All My Sons - Hartford Stage

Arthur Miller’s All My Sons, receiving a striking production at Hartford Stage, is a work that still resonates today, even though it was written over 75 years ago.  The play succeeds on multiple levels.  There are thorny family dynamics that are examined.  Questions of truth, greed and loyalty are raised.  All of this is wrapped around characters reaching for the American Dream.

Michael Gaston and Marsha Mason in All My Sons.  Photo by T. Charles Erickson.

Elevating the staging are two consummate performances – Marsha Mason as the family matriarch, Kate Keller and Michael Gaston as her husband, Joe Keller.  Their interplay, both tumultuous and tender, forms the backbone of the show.

 

The play unfolds on the Keller’s backyard.  Kate is in denial of her son Larry’s assumed death, when his plane disappeared during WWII.  Both Joe and their other son, Chris, believe otherwise.  Entering this scenario is Ann Deever, a childhood friend of Chris who was engaged to Larry before he went off to war.  Now, two years after his brother’s disappearance, Chris wishes to marry her, much to the chagrin of his parents.  During Ann’s visit, it is revealed that her father, Steve, and Joe were in business together manufacturing cylinder heads for jet planes.  When a defective set caused the crash of 21 planes, both Joe and Steve were investigated.  Joe was exonerated, even though neighbors may quietly think otherwise.  Ann’s father was convicted and still sits in prison.  At the end of Act I, Joe receives a call from Ann’s brother George, who has just visited their father in prison.  He is now coming to the Keller’s residence to set the record straight.  Upon his arrival he accuses Joe of being complicit in covering up the defective parts.  Joe maintains his innocence, but at this point in the play long-told stories and excuses begin to unravel, loyalties shift, hidden secrets are exposed, and the relationships between family members begin to crumble.

Michael Gaston and Fiona Robberson in All My Sons.  Photo by T. Charles Erickson.

In All My Sons, Arthur Miller has crafted a well-constructed work with a highly satisfying beginning, middle and end.  Sounds simple, but many new playwrights being produced today fall far short of this goal.  In addition to a plot that flows without unnecessary contrivances, Miller skillfully builds into the play a shattering climax.  Characters in All My Sons are fully established.  They are engaging with traits, foibles and strengths audiences can embrace.  The aforementioned issues and themes provide for much after show debate and conversation.

 

Director Maria Bensussen keeps the pacing brisque while, at the same time, allowing the performers space to develop their portrayals.  She effectively imbues the play with moments of reflection and keenly handles the more tumultuous scenes with a deft hand.  

 

Riw Rakkulchonbelie’s Scenic Design of an imposing white house and grassy backyard on a raked stage has the effect of bringing the action closer to the audience, making the production more intimate and inviting.  Mary Louise Geiger’s Lighting Design provides apt tonal variations to the show.

Godfrey L. Simmons, Jr. and Marsha Mason in All My Sons.  Photo by T. Charles Erickson.

Marsha Mason’s portrayal of Kate Keller is key to the production.  While, initially, coming across as scattered and slightly out-of-touch, the actress, almost inperceptually at first, proves there is more to her character than meets the eye.  Ms. Mason is flawless as she delivers a meticulously modulated, superlative performance.  Joe Keller is a man of many dimensions – combative, affable, delusional, and misguided.  Michael Gaston is superb in the role, bringing forth a skillful, nuanced portrayal of a man full of contradictions.

 

Fiona Robberson gives a gripping, heartrending performance as the lovelorn Ann Deever.  Ben Katz was fine as Chris Keller, but his portrayal could have been been enhanced with more subtlety.  Reece Dos Santos’ George Deever, who is loud, confused, and looking for a fight, could have brought more shading to the role. The rest of the cast - Godfrey L. Simmons, Jr. as Dr. Jim Bayliss, Yadira Correa as Sue Bayliss, Dan Whelton as Frank Lubey, and Caitlin Zoz as Lydia Lubey – provided admirable performances that supplied necessary exposition and a fullness to the production.

 

All My Sons, playing at Hartford Stage through May 5.  Click here for dates, times and ticket information.

