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Claire Canavan
April 25, 2012
Review: 'The Laramie Project: 10 Years Later'
Over a decade ago, Tectonic Theater Project, led by director Moises Kaufman, traveled to Laramie, Wyoming to interview town residents after the 1998 murder of a young gay man named Matthew Shepard.
It was an event that created a media frenzy and quickly became part of a national conversation about hate crimes. From their interviews, the company created a richly layered documentary play, “The Laramie Project,” still performed frequently at theaters across the country.
As the tenth anniversary of Shepard’s death approached, Kaufman and the company conducted new interviews with Laramie residents and created an epilogue of sorts called “The Laramie Project 10 Years Later,” currently running at Zach Theatre, directed by Dave Steakley.
What the company members discovered is that while there have been some visible measures of progress, rumors have started to swirl (based largely on an episode of ‘20/2’) that Shepard’s murder was not a hate crime at all, but a drug-fueled robbery gone bad. What drives the play is the company members’ efforts to both understand what’s behind this interpretation and ultimately to challenge it.
Like the original, the show is full of memorable characters whose words have the power to illuminate, surprise, and disturb. It’s performed deftly by a terrific cast, each playing multiple roles. One stand-out moment is a scene in which Catherine Connolly (Sarah Richardson), a Democrat in the Wyoming state legislature, takes the audience through a high-stakes vote on the state’s Defense of Marriage Bill.
Another is a tense conversation between company member Greg Pierotti (Martin Burke) and Shepard’s killer Aaron McKinney who is currently serving a life sentence (played with chilling calm by Frederic Winkler). Amidst the uniformly strong performances, actor Harvey Guion shines in his many roles, particularly as the priest who arranges the jail visit.
What makes “The Laramie Project 10 Years Later” so compelling is the way it shows how history gets reinterpreted and politicized over time. Though “The Laramie Project 10 Years Later” is darker and more complicated than the original play, it raises important (and incredibly relevant) questions about memory, history, and contemporary politics.
And if somehow you’ve never seen “The Laramie Project,” (Part 1) you can still catch it playing in repertory with its epilogue, with a dinner break in between, on Saturday April 28, May 5, and May 12.
‘The Laramie Project 10 Years Later’ 7:30 p.m Tuesdays-Saturdays, 2:30 p.m. Sundays through May 13, Zach Theatre’s Kleberg Stage, 1510 Toomey Road. $28-$69. www.zachtheatre.org
Claire Canavan is an American-Statesman freelance arts critic.
Photo by Kirk Tuck.
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January 31, 2012
Review: 'Next to Normal'
In the opening moments of “Next to Normal,” the emotionally charged musical currently running at Zach Theatre, a mother, father, sister, and brother (The Goodman family) cheerfully go about their morning routines.
Until they notice that mom is kneeling on the floor, obsessively assembling dozens of bologna sandwiches. They all stop and stare. Maybe this is not going to be such a “normal” day after all.
Directed by Dave Steakley, “Next to Normal” tells the story of Diana Goodman (Meredith McCall), a suburban housewife with a long history of bipolar disorder. Her relapse after a period of calm launches the family into turbulence.
While Diana undergoes medical treatment under the supervision of two doctors (both played with precision by Joshua Denning), the audience is left to wonder, as Diana does, “which is worse, the symptom or the cure?”
The 2009 Broadway production of “Next to Normal” (with music by Tom Kitt, book and lyrics by Brian Yorkey) won several Tony awards as well as the 2010 Pulitzer Prize. The show’s rock score is packed with powerful songs, complicated rhythms, and unexpected lyrics.
Despite its heavy-sounding theme, Zach Theatre’s version of “Next to Normal” is a gripping and often very funny ride. The show’s small cast is uniformly sharp. McCall infuses her portrayal of Diana with dry wit. Her voice soars on ballads like “I Miss The Mountains,” where Diana laments that her medications allow her to feel nothing.
As her steadfast but overwhelmed husband Dan, Jamie Goodwin’s solid performance resonates. As Natalie, Diana’s driven, over-achieving teenage daughter, Kelli Schultz is a breath of fresh air, delivering some of the show’s funniest lines and tossing in some refreshing teenage sarcasm, especially in the scenes of her budding romance with stoner kid Henry (Johnny Newcomb).
Poignant, surprising, and at times utterly irreverent, “Next to Normal” pulls back the curtain on a family in crisis. It explores the difficult topic of mental illness with equal amounts of sympathy, levity, heartbreak, and hope. And it makes the audience question what, exactly, it means to be “normal” in the first place.
‘Next to Normal’ continues through March 4 Zach’s Kleberg Stage, 1510 Toomey Rd. $25-$55. 476-0541, www.zachtheatre.org
Claire Canavan is an American-Statesman freelance arts critic.
Photo: Joshua Denning and Meredith McCall. Photo by Kirk Tuck
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November 15, 2011
Review: '360 (round dance)'
Desire always has its price.
What people are willing to pay — both literally and figuratively — to fulfill their desires is the subject of “360 (round dance),” Steven Dietz’s engaging new play produced by UT’s Department of Theatre and Dance, directed by Courtney Sale.
In the first scene of the play, that price is a monetary one. An exotic dancer (Quetta Carpenter) tries to squeeze as much money as she can from a soldier who obviously desires her (Dan Lendzian). She loses this power game, though, when he steals her valuable bracelet and flees.
In the next scene, we see the soldier engaged in a different kind of transaction with his girlfriend who works as a maid (Kelli Schultz). And so it goes, this dance, as we watch ten dialogues in which power shifts and allegiances change.
