A Midsummer Night's Dream @ The Polonsky Shakespeare Center @ The Theatre for New Audience

Julie Taymor makes her return to the New York stage since her family raved, critically acclaimed travesty Spider-Man Turn of the Dark, with the Theater for New Audiences production of A Midsummer Night's Dream.

A Midsummer Night’s Dream brilliantly conjoins four intertwined stories: the marriage of the Athenian Duke Theseus to the Amazon queen Hippolyta; the warring Oberon and Titania, king and queen of the fairies; the madcap follies of four lovers in a forest; and the comically earnest efforts of a group of working men to stage a love-play for the royal wedding. Lysander loves Hermia, whose father wants her to marry Demetrius. Helena loves Demetrius, who chases the eloping Lysander and Hermia into the woods, pursued by Helena. They are all fair game for mischievous Puck, Oberon’s servant, who scrambles their desires and Titania’s. As the working men press faithfully on with their rehearsals, the otherworldly night of confusion, passion and diligence proves oddly momentous, touching every life to the quick.


There is no doubt about the fact that Julie Taymor had a hand in this extravagant production - technically brilliant, iconic animal work, and stranger than you can believe. Taymor is the only person who can turn Shakespeare's most magical play into a haunted encounter that will inspire goosebumps. By using an ensemble of children for the spirits, fairies and the forest, she was able to create interactive staging, turning something usually farcical and bright to something dark and bone chilling. The special effect of modernizing and exaggerating the character's jobs by drawing parallels from the "then" age to the "this" age kept the humor flowing and a lightness to this otherwise dark adaptation of the Bard's play. Taymor has surely redeemed herself.

Olivier Award winning Kathryn Hunter leads the cast as Puck. Hunter is glorious, fun, and flexible in more ways than one. Dressed in vaudevillian garb, she delivers a performance that is hard to top. David Harewood and Tina Benko, provide a near perfect portrayal of Oberon and Titania. Max Casella is the clear stand out of the cast as he takes on the taxing transforming role of Bottom. Casella is alluring, hysterical and engaging.

A Midsummer Night's Dream officially opened at the Theater for New Audiences on November 2, 2013 and is running through January 12, 2014. Don't miss out on this beautifully haunting original interpretation.
Photos by: Josef Astor
Review by: James Russo

After Midnight @ The Brooks Atkinson Theatre

Ever wondered what it was like to sit in a club, listening to big band jazz and watching skit after skit of rising talent in the heart of New York City in the 1930’s? Well, now you have the chance. After Midnight conceived by Jack Viertel featuring American Idol winner, Fantasia and narrated by “Psych’s” Dulé Hill is a rousing good time created to invoke such a feeling.

           

The show incorporated so much of what made old Broadway shows spectacular before we had such technological advances that make Spiderman and Wicked spectacular. The music is the jazz collection of Ellington, Mills, Koehler, and Arlen and brings back to mind the time when, while the country was devastated by the Depression, there were still those daring to dream and compose and create.

Highlights of the show include French dancer, Karine Plantadit whose magnificence onstage is indescribable. She communicates perfectly her situation onstage; drawing the audience in to her heartbreak and joy effortlessly. Adriene Lenox delivers comedy with her solos that made my sides ache from laughing so hard. Dormeshia Sumbry-Edwards, Phillip Attimore, and Daniel Watts bring the art of tap back on to Broadway in a glorious way. Their percussion is spot on and inspires. While I’m on the subject of tap, Jared Grimes wowed the audience with his tap number to Duke Ellington’s “Tap Mathematician.”

 

Another performance worth mentioning is the performance given by The Jazz at Lincoln Center All Stars! The orchestra was onstage the entire time and was having a good time which translated in their music. I am so pleased I was able to see such talent.

The only thing that didn’t heighten the show was the performance given by Fantastia. I had expected more from her, but I found her numbers to be rather boring compared to the rest of the show. And while this only an aesthetic critique, I feel it needs to be said, women did not have tattoos in the 1930s and I found hers to be incredibly distracting from the show whenever she was onstage.

