Footloose

This year’s (mostly) children’s show at Cumberland County Playhouse is Footloose. I love these productions. Every year CCP does a show that’s mostly children and young people and it’s always a fun show to see. I also have a confession to make: I love the movie Footloose (original, of course) and I even own the movie soundtrack.

I couldn’t help but wonder how they were going to translate a movie with a great soundtrack into an actual staged musical. The staged version varied only slightly from the movie version, and they were able to make the songs fit in with the show nicely.

Taken from CCP's facebook page

Directed and choreographed by Leila Nelson, this production of Footloose was fun and full of young people having a good time. The set was designed by Jim Crabtree, and as per usual, was pretty amazing. I’ve always thought that the children that participate in these productions are getting an amazing opportunity to work with professionals at every level and getting a chance to see how a professional theatre could run.

For those who don’t know the movie (how could you NOT know the movie?!), I’ll give you a brief rundown. Ren McCormack and his mother leave the big city of Chicago to move in with family after Ren’s father leaves them. They end up in Bomont, a small mid-west town that is controlled by an extremely strict preacher and his cronies on the town council. The number one rule in Bomont? No dancing allowed.

Ren is played by Isaiah Banegas. I’ve seen Isaiah in many productions at CCP, so it was nice to get to see him taking a lead role and doing it so well. Ren is an angry young man, for many reasons, but he just wants to fit in. It’s a double sided character. On one hand, he’s very “worldly” compared to the Bomont kids. On the other hand, he’s seeking approval and running into brick walls no matter which way he turns. Banegas did a great job of showing both aspects of Ren’s personality.

Preacher’s daughter Ariel was played by DeAnna Etchison. Complete with red boots and a need to rebel, Ariel fights the need to be the daughter her father wants while still being the person she wants to be. Her relationship with her father is strained, at best, and her sudden attraction to Ren has made things worse. Etchison has a lovely voice and I enjoyed watching her onstage. Her ability to portray Ariel’s need to break out of her life and her town was charming to watch. You couldn’t help but cheer for her through the entire show.

Resident best friends Rusty and Willard were played by Emily Swafford and Lenny Lively. Both were hilariously funny in their roles. Rusty just wants Willard to pay attention to her and Willard is so awkward and shy that you can’t help but laugh at their interactions. Lively got the most laughs on stage the entire night. He had a way of taking the character of Willard and hamming him up, without making you feel weird about it (if you’ve ever seen an actor ham up a role that made you feel weird, you’ll understand what I mean). 

Reverend Shaw Moore and his wife Vi Moore are played by Jason Ross and Weslie Webster. Both resident actors at Cumberland County Playhouse, it was no surprise that they took their roles and owned them. Having seen them both play a variety of roles, it’s nice to know that you’re always going to get consistently good acting from them, without feeling like you’re seeing the same character over and over again. Webster’s Vi stands strong behind her husband, but lets him know when he’s making a decision that will hurt more than help. Despite several years of the Reverend’s stand-offish and strict personality, Vi lets him come to his personal realizations without alienating him.

Taken from CCP's facebook page

Some of the best numbers in the production were the group numbers from the kids. The show started with the title number, “Footloose”, and it was the perfect start to the show. It allowed the ensemble members to get a chance to shine, right from the beginning. “Somebody’s Eyes” was also a great number and helped show how much a small town can be like a fishbowl. I know I often felt like I was always being watched when I was growing up. Heck, sometimes I STILL feel that way. It’s a part of small town life. The most hilarious number in the entire show went, of course, to Lenny Lively’s Willard. “Mama Says” is basically a collection of crazy (but somehow true) things that Willard’s mother has told him throughout his life. It was great moment for laughs in the show.

This show is worth your time if you enjoy seeing a bunch of kids and teens on stage having a BLAST. It would be great for families with children, and great if you just loved the movie. Footloose plays at Cumberland County Playhouse thru February 24th. You can get tickets by visiting their website HERE, or by calling the box office at 931-484-5000. And if you’re into the whole social media thing, you can find them on Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube.

The Fallout: Smash Season 2 Episode 2

Warning: Spoilers Ahead! 

The second hour of SMASH started out with Karen basically stalking Jimmy by waiting outside his work. He plays his typical bad-boy thing by trying to hit on her when she asks about the voice mails she’s left him. When she asks about his music again, he denies even writing it, even after Karen tells him that Kyle told her that Jimmy wrote it. It’s immediately obvious that Jimmy wants nothing to do with Karen helping him with his music. When Kyle rushes down the street after Karen, she tells him that Jimmy doesn’t want her help. Kyle tells her that Jimmy does want her help…he just doesn’t know it yet.

Eileen asks Derek and Tom to attend the American Theatre Wing Gala and not to get attached to any other projects until she can get the money issues straightened out with the feds. She also lets them know that Karen has been asked to sing a number from Bombshell at the ATW Gala and requests that Julia be there in cocktail attire (which in her words means “no scarves”). Throughout the entire exchange Derek & Tom continually throw digs at each other, so that’s one relationship that hasn’t changed in the new season.

