Anticipating that we secure the rights, Queen City Queer Theatre Collective will be presenting CORPUS CHRISTI by Terrence McNally as our June 8 reading.
If you are interested in getting involved in the cast of 13 men, please send your info and a 1 minute monologue to Matt Wilson, who will be directing, at mtwilson24@yahoo.com. Rehearsals will be Thursday June 4th after 6, Sunday June 7th after 6 and on the 8th after 6.
Filed under Casting Call
Trapped underground, a young couple discovers survival is more than what you escape.
Actors Mac Blais & Alex Roberts with Pones Inc. dancers. Photos by Jillian Beach.
A theatre/dance mashup, “Shelter” is a collaboration between Pones Inc. (Traffick 2014 Cincy Fringe Full Frontal and Producer’s Pick, as well as League of Cincinnati Theatres (LCT)’s Fringe Favorite) and Queen City Flash (Slut Shaming 2014 Cincy Fringe Artists’ Pick). At the end of the world, a teenage couple seek refuge in a backyard fallout shelter. As lights flicker and sirens blare, their internment reveals the cracks between them and their reliance on each other. They soon learn that survival isn’t what you escape, but what you bring with you. Pones Inc dancers create the world of the shelter, under the direction of Kim Popa, as Xavier actors Mac Blais and Alex Roberts bring writer Trey Tatum’s script to life. Directed by Bridget Leak and including original music by local composer Galen Tipton, this piece is a true collaboration between local artists and art forms.
Performances will take place at Gabriel’s Corner (1425 Sycamore St, Cincinnati, OH 45202)
Tickets can be purchased online at http://www.cincyfringe.com/performance/shelter-2/
Pones Inc. provides artistic opportunities for community growth by creating engaging new ways for audiences to experience dance. Founded in 2008, Pones Inc. has collaborated with over 200 artists and 100 art and service organizations. The company creates site-specific performances through a fusion of movement and dance with other art forms. Pones Inc. performers use their bodies to speak their minds and uses its signature pedestrian-inspired movement to spark collaboration, connection, and community. Pones Inc. believes that art creates powerful change.
Queen City Flash is a new theater company dedicated to open access to the arts and expanding audiences’ sense of theatricality by untethering the arts from physical space, prohibitive costs and traditional notions. Through flash mob-style theater, artists and communities combine to transform environments and unite over stories, picnics and sunsets.
Filed under Press Releases
This review has been reposted courtesy of the League of Cincinnati Theatres. For more LCT reviews click here to visit their reviews page.
Outside Mullingar, by John Patrick Shanley, is a charming and heartwarming, Irish, romantic comedy at Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati. Director Ed Stern makes a welcome return to Cincy stages and steers this production right into our hearts and minds. Stern very rightly points to this work as a different voice than we are used to hearing from Shanley; it’s a journey into his Irish roots and as Stern describes it: “There is a lyricism, a beauty, with nuanced comedy and drama intermingled into a soft human and humane work.” Just so.
Jen Joplin as Rosemary Muldoon & Brian Isaac Phillips as Anthony Reilly. Photo by Mikki Schaffner.
The ensemble is worthy of the theatre’s name and unfolds this simple and poetic story with ease. Two longtime farm neighbors have a friendly but sometimes strained relationship over a land dispute and an incident that happened between the kids when they were young. Shanley’s characters are real and engaging and are infused with the bittersweet longing found in the characters he created in Moonstruck. Quirky and lovely, Shanley gives the characters so much narrative and so many descriptive scenes, you feel you’ve known them all your life. A very neat feat in only 90 minutes.
Area favorites Joneal Joplin as Tony Reilly, and Dale Hodges, as Aofie Muldoon, are crusty and endearing neighbors who have both lost their spouses. Both inhabit these characters completely with genuine charm and dynamic realism. Brian Isaac Phillips, usually directing at Cincinnati Shakespeare Company and is its’ artistic director, was a delight to see onstage. He plays Anthony Reilly, son of Joneal Joplin’s Tony Reilly, with heartbreaking vulnerability and his scene with his dying father is a stunning revelation into the depth of both Phillips and Joplin.Tony Reillycomplains that his son has trouble “standing up for himself” and ruminates about giving the farm to his American cousin instead. But Anthony is the real poet of the land he works and dreams of flying. Phillips gives the son such pathos and an aching longing that instantly engages him with the audience. Jen Joplin as Rosemary Muldoon (and real life daughter of Joplin), is as sturdy and rugged as her male counterpart farmers Jen gives her the Irish soul of a rare beauty like the white heather she finds among the hills during her solitary walks. Jen Joplin is a study in contrasts and yet steady as the day is long, giving a beautiful and grounded performance. Brian Phillips and Jen Joplin have a lyrical quality together that was both sweet and aching for the love of each other that they can’t seem to express.
Thanks to Rocco Dal Vera’s expert vocal coaching all of the actors had spot on Irish brogues. Joe Tilford’s extravagant wagons slide on and off stage with slick, quick and complete scene changes. Bravo to the running crew! The addition of real rain and a couple of surprises at the end made this a truly remarkable set design. This is Tilford’s debut at ETC who can be found more regularly at Playhouse in the Park. It is a brilliant debut. Additional props to the perfection of set dressing by the always-on-point Shannon Rae Lutz and a moody lighting design by Resident Designer Brian Mehring sets this journey on the right course.
Don’t miss this comfortable and quirky visit to Mullingar!
For more information on the production, click here.
Filed under League of Cincinnati Theatres Reviews
This review has been reposted courtesy of the League of Cincinnati Theatres. For more LCT reviews click here to visit their reviews page.
