Observations Along The Road... at Dreamwidth

Perhaps I’m not the audience for this particular show.

After all, I’ve never been all that into horror films. I did regularly attend horror films at the Culver Theatre in Culver City (now the legit Kirk Douglas run by CTG) in my college days, but that was only because my girlfriend at the time loved horror films. They never really scared me; perhaps the occasional startle reflex. These days, I’ll catch them here and there on TV (I seem to always run into the “Becky” franchise), and I don’t find them particularly scary. Horror films these days are particularly formulaic: you know who is going to get it; you pretty much know how; and you know it will be graphicly bloody, if possible. As for suspense? Gone are the days in which terror builds slowly (such as “Rosemary’s Baby” [insert obligatory “Tannis Root. It’s only Tannis Root” in Ruth Gordan’s voice]).

I’m also not a believer in the paranormal. Ghosts are something that were invented for entertainment purposes (cough, “Ghosts”, cough, “Beetlejuice”), or to perhaps assuage guilty minds (cough, the Scottish Play). If you don’t believe in ghosts, you don’t find ghosts all that scary.

Lastly, I have never seen any of the movies in the Paranormal Activity franchise. I think there’s something like 7, 8, 4000. Some larger number. Haven’t seen any of them. So perhaps I wasn’t the best person to be going to a stage instantiation of that franchise. My wife expressed that notion best, comparing this to the recent Harry Potter stage show. That show was light on plot and story (as any time-travel story is), but heavy on the stage magic, and relied far too much on fan service and making the fans happy.

Beyond that, Mrs. Lincoln, what did you think of the play?

This is all a long way of saying that we took time on this blustery and rainy Saturday to trundle down to the Ahmanson Theatre to see the Paranormal Activity play. The good news is that it wasn’t bad — it’s not something that will be a classic, and it isn’t even at the level of well done murder mysteries — but it isn’t heavy fan service and overdone stage magic. The bad news is that it is a clear profit grab by Paramount Pictures: it is not a story that needed to be on the stage. It is a trifle. I also didn’t find it particularly scary, but given what I wrote above, that’s not a surprise. It also isn’t obsessively dark, so you won’t come away from it with nightmares.

The other, perhaps more important, bad news: It is a sonic horror. By that I mean: to unsettle the audience, there is constant subsonic (low-frequency) and hypersonic (high-frequency) noise blasted at a high volume to the audience, from the moment you walk into the theatre. This is noise that is just outside the normal range of hearing, and it is not filtered out by foam earplugs, as bone conduction is involved. If you are sensitive to that range of sound (as my wife is), it will leave you queasy and on the verge of being sick. It may create headaches. For many, it will create unease. As for me, I’ve listened to too much music through headphones — I’ve lost those ranges. But be forewarned.

There are other sound problems that irritated me in other ways. The play takes place in London, and the people in the story have flat with a landline. When that phone rang, it was a single long bell. Folks that have been to the UK know that UK phones have a shorter double ring. They one of the folks had a cell phone that rang the same as a landline. You rarely see modern phones using bells for their ringtone, so that was off. Sloppy sound design.

As for the story itself: It takes place in a single set that consists of a downstairs living room and kitchen, and an upstairs bedroom, third room, and bathroom. This is all on stage in a single structure. Nothing flies in or out; nothing is rolled onto the stage. As such, this is like a situation comedy that takes place generally in a single room — think “All In The Family” or “Roseanne” or even “BIg Bang Theory”. It was, in other words, “situation horror”.

Given that this is a horror story and a suspense story, to describe all the details of the plot would serve to spoil the suspense for those that are into such things. So, suffice it to say that this is the story of a couple that moves from Chicago to London to ostensibly run away from their demons… but as anyone knows, demons have this horrible tendency to follow you and see things through to an appropriate end.

The suspenseful stage magic worked well. Besides the expected writing tricks of surprise entrances and premonition-ary lines, there were a number of stagecraft elements and diversions that worked quite well. There was also a fair amount of humor in the overall piece. It was also fun to listen to the audience reaction, especially the points of surprise. The sound was a little loud for my taste.

More of a problem was the overall story: Although the suspense and horror parts of it worked, when you come out of the show and think about the overall plausibility (setting aside the ghosts), it all starts to fall apart. Some pieces just don’t make sense, such as how some of the characters ended up where they did. But this is “situation horror”, and I guess it doesn’t have to make sense. It just has to serve the franchise.

The performances were strong and well played. I liked the two primary leads: they seemed to inhabit their character well.

“Paranormal Activity” continues through December 7, 2025, at the Ahmanson Theatre. Tickets are available through the Ahmanson website. Should you go see it? I guess it depends on whether you like horror and suspense and this particular franchise. For me, I get scared enough reading the news everyday about what this administration is doing. No ghost is scarier than that, unless it is the ghost of Jeffrey Epstein confronting Donald Trump. Now that’s a horror story I’d love to see on stage… or in real life!

Thinking even more, we need a version of “A Christmas Carol”, where the ghost of Jeffrey Epstein (past, present, and future) come out to haunt Donald Trump. That would certainly be worth seeing. Who’s up for writing it.

Credits

Paranormal Activity. Written by Levi Holloway. Directed by Felix Barrett. Restaged by Levi Holloway. Based on Paramount Picture’s Paranormal Activity films, first written and directed by Orne Peli and brought to the screen by Blumhouse and Solana Films. ™ and © 2025 Paramount Pictures.

Cast: Cher Álverez Lou; Shannon Cochran Carolanne; Kate Fry Etheline Cotgrave; Patrick Heusinger James. Understudies: Caron Buinis u/s Carolanne / Etheline Cotgrave; Caroline Hendricks u/s Lou; Michael Holding u/s James.

Production and Creative: Levi Holloway Written and Restaged by; Felix Barrett Director; Fly Davis Scenic & Costume Design; Anna Watson Lighting Design; Gareth Fry Sound Design; Luke Halls Video Design; Chris Fisher Illusions; Bob Mason CST Artistic Associate / Casting Director; What If We Productions Co-Production Technical Supervisor; Oren Peli Original Filmmaker; Melting Pot Commercial Producer; Melanie J. Lisby Production Stage Manager; Julie Jachym Stage Manager; Chels Morgan Intimacy/Fight Director.

Administrivia

I am not a professional critic. I’m a cybersecurity professional, a roadgeek who does a highway site and a podcast about California Highways, and someone who loves live performance. I buy all my own tickets, unless explicitly noted otherwise. I do these writeups to share my thoughts on shows with my friends and the community. I encourage you to go to your local theatres and support them (ideally, by purchasing full price tickets, if you can afford to do so). We currently subscribe or have memberships at: Center Theatre Group/Ahmanson Theatre; Broadway in Hollywood/Pantages Theatre; Pasadena Playhouse; The Soraya, and 5-Star Theatricals. We’re looking for the right intimate theatre to subscribe at — it hasn’t been the same since Rep East died (it’s now The Main, and although it does a lot of theatre, it doesn’t have seasons or a resident company), and post-COVID, most 99-seaters aren’t back to doing seasons (or seasons we like). I used to do more detailed writeups; here’s my current approach.

Upcoming ♦ Theatre / ♣ Music / ◊ Other Live Performance – Next 90ish Days (⊕ indicates ticketing is pending).

• November: ♦ Suffs at BIH/Pantages;
• December: ◊ ACSAC Conference; ♣ Ben Platt: Live at the Ahmanson at CTG/Ahmanson; ♣ Nochebuena: A Christmas Spectacular at The Soraya; ♦ Stereophonic at BIH/Pantages;
• January: ♦ The Notebook at BIH/Pantages; ♦ All the Devils Are Here at The Broad; ♣ Tom Chapin @ McCabes.
• February: ♦ Applause at MTG; ♦ Amadeus at Pasadena Playhouse; ♣ Anat Cohen at the Soraya; ♣ Preservation Hall Jazz Band at The Soraya.
• March: The Play That Goes Wrong at 5-Star Theatricals; Here Lies Love at CTG/Mark Taper; MoTAS Poker Tournament; Spamlot at BIH/Pantages.

This entry was originally posted on Observations Along the Road as Situation Horror | "Paranormal Activity" @ CTG/Ahmanson Theatre by cahwyguy. Although you can comment on DW, please make comments on original post at the Wordpress blog using the link to the left. You can sign in with your LJ, DW, FB, or a myriad of other accounts. Note: Subsequent changes made to the post on the blog are not propagated by the SNAP Crossposter; please visit the original post to see the latest version. P.S.: If you see share buttons above, note that they do not work outside of the Wordpress blog.

This show is titled “Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha”, implying it is a funny, funny, show. It isn’t. It is bizarre; it is an attempt at avant-guard improvisational humor, often at the expense of others. Some people in the audience were laughing, so some might find it funny. But if you are a traditional theatre audience member, the only thing you are thankful for in this production is that it is over in barely over an hour.  A long hour.

If anything, this show reminds me of another Pasadena Playhouse one-woman show failure from early 2024: “Kate”, starring Kate Berlant. That show was also bizarre narcissistic comedy that you either loved or hated, and we hated. The Playhouse is two-for-two on one women comedy shows. Improv can be funny — look at “Freestyle Love Supreme“, which was funny. But people go to the Pasadena Playhouse for plays and musicals, not this … stuff … which has no story, no characters, no … substance.

If you want to get some other ideas of the show, read the McNulty review in the LA Times, or the Broadway World writeup. Both reviewers seemed to be at the same show. They someone enjoyed it, for reasons I don’t understand.

Additionally, the music and volume is far far too loud; my wife got a headache from the volume.

Let me describe the show we were at. Masli wanders out with a headpiece with lights on it going “Ha” in a strange pronunciation, going up to audience members until they start trying to repeat what she is saying because they can’t figure out anything else to do. She wanders on stage and gets a golden leg, which she uses as an arm with a microphone. She then wanders out into the audience going “Problem?” until people respond. At some point, she breaks a chair on stage, and she uses a subsequent problem to get someone to go on stage to try to fix it. Similarly, at some point she gets someone to go on stage to take a shower in front of the audience. She collects socks from audience members, and burns one of them. These seem to be stock bits (at least they were in the other reviews), although the problems that lead to them. At our show, she had a pizza and salad dropped from above.

Let’s see if I can remember the problems. There was someone who didn’t like the direction the world was going in. That led to her getting audience members to go on stage to rebuild the broken chair to repair something, and finding a white guy to take a shower to wash off the guilt. There was a guy who missed the crisp air and crunchy leaves of New York, so she dragged out a stage fan and had him sit in the breeze, while she threw lettuce at him. There was someone who had foot problems, so she dragged out a Chinese Acupuncture doctor to sit on stage to solve people’s medical problems. There was a fellow who needed commercial directing gigs. She couldn’t solve that one (why she didn’t suggest making a commercial for her show was beyond me).

I just didn’t find it funny. I found it exploitive, and I don’t think it was what the people who paid good money for a “show” were expecting. I know I’d be pissed if I paid LA Theatre prices for a show where I became the butt of a joke.

It just seems that there was no script. Each show was dependent on the “problems” that came from the audience.

If you like bizarre comedy, perhaps you’ll like this. If you’re looking for traditional theatre, stay away. If you’re wondering why we went: This was part of the Pasadena Playhouse season, the TBD show that was added at the last minute when something slipped on the schedule. We didn’t specifically buy tickets for this.

Are we upset about the show? Again, no. When you subscribe to a theatre, there are occasionally shows that just don’t land right. You take that risk to be exposed to new theatre. This one just wasn’t for us, but the Playhouse’s track record is overall quite good.

Why did the Playhouse do this? All I can guess is that some folks provided sufficient monetary support to put on the show, because they liked it at a Fringe Festival, and the Playhouse said “Thank you. That fills a hole in our production schedule nicely.”

“Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha” continues at the Pasadena Playhouse through November 9. You can get tickets through the show page. Perhaps you’ll enjoy it. We didn’t. But at least it wasn’t “Girl from the North Country” bad. It was more like “Kate” bad.

Credits

Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha. Created and performed by Julia Masli. Directed by Kim Nobel

Cast: Julia Masli Creator and Performer

Production and Creative: Kim Noble Director; Lily Woodford Lighting Design; Alessio Festuccia Sound Design; David Curtis-Ring, Annika Thiems, Alice Wedge Costume Design; Sarah Chapin Associate Producer, Production Manager, Stage Manager, Improvised Lighting Score; Sebastian Hernandez Improvised Sound Score; Maria Manuela Goyanes, David C. Frederick, Sophia Lynn Consulting Producers, Brad Enlow Technical Director, Production Supervisor; Davidson & Choy Publicity Press Representatives; Bonnie McHeffey General Manager; Jenny Slattery Assoc Artistic Director.

Administrivia

I am not a professional critic. I’m a cybersecurity professional, a roadgeek who does a highway site and a podcast about California Highways, and someone who loves live performance. I buy all my own tickets, unless explicitly noted otherwise. I do these writeups to share my thoughts on shows with my friends and the community. I encourage you to go to your local theatres and support them (ideally, by purchasing full price tickets, if you can afford to do so). We currently subscribe or have memberships at: Center Theatre Group/Ahmanson Theatre; Broadway in Hollywood/Pantages Theatre; Pasadena Playhouse; The Soraya, and 5-Star Theatricals. We’re looking for the right intimate theatre to subscribe at — it hasn’t been the same since Rep East died (it’s now The Main, and although it does a lot of theatre, it doesn’t have seasons or a resident company), and post-COVID, most 99-seaters aren’t back to doing seasons (or seasons we like). I used to do more detailed writeups; here’s my current approach.