The Mystery of Edwin Drood - Goodspeed Opera House

Charles Dickens’ last, unfinished, novel, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, seems like unlikely fodder for a musical, but in 1985 Rupert (“Pina Colada Song”) Holmes created such a theatrical piece that won multiple Tony Awards, including Best Musical.

 

The Cast of Goodspeed's The Mystery of Edwin Drood. Photo by Diane Sobolewski

Instead of a straightforward murder mystery, with Holmes creating his own ending, the playwright (as well as composer) came up with the fun-filled idea of letting the audience decide the culprit.  So, Act I is the set-up, following the pages of the half-completed book. Then the majority of Act II is a rowdy romp as suspects are identified, several key points are determined, and then the audience votes to unmask the scoundrel.  Adding more fuel to the boisterous proceedings is the backdrop for the production.  Again, with Rupert Holmes’ creative juices in high gear, he set the tale within the confines of a Victorian English Music Hall, sort of a play-within-a-play motif.   Performers step in and out of character as the musical moves forward in all its bawdy glory.

Lenny Wolpe and members of the Cast of Goodspeed's The Mystery of Edwin Drood. 

Photo by Diane Sobolewski

The production of The Mystery of Edwin Drood at the Goodspeed Opera House, under the raucous, highly entertaining direction of Rob Ruggiero, makes for lively, exuberant theater.  The cast is first-rate, under the guidance of the Chairman of the Music Hall, played with good-natured naughtiness by Lenny Wolpe.  Ann Beyersdorfer’s marvelous, multiple set designs along with Hunter Kaczorowski’s elegant and busker-tinged costumes add to the Victorian era ambiance of the show.

 

The story has all the ingredients of a classic murder mystery and is overseen by the Chairman of the Music Hall.  He serves as narrator, chief punster, and one of the players.  The plot begins with the protagonist, young Edwin Drood, who is betrothed to the beautiful Rosa Bud.  Drood’s somewhat demented, opium addicted uncle and choirmaster is in love with Edwin’s bride-to-be, who happens to also be his pupil.  A recent arrival from Ceylon, the petulant Neville Landless, also has his sights on the appealing Ms. Bud, much to the displeasure of her fiancé.  Other characters in the mix are Helena Landless, the protective sister of Neville; the gentile Reverend Crisparkle; the mysterious Princess Puffer; Durdles, the perpetually inebriated cemetery worker; and even the lovely Rosa Bud.  All fall under suspicion after the youthful Drood doesn’t return home from an evening walk with Neville Landless on a stormy Christmas Eve night.

 

Rupert Holmes’ score is melodic and tuneful, full of robust compositions, charming ballads, and finely-crafted music hall ditties.  The lyrics are witty and full of amusing and entertaining word play.

The Cast of Goodspeed's The Mystery of Edwin Drood. Photo by Diane Sobolewski

The cast, all first-rate performers with handsome, powerful singing voices, are led by Mamie Parris as the adventurous Edwin Drood.  She exudes a spirited confidence and a powerful singing voice that gorgeously resonates throughout the theater.  Lenny Wolpe is marvelous as the mischievous, impetuous, and off-color Chairman.  Paul Adam Schaefer is convincingly menacing as the lustful, slightly off-kilter John Jasper.  The actor, who was in The Phantom of the Opera for 16 years, possesses an impressive singing voice.  Riley Noland, with a gorgeous, almost operatic voice, is alluring and refined as the much sought after Rosa Bud.  Jamie LaVerdiere, a former Connecticut Critics Circle Best Actor award winner, is delightful as the forlorn Bazzard.   Levin Valayil gives Neville Landless an enigmatic air.  He is suitably combative as well as passionate, an excellent counterpoint to the other characters.  Jetta Juriansz, brings a sinister edge as Helena, Neville's protective, enigmatic sister.  Kelly Lester brings a seasoned professionalism to the role of Princess Puffer, offering a perfect balance to the younger cast members.

The Cast of Goodspeed's The Mystery of Edwin Drood. Photo by Diane Sobolewski

Director Rob Ruggiero corrals an energetic cast that is clearly having a good time on stage.  He keeps the dynamics flowing and seamlessly transitions the musical through a multitude of scenes.  He skillfully inserts The Chairman in and out of the production without causing the show’s tempo to slow or go off course.  Ruggiero utilizes the whole of the Goodspeed theater – performers running up and down the aisles, barking from the balcony – to bring out the boisterous, jaunty nature of the show.  The Director skillfully orchestrates the audience participation portion of the musical, keeping the segment jolly and on-task.  