Untethered Theater’s Three Days of Rain is definitely an ambitious performance at Clifton Performance Theatre. The first act opens in 1995, the second act in the same apartment in 1960. This was a play of three actors playing two roles each and was well-played by this 3-person ensemble, MaryKate Moran, Carter Bratton, and newcomer to Untethered, Adam Jones.
MaryKate Moran as Nan, Carter Bratton as Pip & Adam Jones as Walker.
The story begins with the encounter of a brother (Ned) and his sister (Nan) after a long period of time only to meet a lawyer to find out what their deceased father had left behind for them. Pip, a common friend of them both, as well as affectionately close to their father, joins the meeting as well. The elaborate yet concise stage set up is initially a rundown studio apartment where the Ned and Pip’s Dad began their modest journey together as architects. It is clear neither of the siblings went through a normal family life During the first half of the play Ned attempts to discover his father through an enigmatic journal, first page of which is dated for three consecutive days and has just these four words written: “Three Days of Rain”.
Following the intermission we see the same set but everything is alive as the set takes us back to the days when Walker (Ned’s father) and Theo (Pip’s father) were in their early days as architects. The low self-esteemed and a chronic stutterer Walker felt fortunate to have an outgoing and influential friend like Theo, while Theo diplomatically depended on the talent of Walker to advance to fame as an architect. Theo also has a rocky relationship with his girlfriend, Lina, who is not always charmed by his extraverted nature. The chemistry and relationship between these characters form a complicated triangle.
The first act develops curiosity within the audience who try to anticipate where the story is going. We expect some twisting revelation. But although the story in the second half presents a sharper relationship drama, it lacks the brilliance of the first half and seems to present a more clichéd version of a romantic triangle.
Nevertheless, the three actors still render excellent performances that continue to draw our undivided attention. Adam Jones (Ned) from the first half reappears as his father, Walker, in the second half. The strongly contrasting character of these two men was vividly portrayed in Adam Jones’s performance. From his clothing, hairdo and mannerisms, Adam Jones led us to believe he was not the same man in these two different roles. Mary Kate Moran’s performance as Nan and Lina, was less polished and her roles were much less dynamic. As Pip, Carter Bratton’s portrayal was somewhat flat, as the smooth finesse of both characters did not allow as much contrast between them.
This production, perhaps, needs a bit more time to gel. Once it does, it will be compelling theater. As it stands, it is a show that had good moments with occasional missteps in between. The costumes in this play needed a lot more attention, especially to draw contrast between Walker and Theo and the different eras. The sound and lightening design helped to separate the indoor and outdoor spaces but it was rough at times. The sound was often too loud over the actors and the light didn’t hit all the actors correctly and caused strange shadows. Lighting operation malfunctioned a couple of times though Adam Jones spontaneously attempted to cover it up by impromptu dialogue. And most definitely big kudos must go out to Buz Davis for a creatively thoughtful scenic design with extensive detail. Leah Strasser did a great job directing this play. Her skill was evident, although occasional lack of attention to details provided some confusion at times.
Overall, the audience was well-served by this subtle play. The bond between the actors, as well as everyone else at the Clifton Performance Theatre was vibrantly in evidence through their collaborative and energetic presentation. One can warmly utter: “a small theatre doing big things”. Three Days of Rain is recommended for the passionate lovers of good theater.
For more information on the production, click here.
Filed under League of Cincinnati Theatres Reviews
Links to all reviews can be found using the REVIEWS link at the top of the page. Blog postings, links and more are available on my Facebook fan page. You can also receive updates on Twitter from @BTCincyRob.
Kaitlin Lory as Polly Baker and John Woll as Bobby Child.
CRAZY FOR YOU presented by Cincinnati Music Theatre through May 16. Click here for more information on the production. I attended the opening Saturday performance.
Cincinnati Music Theatre ambitiously tackles the dance-heavy musical comedy CRAZY FOR YOU as their season closer.
Leads Kaitlin Lory as Polly Baker and John Woll as Bobby Child give solid performances and have a cute chemistry together. I would have liked to see a bit more of an emotional connection between the two since their relationship comes together so quickly.
Rick Kramer is spot-on and fun as (the real) Bella Zangler and his duet, “What Causes That,” with doppelganger Woll is a highlight of the show. Also fun were Jen Drake and Gregory Good in “Naughty Baby.” Allison Hinkel does well as Tess, but I think she could have been used more in supporting Bobby and Polly.
The cast.
At the performance I attended, the cast seemed to struggle with maintaining their energy throughout the show. Several times (once due to a costume change delay) the momentum of the show dropped out almost completely.
The choreography suffered a bit from the same problem. There were times when the dancers’ faces dropped to concentrate on the choreography. The priority has to be convincing the audience that you are having fun. I’m not sure if this is an option, but a couple of the longer dance sequences could have used a bit of editing. That being said, the ensemble should be commended for the hard work that shows in the dance numbers, especially “I Got Rhythm.”
Jen Drake as Irene Roth & Gregory Good as Link.
Director Sarah C. Mizelle creates some really nice stage pictures in her blocking. There were a few times where scenes with much of the ensemble on stage could have used a bit more focus on the leads.
The orchestra, under the direction of Charles Wilhelm sounded strong and it was very nice to hear the score played live by a talented ensemble of musicians.
On the technical side, Rick Kramer was also responsible for the smart set design. Also well done was the costuming work by Elaine Michael. I can’t recall any sound issues of note for the leads, but there were several instances where mics were not live for ensemble solo lines.
Overall a light-hearted and fun musical comedy. A bit uneven, easily rectified by the cast maintaining its focus, energy and spontaneity throughout the performance. Enjoy the rest of your run.
My rating: 3.25 out of 5
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Filed under Reviews
Behind the Curtain Cincinnati 