Upcoming ♦ Theatre / ♣ Music / ◊ Other Live Performance – Next 90ish Days (⊕ indicates ticketing is pending).

• November: ♦ Jaja’s African Hair Braiding at CTG/Taper; ♦ Paranormal Activity at CTG/Ahmanson; ♦ Suffs at BIH/Pantages;
• December: ◊ ACSAC Conference; ♣ Ben Platt: Live at the Ahmanson at CTG/Ahmanson; ♣ Nochebuena: A Christmas Spectacular at The Soraya; ♦ Stereophonic at BIH/Pantages;
• January: ♦ The Notebook at BIH/Pantages; ♦ All the Devils Are Here at The Broad;
• February: ♦⊕ Applause at MTG (Pending); ♦ Amadeus at Pasadena Playhouse; ♣ Anat Cohen at the Soraya; ♣ Preservation Hall Jazz Band at The Soraya.

This entry was originally posted on Observations Along the Road as Unfunny | "Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha" @ Pasadena Playhouse by cahwyguy. Although you can comment on DW, please make comments on original post at the Wordpress blog using the link to the left. You can sign in with your LJ, DW, FB, or a myriad of other accounts. Note: Subsequent changes made to the post on the blog are not propagated by the SNAP Crossposter; please visit the original post to see the latest version. P.S.: If you see share buttons above, note that they do not work outside of the Wordpress blog.

September has really been the month for comedies on the stage. We started out the month with a silly jokefest, Shucked, at the Pantages. We followed that (after a brief interlude for Fiddler, in Yiddish, which has its funny moments as well) with Eureka Day at the Pasadena Playhouse. We concluded September last night with One Man, Two Guvnors at A Noise Within. Each of these was very very funny, but each was a very very different type of comedy.

Shucked was primarily a joke fest. There, the emphasis was on funny, but borderline stupid writing. Think Hee Haw on stage, which was actually the intent of the show.

Eureka Day was more intellectual. There the humor came from a wittier level of repartee, from insults and not-so-veiled digs. The whole online chat sequence was hysterical.

One Man, Two Guvnors was much more the classic farce, and as the patron guide pointed out, an almost classic version of Commedia dell’arte. That’s not a surprise, as One Man, Two Guvnors was based on the Italian play The Servant of Two Masters, written by the Italian playwright Carlo Goldoni (1707-1793) who invented the term. As the guide notes: “Commedia dell’arte plays feature recognizable character types, also known as stock characters. These include the Young Lovers, the Clowns (sometimes called Zanni, from which the English word “zany” may derive), the Old Man (who often stands in the way of the Young Lovers), the Clever Servant, the Main Couple (older and wiser than the Young Lovers), the Doctor/Professor, the Clever Maidservant, and the Boastful Military Captain.”

But One Man, Two Guvnors also heavily adds elements of both farce and improvisation. The farce comes from the heavy use of physical comedy, precise timing, and lots of wordplay. The improvisation comes from breaking the fourth wall and involving audience members in the show. At least they seem to be audience members, although one may have been a plant. But this means the actors must be nimble enough to adapt to the audience response and answers.

There’s a good chance you might have seen a version of this play. A few years ago, James Cordan did a version of the play in New York and the West End. It was recorded and broadcast on PBS.

The show is set in 1963, and as usual, the plot is contrived and silly. Pauline Clench, daughter of Charlie “the Duck” Clench, is engaged to marry Alan Dangle, son of Harry Dangle. The problem is the Pauline was previously engaged to Roscoe Crabbe as part of a financial business arrangement with her father to provide cover for Roscoe, who was gay. But Roscoe was killed by Stanley Stubber, the boyfriend of Roscoe’s (identical) twin sister, Rachel. Roscoe’s man, Francis Henshall (the harlequin in this play) shows up with Rachel disguised as Roscoe on the night of the engagement party, and this is the start of the hilarity. Francis ends up being employed as a servant to both Roscoe/Rachel and Stanley, with neither knowing about the other. Add to this Charlie’s bookkeeper, Dolly, who is sweet on Francis; Alfie, an incredibly old waiter at the inn; and Lloyd, a long time friend of Charlie and owner of the pub where much of the action takes place. Oh, and Paddy, who is blamed for everything. Mix this up, stir it up, and as they say, “hilarity ensures”.

Additionally, there is a four-piece skiffle band on stage (this is the early 1960s type of band that birthed the Beatles). This isn’t a musical per se, as the music does not relate to the story or move it forward. But it is a play with music, and the music is quite good and funny. The music serves to set the time and tone of the piece.

The cast was very talented, especially Kasey Mahaffy as Francis Henshall. Mahaffy is a master of the physical comedy and the improvisation, and was consistently entertaining. He was the center of the show, and his timing really made the show work. Also outstanding was Trisha Miller as Dolly, Cassandra Marie Murphy as Pauline, and Christie Coran as Rachel. Josey Montana McCoy was wonderful as Alfie, handling his physical comedy well. In the ensemble, Vic Crusaos was really strong, especially in the first act.

We hadn’t been to A Noise Within in ages: our last show there was Three Penny Opera in 2015. A Noise Within focuses on the classics; we tend to go for the rarely done shows. I’ll keep my eyes open for upcoming shows of interest. Their upcoming season includes Joe Turner’s Come and Gone (Oct 12-Nov 9); A Christmas Carol (Nov 29-Dec 24); Richard III (Feb 8-Mar 8); Death of a Salesman (Mar 22-Apr 19); and Exit the King (Ionesco), May 3-31.

Alas, your opportunities to see One Man Two Guvnors is limited; it is 1130am as I write this, and the last performance is today at 200pm. Visit the show page at A Noise Within for more information.

Credits

One Man, Two Guvnors. Written by Richard Bean, based on The Servent of Two Masters by Carlo Goldoni. Songs by Grant Olding. Directed by Julia Rodriguez-Elliott and Goeff Elliott.

Cast (^æ denotes Actors Equity member): Kasey Mahaffy^æ Francis Henshall; Ty Aldridge^æ Stanley Stubbers; Christie Coran^æ Rachel Crabbe; Paul David Story^æ Alan Dangle; Trisha Miller^æ Dolly; Cassandra Marie Murphy^æ Pauline Clench; Luis Kelly-Duarte Lloyd Boateng; Henri Lubatti^æ Charlie Clench; Lynn Robert Berg^æ Harry Dangle; Josey Montana McCoy^æ Alfie; Evan Lugo Gareth; Adriel Camarena Ensemble; Vic Crusaos Ensemble; Cristian Venegas Ensemble.  Understudies: Scott Harris^æ u/s Francis Henshall; Evan Lugo u/s Stanley Stubbers; Lucy Parks Urbano u/s Rachel Crabbe; Nate Ritsema^æ u/s Alan Dangle; Becca Savoy^æ u/s Dolly / Pauline Clench; Francis C. Edemobi u/s Lloyd Boateng; Alistair McKenzie^æ u/s Charlie Clench / Harry Dangle; Mac Rodgers^æ u/s Alfie / Gareth.

Music Department: Rob Bagheri Music Director, Acoustic Guitar, Keyboard, Lead Vocals; Cody Volk Electric Guitar, Background Vocals; Mike Selfridge Upright Bass, Electric Bass, Background Vocals; Art Pacheco Drums, Washboard, Background Vocals.

Production and Creative: Julia Rodriguez-Elliott Producing Artistic Director / Director; Geoff Elliott Producing Artistic Director / Director; Angela Sonner^æ Production Stage Manager; Hope Matthews^æ Assistant Stage Manager; Frederica Nascimento Scenic Designer; Ken Booth Lighting Designer; Jeff Gardner Sound Designer; Kenneth R. Merckx Jr. Fight Choreographer; Andrew Odinov Dialect Coach; Nicholas Santiago Projection Design; Sasha Smith Intimacy Coordinator; Indira Tyler 1960’s Dance Consultant; Stephen Taylor Properties Designer / Technical Coordinator; Tony Valdes Wig / Makeup Designer; Dr. Miranda Johnson-Haddad Resident Dramaturg; Douglas Love-Ramos Managing Director; Alison Rodriquez Casting Director.

Administrivia

I am not a professional critic. I’m a cybersecurity professional, a roadgeek who does a highway site and a podcast about California Highways, and someone who loves live performance. I buy all my own tickets, unless explicitly noted otherwise. I do these writeups to share my thoughts on shows with my friends and the community. I encourage you to go to your local theatres and support them (ideally, by purchasing full price tickets, if you can afford to do so). We currently subscribe or have memberships at: Center Theatre Group/Ahmanson Theatre; Broadway in Hollywood/Pantages Theatre; Pasadena Playhouse; The Soraya, and 5-Star Theatricals. We’re looking for the right intimate theatre to subscribe at — it hasn’t been the same since Rep East died (it’s now The Main, and although it does a lot of theatre, it doesn’t have seasons or a resident company), and post-COVID, most 99-seaters aren’t back to doing seasons (or seasons we like). I used to do more detailed writeups; here’s my current approach.

Upcoming ♦ Theatre / ♣ Music / ◊ Other Live Performance – Next 90ish Days (⊕ indicates ticketing is pending).

• October: ♣ Fly Me to the Moon at The Soraya; ♦ Hairspray at 5-Star Theatricals; ♦ ha ha ha ha ha ha at Pasadena Playhouse
• November: ♦ Jaja’s African Hair Braiding at CTG/Taper; ♦ Paranormal Activity at CTG/Ahmanson; ♦ Suffs at BIH/Pantages;
• December: ◊ ACSAC Conference; ♣ Nochebuena: A Christmas Spectacular at The Soraya; ♦ Stereophonic at BIH/Pantages;

This entry was originally posted on Observations Along the Road as Commedia on the Brighton Line | "One Man, Two Guvnors" @ A Noise Within by cahwyguy. Although you can comment on DW, please make comments on original post at the Wordpress blog using the link to the left. You can sign in with your LJ, DW, FB, or a myriad of other accounts. Note: Subsequent changes made to the post on the blog are not propagated by the SNAP Crossposter; please visit the original post to see the latest version. P.S.: If you see share buttons above, note that they do not work outside of the Wordpress blog.

Blame Google Translate if the title is poor: It gave the translation of my title for this post as פידלערס און אימיגראנטן, with the transliteration you see above. Yes, I could call my daughter, the Yiddish scholar. But she has her life; I’ll have her check it the next time we talk.

I’ve been trying to figure out how to write up “Fiddler on the Roof (in Yiddish)“, which we saw yesterday afternoon at the Soraya (Valley Performing Arts Center) on the campus of CSUN. Isn’t is beautiful? (Oh, sorry, dropped into Vin Scully mode. IYKYK).

After all, everyone has seen Fiddler: If not the excellent movie adaptation with Topol, than one of the various Broadway productions (the most recent tour came through here in 2019). If not that, than one of the many many regional productions (I want to say that Moonlight in San Diego did it this summer, for example). What can one say about the story? That it was timeless? That it reflects the Jewish experience that brought many families to America? That it reflects the triumph of love over tradition? That it reflects the battle of tradition against modernity? That it is a story that appeals to all cultures? All that and more.

But that form of deep dive doesn’t seem quite right, because this wasn’t quite a theatre production. It was a concert production. There were no sets. There were no props. There were no real costumes, other than vaguely shtetl-ish clothing. A good portion of the non-singing dialogue was cut, except the minimal necessary to frame the songs and provide context.

Perhaps I should write it up as I do concerts, which is to assess the musicians and perhaps give a set list. The performers here were top notch—perhaps that is because they imported much of the original New York cast. These performers had great voices, and brought honed characterizations to their roles. All were spectacular. I particularly enjoyed Steven Skybell as Tevye, Rachel Zatcoff as Tzeitl, Jennifer Babiak as Golde, and Kirk Geritano as Motl. Additionally, Lauren Jeanne Thomas was great as the Fiddler. But there’s not much to say there.

So I’m going to take as my plot discussion starting point an audience member, who chose to wear a MAGA hat to the production (a subdued grey one, but a MAGA hat nonetheless). There are quite a few parallels and touching-off points in Fiddler to modern times.

There is the whole notion of pogrums and the disappearing of people by the Tzar, simply for their religious views. There is the destruction of poor people’s property by the government. There is suspicion of people, simply because of their religion. Change “religion” to “brown skin”, and you have the current administration. This behavior was wrong in the days of the Tzar; it is wrong now. This play reminds us of that. We should let people live their lives in dignity.

But more importantly: The heart of this play is the immigrant experience. They endure heartbreak and exile, and their hope is immigration to Amerike (America). Would these folks be let in today? No papers. No jobs. No applications for asylum. If they came under this administration, they would be rejected, or hunted down by ICE. Yet it is the Jewish immigrants, and the Irish, and the Italians, and the Germans (like Trump’s grandfather, in matter of fact) that built the previous generation of America. It is the immigrants from Africa, admittedly forced, that built this country. All of these folks came in with an immigration process that was little more than a health check. They made America great.

