Author: jdldances

Julinda D. Lewis is a dancer, teacher, and writer, born and raised in Brooklyn, NY and transplanted to Richmond, VA. A retiree from both the New York City and Richmond City Public School systems, she is currently an Adjunct Instructor for the Department of Dance and Choreography at Virginia Commonwealth University, and holds the degrees of BS and MA in Dance and Dance Education (New York University), MSEd in Early Childhood Education (Brooklyn College, CUNY), and EdD in Educational Leadership (Regent University). Julinda is the Richmond Site Leader for TEN/The Eagles Network and was formerly the East Region Coordinator for the International Dance Commission and has worked in dance ministry all over the US and abroad (Bahamas, Barbados, Haiti, Jamaica, Kenya, Puerto Rico). She is licensed in dance ministry by the Eagles International Training Institute (2012), and was ordained in dance ministry through Calvary Bible Institute and Seminary, Martinez, GA (2009).

THE SPITFIRE GRILL

Order Up!

At: The Swift Creek Mill Theatre, 17401 U.S. Route One, Chesterfield, VA 23834

Performances: July 12 – August 2, 2025

Ticket Prices: $44-49. Ask about discounts for students, seniors, and veterans.

Info: (804) 748-5203 or https://www.swiftcreekmill.com

A Theater Reflection by Julinda D. Lewis

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, there’s something about summer that demands a musical. I also have a soft spot for diners and shows that take place in diners. (See my review of Waitress, another summer musical set in a diner: https://jdldancesrva.com/2025/07/12/waitress/ ) The Spitfire Grill, by James Valcq (music and book) and Fred Alley (lyrics and book) is particularly heartwarming.

In his director’s notes, Tom Width sums it up: “I find the show to be ‘hometown gold’ with its themes of family, heartbreak, resilience, and redemption along with a healthy dose of downhome charm and humor – all wrapped up in a musical score that rings true to the nature of its setting.” Nothing more needs to be said, but I’ll say a few more things anyway.

A stereotypical musical often feature a predictable plot, idealized characters, romantic storylines, upbeat tunes, elaborate choreography, and a happy ending. The Spitfire Grill has many of these characteristics but neatly sidesteps familiar tropes and simplistic portrayals of characters in favor of more complex individuals involved in less familiar situations and more unpredictable relationships.

Our first glimpse of our heroine, Percy, is from behind bars, just before she is released from prison where she has spent the past five years. By the end of Act 1, the plot still has not revealed why Percy was in prison – although I had my suspicions (based on her age and the length of her sentence), which were confirmed later in Act 2 with a conversation between Percy and her new friend Shelby.

Percy is not the only character with a secret. Her new – and reluctant – employer and ultimately friend, Hannah, also carries a heavy burden she needs help to let go. Perhaps Hannah’s hip problem and subsequently fall are overly active metaphors for her crippling burden. There is, after all, a longstanding literary history of spiritual meaning attached to dislocated or injured hips associated with struggle, growth, a turning point, or transformation.

I loved the raw and genuine relationship that develops between the two women portrayed by Lindsey Zelli as the broken but remarkably resilient young woman who is Percy Talbott and Joy Williams as the no-nonsense but tenderhearted matriarch Hannah Ferguson. Offering a counter to these two is Grey Garrett as Shelby Thorpe. A bit older than Percy, Shelby lacks Percy’s grit and independence but has the advantage of discernment and comes into her own under the tempering tension created by navigating Percy’s grittiness and Hannah’s steeliness. (Hmm. This made me think of the trio of women in Waitress, as well, and how each contributed something the other lacked, but I digress.) At one point Percy says, “Do you think if a wound goes deep enough the healing can hurt just as bad as what caused it?”

Offering a welcome comedic element is Effy Krayneck, the little town of Gilead, Wisconsin’s postmistress and self-appointed gossipmonger. When there isn’t any gossip to monger, Effy just makes up some juicy tidbit to smear around the diner like jelly on toast. Since Percy is the newest resident in town, the lion’s share of gossip is about her. Tara Callahan Carroll plays this role with great timing and just the right amount of exaggeration. But even Effy’s penchant for histrionics and hyperbole has a basis in community care. From what I could tell, the people who daily gather in Hannah’s Spitfire Grill are her chosen family, the people who really matter to her.

Jeff Ashworth treads carefully and with confidence in the roll of Sheriff Joe, the town’s law enforcement as well as Percy’s parole officer, friend, and potential love interest. Percy’s rebuff of Joe’s premature marriage proposal may or may not signal an end to any romantic relationship between the two of them, but it definitely causes a ripple in the usual happily ever after ending one expects in a musical.

Likewise, “it’s complicated” could be applied to the relationship between the soft-spoken Shelby and her husband Caleb, who is played with palpable tension by Scott Melton. Caleb, who is also Hannah’s nephew and gratuitous caretaker, appears to be at least a decade older than Shelby. He clings to an outdated sense of patriarchy and is highly resistant to change. There is a lot of love in Gilead, Wisconsin, but it doesn’t necessarily seem to be the romantic kind.

And then the authors introduce a mythical, mystical supernatural element. It’s subtle yet powerful. A nameless character identified in the program only as The Visitor brings a surprise revelation. Like the concept of a dislocated hip, the concept of a “visitor” comes attached to the idea of a catalyst for change, a disruption that forces needed transformation.

The Visitor in The Spitfire Grill makes several significant appearances but never speaks. Adding to this sense of mystery, The Visitor is played by Brian Vaughan or Austen Linder. Vaughan filled the role during the Wednesday matinee I viewed and joined Zelli to beautifully recreate a scene that had special meaning for Percy, a scene that gave Percy hope as she prepared to re-enter the world after prison. I’m not aware of the authors’ intent – it could simply be a result of the character’s earlier trauma (explained in the development of the story) but setting this scene in silence was more effective than it could ever have been if The Visitor spoke.

The Spitfire Grill is folksy or country, depending on your perspective. Lines like Effy’s enigmatic “if you’ve got the thread, you’ll find the needle” make perfect sense in this atmosphere. The accents are broad, and the singing is soulful and haunting. At one point, as Percy sings about jumping out of the frying pan into the fire, Lindsey Zelli quite casually holds a note for an impressively long time while swatting flies with a spatula. Drawn together by the unlikely device of a raffle, the cast moved together like a well-oiled ensemble through director Tom Width’s simple but genuine set. There seemed to be a concerted effort to portray real people that stirred the edges of our collective memory, rather than characters acting for our entertainment, and that’s what made The Spitfire Grill so satisfying. Order up!

Here’s a link to a video preview of The Spitfire Grill: https://www.facebook.com/swiftcreekmilltheatre/videos/1486417315855918 or www.swiftcreekmill.com

———-

Julinda D. Lewis, EdD is a dancer, minister of dance, teacher, and writer who was born in Brooklyn, NY and currently resides in Eastern Henrico County. When not writing about theater and dance, she teaches dance history at VCU and low impact dance fitness classes to seasoned movers like herself and occasionally gets to perform.

———-

THE SPITFIRE GRILL

Music & Book by James Valcq

Lyrics & Book by Fred Alley

Based on the filmy Lee David Zlotoff

Directed by Tom Width

CAST

Lindsey Zelli as Percy Talbott

Jeff Ashworth as Sheriff Joe

Joy Williams as Hannah Ferguson

Grey Garrett as Shelby Thorpe

Tara Callahan Carroll as Effy Krayneck

Scott Melton as Caleb Thorpe

Brian Vaughan or Austen Linder as The Visitor

Catherine McMullan U/S for Percy Talbott

ORCHESTRA

Shellie Johnson Keyboard Conductor

Finn Koehler Synthesizer

Chris Johnston Violin

Ed Drake Guitar/Mandolin

CREATIVE TEAM

Directed by Tom Width

Musical Direction by Shellie Johnson

Scenic Design by Tom Width

Lighting Design by Steve Koehler

Costume Design by Maura Lynch Cravey

Technical Direction by James Nicholas

PRODUCTION STAFF

Producing Artistic Director …. Tom With

Lead Carpenter ….. Peter Prout

Stage Manager ….. Sandy Lambert

Assistant Stage Manager/Props ….. Tom Width

Light Board Operator ….. Brent Deekens

Set Crew ….. Peter Prout, Brent Deekens, Hailey Bean, PJ Llewellyn, Thomas Doersch, Paul Deiss

Lighting Crew ….. Brent Deekens

Photographer ….. Daryll Morgan

Wig Design ….. Alia Radabaugh

Time and Place:

A Small Town, not long ago

Run Time:

About 2 hours, with 1 fifteen-minute intermission

Performances:

July 12 – August 2, 2025

Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays at 8:00PM

Select Wednesdays at 2:30PM

Tickets:

Regular $44-49. Discounts for Seniors, Military & Veterans

Photographer: Daryll Morgan

The Spitfire Grill premiered off-Broadway at the Duke Theatre on 42^nd Street on September 7, 2001.

