Category Archives: Reviews

OPAL OPUS: JOURNEY TO ALAKAZOO from Tangled Leaves Theatre Collective - Photos by Jeff Burkle.

OPAL OPUS: JOURNEY TO ALAKAZOO from Tangled Leaves Theatre Collective as part of the 2011 Cincinnati Fringe Festival. You can read the show description here.

Near the beginning of this play within a play pop opea, The Writer hopes the musical she is creating is “43% halfway-decent.” In that regard, the imaginative OPAL OPUS is more than successful.

What seems to be lacking is a story thread for the “outside” play versus the “play within the play.” I couldn’t figure out the lead character’s motivation for writing such a personal story or the reason for the self-imposed time-limit. I say “personal story” because The Writer actually gets pulled into the play within the play.

Inside the play I found the reason for the children’s journey to be a bit muddled and the characterizations of the four leads to, at times, seem contradictory. Almost every member of the seven person ensemble has great individual moments in the show.

The “muses” of Opal and Opus are a fun concept, however, the relationship between them is unclear. Does Opal represent the story and Opus the music? Are they ying to the other’s yang? Forces of good and evil?

There are good vocal performances throughout. A few small issues with pitch, high notes and technique do appear from time to time.

Favorite moments include father John (Blake Bowden) and daughter Josephine (Callie Schuttera) separated by a persona of Opus (Ken Early). Aretta Baumgartner creates some emotionally moving scenes as mother Joline, especially near the end of the play. Annie Kalahurka stands out as Opal who is a chameleon ball of energy on stage.

The accompaniment is well done, performed on stage by Serenity Fisher (keyboard) and Jenifer Higgins Wheatley (cello.) For me, it is the lyrics that could be tweaked a bit to better define the characters and drive the story forward.

Overall a promising start. I believe some clarity in narrative and theme is needed to strengthen the work.

Two performances remain of OPAL OPUS: JOURNEY TO ALAKAZOO at Henke 2. BTW the entrance to Henke 2 is down the alley between the buildings.

• Thu, June 9 at 9pm
• Sat, June 11 at 4pm

Links to all reviews can be found on the BTC REVIEWS page. Blog postings, links to other media reviews and more are available on my FaceBook fan page or you can receive updates on Twitter from @BTCincyRob.

THE MASCULINITY INDEX from Powerhouse Productions as part of the 2011 Cincinnati Fringe Festival. You can read the show description here.

There are some problems with the performance that can be addressed. First and foremost, the songs are too loud. Not in the “if it’s too loud, you’re too old” sense but more in the “audience is sitting in your lap and the drums and base are so loud  that the vocals are drowned out, even though that mic is maxed out” kinda way.

Also, there was some music coming out of the speakers during the pre-show and  the first half of the performance. I couldn’t tell if it was a mistake or if it was supposed to set the atmosphere, but it was distracting as the volume varied by song. One patron asked me if it was someone’s cell phone was playing and I could see other audience members trying to figure out where the sound was coming from . It would be great if you could look into these issues during your pre-show sound check.

Speaking to the original script and the performance of the piece, it comes across as something that was thrown together in a weekend, over a bag of pot and a couple of six packs. I’m not offended by profanity, in fact I’m quite skilled in its use, but it shouldn’t be used as a period at the end of most sentences. Conversations on stage require sentences and paragraphs. And watching someone “text” on stage is not riveting theater. There are a few attempts to address the promising premise of the show, but they look and sound half-hearted.

Bottom line, there were many submissions to the Cincinnati Fringe Festival that were rejected over this one. You squandered an opportunity that others would have valued.

Three performances remain of THE MASCULINITY INDEX at 1423 Vine (unless the upstairs tenant, who was complaining to the poor ticket volunteer, has his way):

• Wed, June 6 at 9:15pm
• Thu, June 9 at 7pm
• Sat, June 11 at 2:30pm

Links to all reviews can be found on the BTC REVIEWS page. Blog postings, links to other media reviews and more are available on my FaceBook fan page or you can receive updates on Twitter from @BTCincyRob.