But the current administration is scared of people that look different than them. Brown skin, a different language. Spanish to them is what Yiddish was when Tevye’s people came over. But this administration wants to stop the entry of people with brown skin, in particular. They fail to recognize that it is the industrious, hard working, smart immigrants that will make the next generation of America’s success. Though at the bottom when they enter, taking menial jobs (sweatshops and fields), they will soon move up and become community leaders. And the folks in the current administration are scared of that. They don’t want to lose their power, their influence, and most importantly, their wealth. This is the same attitude the white leaders had against the Chinese, Italians, Irish, and yes, the Russian Jews, in the early 1990s.

Immigration doesn’t hurt America. Immigration makes America strong. Good folk like Tevye and his family demonstrate that. But the current administration wouldn’t let them in.

Trump needs to see Fiddler. He probably wouldn’t; if he did, he likely wouldn’t have empathy for the shetl. He’d have admiration for the Tzar. And that says everything.

Did I have quibbles with the show? Yes. First and foremost, give us a real program. Digital programs are cost-saving measures that benefit no one. You can’t file them away and go back and remember. You can’t have them easily open to read during the show (especially when there is no signal in the hall). They disappear off of websites, and provide no historical record. Please, please, please, go back to a printed program. Even if it is just two or four pages. Give us something.

The other problem with the show was the audience. Sunday matinee of an old Jewish chestnut means loads of clueless seniors. This means that the elevators were full of slow moving people. People were confused on where to find things. People were arriving late — we had people being seated late almost 30 minutes in. We had people constantly playing with their phones, and turning on the phone lights when they dropped the phones. I know there’s little I can do about this, but I’m a senior now myself, and I can kvetch with the best of them. But seriously: The Soraya could have recognized this and done some earlier announcements to get people moving to their seats earlier; they could also have had the traditional announcement at the start of the show to turn off cell phones and light and sound emitting devices. It would have helped.

This was a single weekend run of this show. Alas, by the time you read this, you’ve missed it.

Credits

Fiddler on the Roof (in Yiddish). Based on the Sholem Aleichem stories by special permission of Arnold Perl. Book by Joseph Stein. Music by Jerry Bock. Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick. Orchestrations by Larry Blank. Originally Produced on the New York Stage by Harold Prince. Original New York Stage Production Directed and Choreographed by Jerome Robbins. Yiddish Translation by Shraga Friedman. Directed by Joel Grey.

Cast: Steven Skybell Tevye; Jennifer Babiak Golde; Rachel Zatcoff Tsaytl; Yael Eden Chanukov Hodl; Rosie Jo Neddy Khave; Kirk Geritano Motl;  Drew Seigla Pertshik;  Griffith Frank Fyedka / Ensemble;  Samuel Druhora Leyzer Volf; Lisa Fishman Yente / Bobe Tsaytl; Bobby Underwood Constable / Ensemble; Carly Post Shprintse / Ensemble; Glenn Rosenblum Rabbi / Ensemble; Jodi Snyder Frume-Sore / Beylke; James Monroe Števko Mendl / Ensemble; Mikhl Yashinsky Nokhem / Mordkhe / Ensemble; John Reed Avrom / Ensemble; Lauren Jeanne Thomas The Fiddler; Michelle Azar Ensemble; Jessica Fishenfeld Ensemble; Michael P. McDonald Ensemble; Rachel Oremland Ensemble; Rachel Policar Ensemble; Bryan Vickery Ensemble; Brooke Wetterhahn Ensemble.

Music Department: Zalmen Mlotek Conductor; Sara Parkins Violin; Caleb Vaughn-Jones Cello; Sara Andon Flute; Dmiti Zisl Slepovitch Reeds; Dan Fornero Trumpet;  Alan Kaplan Trombone; Brian Silverman Guitar / Mandolin; John Sawoski Keyboard; Gee Rabe Accordion; Peter Saleh Percussion; Tim Christensen Bass / Contractor.

Production and Creative: Joel Grey Director; Beowulf Boritt Projection Design; Matthew “Motl” Didner Associate Director; Zalmen Mlotek Music Director / Conductor; Beth Scorzato Stage Manager; Dan Weingarten Lighting Design; Jamibeth Margolis, CSA Original New York Casting; Michael Donovan Los Angeles Casting; Jonathan Quesenberry Rehearsal Pianist; Beowulf Boritt Original Scenic Design Images.

Administrivia

I am not a professional critic. I’m a cybersecurity professional, a roadgeek who does a highway site and a podcast about California Highways, and someone who loves live performance. I buy all my own tickets, unless explicitly noted otherwise. I do these writeups to share my thoughts on shows with my friends and the community. I encourage you to go to your local theatres and support them (ideally, by purchasing full price tickets, if you can afford to do so). We currently subscribe or have memberships at: Center Theatre Group/Ahmanson Theatre; Broadway in Hollywood/Pantages Theatre; Pasadena Playhouse; The Soraya, and 5-Star Theatricals. We’re looking for the right intimate theatre to subscribe at — it hasn’t been the same since Rep East died (it’s now The Main, and although it does a lot of theatre, it doesn’t have seasons or a resident company), and post-COVID, most 99-seaters aren’t back to doing seasons (or seasons we like). I used to do more detailed writeups; here’s my current approach.

Upcoming ♦ Theatre / ♣ Music / ◊ Other Live Performance – Next 90ish Days (⊕ indicates ticketing is pending).

• September: ♦ Eureka Day at Pasadena Playhouse; ♦ One Man, Two Guvnors at A Noise Within. Possibles: Just Another Day at the Odyssey (simply so I can go up to Dan Lauria afterwards and ask if he’ll ever bring back Meeting of Minds, which stopped when he went off to do Lombardi many years ago); Real Women Have Curves at Kentwood Players.
• October: ♣ Fly Me to the Moon at The Soraya; ♦ Hairspray at 5-Star Theatricals; ♦ ha ha ha ha ha ha at Pasadena Playhouse
• November: ♦ Jaja’s African Hair Braiding at CTG/Taper; ♦ Paranormal Activity at CTG/Ahmanson; ♦ Suffs at BIH/Pantages;
• December: ◊ ACSAC Conference; ♣ Nochebuena: A Christmas Spectacular at The Soraya; ♦ Stereophonic at BIH/Pantages;

This entry was originally posted on Observations Along the Road as Fidlers Aun Imigrantn | "Fiddler on the Roof" (Yiddish) @ The Soraya by cahwyguy. Although you can comment on DW, please make comments on original post at the Wordpress blog using the link to the left. You can sign in with your LJ, DW, FB, or a myriad of other accounts. Note: Subsequent changes made to the post on the blog are not propagated by the SNAP Crossposter; please visit the original post to see the latest version. P.S.: If you see share buttons above, note that they do not work outside of the Wordpress blog.

When I think about & Juliet, the musical I saw last night at the Ahmanson Theatre, three musicals come to mind:

• Mamma Mia, which is a wonderful jukebox music of female empowerment and love, set to very catchy pop tunes.
• Some Like It Hot, which we saw two weeks ago at the Pantages, and which is a wonderful musical about acceptance of people for who they are
• Something Rotten, which sends up Shakespeare and exposes him as the egoist we all know him to be.

From the opening notes, & Juliet was a thoroughly enjoyable and fun musical. It was a delight to watch, with extremely strong dancing and singing, and some great underlying messages. But it is really hard to describe.

But let’s try.

To start off: This is a jukebox musical, featuring the music of songwriter and producer Max Martin. If you’re like me (especially if you’re older, like me), you’ll go, “Who?” So let’s put it this way: He’s a Swedish songwriter (hence, the reason ABBA came to mind), who has written almost 300 songs, made famous by artists from the Backstreet Boys, Brittney Spears, Katy Perry, Jessie J, Robyn, Ke$ha, Demi Lovato, Ariana Grande, Bon Jovi, Adam Lambert, Céline Dion, *NSYNC, Pink, Justin Timberlake, Kelly Clarkson, and… well, you get the idea. Essentially, the music in this show is a soundtrack of the early 2000s and late 1990s. This is why Mamma Mia comes to mind, and the tunes are so poppy and energetic.

The basic plot of the musical is inspired…. by William Shakespeare. The basic premise is: What if Juliet, at the end of Romeo and Juliet, hadn’t killed herself, but instead lived and reclaimed her power? At least, that’s what Ann Hathaway, William Shakespeare’s wife keeps push, although William, ever the egoist, keeps meddling back into the story to get his way. Insert various humorous impacts and conflicts here. This is why Something Rotten comes to mind.

But this is a modern musical, with modern sensibilities (although perhaps not so modern, as Shakespeare was someone gender-bending in his characters anyway). So one of Juliet’s friends, May, is trans/queer (it is never made explicit). And, this being a love story, May falls in love with one of the leading men (and you can predict where that leads). This goes heavily with the notion of acceptance of us for who we are and whatever we choose to be. This is why Some Like It Hot comes to mind.

So you have the basic idea of the show. I could go into the details of the plot, but you can get that by reading Wikipedia, or going to the & Juliet page.

I do want to highlight some cast members: Rachel Simone Webb was outstanding as Juliet. Boy, does that girl have a set of pipes. Ishmael Gonzalez, swinging up to play May, did a remarkable job. They have wonderful movement and a great voice. Teal Wicks was great as Anne Hathway; I particularly liked her facial expressions in response to Will (Corey Mach)’s antics. Notable in the ensemble was Kate Mina Lin and Shelby Griswold.

We really enjoyed this show. Even with the large number of cast substitutions (one mid-show that I didn’t quite catch), the cast was very strong (and I was impressed by the number of larger folks in the cast, which is also a form of acceptance). The dancing was remarkable, and the costumes superb. There was one costume change near the end I couldn’t figure out how they did it. It was just a lovely afternoon.

There were, however, two problematic aspects:

• First, enough with the glitter or confetti cannons. It seems like every show I’m going to these days has one of these things raining bits of paper or mylar on the audience. It makes a mess for the theatre to clean up and throw away (it can’t be reused or recycled). We just don’t need it.
• Second, the audience at this show was a problem. Perhaps it was that this music drew in a newer and non-theatre crowd, but people would walk and stop, unaware of folks around them. People had no idea where to go, and kept going in and out of the theatre. There also, evidently, was a couple that had had too much to drink in the middle of the row behind us. They were being loud, and people were constantly leaving the row to complain to the ushers. The ushers, of course, couldn’t do anything about it as they were in the middle of a row and the show was going on, so these people who kept complaining were simply just disturbing even more people. There’s no good answer here, other than: DON’T GO TO THE THEATRE IF YOU CAN’T HOLD YOUR LIQUOR!

But these are minor aspects, and one day shows will learn about glitter/confetti cannons and they will go out of vogue. I hope.

& Juliet  continues at the Ahmanson through September 7, 2025. Tickets are available through the CTG Website or TodayTix.

Credits

& Juliet. Book by David West Read. Music and lyrics by Max Martin and Friends. Directed by Luke Sheppard. Choreographed by Jennifer Weber.

Cast [underscores indicate “at our performance”; strikeouts indicate “not at our performance”; ↑ indicates “swung up”]: Rachel Simone Webb Juliet; Paul-Jordan Jansen ↑ Usman Ali Mughal Lance; Teal Wicks Anne; Corey Mach Shakespeare; Nick Drake ↑ Ishmael Gonzalez May; Kathryn Allison Angélique; Ben Jackson Walker ↑ Josh Jordan Romeo; Mateus Leite Cardoso François, Naima Alakham Lady Capulet, Nell; Camille Brooks Judith / Rosaline; Kate Mina Lin Eleanor / Benvolio / Portia; Lois Ellise Susanna, Swing; Ishmael Gonzalez ↑ Jourdan Ibe Gregory ; Kenneth Onesimus Goubran Augustine; Shelby Griswold Lucy / Helena; Christopher Robert Hanford Henry / Bathroom Attendant; ↑ Jourdan Ibe Lennox, Swing; Josh Jordan ↑ Kyra Smith Richard; Nicole Lamb Margaret, Swing; Yoshi Maysonet Dion; Usman Ali Mughal Francisco Thurston Lord Capulet, Sly; ↑ Kyra Smith Titania, Swing; ↑ Francisco Thurston Cuthbert, Swing.  There was no indication of who took over the roles of the Gregory, Cuthbert, or Richard, or whether the ensemble just go smaller. There was also an announcement after intermission that someone named “Nicole” was joining the cast, but it was unclear if that was Nicole Lamb swinging into her understudy role of Anne (although that actress didn’t seem to change), or Nella Cole, who was in the original tour cast, taking over as Eleanor / Benviolio / Portia, although that actress didn’t seem to change either. Folks that seemed to disappear from the cast between the program printing and update sheet: Michael Canu Romeo; Nella Cole Eleanor, Benvolio, Josh Ferman u/s François, Romeo; Virgil Gadson Crosse, Swing.