Choreographer James Gray injects vigorous dance numbers that energize the production, whether spotlighting the high-spirited ensemble members or the entire cast.

 

The Mystery of Edwin Drood, a crowd-pleasing musical, at the Goodspeed Opera House through June 2.  Click here for dates, times and ticket information.

EVERLY - The Music of the Everly Brothers - Ivoryton Playhouse

EVERLY – the Music of the Everly Brothers, playing at the Ivoryton Playhouse through April 28, is more of a concert than a jukebox musical.  There is no libretto or any assemblance of a book.  Instead, the Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Famer’s lives and career – the high’s and low’s – are presented with snippets interspersed between the rollicking tunes and somber ballads.

The Everly Brothers – Don and Phil – were pioneers of country rock and influenced a who’s who of musical legends, including Bob Dylan, Paul McCartney and John Lennon.  The two actors in the show, Eric Anthony and Ben Hope are engaging, personable, and fabulous musicians.  The real-life friends bring a joy and infectious temperament to the production they created.  As with a concert setting, they joke with the audience (as well as themselves) and urge those in attendance to sing along.  Dozens of songs are performed during the production, including such hits as "Bye Bye Love", "Wake Up Little Susie", "All I Have to Do Is Dream", and "Cathy's Clown."

 

 

Eric Anthony and Ben Hope in EVERLY - The Music of the Everly Brothers.

 

Both Anthony and Hope perform double, even triple duty on the show.  Hope is also the Director, Scenic and Costume Designer.  Anthony is the Musical Director for the musical.  As Director, Hope brings a laid back, easygoing style to the presentation.  He and his partner simply roam from one side of the stage to the other, stop, impart a quick story, and go into song.

 

The Sound Design by Jonathan White is clear and crisp no matter where one is seated.  Ben Hope’s Scenic Design, like the production as a whole, is modest in its concept.  Large geometric shapes float above the stage, serving as screens for Jessica Drayton and Jonathan White’s projections.  Most of the projections are moody, abstract works; colorful patterns, and scenes of nature, which don’t always relate to the songs presented on stage.

  

EVERLY – the Music of the Everly Brothers, playing at the Ivoryton Playhouse through April 28.  Click here for dates, times and ticket information.

Sanctuary City - Theaterworks Hartford

The characters in playwright Martyna Majok’s Sanctuary City are undocumented immigrants seeking to secure their American dream.  High school students, each with their own set of parental issues, live and work, mostly in the shadows to avoid detection and possible deportation.  Their names are never mentioned.  In the program, they are simply referred to as G (female character) and B (male character).  In a way, they are representative of all who have come before them and will come after them.

Grant Kennedy Lewis and Sara Gutierrez in Sanctuary City.  Photo by Mike Marques.

The first part of the show, a 100-minute, intermission-less production, is often absorbing with many compelling issues to digest.  However, the second half of the play, with its roundabout banter and quickly resolved complications, makes it a less than fulfilling work.

 

The play opens with G (Sara Gutierrez) pounding on the bedroom window of B (Grant Kennedy Lewis), seeking refuge from her abusive father.  Over the course of the next 60 – 70 minutes, Directors Jacob G. Padron and Pedro Bermudez intricately choreographs the duo’s interactions in a wave of staccato-like scenes.  They inventively utilize the Lighting, by Designer Paul Whitaker, and Sound, by Designer Fabian Obispo, to designate the changing clipped interactions, presenting exchanges from present and future angles.  During this timeframe, B and G’s relationship grows stronger, bonding over their shared circumstances, yet in an unrequited manner.  At one of their later night-time trysts, G announces that her mother has secretly obtained her naturalization papers, which now makes both of them citizens.  Her dream of attending college can now be fulfilled.  With a plan to aid her companion, she is off to start her next chapter of life.

Grant Kennedy Lewis and Sara Gutierrez in Sanctuary City.  Photo by Mike Marques.