THE BODY SPEAKS: SCRIPTED from The Performance Gallery as part of the 2011 Cincinnati Fringe Festival. You can read the show description here.

As usual, The Performance Gallery brings another interesting, thought-provoking, head-scratching, full o’ talent, show to the Cincinnati Fringe Festival.

Choosing to create the individual works that make up this production independently was clearly the correct decision. Each piece is focused, well executed and has an individual voice that demands and holds the audience’s attention. Two works, OUT AND REACH and THE BODY SPEAKS, definitely pulled me in and left me wondering what happened next.

This production also suffers from the sight line blues at times. In fact, several audience members abandoned their seats to stand in the back of the performance space. From my seat near the back row, another problem was the lighting for the puppetry work was too dim.

Overall, this exercise in assigned inspiration is a success for both the creators and the audience.

Only two performances remain of THE BODY SPEAKS: SCRIPTED at 1411 Vine:

• Tue, June 7 at 8:15pm
• Fri, June 10 at 7:30pm

Links to all reviews can be found on the BTC REVIEWS page. Blog postings, links to other media reviews and more are available on my FaceBook fan page or you can receive updates on Twitter from @BTCincyRob.

MISS MAGNOLIA BEAUMONT GOES TO PROVINCETOWN from Joe Hutchenson as part of the 2011 Cincinnati Fringe Festival. You can read the show description here.

If there is any misstep in this production, I didn’t see it. The script is extremely well-written, emotionally vibrant and real. Both Miss Beaumont and Master Joseph are fully developed characters with depth and heart. The characters transitions are eye-blink fast and yet there is never any confusion as to which character is speaking. The progression of their “forced” relationship to friendship hits all the right emotional notes. MISS MAGNOLIA BEAUMONT GOES TO PROVINCETOWN is an impressive. entertaining work.

And as promised, you do get to see Joe’s naked butt.

JUST. GO.

Three performances remain of MISS MAGNOLIA BEAUMONT GOES TO PROVINCETOWN at 1423 Vine:

• Tue, June 7 at 7pm
• Thu, June 9 at 8:30pm
• Fri, June 10 at 8:45pm

Links to all reviews can be found on the BTC REVIEWS page. Blog postings, links to other media reviews and more are available on my FaceBook fan page or you can receive updates on Twitter from @BTCincyRob.

THE BEASTS from The Great Ben Egerman Adventure - Photos by Bryn Weller.

THE BEASTS from The Great Ben Egerman Theatre Adventure! as part of the 2011 Cincinnati Fringe Festival. You can read the show description here.

There is great potential in Ben Egerman’s THE BEASTS, a sort of an apocalyptic cautionary fairy tale. Parallel story lines have characters debating the same action, opening “the door” that separates their worlds.

The use of puppets, as well as the hand-drawn illustrations, work well. As does the confusion over “archaeological finds” when the written word has been lost to time. A bit more exposition about the current world and some physical and sexual diversity to the characters would add layers to the show.

Perhaps the biggest problem is the pacing. Every time the actor leaves the stage for a costume change, any momentum that has been built is lost. It might also help the keep the entire performance on the stage. I think the audience is savvy enough to understand which side of the door they are on without having to repeatedly shift in their seats. I would have liked one more scene to serve as a coda for the piece as the current ending seems a bit abrupt.

One thing that clearly stands out is Egerman’s enthusiasm for what he does and for being part of the creative, communal energy of the Fringe.

Three performances remain of THE BEASTS at Media Bridges:

• Mon, June 6 at 8pm
• Fri, June 10 at 9:30pm
• Sat, June 11 at 7:30pm

Links to all reviews can be found on the BTC REVIEWS page. Blog postings, links to other media reviews and more are available on my FaceBook fan page or you can receive updates on Twitter from @BTCincyRob.