Broadway in Boston

Don’t Throw Away Your Shot to See Broadway in Boston’s Spectacular ‘Hamilton’

Posted by

0

Cast of Broadway in Boston’s ‘Hamilton’. Photos: Joan Marcus
 

By Shelley A. Sackett

How lucky are we that Lin-Manuel Miranda decided to pack Ron Chernow’s biography, “Alexander Hamilton,” when preparing his bag to take on his first vacation in seven years after the Broadway run of his smash hit, In the Heights. He plowed through the 800+ page book and was mesmerized by Hamilton, particularly his story as a poor immigrant rising to power.

“The moment my brain got a moment’s rest, Hamilton walked into it,” he told Ariana Huffington in an interview.

Had he grabbed any of a number of other bestselling books instead, the world would have been deprived of what remains, after ten years, a singular and thrilling theatrical experience. Broadway in Boston’s production now at Citizens Opera House is as good as it gets, even withstanding a distractingly deficient performance by Hamilton standby, Michael Natt, on the evening I saw it.

The set, by David Korins, is magnificent. Huge, with a drawbridge, walkways, and two stories, it accommodates the large cast and encourages easy transformation from scene to scene. A circular rotating insert is put to good use, and Paul Tazewell’s costumes both complement and add spice. The orchestra (Emmanuel Schvartzman, conductor) is stupendous and Andy Blankenbuehler’s choreography is cheeky, contemporary and delightfully slick. Last, but hardly least, Howell Binkley’s lighting is literally spot-on and hosannas to Nevin Steinberg and his sound design (and the cast’s flawless articulation) that ensure the audience hears every syllable (hardly a given on Boston stages).

Nathan Haydel, Tyler Fauntleroy, Jared Howelton, Elvie Ellis

The opening number, “Alexander Hamilton,” firmly establishes that the rest of the talented touring cast is not just up to the challenge but will surpass even the highest expectations of excellence. (Ensemble member Miriam Ali is a standout, and not because of her height.)

The storyline is fairly straightforward. It details the life of American Founding Father Alexander Hamilton, from his humble beginnings as a Caribbean orphan to his crucial role in the American Revolution and the formation of the new nation, culminating in his death in a duel with Aaron Burr. Aaron Burr (an outstanding Deon’te Goodman) opens with the line, “How does a bastard, orphan, son of a whore and a Scotsman, dropped in the middle of a forgotten Spot in the Caribbean by Providence, impoverished in squalor Grow up to be a hero and a scholar?” introducing Hamilton as the remarkable immigrant who, through grit, ambition, intelligence and sheer will, rose to positions of power and influence to have an undeniable and lasting effect on this nation’s history.

A.D. Weaver

While the actors may be center stage, it’s Miranda’s breathtaking score that is the true star. Over 30 songs tell the story through hip-hop, jazz, R&B, pop, and good old-fashioned ballads. Their narrative quality and melodic power are timeless, awesome in the truest sense of that now hollowed out and trite adjective.

The show features a diverse cast (Miranda broke new ground in many ways, including casting actors of color to play the roles of the Founding Fathers) and highlights Hamilton’s relationships with figures like the Schuyler sisters (despite being a standby, Amanda Simone Lee was splendid as Angelica and Lauren Mariasoosay shone as Eliza), the Marquis de Lafayette and Thomas Jefferson (both played by an excellent Christian Magby), and, of course, George Washington (a powerful A.D. Weaver).

The crowd favorite, however, is always King George III, whose role may be limited but whose songs are among the best in the show. Matt Bittner doesn’t disappoint, chewing up the role and delighting the audience with each brief appearance.

Lauren-Mariasoosay, Marja Harmon, Lily-Soto

Even if you’ve seen “Hamilton” before (and especially if you saw it when it played in Boston on its last disappointing tour), do not hesitate to high-tail it to the Citizens Opera House to see this particular version. I daresay, it is as close as we in Boston can get to the New York experience.

Most highly recommended.

‘Hamilton’ — Book, music and lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda. Inspired by Ron Chernow’s “Alexander Hamilton.” Directed by Thomas Kail. Choreography by Andy Blankenbuehler; Music Supervision and Orchestrations by Alex Lacamoire. Presented by Broadway in Boston at Citizens Opera House, Boston through Nov. 2.
For more information, visit bton.broadway.com/shows/hamilton/

Broadway in Boston’s ‘Mrs. Doubtfire’ Is A Raucous Good Time

Posted by

0

Cast of Broadway in Boston’s Mrs. Doubtfire’ Photos: Joan Marcus

By Shelley A. Sackett

Every family has that iconic favorite movie or television show that follows its members throughout childhood, adulthood and parent/grandparent-hood. For mine, it was (and is) “Mrs. Doubtfire,” the 1993 movie that has been with us from Blockbuster rental to VHS to DVD to stream-on-demand. So any live version of this holy grail was going to have a very high bar.

