"Private Lives" from Pittsburgh Public Theatre

"Private Lives" is the quintessential Noel Coward romp through "only hurt the one you love" antics set in high-society mannerisms. Amanda and Elyot, divorced, end up in the same hotel in adjacent rooms with their new spouses, Victor and Sibyl (respectively). Upon seeing one another again, Amanda and Elyot realize they are still very much in love...or in "love to hate".

As always, the Pittsburgh Public turns out a fantastic team of acting professionals. There's a lot of zany antics in "Private Lives", and the result threatens to de-rail at any moment. But, even when they're chasing each other around the room hurling furniture decor, the cast's performance is clean and precise. It makes the comedy, largely a show of clever one-liners, all the more funnier for their skill.

Michael Brusasco (Elyot Chase) and Victoria Mack (Amanda Prynne) 's pairing turns out to be the basically amoral and ultimately selfish couple. However, the performers are so adapt at their charming sophistication, the audience ends up rooting for them no matter what their characters do. We're happy if they're in love one minute, and equally happy with her smashing a gramaphone record over his head. Quite frankly, there's no absolutely terrible couple we'd like to see end up together more.

Laird Mackintosh (Victor Prynne) and Amanda Leigh Cobb (Sibyl Chase) also round out the excellent ensemble as the unlucky in love civilians who get caught up in the tornado that is Elyot and Amanda. These performers create whole, individual characters that stand opposite of yet perfectly in sync with their more overt (though maritally short-lived) spouses. Each provides their own comic flair in roles that could simply be outshined by the leads but never are in this fantastic ensemble gambol.

In a play manners, the set can sometimes be neglected, leaving the actors with little to play with but the words. Thsi production avoids that gaff, giving even the simplest scenes lots of doors and props and obstacles that must be jumped over or cuddled on or evaded when thrown. This creates unique and intricate staging that feeds into the energy of the language - meaning the massive amount of talking never gets boring and we can't wait for the next line.

- The Eponymous Theatre Critic runs through a meadow of memories. And, wheverever you are, don't despiar. Today is the color purple.

"Dutchmen" from Bricolage Production Company

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"The Electric Baby" from Quantum Theatre

"The Electric Baby" is a drama about the interconnections between children, parents and the stories that bind us. When a couple have a child who shines like the moon, like the moon the boy attracts awe, stories and people in search of light in the darkness.

There is an odd complexity to "The Electric Baby" that makes it fascinating. If you enjoy reality, there are cab drivers, lottery tickets, car accidents, etc. If you enjoy magic, there are babies that glow like the moon, folk tales that tell the future and a whole lot of Fate. However, the "magical realism" that the show amounts to is something unique (and probably not what the term "magical realism" means to you). And "unique" is what Quantum Theatre does very well.

Robin Abramson as the Romanian wife and mother Natalia is captivating. From her first lines to the heart-breaking conclusion, she magically spins home remedy yarns, the Romanian interpretation of African fairy-tales and theatre rules with strength and ingenuity.

Her Nigerian husband, Ambimbola, played by Monteze Freeland is also a charmer. Alternate funny-man and philosopher, Freeland steals scenes with his graceful performance. Through amazing skill, Freeland and Abramson pull off an amazing feat and form one of the strongest bonds in the production - one that can be felt although the characters almost never meet onstage.
The supporting cast, Laurie Klatscher and John Shepard as Helen and Reed Casey, an older couple who lost their eldest daughter years ago, Ruth Gamble as the young waitress/call girl with a heart of formica and a poison tongue, and Nick Lehane as an ever-changing series of male characters, also work with great ability, but the play is at it's best when it centers on the mystical foreign parents and the stories they use to cope with their "electric baby".

The set is hypnotic and clunky all at the same time. Quantum Theatre is a roving theatre company that utilizes found spaces. The room, a found space at the Waldorf School in Pittsburgh, features hand-painted walls decorated in an assortment of birds and mythical figures while the ceiling is done up like the sky all set against tall windows that reveal the actual night sky. What makes the site clunky are the series of "mini-stages" that were built. These provide levels and some set locations. However, the virtue of a found space is that it is located, not created for a production - altering it to include a set "stage" playing space seems - in this eponymous opinion - to take the "found" out of the "found space".