Music Department (♯ indicates local): Max Martin and Friends Music and Lyrics; Bill Sherman Music Supervisor, Orchestrations, and Arrangements; Andrew Cerullo Music Director; Dominic Fallacaro Additional Orchestrations and Arrangements; Michael Aarons, M² Music Music Coordinator; Haley Bennett Associate Music & Supervision; Andre Cerullo Conductor / Keyboard; Kelsi Fulton Assoc. Conductor / Keyboard; Clay Nordhill Guitar; Tabari Lake Bass; Zack Albetta Drums; ♯ Jennifer Choi Fischer Violin / Viola; ♯ David Mergen Cello ; ♯ Brad Gardner Keyboard 2 Sub; ♯ Dan Fornero Music Contractor; Anja Wood, M² Music Assoc. Music Coordinator; Emily Grishman Music Preparation, Adriana Grace, and Alden Terry Music Copying; Pre-Broadway Copying Mark Cumberland; Phij Adams Music Technology & Ableton System Design; Randy Cohen, Randy Cohen Keyboards U.S. Music Technology; Scott Wasserman Additional Ableton Programming & Music Production; Matt Farnsworth Vocal Studio Vocal Coach/Consultant.

Production and Creative: Luke Sheppard Director; Jennifer Weber Choreographer; Francisco Thurston Dance Captain; Kyra Smith Asst Dance Captain; Soutra Gilmour Set Design; Paloma Young Costume Design; Howard Hudson Lighting Design; Gareth Owen Sound Design; Andrzej Goulding Video & Projection Design; J. Jared Janas Wig, Hair, & Makeup Design; C12 Casting Casting; Susanna Wolk Assoc. Director; Joel Rosen Production Stage Manager; Annelise Castleberry Stage Manager; Chloe Rose Schweizer Asst Stage Manager; Danny Daniello Company Manager; Juniper Street Productions Production Management; RCI Theatricals General Manager; Bond Theatrical Tour Booking, Marketing, & Publicity.

Administrivia

I am not a professional critic. I’m a cybersecurity professional, a roadgeek who does a highway site and a podcast about California Highways, and someone who loves live performance. I buy all my own tickets, unless explicitly noted otherwise. I do these writeups to share my thoughts on shows with my friends and the community. I encourage you to go to your local theatres and support them (ideally, by purchasing full price tickets, if you can afford to do so). We currently subscribe or have memberships at: Center Theatre Group/Ahmanson Theatre; Broadway in Hollywood/Pantages Theatre; Pasadena Playhouse; The Soraya, and 5-Star Theatricals. We’re looking for the right intimate theatre to subscribe at — it hasn’t been the same since Rep East died (it’s now The Main, and although it does a lot of theatre, it doesn’t have seasons or a resident company), and post-COVID, most 99-seaters aren’t back to doing seasons (or seasons we like). I used to do more detailed writeups; here’s my current approach.

Upcoming ♦ Theatre / ♣ Music / ◊ Other Live Performance – Next 90ish Days (⊕ indicates ticketing is pending).

• September: ♦ Shucked at BIH/Pantages; ♦ Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish at The Soraya; ♦ Eureka Day at Pasadena Playhouse. I’m seriously considering One Man, Two Guvnors at A Noise Within, and possibly Just Another Day at the Odyssey (simply so I can go up to Dan Lauria afterwards and ask if he’ll ever bring back Meeting of Minds, which stopped when he went off to do Lombardi many years ago).
• October: ♣ Fly Me to the Moon at The Soraya; ♦ Hairspray at 5-Star Theatricals; ♦ ha ha ha ha ha ha at Pasadena Playhouse
• November: ♦ Jaja’s African Hair Braiding at CTG/Taper; ♦ Paranormal Activity at CTG/Ahmanson; ♦ Suffs at BIH/Pantages;

This entry was originally posted on Observations Along the Road as I Want It That Way | "& Juliet" @ CTG/Ahmanson by cahwyguy. Although you can comment on DW, please make comments on original post at the Wordpress blog using the link to the left. You can sign in with your LJ, DW, FB, or a myriad of other accounts. Note: Subsequent changes made to the post on the blog are not propagated by the SNAP Crossposter; please visit the original post to see the latest version. P.S.: If you see share buttons above, note that they do not work outside of the Wordpress blog.

Disclaimer: This writeup talks about ice, and not chilling version of the substance that has lately been in the news. With respect to that form of the substance, we need a society that is warm hearted and cares about others, for ice should not be chilling our hearts, and we don’t need that form of cold in our farms, factories, streets, cities, or countries. Hmmm, I guess the musical I’m about to discuss is more political than I thought: It’s all about how true love for others can melt the ice that is threatening to destroy us: at home, down the street at farms in Camarillo, and in our nation. That said, on with the writeup.

What’s the difference between refrigerator ice and cocktail ice? Cocktail ice is made with special professional equipment: It freezes from the inside out so that it is crystal clear and perfect. The ice we make in our refrigerator freezes from the outside in, trapping air bubbles and making the cube cloudy. Our drink doesn’t care about these imperfections: It gets cold just the same, and gets diluted just the same. But we’ve been convinced we need the perfect ice, and we’ve been convinced that we need to pay more for it.

Back in January 2020 — shortly before the pandemic hit — I saw Frozen at the Hollywood Pantages. Much of what I wrote then still applies to the show itself, and I’ll take the easy way out and repeat it below. But I’d like to emphasize one thing I said in that writeup, so pay attention to the text I have bolded:

Q: So, when Elsa gets hungry in that Ice Palace™ of hers, what does she eat?

A:  Frozen foods.

Are we going out on that joke? No, we’ll do an overdue writeup of a Disney™ animated movie turned into a stage musical first. Will that help? Not much, no.

OK, Stan Freberg aside: Yes, we saw Frozen at the Hollywood Pantages (FB) last Sunday, and this writeup is way way overdue. But it has been a busy busy week in the evenings (which is when I have time to do the writeups), and its not as if this writeup would do much to change the trajectory of this musical, which has its expected popularity with particular audience segments.

The way I’m starting this writeup makes it appear that this was a bad musical. It wasn’t at all. It was essentially the Disney musical on stage, with some adaptations to better fit the limitations of a real, non-animated world. The story was musical to begin with, so there wasn’t the question of whether this should be musicalized. It is clear that Disney intended for this to eventually move to the stage with the structure of the story and songs. The larger question of whether this needed to be on the stage is a different one: is it making an important point or message that isn’t being made elsewhere, or is this a profit calculation. I do think this falls into the latter category — this isn’t a Dear Evan Hansen, Come From Away, or Hamilton. It is clearly motivated by profit and parents, as evidenced by the length of its sit-down run at the Pantages.

That, by the way, doesn’t make this a bad musical. It is just not one of lasting social importance. But it is revolutionary, in its own way, for a Disney musical. You have princesses wearing pants, for example. But more importantly, you have a princess story where the goal is NOT the princess getting the prince. In fact, the prince is a cad. The true love in this story is the one between the sisters. It is that “true loves kiss” that moves the story forward (and sorry for the spoiler if you haven’t seen the movie). There are some who believe that this story even has a lesbian subtext. I don’t see that — neither sister seems to express a strong sexual desire towards anyone, so this could be asexual at best. But it is a strong story based on the sibling bond, and that’s something you don’t see in Disney that often. That could be one reason why shows like Frozen and Wicked have such a strong following from young women: they center on relationships between women that are/love each other as sisters, and that aren’t centered around the men on the periphery. That’s a message of female empowerment, something that is decidedly not the Disney of Yore.

The stage production is also a technical marvel. First and foremost is the puppetry. There are two primary puppets: Sven (the reindeer) and Olaf (the snowman). Sven is marvelous, with no real hint that there is a human actor inside. Realistic movements, playful, believable. Not at all a cartoon. Olaf, on the other hand, is intentionally cartoonish. You can see the human moving him behind him. But the attachments are such that Olaf really comes to life, and is an equally believable characters. Second and, umm, duomost, is the magic. This is a combination of projection, LED manipulation, stage magic, flying effects. They create Arendale, but more importantly, they create the ice effects and the magical ice palace. They create the magic costume transformations. This magic will make this production memorable for the youth in attendance, and may go a long way to creating lifetime theatre lovers. That’s the good thing. What’s bad? Think regional and smaller productions of this. This will be licensed at some point, and there will be regional and smaller productions of this. How will they reproduce the puppetry and stage magic, within limited budgets? That remains to be seen. Hopefully, the Disney juggernaut has planned ahead for those situations. I’m curious how the productions of Frozen Jr. handle this?

The songs are generally those of the movie, with some substitutions based on the changes in the story — primarily involving how the hidden folk that raised Kristof are presented and integrated in the story. More notably, in terms of music, this is NOT the production that is on Broadway. A new song has been integrated into Act II: “I Can’t Lose You”, which does a great job of showing and emphasizing the sisterly bond between Anna and Elsa. This helps center the story, and foreshadows the conclusion much better. This is as good a place as any to note that the music and lyrics are by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez, with a book by Jennifer Lee, who also wrote the Disney animated film, which was directed by Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee.

Saturday night, we were out in Thousand Oaks for the second production of the 5-Star Theatricals season: Frozen: The Broadway Musical.  Like my original writeup, this one has been delayed from my usual schedule, simply because we were travelling on Sunday. Also, like my original writeup, this one won’t change the trajectory of the show, as it closed Sunday night. Such are 5-Star runs. Further, like the original production, the audience was filled with little girls dressed as Elsa and Anna (and the occasional boy as Olaf … for some reason, they never dress like Sven or Kristoff); for many of whom, this was their first taste of live theatre. It is clear that older adults like us are not the audience of this show.

But what I would like to focus on is the bolded text. This production was one of a wave of the first regional productions of the show. How did they do with preserving the Broadway magic? A reviewing colleague of mine was slightly disappointed, comparing the production to a recent one from a company with more budget and resources. I think each production needs to stand on its own. In this respect, I think 5-Star did well. The puppets were professional and effective, although credit for that belongs to Theatre Under the Stars in Houston TX, source of the puppets. The magical projections here, however, were home-grown. Read the credits: The projections weren’t rented or provided by MTI (the licensing organization) or Disney: they were locally created by Nicholas Santiago. Understanding that, they were remarkably effective, especially considering the budgetary limitations that 5-Star must be working under [from having 3 productions in the larger Kavli theatre, they’ve gone to two in the smaller Scherr Forum, and only one in the big house — and that house was only about 40% full at our show … 5-Star has never recovered from the pre-pandemic highs]. Further, the primary audience of this show — the Disney lovers and the kids — won’t notice the difference. This show, for what it was, was effective.

What made this show special was less the production, and more the talent. That’s where 5-Star has traditionally excelled: they cast exceptionally well, especially for what is a large quasi-community/quasi-professional company that has limited AEA (^æ) spots available. In this case, the Elsa and Anna were spot on. Monika Peña^æ (Elsa) we saw as Nancy in 5-Star’s Oliver, in the cast of the Deaf-West American Idiot at the Taper, as Lizzie Borden in Lizzie at the Chance. Ella Smith^æ (Anna) was the lead (Bonnie) in the recent Bonnie & Clyde at the Rubicon. Strong singers, and strong performers. These two made the show.

The supporting folks were equally strong. Notable here was Frankie Zabilka, who we’ve seen in a number of 5-Star productions, notably their versions of Newsies and Something Rotten. Zabilka has a humor and charm that shone through as Hans of the Southern Isles, making the ending twist even better. Sawyer Patterson^æ, the third AEA actor, made a strong and effective Kristoff, and Landon Starkman puppeted Olaf well.

Also notable were Catherine Last and Amy Sorensen as the young Elsa and Anna, respectively. Sorensen was so cute as her headpiece kept falling off, and the two of them couldn’t hide their childish playfulness.

The show had a few flaws: I think the second act opener, “Hygge”, suffered from being overplayed and having poor enunciation, making the lyrics hard to hear in the back of the orchestra. That’s less a problem with the actors, and more with the direction. But other than that, I think the show served its audience well. This is not a deep show. It is a show designed to entertain little girls and Disney-lovers. It is a trifle. It doesn’t have the long-term lasting depth of other Disney shows, such as The Lion King or Beauty and the Beast, both in terms of plot or quality of the songs. But it succeeds for what it is.

Should you go see it? Here is where I get off easy: You can’t. It closed Sunday. Knowing 5-Star’s track record, you should consider seeing their production of Hairspray in October, which will be directed by Marissa Jaret Winokur (the original Tracey on Broadway), in the smaller Scherr forum. I’m curious to see how Hairspray works in the smaller theatre that doesn’t have the fly space or the wing space. I’m also unfamiliar with Winokur’s directing experience. But, in general, 5-Star productions are strong so it should be good.

Cast and Crew

Frozen: The Broadway Musical. Music and Lyrics by Kristen Anderson-Lopez & Robert Lopez. Book by Jennifer Lee. Directed by Yvette Lawrence. Choreography by Cheryl Baxter. Originally directed on Broadway by Michael Grandage. Based on the Disney film written by Jennifer Lee and directed by Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee. Originally produced on Broadway by Disney Theatrical Productions.