MUSICAL NUMBERS

Act One

A Ring Around the Moon ….. Percy

Hannah’s Harangue ….. Hannah

Somethin’s Cookin’ at the Spitfire Grill ….. Company

Hannah Fell Down ….. Effy

Hannah Had a Son ….. Shelby

When Hope Goes ….. Shelby

Ice and Snow ….. Caleb, Joe and Effy

Shelby’s Ad ….. Shelby

The Colors of Paradise ….. Percy and Shelby

Diggin’ Stone ….. Caleb

This Wide Woods ….. Joe and Percy

Forgotten Lullaby ….. Hannah

Shoot the Moon ….. Hannah and Company

Act Two

Opening, Act II ….. Shelby, Percy and Hannah

Come Alive Again ….. Hannah and Company

Foret for the Trees ….. Joe

Wild Bird ….. Shelby

Sunrise ….. Percy

Shine ….. Percy

Way Back Home ….. Hannah

Dear Mrs. Ferguson ….. Effy and Joe

The Last Letters ….. Shelby and Percy

Finale ….. Company

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BURIAL TAX

A World Premiere

A Theater Review by Julinda D Lewis

Presented by: Firehouse Theatre | A Firehouse Mainstage Production

At: Firehouse Theatre on the Carol Piersol Stage, 1609 W Broad St., RVA 23220

Performances: July 9 – 27, 2025

Ticket Prices: $5-$35

Info: (804) 355-2001 or firehousetheatre.org

If there is any chance that you think your family might be dysfunctional, you might feel better about your own situation after seeing Andrew Gall’s new play, a dark comedy called Burial Tax.

When two estranged siblings bring their respective partners to their family’s lake house to scatter the askes of their recently deceased father, things quickly get out of hand. Sparks fly – and so does scattered debris, a metal trash can, cold pizza, and even their father’s remains.

Most of us have probably experienced many of these family dynamics in our own lives: sibling rivalry, parental favoritism, failed educational goals, stagnant marriages. It’s the accumulation of all of these things in one place at the same time that makes this family’s drama exceptional. The shouting, the language, the twisted faces, the presence of alcohol, drugs, a weapon all elevate the tension to an unprecedented level of violence. (Sitting in the front row, we narrowly escaped the carnage when red plastic cups began flying across the stage and through the fourth wall.)

At the center of the controversy we find Steve (Matt Meixler) who once wanted to become a doctor and his younger sister Samantha (Nicole Morris-Anastasi) who is a doctor. The tables have turned since childhood when Steve was the favored child and Sam struggled to be seen. Childhood trauma runs deep, and Sam, despite her accomplishments, still seeks affirmation and appears to suffer from anxiety. Steve, on the other hand, has fallen from grace into an abyss he doesn’t know how to climb out of.

It is here that Steve’s wife Cora (Laine Satterfield) issues an ultimatum while Sam’s partner Dar (short for Darwin) approaches the whole family drama from a more philosophical point of view – fueled by alcohol in tiny airline-sized bottles and week that he somehow managed to sneak through airport security. Sam and Dar are not at each other’s throats like Steve and Cora, but their relationship is no less toxic.

It’s interesting that while Sam and Steve are the main characters, their partners Dar and Cora often have the most interesting things to say, make the most sense, and leave the greatest impression. I’m not sure if this was the intent of Gall’s script or the power of the actors themselves. Laine Satterfield appeared on this same stage just a few weeks prior in another dark comedy about a family drama in Cadence Theatre’s Smoke. [ See my review of Smoke here: https://jdldancesrva.com/2025/07/06/smoke/ ] Satterfield presents Cora as loud and angry, but she also shows a surprisingly unexpected empathy towards Sam. Cora is a more fully developed, three-dimensional character than Steve. Matt Meixler seems to spend much of his stage time on the floor. Sometimes he’s down there painting baseboards in preparation for his mother’s arrival. Sometimes he’s down there wallowing in the detritus of his life and his own bad choices and missed opportunities, all of which are encapsulated in Chris Raintree’s trash strewn set. Raintree’s scenic design, I must add, is phenomenal. The battle weary and generally dilapidated beach cottage, along with Grace Brown LaBelle’s sound design of waves washing the shore of the nearby lake and some appropriately evocative original music by Daniel Clarke are masterfully designed.

Steve’s preference for superhero tee shirts are a stark contrast to his station in life, and this is also masterfully highlighted in a late-night discussion with Dar. The seriousness of this conversation is offset by the humor that arises from Steve’s experience of trying weed for the first time. Meixler plays Steve with such a burden of defeat that there seems little hope of redemption. Nicole Morris-Anastasi carries the burden of Sam’s childhood neglect to the point that it almost seems unlikely that she could have withstood the pressures of medical school. We never learn why young Steve was so cruel to his sister, and I don’t think Morris-Anastasi ever found out, either. Her character seems never to fully come into focus.

Duke Lafoon, on the other hand – and much like his counterpart in Laine Satterfield – gives his character more depth than the main character he supports. Dar seems to have more of a backstory than Sam, and Lafoon teases by quietly observing and then releasing philosophical tidbits the way Jesus used parables to teach the masses.

Overall, this is a successful world premiere with a strong cast and high production values. Gall’s script and Paul Takács’ direction keep things moving, often using shocking words and outrageous actions. It’s not just, as I believe one character says early in Act 1, “meaningless routine punctuated by Amazon deliveries. Act 1 is full of secrets and anger. “By the end of Act 2, the siblings have made some confessions, realized some truths, and come to a new understanding. But nothing is really resolved. There is no redemption, and whatever victory has been achieved feels less than satisfactory, more of a concession than a real win. “What we have learned from history, is that no one learns from history.” Maybe that’s why we have theater.

———-

Here’s a link to a promo video of Burial Tax: https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1AktDm7pjz/

———-

Here’s my preview from the July 2025 issue of Richmond Magazine:

Firehouse Theatre Producing Artistic Director Nathaniel Shaw says an essential component of the theater “is to amplify local talent.”

Burial Tax, written by Andrew Gall and directed by Paul Takács, will have its world premiere at Firehouse, July 11-27. After two years in development under the working title “Lake Effect,” the work promises to be a hauntingly dark comedy about the reunion of two estranged siblings who gather with their spouses at their family’s lake house to spread the ashes of their recently deceased father. It’s a release of beauty and pain, a comedic experience of family dynamics, and a unique take on the pressures of adulthood.

Gall says, “It makes us think about a shared experience in a new way.”

https://richmondmagazine.com/arts-entertainment/richmond-events/burial-tax-firehouse-theatre/

———-

Julinda D. Lewis is a dancer, teacher, and writer who was born in Brooklyn, NY and now lives in Eastern Henrico County. When not writing about theater, she teaches dance history at VCU and low impact dance fitness classes to seasoned movers like herself and occasionally performs.

———-

BURIAL TAX

Written by Andrew Gall

Directed by Paul Takács

CAST

Cora ….. Laine Satterfield

Samantha ….. Nicole Morris-Anastasi

Steve ….. Matt Meixler

Dar ….. Duke Lafoon

Cora U/S ….. Donna Marie Miller

Samantha U/S …. Rachel Dilliplane

Steve/Dar U/S …. Andy Braden

PRODUCTION TEAM & CREW

Direction ….. Paul Takács

Scenic Design ….. Chris Raintree

Lighting Design ….. Gretta Daughtrey

Costume Design ….. Sassy Rychalsk

Sound Design ….. Grace Brown LaBelle

Original Music Composer Daniel Clarke

Playwright ….. Andrew Gall

Assistant Director ….. Rachel Dilliplane

Stage Management ….. Emily Sanford Hicks

Asst Stage Management Isabel Stone

Tickets: $5-$35

Ticket Info: (804) 355-2001 or firehousetheatre.org

Performance Schedule: July 9-27, 2025

Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays @7:30PM

Saturdays & Sundays @2:00PM

Previews: July 9 & 10 (Pay-What-You-Will)

Opening Night: Friday, July 11

Closing: Sunday, July 27 @2:00PM

Run Time: about 2 hours with one 15-minute intermission

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A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM

Potions, Poetry & the Power of Dreams

A Theater Review by Julinda D. Lewis

Presented by: Richmond Shakespeare

Performances: June 19 – July 20, 2025 [Extended to July 27!]

At: Agecroft Hall, 4305 Sulgrave Rd., RVA 23221

Ticket Prices: $22-$47 [Adults $47; Seniors 65+ with ID $42; Military with ID $32; College Students with ID $27 & Children 18 and under $22] Seating is General Admission.

Info: (804) 340-0115 or http://www.richmondshakespeare.org

Shakespeare wrote A Midsummer Night’s Dream in around 1595 or 1596. Here we are in 2025, watching Shakespeare’s sixteenth century comedy about people in Ancient Greece (c. 12^th century) being performed by a cast of characters in 1950’s attire. Now that, my friend, is the definition of timeless. [NOTE: A brief synopsis of the play is provided at the end of this reflection.]

As Director James Ricks notes in the Midsummer program, the play was most likely originally performed in an outdoor venue where, much like at Agecroft Hall, the close proximity of audience and actors created a uniquely intimate dynamic. “Here,” Ricks wrote, “we have assembled to ‘rehearse most obscenely and courageously,’ employing Shakespeare’s original practices with a touch of modern technology.”