We see Sam and Ivy walking down the streets of New York again. It’s official that Sam is going on tour with Book of Mormon and Ivy can’t help but complain that she can’t even get a callback for a commercial. They end up running into (but first trying to avoid) and old actress “friend” Lisa McMann (played by Annaleigh Ashford!). Lisa has left the business and gone into…. Stationary?? She’s apparently done well for herself and is happy.

Derek ends up in a meeting only to find out that the producers of The Wiz are letting him go because the local news has picked up a story with five more dancers coming forward to sue him for sexual harassment. He finds out that Ronnie was still fighting for him, but it wasn’t enough to keep him on the project.

Eileen’s ex Jerry shows up just as Eileen is finding out that she, along with the creative team, have been uninvited to the ATW Gala. It very much appears that Jerry is behind the ATW ban when Eileen tells Jerry that he owes her and requests that he give her his table for the Gala. He acts surprised…but not really.

Eileen does a conference call with Derek and Tom to let them know that Karen isn’t singing, but they are meeting before the Gala. Even though Tom told Eileen that Julia was meeting with her realtor, we find that Julia is still in bed asleep. Or better yet, wallowing in her sadness. When he tells her about the ATW Gala, Julia begs off and when Tom tries to talk her into it, she basically lays a guilt trip on him. He finally gives her a pass and tells her that he’ll make her excuses to Eileen so that she doesn’t have to go.

Kyle and Karen are sitting at those horrible tables in Times Square! (Really, I can see the Marriott in the background. Go inside. There’s a nice bar there. Order a drink.) He’s showing Karen scratch papers that Jeremy writes on when he’s inspired. Karen isn’t impressed. She can’t really make sense of anything written on the papers and she thinks that she’s been led to believe there’s a musical when there isn’t. Kyle ends up inviting her to their place later that night to a party. He tells her to have a friend play what’s on the paper and then to come to the party if she’s interested in finding out more. She doesn’t commit.

Derek waits outside a pilates studio on a dancer. Daisy is one of the five dancers accusing him of sexual harassment. She tries to avoid him, but he walks with her down the street and he tells her that he never touched her. Daisy says she didn’t say that he touched her. It was interesting to watch the conversation between the two because Daisy is very blunt with him. She tells him that he doesn’t treat his position of power with respect. I thought I saw a moment of understanding on his face as Daisy walked away.

Tom runs into Harvey Fierstein (!!!) on the street and they have a hilarious conversation in which Harvey has heard rumors that Tom and Julia have broken up and that Julia has had a breakdown. Tom quickly lets him know that he and Julia are still a team and in the course of the conversation he tells Harvey that he and Julia are giving a speech at the American Theatre Wing Gala that night. Someone was exaggerating just a little bit I think.

Derek getting drunk at what I am now affectionately calling “Jimmy’s bar” with Jimmy as his bartender. He asks Jimmy, “If you have something someone wants does that mean you can’t sleep with them?” In true Jimmy fashion, he answers “I don’t know, my shift is over.”

When Derek tries to hit on a random woman, she hits him. During this, I’m not sure if it was the punch from the random woman, or perhaps he was drinking absinthe, Derek has this really wild hallucination that involved dancers in tight black dresses and hot pink high heels. This was almost as weird as the strange Bollywood number from season one. I’m really hoping this doesn’t become a normal thing for SMASH.

By the time Tom gets back to the apartment, Julia has already been told that she and Tom are speaking at the ATW Gala. She’s freaking out and running around the apartment trying to get ready and write a speech all at the same time. Tom laughs at her, but doesn’t tell her that it wasn’t actually happening. I could totally see this coming back to bite him. But the fact that Julia is out of bed seems to override anything else.

Ana and Karen (and a few other Bombshell ensemble members) are in their apartment while Ana plays from the pages that Kyle gave Karen. They all like what they here and someone makes a comment about him being “Jonathan Larsen-good.” It was funny to hear that little reference there.

When Julia shows up to the ATW Gala she immediately walks up to Miriam and starts asking when in the program they would speaking at the event. Miriam just looks confused. Miriam informs Julia that they weren’t invited to speak as Tom walks up. When Julia realizes that Tom lied to her she’s not only angry at Tom, she’s thoroughly embarrassed that the fools she’s made of herself. Tom apologizes and says he didn’t know what to say because she was so excited and it got her out of bed. He’d been so worried about her. Tom is nearly at his wits end with Julia and finally tells her that the rumor is going around that Julia couldn’t hack it on Bombshell and that Tom should find a new writing partner. As angry as he is, he tells her, “I don’t want a new writing partner. I just want my old one back.”

Karen and Ana head to Brooklyn to Kyle and Jimmy’s party. I find the apartment they live in hilarious. I know there’s no way that they could afford something like that on a bartender’s paycheck. But, hey, it’s television, right? When Ana sees Jimmy for the first time she tells Karen how hot he is. Karen goes over to speak with Jimmy and they share some verbal jabs with heavy sexual undertones. I can already see that this is going to be a love/hate relationship between the two of them.