In the latter part of the show, taking places 3 ½ years later, their relationship and grand plans have drastically changed.  A third character, Henry (Mishka Yarovoy), a law student, is introduced into the equation.  It was at this point that Sanctuary City becomes less captivating and convincing.  Arguments go in circles, motivations are questionable, and life-changing outcomes are briskly rendered.  A play that begins with energy and excitement peters out in the end.

 

The three-person cast is highly engaging with Sara Gutierrez (G) and Grant Kennedy Lewis (B) providing charismatic and sympathetic portrayals.  They convey a desperation that feels raw and real.  Their characters come across as slightly strained towards the end of the production which, to some extent, can be attributed to their maturing roles and unfulfilled dreams.  Mishka Yarovoy (Henry) is effective as an unexpected third wheel.

 

Mishka Yarovoy and Grant Kennedy in Sanctuary City.  Photo by Mike Marques.

Ms. Majok tackles the of-the-moment issue of undocumented immigrants– their hopes, dreams, and fears - with potent naturalness and urgency.  In the beginning, at least, her work is decidedly theatrical as the two main players and the overall scenario is laid out.  However, as strong as the initial stages of the play are, the final resolutions are hampered by unclear motivations and festering conflicts resolved too swiftly.

 

Directors Directors Jacob G. Padron and Pedro Bermudez adeptly guide the show through its compelling start, but falter somewhat at the end.  They artfully weave in Scenic Designer Emmie Finckel’s minimalistic set, with its veiled 9/11 photo collage and Mr. Bermudez’s projections.

 

Sanctuary City, playing at Theaterworks Hartford through April 25.  Click here for tickets, times and dates of performances.

Dead Outlaw - Off-Broadway

The pleasures of attending an Off-Broadway production is seeing something different, maybe a little more weighty or quirkier than the fare uptown on Broadway.  Dead Outlaw, is on the idiosyncratic side.  It’s an off-beat musical, based on a true tale, that is a rollicking good time.  Strange.  Outlandish.  Weird.  Yes.  But this tale of the Old West, which eventually spans over 60 years, is nothing short of entertaining.

 

The creative force behind Dead Outlaw reunites the team from the multi-Tony Award winning musical The Band’s Visit.  The score is by David Yazbek (this time with Erik Della Penna).  The book is by Itamar Moses and direction is from David Cromer.  Dead Outlaw, though, is as far removed from the meditative, gently-paced The Band’s Visit as one could imagine.

 

The show is essentially divided into two parts.  The first half of the 100-minute, intermission-less production, focuses on Elmer McCurdy, a man searching for a purpose, who rides the rails seeking a place in society.  He’s also a drunken brawler that tries to settle down, joins the Army and, finally, turns to crime.  He is not the best of criminals and ends up dead from a bullet at the age of 30.  From there, and this is the second part of the show, his embalmed corpse (with a tad of arsenic to hold back the decaying process) becomes mummified over a short period of time.  Throughout the ensuing decades his body,  peacefully lying in an upright coffin, is paraded at side shows, a cross-country race, and even stars in the movies.  The cadaver is eventually left in a storage closet until rediscovered and shuttled off as a prop, now painted a day-glow red, for a horror-themed amusement ride.   When an episode of The Six Million Dollar Man is about to be filmed there, the display is revealed to be a human corpse.  Shrieks!  In the end, the body of Elmer McCurdy, a man who lived, and died, a strange life is buried with great fanfare.

 

The cast, all but Andrew Durand as the star-crossed bandit Elmur McCurdy, play multiple roles.  Durand, who last season appeared in the musical-comedy Shucked, is all-together different in Dead Outlaw, playing a pugnacious, rapscallion bandit.  His full-throttled performance, before his ignoble demise, on the small Minetta Lane stage, energizes the production.  He also deserves some type of award for staying so motionless for such a long time in the plain-box, upright coffin.

 

Jeb Brown, who serves as the narrator from the center of Arnulfo Maldonado’s simple, wooden front porch set, is also the front man for the six-piece on-stage band, led by Rebekah Bruce’s superb musical direction.  The actor is terrific, whether chronicling the show’s historical events, stepping into character as a dumb luck train robber, or strumming his guitar.  The rest of the cast – Eddie Cooper, Julia Knitel, Ken Marks, and Dashiell Eaves – are outstanding, providing engaging, mostly humorous portrayals.  While all the performers are first-rate, two deserve additional mention for their musical solos.  Trent Saunders, gives a spirited, exhausting telling of a Native American runner.  Thom Sesma is outlandish as a coroner crooning a Vegas-styled lounge number.

