if he was trying to channel Paul Lynde or not, but Stuart Marland’s performance as Mr. MacAfee was definitely a credit to Lynde, the original Mr. MacAfee. He’s blustery and in awe of his hero, Ed Sullivan, when he learns the family is to be on Sullivan’s show.

Albert’s mother, Mae Peterson, is played by Mary-Pat Green, who is deliciously overbearing and the master of the guilt trip.

Garett Hawe is Kim’s boyfriend, Hugo. The two have just been pinned and Hugo does not take kindly to the idea of Kim being kissed by Conrad. He’s the perfect gawky teen, but he grows up before our eyes as he gradually gets the courage to let everyone know how he feels.

There is an ensemble of teens and townspeople making for fun numbers like “The Telephone Hour” and “One Last Kiss.”

“Bye Bye Birdie” is a show that lends itself easily to adding extras from time to time. A story of a rock idol who needs screaming fans is a great place to use members of the Music Circus junior company, who fill the aisles of the Wells Fargo Pavilion, joining with the chorus, waving Birdie banners, and screaming appropriately. It gave the production the feel of a much bigger show.

This is definitely a high-energy, fun show that evokes a time when life seemed much simpler, though some of the dated references (e.g., the confusion between Mussolini and Rossallini) did not seem to connect with the younger crowd.

Robert Lautz (feature story)

Playwright Robert Lautz is living with prostate cancer.

“I’m terrible,” he laughed when I asked him how he was doing. “It’s terminal, but at least this is a slow-growing cancer.”

Lautz is a longtime Davis resident who moved his family to Minnesota a month ago, where his wife’s family lives, but he was back in town briefly to watch the opening of his new play, “Third Date” at the Wilkerson Theater in Sacramento.

Lautz’s first play, “The Meaning of it All” ran at the Wilkerson in 2012.

“You did a review where you didn’t trash it,” he reminded me. “You encouraged me to keep writing, so that’s why I wrote a second play. It was as a great learning experience as my first play.

“I’ve written a comedy about cancer,” he said “ ‘Fun with mutant cells’ is the alternate title.”

Some may think it’s odd to be writing a comedy about cancer, but Lautz explained that initially, it was a series of notes to keep track of all of his medical records, but so many bizarre things happened during his treatment that he thought it might make a funny play.

And it is.

The show opened two weeks ago, and Lautz was there for the opening.

“I was thrilled,” he said. They had full houses on opening weekend and “the performance just got better and better.” He was most pleased that the audience “got it.” The point had been made.

Lautz stresses that “cancer has some clout. Doctors and nurses make a point of being very courteous and very gracious. You even get valet parking.”

But the play does hit home with doctors.

“My GP who has been my doctor for 20 years came to see it,” the playwright said. “Afterwards he said that ‘Generally we’re in the habit of creating a distance between ourselves and the patients. This reminded me not to do so.’ ”

Director Maggie Adair Upton added that a lot of cancer survivor groups have been attending.

“They either like it or they hate it,” she said, adding that one of her friends saw a preview and had to leave. There had been enough cancer in her life and she had just had enough.

“It’s a tricky show to do, but I think it’s important and I’m glad we are doing it,” Upton said.
“One woman at a talk-back after the show said parts of the play made her squirm,” said Lautz, laughing. He told her his alternate title would have been “Caution: Sections of this play may make you squirm.”

Many of those who were uncomfortable were Lautz’s friends and co-workers from the California Arts Council, where he worked for many years, who felt it was difficult to watch, knowing that these were his own experiences.

“It happened to me. Everything,” he said.

“I’m a musician,” he told me, adding that he played the vibraphone and drums and graduated from Berklee College of Music in 1976, with a degree in composition. In fact, the incidental music before and after the show was composed and performed by Lautz.

He grew up in California, but moved back East with his family for high school and college. Then he decided to return to California.

“I borrowed my father’s car and drove to Santa Cruz,” he said, adding that his father never got the car back.

