LGBTQIL – RVArt Review

DR. RIDE’S AMERICAN BEACH HOUSE

DR. RIDE’S AMERICAN BEACH HOUSE*

“If one of us is brilliant, maybe it’s not you,” or

Four Queer Women Lift-off on the Eve of Sally Ride’s Historic First Space Flight

A Theater Review by Julinda D. Lewis

By: Yes, And! Theatrical Company

At: The Firehouse 1609 West Broad St., Richmond, RVA 23220

Performances: March 7-23, 2024

Ticket Prices: $37 general admission

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

When I say that Liza Birkenmeier’s 4-character, one-act play, DR. RIDE’S AMERICAN BEACH HOUSE is weird, please understand that is an observation, not a judgment. There is a reason why the Yes, And! Theatrical Company – now in its second year of production –- chose this play. I suspect it has something to do with exploration (inner, and self, more than space) and identity (woman as subject, not object, as well as gender and sexuality), and history (personal history as well as the history of Dr. Sally Ride and the American space program).

Set on a rooftop in St. Louis in June 1983, on the eve of the launch of the Challenger space shuttle that carried Dr. Sally Ride, the first American woman to go into space, DR. RIDE’S AMERICAN BEACH HOUSE is both non-linear and non-conforming. Two long-time friends, both poetry majors who have apparently simultaneously run into a writing block, come to the rooftop for the weekly meeting of The Two Serious Ladies Book Club. The club is named for a novel by Jane Bowles in which two women explore – depending in which review you read – “living outside themselves” or descend in debauchery. After forming the book club, however, our leading ladies, Harriet (Ashley Thompson) and Matilda (Rachel Marrs) realize they don’t really like to read, so they spend the time drinking beer and talking.

One day, their complacent little world is shaken up when (a) Harriet shares a harrowing tale of a sexual encounter with a stranger – a bearded biker, no less – and (b) Matilda invites a new friend, Meg (Kasey Britt) whose insight sheds new light on the friends’ sexual tension and life in general, and (c) their lives are all shifted by the imminent space launch that is the main topic on their rooftop radio.

Harriet is high strung and annoying, but about two thirds of the way through we find out she has good reason to be, and in spite of her irksome character, we cannot tear ourselves away from the story she weaves throughout. Perhaps Harriet’s calling was not for poetry, but for fiction or drama…Matilda, who has a husband and a sick child at home, would rather spend her time with Harriet, and is given to bursting out in song – revealing that Rachel Marrs has a stunningly beautiful singing voice and can even attempt a decent Irish step or two.

Most intriguing, however, is Meg. Back stories and character development are not a main point of DR. RIDE’S AMERICAN BEACH HOUSE, so we know that Meg works at a hospital across the street from where Harriet and Norma live, and may – or may not –- be a nurse. She does, however, provide some music therapy for Harriet in the midst of her breakdown, which leads to one of this play’s most delightful moments.

The fourth character is Norma (Jacqueline Jones) – who is either Harriet’s landlady or neighbor. At any rate, it seems that Norma is the caretaker of the Ivan Brock House, named for fictional poet and the house where Harriet lives. Norma is concerned with three things: safety, money, and Harriet’s leaky air conditioning unit. Jones’ two or three appearances are all too brief, as Norma, who seems to be on the far right of some spectrum or another, shares complaints and almost incidentally drops pearls of wisdom and insight on the younger women.

DR. RIDE’S AMERICAN BEACH HOUSE is directed by Kelsey Cordrey with a light touch, a good dose of wit, and a loving respect for words. Cordrey and the cast make us see or at least ponder connections between barbecue and beer, a beach house and a rooftop, an astronaut launching into space and an ordinary person (is there such a thing?) exploring the unexplored landscape of their life. It’s only about 90 minutes long, and the first few minutes are rather slow going, but about midway through – and even more so afterwards – it becomes clear that there is more to explore here than at first meets the eye.

Cordrey explains at least part of the “why” in her director’s note: “Pretty much every queer person I know has felt the urge to “go away” before. To escape to a place, whether literal or figurative, what would be more. More accepting, more fulfilling, more exciting, or more loving”.