When all is said and done, "The Electric Baby" is a great reminder of the "magic" of theatre. There are no projections, on-stage tricks, "magic" that requires lots of technical aptitute - just a mystical use of language and relationships that hits on something fantastical but real all at the same time.

Tickets for "The Electric Baby" can be found here:
http://www.quantumtheatre.com/season/the-electric-baby/

- The Eponymous Theatre Critic writes for a variety of seedy, low-reputed, forgetful, fact-negligent Marxist papers that are heavily circulated through car wind-shield wipers in Portland, Oregon.

"M.I.A." from Pittsburgh Playhouse

"M.I.A" follows the family of a soldier who is currently "Missing In Action", but is most likely dead. The soldier's 40th birthday lands on the weekend his conservative, patriotic father is accepting a "Man Of The Year Award" from the local VFW. While the family has in many ways moved on from the death of the eldest brother, when the youngest son declares his desire to enlist, the family is torn between patriotism and keeping a child safe.

The show, while "emotional" is labored. The script is populated with lots of talking over miniscule, low-stakes events - some of which have nothing to do with the story. Characters ask the most obvious questions about each other. Because why would a father, on the weekend he is receiving an award from the VFW M.I.A. Commitee, on the birthday of his son who went M.I.A., seem distracted?

And it's not that the performances are bad. Larry John Meyers as Frank Schooler - the father who might have taught his boys too well - and his real-life wife Holly Thuma as Emmy Schooler bring the chemistry and are believably married onstage. Justin Mark DeWolf delivers a young man who is torn between allegiance to his family and allegiance to what he believes makes a man (and delivers what could be the best monologue in the show). The supporting cast, Tommy LaFitte and Daina Michelle Griffith are equally skilled in their craft.

What makes everyone suffer is that the characters are basically archetypes. There's the housewife who cooks well, the career woman growing distant from her husband (but who never seems to leave her parents' house...), the wise-talkin' Democratic black man who keeps the Republican white man in check with witty banter. However, the play does succeed in keeping the focus off the politics and on the humanity, even if the characters are clear-cut from the first scene.

Also characters talk about two things: the father and the missing brother. There's also no real discoveries revealed throughout the piece, so there's very little driving action that propels the story forward. And the "surprises" can be seen coming from a mile away. The ending becomes some version of "A Christmas Carol" with the ghost of the dead son appearing - played by Justin Fortunato - in a performance that makes you wish the character had been used better than "The Ghost of Christmas Past".

One consistently nice thing about Pittsburgh Playhouse is the attention they give to set design. Even in the studio space, whenever you go to see a production there you know the stage is going to be unique and transformed for every given show. In "M.I.A", the set is a sand colored and textured blank slate with benches, tombstones and dinner tables seemingly growing from the sandscape.

What really transforms the space are the lighting elements. Fantastic visuals of sand flowing and wind whistling help disorient the audience and the characters so dream sequences, nightmares actually have a complete change from the "real world".

 Now, let it be said that "M.I.A" is NOT the worst constructed show to be given a full production in Pittsburgh this year - not at all. But, it seems to be a plague among Pittsburgh theatres that shows which have a strong connection via writers, marriages, professional relationships to the theatre/people involved are the ones being performed.

That is fine, it really is. It's a part of having a theatre community, but is it too much to ask that these world-premieres - which are on the road to becoming full-fledge, well-paced, stand-alone shows - get a few staged readings? Maybe some developmental workshops? Just so someone has the chance to say, "Hey, the first 45 min of this show is nothing but exposition to set up the Act 1 curtain...maybe we could integrate that better?"

TIckets for "M.I.A." can be purchased here:
http://www.pittsburghplayhouse.com/Tickets/ordertickets

- The Eponymous Theatre Critic enjoys aliens, but only half as much as robots. That being said, robots are liked only one fourth as much as mutants, but hey, no one is perfect.  

"Monster In The Hall" from City Theatre

"Monster In The Hall" follows Duck, a sixteen-year-old girl Scottish girl on what could be the most stressful day of her young and stress-filled life. The house is a mess, her Hell's Angels retiree father has finally been struck blind by his Multiple Sclerosis, her could-be-gay/would-be-boyfriend drops by for a proposition and her Mom is still dead, leaving Duck to juggle it all on her own - all with the woman from Social Services planning to stop by for lunch. There's also a small amount of Socialism.