Thankfully, Broadway in Boston and Work Light Production’s musical version of the Broadway hit at the Emerson Colonial Theatre manages to hurdle over that bar more often than knock it over.

Thanks to (some) stand-out acting, strong vocals and lyrics that move the narrative along and give insight into the characters, Mrs. Doubtfire is easy to recommend to even the most die-hard Robin Williams/Harvey Fierstein/Sally Field/Pierce Brosnan fans.

When it falls down, however, it crashes. The choreography drags just often enough and the set designs feel flimsy and lazy (mostly painted backdrop screens). The biggest transgression is Mrs. Doubtfire’s mask, which looks like a combination of Lurch’s waxy forehead and a cross between Howdy Doody’s and Hannibal Lecter’s jaw. Heartbreakingly distracting, it is a constant reminder of why the original film remains safely inimitable.

Nonetheless, the production was fun and fast-paced. The story, for the uninitiated, revolves around Daniel’s efforts to maintain contact with his three kids after a messy divorce from his wife, Miranda. An out-of-work freelance voice actor, Daniel is a loving and devoted father to his three children: 14-year-old Lydia (a show-stopping Alanis Sophia), 12-year-old Chris (Theodore Lowenstein on Wednesday evening), and five-year-old Natalie (Ava Rose Doty). However, his hardworking wife Miranda considers him immature and unreliable.

After quitting a gig following a disagreement over a morally questionable script, Daniel throws Chris a chaotic birthday party, despite Miranda’s objections due to Chris’s poor grades. In the ensuing argument, Miranda says that she wants a divorce. Due to Daniel’s unemployed and homeless status, Miranda is granted sole custody of the children, with Daniel having visitation rights every Saturday; shared custody is contingent on Daniel finding a steady job and suitable residence within the next three months.

In the meantime, he will be under the watchful eye of Wanda Sellner (a marvelous Kennedy V. Jackson), his court-appointed social worker.

He rents a shabby apartment and takes a part-time job as a janitor at a television station. After learning that Miranda seeks a housekeeper, Daniel secretly calls her using his voice acting skills to pose as various undesirable applicants before calling as “Euphegenia Doubtfire,” an elderly Scottish nanny with strong credentials. Impressed, Miranda invites Mrs. Doubtfire for an interview. Daniel’s brother, Frank, a makeup artist, and Frank’s husband, André, help Daniel appear as an old lady through the use of makeup and prosthetics. (Enter the unfortunate mask…)

Credit: Johan Persson

As Mrs. Doubtfire, Daniel excels at parenting, becoming the kind of father he couldn’t be before. The comedy ensues as he attempts to balance his life as Daniel and as Mrs. Doubtfire, particularly when he is on the cusp of landing a terrific new job as the creator/star of a children’s television show and Miranda’s new boyfriend, Stuart Dunmire, becomes a threat as a potential father figure.

We are introduced to Daniel (an enjoyably manic Craig Allen Smith) in the opening number, “That’s Daniel,” where his Peter Pan, slapstick, playful qualities are on full display. “You think you’re being amusing, but you’re just annoying,” his director tells him moments before firing him. The entire cast, and especially wife Miranda (Melissa Campbell, a terrific singer) wholeheartedly agree.

The makeover scenes are hilarious and DeVon Wycovia Buchanan, as André, is a real scene stealer. Having Frank (Brian Kalinowski) yell every time he lies is a cute conceit at first, but ends up hamstringing the actor and turning his character into more of a cardboard, two-dimensional role.

“Easy Peasy,” featuring Mrs. Doubtfire and the entire ensemble, is one of the musical’s most enjoyable. A chorus of tapdancing chefs (Kristin Angelina Henry is a standout) help the lyrical narrative move along, and the famous vacuuming scene (“I’m Rockin’ Now”) will please even the pickiest Robin Williams fan. As Daniel/Mrs. Doubtfire takes his parenting seriously and bonds with his kids in more mature and parental ways, their interactions take on a poignancy that even transcends the distraction of his mood-disrupting mask.

As the plot moves along, it also thickens. Act II brings Daniel’s unmasking (alas, figuratively only) when Chris discovers him peeing standing up. Although Daniel tries to reason with Lydia and Chris (Natalie is left out of the loop), they see it from a different angle. “You get to see your kids,” Lydia complains, “but we don’t get to see our dad. We just see a character.”