The minimalist set (designed by Chris H. Yoo) provides the perfect backdrop for the constant action, with a series of revolving panels that allow for quick transitions. Most of the time seeking sex, sometimes seeking connection, around and around the characters go.
As in most of Dietz’s plays, the dialogue is fast-paced and sharp. Dietz is particularly good at creating lines that seem to pithily sum up a relationship, as when a husband (Jeremy Lee Cudd) tells his wife (Alexis Scott) that “marriages are nothing but great friendships interrupted by moments of passion.”
Dietz based “360 (round dance)” on the 1900 play “Reigen” (also known as “La Ronde”) by Arthur Schnitzler. Schnitzler’s controversial original version was about how sex (and possibly syphilis) connected people across the lines of social class. In his contemporary adaptation, Dietz keeps the situations in the play roughly the same but places more emphasis on how the characters psychologically negotiate their desires.
With an adaptable cast that includes UT faculty members, graduate students, and undergraduates, Dietz and director Sale have made “360 (round dance)” into an energetic, tightly woven interplay between sex, power, and economies of desire.
“360 (round dance)” continues at 8 p.m. Nov. 17-19 and 2 p.m. Nov. 20. Oscar G. Brockett Theatre, Winship Building, 300 E. 23rdSt. $15-$20. www.texasperformingarts.org
Claire Canavan is an American-Statesman freelance arts critic.
Photo by Jeff Heimsath.
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November 10, 2011
Review: 'South Pacific'
A tropical breeze blows through Austin this week as the national tour of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s musical “South Pacific” hits Bass Concert Hall.
The show, based on the 2008 Tony Award-winning Lincoln Center Theater production, takes place on a Pacific island during World War II and focuses on two love stories affected by racial prejudice and cultural difference.
Ensign Nellie Forbush (Katie Reid), a nurse and self-proclaimed “hick” from Little Rock falls for a charming Frenchman, Emile de Becque (Marcelo Guzzo), but is troubled by his past relationship with a Polynesian woman. Meanwhile the handsome Lt. Joseph Cable (Shane Donovan) finds himself enamored with Liat (Hsin-Yu Liao), a young native islander, much to the delight of her calculating mother Bloody Mary (Cathy Foy-Mahi).
Watching “South Pacific” is like stepping into a vintage postcard of the tropics. The sumptuous set, designed by Michael Yeargan, evokes the lush landscape of the islands, while lighting designer Donald Holder creates enchanting sunsets that slowly fade from brilliant orange to hazy purple. From the girlish playfulness of Nellie’s “I’m Gonna Wash That Man Right Outta My Hair” to the high-energy sailor song “There Is Nothin’ Like a Dame,” the show’s music is infectious. When Guzzo, who has an opera background, sings “Some Enchanted Evening,” his rich and resonant voice fills the space.
When “South Pacific” debuted in 1949, it was timely and fresh. Now, the show has a decidedly nostalgic feel and traffics in some outdated stereotypes about “natives.” Still, the production charms with its gorgeous design, strong vocal performances, and memorable melodies.
‘South Pacific’ continues 8 p.m. today, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday, 1 and 7 p.m. Sunday. Bass Concert Hall, UT campus. www.texasperformingarts.org
Claire Canavan is an American-Statesman freelance arts critic.
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September 26, 2011
Review: 'Spring Awakening'
In 2007, a musical called “Spring Awakening” took Broadway by storm. Based on an 1892 play by Frank Wedekind, the show combined foot-stomping rock music with troubling stories of German teenagers coming of age in the 1890s, a time when adults exerted almost total control over their lives.
Zach Theatre’s current season-opening production of “Spring Awakening” captures the energy and heart of the hit show that shocked and exhilarated audiences. Directed with skill by Michael Baron, “Spring Awakening” will have you dancing in your seat one moment, then hit you like a punch to the gut the next.
In the show’s opening scene, a teenage Wendla (Sara Burke) asks her mother where babies come from, but her mother is unwilling to tell the truth. This desire to withhold information runs throughout the show, and ends up leading to disastrous consequences.
A burgeoning sexual relationship between Wendla and the intelligent, rebellious Melchior (Johnny Newcomb) anchors the show. Other characters face pressures as well. Failing in school and desperate to please his parents, Moritz (Jordan Barron) contemplates a dark solution. And Ilse (Elizabeth Koepp) and Martha (Tiffany Mann) both struggle to escape the abuse of their fathers.
Surrounded by clueless and unfeeling authority figures (played with zest by Jason Phelps and Melissa Grogan) the teenagers try to figure out their way in the world.
The cast, which includes several students still in high school, is committed and energized. As Wendla, Sara Burke’s clear, lovely voice is a musical highlight. Barron’s Moritz wears his emotions on his sleeves, and his sensitive portrayal is likely to break your heart.
The passionate and expressive music, composed by Duncan Sheik (with lyrics by Steven Sater) brings to life the characters’ inner angst. The musical numbers with the whole cast, including a shouting anthem of rebellion whose title can’t be printed here, are thrilling. Andrea Beckham’s modern dance inflected choreography deepens the experience of the songs.
Full of poetic staging choices, “Spring Awakening” is visually engaging. Set designer Michael Raiford created a gorgeously detailed environment full of warm colors and sharp lines. Jason Amato’s lighting design frequently transforms the set and changes the mood.
“Spring Awakening” is not a light romp. At every turn, the adults in the teenagers’ lives refuse to tell them the truth, refuse to listen to them, refuse to have compassion.
At one point, one of the girls asks, “But how will we know what to do if our parents don’t tell us?” It’s a testament to the play’s original writer, Frank Wedekind, that this question still resonates a hundred years later, in a completely different time and place.