"Monster In The Hall" by City Theatre could be one of the best shows you see this season. Best described as a "play with music" rather than a full-out musical, half the play is sung in rock/punk style by the energetic cast who dance and sing with all the enthusiam of teens alone in their bedrooms. The energy and comic skill of the cast keeps the high-energy show of ever-growing stakes constantly moving. They sing. They dance. They have motorcycle chase scenes.

Melinda Helfrich as Duck is as endearing as she is awkward - which is what the character demands. Her Duck is a girl whose strength is abundantly clear to the audience, but who can't see it in herself. Helfrich makes what could be a tragic, put-on young woman into a heroine who has our support by never dreaming to ask for it.

Sheila McKenna as ALL the other female roles is domineering, then endearing, then a Norweigian punk star, all while being hilariously funny. The same can said for Matt Dengler as Lawrence (and as various Game Show Hosts) and David Whelan as her motorcycle-minded father, Duke. With a cast of four, everyone is consistently onstage signing, dancing, pantomiming all in a joyous mix that tries to mask the piss-stained, weed-filled home that Duck and Duke have cobbled together. All this is accomplished not with brazen sarcasm, but real tenderness that makes life, no matter how hard, tolerable.

The set is a series of child-decorated doors and cupboards that fill the stage, opening and closing without rhyme or reason. The lighting and video elements are brilliantly done, with the motorcyle crash that took Duck's mother popping up, much like tragic events keep recycling through our own mind. A fantastic lighting and sound scheme keeps the energy of the play going in perfect sync with the performances.

While the play could be called hodge-podge, it's structure makes sense. "Monster In The Hall" is all about coping. Music helps you cope, so there's music in the play. Fantasies help you cope, so the play is filled with them too. So do video games, game shows, stories about the past, and the production manages to mesh all these things together in a fantastical but honest spectacle of theatre. "Monster In The Hall" should not be missed.


Tickets for City Theatre's "Monster In The Hall" can be purchased here:
http://citytheatre.culturaldistrict.org/production/28075/the-monster-in-the-hall

- The Eponymous Theatre Critic does not believe the slanderous rumor that Greenland in filled with ice while Iceland is green; neither should you. Such an irony could not be cooked up by a people as barbaric as the Vikings.

"M33" by Pittsburgh Playhouse

"M33" is a slice-of-Americana play about the the Depression Era national craze known as "marathon dances" where everyday folks, ex vaudvillian performers and anyone looking for a free meal would dance until they dropped, were sabotaged, were disqualified or won.

It is rare to find an effective, narrative-driven dance show that is not also a musical. And, while "M33" may be begging to be made into a musical at some point, it really works well as it now stands. Don't be mislead, there is definately music involved throughout, but the dialogue and the dancing are what really drives the story forward.

The lead is perfectly cast Heidi Friese as the so-much-more than plucky June Havoc, who traverses the valleys and mountains of her past and self throughout the show. Friese takes the character through the physical and emotional trials so effectively, the audience can feel June's exhaustion, and determination to work through it, even though it is obvious the actress is physically onstage for a mere two hours or so.

Fantastic character performances feed the rollicking show. Reed Worth and Kristen Sherman as married clown performers Bozo and Helen Bazoo steal hearts with their honest chemistry and comedic adroitness. Audra Qualley is an understated but deliberate dirty player who's seen the bad side of the dance hall a few too many times. Kassie Doherty is quite charming as the "local" entered in the contest. Brandon Taylor as Patsy McCarthy provides a nice, relaxed juxtaposition to Friese's energy. And Sarah Meahl as The Mick who is so evocative physically her character does not need too many words.

The set, apparently, is supposed to be "a boardwalk along the seashore". It never really evokes that (sure there's water shown outside, but it's never as specified as a shore), but is realistically executed and fits the stage action perfectly. Locations like the sleeping quarters of the dancers (only eleven minutes every hour) and June Havoc's flashbacks are completely at home on the two-level set above the dance floor. The costumes are also perfectly period, and make-up really transforms the talented young cast into a believable array of ages and character types - not an easy feat for young performers.

The only note might be a problem in the play itself. Late in the game, the play tries to set up a physical antagonist, like the Mob or one of the dancers, but these are largely distracting plot-wise, never resolved and uneccessary. After all, the marathon is the antagonist which forces the dancers into constant conflict with themselves and one another. Also, there's a strange use of life-sized rag dolls early on? At first, you think it's a gag used to get pennies from the spectators, and then it is revealed that, yes, the dolls on the stage are meant to be real people - supposedly to fill the stage more for the beginning of the dance marathon? But, the human cast makes up about 21, so maybe this is also a bit superfluous/confusing. Confusing being the bad part.