 

After Midnight officially opened at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre on November 3, 2013 and is running through March with special guest star K.D. Lang performing from Feb. 11-Mar. 9 and Babyface and Toni Braxton performing Mar.18-30. Here is where you can find tickets: After Midnight on Broadway.




Photos by Matthew Murphy
Review by: Aziza Seven 

Big Fish @ The Neil Simon Theatre

Sometimes, life's stories can be more extraordinary than any fairytale. Big Fish gives account of the tall-taled days of Edward Bloom (Norbert Leo Butz), a man whose life seems to come out of a story book. Although Will's(Zachary Unger as the child, and Bobby Steggert as the adult) mother Sandra (Kate Baldwin) and wife Josephine (Krystal Joy Brown) indulge in the truth of Edward's fanciful tales, Will refuses to believe until he can uncover for himself what is real and what is fantasy. What results is the manifestation of all of Edward's best memories woven into present day to show us that in fact, "The ones who face their fears lead the most interesting lives."

                Butz is the true definition of a Leading Man. His presence is commanding, and with a velvety voice and ease in dance, you don't want to take your eyes off of him. Even more impressive was his ability to seamlessly transform his age from an elderly man, to a teenager, to an adult, and back again within a matter of moments; I'm not even sure how old Butz really is he transitioned so well. The same goes for Baldwin. We get to watch Sandra gracefully change from girl to woman, all while being lucky enough to hear her beautiful voice ring out. Bobby Steggert(Older Will) stands his ground with the heart wrenching performance of a son struggling to believe in the man he has looked up to his entire life.

            From the very moment the lights came up, the stage is flooded in rich beautiful color; Julian Crouch's scenic design transforms from a dark forest to a warm, modest household to bright USO show. William Ivey Long's costume designs could be considered their own characters with dresses becoming swaying trees and crackling campfires, men turning into giants, and women into mermaids.  From Ashton, Alabama to Central Park, to the Calloway Circus, each new world is more fantastic than the last. Use of projections made the impossible a reality, and technical aspects including a stage full of daffodils and dancing elephants made it a spectacular. Andrew Lippa's bright score and Susan Stroman' s exciting choreography are reminiscent of the classic Golden Age of Broadway with big production numbers ("Be the Hero") to tear-jerking ballads ("I Don't Need a Roof"). Together, everything blends to make a fresh, modern take on the classic Musical Theatre structure. 

            Many will notice that although the story is still from Daniel Wallace's novel, it is not the same as the Big Fish we know from Tim Burton's film. On screen, the life of Edward Bloom was much darker and oftentimes more like a fable, whereas onstage it's closer to a fairytale. In my opinion this was a smart move by John August, who penned both the screenplay and the musical's book. The bright version of Big Fish for stage is energetic and engaging, which is needed for a piece of musical theatre to be successful. Many shows that come to Broadway now are inspired by films, so oftentimes it can be difficult to stick out and be memorable. Where Big Fish gets it right is its ability to stand as its own piece of theatre, you don't need to be a fan of the movie to fall in love with the piece on stage.

Big Fish opened October 6 and is now playing at The Neil Simon Theatre. 

Review By: Kelcie Kosberg

The Snow Geese @ Samuel J. Friedman Theatre

The 1900s come alive in Snow Geese, the world premier drama by Sharr White directed by Daniel Sullivan and starring Emmy and Tony award winner Mary Louise Parker.

Recently widowed, Emily Gaesling(Mary Louise Parker), had decided to throw her annual hunting party to honor her eldest son, Duncan(Evan Jonigkeit), on his deployment overseas and her late husband’s memory, despite the fact that his spendthrift ways have left the family buried in debt. She is determined to believe that they are just as well off as they always were, refusing to listen to her younger, more level headed son, Arnold(Brian Cross).