‘Spring Awakening’ 8 p.m. Wednesdays-Saturdays at 8 p.m., 2:30 p.m. Sundays through Nov. 13 at Zach Theatre’s Kleberg Stage, S. Lamar Blvd. and Riverside Dr. $35-$55. www.zachtheatre.org
Claire Canavan is an American-Statesman freelance arts critic.
Photo by Kirk R. Tuck.
June 13, 2011
Review: 'The Book of Grace'
“Don’t Fence Me In” is a classic cowboy song about freedom. In this song, a fence is something that can trap a person and prevent them from roaming free. But a fence can also be built as protection, as a way to keep people out.
Both kinds of fences are at play in “The Book of Grace,” the newest play from Pulitzer-prize winning playwright Suzan-Lori Parks now receiving its Texas premiere at Zach Theatre.
“The Book of Grace” premiered last year at New York’s Public Theater, under the direction of James Macdonald, but Zach Theatre’s version is directed by Parks herself. Parks, whose work is often celebrated for its lively and rhythmic use of language, tweaked the script a bit and reworked the play for this new production.
The opening fugue, in which the three main characters announce who they are, vibrates with energy. Vet (Eugene Lee) is the gruff and bombastic father, a border patrol agent obsessed with security. Vet’s wife Grace (Nadine Mozon) is sunny and hopeful, the one who tries to see the good in life. And Buddy (Shaun Patrick Tubbs) is Vet’s angry and troubled son who hasn’t forgiven his father for “unspeakable” acts in the past.
“The Book of Grace” is set inside the family’s home in West Texas. Projected images of a border fence surround the audience, trapping us in this location, to witness this family’s unraveling drama. Buddy returns home after a long absence and the animosity between himself and his father is palpable, dangerous. In one scene, Vet frisks him to make sure he’s not armed. Grace, Buddy’s stepmother, tries to be the peacemaker.
As the play unfolds, each character has a story they want to tell a larger audience. Vet practices a speech he’ll be giving to the border patrol community as he accepts an award for a major immigrant bust. Grace continues to add to her secret “Book of Grace,” a collection of small moments that provide “evidence of good things.” And Buddy changes his name to “Snake” and starts composing his own manifesto that he hopes to post on the Web.
The actors tackle the drama whole-heartedly. Lee’s Vet is a terrifying yet recognizable human being. Lee, with his deeply resonant voice, gives a powerful performance. Mozon plays Grace as full of exuberant energy yet hauntingly vulnerable underneath. And Tubbs gives a focused, tightly wound performance of a son on the verge of explosion.
Like many of Parks’ plays, this one is steeped in allegory and contains familial drama, violence, and allusions to American history. The play’s final chapter is a harrowing one that hits the audience like a punch to the gut.
“The Book of Grace” itself crosses borders. It moves back and forth between the gritty realism of American domestic drama and a more presentational style evident in the way the characters directly address the audience, the way Grace announces the cleverly named titles of each chapter, and the overt symbolism of borders and fences.
It’s a show that isn’t easy on the audience. You have to pay attention, listen and be willing to follow the characters to some dark places. The reward is a compelling, superbly acted, thought-provoking play and a chance to experience Park’s newest contribution to the contemporary theatre.
“Book of Grace” continues 8 p.m. Wednesdays-Saturdays, 2:30 p.m. Sundays through July 10. Zach Theatre’s Whisenhunt Stage, 1510 Toomey Road. Tickets $20-34. www.zachtheatre.org
Photo: Nadine Mozon and Shaun Patrick Tubbs. Photo by Kirk R. Tuck.
Claire Canavan is an American-Statesman freelance arts critic.
February 18, 2011
Review: Steven Dietz's "Fiction"
Writers keep journals for lots of reasons—to observe the world, to release emotions, to complain about everyday life. We usually assume what’s written in someone’s journal is true. But how do we know it’s not made up?
That’s the question at the heart of Steven Dietz’s fast-paced and witty “Fiction,” now playing at Zach Theatre under the direction of Charles Otte. “Fiction” tells the story of Linda Waterman (Meredith McCall) and her husband Michael (Robert Gomes), both successful writers and sharp-tongued intellectuals.
From their first meeting at a Parisian cafe, where the two debate whether “reductivity” is a word and try to answer the question of what is the greatest rock vocal performance of all time, it’s clear that these two are brought together by their passion for life, literature, and the artfully turned phrase.
Their comfortable life is shaken by the news that Linda has a malignant brain tumor. Linda knows that, as a writer, her journals will be read and examined after her death, so she has one request from her husband—that he let her read his journals before she passes.
Michael nervously agrees. As Linda reads the journals, the play travels back in time to Michael’s stint at the Drake Writer’s Colony, where he meets Abby (Sydney Andrews), a self-possessed woman whom he flirts and spars with. The two then embark on an affair that, according to Michael’s journals, spans several years. But did it really happen or did he invent the story?
Without giving away some of the play’s juicy revelations, let’s just say that it continues to tease out questions about what is true, what is fictional, and what has been hidden in the pages of both Michael’s and Linda’s journals.
The ensemble is tight and focused. McCall plays Linda as bright and ironic, with vulnerable undertones. As Michael, Gomes is delightfully pompous, constantly using big words and reveling in his own ability to pass off lines from other writers as his own.
“Fiction” keeps the audience on its toes. It’s quick, wordy, and full of literary allusions and memorable one-liners. The play’s simple and minimalistic staging allows the audience to keep on questioning what is real and what is imagined.
‘Fiction’ continues 8 p.m. Wednesdays-Saturdays, 2:30 p.m. Sundays through April 10 at Zach Theatre’s Whisenhunt Stage, 1510 Toomey Road. $20-$49. www.zachtheatre.org.