Lysander (Erich Appleby) slouches onstage looking like he’s auditioning for a role as “the Fonz” in Happy Days and Demetrius (Gordon Graham) shows up wearing his preppy letterman sweater. Hermia (Erin Chaves) wears pink pedal pushers, completing the 1950’s casual couture look, while Hermia’s father, Egeus (Erica Hughes) inexplicably sports the wide-brimmed hat and accent of a landed southern planter. Theseus, the Duke of Athens (Arik Cullen) cautions Hermia in his best Shakespearean intonation to “fit your fancies to your father’s will,” while Bottom (James Ricks), channels Marlon Brandon c.1954 spouting, “I could’a been a contender!”

And did I mention the doo-wop songs? OMG there were doo wop songs sung by proper quartets with outstanding harmony offering such classics as “In the Still of the Night,” “At Last,” and “A Sunday Kind of Love.” A Midsummer Night’s Dream was filled with one surprise after another – all good – starting when I opened my program and saw that Richmond Shakespeare’s Artistic Director James Ricks had cast himself in the role of Bottom.

What bold choices. What unlikely pairings. What a brilliant production! This is a true ensemble, with nearly every actor getting a chance to shine. Let’s take a look:

Erick Appleby’s insouciance as Lysander, one of the two young male love interests, early on set a tone and laid a foundation for what to expect going forward. Erin Chaves, in the role of Lysander’s beloved Hermia, seems always on the verge of being the mean girl, but it’s obvious she’s got “home training” – as who wouldn’t with an over-bearing parent like Egeus (more about Erica Hughes in just a moment). Gordon Graham as Demetrius was the nerdy guy most likely to be approved by the parents, I almost felt sorry for him under the pressure of hot pursuit by the love-struck Helena, played with over-the-top angst by Paisley LoBue.

Arik Cullen was regal as Theseus, the Duke of Athens, and almost villainous as Oberon, the King of the Fairies and husband of the Fairy Queen Titania, with whom he is at odds. Jianna Hurt doesn’t have much to do as Theseus’ fiancée Hippolyta but makes up for it in her role as Titania where she gets to be beautiful, independent, and inadvertently funny (when she awakens to fall in love with a donkey) – and also gets to sing her heart out.

Erica Hughes, whose mastery of dialects I have long admired, played Egeus as a domineering parent with a southern accent, but it was as Quince, the leader of the mechanicals – a group of laborers (e.g., a baker, a weaver, a carpenter, etc.) who moonlight as incredibly inept actors whose goal is to perform the play-within-a-play Pyramus and Thisbe for the royal wedding program of Theseus and Hippolyta that she really shines. It is as part of this group that James Ricks has brilliantly inserted himself as Bottom, an overly confident weaver who enthusiastically volunteers to play every part in the play. Ricks turns what might otherwise have been a minor character into a highlight of every scene he tackled.

The ensemble-within-the-ensemble, who played the mechanicals as well as Titania’s fairy court included Alex Godschalk, Enrique Gonzalez, Elle Meerovich, Toby O’Brien, and Abe Timm. Meerovich also served as the play’s Music Director (the main play, that is, not the play-within-the-play) and got to lead at least one song – of course – but also made a lasting impression as The Wall in Pyramus and Thisbe – an intentionally bad parody of a Shakespeare play.

I did not forget about Puck – the mischievous assistant to Oberon whose hurried and impish nature leads to a mistake that sets in motion an epic series of misadventures. Abe Timm (he/she/them) is the most delightful, most energetic Puck I’ve ever seen, and I have seen a few – in both play and ballet form. (And I must confess, the last time I saw a Richmond Shakespeare production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream I was wholly partial because the role was played by Raven Lorraine, who was once a Brownie Girl Scout in the troop I led…)

But to get back to this production, this represents some of James Ricks’ finest work – both as director and as actor. The musical direction by Meerovich added delightfully unexpected and highly satisfying 1950’s harmony and the choreography by Starrene Foster wasn’t so much dance phrases as organic movement designed to keep everyone and everything flowing in one accord.

What more can be said about this production…other than this is what theater was meant to be.

—–

A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM

Written by William Shakespeare

Directed by James Ricks

CAST

Lysander ….. Erich Appleby

Hermia ….. Erin Chaves

Oberon/Theseus ….. Arik Cullen

Attendant/Fairy ….. Kara Finnegan

Starveling/Mustardseed ….. Alex Godschalk

Flute/Peasblossom ….. Enrique Gonzalez

Demetrius ….. Gordon Graham

Quince/Egeus . ….. Erica Hughes

Titania/Hippolyta ….. Jianna Hurt

Helena ….. Paisley LoBue

Snout/Moth ….. Elle Meerovich

Snug/Cobweb ….. Toby O’Brien

Bottom ….. James Ricks

Puck/Philostrate ….. Abe Timm

PRODUCTION TEAM

Artistic Director/Bottom/

Director/Production

Management/

Scenic Design/

Sound Design ….. James Ricks

Managing Director ….. Jase Smith Sullivan

Production Manager/

Stage Manager ….. Nata Moriconi

Assistant Stage Manager/

Props Design ….. Jordan Dively

Assistant Stage Manager ….. Kathleen Acree

Costume Design ….. Anna Bialkowski

Lighting Design ….. Griffin Hardy

Choreographer ….. Starrene Foster

Music Director/Arranger ….. Elle Meerovich

Intimacy Director ….. Dorothy “Dee D.” Miller

Assistant Director ….. Andrew Gall

Run Time: About 2 hours 30 minutes; there is one intermission

Setting: Ancient Athens and the nearby forest, approximately 12^th Century B.C.

Photo Credits: Aaron Sutten; Richmond Shakespeare Website & Facebook page

A Brief Synopsis of William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream:

A Midsummer Night’s Dream is a comedic play by William Shakespeare that intertwines the lives of four young Athenian lovers—Hermia, Lysander, Helena, and Demetrius—with a group of mischievous fairies and a troupe of amateur actors. The play is set in the mystical woods outside of Athens, where magic and whimsy reign.

The story begins with Hermia, who is in love with Lysander, but her father Egeus insists she marries Demetrius, who is in love with her. Disregarding her father’s wishes, Hermia flees with Lysander into the forest, followed by Helena, who harbors unrequited feelings for Demetrius. In the enchanted woods, the fairy king Oberon and his queen Titania are embroiled in their own domestic quarrel, leading Oberon to seek revenge using a magical flower that causes love at first sight.

As Oberon instructs his mischievous servant Puck to apply the potion to Titania and to Demetrius so he will fall in love with Helena, chaos ensues. Mistaken identities and unintentional enchantments result in a tangled web of romantic confusion among four young lovers. Meanwhile, a group of amateur actors, led by the bumbling Bottom, unknowingly becomes part of the fairy mischief, resulting in humorous transformations and antics.

Ultimately, love prevails as the magic wears off, misunderstandings are resolved, and the couples reunite correctly. The play concludes with the characters returning to Athens, ready to celebrate their marriages, and Puck delivers a final monologue inviting the audience to view the events as a dream. Shakespeare’s exploration of love, fantasy, and reality culminates in a lively and whimsical tapestry that highlights the folly and joy of human emotion.

[This synopsis was generated with the assistance of AI.]

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A STRANGE LOOP

Or, How to be a Big, Black, Queer-Ass Broadway Musical

Presented by: Richmond Triangle Players in Partnership with Firehouse Theatre

At: Richmond Triangle Players at the Robert B. Moss Theatre, 1300 Altamont Avenue, RVA 23220

Performances: June 20 – August 9, 2025

Ticket Prices: $55

Info: (804) 346-8113 or rtriangle.org

A Reflection on Theater and Things Relative by Julinda D. Lewis

———-

Michael R. Jackson’s Pulitzer Prize-winning musical, A Strange Loop (2019) follows the life of Usher – no, not that Usher – a Black, queer writer who works as an usher in theaters while writing his own musical about a Black queer usher who is writing a musical…about a Black queer usher who is writing a musical…

“Who knew slavery, police violence, and intersectionality could be so lucrative.”

A Strange Loop is at once as new as the latest dance craze and as old as the theater itself. The chorus of six nameless characters referred to in the program as “Thoughts” draws on the ancient Greek chorus. The Thoughts personify Usher’s inner struggles with identity and purpose. At times they represent social issues and personal demons, and at other times they represent people in Usher’s life. Come to think of it, Usher is not so much the lead character’s name as his occupation; he works as a Disney usher while struggling to overcome his writer’s block. Sometimes, the people are the issues, and sometimes the issues are the people. And since Usher is a young Black queer individual, these inner struggles encompass issues of racism, identity, homophobia, and self-doubt. Since Usher is a writer, A Strange Loop is also an exploration of the mind of creatives.

In science and technology, “a strange loop” is a concept proposed by Pulitzer prize-winning cognitive scientist and author Douglas Richard Hofstadter in his book I Am A Strange Loop (2007). In this book, Hofstadter (the son of Nobel Prize-winning physicist Richard Hofstadter) explores the sense of “I” or what is a “self” through the lens of self-referential systems. While these systems have different meanings in different fields, they most often are represented by a loop.

