Weekly Margin 2023, W48: Hadestown, Purlie Victorious, Arcadia, Here We Are, Kimberly Akimbo, Scene Partners, All the Devils are Here, I Can Get it For You Wholesale

11/20/23: Hadestown

a repeat visit, but with an entirely new cast. I'm delighted to report that I loved the replacement cast as much as the original (including Jordan Fisher, making his debut performance in the role, and absolutely breaking hearts with his open, honest face). Philip Boykin's bass voice is so perfectly suited for Hades, and the strength of his lower register alone is worth the price of admission. Solea Pfeiffer brings a more honest edge to Eurydice than I'd seen before, and I love it. And Lilias White and Betty Who both have charisma and presence to spare. Several years into its run, Hadestown hasn't lost any of its vitality.

Betty Who and Phillip Boykin as Persephone and Hades.
Photo by Matthew Murphy.

11/21/23: Purlie Victorious

What: The Broadway revival of Ossie Davis's play (perhaps slightly better known for its musical adaptation, Purlie), about the Jim Crow south, and Purlie Victorious's efforts to liberate his sharecropping family, claim a withheld inheritance, and rebuild his church.

And? I knew very little about this play going in, but I loved every moment of it. It's outrageously funny, but somehow always in a well-grounded way: none of these people are cartoons, even if the situations they get into seem outlandish. I did keep thinking how, in lesser hands than director Kenny Leon and this top-notch cast, that Ossie Davis's clever and well-crafted script could have veered easily into caricature, but it never does. Leslie Odom, Jr., is all charisma and smooth fast-talking plans, Kara Young is adorably awkward, and Billy Eugene Jones's vocal and facial agility make him completely captivating to watch every moment he's onstage. Jay O. Sanders, who's always excellent, even manages to make a human out of the monster Ol' Cap'n (one we can't wait to see the destruction of). Derek McLane's scenic design is smoothly agile and achieves a fantastic final transformation that I don't want to spoil here.

Jay O. Sanders, Billy Eugene Jones, Kara Young, and Leslie Odom, Jr. as
Ol' Cap'n Cotchipee, Gitlow Judson, Lutiebelle Gussie Mae Jenkins, and
Purlie Victorious Judson. Photo by Marc J. Franklin.

Weekly Margin 2023, W47: How To Dance In Ohio

11/17/23: How To Dance In Ohio

What: A new musical adaptation of Alexandra Shiva's 2015 documentary, about a group of autistic young adults who, in the course of their class about social skills, plan to have a spring formal dance.

And? I haven't seen the film it's based on, though I've heard from some of my autistic friends that it has a rather infantilizing approach to its subjects, which is, well, not great, Bob. I think there was hope there would be less of that with the stage adaptation, as the conversation about ableism continues to move forward, and as the production endeavors for authenticity in casting: both in casting nonbinary actors for nonbinary roles, and in casting autistic actors for autistic roles. The theater has even provided Cool-Down Spaces in case audience members become overstimulated and need a break. There have been a lot of steps taken to actualize these characters, to give them narrative autonomy, and I do want to applaud all that as a step forward. But. There's still this insidious scent of condescension resting in the audience and maybe even inescapably in the show itself, a sort of "Good for you, you autistic people! You're on a real Broadway stage! We're so proud of you," complete with a pat on the head. I don't think it's intentional. I think a lot of people were there, like me, eager to celebrate representation and diverse stories being told. But I still felt the littlest squirm about it all. Maybe that's what comes with being the first Broadway musical to knowingly do this. I should point out, before I leave this topic, that the show does a masterful job shutting down ableist language and thinking in its most overt form, and that's something that needs to be reiterated for, well, the people in the back.

The show itself is fine. It's not stellar, but it's not terrible. I want the writing to sparkle more than it does, to reach the level that a few of its songs do reach, moments that pierce the audience, like the Act I finale, "Waves and Wires." The cast is pretty great, particularly Madison Kopec as Marideth and Amelia Fei as Caroline. Darlesia Cearcy, who plays Caroline's mother, is also notable for both her powerhouse voice and her ability to convey so much without even speaking, when she figures as Caroline's inner monologue. I'd also like to highlight Sarafina Bush's costume design, which has some truly genius moments.

Photo from the Syracuse Stage run (slightly different costume design than 
Broadway). Conor Tague, Amelia Fei, Imani Russell, Liam Pearce, Madison
Kopec, Desmond Luis Edwards, and Ashley Wool as Tommy, Caroline, Mel,
Drew, Marideth, Remy, and Jessica. Photo by Curtis Brown.

Weekly Margin 2023, W46: Romeo and Juliet

11/12/23: Romeo and Juliet

What: EPIC Theater's neurodiverse production of Shakespeare's classic tragedy about star-crossed lovers.

And? full review here

Nicholas Amodio, Sandy Gladstone-Karpe, and Christine Newberry as
Romeo, Friar Lawrence, and Juliet. Photo by Zui Gomez.

Margin Notes: Romeo and Juliet

Nicholas Amodio, Sandy Gladstone-Karpe, and Christine
Newberry as Romeo, Friar Lawrence, and Juliet. Photo by
Zui Gomez.

Romeo and Juliet

Seen on: Sunday, 11/12/23.

Plot and Background

EPIC Players presents a contemporary lens on Shakespeare's classic tragedy about the star-crossed lovers Romeo and Juliet, whose passion is not enough to survive their feuding families. EPIC Players is NYC's premiere neurodivergent theater company.

What I Knew Beforehand

I knew Romeo and Juliet, of course, and that EPIC Players is a neurodivergent theater company.

Thoughts:

Concept-wise, I think directors Max Baudisch and Meggan Dodd's vision is strong and cohesive: this is a world mirroring our world today, where the geopolitical conflicts are presented in soothing-voiced podcasts, and debated online in pithy 280-character hot takes and inflammatory videos posted out of context. This is a world where the Nurse (a brassy and delightful Sandy Gladstone-Karpe) can scroll through a Hot Men of Verona dating app, where Mercutio can post a dis video, and where the answering retort is a selfie of a Capulet biting his thumb. And in a world like this, it makes all too much sense for the duel between Mercutio (a seedily charismatic Miles Butler) and Tybalt (a full-voiced, 'roided up Dante Jayce) to be fought with extended selfie sticks--until Tybalt breaks out a weapon dealing more lasting damage than a tweet or a reel. There is even thought put into how, in a world of instant information via smartphone, both Romeo and Juliet miss some crucial status updates as the story veers toward its tragic end.