Cast (^æ indicates Actors Equity): Monika Peña^æ Elsa; Ellie Smith^æ Anna; Landen Starkman Olaf; Sawyer Patterson^æ Kristoff; Frankie Zabilka Hans; Sebastian Guerro Sven; Travis Joe Dixon Weselton; Javier Garcia Oaken, Ensemble; Ceron Jones Pabbie, Ensemble; Jodi Marks Bulda, Ensemble; Eleen Hsu-Wentlandt Queen Iduna, Ensemble; Richie Ferris King Agnarr, Ensemble, Casting Director; Amanda Aceves-Lopez Ensemble; Melissa Musial Ensemble; Aaron Michael-Rees Camitses Ensemble; Jeff Garrido Ensemble; Luc Clopton Ensemble; Angelikah “Jelly” Chun Ensemble; Chloe Johnson Ensemble; Lielle Kaidar Ensemble; Matthew Smith Ensemble; Micah Nicholson Ensemble; Rasha Willes Samaha Ensemble; Catherine Last Young Elsa; Amy Sorensen Young Anna; Charlee Marie Youth Ensemble Ava Giselle Field Youth Ensemble; Conner Noson Youth Ensemble; Madison North Youth Ensemble; Sophia Sedik Youth Ensemble; Zander Chin Youth Ensemble.

Music Department; Anthony Lucca Music Director, Conductor; Dave Metzger Original Broadway Orchestrations; Stephen Oremus Original Broadway Music Supervision and Arrangements; David Chase Additional Broadway Dance Arrangements; Gary Rautenberg Flute, Piccolo, Alto Sax, Soprano Sax; Darryl Tanikawa Clarinet, Tenor Sax, Orchestra Contractor; Christopher Maurer Trumpet 1, Flugelhorn; Bill Barrett Trumpet 2, Flugelhorn; Matt Evans Tenor & Bass Trombones; Melissa Hendrickson Horn; Cody Cadena Acoustic & Electric Guitars, Banjo; Chris Kimbler Keyboard Synthesizer 1; Benjamin Ginsberg Keyboard Synthesizer 2; Lloyd Cooper Keyboard Synthesizer 3; Shane Harry Electric & Acoustic Double Bass; Satoshi Kittahama Set Drums, Extra Percussion; Joe Martone Large & Hand Percussion; Tanikawa Artists Management LLC Orchestra Production.

Production and Creative: Yvette Lawrence Director; Cheryl Baxter Choreographer; Lorelai Snow Bishop Asst. Choreographer, Swing; Cameron J. Turner^æ Production Stage Manager; Gavin Lattimer^æ Asst. Stage Manager; E. K. Dagenfield Production Manager; Jonathan A. Burke Sound Design; Julia Pinhey Assoc. Sound Design; Isa Underdahl Sound Mixer; Brandon Baruch Lighting Design; Alex Choate Prop Design; Luis Martinez Wig, Hair, Makeup Design; Nicholas Santiago Projection Design; Front Row Theatrical Rentals Scenery; Olney Theatre Rentals Costumes; Theatre Under the Stars Puppets; Jack Allaway Technical Director; Jacob Holcombe Crew Chief; Richie Ferris Casting Director; Michael Donovan Casting Director; Elzer/Demand PR Publicity; Fresh Interactive Marketing Team.

Thoughts on 5-Star Theatricals

We’ve been subscribers at 5-Star Theatricals, or its predecessor Cabillo Music Theatre, for over 20 years (since 2001), except for one year. This may be our last year. There are some clear and simple reasons why, none of which are the specific fault of 5-Star. More, most are the fault of Thousand Oaks and the management at the Bank of America Theatre.

• First: Parking. Parking at the Kavli has gone up to $16. Expensive parking I can understand in a place where there isn’t a lot of available parking, such as near the Pantages. But when LA County can do $10 parking at the Ahmanson, there’s no reason for $16 in the empty structure at the Kavli. $9 was acceptable. $16 is not.
• Second: Security. At the Music Center — a much higher profile target being downtown near the LA City hall — there is little to no security. No bag inspections. No scanners. At the Pantages: There are metal scanners and sometimes bag inspections, but they are reasonable (and my wife can bring in her knitting). But at the Kavli? It is worse than going to the airport. Empty all the pockets. Empty all the liquids. Knitting needles are verboten. There is no solid reason for this: The threat profile is negligible there. It just serves to annoy the patrons.
• Third: Prices. This I blame on the venue, not the company, because prices at the B of A Theatre are high for all Thousand Oaks productions, be it 5-Star, Broadway in Thousand Oaks, or their concert series. This turns away audiences.
• Fourth: The shows. Not the quality, but the selection. In order to survive, there is greater dependence on retreads and family-friendly shows, such as Frozen. For all the hassles listed above, there’s not a lot of attraction when the show being presented is one I’ve seen many times before, or don’t really care to see again.

When we started with Cabrillo, prices were reasonable, parking was reasonable, and there weren’t security worries. Today, there’s so much friction to attend a 5-Star show it takes away the joy. This shows in the audience size. When once the orchestra was full, the mezzanine was full, and the balconies were reasonably full, today, everyone is down in the orchestra, and the mezzanine and balconies are closed. Shows have moved from the big theatre to the small forum. I wonder if this company will survive, given these problems and the continuing leadership changes (I still miss the announcements from the stages, and the kids hawking raffle tickets before the show and at intermission).

There’s a good chance we’ll move this subscription to the Rubicon in Ventura. It’s about the same drive, for a smaller theatre with more adventurous shows. Free parking. No security. Tickets are about the same prices, alas.

Administrivia

I am not a professional critic. I’m a cybersecurity professional, a roadgeek who does a highway site and a podcast about California Highways, and someone who loves live performance. I buy all my own tickets, unless explicitly noted otherwise. I do these writeups to share my thoughts on shows with my friends and the community. I encourage you to go to your local theatres and support them (ideally, by purchasing full price tickets, if you can afford to do so). We currently subscribe or have memberships at: Center Theatre Group/Ahmanson Theatre; Broadway in Hollywood/Pantages Theatre; Pasadena Playhouse; The Soraya, and 5-Star Theatricals. We’re looking for the right intimate theatre to subscribe at — it hasn’t been the same since Rep East died (it’s now The Main, and although it does a lot of theatre, it doesn’t have seasons or a resident company), and post-COVID, most 99-seaters aren’t back to doing seasons (or seasons we like). I used to do more detailed writeups; here’s my current approach.

Upcoming ♦ Theatre / ♣ Music / ◊ Other Live Performance – Next 90ish Days (⊕ indicates ticketing is pending).

• August: ♦ Some Like It Hot at BIH/Pantages; ♦ & Juliet at CTG/Ahmanson
• September: ♦ Shucked at BIH/Pantages; ♦ Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish at The Soraya; ♦ Eureka Day at Pasadena Playhouse
• October: ♣ Fly Me to the Moon at The Soraya; ♦ Hairspray at 5-Star Theatricals

This entry was originally posted on Observations Along the Road as Refrigerator Ice vs Cocktail Ice | "Frozen" @ 5-Star Theatricals by cahwyguy. Although you can comment on DW, please make comments on original post at the Wordpress blog using the link to the left. You can sign in with your LJ, DW, FB, or a myriad of other accounts. Note: Subsequent changes made to the post on the blog are not propagated by the SNAP Crossposter; please visit the original post to see the latest version. P.S.: If you see share buttons above, note that they do not work outside of the Wordpress blog.

Fan Service.

It’s an interesting thing. The term tends to refer to some entertainment property whose reason for existence is to make fans of the artist or IP in question happy. IP properties, such as the new Superman movie or the recent Harry Potter play are good examples of fan service. Jukebox musicals are also often fan service: they serve the fans of the artist in question; rarely are they notable for their plot. To put it another way: No one goes to see Mamma Mia to see a story about a girl looking to determine the identity of her father. They go to hear ABBA music wrapped in a simple story.

Sometimes, the fan service works well. Mamma Mia is a clear example of that. Sometimes it fails miserably, such as Girl from the North Country, which didn’t provide an entertaining story or serve the Dylan’s music well. Sometimes there is too much fan, and not enough service, such as the recent Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, which served fans well but left non-fans confused.

Last night, we saw A Beautiful Noise: The Neil Diamond Musical at the Pantages. It did fan service right. It took the Neil Diamond catalog, and delivered the hits that the audience expected. It used an interesting conceit: Having the older Diamond talking to a shrink, using his songs and their lyrics to illustrate his story. It had an engaging actor playing the younger Diamond who could actually plausibly cover Diamond — his sound and mannerisms. Lastly, the story had the smack of plausibility, as (in real life) Diamond has been felled by Parkinsons Disease (like Linda Ronstadt), and thus has had to withdraw from performing and touring.

So, the plot, such as it is, really isn’t much more than Diamond’s story. We learn about his three marriages (although not that much on the last). We learn about his transition from a songwriter for others (think “I’m a Believer” for the Monkees) to being a major singer-songwriter. We learn about his disastrous contract with Bang! Records, which was a front for the mob (and, yes, I do have his “Do It!” album that he did for Bang! as one of the 19 Diamond albums I have). We learn about his extensive and exhausting concert and tour schedule during the late 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s. We learn about his isolation and his demons and the clouds and the blues, and we learn how work became the refuge from the blues. We don’t learn anything about Jonathan Livingston Seagull, which everyone has forgotten about. For good reason.

We learn about this in a setting that focuses on the performance, not the flash. There are no real projects. No major set pieces. Some chairs, some tables, some risers. Some abstract background. The basic staging is something that could likely be replicated in a reasonable regional production, so don’t be surprised if this piece has a long licensing life, much like Beautiful or Jersey Boys.

The show also understand the Diamond audience well. Diamond’s songs are so well known that they encourage singing along, and there are points where the cast just gives into that. In songs like “Sweet Caroline”, “Brother Love”, and others, the cast turns to the audience to participate because, well, the audience has been trained on these songs to do so. They don’t overdo it, but in those moments where they know the audience would want to, they give in. C’mon, you can’t listen to Sweet Caroline without singing.

What makes this production stand far and above many others is the casting. The North American Tour is lucky to have Nick Fradiani as the younger Neil. Fradiani, an American Idol winner, captures the gravelly voice and charisma that made Diamond a star. He is entertaining and delight to watch, and has such a great voice that after the show, I went and downloaded his most recent individual album. It is rare to find a stage artist, let alone a touring artist, that makes one want to buy their album. He was, as Diamond might say, “so good.”

But Robert Westenberg as the old Diamond was no slouch either. He really doesn’t sing (except in the last song), but he captures the characterization of the older Diamond well. If you watch him closely, you can see the Parkinson hesitation and tremors, and you can see someone who wants to be back on stage, back touring … but can’t. We saw the older Diamond back at the Hollywood Bowl in 2015, and I wrote: “The music was everything you would expect from Neil. The set list is below. Where something was slightly lacking was in Neil’s dialogue with the audience; at least in the beginning. He started out low energy, he seemed confused and perhaps befuddled. During “Red Red Wine” he walked out the walkway to the audience, and then wondered how he got out there and how to get back. Although it was funny, it was also a reminder that the artists of our youth are aging; they are senior citizens and may not be around for much longer.” Westenberg captured this older and aging Diamond well. In fact, during the portion of the musical where Diamond talked about his upbringing in Brooklyn, my mind flashed back to the similar segment in the 2015 concert.

The central character was Diamond. There were some other primary characters — the doctor, his wives, Ellie Greenwich from the Brill Building, the folks from the Bitter End and Bang! records — but they were clearly supporting. There was also a group of nameless backup singers and the broader chorus, which the program called “A Beautiful Noise”. Notable among these for their joy and enthusiasm were Ginger Hurley, Deirdre Dunkin, and Thabitha Moruthane. Hannah Jewel Kohn did a great job as Marcia Murphey, Diamond’s second wife.

This show was clearly designed to preserve Diamond’s legacy, and to play to the older theatre-going audience that grew up with Diamond’s music in the 1960s-1990s. Do the kids of today know Diamond’s music, other than what they hear on Senior, excuse me, Classic Rock stations? Is it to them what Sinatra’s music was to children of the 1980s? It’s hard to say. I think Diamond’s music is timeless, but I’m of Diamond’s generation. Its hard to face the fact that the music of your generation is not the music of the kids, but you can take comfort in the fact that one day it will be rediscovered, just as Big Band and Swing has been rediscovered. But there are memes going around showing these cute-young-things™ at the beach in their bikinis rocking to the radio, and pointing out that they are the grandmothers of today. It’s sad to admit that the music of Neil Diamond, Carole Kink, The Beatles, and even groups like the Rolling Stones and the Who are the music of the grandparents. As for the kids, the music they listen too today is just noise (or hip-hop or rap, which is sometimes close enough). Actually, that’s being disingenuous and stereotypical, because I don’t really know what the kids are listening too these days. The current pop artists I know, such as Taylor Swift, aren’t bad. Oh, and get off my lawn.

Will A Beautiful Noise have the staying power to preserve Diamond’s music for a new generation? It’s hard to say. There are shows like Grease that have preserve the 1950s sounds almost 70 years later. But many shows have failed to have that long life. So: If you grew up with Diamond’s music, and you want to learn more about the man while seeing some really spectacular performance that evoke his style and voice well, go see this show.