Derek shows up drunk on Ivy’s front stoop. She asks why he’s there and he still is wanting to know what he’s done wrong. He’s says “I’m not a complete monster, am I?” Ivy just wants to know why he cares what she thinks now. When she mentions that she’s thinking of leaving the business he tells her she’s too talented to quit. When she mentions that she wasn’t Marilyn, he says “You weren’t MY Marilyn. What do I know?” 

Miriam and Eileen have a tense conversation at the ATW Gala in which she basically tells Eileen that she and Tom & Julia need to leave because Miriam has an organization to protect and that she can’t have even a hint of impropriety associated with the organization.

Meanwhile, in Brooklyn, Karen and Jimmy are doing some serious flirting that ends with Karen practically giving him a lap dance while singing one of his songs to him surrounded by everyone at the party. He looks extremely uncomfortable and it ends in Jimmy, Kyle and Karen yelling at each other on a dark street while Jimmy accuses Karen of stealing his songs and telling Kyle he doesn’t write anything for their musical. He has some serious anger issues to deal with and I wonder what on earth is at the root of these issues.

Eileen, Tom and Julia make a phone call to Karen and get her voice mail, before calling Ivy. Ivy and Derek show up and they crash the party by jumping on stage and Ivy sings the HELL of out a song we hadn’t heard before. “They Just Keep Moving the Line” is a good number ad Megan Hilty makes if fabulous. I swear I could listen to her sing the phone book. When Ivy’s finished the number, the entire Bombshell team walks out.

Eileen and her ex Jerry run into each other in the lobby of the office building. He notes that she made quite the impression at the ATW Gala. She lets him know that the U.S. Attorney’s wife was present and she liked the performance so much that they’d been given permission to resume work on Bombshell. When Jerry asks how she’s going to resume work on the show when she doesn’t have any money she doesn’t have an answer. He asks how much she needs and she informs him she will have her lawyer draw up a contract. 

Kyle isn’t speaking to Jimmy. Jimmy apologizes for overreacting, but can’t help but say how much Karen annoys him. Kyle tells him, “I’ve been cleaning up after you since you were a kid” giving a little insight into the history that the two share. I have a feeling this should be an interesting relationship to watch as well. Kyle also tells him that writing the book for the musical isn’t just sitting and watching him write the songs.

Jimmy shows up at Karen & Ana’s apartment, thanks in part to Ana leaving Karen’s headshot on the fridge the night before. Jimmy gives Karen a USB jump drive and tells her that it has everything he’s written so far and that the reason he was giving it to her was because he owed it to Kyle.

Ivy shows up at Derek’s apartment to talk with him again and realizes that Karen is over (sharing Jimmy’s music with Derek) and Karen can’t help the dig “I heard you saved the day. I was on the subway when they called me” letting Ivy know that she was second best again. Really, this is a side of Karen that I do NOT like at all.

The show closes with Ivy looking sad as she the elevator doors close.

I found the second hour of the show to have more Broadway cameos, which made me very, very happy. I wonder where the rest of the story is going from here. Obviously they are going to land on Broadway, but there are so many side stories going on right now that I’m not sure what to expect. With Jimmy & Kyle. With Jimmy & Karen. With Tom & Julia. With Jimmy & Kyle’s musical. There is so much going on right now that it almost makes my head spin. What did you think folks? I’m thinking that next week should be interesting. Let me know if you want me to keep up the recaps. I may try to keep with it through the rest of the season, but I’m not sure yet.

On Broadway: Smash Season 2 Episode 1 Recap

Warning: Spoilers Ahead!

Season two starts out at the end. The end of Bombshell’s run in Boston, that is. We get another song from this faux musical called “Cut, Print, Moving On.” Personally, I liked the song, and this made room for the montage showing the cast, crew and creative returning to NYC. Karen has moved in with friend Ana (Krysta Rodriguez, who I’m THRILLED we’ll be seeing more of this season), signaling the end of her relationship with Dev. Ivy returns home and ditches all of her pill bottles a’ la Diana Goodman. Through the montage and the opening scenes it’s easy to see that Karen isn’t letting Ivy off easy. Karen even refuses to be in the same elevator with Ivy.

A creative team meeting with producer Eileen, writers Tom & Julia, and director Derek is quite the informative scene. Michael Swift wants out of his contract (there’s no arguing about that change from anyone). Julia refuses to read reviews, which Derek finds ridiculous. And Eileen announces she’s meeting with Jordan Roth to book “the best theatre New York has to offer: The St. James.”

Derek introduces Karen to Broadway Sweetheart Veronica Moore, played by Jennifer Hudson. We see a short part of Veronica’s show, and while I never really picked up the exact title of the song (or the show), Veronica’s performance was fabulous. It makes me wonder when Jennifer Hudson will come to Broadway for something more than a concert performance.