He became a street musician, playing on the streets and in malls and performing gigs up and down the California coast, whenever he could find work, supporting himself for some 20 years. During that time, he met his wife in a jazz club.

It was after his wife became pregnant that he decided that “this jazz musician thing may not work out financially.”

In 1995, he ended up on the California Arts Council, a move that would bring him to Davis. By this time he had two daughters, ages 4 and 2, and real estate agents took him all over Sacramento looking for a house.

“Then I drove out to Davis, first getting lost on Olive Drive. But we fell in love with the town. It was a great place to raise our daughters,” he said.

Friends in Sacramento warned him that Davis was where the liberals were, “but we came from Santa Cruz!” he added, laughing.

He worked for the Arts Council for eight years “and then the budget went way south” so he worked for another state agency for a while and then returned to the Arts Council, where he continued to work after his 2007 cancer diagnosis until his family’s move to Minnesota.

Lautz said his character, Richard Montauk, is kind of a sexist pig who has a teenaged daughter with whom he has little relationship and a wife from whom he is divorced. Through the course of the play he is very subtly transformed by his experiences.

“A friend said he really didn’t like Montauk, but toward the end he did.”

So Lautz achieved his ultimate goal, and can a playwright ask for more than that?

The show runs 2 and 8 p.m. Saturdays through July 4 in the Dennis Wilkerson Theater at California Stage’s R25 Arts Complex. Visit www.calstage.org for information.

Big River

It was a surreal experience attending Music Circus’s “Big River” in a week where we are still reeling from the slaughter in Charleston, S.C., which has ignited an active debate over the display of the Confederate flag and the use of the N-word.

“Big River,” with book by William Hauptman and music and lyrics by Roger Miller (who won The Tony and Drama Desk Awards for his work), is a retelling of Mark Twain’s “Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,” the story of two runaways — Huck Finn, fleeing his cruel father, and Jim, a runaway slave, who travel together and become good friends. The story is set sometime prior to the Civil War. (Twain, who published it in 1884, was vague about the exact date.)

Needless to say, slavery plays a big part in this play and the slave scenes feel emotionally raw, particularly this week. The language, true to the period, is offensive to our ears today. The reaction of the audience, with spontaneous applause when Jim’s chains are removed and he wins his freedom, was, I felt, an indication that the whole audience was feeling the same raw emotion.

This is an outstanding production, with a superb cast. Ben Fankhauser is a bit old to be playing the 13-year-old Huck Finn, but he is a real pro who commands the stage, with a great voice that does particularly well in the ballads and in his duets with Jim (Phillip Boykin).

Boykin is definitely old for the role of Huck’s companion, though the age difference melts away with Jim’s back story of having been separated from his wife and children, and with the paternal role he takes in Huck’s life.

And what a voice! I’m sure the roof must have been vibrating with the power of his delivery in “Muddy Water” and “Free at Last.” Boykin gives Jim a quiet dignity that is at the heart of this show.

Though none of the tunes are familiar, Miller’s music (such a far cry from “King of the Road” and “Dang Me”) in this, his only Broadway musical, runs the gamut from ballad to country to hillbilly to gospel, with the spectacular Jennifer Leigh Warren as the slave Alice raising the roof in the gospel song, “How Blest We Are” to audience cheers.

James Michael Lambert played Tom Sawyer with all the boyish charm and energy that a young boy should have, though his role in this particular Twain story is a small one.

Rich Hebert is Pap Finn, Huck’s deadbeat dad who turns up unexpectedly to take Huck to live with him. Pap is a drunk and his “Guv’ment” railing against the current government is very funny, though he himself is one scary dude, and Huck finds a way to fake his own murder so that he can escape his father’s clutches.

Two delightful characters are the King (William Parry) and the Duke (Jeff Skowron), two shysters who hitch a ride of the raft with Huck and Jim and proceed to slowly re-enslave Jim before selling him back into slavery.