Even though the characters drop out in increasingly more psychologically damaging ways, the triumph of the play is that it manages to keep the mood light but blindingly realistic. This is not a plastered-on smile and apple pie slice of Americana, but one about endurance, metaphorical and physical. The play has as much dirt on its face as the contestants dancing for their lives. Moments are particualrly surreal just because they are true: violence from other dancers in the sleeping room, a couple having sex under a blanket while dancing upright on the floor, exhausted women warned about being kidnapped or drugged and sold right off the floor and the constant threat of "going squirrely" from a mixture of sleep and sun deprivation. Don't worry though, the play never stops being a good time.

But, after over 1000 hours, (that's over 41 days, to keep it in perspective), there's the light at the end of the tunnel of glorious prize money. Or, at the very least, there's another dance marathon.

Tickets for "M33" can be purchased here:
http://www.pittsburghplayhouse.com/Tickets/ordertickets

-The Eponymous Theatre Critic has been a longtime believer in, "Sadism is sexy. Masochism is talent." It is, in fact, the only tatoo Epony has on eastward side of Epony's back.    

"Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" by Carnegie-Mellon University

"Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" is a fan-favorite Sondheim musical built upon a British urban legend of a deranged barber who, seeking revenge on the world for the cruel fate of his beloved wife and daughter, slits the throats of men who come looking for a shave. Also embroiled in the story is a sexually deviant judge, a ruddy sailor and the female owner of the pie shop that would cannibalistically get rid of the bodies.

The production currently running at Carnegie-Mellon University is a dynamic mixture of spectacle and gore set in a gothic wonderland. That is to say, it is not to be missed. Director Joe Calarco takes the often-done production and transforms it into a complete departure from all that's known, making even entrances and exits unexpected and exciting (setting the tone for the entire night). However, while extremely innovative and new, nothing is neglected, from the opening stage picture to the final terror, to this whole, complete production.  If you can get a ticket, that is.

The most dynamic performances in the show go to the supporting roles. Marrick Smith gives new depth to the sailor, Anthony, as a young man who is impestuous and easily taken by passion instead of simply a Dudley-Do-Right. Corey Cott as Tobias captures the innocence and paranoia of a boy raised in abuse. Noah Plomgren as a scene-stealing Pirelli that makes you wish the character lived for a just a few more numbers. And Jessie Ryan Shelton as a sweet, docile, but ultimately very funny Johanna. Another sign of the production's level to detail, the Male and Female Ensemble steal the show at their various interludes and transformations as the town people of London, Pie devourers and, ultimately, Sweeney's victims. What is fantastic is that the Ensemble and Supporting roles (even those not mentioned here) are just as powerful, evocative singers and performers as the leads, making every moment of the production mezmerizing.

That being said, the most sucessful performances are the ones that give over to the extreme emotion that is within the music. Denver Milord who plays Sweeney Todd, while a flawless voice, seems to be holding something back. Also, he and Abdiel Vivancos, Judge Turpin, do not carry the work-weary/older bodies or age of their respective characters. However, Vivancos goes to the depravity of the controlling Judge while Milord's rage seems flimsy. Lucia Roderique, however, carries the age and world-weariness of Mrs. Lovett as epically as she sings.

Someone once said that a good set is one that you don't even notice, and this similarly goes for costumes, lights, sound, any production aspect. However, in this production, all these elements are an intractable piece that, where any of them altered or removed, the entire production would not be the same. It may still be a good production, maybe even great, but it would not be this production of Carnegie-Mellon's "Sweeney Todd". And this production is fantastic. In the interest of spoiling, the specifics will not be discussed here. Also, the running time is NOT two hours but, including the intermission, clocks in at about three. However, if you are unable to attend, don't let anybody tell you about it. It's better if you don't know what you miss.

Tickets for "Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" at Carnegie-Mellon University cane be attempted at here:
http://www.drama.cmu.edu/50/box-office

Please Call the Box Office for Wait Listing Procedure.

- The Eponymous Theatre Critic enjoys a good tot of gin in front of a roaring fire of a chapel in which the harmonium will only be partially singed.