Act II also boasts some of the show’s best musical numbers. “Playing with Fire” has the chorus dressed as dancing Mrs. Doubtfires and “Let Go” spotlights Campbell’s (Miranda) enormous vocal talent. The spectacularly entertaining  “He Lied to Me” features Kristin Angelina Henry, who milks every ounce out of her portrayal of a cuckolded flamenco dancer.

Credit: Johan Persson

The mayhem culminates in a Marx-Brother scene when Daniel is scheduled to appear in the same restaurant as both Mrs. Doubtfire (Miranda’s birthday dinner) and himself (a job interview with Janet Lundy, television executive). He miraculously pulls off this scam thanks to bathroom help by Frank and André, but eventually the cat escapes its bag and everyone is in on the ruse.

The play concludes happily enough, but avoids tying too neat a bow. The best musical number of the show, “Just Pretend,” features Daniel (Smith) and Lydia (Sophia) in a dazzling duet that highlights Sophia’s singing chops. At the end of the day, the message is touching and real: “Even when you’ve lost your way,” Daniel sings to his daughter, “love will lead you home.”

‘Mrs. Doubtfire’ Music and Lyrics by Wayne and Karey Kirkpatrick. Book by Karey Kirkpatrick and John O’Farrell. Based on the Twentieth Century Studios Motion Picture. Arrangements and Orchestrations by Ethan Popp. Tour Direction by Steve Edlund. Tour Choreography by Michaeljon Slinger; Original Choreography by Lorin Latarro; Original Direction by Jerry Zaks. Scenic Design by David Korins; Costume Design by Catherine Zuber; Lighting Design by Philip S. Rosenberg; Sound Design by Keith Caggiano. Presented by Broadway in Boston and Work Lights Productions at the Emerson Colonial Theatre through Sept. 21.

For more information, visit https://boston.broadway.com/

Posted by

0

‘Kimberly Akimbo’ Is Musical Theater at Its Absolute Best!

Cast of ‘Kimberly Akimbo’ at the Emerson Colonial Theatre. Photos by Joan Marcus

By Shelley A. Sackett

Kimberly Akimbo should not be as enjoyable as it is. The show tells the tragic story of a lonely teenage girl, Kimberly Levaco (Carolee Carmello), who suffers from a condition similar to progeria that causes her to age at a rate that is four and a half times as fast as normal. Only one in 50 million people is so afflicted, and Kimberly has the appearance and bodily breakdown of an elderly woman with a lifespan that rarely exceeds 16 years.

We meet her shortly after she moves with her family to a new town in suburban New Jersey, after they left their previous home under shady circumstances. She encounters the usual adolescent “new kid” syndrome on steroids. Her narcissistic mother, Pattie (Laura Woyasz), is pregnant with a baby she hopes won’t be like Kimberly. Her father, Buddy (Jim Hogan), is a drunk and an insensitive and negligent father. Kimberly is burdened by both her genetic disease and being a caretaker for her immature, dysfunctional and self-absorbed parents. She also has a crude and zealous aunt Debra (a showstopping Emily Koch), who shows up like a bad penny, ready to engage Kimberly and her teenage posse in her latest felonious scheme.

On top of this, Kimberly is about to turn 16. For her, the bell is truly tolling.

Carolee Carmello and Miguel Gil

Yet, despite these odds, the team of South Boston native David Lindsay-Abaire (book and lyrics) and Jeanine Tesori (music) has made lemonade out of lemons, creating a poignant, funny, upbeat, and clever musical that also packs a wallop of insightful and optimistic messages on the way you can — and should —live your life, no matter how much of it remains to live.

With an unobtrusive yet stunning set design by David Zinn, terrific choreography (Danny Mefford) and orchestrations (John Clancy), and a stellar cast of Tony nominees and experienced Broadway actors (most of whom were in the play’s Broadway run), Kimberly Akimbo is an impressive show that leaves a significant impact and a smile on its audience’s face.

The storyline is anything but straightforward. The plays opens in 1999 at Skater Planet, an ice skating rink in Bergen County, New Jersey, where six teenagers — Kimberly, Seth (Miguel Gil), Martin (Darron Hayes), Aaron (Pierce Wheeler), Teresa (Skye Alyssa Friedman), and Delia (Grace Capeless) — express their misgivings, hopes and frustrations. Each is weird and awkward in their own way. What they all have in common is a feeling that they are not “seen” and a desire to fit in.

There are also teen hormones galore. Seth and Kimberly flirt and decide to partner for their biology project about diseases. Among the other four, unrequited crushes rule. They make plans to mount a Dreamgirls medley for the school choir show, and their practice sessions are a delight.