They are such fun to watch and their “The Real Nonesuch” is a delight. Skowron’s Shakespearean monologue (a mash-up of every famous line you remember) is very funny.

A character that seems to exist only to toss in a small role for someone disconnected from the plot of the story is that of the Young Fool, played by Dennis O’Bannion. His “Arkansas” was another high point of this show already full of high points.

While this is primarily a male-driven story, women come in for their share of stage time, with Mary Jo Mecca as the Widow Douglas and Angelina Sark as Miss Watson, the two women determined to tame the wild Huck and give him some manners.

It was so nice to see that Music Circus remembered that it has a turntable, which was used to very good effect, particularly in propelling the raft downstream in a cloud of fog.

This is a real winner for Music Circus and highly recommended.

Uncanny Valley

“The Jetsons” had Rosie, “Star Wars” had C3PO, “Star Trek” had Mr. Data, “Jeopardy” had Watson and Sacramento’s Capital Stage has Julian.

“Uncanny Valley,” by Thomas Gibbons, directed by Jonathan Williams, is part of the National New Play Network Rolling World Premiere, in which three or more theaters premiere the same new play within 12 months. “Uncanny Valley” premieres have already been held in Shepherdstown, W.Va.; Philadelphia; and San Diego.

Human beings have long toyed with the possibility of robots who can be our helpmates, our servants and maybe even our friends. The play deals with, but doesn’t quite answer the question of, what it means to be human and explores the futuristic world of non-biological humans who look, move, talk and think like human beings.

On a beautiful set designed by Stephen C. Jones that is both modern and futuristic at the same time, neuroscientist Claire (Jessica Powell) sits with the head and torso of Julian (Michael Patrick Wiles) who, over a series of short clips, learns how to move his head in a human-like way, speak in a less robotic cadence, raise his eyebrows, smile, etc.

In each clip he is a bit more complete. He gets an arm, then another arm, and finally legs, all while he becomes more “human” and acquires more of a personality, a curiosity about the world, an awareness of self — and a bond with Claire.

Ultimately, Claire lets Julian know that he has been created for a specific purpose. A wealthy, dying man has paid more than $200 million to develop a being into which can be uploaded all his memories, his characteristics, his DNA, so that he can live on after his physical death.

He has requested a body that resembles himself at age 34, the age at which he felt he was at his physical best. Problems arrive, following the original Julian’s death, with his biological son, age 44, who can’t accept the new Julian as his father.

The plot was inspired by an experiment in Russia where a multi-millionaire, Dimitry Itskov, is having a cyborg created that is basically identical to him, with the hopes that he will live hundreds of years after his death.

The term “uncanny valley” describes “the emotional responses humans have toward robots,” writes literary manager Stephanie Tucker. “… As robots become more human-like, humans feel increasingly empathetic toward them — up to a point. When robots become too lifelike, they seem ‘uncanny,’ and most humans grow increasingly anxious and repelled by them.”

While this is a thoroughly enjoyable play, there are certain parts of it that are “off.” With all of our experience with robots in movies and on television, it is easy to believe that such a being could be created and that it could be used to duplicate a living person so that he could live a longer life.

What is not believable is Claire’s relationship with Julian. We learn that he is not her first such creation and so it makes unbelievable her growing parental attraction to him, and her obvious pain at the thought of releasing him to have the download completed, knowing she will not see him again.

It is a flaw in the writing that seems strange as she begins to treat Julian as a real person, then uncharacteristically reveals much of her unhappy personal life to him, without such incidents ever having any sort of resolution (or even explanation) for the audience, though they are of huge importance to Claire.

Later, when Julian interferes with her life, it is ironic that she becomes angry: “What gives you the right to interfere in anyone’s life …” She later goes on to remind him that he’s “not a person at all.”

And there it is — she has worked long and hard to make him as lifelike as possible, to make him ready to take on the life of her rich employer, and now that she has succeeded so beautifully, she questions whether it was a good idea and whether she has, instead, created some sort of benign monster.