 

 

The score, by David Yazbek and Erik Della Penna, which is sung primarily by the band, contains a combination of powerful rock-heavy tunes balanced with a few slower introspective songs.  All together, they energize the musical and allow a few of the performers, most notably Andrew Durand,  the opportunity to conjure up his inner punk rocker.  Occasionally, the sound design by Kai Harada and Joshua Millican allows the instrumentation to slightly overwhelm the singers, but the gist of the songs do come through.

 

Director David Cromer, working with Itamar Moses’ inspired, lively, vignette-laden libretto, winningly guides the story at a fast-paced clip.  He flawlessly integrates the aforementioned stage band with the action on stage.  The transitions are smooth, quick and seamless.  He incorporates Heather Gilbert’s lighting designs at just the opportune moments to intensify a scene.

 

Dead Outlaw, an exuberant, lighthearted romp, playing at the Minetta Lane Theatre through April 14.

Escaped Alone - Yale Repertory Theatre

In the past 25 years there have been a number of potentially catastrophic events for the planet (and I’m not even counting climate change).  Remember as the clocks slowly ticked to the year 2000?  Y2K and its possible disastrous ramifications gripped the world.  The COVID crises produced devastating effects across the globe.  Today?  Wars in Gaza.  The Ukraine.  Hot spots in North Korea.  The China Sea.  The Red Sea.  Yet, through the chaos, there is normalcy.  People still went or go about their everyday routines.  It is this juxtaposition which is at the heart of the Caryl Churchill one-act play, Escaped Alone, playing at the Yale Repertory Theatre through March 30.

 

Mary Lou Rosato, Sandra Shipley, Rita Wolf, and LaTonya Borsay in Escaped Alone. 

Photo © Joan Marcus.

Churchill, whose career spans over 50 years, is one of the United Kingdom’s most celebrated playwrights.  Her works push the boundaries of theater and require audiences to sit up and pay close attention.  By the end of a production, you may be scratching your head, trying to figure out what just occurred on stage.  The play may engage you…or not.  Whatever the reaction, a play by Ms. Churchill will provide ample opportunities for discourse and opinions.

 

In Escaped Alone, we are introduced to three middle aged friends – Vi (Mary Lou Rosato), Sally (Sandra Shipley) and Lena (Rita Wolf) – sitting in a small, lovely garden, handsomely designed by set designer Lia Tubiana.  A Mrs. Jarrett (LaTonya Borsay), who is passing by, asks if she could join the trio and, after receiving consent, joins the group.  Their chit chat veers in many directions, mostly the mundane and ordinary.  The banter is fast-paced, almost staccato in its delivery revealing, little by little, each woman’s personalities, their pasts, and fears.  Suddenly, without warning, the stage darkens and two mounted columns of bright lights framing the stage (designed with an overpowering radiance by Stephen Strawbridge), shine intensely into the audience accompanied by a blaring horn.  When the momentary brilliance subsides, Mrs. Jarrett stands near the edge of the stage before an ominous projection of bleakness and despair.  There, shrouded in semi-darkness, she delivers a stream of consciousness diatribe about an apocalyptic fate.  Minutes later, blackness again, and then the four women are back in the serenity of the garden trading stories and banalities.  The process repeats – harrowing looks at a dystopian future from Mrs. Jarret, supplemented with designer Shawn Lovell-Boyle’s weirdly pulsating projections.  Then, just as quickly as the afternoon gathering had begun, it's over.  Mrs. Jarrett stands, bids adieu, and the stage goes to black.

 

LaTonya Borsay in Escaped Alone.  Photo © Joan Marcus.

If the aforementioned description sounds strange, even a bit unsettling, then you have come under the spell of a Caryl Churchill production.  The playwright is known to eschew linear structure, looking more to instill ideas in her works for audience members to ponder.  For Escaped Alone, the show could possibly be about how we go through our regular, maybe uninteresting lives even when the threat of catastrophe is just moments away.  Or, as the world hurtles towards the abyss, there is still serenity, but a sinister ambiance within our lives. 