Seeing Ivy & Sam chatting about Ivy not being called for contract renewal is interesting, but only because they are sitting at those metal tables in Times Square. Who actually SITS at those tables? I think I once tied my shoe using one of the chairs. But I can’t imagine anyone outside of a tourist sitting at those tables and having a drink. Even being a tourist myself, I’d rather walk to the Marriot and go sit in the bar. But, it makes for good filming, I suppose. Great shots of Times Square and all.

We head back to the dressing room where Derek and Karen are talking with Veronica. Derek is apparently about to take the helm of a revival of The Wiz. Veronica is lined up to take on the lead role. When Derek asks Veronica to give Karen some advice, she tells her to “Protect the work.” And before heading out the stage door, she says “Get Ready. This is gonna be you in 6 months.” She heads out to a stage door full of camera flashes and yelling fans.

While Eileen waits in a restaurant to meet with Jordan Roth, her ex-husband Jerry shows up again. He throws his typical barbs about her not having the money or the friends to get her show to Broadway. Sadly, there was no drink throwing this time. Although Eileen does tell him to “Get out of here before I throw another drink at you.” Is this the first time Jerry Rand has NOT had Eileen throw a drink at him on this show? I think it might actually be.

Jordan Roth comes sweeping in full of smiles and announces to Jerry that he’s offered the St. James to Bombshell. This is immediately followed up by Eileen getting a call from Nick. She wastes no time before telling Jerry that Nick is her boyfriend. As both Eileen and Jordan walk away, Jerry texts someone (mysterious!) and tells them to go ahead with “the plan.”

While practicing for the press “soirée,” Karen finds out that Ivy will be singing a separate number with the ensemble. Karen is obviously disturbed by this. Ivy approaches Julia about her future with the show, and Julia tells Ivy to apologize to Karen again, and advises her that she may have been apologizing for the wrong thing. I worry more than a little about Karen at this point. We can see she’s run directly to Derek about Ivy’s participation in the press event. She waits for him while he does an interview with Michael Reidel. Reidel asks about Rebecca Duvall’s abrupt departure from the show. When he asked that question, I actually had to think for a moment about who Rebecca Duvall was. Oops.

As Karen waits for Derek we get our first glimps of highly anticipated (at least by me) Jeremy Jordan. Jordan is playing a bartender named Jimmy. You can already tell there is going to be some friction between Karen and Jimmy when she calls him on his poor people skills. When Karen finally gets her chance to speak with Derek, she tells him she wants Ivy gone. While not said in such a harsh manner, she refers to Veronica’s advice to “protect the work” and Derek tells her that it’s done. Do we think this is the end of Ivy’s participation in Bombshell? Not by a long shot. But the fact that Karen has taken her problems with Ivy this far is sad. I think it takes some of the “sweet/innocent” away from Karen’s personality.

Sam and Tom still appear to be going strong in their relationship, though to this point in the episode, we’d seen little of it (I was beginning to wonder). Sam tells Tom he’s been offered a leading role in the Book of Mormon tour, but that he’s passing it up to stay in the city with Tom. Tom tells Sam he’s crazy, but Sam says he’s staying with Bombshell and with Tom. While they are walking down the street, they also see Frank, Julia’s husband, putting a lady into a cab. They appear very comfortable and it’s obvious that Tom thinks Frank could be cheating on Julia.

The press soirée is where everything begins to fall apart. After the interview with Michael Reidel, Rebecca Duvall announced to the press that she left Bombshell because Derek sexually harassed her. This is causing all kinds of trouble for Derek with the producers of The Wiz. Veronica gives him her support and he asks her to call the producers for The Wiz to give her support.

Stage manager Linda approaches Frank about how happy she is to see Frank & Julia working on their relationship. When Frank approaches Julia about her co-workers known about their personal life, he’s obviously upset. Then Eileen gets a call from Jordan Roth who is backing out of the party ad isn’t telling her if they actually do have the St. James. Eileen looks for a “distraction” and it ends up being Veronica and Karen singing “On Broadway.”

Cue another montage. Ivy shows up. Nick shows up with a somber face and he and Eileen take off to speak in private. Tom pulls Julia aside and whispers something to her. Derek pulls Karen aside after the song and there’s obvious sexual tension. Ivy walks up as Derek is about to kiss Karen and we find out that Derek called Ivy to come to the party. Ivy realizes that she’s being let go because of Karen.

Julia approaches Frank about Tom seeing Frank with another woman and Frank is horrified. He makes a scene that eventually has everyone at the party listening in while Frank spills all the details of his and Julia’s relationship. Michael Reidel shows up just in time to say “Can I quote you on that?”

Ivy makes another attempt at an apology, and almost admits to trying to commit suicide “I almost did something really stupid.” She apologizes for getting in Karen’s way and wishes her good luck before leaving the party. This is the first Ivy apology that I really felt. I actually wanted to like her again!