Wiles gives a wonderful performance as Julian, his slow advancement to humanoid believable and his completed self, returning to visit Claire, with just a hint of malice that the original Julian may have left out of the information gathered to pass along to his robot counterpart.

Watching him walk around the stage as the blended Julian, the actor makes it clear that there is a part of the old Julian slowly blending with the new Julian.

As for Powell, she starts as the ultimate professional and by the end of the play she is hardly recognizable as the person she was at the beginning, having been overcome by the problems in her personal life and her relationship with Julian.

But the ending is unsatisfactory. Perhaps the playwright designed it that way so that we would all go home discussing the play. There certainly was a lot of discussion among the audience on the way out of the theater.

Evita

 

Local girl makes good / Weds famous man / I was slap in the right place / At the perfect time / Filled a gap — I was lucky / But one thing I say for me / No one else can fill it / Like I can

That, in a nutshell is the plot of the Tim Rice-Andrew Lloyd Webber musical, “Evita,” now at the Davis Musical Theatre Company, the final production of DMTC’s 30th season.

Last performed by DMTC in 2005, the current production is directed and choreographed by Jan Isaacson, with musical direction by Jonathan Rothman and Steve Isaacson.

The principal characters in this show are Eva Peron, wife of Argentine dictator Juan Peron, once known as “the most powerful woman in the world,” and Che Guevara (whom she never met in real life), who acts as narrator and observer of her life.

Che’s narration keeps this musical from becoming a celebration of Evita and instead focuses on how she slept her way to the top, embezzled from the government, and pulled the wool over just about everyone’s eyes, all while presenting a public persona that many people in Argentina adored.

Kate Murphy makes a fine Eva Duarte Peron, wannabe celebrity who uses her body to get what she wants, all the way up the class ladder to creating the image for politician Juan Peron. That image allows him to be so beloved by the “descamisados,” the working-class people, that it propels him into the presidency.

She is always haughty, and knows what she wants and how to get it. Her “Don’t Cry for Me, Argentina,” the show’s signature song, was lovely.

Coury Murdock was powerful as Che, giving the role the right sardonic tone, and allowing himself to become angry with so much about Evita’s life.

The role of Juan Peron often takes a back seat to that of Evita and Che, as he doesn’t have that much to do, but F. James Raasch has such a powerful voice and presence that no one would ever give him a back seat in anything.

Likewise is the voice of Magaldi (Tony Ruiz), the Argentina club singer, the first in a series of lovers Evita chooses to help her achieve fame and fortune. Ruiz is a suitably sleazy character as he woos the young girl … and then gets snared in her trap.

Dancers George Morales and Kaylin Scott did a beautiful tango, choreographed by Ron Cisneros, in the background of a nightclub scene.

Nicolette Ellis appears in the small role of Peron’s Mistress, whom Evita tosses out when she takes over. The song “Another Suitcase in Another Hall” is the loveliest song in this show, and Ellis sings with such sweet sadness that she makes a big impression.

There is a large chorus of aristocrats, army soldiers, dressers and two groups listed as “adult ensemble” and “children’s ensemble.” They may not dance with the precision of Rockettes, but Isaacson has created some very good numbers, which they execute quite well.

I wanted to particularly point out Ryan Everitt, whose dancing was more professional than the rest, and 6-year-old Gillian Cubbins (last seen as a munchkin in “The Wizard of Oz”), who is again irresistible. She’s the smallest one on stage (by a big margin), but she sings the words to every single song (some in Spanish). This girl will be one to watch as she grows up.

DMTC is trying out its new sound system with this show. There are now body mics and the stage itself is wired. This made a big difference in the balance between cast and orchestra, and this was the very best I’ve ever heard the DMTC orchestra as a result.

Jean Henderson’s costumes are, as always, gorgeous, especially Evita’s gown for the “Don’t Cry for Me” number.

The stage is a bit bare. Producers had planned to use projections of photos of Eva Peron’s life on the back wall, as they did in 2005, but somehow that did not work and so the large, blank white wall kind of intruded on everything. Except for one glitch, the movable set pieces designed by Steve Isaacson worked well.