Claire Canavan is an American-Statesman freelance arts critic.
Photo by Kirk R. Tuck.
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January 31, 2011
Review: "Red Hot Patriot: The Kick-Ass Wit of Molly Ivins'
Like star-crossed lovers, or peanut butter and jelly, Austin and the new play “Red Hot Patriot: The Kick-Ass Wit of Molly Ivins” were made for each other.
Written by journalists (and twin sisters) Margaret and Allison Engel and directed by David Esbjornson, “Red Hot Patriot” is a sharp, fast-paced, hilarious, and ultimately moving tribute to Molly Ivins, the Texas journalist whose folksy yet razor sharp wit famously skewered those in power.
The show opened in March last year at the Philadelphia Theatre Company with Kathleen Turner in the title role, but it’s hard to imagine the show having a more receptive audience than at its Texas premiere at Zach Theatre, with local actress Barbara Chisholm playing Ivins.
Ivins, who passed away four years ago at the age of 62 after battling breast cancer, was a master of the one-liner, and “Red Hot Patriot” is full of her pithy and incisive political commentary.
The one-woman show starts with Ivins attempting to write a column about her conservative father, with whom she disagreed on almost everything. As old photographs of Ivins and the people she worked with and wrote about (Bob Bullock, George W. Bush, whom she famously nicknamed “Shrub”) flash onto a screen, Ivins regales the audience with colorful stories as only she can.
We follow her from her days as one of the only women at the Houston Chronicle in the early 1960s to her stint at the New York Times, where she claimed fussy editors watered down her prose (turning “beer gut” into “protuberant abdomen”).
And then there were her days at the Texas Observer, where Ivins excelled at taking on the ridiculousness of Texas legislators. As she marveled about that time, “Can you believe God gave me all of this material for free?” Throughout, the audience has the pleasure of feeling that Ivins is talking directly to us.
Barbara Chisholm inhabits the part with equal parts respect and fieistiness. She truly shines as Ivins, playing the tender moments equally as well as the bawdy jokes and sassy one-liners. Her unflagging energy drives the show forward and she is able to find the real humanity in an often larger-than-life character.
Among the many lines that popped, one seemed to capture the essence of why Ivins’ brand of humor was so important. “Jokes are very important to me, a fact you may have gleaned by now,” she said.
“But they are a means to an end. When people laugh, they open up their ears and hear you.”
‘Red Hot Patriot’ continues through 8 p.m. Tuesdays-Saturdays, 2:30 p.m. Sundays through March 13. Zach’s Kleberg Stage, 1510 Toomey Rd. $20-$57 ($15 student tickets one hour prior to curtain). www.zachtheatre.org
Claire Canavan is an American-Statesman freelance arts critic.
Photo by Laura Skelding/American-Statesman
December 20, 2010
Review: The Rockettes' 'Radio City Christmas Spectacular'
They’ve got legs, and they know how to use them.
The Rockettes, the iconic precision dance troupe hailing from New York, are currently on tour as part of the ‘Radio City Christmas Spectacular.’ And judging from the applause that rang out in Bass Concert Hall each time the Rockettes formed their signature kick line, Austin audiences are happy to see them.
The ‘Radio City Christmas Spectacular,’ as you might guess from the title, is loaded with Christmas cliches and over-the-top stagecraft, much of it geared toward entertaining children and families. Santa Claus (William Thomas Evans) plays a prominent role, and at the risk of getting a lump of coal in my stocking this year, let’s just say that he is appropriately rotund and jolly.
The Rockettes are a lot of fun and the highlight of the show. Their sharp, strong routines combine the smiling faces and sequined costumes of a beauty pageant, the precision of a military drill team, and the fancy unison footwork of groups like Riverdance. Every time the dancers kick their famous legs and move in harmony, the effect is impressive.
Two numbers stand out. In ‘The Parade of the Wooden Soldiers,’ which has been part of the annual holiday show since 1933, The Rockettes are awesomely controlled as they play wooden soldiers come to life. And in ‘Christmas Dreams,’ they smoothly play shimmering snowflakes dancing in a winter wonderland.
‘Radio City Christmas Spectacular’ makes a dramatic shift at the end, when it brings the nativity story to life. Actors perform in a sumptuous staging of the Biblical tale, complete with live camels and sheep, which elicited gasps from the audience. This living nativity, which has also been part of the show since the 1930s, may be the most theatrical, visually stunning Christmas pageant ever.
Despite attempts to make the show current with jokes about Santa’s cell phone and website, the ‘Radio City Christmas Spectacular’ has a decidedly nostalgic feel. It hearkens back to the lavish stage revues of the early twentieth century, shows like the Ziegfeld Follies, whose lines of dancing girls were the inspiration for The Rockettes. It’s a unique experience to watch a performance that holds traces of history in every high kick.
‘Radio City Christmas Spectacular’ continues through Dec. 26, Tues-Wed at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., Thursday at 2 p.m., 5 p.m., and 8 p.m., Friday at 1 p.m., and Sunday at 11 a.m., 2 p.m., 5 p.m., and 8 p.m. Bass Concert Hall, 2350 Robert Dedman Drive. Tickets $25.50-$69.50.’(512) 477- 6060 www.texasperformingarts.org.
Claire Canavan is an American-Statesman freelance arts critic.
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December 6, 2010
Review: 'Here.Me.Now.'
What is the power of human touch and connection? What does it mean to be an individual?
These huge questions are explored both seriously and playfully through the twists and turns of modern dance in “Here.Me.Now.” a new production from the Kathy Dunn Hamrick Dance Company currently running at Salvage Vanguard Theater.