There is one “alas”, however. This show has succumbed to the current trend of the confetti/streamer cannon, both on-stage and into the audience. Every show I’ve seen of late seems to want to punctuate the show at the end by shooting stuff into the audience, creating a mess for the theatre folks to clean up afterwards. I blame Spamalot, which I claim started the trend. It needs to end. We have far too much mylar confetti littering the joint. I’ll say it again, “get off my yard“.

A Beautiful Noise continues at the Hollywood Pantages Theatre through July 27, 2025. You can learn more about the show and order tickets through the Pantages page.

Cast and Crew

The Neil Diamond Musical: A Beautiful Noise. Book by Anthony McCarten. Music and lyrics by Neil Diamond. Choreography by Steven Hoggett. Directed by Michael Mayer.

Cast: Nick Fradiani Neil—Then; Robert Westenberg Neil—Now; Hannah Jewel Kohn Maria Murphey; Lisa Reneé Pitts Doctor; Tiffany Tatreau Jaye Posner; Tuck Milligan Fred Weintraub, Tommy O’Rourke; Michael Accardo Bert Berns, Kieve Diamond; Make A. Mulligan Ellie Greenwich, Rose Diamond; Cooper Clack The Beautiful Noise, “Look Out (Here Comes Tomorrow)” Soloist, Bitter End Trio Singer; Chris Marsh Clark The Beautiful Noise, “Kentucky Woman” Soloist; Diedre Dunkin The Beautiful Noise, Backup Singer; Ginger Hurley The Beautiful Noise, Bitter End Trio Singer; Spencer Donovan Jones The Beautiful Noise, Bitter End Trio Singer, “Shilo” Soloist; Ellen McGhion The Beautiful Noise, Backup Singer; Thabitha Moruthane The Beautiful Noise, Backup Singer; Tasheim Ramsey Pack The Beautiful Noise, “Red, Red Wine” Soloist; Jeilani Rhone-Collins The Beautiful Noise, “The Boat That I Row” Soloist; J’Kobe Wallace The Beautiful Noise. Swings: Denver Dizon; Rene Mirai Guyon; JER; Zoë Maloney; Alec Michael Ryan; Deandre Sevon; Vannesa Aurora Sierra. Standbys: Joe Caskey Standby for Neil—Then; Dale Duko Standby for Neil—Now.

Music Department (♯ indicates local): Neil Diamond Music and Lyrics; Sonny Paladino Music Supervision, Arrangements; James Olmstead Conductor, Keyboard 1; Nancy O’Connor Assoc. Conductor, Keyboard 2; Ben Thomas Taylor Guitar; Aamir Juman Bass; Morgan Parker Drums; Asher Denburg Traveling Music Alternate; ♯ Grace Oh Violin/Viola; ♯ Jeff Driskill Alto / Tenor / Bari Sax / Clarinet / Bass Clarinet / Flute / Piccolo; ♯ Aaron Smith Trumpet / Flugelhorn; ♯ Nick Daley Trombone / Bass Trombone; ♯ Eric Heinly Orchestra Contractor; Alexander Greenberg Music Copyist; Randy Cohen, Cohen Keyboards LLC Synthesizer Programming; John Miller Music Coordinator; Brian Usifer Incidental Music and Dance Music Arrangements, Orchestrations.

Production and Creative: David Rockwell Scenic Designer; Emilio Sosa Costume Design; Kevin Adams Lighting Design; Jessica Paz Sound Design; Luc Verschueren Hair, Wig, & Makeup Design; Annmarie Milazzo Vocal Design; Jamie Harrison Illusion Design; Austin Regan Tour Director; Yasmine Lee Tour Choreography; JER and J’Kobe Wallace Co-Dance Captains; Kathy Fabian Production Properties Supervisor; Jim Carnahan CSA Casting; Lason Thinger CSA Casting; Bond Theatrical Tour Booking, Marketing & Publicity; John M. Atherlay Production Stage Manager; Rachel Heine Stage Manager; Kali Ashurst Assistant Stage Manager; Benji Kern Assistant Stage Manager; Gentry & Associates General Manager; Trinity Wheeler Exec. Producer; Ken Davenport Producer; Bob Gaudio Producer, and many more producers.

Administrivia

I am not a professional critic. I’m a cybersecurity professional, a roadgeek who does a highway site and a podcast about California Highways, and someone who loves live performance. I buy all my own tickets, unless explicitly noted otherwise. I do these writeups to share my thoughts on shows with my friends and the community. I encourage you to go to your local theatres and support them (ideally, by purchasing full price tickets, if you can afford to do so). We currently subscribe or have memberships at: Center Theatre Group/Ahmanson Theatre; Broadway in Hollywood/Pantages Theatre; Pasadena Playhouse; The Soraya, and 5-Star Theatricals. We’re looking for the right intimate theatre to subscribe at — it hasn’t been the same since Rep East died (it’s now The Main, and although it does a lot of theatre, it doesn’t have seasons or a resident company), and post-COVID, most 99-seaters aren’t back to doing seasons (or seasons we like). I used to do more detailed writeups; here’s my current approach.

Upcoming ♦ Theatre / ♣ Music / ◊ Other Live Performance – Next 90ish Days (⊕ indicates ticketing is pending).

• July: ♦ A Beautiful Noise at BIH/Pantages; ♦ Puppet Up at CTG/Kirk Douglas; ♦ Frozen at 5-Star Theatricals
• August: ♦ Some Like It Hot at BIH/Pantages; ♦ & Juliet at CTG/Ahmanson
• September: ♦ Shucked at BIH/Pantages; ♦ Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish at The Soraya; ⊕♦ Eureka Day at Pasadena Playhouse
• October: ♣ Fly Me to the Moon at The Soraya; ♦ Hairspray at 5-Star Theatricals

This entry was originally posted on Observations Along the Road as Bum Bum Bum ... So Good | "A Beautiful Noise" @ BIH/Pantages by cahwyguy. Although you can comment on DW, please make comments on original post at the Wordpress blog using the link to the left. You can sign in with your LJ, DW, FB, or a myriad of other accounts. Note: Subsequent changes made to the post on the blog are not propagated by the SNAP Crossposter; please visit the original post to see the latest version. P.S.: If you see share buttons above, note that they do not work outside of the Wordpress blog.

Do you know where the modern KKK got its start? The answer is in the lynching of a Jewish businessman in Atlanta GA back in 1915. A little white girl had been murdered in his factory, and the prosecution felt that bringing a black man to justice wouldn’t satisfy the community. So they set their targets on a Jewish businessman from the North — a Yankee industrialist with an engineering degree from Cornell — who came to the South bringing industry and changing their rural and agrarian way of life. This incident is what also led to the creation of the ADL — the Anti-Defamation League — and was one of many incidents that exposed the antisemitic undercurrent existing in much of America.

The story of this lynching is timely today, as antisemitism and hatred of “the other” is growing in America. Antisemitism, which is getting all mixed up with anti-Zionism and hatred of Israel, is exploding these days (and isn’t helped by the situation in Israel today)

<ASIDE> It is important to understand the subtle distinctions here. Antisemitism (one word, no dashes) is the hatred of Jews because of their religion. Anti-ZIonism, seemingly, is the hatred of anything Zionist, although that term is ill-defined as the original notions of Zionism from folks like Theodor Hertz over 100 years ago — the desire of a homeland for Jews — has morphed into a hatred of anything the government of Israel does. It has then morphed into a hatred of anyone who supports Israel, failing to separate the notion of support for the Israeli state as a homeland for Jewish from the notion of support for the behavior of the current Israeli government. It is important to note that many Jews, while supporting and strongly defending Israel’s right to exist (something many Arab nations refuse to recognize), completely disagree with the actions of the Netanyahu government towards Gaza. Protesting the behavior of the Israeli government in Gaza is not antisemitic; taking action against Jews because they support Israel’s right to exist is, because the desire for a Jewish homeland is part of the religion. </ASIDE>

Additionally, we are seeing the railroading of people through false accusations, through behavior and looks such as tattoos. These items are treated as factual proof without investigations, and used to deprive people of their liberty, and in some cases, their lives. The behaviors we saw in the case in 1913-1915 aren’t far from the behaviors we are seeing today, and it serves as a timely lesson we must remember.

Luckily, back in the 1990s, author Alfred Uhry identified this story as one that might be good for the stage. Producer Harold Prince convince him it would be good as a musical, and after being rejected by Stephen Sondheim, Uhry started to work with composer Jason Robert Brown. The result, which hit Broadway in 1997, was the musical Parade, which tells the story of Leo Frank: starting with the murder of Mary Phagan and the eventual lynching of Frank. It is a dark musical with dark themes. Even though I’m well familiar with the material of this musical (having seen it twice before, the Donmar production at the Taper in 2009, and the Neighborhood Playhouse production in 2008), I still started to tear up as Leo started the Shema at the end. Be prepared.

Parade tells the story of Leo Frank, a Brooklyn-born Jew who moved to Atlanta Georgia in 1913 to marry Lucille Selig and to be supervisor of the National Pencil Company. Leo was like many people today: bright, focused on his work, uncomfortable around other people and trusting only in himself, and just preferring to be left alone with his habits. The play opens on Confederate Memorial Day, and everyone but Leo is celebrating (Leo is asking himself why there is such a celebration for a war that was lost). Leo goes to work to work on his books. A 13 year old white girl stops by his office to collect her pay. Leo doesn’t recognize her, but upon getting her employee number, pays her for the week: $1.20. Later that day, she is found crumpled in the factory basement, dead. Leo and Newt Lee, the night watchman, are brought in as suspects. The governor tells the DA they must have a swift verdict in this case. Not being able to find any evidence for the night watchman, and thinking the hanging of a black man wins few points in George, the DA lets Newt go. That leaves him with the man who must be the culprit: Leo Frank. The DA builds a case of coached stories to convince the jury, including the testimony of Jim Conley, a janitor at the factory who was an escaped convict with violent tendencies. He presents this case, and Leo’s lawyer doesn’t refute it: he just surprises Leo by having him make a statement, and then resting his case. Leo is found Guilty, and sentenced to death That’s the end of Act I. In Act II, the focus moves from Leo to his wife Lucille, who is surprising Leo with her strength and tenacity in defending his innocence. Lucille convinces the governor to commute Leo’s sentence; he does, although it is only to a life sentence. Leo is moved to an undisclosed prison, and Leo and Lucille’s love story grows. However some people in Atlanta are incensed about this “Jew” getting off, and the mob goes to the prison, drags Leo out, and hangs him. They then go off to celebrate Confederate Memorial Day.

The particular production at the Ahmanson is the tour of the recent Broadway revival. They have some interesting staging techniques. The stage is set up as a raised platform, with judicial bench seating on either side. The main action takes place on the platform, with projections behind to establish place (although some action takes place in front of the platform). The projection establish place through images; there are also projections with the names and faces of the real-life people, as well as dates and times. This was very effective — it grounded the story in reality, making clear that this is something that really happened, and not historical fiction.

The performances were extremely strong, especially Max Chernin as Leo Frank, and Talia Suskauer as Lucille Frank. Also notable was Olivia Goosman’s Mary Phagan, who established her as a lovable, flirty, flighty young girl. As a whole, the ensemble was extremely strong.

At our performance, there was a talkback with Steve Oney, author of a 2003 book titled “And the Dead Shall Rise: The Murder of Mary Phagan and the Lynching of Leo Frank“, and two of the actors in the show: Evan Harrington and Brian Vaughn. The actors noted how audience behavior in this show is different than many: In other shows, they will be checking their phones and being distracted; with this show, the audience is drawn in and raptly following the story. Oney noted how this was a pivotal time of change in the South: The rural economy was disappearing, and being replaced by an industrial economy from the North, with concurrent job losses. He noted the parallels to today, where the industrial economy of the US is being replaced by the technology economy, often with job losses to offshore. Similar resentments exist in previously-industrial and agrarian areas today as existed in 1913, and there is equivalent hatred of the current “other”. He noted how we have similar injustices today: the guilty often get away with it, while the innocents often pay the price for things they didn’t do. The talkback only emphasized the timeliness of this musical. Alas, I was unable to ask the question I wanted: Whether there is a different in reaction of the audience depending on the city?

This is a very strong production of an extremely moving show. Everyone should go and see it, because the lesson of the Leo Frank lynching and the travesty of justice continues to echo today (indeed, the case of Leo Frank, as of April 2025, was still under review by Fulton County DA Fani Williams, and as the article notes, there are still those who believe Frank’s guilt). Consider that it wasn’t until April 2025 that the musical Parade was performed in the city in which it takes place: Atlanta GA. The subject is timely, the performances are excellent, and it does what theatre should do: Make you think.

Parade continues at the Ahmanson through July 12. Tickets are available through the CTG/Ahmanson website. Go see it.

Credits

Parade. Book by Alfred Uhry. Music and lyrics by Jason Robert Brown. Co-conceived by Harold Prince. Directed by Michael Arden. Choreography by Lauren Yalango-Grant and Christopher Cree Grant. Incorporates reworking from Rob Ashford and the 2007 Donmar Warehouse production.