The show will be presented at 8:15 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 2:15 p.m. Sundays through July 12 at the Jean Henderson Performing Arts Center, 607 Peña Drive in Davis.

Evita (Feature Article)

Eva Peron, C 1949

“She was rancorous, revengeful, foul mouthed, low class, not in the sense of money, but in spirit.  She was really a resentful person.  If she didn’t like someone, she was very mean to them.”

Marta Induni, whose granddaughter Jackie is part of the cast of Davis Musical Theater Company’s “Evita” pulled no punches in expressing her feelings about Eva Peron.  Induni is a native of Argentina and came from a very “politically aware” family.  She was 15 when Juan Peron’s wife died so has many memories of her years as the first lady or Argentina.

“It was a very bad time,” she remembers.  “It was the triumph of the mob.  Sometimes they did some things for some people that helped them so there were lots of fanatics who really loved them and admired her.”  She recalls that though Eva had been an actress, appearing in bad movies prior to her meeting with Peron,  the movies were all confiscated after she became the first lady of Argentina.

“She had absolutely no taste but they got very good people to make her look presentable.  All her clothes were from Dior.  She had good features but she was not a beauty.  She was the lady of hope, like she was the virgin Mary or something like that.  But she was a whore.”
                                               
Induni is one of a handful of people from Davis’ Latin America community who are involved with the upcoming DMTC musical (Coury Murdock from Nicaragua is playing Che Guevara and George Morales of Honduras, a member of the ensemble, are two others.  Daniel Silva, the concertina player, is learning the bandoneón, a particular type of concertina popular in Argentina, by Skype from a woman in Argentina).  Induni feels the musical may glorify the Perons, but she thinks it has beautiful music and she was surprised at how accurately Buenos Aires, and the class distinctions of that time were portrayed in the movie.

Patricia Maccari, another member of the ensemble, grew up in Argentina and moved to Davis with her husband in 1999. She understands the Peron era from both sides because her mother’s family were among the poor who got the worst of the Peronistas and her father’s family lived in an industrial area which benefitted from the policies of Juan Peron.

“My dad’s side worked with iron and metal.  They had their own workshop at the back of the house.  My aunt remembers Peron and Evita’s visit to Mendosa, the area where they lived, which is a very productive industrial province.  (The wine industry is big there.)  Peron would build complete neighborhoods and would give the workers all these benefits.  So that side of the family supported him.  My grandfather was one of the workers who enjoyed the benefits of the government.”

In the musical, Che Guevara (whom Eva never met) is the one to point out all of the duplicity of the administration.

“He’s a metaphor for the far left people,” said Induni.  “Peron sometimes did things that weren’t so bad, so it was hard for a very left wing person to oppose them, but at the same time he was a Nazi.  It was a very strange combination of things.”

Jan Isaacson has done extensive research on how the Tim Rice-Andrew Lloyd Webber musical came to written.  “It was really more Tim Rice,” she explained, saying that at the time Lloyd-Webber was busy with a musical version of Jeeves and Wooster with Alan Ayckbourn and came late to the Evita project.  She explained that he initially planned to tell the story from the viewpoint of Evita’s hairdresser, until he thought Che Guevara would be more interesting than some unknown hairdresser.

Elaine Paige, the original Evita, said that the role changed her life.  “Eva was a wonderful actress: strong, forceful, but with a vulnerable side.”

The vulnerable side was particularly apparent in her last days, Induni remembered.  “Peron exploited her to the end.  She was practically dying and he was on one occasion in a convertible and she was standing there with a fur coat and looked like a ghost.  He was passing her around when she was dying.”

She remembers seeing reports about Eva’s death.  “I was in high school when she died.  They announced her death and they embalmed her body and put the glass-topped coffin in the lobby of the Labor Department building.  All state employees had to go, like it or not.  There were long queues of people. People sincerely wanted to see her.  Each time somebody came to kiss the glass that covered the coffin, there was a nurse with some cotton and alcohol cleaning for the next kiss.”