Playwright Jackson uses the term to refer to a self-referential thought structure or loop, in which an individual may find themselves trapped in a loop of thoughts – all too often negative thoughts – that keeps returning to the same point. For our protagonist, Usher, the loop circles around the themes of identify, self-doubt, and the writing process. Each theme in complete in itself, but in A Strange Loop the thoughts are compounded and complex, forming a never-ending loop that feeds on his insecurities which are, in turn, reinforced by social and familial pressures.

In a 2022 interview for Outreach: An LGBTQ Catholic Resource, Jackson said, “It’s very simple. The ideology is so intact that when you have that filter or that loop in yourself, nothing will break it until you break it or until your perception shifts.” [https://outreach.faith/2022/06/interview-a-strange-loop-playwright-michael-r-jackson-talks-faith-compassion-and-sexuality/] A Strange Loop is a musical journey towards breakthrough and perception shift.

And yes, all this background may sound like technical, scientific mumbo jumbo to some, but it is key to understanding this play and this character. Who among us has not been affected by negative self-talk? And this play, this big, complex musical wonder, has been recognized many times over for its heartfelt message. A Strange Loop won the 2022 Tony Award for Best Musical and Best Book of a Musical. It also won the 2020 Pulitzer Prize for Drama even before its Broadway run. The Pulitzer committee recognized Jackson’s work as “a metafictional musical that tracks the creative process of an artist transforming issues of identity, race, and sexuality that once pushed him to the margins of the cultural mainstream” while acknowledging the universality of human fears and insecurities. There were other awards, too – Drama Desk, New York Drama Critics’ Circle, and numerous nominations in multiple categories. You can be intellectual and artistic at the same time. A Strange Loop is a lot of things, all at once, and probably deserves more than one viewing.

This Richmond production, under the masterful direction of the multi-talented Katrinah Carol Lewis, with musical direction by Ben Miller and choreography by Deandra Clarke boasts a stellar cast headed up by Marcus Antonio. Antonio was most recently seen at the Firehouse/TP production of Fat Ham [https://jdldancesrva.com/2025/04/17/fat-ham/] where he gave an alternately sly, philosophical, and just generally endearing performance as the main character Juicy, modeled after Hamlet. In A Stange Loop, you forget Antonio is acting. He embodies the character of Usher with authenticity, but also with grace – and I’m not just talking about the physical kind of grace, but the spiritual kind of grace as well. And did I mention he can sing his butt off? You need to see and hear it for yourself.

Each and every one of the “Thoughts,” deserves special mention, but I know I would omit something or someone important. At one point they form a parade of past heroes including Harriet Tubman, Marcus Garvey, James Baldwin, Whitney Houston, Zora Neal Hurston. When Zakiyyah Jackson/Thought #1 takes on the persona of an older Black woman who shares her wisdom and advice with Usher, she reminds me of the fabulous Phylicia Rashaad. Her last appearance on the RTP stage was, in fact, in a production of How Black Mothers Say I Love You [https://www.facebook.com/share/v/19WrqXMdBi/ ] TeDarryl Perry/Thought #4 and the understudy for Usher simply nails it as Usher’s mother. The red dress, the mannerisms, the attitude that flips without notice from, “The bible says homosexuality is worse than murder” or “Why do you hate me; you’re selfish” to love reminds me of people in my own extended family. I’m sure we all know at least one like her, or him.

I couldn’t believe that Anthony Cosby Jr., most recently seen in last season’s Yes, And! Production of Pass Overand known for his fabulous Prince tribute shows, was just now making his RTP debut as Thought #5. Likewise, it was awesome to watch Keaton Hillman/Thought #6 add to his growing repertoire of memorable characters. I haven’t seen Todd Patterson/Thought #3 sing and dance this much since BootyCandy (2022) [https://jdldancesrva.com/2022/06/17/bootycandy/]. I am not yet familiar with the beautiful Nesziah Dennis/Thought #2 but thoroughly enjoyed her performance and look forward to seeing more of them in the future.

With all the trauma in A Strange Loop, there is no deficit of humor. The parents’ names are Serabi and Mufasa, and the granddaughter is Nyla. Besides paying homage to The Lion King, it seems a bit of an inside joke that they are also the King and Queen of the Pridelands.

There are plenty of biblical references as well, from things people think are in the bible but actually aren’t (e.g., AIDS is God’s punishment for not living right) to actual bible quotes (e.g., But these, like natural brute beasts made to be caught and destroyed, speak evil of the things they do not understand, and will utterly perish in their own corruption – 2 Peter 2:12 NKJV).

Production-wise, A Strange Loop utilizes the space at RTP so well that the stage seemed wider and deeper than it actually is – in other words, bigger than life. Frank Foster’s scenic design consisted of strands of light, in curving bands like a roller coaster or strands of DNA, and 18 slim poles. Michael Jarett’s lighting was evocative, simple, and dramatic in turn.

This is a musical, so I would be derelict not to mention the music, which encompasses multiple genres including R&B and gospel – sometimes with full choir robes. The songs were fully integrated into the book, with lyrics that seamlessly expanded the storytelling aspects of the show. One of the most memorable, near the end, was “Memory Song,” a work that kind of summarizes the intent and direction of the entire work, touching on Usher’s childhood memories and relationships, his sexuality, and his faith. [See the lyrics to “Memory Song” below.] In his bio, TeDarryl Perry wrote that this performance is dedicated to “all those Black, gay boys who chose to go on back to the Lord.”

In the end, A Strange Loop, while frequently referred to by participants as “a big, black, and queer ass American Broadway show,” is not just a niche show. It is for Black, queer people. It is for people who are exploring their sexuality or identity. It is for people who care abut mental health and identity. It is for anyone who has ever experiences self-doubt or self-hate. It is for people who have been bullied and people who have bullied others. It is for people who love a good story. It is for people who care about other people. It is for people who care. A loop is never-ending. The only way out is to break through.

Here’s a link to a preview of A Strange Loop: https://www.facebook.com/share/v/19WrqXMdBi/

Here are the lyrics to “Memory Song”:

Five foot four, high school gym
Sneaking a cupcake
These are my memories
These are my memories

Shooting hoops off the rim
Slow on the uptake
These are my memories
These are my memories

After gym, the locker room
My eyes photographing
Naked me measures in at four and a half inches
These are my memories
These are my memories

Of one lone, Black, gay boy I knew
Who chose to turn his back on the Lord
One lone, Black, gay boy I knew
Who chose to turn his back on the Lord

Guild and shame
Jesus’ name
Church every Sunday
These are my memories
These are my memories

Eat his body
Drink his blood
Communion buffet
These are my memories
Sweet, sour memories

After church we’re driving home to radio crackle
Jazz music or Motown blues
And skin is a shackle
For one lone, Black, gay boy I knew
Who chose to turn his back on the Lord
One lone, Black, gay boy I knew
Who chose to turn his back on the Lord

These are my memories
Sweet, sour memories
This is my history
This is my mystery

Mom is napping on the couch
And dad cuts the grass
While I watch TV all day long
Young & the Restless
Like one lone, black, gay boy I knew
Who chose to turn his back on the Lord
One lone, black, gay boy I knew
Who chose to turn his back on the Lord

Dad is drunk and on the couch
While mom eats a porkchop
Daily bread mill
Daily treadmill won’t ever stop
One lone, Black, gay boy I knew
Who chose to turn his back on the Lord
One lone, Black, gay boy I knew
Who chose to turn his back on the Lord

I am lying on the couch
I dream that I’m flying
Flapping both my wings so hard
To keep me from dying
With a crown of godforsaken thorns on my head
Like all those black, gay boys I knew
Who chose to go on
Back to the Lord (like all those black, gay boys you knew who chose to go on back to the Lord)

All those Black, gay boys I knew
Who chose to go on
Back to the Lord (all those Black, gay boys you knew who chose to go on back to the Lord)
All those Black, gay boys I knew
Who chose to go on
Back to the Lord! (all those Black, gay boys you knew who chose to go on back to the Lord)
And one lone, Black, gay boy I knew
Who chose to turn his back-
On the Lord- (chose to turn his back on, chose to turn his back on the Lord)
Instead

Source: Musixmatch |Songwriters: Michael Jackson | Memory Song lyrics © Kobalt Music Services America Inc.

———-

Julinda D. Lewis is a dancer, minister of dance, teacher, and writer who was born in Brooklyn, NY and currently resides in Eastern Henrico County. When not writing about theater, she teaches dance history at VCU and low impact dance fitness classes to seasoned movers like herself and occasionally performs.

