Beautiful vocalizations, rich harmonies, nuanced performances, and a fun, interesting set aside, what I enjoyed most about Saturday's performance of the District Theatre's A New Brain was that the musical felt both familiar and original; it's a fresh take on musical theatre, yet doesn't suggest any unnecessary effort made to reinvent the wheel. With its songs by William Finn and book by Finn and James Lapine, the piece manages to be odd, joyful, irreverent, and silly all at once, but also delivers an overarching sense of hope without being pandering or sugary.
Wednesday evening's audience clearly had a lot of fun watching and interacting with the Circa '21 Dinner Playhouse's Miss Abigail's Guide to Dating, Mating, & Marriage. In truth, the performance would not have been quite as much fun if there were more watching and less interacting. While there are plenty of laughs to be had as the titular character in this PG-13-style comedy offers advice on flirting, relationships, and sex, there are also a few missteps made along the way.
A year-and-a-half after enjoying his performance in New Ground Theatre's The Beauty Queen of Leenane, I am glad to see David Turley on a Quad Cities stage again in the company's Next Fall. It was Turley's portrayals of John Hinckley in the Green Room Theatre's 2008 Assassins and William Barfee in the Harrison Hilltop Theatre's 2010 The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee that initially endeared me to his comedic deliveries. And I'm grateful to see him employ his skills as this new play's 40-year-old gay atheist Adam, a character performed with more subtlety than those aforementioned roles, but one that still employs Turley's amusing brand of dry, sarcastic, slightly dark humor.
Director Bryan Tank's production of Our Town fits the District Theatre's stage like a glove. Or rather, I should say Tank uses the stage so well - especially in his placement of actors and set pieces - that this play seems a perfect fit for the space. With its beautiful employment of backlighting (particularly when we first see the characters grouped together) and set designer/co-star Chris Causer's large, white pieces of fabric stretched over and draped across the back wall of the stage - and covering set pieces until they're being used - this production, aesthetically speaking, is breathtaking in its simplicity.
Friday's performance of Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story at the Circa '21 Dinner Playhouse left me wanting more - specifically, more of Kiarri Andrews' and Nina Waters' Apollo singers and Collin O'Connor's Ritchie Valens. Andrews and Waters brought some much-needed energy to the first act, adding attention-worthy moxie and a whole lot of fun to their one scene. (Waters' character also sparkles, literally, with the help of costume designer Gregory Hiatt's gorgeous pink column gown with watteau train.) Meanwhile, O'Connor, with his suave demeanor and smooth pelvic gyrations, whet my appetite for a Ritchie Valens musical, if for no other reason than to see the actor enjoy more stage moments as the singer.
When a play stirs emotions in a way that invites a change in one's perspectives on life or the world, that's true theatre magic. Such is the case with the QC Theatre Workshop's My Sister, which, after it ended, left me wanting to just be quiet and alone for a while, in order to digest what I'd observed and learned during Saturday's performance.
The Playcrafters Barn Theatre's production of John Steinbeck's Of Mice & Men begins with a scene in which Cody Johnson's George and Ed Villarreal's Lenny share a slow and (mostly) gentle conversation about their plans to work as ranch hands, and their dreams of using their money to buy their own piece of land and "live off the fat" of it. The patient way in which Johnson, with obvious compassion, speaks with Villarreal's not-so-bright Lenny leaves no doubt as to George's sincere concern for his daft companion, and Lenny's wide-eyed trust, shown as he hangs onto every word George says, suggests the loving connection Lenny has with George. Their relationship is immediately both clear and touching, and sets the foundation for the deeply emotional events that transpire through the course of this story.
On Saturday evening, I was reminded of the local treasure that is the District Theatre's A Christmas Carol. Written by Tristan Layne Tapscott with music by Danny White, this holiday musical is something special: a locally created piece so good that it could, and should, be staged by theatres throughout the country. And this year - the second the theatre has produced the show - brings some notable changes from last winter's staging of this theatrical gem.
The women of The Two Gentlemen of Verona shine in the Prenzie Players' latest production. Maggie Woolley's effervescent Julia and Catie Osborn's enrapturing Silvia - characters courted by the two gentlemen of the title - are especially captivating, thanks to Woolley's and Osborn's layered portrayals of ladies in (and later out of, and then back in) love. They're among a group of female actors here that offer dynamic, entertaining performances filled with notable nuance, aplomb, and, when called for, titillating humor. And they are a credit to director Andy Lord's vision for what seems to me one of William Shakespeare's weaker, less refined plays. The women help add emotional depth to the text, while Lord wisely places the comedic aspects of the tale at the forefront through his cast's energetic performances.
Quad City Music Guild's A Christmas Survival Guide, with its sentiment, irreverence, and cheeky humor, is almost exactly my kind of holiday celebration. Wednesday night's dress rehearsal - and the show was so finely polished that I hardly think it necessary to state that it was a dress rehearsal - had me smiling, chuckling, and itching to sing along with the familiar songs included in this musical revue.Subscribe & Listen to Reader Podcasts
On Stands Now
Tagged Content
Two Ways to Subscribe
1. Subscribe to free weekly e-mail content updates.
You'll get both the current official narrative challenge and What's Happenin' in the Quad Cities.
(Did you know we publish a new Real Astrology and RCR Crossword every week?)
2. Get 12 monthly issues mailed first class for $48
Get the printed Reader edition mailed to you (or anyone you want) first-class for 12 months for $48.
$24 goes to postage and handling, $24 goes to keeping the doors open!
Click this link to Subscribe now.
Theatre Calendars
Submit your event listings to calendar@rcreader.com