Tom finds Julia standing outside and she says, “My marriage is over.” It felt slightly like déjà vu to me. But one thing I wasn’t expecting was Julia admitting to reading opening night reviews for Bombshell and being mortified at the all-around panning of her book writing. I do love most of the moments with Tom and Julia. They have perhaps the most heartfelt and real relationship of the entire show.

Eileen admits to Tom, Julia, Derek and Karen that Bombshell is under investigation after someone tipped off the government about the source of the money that Eileen was using to fund the show. What a halt to the party.

Ivy enters another audition and sings “Don’t Dream It’s Over”. Perfect opportunity for another musical montage. I’m beginning to think the writers of SMASH really like their montages. Ivy walks along the streets of New York singing (ironically, or perhaps not so ironically) under the awning of the St. James. We also see Jerry Rand (I’m not sure WHAT he was doing) and Eileen hanging a framed Bombshell window card on her office wall.

Karen has made her way back to Jimmy’s bar and she’s getting wasted by herself at closing. A bartending Andy Mientus plays a fangirling bartender named Kyle who asks Karen to autograph his Bombshell Playbill for his “collection of failed musicals.” When Karen returns to the bar to get her forgotten cell phone she hears Jimmy playing the piano in the back and singing “Broadway Here I Come.” She calls Derek and tells him to listen. Personally, I've already downloaded and listened to this song about a million times since yesterday. It is quickly becoming a favorite of mine.

This was the first hour of the two hour seasons premiere, titled “On Broadway” and a great start to the night. It seemed to be clearing up a lot of things left hanging at the end of season one and cleaning up a lot of things that weren't so great in season one.


Still, my favorite part will probably always be seeing all the actors that I recognize from the theatre world. My recap of the second hour of the show will be up soon (I have to get to work on it tonight!). What did YOU think of last night's first hour? Anything surprising? Anything you hated? Anything (or anyone) you loved?

Why Torture Is Wrong, and the People Who Love Them

Last weekend I made the trip to see a play that was in the town where I went to college. The entire town has a really active theatre scene for its size, so there’s almost always something going on. This show was at Cookeville Performing Arts Center and was part of their “Backstage Series.”

I love these shows because they are so intimate. The entire show AND audience are on the stage. For this show, in particular, this was an incredible feat as there was a ROTATING set. Such an interesting title of a show, this Christopher Durang piece is entitled Why Torture Is Wrong and the People who Love Them. If you know Christopher Durang, you know that most of his shows are….disturbing, to say the least.

This show was no different. Staged in an incredible way, with a set designed by Kim Frick-Welker (and a shout out to Brandon Walls who is listed as “Master carpenter (Revolve)” in the program), perhaps my favorite part of the entire show was the set. There are several different scenes in the show, so a revolving set made it possible to have totally different sets, with little to no prop movement onstage.

Taken from CPAC's event page on fb

Another great part of the show was the song selection for both the pre-show and the scene transitions. Most were perfect for the mood, or what was happening in the scenes and I often times couldn’t help but silently sing along.

The show itself was funny, but really not my cup o’ tea. From the first scene we meet Felicity, who has woken up with a major hangover, and no memory of the night before, only to find herself married to a stranger named Zamir. Felicity, played by Kate Breidert, seems to be a sweet girl but is completely confused as to how she came to be married to Zamir, played by Matthew Wilson.

Felicity realizes quickly that Zamir is a little….off. He’s got a short fuse, and refuses to get an annulment or a divorce. When nervous and confused Felicity questions Zamir about what he does for a living and his personal life, he’s vague at best. Matthew Wilson does a good job of playing creepy. Zamir is creepy, he’s questionable, and he’s scary.

Felicity takes Zamir to her parents’ home in the suburbs, in part to meet her parents and in part so that she can get some help from her parents in finding a ways out of this marriage. We immediately meet her parents who seem to be as crazy as Zamir, just in a totally different way. Luella, Felicity’s mother, seems to be living in total denial of everything. Beverly Hedgepeth played Luella to be the type of person who adores avoiding reality. She continually talks about theatre, relating everything in her life to a show she’s seen and wanting to know if Felicity has seen any new shows, in spite of Felicity’s insistence that she hates the theatre.

Leonard is the epitome of a crazy right wing conservative. Every single crazy thing that you’ve ever heard is true, or heard made up, about a crazy conservative, Leonard is, says, believes. Leonard is played by Pat Frank. Frank is hilarious in this role. It’s almost a cartoonish take on an outspoken conservative and his wife with her head in the sand.

We later meet the “reverend” who married Felicity and Zamir. Reverend Mike is serious about his title as a reverend…and about his secondary career as a porn star/film maker. A hilarious character, Brent Fleshman gives the good reverend a slimy, yet endearing personality. You can’t help but like him, even though he’s a shady character.

We then find that Leonard is seriously off his rocker by his secret room in his house, and his friends Hildegarde and Looney Tunes who share his views and want to help bring down domestic terrorists. Played by Tracy Clark, it’s immediately obvious that Hildegarde has a crush on Leonard and that she would do anything he asked of her. Looney Tunes was played by Josh Rapp and was just that: Looney Tunes. Also crazy, Looney Tunes makes noises that remind you of your favorite cartoon characters.