When I asked Induni whether her family went to see her, she scoffed and said certainly not.

Love her or hate her, there is no denying that Eva Peron, at one time called the most powerful woman in the world, was a force to be reckoned with and, thanks to Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd-Webber, it appears that her legend may live forever.

Third Date

THE THIRD DATE actor Gary Weinberg

When you hear that there is going to be a whole show about prostate cancer, it may give you pause. Surely not the way you want to spend an hour and a half of your life.

However, “The Third Date” by Robert Lautz is not a depressing show about a disturbing subject. Along with the inevitable poignant moments and a lot of information about prostate cancer there are also a lot of laughs because, let’s face it, cancer can be funny. Really! It’s what gets us through the really rough times. This is a witty, revealing and enjoyable play. Trust me.

This one-man show, directed by Maggie Adair Upton, is part of two new plays being presented at the Wilkerson Theater as part of California Stage Theater Company’s “Sac Solo Series 4.” (The other is “Sleeping in the Middle of the Bed,” written and starring Richard Winters.)

This the second play by playwright Lautz, a former Davis resident whose “The Meaning of it All” premiered at the Wilkerson Theater three years ago. At that time I said that it was a promising start and that I hoped it would not be another five years before we see more from Lautz.

Lautz took that as encouragement. Using his own experiences as a cancer patient, and working with dramaturge Lauren Sullivan, he has improved upon his freshman entry and is solidly in his sophomore year as a playwright.

Gary Weinberg plays Richard Montauk, a successful advertising man whose life is thrown into turmoil when he is diagnosed with an aggressive form of prostate cancer. He’s kind of an unlikable male chauvinist pig whose wife has divorced him, but who, at the start of the play, is at the beginning of a possible new relationship and is uncomfortable, not quite knowing what could happen.

He then takes us back through his diagnosis, his endless treatments, his medications, his fights with the insurance company, the frustration with doctors. It’s a no-holds-barred journey which includes the dreaded digital prostate exam, the colonoscopy and endless humiliating procedures (as a woman who has gone through several pregnancies, I took fiendish glee seeing a man put in those compromising positions that we know all too well!)

There is no pussy footing around with terminology either. He calls a penis a penis. Many times. In fact, at one point he reads a whole bunch of colloquial euphemisms for that appendage, similar to the list for “vagina” in “The Vagina Monologues.”

There is helpful information to be had too, like the fact that chemotherapy kills testosterone and that if a man ever hopes to function sexually again, he must take Viagra every night, not for sexual performance, but to ensure that he will continue to have nocturnal erections which will keep his musculature in shape.

Women will also identify with his reactions to hot flashes, another side effect of the chemotherapy.
At the end of his treatment, he is broken, physically and emotionally and ready to re-examine his life and decide how to reshape it in order to become a better person.

Weinberg gives a marvelous performance in a 90-plus-minute piece that is loaded not only with the day-to-day thoughts of a cancer patient, but also a lot of technical information and jargon. Director Upton has cleverly used the device of Montauk referring to his journal to read the audience bits that he has written during his journey … it is obvious that it gives actor Weinberg a chance to remember where in his delivery he is, but it works and is a forgivable crutch, given the amount of material he is dealing with.

Weinberg was also dealing with a sweltering theater at the premier performance. Though the air conditioning worked at the start of the play, by the end of it, everyone in the audience was fanning themselves and Weinberg had sweat pouring off his face.

I sometimes think that the California Stage organization and its three theaters are some of the best theater in Sacramento that nobody has heard of. The small Wilkerson Theater had fewer than 25 people in the audience for its opening performance, which is a shame, as this is a good play with an important message and should have a wider audience.

One additional note: The play is dedicated to Cathy Manzano, a “Birch Lane Mom” who lost her battle with breast cancer in 2009.

