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Peter Pan (May 28 -
31, 2009) |
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THEATER REVIEW - PETER PAN
Peter Pan a soaring success
Saturday, May 28, 2009
Margaret Quamme
FOR THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH |
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Columbus Children's Theatre has
outdone itself with a magical production of Peter Pan. Making full use
of the opportunities offered by the Southern Theatre, the show takes
flight both literally and figuratively, introducing a new generation to
a musical that used to be a yearly television tradition for their
parents or grandparents.
The story is a familiar one, based on the play by James Barrie,
with music by Mark Charlap and lyrics by Carolyn Leigh. Permanent child
Peter Pan (Kate Mock) takes Wendy Darling (Leah Shaeffer)
and her two brothers to live with him and the other Lost Boys in
Neverland, where he wages war with Captain Hook (Michael Louis Wilson).
CCT's version doesn't stint on the spectacle: When Peter and the
kids take off, it's a breath-taking sight. Mock looks completely in her
element soaring through the air, while the others appear thrilled but
believably awkward. The climactic fight scene between Peter and Hook is
also staged with panache.
But the musical is also firmly anchored in well-developed
characters. Though Mock's Peter is infectiously full of himself, he
meets his match in Schaeffer's grounded Wendy, who may be drawn to
Peter's exuberance but knows well enough that their time together in
Neverland isn't meant to last.
Pictured is Michael Louis Wilson as "Captain Hook" and Kate Mock as "Peter Pan" |
Wilson's Hook is nicely modulated: He
can go over the top in a waltz or a tarantella, but he never steals the
show. He and Michael Solomon's sweet-tempered Smee play off of
each other with comic zeal.
As usual, the CCT production, under William Goldsmith's
direction, deftly merges adult and child actors, with children playing
the Lost Boys, adults the pirates, and a combination of the two the
Indians.
The musical is divided into three acts of approximately equal
length, and though much of the later music consists of reprises of
earlier numbers, this production doesn't lose vigor, in large part
because of some stylish choreography by Brieanna Bailey. The numbers by
the Indians - which in some productions suffer from a surfeit of
cuteness - here have an acrobatic grace and power that transcend the
silly lyrics. The pirate numbers also have a slapstick elegance that
makes them a treat to watch. The music is enhanced by an 11-piece
orchestra.
Carla Chaffin's sets and Ryan Osborn's lighting design meld the
solidly real with the imaginative. The sets range from a substantial
Victorian bedroom and multi-layered pirate ship to a sparkling,
leaf-covered forest backdrop. Osborn's lighting is clear and bright for
comic scenes, but it also includes a tall, star-filled backdrop that
gives the flying scenes added enchantment.
Though the musical lasts 2 hours, it moves along briskly. At last
night's opening performance, even the many very young children in
attendance seemed engrossed, and more than happy to tell Peter Pan to
wake up when he was in danger and to clap Tinkerbell back to life.
Columbus Children's Theatre will present Peter Pan at 7:30
p.m. today, 3 and 7;30 p.m. Saturday and 3 p.m. Sunday at the Southern
Theatre, 21 E. Main St. Tickets, suggested for ages 4 and older, cost
$12.50 to $22.50. Call 614-224-6672 or visit
www.colschildrenstheatre.org
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Sarah Plain & Tall (Mar.
12 - 29, 2009) |
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THEATER REVIEW - SARAH PLAIN AND TALL
Warm family story comes alive onstage
Saturday, March 14, 2009
Margaret Quamme
FOR THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH |
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Some books lend themselves almost
perfectly to adaptation, and Sarah, Plain and Tall is one of them.
The plot and nuances of the short but complex children's novel survive
intact in the moving production at Columbus Children's Theatre.
Patricia MacLachlan's novel, gracefully adapted by Joseph
Robinette, follows what happens when a Kansas widower in 1910 places an
ad for a wife in a Maine newspaper.
Feisty Sarah answers the ad and must deal with a man who is set in
his ways; his daughter, who has no need for a new mother; and the son,
who never knew his mom.
A grown Anna, the daughter, narrates the story from a pivotal
point in her life. The story moves smoothly between her perspective and
that of the younger Anna.
The two actresses who play the part are believable as different
stages in the life of one person. Kelly Strand, as the grown Anna, is
tender and touching as she is drawn into her memories. Emily Schwerdtfeger is credibly restrained as the withdrawn Anna, who is
tormented by guilt because of the anger expressed to her mother just
before she died.
From
left: Caleb (Sammy Lisa), Jacob (Scott Willis),
Sarah (Tory Matsos) and Anna (Emily Schwerdtfeger) |
Tory Matsos is almost too radiant as Sarah, and no one would call her
plain, but her tentative relationship with Anna evolves with convincing
stops and starts. Scott Willis is solid as father Jacob, winningly fond
of his children but skeptical at first about Sarah. Sammy Lisa is
entertaining as exuberant son Caleb, who isn't skeptical about anyone.
Among the many other characters, standouts are
Ryan Long as
Sarah's sister-in-law, Meg, who ricochets with giddy force between
fondness for her sister-in-law and eagerness to get her out of their
Maine home; and John Feather, who gives depth and humor to several minor
characters.
Columbus Children's Theatre recommends the two-act play for children 8
and older -- which seems reasonable.
Under Nancy Shelton Williams' steady direction, the plot unfolds
gradually and naturally during the course of two hours. She has a gift
for realistic detail and a strong sense of the ins and outs of family
relationships.
Williams also designed the realistic but adaptable set, which
features the interior of the parlor of Sarah's home in Maine side by
side with the front porch of the Kansas house, along with a front stage
area for other scenes.