Cast: [underscores indicate “at our performance”; strikeouts indicate “not at our performance”]: Max Chernin Leo Frank; Talia Suskauer Lucille Frank; Griffin Binnicker Tom Watson; Evan Harrington Old Soldier / Judge Roan; Ramone Nelson Jim Conley; Jack Roden Trevor James Frankie Epps; Andrew Samonsky Hugh Dorsey; Chris Shyer Governor Slaton; Michael Tacconi Britt Craig; Alison Ewing Sally Slaton; Olivia Goosman Mary Phagan; Danielle Lee Greaves Minnie McKnight; Jenny Hickman Mrs. Phagan; Robert Knight Jerquintez A. Gipson Newt Lee; Prentiss E. Mouton Riley; Oluchi Nwaokorie Angela; Ben Cherington Officer Ivey, Thomas Blackstock & others; Emily Rose DeMartino Essie & others; Bailee Endebrock Monteen & others; Caroline Fairweather Nurse, Daisy Hopkins & others; Trevor James Jake Ziman Young Soldier & others; Sophia Manicone Iola Stover; Trista Moldovan Jodi Snyder Nina Formby & others; Ethan Riordan Mr. Turner & others; Jason Simon Det. Starnes, James Gantt,  & others; Brian Vaughn Luther Rosser / Mr. Peavy.  Swings (↑ indicates “swung up into our performance”): William Bishop; ↑ Jerquintez A. Gipson;  Brianna Javis; Benjamin Magnuson; ↑ Jodi Snyder; Eden Witvoet; ↑ Jake Ziman.

Music Department: Charlie Alterman Music Direction & Conductor; Daniel Felsenfeld Orchestrations; Tom Murray Music Supervisor; Kimberlee Wertz Music Coordinator; John Plane Music Preparation; Austin Davy Assoc. Conductor / Keyboard 2; Thomas Michaels Keyboard 1; Anthony Scandora Drums / Percussion;  Mark O’Kain Percussion; Jen Choi Fischer Violin 1; Adrianne Pope Violin 2; Linnea Powell Viola; David Mergen Cello; Kaveh Rastegar Bass; Tom Griep Keyboard 2 Sub; Dan Fornero Center Theatre Group Music Contractor; BIlly Jay Stein  and Hiro Iida for Strange Cranium Electronic Music Design.

Creatives and Production: Dane Laffrey Scenic Design; Susan Hilferty & Mark Koss Costume Design; Heather Gilbert Lighting Design; Jon Weston Sound Design; Sven Ortel Projection Design; Tom Watson Hair, Wig, & Makeup Design; Emilio Ramos Assoc. Director; Justin Scribner Production Supervision; Veronica Aglow Production Stage Manager; T. J. Kearney Stage Manager; Egypt Dixon Asst. Stage Manager; Caroline Fairweather Dance Captain; Stacy Myers Company Manager; The Telsey Office Casting; Juniper Street Productions Production Management; Ray Wetmore & JR Goodman Props Supervisor; Marathon Digital Social Media; Ann C. James Sensitivity Specialist.

Support Your Local Theatres

One last note: Under the 47 administration, arts are in peril. We’re seeing cuts to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and the National Endowment for the Arts. Many theatres are seeing NEA grants pulled, putting at risk productions already budgeted and started, and also putting at risk future seasons and potentially the existence of companies. Pleading emails have gone out to supporters, for without government support is it up to us, the audience, to support the theatres. And before you say government shouldn’t be involved, remember that Queen Elizabeth was a patron of William Shakespeare, and enabled his art to be produced. The Theatre Communications Group had a nice article on this titled “Unkindest Cuts: How Theatres Are Managing the Loss of NEA Funds“, in which they note the importance of supporting your local theatres, writing your congress critters, and making donations. They also stress the importance of spreading the word when you attend local arts productions. They write

If you can’t donate yourself, encourage others to do so. Post about a theatre company on social media. Encourage businesses to back theatre. Local businesses have recently been turning away from the arts, but if they know how important the arts are to their community, they might change course. It’s good business. I plan to go to Columbus in the fall, and I’m totally going to see if The Kitchen has a public event during that time.

[…]

Every little thing is a step in the right direction. Some terminated Institute for Museum and Library Services were already reinstated. That is because of some type of pressure.

Theatre will always happen, with or without federal money. But we’ve already seen tremendous downsizing in recent years, as a substantial number of theatres have shuttered since the pandemic. In just the last week, two theatres in major cities have announced “do or die” campaigns, and everywhere companies are doing fewer shows—and that hurts the creative landscape. Each blow stings. Just because one show or program can continue without a specific NEA grant doesn’t mean that funding isn’t necessary. We all need to work together to make sure theatre remains plentiful and accessible. Funding is needed.

Consider this message my part. Donate to your local theatres. Buy tickets. Attend shows. Spread the word about the fact you attend live theatre on all of your social media. Demonstrate that attending live performance is not a Democratic or a Republican thing. It is something that we as human beings need to nourish our souls, and that theatre artists must be free to express themselves, even if it puts itching powders in the clothing of the leadership. Theatre has long served as a commentary on society, whether it be Showboat in the 1920s, South Pacific in the 1960s, Chicago in the 1970s, Hairspray in the 2000s, or Hamilton in the 2010s.  Mr. President, theatre is much more than Cats.

Administrivia

I am not a professional critic. I’m a cybersecurity professional, a roadgeek who does a highway site and a podcast about California Highways, and someone who loves live performance. I buy all my own tickets, unless explicitly noted otherwise. I do these writeups to share my thoughts on shows with my friends and the community. I encourage you to go to your local theatres and support them (ideally, by purchasing full price tickets, if you can afford to do so). We currently subscribe or have memberships at: Center Theatre Group/Ahmanson Theatre; Broadway in Hollywood/Pantages Theatre; Pasadena Playhouse; The Soraya, and 5-Star Theatricals. We’re looking for the right intimate theatre to subscribe at — it hasn’t been the same since Rep East died (it’s now The Main, and although it does a lot of theatre, it doesn’t have seasons or a resident company), and post-COVID, most 99-seaters aren’t back to doing seasons (or seasons we like). I used to do more detailed writeups; here’s my current approach.

Upcoming ♦ Theatre / ♣ Music / ◊ Other Live Performance – Next 90ish Days (⊕ indicates ticketing is pending).

• July: ♦ Hamlet at CTG/Taper; ♦ A Beautiful Noise at BIH/Pantages; ♦ Puppet Up at CTG/Kirk Douglas; ♦ Frozen at 5-Star Theatricals
• August: ♦ Some Like It Hot at BIH/Pantages; ♦ & Juliet at CTG/Ahmanson
• September: ♦ Shucked at BIH/Pantages; ♣ ⊕The Limeliters at McCabes; ♦ Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish at The Soraya
• October: ♣ Fly Me to the Moon at The Soraya; ♦ Hairspray at 5-Star Theatricals

This entry was originally posted on Observations Along the Road as The Familiar Sound of Pre-Determined Railroaded Justice | "Parade" @ CTG/Ahmanson by cahwyguy. Although you can comment on DW, please make comments on original post at the Wordpress blog using the link to the left. You can sign in with your LJ, DW, FB, or a myriad of other accounts. Note: Subsequent changes made to the post on the blog are not propagated by the SNAP Crossposter; please visit the original post to see the latest version. P.S.: If you see share buttons above, note that they do not work outside of the Wordpress blog.

C’mon, what’s more appropriate for a church-based theatre company than a show about a raffle, right? Perhaps next they should mount the musical “Bingo – A Winning Musical”.

OK, I’ll be serious. As I’ve written before, this seems to be the year for seeing musicals that I’ve only heard, but never seen. A few years ago, a Foothill Performing Arts Center in San Fernando — the same one that mounted the rare musical version of Two Gentlemen of Verona that I love) tried to entice me to attend their production of The Spitfire Grill. For reasons I can’t remember now, I was unable to attend that production. But I remembered the show, and recently obtained the cast album. It had interesting music, and didn’t come off as your typical song-and-dance production.

Prompting the purchase of the album was the fact that a small company to which we had subscribed pre-pandemic included The Spitfire Grill in their 2024-2025 season. I wasn’t interested in the other shows, but made a note to explore Spitfire when it came around, and this company (Actors Co-Op) tends to do an excellent job with both plays and musicals (we really liked their last musical, The Human Comedy).

So, musical I had heard but never seen met a favorite company doing that musical. You know what that means: I purchased a ticket, and you get a writeup.

The Spitfire Grill is a popular small-theatre musical to license, as it has a cast of six and doesn’t require a lot of settings that require flyspace or theatrical magic. It is based on a 1996 film of the same name, and depicts the journey of a young woman just released from prison, who decides to start her life anew in a rural town in Wisconsin. As she starts her new life, the sparks a reawakening on the town, which has been down on its luck.

This woman, Percy Talbott, is finagled a job and lodging at the only diner in the small town of Gilead WI, The Spitfire Grill, by the town sheriff, Joe Sutter. The town is suspicious of her, and the town gossip and mail-mistress, Effy Krayneck, is spreading rumors. Percy has a prickly relationship with the Grill’s owner, Hannah Ferguson. After Hannah hurts her leg, Percy (who has no cooking experience) takes over the grill, assisted by the wife (Shelby Thorpe) of Hannah’s uncle and the town real estate agent, Caleb Thorpe. In the process of learning to run the grill, Percy learns that Hannah has a son that went to war and ended up MIA, and that Caleb has been trying to sell the grill for 10 years. Percy and Shelby become close, and the grill runs better after Shelby takes over the cooking (teaching Percy along the way). They come up with the idea to raffle off the grill for $100 an application, together with an “essay” of why people want the grill. As the first act ends, the letters start pouring in. Act II continues the story of the raffle, and how Percy and Shelby reenergize the town. There are some predictable results, if you know musical theatre, along with some twists that I wasn’t expecting.

The story itself fits in well with the mission of this company, as it focuses on redemption (in many ways). One of the problems I’ve had with Actors Co-Op (and it is really more my problem than theirs) is that they are a Christological theatre company. Their mission, as noted in every program, is to be “an outreach of Christ’s hope”. As a Jewish audience member, this can sometimes make their performance a bit too close to the preachiness line; that’s one reason I had no interest in their play Lewis and Tolkein earlier this season. This also makes me borderline on subscribing, as I don’t always get the breadth of shows I’d like. They haven’t quite gone back to the season subscription model yet post-COVID. If they do the membership model instead, I might be interested^*. One thing that is always guaranteed with Actors Co-Op, however, is that you will have an excellent performance. In all our years of attending their shows, I don’t think there has been a single clunker.
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^* For those unclear on the difference: A subscription model guarantees you a seat to each show (sometimes they pick, sometimes you); a membership model is a donation that then guarantees a significant discount to shows.

This show was no exception. The talents and skill of the cast, combined with the story, drew you into the drama. The songs less so: the toe-tapping ones are few and far between, and it is unclear how well the songs propel the plot forward. They seem to be more emotional punctuation. I did tend to like “Out of the Frying Pan” and “Shine”. There were some outstanding performances of note. Caitlin Gallogly shone as Shelby Thorpe, with a remarkably clear and beautiful voice. She also excelled at the comedy aspects of the role, and had a likeable personality that was broadcast to the back of the theatre. Also strong was guest artist Hannah Howzdy as Percy Talbott. She captured the personality of Percy well, in terms of both the hesitancy and the strength. Lastly of note was Co-Op regular Lori Berg as Hannah Furguson, who captured the early bitter and lonely old woman well, as well as the rejuvenated Hannah in the second act.

The scenery was simple, but well done: two rocking chairs on the side, and a center turntable for both the opening scene and the diner (luckily it didn’t turn too much, as it was manually done and sliding, not rolling). Projections were well used to establish the seasons.

The Spitfire Grill continues at Actors Co-Op until June 8, 2025. It is nice heartwarming musical, not your typical song-and-dance piece, and well worth seeing. Tickets are available through the Actors Co-Op Site.

Credits

The Spitfire Grill. Music and book by James Valcg. Lyrics and Book by Fred Alley. Based on the film by Lee David Zlotoff. Directed by Bonnie Hellman.

Cast (^æ indicates Actors Equity): Hannah Howzdy Percy Talbott; Gavin Michael Harris Sheriff Joe Sutter; Lori Berg Hannah Ferguson; Spencer Rowe^æ Caleb Thorpe; Treva Tegtmeier^æ Effy Krayneck; Caitlin Gallogly^æ Shelby Thorpe; Ben Kientz The Visitor / Eli.

Music Department: Stephen Van Dorn Musical Director. The orchestra is not credited in the program, but I know they were live because I heard them tuning.

Production and Creatives: Kimi Walker Producer; Nikki Alday Stage Manager; Rachel Kupfer-Weinstein Property Designer; Marc Antonio Pritchett Sound Designer; A. Jeffrey Schoenberg Costume Designer; Nick Foran Lighting Designer; Nick Santiago Projection Designer; Tim Farmer Scenic Designer; Judi Lewin Wig & Makeup Designer; Jennie White Asst. Stage Manager; Nora Feldman Press Representative; Spencer Rowe Marketing Show Manager.