 

Mary Lou Rosato, Sandra Shipley, Rita Wolf, and LaTonya Borsay in Escaped Alone. 

Photo © Joan Marcus.

Director Liz Diamond focuses on the interactions of the four superb actresses, plotting their repartee to a finely tuned pitch.  They work together as an outstanding ensemble.  Ms. Churchill has conjured up scenarios that never lack for creativity or inventiveness.  In this light, she has fashioned a short monologue for each role that reveal an uncomfortable, darker back story for each character.  My favorite – Sally’s horrific fear of cats.  The result is Ms. Diamond has taken the humor in the play, along with its, surreal nature, and crafted an entertaining, if rather off-center piece of theater.

 

Escaped Alone, a short 50-minute production, playing at the Yale Repertory Theatre through March 30.  Click here for dates, times, and ticket information.

The Hot Wing King - Hartford Stage

Once The Hot Wing King, receiving a winning production at Hartford Stage, gets cooking midway through Act I, the show becomes a compelling and thought-provoking piece of entertainment.  The play focuses on the relationship of four gay Black men, their friendship, loves and the added weight of family obligations.

 

The cast of The Hot Wing King.  Photos by T. Charles Erickson

The comedy/drama, running through March 24, takes place in the kitchen of Cordell (Bjorn DuPaty), who is busily prepping for the annual hot wing bake-off in Memphis.  Assisting are his friends, Isom (Israel Erron Ford), Big Charles (Postell Pringle), and his boyfriend Dwayne (Calvin M. Thompson).  They laugh, sing, and banter, all the time following Cordell’s strict preparation instructions.  Enter into the controlled chaos are Dwayne’s nephew Everett (Marchus Gladney, Jr.) and his sketchy father T.J. (Alphonso Walker, Jr.).  Their involvement with the other four men prove enlightening and add a significant dimension to the bonding and complexities within the household.

 

Playwright Katori Hall has graphed a number of potent themes into her Pulitzer Prize winning work.  Her depiction of the love and kinship of gay Black characters is honest and, as Director Christopher D. Betts states, “is not stereotypical or conflict-averse.”  Ms. Hall superbly intertwines these questions and attitudes of relationships with issues of family, duty, and survival.  The Hot Wing King does take its time finding its rhythm and creating the foundation for which the remainder of the show is based.  While the initial antics and jesting is entertaining, it could have been tightened up to move more directly into the heart of the play.

Cast members of The Hot Wing King.  Photos by T. Charles Erickson

 

Director Betts has crafted a diverse set of individualized mannerisms and idiosyncrasies for each character.  He finely guides the men’s constantly ebbing affinities with integrity and tenderness.  Betts also seamlessly transitions the show from the vitality and playfulness of Act I to the more serious mood of Act 2.  He fully utilizes Emmie Finckel’s two-tier set of a kitchen/living room space, with a bedroom atop, to effectively expand the performance space.  One point – it would have been helpful if, primarily during the portions of Act I, to have the characters speak slower during group scenes.  Sometimes the actor’s enthusiasm made it hard to follow the threads of dialogue.

 

Bjorn DuPaty and Alphonso Walker Jr. in The Hot Wing King.  Photos by T. Charles Erickson

The splendid cast is a finely grouped ensemble that functions well together and within their individual characters.  Their portrayals are complex, bringing a layer of richness to their roles.  Bjorn DuPaty (Cordell ) and Calvin M. Thompson (Dwayne) both provide rewarding, multifaceted portrayals of men caught between many demands and aspirations, needs and responsibilities.  The actors Alphonso Walker Jr. (T.J.) and Marcus Gladney, Jr., (E.J.), who play father and son, initially come across as one-dimensional, almost stereotypical inner city figures.  However, as the show progresses towards its highly satisfying conclusion, the two performers have instilled their characters with depth and nuance.  Israel Erron Ford is a hoot as the flamboyant Isom.  He infuses the play with a good deal of comic relief.  Postell Pringle’s Big Charles is the ying to Isom’s yang.  Quieter and more introspective, he imbues his portrayal with a measured weariness.

 

The Hot Wing King, playing at Hartford Stage through March 24.  Click here for dates, times and ticket information.