The adaptation ought to satisfy the many fans of the novel and win
it new readers as well. |
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Sundiata (Oct. 23 - Nov 2, 2008) |
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THEATER REVIEW - SUNDIATA
African king's tale is a classic
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Margaret Quamme
FOR THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH |
(left to right) Kenyatta Foster as "Balla",
Mamoudou Kane (right) as "Djata", the Lion King,
and Pamela Hamilton as his "Nana." |
It's hard to recapture the feeling of hearing a fairy tale for the
first time -- even for the youngest theatergoers.
But Sundiata does it. Based on the oral history of a 13th-century
Mali king, the story has extraordinary mythic potency, and the Columbus
Children's Theatre production of the one-act play is so fresh and
powerful that it makes one wonder why the tale isn't a childhood staple.
Playwright Edward Mast has honed a long story down to its basics
without sacrificing its complexity. Young Djata -- a disabled,
speech-impaired child with a penchant for thievery and a tendency to
hear voices that no one else hears -- is being raised in a small village
by the woman he believes to be his mother.
Then he is approached by a fruit-seller who hints that Djata has
promise and helps the boy confront the evil sorcerer who has taken over
the kingdom.
Director LaJoyce Daniel-Cain emphasizes the intensity of the
story: There's no winking at the audience here.
Evil is a real threat. Daniel-Cain seamlessly melds stylized and
naturalistic acting styles so that domestic realism coexists with
heightened storytelling.
Eighth-grader Mamadou Kane is remarkably self-possessed as Djata:
He doesn't try to make the (at first) unlikable boy cute in any way and
thus makes his transformation more compelling.
Kenyatta Foster
, who plays both the griot telling the tale and the
fruit-seller who awakens Djata to his destiny, combines gravity and
flair to give the play momentum.
Mamoudou
Kane (left) as "Djata,"
and Caliph L. Scott (right) as "Sumanguru" |
Pamela Hamilton, as Djata's foster mother, is down-to-earth, warm
and believable, and Caliph Scott is imposing as the sorcerer.
African
drummers Devin Shaw, Harold Lee Jr. and Balla Sy -- visible at all times
from a raised platform -- add to the atmosphere with percussive
emphasis, and choreography by Serrita Lynn Sy bookends the action
dramatically.
Eric Lubkeman's rust-and-earth-colored set and vividly patterned costumes
create a concrete sense of time and place, and Ryan Osborn's stark,
shadow-filled lighting highlights the urgency.
The
action is scary enough that preschoolers should probably stay home, but
older children and parents will be challenged and provoked by a story
that bears retelling.
Sundiata
reverberates on cultural, political, spiritual and personal levels; and
gains richness by not spelling out its metaphors but letting them touch
theatergoers under the surface. |
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Sweeney Todd (July
10 - 27, 2008) |
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THEATER REVIEW - SWEENEY TODD
Young cast accents drama in line with bleak subject
Saturday, July 12, 2008
Margaret Quamme
FOR THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH |
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Todd (David Bahgat) and Mrs. Lovett (Suzy Kohane) |
Once a year, Columbus Children's
Theatre cuts loose from its mission of performing theater for young
people to focus on a musical performed by young people but not meant for
little children.
This year's selection is a full-length production of Sweeney
Todd directed by William Goldsmith, who makes good use of the pool
of talent nurtured by the company through the years. Most of the actors
are in college or in their final years of high school.
The intense, macabre two-act
musical benefits from a performance in the intimate space of the Park
Street Theatre, where singers can take on Stephen Sondheim's demanding
music without microphones and the chorus can confront the audience with
provocative directness.
At the center of the musical is the title character, a barber
exiled to Australia under a false charge. When he returns home to London
to find his family destroyed, he sets out to take bloody revenge on the
judge who condemned him.
David Bahgat makes a dogged, brutish and compelling Todd, and he
handles the music with power and ease. As his partner in crime, Mrs.
Lovett, Suzy Kohane deftly mixes superficial confidence and energy with
a deeper insecurity.
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Todd (David Bahgat) and
his dead wife, Lucy (Kate Mock) |
Their duets, especially Epiphany and A Little Priest,
reveal their relationship with remarkable complexity.
Although their voices aren't as strong, Jason Brand is creepy as
Judge Turpin and Harry Sanderson likable as Anthony, who is as hopeful
as Todd is cynical. Valerie Reaper is innocently eager and sweet-voiced
as Todd's lost daughter, Johanna, and Zachary Justus is touching as
confused Tobias.
The chorus is particularly strong: Many of its members could
easily have taken on title roles, and together they provide forcefully
dramatic commentary on the action.
The production as a whole subordinates humor to drama, using
occasional touches of wit for comic relief but more often relying on the
humor to comment sardonically on the action.
An eight-piece band lends complex and effective backing for the
songs.
A set dominated by unfinished wood and brick provides a suitably
bleak context for the play, although, at Thursday's opening performance,
crucial scenes set on the upper level were sometimes weakened by the
clear and distracting presence of the band behind a thin scrim.
 The troupe recommends the production for children 13 and older --
which seems reasonable. Anyone who saw last year's bloody film version
will be able to handle the musical, which has minimal gore.
Even with its leavening touches of humor, and even when it goes
deliberately over the top, this Sweeney takes its subject seriously and
finds layers of tragedy that can't be easily dismissed.
• Columbus Children's Theatre will present at 7:30 tonight and 3 p.m.
Sunday -- and 7:30 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays and 3 p.m. Sundays,
through July 27 -- in the Park Street Theatre, 512 Park St. Tickets cost
$10. Call 614-224-6672 |
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Listen as WOSU Theater Critic Joy Reilly talks with
Columbus Children’s Theatre Artistic Director Bill Goldsmith
about the production of "Sweeney Todd."
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