When Felicity thinks that it’s possible that Zamir might be a terrorist, her father thinks the same thing. While Felicity is one to just pacify the situation, her father wants to do the exact opposite. When Zamir and Leonard meet, they immediately dislike each other. Felicity just wants the whole thing to go away, and Luella just keeps talking about theatre and changing the subject.

In true Christopher Durang fashion, there are bloody body parts in this show, and a very, very, very odd ending involving time travel. Honestly, when the show was over, I wasn’t quite sure if I’d seen a bashing of the conservatives, a Dr. Who special, or a comedy. And I kind of liked that.

While it wasn’t a show for everyone (the people sitting in front of me left at intermission), it was a show that was well done, well-acted, and funny, if you don’t take things too seriously. I enjoyed myself and left only slightly confused (time travel seems to do that to me).

I’m sad to say that it closed this past Friday and I’d like to apologize to the cast for only now getting this posted. It was a fun show and something on the fringes of “acceptable” in the mostly conservative South. Which is something I’ve come to expect from theatre in the Cookeville area.

You can check out the upcoming shows at Cookeville Performing Arts Center by visiting their website.

Steel Magnolias

The 2013 season at Cumberland County Playhouse opened up on Saturday with a lovely production of the well-known Steel Magnolias. Most people know the movie starring Julia Roberts, Sally Fields, and Dolly Parton. In a way, it’s become a rite of passage for young women in the South to watch the movie at least once. But many don’t know that it was a play first.

Set in Louisiana in the early 80s, Steel Magnolias tells the story of six women who meet each Saturday at the neighborhood beauty shop. With varying ages, it’s fun to see the inner workings of their friendships. In the rare event that someone reads this that hasn’t actually seen the movie or the stage version, be prepared for tears. In fact, throughout the final scene of the play I would say there were very few dry eyes. I heard too many sniffles in the audience to lead me to believe otherwise.

This particular production was directed by Donald Fann in the Adventure Theatre. Set design was spectacular, as always. John Partyka’s design took you right back to the 80s in a garage beauty shop in the South. Heck, some of the garage beauty shops I’ve seen still look like that.

I’ve always seen the character of Truvy as the glue that holds their little group together. Lauren Marshall played the role in such a way that it never even crossed my mind that someone else should be playing the role, which so often happens when a role is made famous by an actor the likes of Dolly Parton (or Delta Burke, whom I saw play the role on Broadway a few years ago). Lauren Marshall gives her own spin to the role, and you can’t help but love the way she cares for all the characters no matter their annoying or less desirable personality traits.

A newbie to town, Annelle is played by CCP “newbie” Anna Baker. I love Annelle and the changes she goes through in the show. Annelle’s innocence and awkwardness is endearing and Baker gives the role a great believability and enough humor that you can’t help but laugh at her and love her simultaneously. Kind of like a new puppy learning how to walk without tripping over its own paws.

Taken from CCP's facebook page

Ouiser and Clariee are a hysterical pair in every respect. Friends (we think) for years, they are in so many ways like The Odd Couple. Clairee’s husband has recently passed and she is looking for something to keep her busy. Ouiser likes to play a bitter old woman, but deep down she’s got a heart. Patty Payne played the role of Ouiser, and Carol Irvin played Clariee. Both are CCP regulars, and when I first heard that they were going to be in Steel Magnolias, I thought they might be playing roles in the opposite way. For some reason, I saw Patty as Clariee and Ouiser played by Carol. That being said, they really outdid themselves in the roles they were given. I LOVED seeing Patty Payne playing grouchy, old Ouiser. Carol Irvin was fantastic as more personable Clariee.  

The relationship that is always the most interesting to me is that of Shelby and her mother M’Lynn. This comes from the fact that I have Type 1 diabetes, like the character Shelby (*quick disclaimer & spoiler, having a baby if you have diabetes will NOT cause you to die. For more information about diabetes & my life with diabetes, you can check out my other blog, Every Day, Every Hour, Every Minute).

Shelby was played by Lindy Pendzick, while Weslie Webster took on the role of M’Lynn. Shelby and M’Lynn have a tumultuous relationship. It’s obvious they love each other, but they seem to disagree on almost everything. Much like most mother’s M’Lynn wants what’s best for her child. Shelby just wants to live her life to the fullest possible extent, in spite of her health issues.


Webster’s M’Lynn was tortured in so many ways. You could see her desire to protect and yet let go of her daughter conflicting on her face in nearly every scene. I can’t imagine how hard it must be for a mother to let their child go when for so many years she was the person keeping her child alive by being the caregiver for Shelby’s diabetes. Shelby is in an impossible situation. She wants children. She wants a life. She wants her mother’s support. Her health has always been in the way of these things and she wants them anyway. Shelby goes after the things she wants even though she’s been advised not to.