Set and lighting designer Stephen Pruitt has transformed the intimate space into a blank canvas — literally. The theater is filled with rectangular and square frames overlay with neutral burlap, a visually pleasing but enigmatic backdrop.
The elegantly expressive Erica Santiago dances into this space with ease and comfort, making eye contact with the audience as if to invite us in. Other dancers enter, dressed identically in pairs of blue-green pants and maroon tops, and a series of movement vignettes play out, with dancers connecting and disconnecting from each other in different combinations. An evocative soundtrack by Austin-based instrumental group Balmorhea underscores the show.
“Here.Me.Now.” features choreography by Hamrick and the powerful dancers in the ensemble. The dynamic shifts frequently (and satisfyingly) between sustained, elegant motion and bursts of energy and lightness. Many of the performances are infused with underlying emotions, as the dancers alternate between longing, confusion, and joy.
In the show’s most engaging section, dancers connect in weight-sharing duets. The physical touch seems to energize and lift them, their faces lighting up. A brief but dynamic duet between the two male dancers, Dane Burch and Ryan Parent, reveals their agility and strength.
“Here.Me.Now” loses momentum a bit toward the end, as it builds toward moments that seem like endings but aren’t. Still, in the second half a loose (but open to interpretation) storyline has emerged.
The dancers trade in their identical tops for new ones in a range of bold colors, marking them as individuals rather than the group they were before. At the same time, they take visible pleasure in embraces and small physical gestures of support, seeming to suggest the importance of creating connections between individual, and constantly in motion, lives.
“Here.Me.Now.” continues 8 p.m. Dec. 9-11 at Salvage Vanguard Theater, 2803 Manor Road. Tickets $12-15. 512-934-1082. www.kdhdance.com
Claire Cananvan is an American-Statesman freelance arts critic.
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November 15, 2010
Review: 'Fight'
It’s not every day that people who love theatre and people who love boxing would jump at the chance to attend the same event.
But “Fight,” a world premiere play by University of Texas graduate student Kimber Lee, should be able to draw both crowds by combining a classic story of a young woman trying to find her place in the world with a live three-round boxing match that has plenty of actual punches.
“Fight,” directed by Lee and Charles Otte and produced by UT’s Department of Theatre and Dance, is at heart the story of an underdog.
Dani (Christen Perez) is adrift. Abandoned by her mother, she is taken in by her fast-talking, exuberant aunt, Tia (a lively Jaclyn Benavidez), and her estranged father (Chris Rangel) who used to be a boxer.
She wanders into her father’s old boxing gym and meets a no-nonsense coach named Papi (an excellent and convincing Aaron Alexander) and a fellow fighter James (Matrex Kilgore). Dani isn’t entirely sure why she’s there and her attempts at training are half-hearted. You don’t mess around in Papi’s gym, though, and soon he gets the normally reserved Dani to explode with her real reason for wanting to fight.
The boxer-in-training storyline is familiar territory (especially in the cinema), and some of “Fight’s” best moments are when it embraces the fact that, unlike in a movie, the performers are live, and so is all the action.
When a group of young boxers trains at the gym, we can hear their fists slamming into their targets and see the sweat beads forming on their foreheads. When Dani steps into the ring for her first match with rival boxer Alicia (Megan McQuaid), the unpredictability and sense of danger in the live fight is exciting.
Like any new play, “Fight” still has some kinks to work out. But underneath all the old boxing clichss, “Fight” has a contemporary energy, a sense of theatrical freshness.
It’s not the expected story about a female boxer trying to make it in a male-dominated sport, but instead the story of a woman trying to overcome the hurts of her past by finding something in her life that’s worth fighting for.
“Fight” continues 8 p.m. Nov. 17-19 at 8:00 p.m., 2 p.m. Nov. 21, Brockett Theatre, Winship Building, 300 E. 23rd Street. $15-$20. www.texasperformingarts.org
Claire Canavan is an American-Statesman arts freelancer.
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October 24, 2010
Review: 'Hunter Gatherers'
Imagine your ideal dinner party. Good food, old friends, a little too much wine. Got the picture?
Now throw that idea out the window and get ready for a completely different kind of dinner party, one that begins with an animal sacrifice and ends with blood (and other bodily fluids) all over the floor. This nightmarish scenario is at the heart of Capital T Theatre’s production of “Hunter Gatherers,” written by up-and-coming San Francisco-based playwright Peter Sinn Nachtrieb and directed by Mark Pickell.
When Pam (Rebecca Robinson), a nervous and quirky thirty-something comes home one evening, she finds her husband Richard (Kenneth Wayne Bradley) hovering over a bleating lamb. The butcher, he explains, didn’t have enough fresh lamb for the swanky dinner party they are hosting with their best friends from high school, Wendy and Tom, so Richard thought he’d try slaughtering a lamb himself.
The moment when Pam and Richard decide to kill their own food sets off a chain of events that have these sophisticated city-dwellers devolving into their most primal, outrageous selves. Wendy (Liz Fisher) is aggravated by her nerdy husband Tom (Brad Price) and is drawn instead to the alpha-male masculinity of Richard.
As the evening wears on, Wendy becomes obsessed with the idea of having a baby with Richard, while Richard becomes increasingly like a cave man. Pam and Tom come up with a plan to get revenge on their cheating spouses, a plan that goes quickly, horribly, wrong.
Oh, did I mention that “Hunter Gatherers” is a comedy? Like many of Capital T’s productions, it’s a dark comedy, and there are plenty of seriously cringe-inducing moments here. Trust me, “Hunter Gatherers” is not for the faint of heart.
Though none of the characters are particularly likeable, the actors play their roles to the hilt, delighting in the opportunity to get progressively wilder as the night goes on. While all of them have an excellent sense of comedic timing, Brad Price stands out as the neurotic and understated Tom.