———-

A STRANGE LOOP

Book, Music, & Lyrics by Michael R. Jackson

Directed by Katrinah Carol Lewis

Cast

Marcus Antonio ….. Usher

Zakkiyah Jackson ….. Thought #1

Nesziah Dennis ….. Thought #2

Todd Patterson ….. Thought #3

TeDarryl Perry ….. Thought #4 & U/S Usher

Anthony Cosby Jr ….. Thought #5

Keaton Hillman ….. Thought #6

Understudies

Nia Frazier ….. Thoughts

Sydnee S. Graves ….. Thoughts

A Strange Loop Band

Conductor/Keyboard ….. Ben Miller

Guitar ….. Lake Stiles

Drums ….. Joe Lubman

Reeds ….. Jalen Wise

Creative Team

Scenic Design ….. Frank Foster

Lighting Design ….. Michael Jarett

Costume, Hair, & Makeup Design ….. Margarette Joyner

Sound Design …. Grace Brown LaBelle

Props Design ….. Tim Moehring

Production Stage Manager ….. Lauren Langston

Choreography ….. Deandra Clarke

Music Direction ….. Ben Miller

For This Production

Assistant Stage Managers ….. Christopher R. Smith, Finn Thomason

Intimacy Director ….. Nora Ogunleye

Gender Consultant ….. August Hundley

Technical Director ….. Emily Vial

Master Electrician ….. Griffin Hardy

Sound Assistant ….. Julie Vo

Set Construction ….. David Allan Ballas, Grace Brown Labelle, Todd Labelle, Emily Vial, Patrick Rooney

World Premiere by Playwrights Horizons, Inc. in association with Page 73 Productions in New York City in 2019.

Performance Schedule

June 20 – August 9, 2025

Sundays at 4:00PM

Wednesdays at 8:00PM

Thursdays at 8:00PM

Fridays at 8:00PM

Saturdays at 8:00PM, closing August 9

Tickets

Ticket Prices: $55

Run Time

About 2 hours with no intermission

Setting

A loop within a loop within a loop inside a perception of one man’s reality.

Photos from the RTP Facebook page

Keaton Hillman, Nesziah Dennis, Todd Patterson, Marcus Antonio, TeDarryl Perry, Zakiyyah Jackson, Anthony Cosby Jr

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WAITRESS

A Musical Journey to Empowerment

A Theater Review by Julinda D. Lewis

By: Virginia Repertory Theatre (Virginia Rep), The Barksdale Season

At: the November Theatre Arenstein Stage, 114 West Broad St, Richmond VA 23220

When: June 21 – August 3, 2025

Ticket Prices: $39-$68

Info: (804) 282-2620 or www.virginiarep.org

It’s summer, and that means it must be time for a great big musical. That is exactly what VaRep delivered with Waitress, a popular musical, based on a 2007 film. The staged version ran on Broadway from April 2016 until January 2020 and returned for a limited engagement in 2021. Now, it’s right here in River City and friends who know wear big smiles as they tell me – who did not see it on Broadway – that the set is “just like” the Broadway set.

Whether it is or not, Mercedes Schaum’s scenic design is filled with simple, multi-tasking moving parts that evoke the feel of a small-town southern diner, but easily transforms into a living room, an ob-gyn office, or a bus stop. The diner even serves as a wedding venue for one of the waitresses.

Jenna, played by Emelie Faith Thompson, is the main character. Jenna, a waitress and pie chef at Joe’s Pie Diner, is trapped in an abusive marriage, and at the beginning of the show she discovers – much to her chagrin – that she is pregnant. The thick of the plot involves joining along on the journey as Jenna navigates the twists and turns of life, following an unlikely path to empowerment. Along the way, she has an unlikely affair with her doctor, resorts to hiding money from her husband, Earl, and explores the possibility of following her dreams via a pie baking contest. Her goal – and the moral of the story – is to achieve a life that is more than just “happy enough.”

Currently based in the Washington, D.C. area, Thompson may be familiar to Richmond audiences who saw Mamma Mia on this same stage the summer of 2022 [https://jdldancesrva.com/2022/06/26/mamma-mia/]. Thompson was well cast as Jenna, bringing empathy and authenticity to the role. Jenna is a complex character, given to indecisiveness and questionable choices, while balancing – no, while juggling – kindness, caring, the need for self-fulfillment, and the restrictions of real life. Thompson does all of this with the help of a strong voice that soars in all the right places – and the assistance of a stellar supporting cast.

Fellow waitstaff Becky (Miya Bass) and Dawn (Kylee Márquez-Downie), and the sometimes curmudgeonly Cal (William Vaughn) the short order cook and manager of Joe’s Pie Diner are the regulars who form the backbone of the diner and the musical. Becky appears to be the oldest of the three. She offers wisdom and wit, both of which come with the territory of having a disabled husband at home. Like Jenna, she enters into a surprising relationship. Dawn is the youngest and her social insecurities and awkwardness make her appear even moreso. All three share an unshakable, enviable love and loyalty.

Equally essential are Terence Sullivan as Dr. Pomatter – a caring and supportive physician who takes things beyond the intent of the hypocritic oath, and Jenna’s controlling and insecure husband, Earl, played by Greg Twomey. Dawn’s love interest, Ogie (Bear Manescalchi) is an unforgettably quirky and endearing character, but my personal favorites among the supporting characters are Nurse Norma (played by Imani Blair Crosby) and Joe, the owner of Joe’s Pie Diner, played by none other than Joe Pabst.

Nurse Norma turns a blind eye to the shenanigans perpetrated by Jenna and Dr Pomatter , and Crosby’s facial expressions, double-takes, and comedic timing in the most awkward situations are pure gold. Did I say that Cal was curmudgeonly? I should take that back. Joe takes the prize for being curmudgeonly, but he is quietly observant and becomes a significant source of support for Jenna. Since this was my first time seeing Waitress, I cannot imagine anyone other than Pabst in this role. Warm, prickly, paternal but not patriarchal in the toxic sense – Pabst/Joe is the source of the pivotal, transforming moment that changes everything for Jenna.

While filled with music and comedy, Waitress is also about friendship, loyalty, empowerment, self-efficacy, and the healing power of baking. Yum!

———-

WAITRESS

Book by Jessie Nelson

Music and Lyrics by Sara Bareilles

Directed by Rick Hammerly

Based upon the motion picture written by Adrienne Shelly

Cast

Jenna …………………………….. Emelie Faith Thompson

Becky …………………………….. Miya Bass

Dawn ……………………………… Kylee Márquez-Downie

Cal ………………………………… William Vaughn

Joe ………………………………… Joe Pabst

Earl ……………………………….. Greg Twomey

Nurse Norma/

Ensemble/U/S Becky….. Imani Blair Crosby

Dr. Pomatter …………………….. Terrance Sullivan

Ogie ……………………………… Bear Manescalchi

Ensemble, U/S Jenna ………….. Lindy Pokorny

Ensemble, U/S Dr. Pomatter……Calvin Malone

Ensemble, U/S Dawn…………… Brie Ramirez

Ensemble, U/S Ogie …………… Mason Jett

Ensemble, U/S Earl …………….. Patrick Rooney

Ensemble, U/S Cal……………… David Ramirez

Ensemble, U/S Nurse Norma…. Sarah White Pruden

Ensemble ……………………….. Audrey Baker

Ensemble ……………………….. Jennifer Lent Hamilton

Ensemble ……………………….. Garrett D. Reese

Lulu ………………………………. Emily Goodman, Phoebe Janosik, Josie Sledd

Swing …………………………….. Maria Carpinelli

Swing …………………………….. Joey Gravins

Band

Keyboard 1/Conductor ……….. Leilani Fenick

Keyboard 2 ……………………….. Ian Krauss

Guitar 1 ……………………………. Forrest Link

Guitar 2 ……………………………. Jeremiah Martin

Cello ……………………………….. Ned Haskins

Bass ………………………………… Beatrice Kelly

Drums ……………………………… Bentley Cobb

Direction & Design

Directed by ……………………… Rick Hammerly

Music Direction …………………… Leilani Fenick

Choreography ……………………. Paul Dandridge

Scenic Design …………………….. Mercedes Schaum

Costume Design ………………….. Sarah Grady

Lighting Design …………………… Joe Doran

Production Design ……………….. Dasia Gregg

Sound Design …………………….. Jonathan Pratt

Stage Management ………………. Abby Bobb

Fight & Intimacy Direction ….. Casey Kaleba

For This Production

Assistant Stage Manager ……… Donna Warfield

Production Assistant ……………. Katie Willard-O’Neill

Dance Captain ………….…………… Calvin Malone

Assistant Lighting Designer …. Kacey Yachuw

Carpenters ……………………………… Liz Allmon, Avery Glenn, Van Montes

Scenic Artist …………………………… Julie Gallager

Electricians …………………………….. Liz Allmon, Weston Corey

Stitchers ………………………………… Genna Beth Davidson, Sarah Grady,

Mary Nagler

Deck Crew ………………………… Lilith Fulcher-Davis, Daryus Gazder, Amber

Hooper, Devon Kistler

Fly Rail Operators ………………… Justin Janke, Mark Persinger, Shawn

Goodman, Hans Paul

Wardrobe Supervisor ……………. Emily Andrew Mateos

Dresser …………………………….. Rowan Sullivan

Audio Engineer …………………… Jonathan Pratt

Light Board Engineer …………….. Jeff Meisner

Follow Spot Operators …………… Terra Comer, Logan Graves, Reese Hardy,

Kacey Yachuw

Photographer ……………………… Aaron Sutten

Videographer ……………………… Austin Lewis

Front Cover Photography ………… Ben White

Ticket Information

Box Office: (804) 282-2620

www.virginiarep.org

Ticket Prices: $39 – $68

Performance Schedule

June 21 – August 3, 2023 with performances

Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at 7:00 PM, Saturdays at 2PM, Sundays at 3PM, and select Wednesday evenings and matinees.