Kimberly’s home life is a mix of the absurd, the pathetic and the (almost) endearing. When Buddy is three hours late picking her up at the skating rink and arrives drunk, he persuades her to lie for him to her mother. Pattie has casts on both her arms after undergoing double carpal tunnel surgery and spends her time lying on the couch and making a clandestine video for the baby-to-be. Aunt Debra ambushes Kim in the school library, where she has been squatting. She tells Kim that her parents fled Lido, the last town where they all lived together, to deliberately dodge her, and convinces her to open the window at home to sneak her in.

Although the plot is full of capers, slapstick and great reveals (such as the reason the family had to bolt from Lido), the real pathos and meat of the production is exposed through its dazzling musical numbers.

In “Make A Wish,” Kimberly writes a letter to the foundation listing the three things she hopes she has time to do before her time runs out (be a model, take a cruise and build a treehouse) before realizing the only thing she could possibly wish for is to live like normal people live — “however normal people live” — for just one day.

Carolee Carmello and Jim Hogan

In “This Time,” the entire company expresses their hopes for the future, while “Good Kid” offers the audience a glimpse into Seth’s heartbreaking backstory. Even more tragic, however, is “Our Disease,” which puts each student’s presentation on specific diseases (scurvy, fasciolosis and Kim’s disease, progeria) to music. Afterwards, as the students debrief and talk about their dreams for the future, they complain about high school as being “just the crap we have to get through before we get to the real stuff, the good stuff,” ignoring the fact that for Kim, high school is the only stuff.

Finally, fed up with their insensitivity and whining, she explodes. “Your disease is a bad case of adolescence,” she screams. “Getting older is my affliction; getting older is your cure.”

The cast is a theater goer’s dream. They are individually and collectively pitch-perfect, enunciating clearly and spot on in pacing and gestures. (Kudos to director Jessica Stone). As Kimberly, Carmello wears a sad, serious face that is believable and touching. As Seth, her eventual boyfriend, the talented Gil is her perfect partner. The four teens are a seamless ensemble and Koch, as the irrepressible Debra, brings down the house with her earthiness and fabulous vocals. Hogan has a Richard Dreyfus naturalness as Buddy and Woyasz is equal parts adorable and abominable as Kim’s mother, Pattie.

Lindsay-Abaire’s other plays include Fuddy Meers (1999), Good People (2011), and Rabbit Hole (2006), for which he won the 2007 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. Tesori has written the music for stage musicals such as Thoroughly Modern Millie (2000), Caroline or Change (2003), Shrek the Musical (2008), and Fun Home (2013); she has also been twice nominated for the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. She and Lindsay-Abaire had previously worked together on Shrek the Musical.

Emily Koch (center) and company

Kimberly Akimbo won five Tony Awards in 2023, including best musical. Unsurprisingly, Lindsay-Abaire and Tesori manage to pull a rabbit out of their prodigiously talented hat to end this potentially gloomy play on a hopeful, upbeat note where everyone — especially Kim — lives their life to the fullest. As my social worker friend and fellow audience member observed, sometimes people who know their days are numbered have a heightened awareness and appreciation for figuring out what really matters and going for it. What a gift and legacy that Kimberly not only walked that walk before she died, but also talked the talk. After all, as she proves, no matter what shape it takes, life is just one big adventure.

Highly recommended.

‘Kimberly Akimbo.’ Book and Lyrics by David Lindsay-Abaire. Music by Jeanine Tesori. Based on the play by David Lindsay-Abaire. Directed by Jessica Stone. Music Supervision by Chris Fenwick. Choreographed by Danny Mefford. Presented by Broadway in Boston at the Emerson Colonial Theatre, 106 Boylston St., Boston, through May 18.

For theater information and tickets, go to: https://www.emersoncolonialtheatre.com/

Broadway in Boston’s ‘Shucked’ Is Just What the Doctor Ordered – A Funny, Punny and Talent-Packed Musical

Posted by

0

Cast of Broadway in Boston’s ‘Shucked’ at Citizens Opera House
Photos by Matthew Murphy and Evan Zimmerman

By Shelley A. Sackett

If ever we were collectively in need of some levity, it’s now. Between the political roller coaster, serious Boston theater topics and frigid spring temperatures, we could all use a light, fun break. As if reading the tea leaves, Broadway in Boston has come to our rescue with its lighthearted, raucous production, Shucked.