Capital T’s production of “Hunter Gatherers” is fast-paced, aggressive, and yes, often very funny. It seems to suggest that our basest, most ugly selves are lurking not very far under the surface of our civilized veneers. But it might make you think twice before serving lamb at your next dinner party.
“Hunter Gatherers” continues 8 p.m. Thursdays-Saturdays through Nov. 6 at Hyde Park Theatre, 511 W. 43rd Street. Tickets $15-$25. www.capitalT.org
Claire Canavan is an American-Statesman freelance arts critic.
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October 18, 2010
Review: 'The Fantasticks'
The longest running musical in Off-Broadway history has a little something for everyone.
Lyrical melodies about the promise of young love share the stage with serious themes like the disappointment of growing up. Toss in some meddling parents, swashbuckling swordfights, and a staged abduction scene, and you?ve got a quirky show that has been attracting audiences for fifty years.
To celebrate this milestone anniversary of ‘The Fantasticks,’ written and composed by University of Texas alumni Harvey Schmidt and Tom Jones, UT’s Department of Theatre and Dance is staging a new production (directed by Rod Caspers).
In ‘The Fantasticks,’ two fathers (played with zany panache by Joey lePage and Zach Ullah) conspire to get their teenage children to fall in love by building a wall between their yards and pretending to be in a feud. To end the feud, they hire a bandit named El Gallo (Dan Sullivan) to stage the abduction of the girl, Luisa, so that the boy, Matt, can heroically save her.
The first act wraps up with happy endings all around, but in the second act, things start to get really interesting, albeit a little dark and surreal.
As Luisa, Haley Hussey has infectious energy as she belts out surprising sentiments such as ‘please don’t let me be normal!’ As Matt, Bryan Ballew is dorky yet endearing. He woos Luisa with absurd lines, as when comparing her to the microscopic insides of a leaf. In fact, the musical’s lyrics are one of the show’s delights. Listen closely and you’ll find out why the fathers think vegetables are better than children.
Though UT’s production is mostly satisfying, the decades old show includes some dated gender and cultural stereotypes that create a few moments of discomfort. And while ‘The Fantasticks’ played in a tiny theater for most of its New York run, here it takes place in a huge space that sometimes seems to dwarf the show’s simplicity.
Still, if you’ve seen ‘The Fantasticks’ before, you’ll likely be pleased by this fiftieth anniversary version. And chances are high that you?ll be humming the tune of the show?s most famous song, ‘Try to Remember’ for hours, perhaps days, after leaving the theatre.
‘The Fantasticks’ continues 8 p.m. October 20-22 and 2 p.m. October 24, B. Iden Payne Theatre, 300 E. 23rd Street. Tickets $15-$20. www.texasperformingarts.org
Claire Canavan is an American-Statesman freelance arts critic.
Photo: Lauren Tarbel
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September 28, 2010
Review: Blue Lapis Light's 'One'
Blue Lapis Light, under the artistic direction of Sally Jacques, has been animating the spaces of downtown Austin for years, staging site-specific aerial dance in places like a nondescript federal building or the abandoned Seaholm Power Plant. Often their performances transform drab or forgotten spaces by bringing them back to life through dance.
The company’s newest performance, “One,” is staged at the City Terrace of the Long Center, and in this case the setting is the real star of the show.
The audience sits in the middle of the outdoor terrace while Austin’s ever-expanding skyline pulses with light and sound in front of them. When dancers emerge from darkness and fill the space atop the concrete ring encircling the patio, the audience takes a collective deep breath.
The fantastic backdrop of the city allows the company to play with scale in striking ways. When Theresa Hardy, a lone human form, dances her heart out on ground level, she is dwarfed by the cityscape behind her, a visual metaphor for the way the larger world can swallow up an individual. Indeed, “One” seems to loosely tell a story of human loneliness abated by connection with others and with larger forces.
The choreography stays in the realm of the company’s previous work. Dancers twist and twirl as they climb into the air on pale blue silks, and they appear to fly around the terrace’s pillars, suspended from harnesses.
For most of the hour-long performance, “One” sustained a slow-to-medium pace, and some of the evening’s best moments were when unexpected movement jolted the viewer out of the slow reverie. As the primary soloist, Theresa Hardy is eye-catching. Her movement is graceful, articulate, and tinged with emotion.
To complement the dancers, lighting designer Jason Amato creates dramatic visual effects. The music (by various artists) is often meditative, at times soaring, always actively giving the performance a sense of event and otherworldliness.
As “One” began, a few people taking their dogs for a late night romp at Auditorium Shores collected along the street, transfixed (and maybe a little confused) by the sight of dancers dangling in the air. But that’s part of the joy of site-specific art — it takes performance out of the theatrical black box and creates images of beauty in unexpected places.
“One” continues at 8:30 p.m. through Oct. 3, City Terrace, Long Center, 701 W. Riverside Dr. $22-$52. www.thelongcenter.org.
Claire Canavan is an American-Statesman freelance arts critic.
September 12, 2010
Review: Austin Shakespeare's 'The Tempest'
A group of people survive a terrible accident and land on a remote island inhabited by a plotting sorcerer and a host of supernatural beings. Though this may sound like the plot of television’s ‘Lost,’ it’s actually the premise behind William Shakespeare’s ‘The Tempest.’
In Austin Shakespeare’s current production, directed by Ann Ciccolella, the title storm that opens the show is a big, rollicking one, made especially thrilling by the way lighting designer Jason Amato’s lightning bolts cut through an unbelievably dense fog.