Run Time

The play runs for approximately 2 hours 15 minutes; with one 15-minute intermission

World Premiere produced by the American Repertory Theatre at Harvard University, August 2, 2015

Originally Produced on Broadway by Barry and Fran Weissler, Norton and Elayne Herrick

Musical Numbers

Act 1

What’s Inside ………………… Jenna and Company

Opening Up ………………..…. Jenna, Becky, Dawn, Cal and Company

The Negative …………………. Jenna, Becky, Dawn

What Baking Can Do ………. Jenna

When He Sees Me ………..…. Dawn

It Only Takes a Taste ………. Dr. Pomatter, Jenna

You Will Still Be Mine ……… Earl

A Soft Place to Land …………. Jena, Becky, Dawn

Never Getting Rid of Me …… Ogie and Company

Bad Idea …………………………….. Jenna, Dr. Pomatter

Act 2

I Didn’t Plan It ………………. Becky

Bad Idea (Reprise) …………. Jenna, Dr. Pomatter, Becky, Cal, Dawn, Ogie

and Company

Mama’s Pie Song …………… Jenna

You Matter to Me …………… Dr. Pomatter, Jenna

I Love You Like a Table ….. Ogie, Dawn and Company

Take It From An Old Man ….. Joe and Company

She Used to Be Mine …………… Jenna

What’s Inside (Reprise) ……… Company

Everything Changes (Part 1) .. Jenna, Becky, Dawn

Everything Changes (Part 2) .. Jenna and Company

Opening Up (Finale) ……………… Company

Photo Credits Aaron Sutten

Kylee Márquez Downie, Emelie Faith Thompson, Miya Bass. Photo by Aaron Sutten.

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TEACHER, TEACH

TEACHER, TEACH

A World Premiere

Presented by HATTheatre

At: HATTheatre, 1124 Westbriar Dr., Richmond, VA 23238

Performances: June 20, 22, 27, 29, 2025

Ticket Prices: $30 General Admission. $25 Seniors/Students/Military. $20 Youth up to 17.

Info: 804-343-6364 or https://hattheatre.org

There were only four opportunities to see the world premiere of Randy Wright’s delightful little gem, Teacher, Teach, a one-woman show performed by Jacqueline Jones.

Set in the auditorium of Tranquility Middle School, where Mrs. Web is saying good-bye to her colleagues and her teaching career, Teacher, Teach pays homage to all who, like Mrs. Web, didn’t go to college just to get rich, but to become a problem solver – a teacher.

On entering the theater, there was free coffee and cake available, as well as a souvenir: a replica of the Liberty Bill – a student-led effort to have an abridged version of the US Constitution placed on the back of one-dollar bills.

Mrs. Web, dressed in the sort of two-piece pants outfit common to many veteran teachers of a certain era, and fortified with a glass of “ginger ale” that looked suspiciously like brown liquor shared her decades of wit and wisdom.

Among them: it’s important to develop a strong vocabulary and have written goals; a quote from Mark Twain – “The two most important days in your life are the day you’re born and the day you find out why.” There were many anecdotes, but one of the most memorable was the story of a young student names Averett whose presentation led to changing the name of the school, which had originally been named for the Vice President of the Confederate States of America, Alexander Stephens, to Tranquility Middle School.

Like the playwright, I, too, am a veteran of thirty or more years of teaching in public schools, and I can attest to the authenticity of these stories. Teacher, Teach would make any teacher or former teacher laugh, cry, nod one’s head in agreement, and reminisce. Every anecdote, every word rings true, and Jackie Goldberg Jones is the perfect vehicle to deliver this treasure.

P.S. – I hope HATTheatre brings this one back – with plenty of advanced notice – so more theatergoers and teachers and former teachers and people who ever had a teacher can get a chance to see this.

———-

TEACHER, TEACH

Written by Randy Wright

Directed by Frank Foster

Cast

Jacqueline Jones as Mrs. Web

Introduction by Randy Wright

Creative Design Team

Direction by Frank Foster

Stage Management & Lighting by Scott Bryan

Costuming by Jacqueline Jones

House Management by Vickie L. Scallion

Dates

June 20 & 27 at 7:30PM

June 22 & 29 at 2:00PM

Ticket Information

Ticket Prices: $30 General Admission. $25 Seniors/Students/Military. $20 Youth up to 17

Info: 804-343-6364 or https://hattheatre.org

Setting:

Tranquility Middle School Auditorium, directly after school, the present day

Run Time

Approximately 80 minutes with no intermission

Photo Credits: N/A

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SMOKE

A Comedy of Horrors

A Theater Reflection by Julinda D Lewis

Presented by: Cadence Theatre

At: Firehouse Theatre, 1609 W Broad St., RVA 23220

Performances: May 22 – June 7, 2025

Ticket Prices: $35-$40

Info: (804) 233-4894 or (804) 355-2001 or firehousetheatre.org

It isn’t often that the first thing I want to talk about when I see a new show is the set, but the set of Smoke, produced by Cadence Theatre at the Firehouse Theatre, is a whole vibe.

Joseph Levigne’s multi-level design reminded me of a beach house where I spent a recent retreat. The lower level had a patio table and chairs, a pile of luggage, and a firepit. Next was a living room and kitchen alcove, and above that a bedroom on the audience’s left. The detail and elegance set us up to make the subsequent actions all the more dissonant.

It is here, in this stylish and affluent setting, that a family gathers for a wedding. Young women who tote huge Stanley cups – and sometimes unexplained bruises – and young men who sip beers and hone their survivalist skills in preparation for the apocalypse exchange conspiracy theories with their parents who hover over the latest in-home barista machine. It all feels like a set-up, but for what? Director Anna Senechal Johnson cleverly sets the tone and guides both cast and audience along a dark path strewn with unseen dangers – not that we cannot see them, we just don’t want to see them.

The playwright writes, “I wrote SMOKE several years ago at a time when I was becoming more and more alarmed by the divisions in our country.” Concerned by the dichotomies of our nation – poverty, infectious disease, war, and climate change – she summed it up with a simple sentence: Someone is making money as the world burns. Most ignore the warning signs of the burning, but where there is smoke, the saying goes, there is fire; hence, the title of the play.

By Act 2, things have visibly deteriorated. Mindy, the bride’s mother (Debra Wagoner) gives a deranged toast fueled by a mash-up of conspiracy theories. Mark (Brian K. Landis), who is married to the bride’s aunt Alice (Laine Satterfield) expresses hopefulness, but Chase (Adam Turck), the survivalist groomsman counters with a hate-filled response that makes Mindy’s theories seem mild in comparison. Mark quotes Woody Allen – “the heart wants what it wants,” – while Alice concludes that “instead of a wedding, we just had an Instagram post.”

What is the truth? “Beliefs we used to take for granted … are now shifting,” Graham said in a “Datebook” preview I wrote for Richmond Magazine. “Although we are looking at the same things, we don’t seem to see the same world in front of us.” (https://richmondmagazine.com/arts-entertainment/richmond-events/smoke-cadence-firehouse-theatre/) What was true when the author wrote the first draft of Smoke in 2022 is even more true in 2025.

Described as a dark comedy, “a comedy of horrors,” Smoke tunes into the times with raw and uncanny accuracy. This is not a fee-good comedy, but a laugh so as not to cry – or scream – comedy. Laine Satterfield and Brian K. Landis play Alice and Mark, the New York couple who drive to a rented mansion for a family wedding. They get lost along the way and discover new things about themselves after they arrive. Debra Wagoner plays the bride’s mother, Mindy, and Alice’s estranged sister – a soft-spoken woman whose conspiracy-laden rants are all the more vicious given her otherwise gentle demeanor and status as family matriarch.

Kendall Walker and Maggie Horan play the young bride, Kelsey, and her friend Joleen who go through life sheltered behind a lens of oblivion and privilege – even as Joleen appears to accept her fate as a partner in an abusive relationship. Adam Turck plays the groomsman, Chase – the very definition of a troll, the kind of person many of us find it hard to take at all, much less take seriously, but for his ability, his right, his eagerness to (a) always be right while (b) owning a gun.

Chase and Joleen are a couple, but even as supporting characters, they outside the bride and groom. John Mincks as Rick and Maggie Horan as Kelsey are almost superfluous characters in this story. Alice and Mark are the protagonists, but the surprise is held until the very end. Gordon Bass plays the groom’s father, Dave, a seemingly innocuous character who, in the end, holds all the cards…This is a stellar cast for a uniquely disturbing play. Writing about it just doesn’t do it justice.