Lindy Pendzick gives Shelby a playful lilt. She takes Shelby and makes her somewhat silly. I like this part of the character. It was a strange thing for me though, because I can’t help but wonder how tortured Shelby would have been about her decisions as well. Sometimes I felt like Pendzick’s Shelby didn’t take things as seriously as her mother. Perhaps it’s my own overthinking, being a person with diabetes myself.

Like, I said, I liked Lindy Pendzick’s take on Shelby. I just wonder if that’s how I would have reacted in Shelby’s place. One of things that Lindy always does well is the silly little comedic one liners and the facial expressions that go with them. She’s a hoot.

I’ve seen Steel Magnolias on stage several times (including Broadway), and I’ve seen both versions of the movie. This production at CCP is worth going to see. If you have a heart at all, you might even shed a few tears. It would be great for a “girls only” fun day. You could try to drag your significant other to it, but if it’s a guy… well, he might not be as impressed as I was. ;)

 

Steel Magnolias runs at Cumberland County Playhouse thru March 29th. You can purchase tickets online by clicking HERE, or by calling 931-484-5000. And if you Tweet, check out CCP’s account @CCPlayhouse.

CCP Winter Cabaret 2012

On the very night the world was supposed to end (12/22/12, for those of you living under a rock), I attended my first cabaret at Cumberland County Playhouse. From what I’ve gathered, CCP has started doing a late night cabaret a couple of times a year. I’ve managed to miss every one so far.

This winter I was determined to make it, and make it I did. After the Friday evening showing of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (which I also attended), the Winter Cabaret took place in the lobby of Cumberland County Playhouse. With desserts available and cabaret style seating, it was cozy and candle lit.

Emcee Weslie Webster started off the night doing a duet with Lauren Marshall of the SNL parody “Santa’s My Boyfriend,” setting the mood and bringing smiles to every face. Performance after performance, CCP actors came out and delivered their best. Every single performance was outstanding.

Carly Hueston Amburn and Anna Baker did a lovely version of “Winter Song” by Sara Bareilles, while Leila Nelson tackled “I Dreamed a Dream” from Les Misérables with wonderful results. Anna Baker added a dash of jazz with a fabulous version of “When Sunny Gets Blue” and the trio of Austin Price, John Dobbratz & Douglas Waterbury-Tieman threw in some country with a version of the Zac Brown Band’s “Chicken Fried.”

Music Direction Ron Murphy played a festive panio solo called “Skating.” This was one of my personal favorites of the night. It made me feel like I needed to be bundled up outside in the snow (though Tennessee is noticeably absent of snow most Decembers).

There were three other performances that really stood out in my mind as being highlights. First was an appropriately picked version of R.E.M.’s “End of the World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)” that went straight into a rousing cover of FUN’s “Some Nights” that was performed by the Golden Smoke Boys, made of up of Austin Price, Daniel Black, Douglas Waterbury-Tieman, Colin Cahill and John Dobbratz. This definitely got the most audience participation. At least out of the group of people that I was sitting with. We couldn’t help but sing along.

Perhaps the most clever and funny performance of the night was from Chris Rayis and Douglas Waterbury-Tieman. Both extremely talented musicians, they took comedy and a love of theatre to a whole new level of geek-dom. And it was fabulous. They performed a selection of Christmas tunes to different musical theatre themes. Honestly, I hope someone got it on film and plans on posting it to youtube. It was quite the performance.

“O Holy Night” set to the tune of “Oklahoma” with a little South Pacific thrown in. “Deck the Halls” set to some Jerry Herman selections (I believe I heard some Hello, Dolly! and perhaps some La Cage Aux Folles and maybe some Mame, but don’t quote me on that). “Up On the Rooftop” was done with a Fiddler On the Roof twist while Frosty the Snowman was crafted around some Sweeny Todd. “We Three Kings” and “Star of Wonder” were give some Andrew Loyd Webber love by crafting around some songs from Phantom of the Opera. “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer” was most cleverly set to “Defying Gravity” from the ever popular Wicked.  “You’d Better Watch Out” was infused with Jason Robert Brown, starting with The Last Five Years and I picked up some 13 at the end. The last song of their creative endeavor was the classic Christmas tear-jerker “The Christmas Shoes” only it was the tune and the story was all Les Misérables, giving it a hilarious turn that had everyone laughing. 

I will be honest, my absolute favorite of the entire night was the finale. “O Holy Night” was performed by Michael Ruff with the rest of the CCP company helping him out. It was beautiful. I may be slightly partial, as “O Holy Night” is my favorite Christmas song ever, but I think they did a truly beautiful job. It was a perfect close to the evening.

I can’t help but hope that Cumberland County Playhouse continues to have these cabaret performances. It was a change for me. A little musical theatre, a little Christmas music, a little popular music, yet it blended well, it moved along seamlessly, and was one of the most fun times I’ve had at CCP in a long time. You can bet I’ll do everything in my power to get to the next CCP cabaret. There’s nowhere I’d have rather spent the evening of the end of the world.