Support Your Local Theatres

One last note: Under the 47 administration, arts are in peril. We’re seeing cuts to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and the National Endowment for the Arts. Many theatres are seeing NEA grants pulled, putting at risk productions already budgeted and started, and also putting at risk future seasons and potentially the existence of companies. Pleading emails have gone out to supporters, for without government support is it up to us, the audience, to support the theatres. And before you say government shouldn’t be involved, remember that Queen Elizabeth was a patron of William Shakespeare, and enabled his art to be produced. The Theatre Communications Group had a nice article on this titled “Unkindest Cuts: How Theatres Are Managing the Loss of NEA Funds“, in which they note:

But the arts are a public good. They inform conversations, they teach empathy, they both tell us where we are in the world and yet somehow cause us to step away from where we are and travel somewhere else in our minds. They also contribute economically to their communities.

An easy thing you can do to show you care about the arts is contact your congressional representative, your senator, and the president. Complain to them about the terminations and about Trump’s plan to eliminate the NEA entirely. If you are pressed for time, click here for a form letter that will go to your representatives urging them to support NEA and NEH funding for next year. You can even add in a line about the grant cancellations.

You can also donate to the companies or programs in this story by clicking on the theatre names. Donate to other organizations you are attached to. Thankfully, some communities have been responding in exactly this way to the immediate cries of theatre companies.

[…]

Clearly, the fundraising needs of the American theatre go beyond just making up for the NEA grants terminated. We’re not going to save the world by making up for one $10,000 grant, but that will help.

If you can’t donate yourself, encourage others to do so. Post about a theatre company on social media. Encourage businesses to back theatre. Local businesses have recently been turning away from the arts, but if they know how important the arts are to their community, they might change course. It’s good business. I plan to go to Columbus in the fall, and I’m totally going to see if The Kitchen has a public event during that time.

There is talk about changing the funding and production infrastructure, sure, and those talks should continue, but right now we can raise money to assist struggling companies. There is, of course, the concern that raising money privately proves that the NEA isn’t necessary. But that fear can’t be as great as the need to help these companies.

[…]

Every little thing is a step in the right direction. Some terminated Institute for Museum and Library Services were already reinstated. That is because of some type of pressure.

Theatre will always happen, with or without federal money. But we’ve already seen tremendous downsizing in recent years, as a substantial number of theatres have shuttered since the pandemic. In just the last week, two theatres in major cities have announced “do or die” campaigns, and everywhere companies are doing fewer shows—and that hurts the creative landscape. Each blow stings. Just because one show or program can continue without a specific NEA grant doesn’t mean that funding isn’t necessary. We all need to work together to make sure theatre remains plentiful and accessible. Funding is needed.

Consider this message my part. Donate to your local theatres. Buy tickets. Attend shows. Spread the word about the fact you attend live theatre on all of your social media. Demonstrate that attending live performance is not a Democratic or a Republican thing. It is something that we as human beings need to nourish our souls, and that theatre artists must be free to express themselves, even if it puts itching powders in the clothing of the leadership. Theatre has long served as a commentary on society, whether it be Showboat in the 1920s, South Pacific in the 1960s, Chicago in the 1970s, Hairspray in the 2000s, or Hamilton in the 2010s.  Mr. President, theatre is much more than Cats.

Administrivia

I am not a professional critic. I’m a cybersecurity professional, a roadgeek who does a highway site and a podcast about California Highways, and someone who loves live performance. I buy all my own tickets, unless explicitly noted otherwise. I do these writeups to share my thoughts on shows with my friends and the community. I encourage you to go to your local theatres and support them (ideally, by purchasing full price tickets, if you can afford to do so). We currently subscribe or have memberships at: Center Theatre Group/Ahmanson Theatre; Broadway in Hollywood/Pantages Theatre; Pasadena Playhouse; The Soraya, and 5-Star Theatricals. We’re looking for the right intimate theatre to subscribe at — it hasn’t been the same since Rep East died (it’s now The Main, and although it does a lot of theatre, it doesn’t have seasons or a resident company), and post-COVID, most 99-seaters aren’t back to doing seasons (or seasons we like). I used to do more detailed writeups; here’s my current approach.

Upcoming ♦ Theatre / ♣ Music / ◊ Other Live Performance – Next 90ish Days (⊕ indicates ticketing is pending).

• May:  ♦ A Dolls House, Part 2 at Pasadena Playhouse.
• June: ♦ Parade at CTG/Ahmanson; and possibly some Hollywood Fringe Festival shows.
• July: ♦ Hamlet at CTG/Taper; ♦ A Beautiful Noise at BIH/Pantages; ♦ Puppet Up at CTG/Kirk Douglas; ♦ Frozen at 5-Star Theatricals
• August: ♦ Some Like It Hot at BIH/Pantages; ♦ & Juliet at CTG/Ahmanson

This entry was originally posted on Observations Along the Road as Raffles and Redemption | "The Spitfire Grill" @ Actor's Co-Op by cahwyguy. Although you can comment on DW, please make comments on original post at the Wordpress blog using the link to the left. You can sign in with your LJ, DW, FB, or a myriad of other accounts. Note: Subsequent changes made to the post on the blog are not propagated by the SNAP Crossposter; please visit the original post to see the latest version. P.S.: If you see share buttons above, note that they do not work outside of the Wordpress blog.

Some people just do not like Frank Wildhorn and his musicals. Unfortunately for Mr. Wildhorn, many of those are critics at the New York Times, which explain why his shows have never become hits on Broadway. I, on the other hand, like his music quite a bit. I’ve enjoyed Jekyll and Hyde and Scarlet Pimpernel (which I saw back in 2003, before I started blogging). I’d still love to see his version of Wonderland. One of his shows that I’ve always enjoyed the music from — but have never seen — is Bonnie & Clyde. It opened on Broadway in 2011, and closed quickly. It never went on tour. So it was on my list of musicals that I’ve never seen, but have heard (note: It looks like a West End version is streaming). Here’s a song as a taste.

Luckily, this seems to be my season to see shows that I’ve only heard but never seen. When I learned that the Rubicon Theatre in Ventura was doing the show, I figured out a way to get tickets. I’ve always known about the Rubicon, but their ticket prices and distance always deterred me. As an aside: We were so impressed with the company that there’s a good chance that next year we’ll replace our 5-Star Theatricals subscription with Rubicon.  We’ve seen the shows 5-Star is doing (and we can always get tickets if they do something we haven’t seen), but the Rubicon will fit the slot in our schedule for a small theatre that does new works including rarely done musicals.

So today we drove out to Ventura to see the matinee of Bonnie & Clyde. It was worth the drive.

For those who haven’t figured it out now,  Bonnie & Clyde tells the story of Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow, starting from the time they met to their grisly demise. Actually, it starts with the demise as well, which serves as a framing device so the ending isn’t quite the shocker it could be. Now, I’ve never seen the movie; reading the plot on Wikipedia, the movie has a very different focus than the musical. The musical focuses more on Bonnie and Clyde’s desires (her: to be in the movies and be famous; him: to be like Al Capone and be famous). The musical focuses on their love story, and there family. There are characters in the movie that aren’t in the musical, and some of the situations appear to be altered. In short: Don’t go into this expecting the movie on stage.

The performances in the show were outstanding: Key credit goes to Russell Muzycska at Clyde, Ellie Smith as Bonnie, Amanda Dayhoff as Blance, and Leland Burnett as Buck. Strong singing, strong performance, and most importantly, there was a chemistry with the couples that made them believably in love. I still wish I could have seen Jeremy Jordan and Laura Osnes in these roles, but these folks were really really good.

The production was also strong. I liked how they used projections, and especially how they used those projections both to establish place and time, and to have bloodshed and bullets without the gore. They also did something that theatre does exceptionally well: use bits and pieces to suggest realism (unless the realism required for movies). For example, cars were suggested by a tire or two and the front end with headlines. This was sufficient to let the audience do the rest. While that doesn’t always work in a gigantic Broadway house, it did work here: In a 180-seat theatre with no fly space (in fact, the space was very reminiscent of the Colony Theatre in Burbank, where we used to subscribe, in that it was a corner stage forcing creativity from the set designer).

As an aside: This is why it is important to see productions in different sizes of theatres. Often, the limitations of a small theatre space force creativity in a production; Broadway productions just throw money at things, and money is not always the answer. In theatre, great performances and imagination are the answer.

The choreography was strong, although this is more of a movement musical than a full-on dance musical. Still, the group numbers worked well — especially the “God’s Arm Are Always Open”, which was about the danciest of the numbers. I also liked the interaction of Bonnie and Clyde, especially the point/counterpoint of their performances and singing.

As this was early in the run, there were a few problems. One light was acting up and flickering; that was fixed during intermission. The sound mix was a bit off in the first act; again, I didn’t notice that problem in the second act. Speaking of sound: Kudos to the overall sound design team for the sound effects. Sound design is more than just the amplification of the voices: It is the provision of the background sounds. This was extremely effective here, both for the gunshots and the driving noises, as well as the jail sounds.

Speaking of jail: The set was remarkable for how it used the space: one one side, a door and a garage door; the other side had a sliding warehouse door that also provided sliding bars for the jail. That was it: A raised platform, a table and chairs, and some props. Still, the creative team made all these come alive. Very impressive.

If you can make it out to Ventura, I strongly recommend this show. It is rarely done in Southern California — I can’t think of the last time it was done, except perhaps by MTG. This is a great chance to see an exceptional Wildhorn musical. Bonnie & Clyde: The Musical continues at the Rubicon through May 18. You can get tickets through the Rubicon Web Site.

———

Bonnie & Clyde: The Musical. Book by Ivan Menchell. Lyrics by Don Black. Music by Frank Wildhorn. Directed by J. Scott Lapp. Choreography by Natalie Iscovich.

Cast (^æ indicates Actors Equity): Braydon Handwerger Boliver Ted, Banker; Leland Burnett^æ Buck Barrow; Amanda Dayhoff^æ Blanche Barrow; Joseph Fuque^æ Sheriff, Charlie, Joe; Russell (Jack) Muzyczka Clyde Barrow; Louis Pardo^æ Preacher, Frank, Officer, Archie; Kate Ponzio Eleanor, Governor; Christanna Rowader^æ Cumie, Trish; Ellie Smith^æ Bonnie Parker; Sarah Wolter^æ Emma Parker, Stella; Harper Róisín (“Rose”) Ham Young Bonnie; Chance Challen Young Clyde.

Music Department: Lisa Lemay Music Director; Emiliano Almeida Drums; Oskar Cartaya Bass; David Cano Violin; James Fall Guitar; Sets to Go Orchestrator (Reductions).

Production and Creative: Matthew Herman Scenic / Co-Projection Design; Mike Billings Lighting, Co-Projection Design; Danny Fiandaca Sound Design; Pamela Shaw Costume Design; Alex Johnston Properties / Furniture Design; Danielle White Hair / Makeup Design; Kevin Matsumoto Fight Choreographer / Armorer; Joel Goldes Dialect Coach; Hannah Ramond Production Stage Manager; Gabi Baltzell Asst. Stage Manager; Hailey Mashburn Intimacy Coordinator; David Elzer Publicist; Julia Donlon Production Manager; Jimmy Callahan Technical Direction; Karyl Lynn Burns Producing Artistic Director; James O’Neil Rubicon Co-Founder / Artistic Director Emeritus; Stephanie A. Coltrin Assoc. Artistic Director / Producer;

♦ ♦ ♦

Administrivia: I am not a professional critic. I’m a cybersecurity professional, a roadgeek who does a highway site and a podcast about California Highways, and someone who loves live performance. I buy all my own tickets, unless explicitly noted otherwise. I do these writeups to share my thoughts on shows with my friends and the community. I encourage you to go to your local theatres and support them (ideally, by purchasing full price tickets, if you can afford to do so). We currently subscribe or have memberships at: Center Theatre Group/Ahmanson Theatre; Broadway in Hollywood/Pantages Theatre; Pasadena Playhouse; and 5-Star Theatricals. We’re looking for the right intimate theatre to subscribe at — it hasn’t been the same since Rep East died (it’s now The Main, and although it does a lot of theatre, it doesn’t have seasons or a resident company), and post-COVID, most 99-seaters aren’t back to doing seasons (or seasons we like). I used to do more detailed writeups; here’s my current approach.

Upcoming ♦ Theatre / ♣ Music / ◊ Other Live Performance – Next 90ish Days (⊕ indicates ticketing is pending).

• May:  ♦ Life of Pi at CTG/Ahmanson; ♦ Spitfire Grill at Actors Co-Op; ♦ A Dolls House, Part 2 at Pasadena Playhouse.
• June: ⊕ ♦ Flower Drum Song at East West Players; ♦ Parade at CTG/Ahmanson; and possibly some Hollywood Fringe Festival shows.
• July: ♦ Hamlet at CTG/Taper; ♦ A Beautiful Noise at BIH/Pantages; ♦ Frozen at 5-Star Theatricals
• August: ♦ Some Like It Hot at BIH/Pantages; ⊕♦ & Juliet at CTG/Ahmanson

This entry was originally posted on Observations Along the Road as The World Will Remember Us | "Bonnie and Clyde" @ Rubicon Theatre by cahwyguy. Although you can comment on DW, please make comments on original post at the Wordpress blog using the link to the left. You can sign in with your LJ, DW, FB, or a myriad of other accounts. Note: Subsequent changes made to the post on the blog are not propagated by the SNAP Crossposter; please visit the original post to see the latest version. P.S.: If you see share buttons above, note that they do not work outside of the Wordpress blog.