“The Third Date” runs Saturdays only (matinee and evening performances) through July 4.

The Explorers Club

(from L to R) David Silberman, Greg Alexander, Dave Pierini, John Lamb,
Jason Kuykendall, Stephanie Altholz

An outrageously funny comedy has them rolling in the aisles at the B Street Theater in Sacramento.

“The Explorers Club” by Nell Benjamin is tautly directed by Buck Busfield assisted greatly by Technical Director Steven Schmidt and Scenic Designer Meg McGuigan.  There isn’t a noticeable false movement or shaky piece of equipment in the play, which is key to its enjoyment.

Jason Kuykendall is Lucius Fretway, the acting president of the Explorers Club, a good old boys’ club of 1879 London.  Lucius wants to propose Phyllida Spotte-Hume (Stephanie Altholz) for membership as she has recently discovered the lost city of Pahatlabong and is set to present to Queen Victoria a member of the NaKong tribe (looking for all the world like an escapee from Blue Man Group–or a Smurf).  Lucius feels this qualifies her for admission to the Club, which has never had a female member. 

(The Royal Society, which debuted in 1660 did not admit a woman until 1945, Canada’s Royal Society barred women until 1938 and France’s Academy of Sciences would not elect a woman to full membership until 1979, even blackballing Marie Curie).

Lucius’ proposal rocks the membership - Professor Sloane (David Silberman), a biblical archaeologist who has proof that ancient Jews migrated to Ireland and that all Irishmen are really Jews; Professor Cope (Allen McKelvey), a herpetologist with a beloved snake named Rosie; and Professor Walling (Greg Alexander), obsessed with his pet guinea pig.

Phyllida’s wild tribesman has a name too long to pronounce, so she has called him Luigi (after a former boyfriend) and rewards him for proper behavior with treats, much like one would a dog.  John Lamb’s performance steals the show and would be worth the price of admission alone, were it not that the rest of the cast is so perfect as well.

It is clear that Lucius is in love with Phyllida.  He has, after all, named a plant after her, but any hopes for a romance are dashed by the return of the club’s rightful president Harry Percy (David Pierini), a larger than life explorer who claims to have just discovered the “east pole,” and who takes an instant shine to the woman and, unlike Lucius, is not shy about letting her know his feelings.

The action in this farce is rapid fire and unrelenting.  Delivery of drinks from the bar, by Luigi, who fills in for the missing bartender after his disastrous introduction to Queen Victoria sparks an international incident, is hilarious.

Winston Koone is Bernard Humphries, secretary to the queen, come to the Explorer’s club to capture the offending Luigi and Eason Donner is Beebe, an explorer whom Percy abandoned and left to the natives, returning to exact revenge.

Outside there are angry crowds representing several different groups who have bones to pick with someone inside...or with each other.

Don’t attempt to make sense of any of this, just relax and enjoy the laughs which are non-stop.

Meg McGuigan’s set is gorgeous, giving a real feel of one of those wood-paneled men’s clubs, with overstuffed furniture, Persian rugs, and trophies on the wall, where stuffy old men go to share brandy and cigars without the intrusion of the fairer sex.

Paulette Sand-Gilbert adds authenticity with her beautiful costumes, particularly the Navy costume for Harry Percy (which he admits he had worn in a production of “H.M.S. Pinafore.”)

This show takes you prisoner from the first line and does not let go until you are weak from laughter two acts later.

My Fair Lady

From left, William Parry as Colonel Pickering, Glory Crampton as Eliza Doolittle and Paul Schoeffler as Henry Higgins perform in “My Fair Lady,” produced by Music Circus at the Wells Fargo Pavilion through June 14.
Charr Crail/Courtesy photo

Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe’s “My Fair Lady” is the lead-off to another fun Music Circus season. (It will be followed by “Big River,” “Bye Bye Birdie,” “Peter Pan,” “West Side Story” and “Hair.”)

This production is directed by Glenn Casale, who also directed “My Fair Lady” at Music Circus in 2001.