—–

SMOKE

Written by Enid Graham

Directed by Anna Senechal Johnson

CAST

Alice ….. Laine Satterfield

Mark ….. Brian K. Landis

Mindy ….. Debra Wagoner

Dave ….. Gordon Bass

Joleen ….. Kendall Walker

Kelsey ….. Maggie Horan

Rick ….. John Mincks

Chase ….. Adam Turck

PRODUCTION TEAM & CREW

Director ….. Anna Senechal Johnson

Production Stage Manager Isabel Stone

Assistant Stage Manager Elise Bailey

Scenic Designer ….. Joseph Lavigne

Scenic Painter ….. Emily Hake Massie

Costume Designer ….. Sarah Grady

Lighting Designer ….. Jake Mitchell

Sound Designer ….. Justice Craig

Sound Associate ….. Julie Vo

Intimacy Coordinator Stephanie Tippi Hart

Fight Choreographer ….. Aaron Orensky

Properties Designer ….. Anna Senechal Johnson

Set Decorator ….. Michael Maddix

Production Manager ….. Todd LaBelle

Technical Directors ….. Todd LaBelle, Emily Vial

Assistant Directors ….. Terra Comer, Adam Valentine, Alana Wiljanen

Running Crew ….. Terra Comer, Elise Bailey

Board Operator ….. Isabel Stone, Justice Craig

Photography ….. Jason Collins Photography

Performance Schedule:

12 performances, May 22 – June 7, 7:30PM

Run Time: about 2 hours with one 15-minute intermission

Adam Turck, Kendall Walker, Gordon Bass, Maggie Horan, John Mincks, Debra Wagoner, Laine Satterfield, Brian K. Landis.

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HONKY TONK HISSY FIT

Another Doublewide Texas Comedy

A Theater Review by Julinda D. Lewis

Presented by CAT – Chamberlayne Actor’s Theatre

At: The Bradley Theatre at Hanover Tavern, 13181 Hanover Courthouse Rd., Route 301, Hanover, VA 23069

Performances: June 6-22, 2025

Ticket Prices: $34.00 General Admission. $30.00 Seniors 60+

Info: (804) 362-2950 or www.cattheatre.com

Honky Tonk Hissy Fit is the third in the trilogy of Doublewide comedies written by Jessie Jones, Nicholas Hope, and Jamie Wooten. Published in 2021, HHSF as supposed to have its world premiere at CAT, but COVID happened. The play had its world premiere April 30, 2021 at the Lake Country Playhouse in Mineola, TX, but the published book carries the following dedication:

HONKY TONK HISSY FIT was originally scheduled to receive

its world premiere at Chamberlayne Actors Theatre, Richmond,

Virginia, on September 18, 2020. Due to the Covid-19 Pandemic,

the premiere had to be cancelled. We dedicate this play to Kelly

St. Clair and all the members of CAT Theatre who tirelessly sought

to find a way to produce this comedy.

The earlier parts of the trilogy have been presented in Richmond and you can find my reviews of Doublewide, Texas performed by CAT Theatre in June 2018 (https://jdldancesrva.com/2018/06/05/doublewide-texas-a-hoot-n-a-hollar/) , followed by A Doublewide, Texas Christmas in November-December 2018 (https://jdldancesrva.com/2018/06/05/doublewide-texas-a-hoot-n-a-hollar/) both at CAT’s former Wilkinson Rd. location.

In the first part of the trilogy, the tiny town of Doublewide is threatened with annexation by the nearby town of Tugaloo. The Christmas show found the little town – population 10 – facing complications as they awaited their incorporation papers. Having survived all of that – plus COVID – Honky Tonk Hissy Fit now finds the town has grown from 4 trailers and a shed to 17 doublewide mobile homes and proudly hosts a weekend farmer’s market. Just when things are looking up, here comes another attack, this time from a corporation in Austin that wants to buy them out and turn the whole town into an immersive experience for tourists. Once it becomes known that the plan would force everyone to relocate, the fight is on, led, once again, by Mayor Joveeta Crumpler, played, for the third time, by Crystal Oakley.

Also returning are Laura McFarland-Bukalski as Big Ether Satterwhite, director of the local senior residence, Stairway to Heaven Retirement Center, Lisa Piper as Georgia Dean Rudd, and Wally Jones as Haywood Sloggett.

The southern-styled comedy is not short of laughs, from “Baby” Crumpler’s dance moves to Haywood Sloggett’s pursuit of the local celebrity and town matriarch Caprice Crumpler. Georgia Dean is still in charge of the local diner, Mayor Joveeta Crumpler maintains her position as the town’s solo voice of reason, and free-spirit Larken Barken trades in her fresh pressed juices for a caffeine kick.

Crystal Oakley owns her character of Joveeta with a deliciously southern genteel passion, while Rebekah Spence plays up the larger-than-life character of Joveeta’s mother, Caprice. Harper Channing, making her CAT debut as the villainous Stacy Parker, introduced a precarious balance between “bless-your-heart” and heartless businesswoman clawing her way to a promotion.

While Honky Tonk Hissy Fit is a stand-alone play, knowing the background of the previous Doublewide shows provides helpful information and sets up ground level expectations. There were, indeed, laughs aplenty, but…

Overall, Honky Tonk Hissy Fit fell a bit flat. The set looked tired, worn-out, drab. The laughs were genuine, but the delivery seemed at times to be lackluster. The pacing wasn’t too slow, but the delivery sometimes felt…forced? I’m not saying I didn’t have a good time, but I don’t believe CAT pulled out the good company dishes for this one.

———-

HONKY TONK HISSY FIT:

A Doublewide Texas Comedy

Written by Jones Hope Wooten

Directed by Mike Fletcher

Cast

Big Ethel Satterwhite ….. Laura McFarland-Bukalski

Georgia Dean Rud ….. Lisa Piper

Nash Sloggett ….. Michael Edward McClain

Larken Barken ….. Payton Vernier

Caprice Crumpler ….. Rebekah Spence

Haywood Sloggett ….. Wally Jones

Joveeta Inez Crumpler ….. Crystal Oakley

Norwayne “Baby” Crumpler ….. Chris Yarbrough

Harper Channing ….. Stacy Parker

Creative Design Team & Crew

Producer – Crystal Oakley

Hanover Tavern Executive Director – David Deal

Lighting Design – TJ Washington

Scenic Design – Scott Bergman

Costume Design – Alison Eichler

Sound Design – CC Corrieri

Properties Design – Sandi Bergman

Lights and Sound Operator – CC Corrieri

Publicity – Jason Lucas

Photography – Daryll Morgan Studios

Set Construction – Charles ax, Sandi Bergman Kerrigan Sullivan, Scott Bergman, Crystal Oakley, CC Corrieri

Setting

Doublewide, Texas. The present. The play takes place over 8 days in late spring.

Run Time

Approximately 2 hours, including one 15-minute intermission

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CYRANO de BERGERAC

Love, Honor, Self-Sacrifice

A Theater Review by Julinda D. Lewis

Presented by: Richmond Shakespeare

Performances: May 29 – June 8, 2025

At: Agecroft Hall, 4305 Sulgrave Rd., RVA 23221

Ticket Prices: $22-$47 [Adults $47; Seniors 65+ with ID $42; Military with ID $; 32; College Students with ID $27 & Children 18 and under $22] Seating is General Admission.

Info: (804) 340-0115 or http://www.richmondshakespeare.org

Well, it’s springtime in Richmond and time for the 26^th Annual Richmond Shakespeare Festival at Agecroft Hall. In his program notes, director Andrew Gall writes that the first play he saw, at the age of ten, was Cyrano de Bergerac. Now, decades later, he has the pleasure of directing this work, one that he feels is still “alive, urgent, and immediate” the Richmond Shakespeare Festival. I think the opening night audience was as delighted as Gall at this happy circumstance. Most of us are probably at least somewhat familiar with the character or the story of Cyrano de Bergerac, even if we have not seen it on stage or on film.

To fight, or to write…

Who has not heard of the gallant poet with the large nose? His love for the beautiful and intelligent Roxanne, or his self-less sacrifice of his own feelings to ensure that she gets to marry Christian, the handsome young cadet she loves – unaware that the beautiful love letters she has been receiving were really written by her cousin Cyrano.

One hundred men against one…

So, sitting in the courtyard of Agecroft Hall on a cool spring night, I had the pleasure of experiencing the perfect pleasure of romance, gallantry, dueling, and poetry. Written by French playwright Edmond Rostand in 1897 and loosely based on the life of a 17^th century novelist and playwright of the same name, Cyrano de Bergerac is fittingly written in rhyming couplets. And there are so many lines! (Act One alone runs, if I’m not mistaken, more than an hour and a half.)

Do you remember the night when Christian courted you under the balcony?

I was below, hidden among the shadows while he climbed up to claim the kiss of triumph.

This production boasts a great cast, led by James Murphy in the lead role. Murphy gallantly charges into battle, armed with words and a sword (oooh, did you notice the anagram, there). I adored his “No, thank you” speech and his final scene made my eyes leak.

A nose that arrives a quarter of an hour before its master…

Another favorite was Cole Metz in the role of Rageneau, a poetry-loving pastry chef who assumes many roles, often in service to his friend Cyrano. Blissfully unaware that he is being cuckolded, Rageneau is kind, generous, and has a seemingly never empty cupboard, even showing up unannounced on the battlefield with life-saving sustenance for the troops – and Roxanne, in disguise.

I have loved but once – one man – and I must lose him twice.

Kaitlin Paige Longoria (who is also the Artistic Director of 5^th Wall Theatre) was well-cast as Roxanne, the not only beautiful but surprisingly independent love interest of not only Cyrano and Christian, but of the lecherous DeGuiche as well. Roxanne’s confidence is part of the reason this play still seems relevant.