A Tony Award-winning musical comedy, the play is based on a book by Tony Award winner Robert Horn (“Tootsie”), with a score by the Grammy Award-winning Nashville songwriting team of Brandy Clark and Shane McAnally (Kacey Musgraves’ “Follow Your Arrow”), and direction by Tony Award winner Jack O’Brien (“Hairspray”). A talent-packed cast (including two original Broadway members) is icing on the cake.

Mention must be made about the clear-as-a-bell sound system and actors’ enunciation. I cannot remember the last time I wasn’t straining to hear and/or understand what was being said on stage, and attending ‘Shucked’ reminded me of what is possible and what I’ve been missing.

The plot is simple and functions primarily as a vehicle for the creative team to flex their considerable muscle and concoct two and a half hours (one intermission) of lowbrow entertainment consisting of nonstop corny but hilarious one-liners and playlist-worthy songs.

The setting is fictional Cob County, a southern enclave isolated from the outside world and inhabited by cheerful inbred families who have been each other’s best friends and drinking buddies for generations. The town is cut off from the rest of the world by rows of corn stalks, which provide identity, livelihood, and moonshine. One day, the corn goes flaccid, and the town melts down along with it.

Jake Odmark and Danielle Wade

The crisis hits the central romantic couple, Beau (Jake Odmark) and Maizy (Danielle Wade), hardest. Their wedding is postponed, and Maizy, braver than Beau, ventures to the megapolis of Tampa to seek help.

There, she meets Gordy (Quinn VanAntwep), a podiatrist who advertises as a “corn doctor.” Gordy is a handsome grifter who is in hock up to his eyeballs with the mob. He smells a sucker ripe for the picking when Maizy shows him a bracelet her grandfather made from rocks beneath her house that resemble precious gems. Gordy has them assessed, determines they are his key to freedom, and follows Maizy home.

He convinces all the locals he is the answer to their troubles; all, that is, except Beau, whose lifelong romance with Maizy is interrupted by Gordy’s hold over her, and Lulu (the amazing Miki Abraham), Maizy’s cousin and local booze distiller, who smells a rat. Nonetheless, Lulu ends up falling for Gordy, Maizy re-falls for Beau, and still the corn stalks droop.

Eventually, romantic snags untangle, the corn is saved, and all’s well in Cob County once again. As I said, you don’t go to ‘Shucked’ for the storyline.

Quinn VanAntwerp and Miki Abraham

What you DO go for, however, are outstanding performances, quirky secondary characters, and an uninterrupted barrage of the corniest, belly-laugh-out-loud one-liners and terrific song and dance numbers. Remember the guiltless pleasures of “Laugh In,” “Hee Haw,” “Green Acres,” “Gomer Pyle” and “The Andy Griffith Show,” and you get the picture.

Horn does come up with some clever dramatic maneuvers, and his most effective is the use of narrators, Storyteller #1 (Maya Lagerstam) and Storyteller #2 (Tyler Joseph Ellis), who guide us through the “farm to fable” tale. They provide the play’s only surprise in a sweet and unexpected twist at the very end.

The real stars of the show, however, (across the board magnificent performances notwithstanding) are the groan-worthy but ingeniously smart jokes. Horn’s puns are raunchy, dopey, and Borsht-belt worthy. The opening number, “Corn,” praises its subject with the description, “It’s the same going in as coming out.” Peanut (Mike Nappi), Beau’s half-wit brother who compulsively fires off random one-liners, channels a dumbed-down stand-up comedian.

Examples of the rapid fire barrage are: “Remember when we used to make sandcastles with Grandma until Dad took the urn away?” “Politicians and diapers should be changed regularly for the same reason.” “If life were fair, mosquitos would suck fat instead of blood.” And, “It’s like not realizing how many people you hate until you try to name a baby.” Hackneyed? Maybe. Funny? Definitely.

In addition to the uplifting script are the fabulous song and dance numbers. Abraham (Lulu), Wade (Maizy), Lagerstam (Storyteller #1), Odmark (Beau), and VanAntwerp (Gordy) have amazing sets of pipes, and the harmonies (especially in the duets) are swoon-worthy. Abraham’s “Independently Owned” brought down the house while “I Do” is worthy of release as a single.

At this time of heavy headlines and trauma-laden theater, it’s a treat and welcome reset to indulge in an angst-free Vaudevillian spoof. We all deserve a night of tasty, tantalizing empty calories.

‘Shucked.’ Book by Robert Horn. Music and Lyrics by Brandy Clark and Shane McAnally. Directed by Jack O’Brien; Choreographed by Sarah O’Gleby; Music Supervision by Jason Howland. Presented by Broadway in Boston at  Citizens Opera House, 539 Washington St., Boston through April 20.
For more information, go to https://www.citizensoperahouse.com/