Cabaret



Last night I got to go see a production of the Kander & Ebb musical Cabaret at the Backdoor Playhouse at Tennessee TechnologicalUniversity. This production was directed by student Adam Combs, and was their student directed production for the season. Mendy Richards was music director and choreography was done by Jennifer Dotson-Creter. This was the second night of their run, and I was lucky enough to get to see the show on the house, as my friend was the stage manager of the production.

 

As a pretty well-known movie, starring Joel Grey and Liza Minnelli, most people are familiar with the title song “Cabaret” and other songs like “The Money Song” and “Willkommen.” Cabaret is certainly not your average, feel good, feel good musical. Taking place in 1930 Germany as the Nazi party began its rise to power, there is a nearly constant feeling of darkness hanging over the show.

At the beginning of the show, the rousing opening number “Willkommen” from the Emcee, played by Anthony Herd, sets the mood for the entire show. Herd attacks the role of Emcee with hilarity, giving Emcee a sort of cartoonish and dream-like feeling. This gives the audience a false sense of what this show is actually going to be, but it works well when the show takes a shocking and serious turn later.

We then see starving American author Cliff Bradshaw, played by Joshua Spivey, making his way to Germany looking for inspiration for his book. He’s already been to several other European countries and is on the move again. In Berlin, Cliff thinks he’s found what he needs. Fun, friends, and the Kit Kat Club.

Cliff takes up residence in the boarding house of Fraulein Schneider, played by Mary Pashley. We’re introduced to Sally Bowles with her Kit Kat Club number, “Don’t Tell Mamma”, which perfectly tells the story of Sally’s carefree and flighty take on life very much reflects the feeling of the Kit Kat Club. She has friends of all kinds and seems to know everyone and very quickly worms her way into Cliff’s graces and his room.

While giving English lessons to supplement his income, Cliff becomes friends with Ernst Ludwig, played by Brent Fleshman. Fleshman’s Ernst is suave and smooth. He’s friends with nearly everyone, including Sally. But even from the beginning, you can tell there’s something more underneath. It’s obvious that he’s dealing in some less than legal projects, and we don’t find out until later in the show just what those dealings are.

 

We also meet an amazing ensemble of characters at the boarding house, including Fraulein Schneider’s beau, fruit market owner Herr Schultz, played by Lynn England. England and Pashley give an interesting touch to the roles of Fraulein Schneider and Herr Schultz. They play and adorable couple, with Herr Schultz ready to go all into a relationship, and longtime bachelorette Fraulein Schneider with some reservations. Their duet “Married” is both funny and sweetly adorable.

When the show takes a serious turn, tackling the ideals of the Nazi party, Emcee gives a creepy rendition of “Tomorrow Belongs To Me.” After that number, the mood of the show goes from flighty and dream-like, to depressing and serious. We being to see the relationship between Sally and Cliff disintegrate. Sally reveals she is pregnant and is looking for a way out of the pregnancy and the relationship. Cliff sees the state of Germany changing and wants to take Sally back to American where they can settle down and start a family.

We also see the relationship between Fraulein Schneider and Herr Schultz begin changing when it’s revealed that Herr Schultz is a Jew, making both he and Fraulein Schneider targets for the Nazis. Mary Pashley gives a touching performance of “What Would You Do?” when Fraulein Schneider is exploring the possibilities of continuing her relationship with Herr Schultz.

One of the last numbers in the show is “Cabaret.” Sally Bowles has ended her relationship with Cliff and you see both her heartbreak and her inability to change herself and face reality. She instead desperately clings to her flighty personality and outlook on life, in spite of all that’s happening around her and to her. 

One of my favorite lines in the whole show was one of Cliff’s. He’s describing Berlin when he says, “It’s so tacky and terrible & everybody’s having a great time.” I couldn’t help but feel like it’s a great description of the show itself. While it wasn’t terrible at ALL, the show itself is slightly tacky (the book itself), and you can’t help but have a great time while you’re there. The range of emotion in the show is wide, bringing in some depressingly serious topics that transcend the time period itself.

I must say that Cabaret is a HUGE production and the Backdoor Playhouse is not a huge venue. This could have been a complete staging disaster. It could have been, but it wasn’t. There was some very creative set design, including a raised area that was almost at the ceiling that served as Cliff’s room at the boarding house. That being said, there were a lot of scene changes, and because there were so many set pieces to be moved, and so many people to do it, sometimes the scene changes were distracting. Too many people, moving too many things and taking too much time.

Overall, this show is well worth your time and money to see. Ladies, I can even bet you can convince your significant other to go. Just tell him there are a bunch of girls running around on stage in their skivvies. ;) I know the elderly gentleman that sat next to me with his wife enjoyed the show…if his whistling at the girls on stage was any indicator anyway.

Cabaret plays at the Backdoor Playhouse at Tennessee Technological University thru November 17^th. Tickets are $12 general admission, $10 senior citizens and $5 for non-Tech students. Tech students get in free with their ID. You can call their box office at (931)372-6595 or visit their website for more information.