Special mention is due to Foster Solomon who was called on with about two-days’ notice to take on the villainous role of DeGuiche. On opening night Solomon was still using notes, but I expect this to be short-lived. At any rate, this did nothing to slow down or detract from the non-stop fun of the opening night performance.

Erich Appleby, most recently seen on local stages in Water By the Spoonful (https://jdldancesrva.com/2024/11/10/water-by-the-spoonful/) and Sanctuary City (https://jdldancesrva.com/2025/03/09/sanctuary-city/) played the role of the handsome, if somewhat slow, Christian while John Cauthen and Joel White held down important supporting roles as Cyrano’s discerning and loyal friend LeBret and Christian’s heavy-drinking friend Ligniére, respectively.

Claire Wittman, no stranger to Richmond Shakespeare productions, played multiple supporting roles as Rageneau’s unfaithful wife Lise, Roxanne’s Duenna, and Sister Margaret in the convent where Roxanne spends the years after the death of beloved.

Cyrano de Bergerac is a fast-paced, adventurous, romantic, intellectual play. There’s something for everyone.

And maybe, just maybe, one of the reasons we still love Cyrano de Bergerac is because we long for more of the patience, perseverance, and principles displayed by both Cyrano and Roxanne. In the end, love wins.

That was you…you always loved me!…

—–

CYRANO de BERGERAC

Written by Edmond Rostand, Adapted by Andrew Gall

Directed by Andrew Gall

CAST

Cyrano de Bergerac ….. James Murphy

Roxanne ….. Kaitlin Paige Longoria

Christian ….. Erich Appleby

DeGuiche ….. Foster Solomon

Raganeau ….. Cole Metz

LeBret ….. John Cauthen

Lise/Duenna/Sister Margaret ….. Claire Wittman

Ligniére ….. Joel White

Montefleury ….. Elliot Duffy

Carbon Castel-Jaloux ….. Neal Gallini-Burdick

Valvert ….. Travis Williams

Ensemble ….. Thomas Kaupish

Ensemble ….. Jack Harris

Ensemble ….. Ayden Phouthakhanty

Ensemble ….. Sydney Wright

PRODUCTION TEAM

Artistic Director …………… James Ricks

Managing Director …………… Jase Smith Sullivan

Director …………… Andrew Gall

Production Manager …………… Nata Moriconi

Production Stage Manager ……..MariaElisa Costa

Assistant Stage Manager ………..Kai Eley

Assistant Stage Manager/Props Design ….. Jordan Dively

Costume Design …………… Maggie Ronck

Lighting Design …………… Trisan Ketcham

Fight/Intimacy Director ………. Aaron Orenski

Set Builder …………… Sonny Flemming

Run Time: About 3 hours; there is one intermission

Photo Credits: Richmond Shakespeare Facebook page

Ayden Phouthakhanty with Cole Metz (Rageneau)

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CRY IT OUT

…A Method for Training New Moms…

Produced By: Yes, And! Theatrical Company in partnership with Virginia Repertory Theatre

At: Theatre Gym at VaRep, 114 West Broad Street, RVA 23220

Performances: May 15-31, 2025

Ticket Prices: $40 general admission

Info: Email: yesandrva@gmail.com; Website: yesandrva.org; Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/yesandrva/

A Theater Review by Julinda D. Lewis

Some definitions you might need to know before seeing Cry It Out:

Cry It Out (CIO): a sleep training technique that involves putting babies in their cribs and leaving them to cry or self-soothe and fall asleep without parental intervention

NoseFrida®: a nasal aspirator or “snot sucker” for babies who do not yet know how to blow their noses

Some plays are just more relatable than others. I’m not sure how this play hits if you’re not a mother (feel free to comment!), but Molly Smith Metzler’s take on motherhood, Cry It Out (2017) is empathetic, relevant, authentic, and hilarious. Just as we warm up to the growing friendship between Jessie (Lindsey Zelli) and Lina (Emily Berry), the playwright throws in not one, not two, but three new plot-changing dynamics.

Both new moms, Jessie is a corporate lawyer married to an unseen spouse who still works in New York City and commutes to their Port Washington, Long Island home. Jessie’s in-laws are “old money” residents and have already pre-paid for their infant granddaughter’s first year at an exclusive daycare. Lina is a hospital receptionist from Long Beach on the South Shore (more urban, more “new money,” more Jersey Shore-ish, if you will) with a somewhat shady past. She, her son, and her partner are living with his mother who has a worrisome habit of disposing of her empty wine boxes in a public dumpster. Jessie is empathetic, a problem solver. Lina is brash, funny. Both are loving mothers and quickly bond, in spite of their differences, over daily coffee meetings while their babies nap.

But discussions of isolation, how to get their babies to sleep, and things like nasal aspirators move to the back seat as the weeks go by and the subject of returning to work becomes increasingly pressing. The economic necessity of mothers returning to work takes on a different, but no less significant, role depending on one’s socio-economic status: where to live; how to pay the bills; career choices and milestones; and childcare.

One day Mitchell (Axle Burtness), a neighbor, whose house overlooks Jessie’s backyard from up on a hilltop disrupts the delicate ecosystem Jessie and Lina have established. Mitchell has seen (spied upon?) the women’s cozy coffee klatches and, feeling concerned about his wife’s adjustment to motherhood, wants his wife Adrienne (played by understudy Erica Hughes on the night I attended) to join them.

The initial meeting is a disaster, and Adrienne subsequently presents an entirely different perspective on new motherhood, work, and society’s perceptions and expectations in general. The ending is quite surprising and reinforces the all-important lesson that motherhood, and families, do not conform to a one-size-fits-all archetype.

Lucretia Marie has directed Cry It Out with sensitivity and an unhurried pacing that assures each of these mothers is heard. Zelli imbues her character with warmth and wisdom even as Jessie herself struggles to navigate these unfamiliar waters. Berry perfectly balances Zelli, with Lina’s heavy eyeliner, thicker accent, and even more colorful language. Hughes brought the tension and surprise, and while Burtness’s character was a caring and loving father, Mitchell was the most emotional of the four parents present – sometimes to the point of being overwhelming.

Nothing much actually happens in Cry It Out. The whole play takes place in Jessie’s sparsely furnished backyard – there’s just a toddler’s playset and table and chair, and later a small patio table with three chairs. (Hm, three chairs, I thought – but there’s only two of them, so…) It’s a play that relies heavily on what’s said, and how it’s said, and who says it. Who but Lina could so convincingly tell a story about going to the door to meet the FedEx delivery man, forgetting to tuck in her breast because she was in the middle of breastfeeding. This reliance on simple, authentic dialogue, I think, places an even greater burden on the actors, who can’t hide behind a pratfall or a prop. Cry It Out makes us think about things that affect most of us, but that we may not often talk about in an open forum. Cry It Out is timely, real, and impactful.

———-

CRY IT OUT

Written by Molly Smith Metzler

Directed by Lucretia Marie

Cast

Jessie ….. Lindsey Zelli

Lina ….. Emily Berry

Mitchell ….. Axle Burtness

Adrienne ….. Sara Dabney Tisdale

Understudy Cast

Jessie ….. Tensley Nesbitt

Lina ….. Brittany Martz

Mitchell ….. Sarbajeet Das

Adrienne ….. Erica Hughes

Production Team

Scenic Design – Dasia Gregg

Costume Design – Erik Mayes

Lighting Design – Kacey Yachuw

Sound Design – John Pratt

Properties Design – Cai Hayner

Dialect Coach – Erica Hughes

Fight Choreography – Axle Burtness

Production Stage Manager & PSM – Crimson Piazza

Assistant Stage Manager – Marcely Villatoro

Technical Director – Ben Burke

YES, AND! THEATRICAL COMPANY

Artistic Director – Maggie Roop

Executive Director – Matt Shofner

Performance Schedule

Thursday, May 15, 2025 7:30PM Opening Night

Friday, May 16, 2025 7:30 PM

Saturday, May 17, 2025 7:30PM

Friday, May 18, 2025 7:30PM

Saturday, May 19, 2025 7:30PM

Sunday, May 20, 2025 2:00PM Pay What You Can*

Tuesday, May 21, 2025 7:30PM

Thursday, May 22, 2025 7:30PM

Friday, May 23, 2025 7:30PM

Saturday, May 24, 2025 2:00PM

Saturday, May 24, 2025 7:30PM

Sunday, May 25, 2025 2:00PM Pay What You Can*

Tuesday, May 27, 2025 7:30PM Industry Night/Pay What You Can*

Thursday, May 29, 2025 7:30PM Understudy Night

Friday, May 30, 2025 7:30PM

Saturday, May 31, 2025 2:00PM

Saturday, May 31, 2024 7:30PM Closing Performance

World Premiere: 2017 Humana Festival of New American Plays at Actors Theatre of Louisville.

Tickets

Ticket Prices: $40 general admission; $20 Rush Rickets at the Box Office one hour prior to all performances

*Pay What You Can: $5 suggested minimum at the door; $10 minimum in advance

Run Time

Approximately 1 hour, 40 minutes with one 15-minute intermission

Photos from the Yes, And! Theatrical Co., Facebook page

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