Based on George Bernard Shaw’s “Pygmalion,” this popular classic tells the story of Henry Higgins, a self-centered, overbearing linguist who claims to be able to take a flower girl from Covent Garden, give her lessons in grammar, elocution and etiquette, and in six months pass her off as a lady of refinement at an embassy ball (or make her qualified to be a lady in a flower shop, which is even more difficult).

Paul Schoeffler (reprising his role from 2001) is a strong and powerful Higgins, the Music Circus sound system sometimes at such a level that it was almost painful. Nonetheless, he turns in a masterful performance and is at his best, perhaps, in his final song, “I’ve Grown Accustomed to Her Face.” He first expresses his anger that Eliza has left him, and then realizes how much he has come to care for her and how much he will miss her.

Making her Music Circus debut, Glory Crampton, who played Eliza under Casale’s direction in Pittsburgh, has a gorgeous voice and is believable both as the raggedy flower girl and the elegant lady. Her “I Could Have Danced All Night” was a particular delight as she revels in the joy of finally having “got it” and celebrating with Higgins and his pal, Colonel Pickering.

Under Casale’s direction, Eliza’s first correct pronunciation of “The rain … in Spain … falls mainly … on the plain” is halting and unsure; she gains confidence the more she repeats the phrase correctly. Casale’s Eliza did this in 2001 as well and it reads more accurate than the smooth versions we see in other productions.

William Parry is Colonel Pickering, a fellow linguist who joins together with Higgins to pay for Eliza’s lessons and insist that she be treated with respect. It is because of Pickering, ever the gentleman, that Eliza learns how a lady should be treated, not just how she should behave.

Eliza’s father, the irrepressible Alfred P. Doolittle, is played deliciously by Stephen Berger. Doolittle, who attempts to sell his daughter to Higgins, later believes Higgins has ruined his life by mentioning him as one of the most noted spokesmen on middle-class morality of this country to an American billionaire, who leaves the dustman a sizable inheritance.

Doolittle has two outstanding numbers in the show, “With a Little Bit of Luck” and “Get Me to the Church on Time.” Both showcase choreographer Bob Richard’s work at its best.

The character of Freddy Eynsford Hill, played by Jason Forbach, has got to be one of the sappiest characters in musical theater history. All he has to do is hang around Higgins’ house and moon over Eliza, with whom he fell instantly in love when he met her at Ascot.

He sings “On the Street Where You Live” many times, fully and in segments. Fortunately, Forbach has a magnificent voice, but I’ve always felt kind of sorry for poor Freddy.

Shannon Stoeke plays Professor Zoltan Karpathy, a former student of Higgins who now uses his learned talents “more to blackmail and swindle than teach.” Higgins’ triumph is Karpathy’s report on this mysterious Miss Doolittle’s real background.

Toni Sawyer plays Mrs. Higgins, Henry’s mother, who takes a liking to Eliza and cheers her on when she finally has the gumption to stand up for herself.

Mary Jo Mecca is a steadfast and loyal housekeeper, Mrs. Pearce.

Marcy Froehlich is credited with costume design and the costumes are magnificent, particularly Eliza’s ball gown. But the real standout of the costumes are for the Ascot Races scene, perhaps the most famous scene in the play. The dresses are wonderful, the hats amazing.

But it is sad that the audience gets to really see only half of them, since the characters kind of mill around the stage while singing. How much better it would have been to make use of the Music Circus’s mechanical turntable — they have it, why not use it? — so that the costumes pass by all sections of the house, allowing all in the audience to fully appreciate each of them.

I also take issue with the fact that the characters freeze when watching the race, but nobody moves, no heads turn as the sound of hoofbeats pass by. You would think that each character is interested only in the split second that the horses pass where he or she is standing and not in the actual outcome of the race.

The finale of the show is very slightly different from the original, and a wonderful change in staging, which shows how much self-confidence Eliza has gained in the past six months. Bravo on a very slight but significant improvement.