Mary Louise Parker is no stranger to the theatre and has been seen in such shows as Proof, How I Learned to Drive, Angels in America, and of course her award winning television show “Weeds”. Usually dynamic and volatile onstage, I found her performance to be somewhat stilted due to the mannerisms she had adopted for the role. The effect made her less personable and relatable to the audience eliminating any sympathetic feelings for her character.

 

Brian Cross made his confident Broadway debut as the younger Gaesling brother. His chemistry with his older brother made them a strong familial duo with Evan Jonigkeit proving to be a great example of a leading actor of our generation.  While Cross’s love story with the maid, Victorya(Jessica Love) a Central European refugee from a once prominent family, created empathy.

Worth mentioning, is Victoria Clark’s performance as the discreetly intervening sister, Clarissa, and her immigrant husband Max(Danny Burnstein), who despite being an American citizen for thirty years has been ostracized due to growing German hostility stemmed from the war. Heartwarming, engaging, and truly stunning are just a few words that come to mind to describe Clark and Burnstrein. Their story is heartbreaking and poignant.

Jonigkeit’s exuberance over “fixing” the problems overseas are sharply contrasted with Cross’s accounts of the rising casualties and Victorya’s personal accounts of hardship bringing to mind the harsh realities of war. The audience can’t help but draw a parallel between World War I and the modern day conflicts in the Middle East creating a drama worth talking about long after the curtain goes down.

The set designed by Tony award winner John Lee Beatty, was simply stunning. The set would rotate to create different dimensions throughout the play. I felt completely immersed into their world.  Japhy Weideman, the lighting designer, made the set come alive and set the mood perfectly.

Snow Geese is playing at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre and is only running through December 15^th, so get your tickets now. 

Photos by: Joan Marcus
Review By: James Russo & Sarah Brown

A Time to Kill @ The John Golden Theatre

When I walk out of a theatre, I enjoy listening to the conversations from the audience. A good play is one that inspires, evokes emotion, and compels - “A Time to Kill,” missed the mark.

             Written by Rupert Holmes and directed by Ethan McSweeney, the play is the stage adaptation of John Grisham’s famous courtroom drama, that takes place in a deep southern county in Mississippi during the early 1980’s.  Racing through rape, murder, the KKK’s destructive rituals, and courtroom politics, I was curiously disappointed by a lack of urgency in the play. McSweeney had all the resources to create a show that compelled and shocked an audience with the truth of the South’s no so distant history, and instead other than a persistent use of the “n” word, there was nothing provocative about the performance and nothing to show the audience that civil rights had been “granted” just ten years before and some areas were still chafing from the fact that they could no longer legally treat other humans as inferior.

            Truthful performances given by Sebastian Arcelus(Jake Brigance), Tom Skerritt(Lucien Wilbanks), and Patrick Page(Rufus Buckley) make it worth seeing. Disappointed that John Douglas Thompson(Carl Lee Hailey) only seemed to have two volumes and no chemistry with onstage wife, Tonya Pinkins(Gwen Hailey), while supposedly, peppy, whip-smart, Bostonian law student, Ashley Williams(Ellen Roark) had no Boston accent, and seemingly only one stage cue – to half-heartedly seduce Jake Brigance.

            The three women lacked any of the Southern traditional female qualities that help create empathy, while the women who were instrumental in Grisham’s novel, Jake’s wife and daughter, and Carl Lee’s daughter, were demoted to a telephone call and projection. A mistake, as they would have brought depth to their male counterparts. How could an audience react to seeing a broken, ten year old girl onstage? I can guarantee it would bring the urgency that was lacking but essential to creating empathy for Carl Lee.

            A revolving stage and gorgeous projections make scene changes pass smoothly, while also giving background to the area, the plot, and the dramatic moments. For such a horrible, awful subject, there were no tears and far too much laughter from the audience provided by unnecessary one liners in the script. To me, that defeats the purpose of performing a culturally traumatic drama such as this. A Time to Kill fell short. 

A Time To Kill opened October 20th , 2013 at Broadway's Golden Theatre.

Review By: Aziza Seven