When the chaos ends, a complicated story begins to unravel. Prospero (a dignified Steve Shearer) is a magician and the exiled Duke of Milan, who has been living on a mysterious island for 12 years with his daughter, Miranda (Lindsley Howard).
He conjured the storm to wreck a ship carrying his deceitful brother, Antonio (David J. Boss) and the current King of Naples (Tom Stephan), in order to seek some kind of redemption for the events of the past. The shipwreck sets in motion all kinds of elaborate subplots, involving enchantments, attempted murder, romance, and way, way too much alcohol.
Most of the performers are quite good at bringing Shakespeare’s language to life. The comedic trio of Stephano, a drunken butler (Nathan Jerkins), Trinculo, a jester (Michael Dalmon) and Caliban, a ‘monster’ enslaved by Prospero (Michael Amendola) are all highly animated and skilled at physical comedy. As Miranda’s love interest, Ferdinand, Travis Emery is sweetly genuine.
Despite the cast’s efforts, the staging is often static, and with such an expository script, a little more physical action would help focus the audience’s attention. The production design hits an odd note as well — it doesn’t create a fantastical island atmosphere as much as it creates a surreal, stark landscape reminiscent of the far out island inhabited by Johnny Depp’s Captain Jack Sparrow in ‘Pirates of the
Caribbean 3.’
Still, Austin Shakespeare’s production is timely. The 400th anniversary of ‘The Tempest,’ is approaching, and a new film adaptation starring Helen Mirren as a gender-swapped Prospera (directed by Julie Taymor) will be released soon. This might be just the time to catch a theatrical production of the show before the film
leaves indelible images.
‘The Tempest’ continues 8 p.m. Thursday-Saturdays, 3 p.m. Sundays through Sept. 26 Rollins Studio Theatre Long Center. $23-$29 ($15 for students) www.thelongcenter.org
Claire Canavan is an American-Statesman freelance critic.
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August 30, 2010
Review: ‘B-Boy Bluez'
There’s an undeniable energy to hip-hop music, a kinetic force, a driving beat that just won’t stop.
Writer and performer Zell Miller III channels this energy into “B-Boy Bluez,” a lively theatrical love letter to hip-hop culture running through Sept. 4 at the Vortex theater, in co-production with UpRise! Productions.
One of the few performers in Austin whose work fits into the genre of hip-hop theatere, Miller skillfully combines hip-hop elements (graffiti art, rap/spoken word, dj-ing beats) with autobiographical stories and character-driven monologues. The fourth element of hip-hop, breakdancing (or b-boying) is brought to life by dancers from local dance crew Outta Kontrol (with choreography by Ananda Mayi Moss and Tony Phillips), who glide through space effortlessly and are a sheer joy to watch.
Miller is a fast-paced and spirited performer who excels at connecting with the audience through telling personal stories that are funny, touching, and full of pop culture references (“Charlie’s Angels,” “Hawaii Five-0”) that will make old-enough audience members flash back to their own pasts nostalgically. In other memorable scenes, Miller plays a “professor” of hip-hop, who schools the audience in hip-hop history.
Like all true hip-hop artists, Miller threads his rhymes with incisive social commentary. In “B-Boy Bluez” he tackles the gentrification of East Austin and the way hip-hop has been commercialized and turned into a commodity for the masses. He also calls out current hip-hop artists for continuing to spread misogyny and homophobia through their music.
Mostly, though, the show centers on the positive effect hip-hop culture had on Miller’s life as a young boy growing up in Austin. As Miller talks about the artists who have influenced him— KRS-One, Public Enemy, Digable Planets — his passion and respect shine through. The show is definitely about race, class, and history, but it’s also about the power of language, art, and music to inspire lives and reshape worlds.
The program note rather mysteriously states that Miller is planning to “walk away” from being a featured performer to focus more time on producing and writing in the future. If this is true, one should definitely see “B-Boy Bluez” before he does.
‘B-Boy Bluez’ continues 8 p.m. Thursdays-Sundays through Sept. 4 at The Vortex, 2307 Manor Road. Tickets $10-$30. Sundays 2-for-1 admission with donation of two non-perishable food items for SafePlace. www.vortexrep.org
Claire Canavan is an American-Statesman freelance critic.
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August 16, 2010
Review: 'Metamorphoses'
In “Metamorphoses,” a modern adaptation of classical Greek myths, the spark that creates the universe is a cigarette lit by Zeus.
This mixture of ancient tales and anachronistic, irreverent accents (Katy Perry’s summer anthem “California Gurls” makes an appearance, and Pandora’s box is represented by an Apple laptop) is a hallmark of Zach Theatre’s production, directed by Dave Steakley.
“Metamorphoses” is a collage of familiar and lesser-known myths adapted from Ovid’s poem of the same name and originally directed by Mary Zimmerman.
One of the strongest vignettes is that of Orpheus and Eurydice, whose story is told twice. In Ovid’s version, Eurydice (Rachel Wiese) is bitten by a snake on her wedding day and taken to the underworld. Hades (Aaron Alexander) agrees to let her return with Orpheus (Frederic Winkler) if he agrees not to look back at her, but he can’t help himself and is forced to replay her loss over and over.
The staging of the second version, from a 1908 poem by Rainer Maria Rilke, stands out because of its sheer poetic simplicity and its surprising perspective twist. Here, Eurydice is enthralled with death and cannot even remember who her husband Orpheus is.
Another delightful scene is when a whiny and over-privileged Phaeton (David Christopher) tells his therapist (a pitch perfect Stephanie Dunnam) about his attempt to impress his distant father (Apollo, the God of the Sun) by driving the sun across the sky. You can guess how that one ends.
