10/13/22: Candida
What: Gingold Theatrical Group presents George Bernard Shaw's play about Reverend Morell and his wife Candida, whose lives are thrown into upheaval when a passionate young poet declares his love for her. The play has been updated to 1920s New York.
And? I'll be honest, this has never been a favorite Shaw play of mine. I don't quite see the point. Still, it was nice to see it produced on Lindsay Genevieve Fuori's sumptuously cozy clutter of a scenic design, full of treats and easter eggs for the inquisitive eye. R.J. Foster is excellent and powerful as Morell, but unfortunately this power never feels actually threatened by Avery Whitted's Marchbanks, so the stakes never climb terribly high. Avanthika Srinivasan's Candida also doesn't quite capture the imagination in such a way that she seems worthy the battle between Morell and Marchbanks. I think my favorite in the cast has to be spitfire Amber Reauchean Williams as Morell's assistant Proserpine, full of joyful competence and principles (and eventually full of joyful champagne); she's terrific.
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| Avanthika Srinivasan, R.J. Foster, David Ryan Smith, Avery Whitted (seated), Amber Reauchean Williams, and Peter Romano as Candida, Rev. James Morell, Mr. Burgess, Eugene Marchbanks, Proserpine Garnett, and Alexander 'Lexy' Mills. Photo by Carol Rosegg. |
10/14/22 & 10/15/22 (yes, twice): Guys and Dolls
What: As part of their Broadway Center Stage season, the Kennedy Center presents Frank Loesser, Abe Burrows, and Jo Swerling's classic musical about New York gamblers and their lady loves, featuring a ridiculously talented cast.
And? I wish I had known going in that this was going to be more along the lines of an Encores! production than a fully realized show, as it took me a bit to readjust my expectations. Still, it's always been a favorite show of mine, and the songs sound great when sung by this terrific cast and backed by the KC Opera House Orchestra. The choreo is a disappointment for me (not because they have to manage it around the onstage orchestra, but because it isn't telling me a clear story; I didn't know where to look). For the cast, I have to say James Monroe Iglehart is talented and funny but miscast -- he's too smooth by half for Nathan. Steven Pasquale does great work with Sky in a role that seems tailor-made for him, and oh boy the aural bliss of him duetting with the silver-voiced Phillipa Soo. Kevin Chamberlin is fantastic as Nicely-Nicely (as we all knew he would be), but the two stars for me are Jessie Mueller, who keeps getting funnier as the show goes on (her Act Two duets, "Sue Me" and "Marry the Man Today," are mined for every moment she can find, and it's all gold); and five foot tall Rachel Dratch as Big Jule, who manages to steal scenes while barely moving.
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| Kevin Chamberlin, front, as Nicely-Nicely Johnson, with the cast of Guys and Dolls. Photo by Jeremy Daniel. |
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