A twelve-foot wide swimming pool is the centerpiece of the action, and yes, there is a splash zone. Steakley has staged some lovely moments with the pool (assisted by Jason Amato’s skillful lighting), as when three men slowly paddle a boat carrying the doomed Ceyx to sea. And dropping dry ice into the water created a gloriously creepy effect. Some of the pool use, though fun, seemed a bit gratuitous.
Nicole Whiteside’s aerial choreography is eye-catching. Will Zinser performs an especially wild, reckless solo as a fury let out of Pandora’s box. The aerial acrobatics, along with the far out costumes (designed by Blair Hurry), tilt Zach Theatre’s version of “Metamorphoses” in a decidedly more surreal and circus-esque direction than Zimmerman’s original.
Despite a few too many bells and whistles, the timeless stories—with all their heartbreak, pride, desire, and folly—still shine through.
‘Metamorphoses’ continues 8 p.m Wednesdays-Saturdays, 2:30 p.m. Sundays through September 26. Zach Theatre’s Whisenhunt Stage, 1510 Toomey Road. Tickets $20-$44. www.zachtheatre.org
Claire Canavan is an American-Statesman freelance critic.
Photo by Kirk R. Tuck.
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July 19, 2010
Review: 'Melancholy Play'
Bizarre things tend to happen in Sarah Ruhl’s plays.
Long lost twins separated at birth are reunited. People drink vials of tears. A hairdresser turns into an almond. (Yes, you read that right.)
Ruhl, who recently won a prestigious MacArthur Fellowship, is known for creating vibrant, surprising worlds that have their own unique brand of logic.
Palindrome Theatre brings the whimsical world of Ruhl’s “Melancholy Play” to life in a charming production directed by Kate Eminger.
In “Melancholy Play,” Tilly (a sweetly offbeat Helyn Rain Messenger) is a bank teller who is always sad. The sound of the rain makes her sad, as does trimmed hair lying on the floor of a salon. When she goes to talk with her therapist Lorenzo (a very funny Jude Hickey), who speaks in an unidentifiable European accent, he falls in love with her sexy sadness.
And so does everyone else in the play—a tailor named Frank (Nathan Brockett), a hairdresser named Frances (Corley Pillsbury), and Frances’s partner Joan (Bernadette Nason). Everyone falls for Tilly because she reminds them of their own unfelt emotions. Or as Joan puts it, “She gives me a sexy, sad feeling, like I’m in a European city before the war.”
Eventually, surrounded by all of this love and affection, Tilly becomes happy. This dramatic change does not please her suitors, who fell in love with her particular brand of romantic melancholy. From here on, the play takes some seriously surreal turns.
Palindrome Theatre’s production feels intimate and fresh, and the cast brings good comic timing and bright energy to the increasingly absurd comedy. Evocative original music by Matt Hines underscores the action.
As funny as it is, “Melancholy Play” seems to be arguing that Americans have lost touch with a certain kind of contemplative sadness. People practice positive thinking and plaster on smiles as they attempt to cover up underlying melancholy.
Perhaps, Ruhl seems to suggest, there is beauty in spending an afternoon gazing out the window at the pouring rain, feeling sad. On the other hand, the play’s eventual embrace of joy suggests that it’s OK to give in to happiness, too.
‘Melancholy Play’ continues 8 p.m. Thursdays-Saturdays, 5 p.m. Sundays through Aug. 8. Austin Playhouse, Penn Field, 3601 S. Congress. $20 general admission, $15 students, seniors.
Claire Canavan is an American-Statesman freelance critic.
July 12, 2010
Review: 'Circle Mirror Transformation'
At the beginning of Hyde Park Theatre’s engaging and hilarious production of “Circle Mirror Transformation,” by up-and-coming playwright Annie Baker, the actors lie on the floor, trying to count to ten as a group without two people speaking at the same time.
Is it a silly game, or is it a metaphor for being in the moment and learning to be aware of the people around you?
Well, it’s both. As your drama teacher probably told you, the way people play games tells you a lot about who they are, and who they want to be.
“Circle Mirror Transformation” takes place in an adult creative drama class led by Marty (Katherine Catmull), an overly positive teacher who speaks in a soothing voice and tries to rally participants to self-understanding.
Her students are a quirky bunch. Schultz (Kenneth Wayne Bradley) is a down-to-earth guy who was recently divorced but still wears his wedding ring. Lauren (Xochitl Romero) is an out-of-place teenager who shuffles through class and wants to know when they are going to do some “real acting.” Rounding out the crew are Theresa (Rebecca Robinson), a super-enthusiastic and flirtatious actress, and James (Ken
Webster), Marty’s deadpan husband, who is clearly in the class as a favor to his wife.
Over several weeks, the characters play out their own serious interpersonal drama through exercises that range from simple (introduce a partner to the class) to more complex (have other classmates pose as a bed, a tree, and a baseball glove as they try to re-create a childhood memory). By the time Marty urges the class to “write down a secret you’ve never told anyone,” you just know things are about to implode.
This southwest premiere of “Circle Mirror Transformation,” directed by Ken Webster, is fast-paced, funny and ultimately quite moving. The ensemble is uniformly excellent, smoothly playing many layers of subtext beneath all the silliness.
Theater insiders (or anyone who’s ever taken an acting class) will absolutely love this play. Others may not get all the jokes, but are bound to still be riveted by the way the characters reveal themselves, slowly, through the process of learning to connect.
‘Circle Mirror Transformation’ continues 8 p.m. Thursdays-Saturdays through August 7 at Hyde Park Theatre, 511 W. 43rd St. Tickets $19 on Friday and Saturday; Thursdays are pay-what-you-can. www.hydeparktheatre.org
Claire Canavan in an American-Statesman arts freelancer.
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