Adam Dorland has designed a simple but effective rooftop setting with a couple of chairs, some stacked crates that serve as a table, an HVAC unit, and lots of brick wall constructed at an angle that juts slightly off the edge of the stage. Candace Hudert’s sound design is mostly subtle, and makes use of the ubiquitous 1980s boom box and cassette tapes – remember those???

If you like your theater to have a clear beginning, middle and end, and to tie up all the loose ends with a happy ending, DR. RIDE’S AMERICAN BEACH HOUSE won’t fulfill those needs. If you like theater that asks questions and challenges you to think about why things are the way they are, then this is your kind of play. And if you’re undecided, or not sure, I would urge you to give it a try and discuss it after – maybe with three friends, over a bottle of wine or some beers.

FUN FACTS ABOUT DR. SALLY RIDE

Sally Kristen Ride (1951-2012) was a physicist and the first female American astronaut
Sally Ride was married to Steven Hawley (1982-1987) and had a long-term partner, Tam O’Shaughnessy (1985-2012)
Dr. Ride did not publicly reveal her sexuality until her death, in a carefully worded obituary she wrote before she died
In 1972, while an undergraduate at Stanford University, Sally Ride played tennis great Billy Jean King in a mixed doubles exhibition
One morning, at breakfast, in 1977, while she was a doctoral student at Stanford University, Sally Ride read an article in the student newspaper that NASA was opening up applications to women for the first time, so she applied
Dr. Ride’s younger sister, Bear, is a Presbyterian minister – she is also queer
Sally Ride was a Trekkie
Sally Ride and her partner Tam O’Shaughnessy co-authored several science books for children
In 2013 Sally Ride was posthumously awarded the nation’s highest honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom; President Barack Obama presented the award to Tam O’Shaughnessy Source: https://today.ucsd.edu/story/20-things-you-might-not-know-about-sally-ride

*ONE FINAL FUN FACT

The Astronaut Beach House is a two-story building located in Cape Canaveral, FL use to house astronauts prior to their launch. The house is also used as a conference center, and hosts barbecues for astronauts and their families prior to a launch

———-

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.

———-

DR. RIDE’S AMERICAN BEACH HOUSE

Written by Liza Birkenmeier

Directed by Kelsey Cordrey

Principal Cast

Ashley Thompson as Harriet

Rachel Marrs as Matilda

Kasey Britt as Meg

Jacqueline Jones as Norma

Understudy Cast

Juliette Aaslestad u/s for Harriet

Amber James u/s for Matilda

Davis Erney u/s for Meg

Nicole Morris-Anastasi us for Norma

Production Team

Scenic Design – Adam Dorland

Costume Design – Amber Martinez

Lighting Design – Steve Koehler

Sound Design – Candace Hudert

Properties Design – Margaret Dodson-Cordrey

Intimacy Direction – Tippi Hart

Production Manager – Todd LaBelle

Production Stage Manager – Crimson Piazza

Asst. State Manager – Marcely Villatoro

YES, AND! THEATRICAL COMPANY

in residence with NEW THEATRE at FIREHOUSE

Artistic Director – Maggie Roop

Managing Director – Nicole Morris-Anastasi

Executive Director – Matt Shofner

Dr. Ride’s American Beach House

Commissioned and Developed by Ars Nova

Jason Eagan, Founding Artistic Director | Renee Blinkwolt, Managing Director

World Premiere produced by Ars Nova, New York City, October 21, 2019

Performance Schedule

Thursday, March 7, 2024 7:30PM Preview

Friday, March 8, 2024 7:30PM Opening Night

Saturday, March 9, 2024 7:30PM

Tuesday, March 12,2024 7:30PM Industry Night

Thursday, March 14, 2024 7:30PM Understudy Performance

Friday, March 15, 2024 7:30PM

Saturday, March 16, 2024 7:30PM

Sunday, March 17, 2024 2:00PM

Tuesday, March 19, 2024 7:30PM Industry Night

Friday, March 22, 2024 7:30PM

Saturday, March 23, 2024 7:30PM Closing Night

Tickets

Ticket Prices: $35 general admission

Run Time

1 hour 36 minutes with no intermission

Notes

Please be aware that an herbal cigarette will be smoked for a brief moment onstage

Photos by Tom Topinka

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SATCHMO AT THE WALDORF

“I Smile for the People ‘Cause I Like to See Them Smiling Back”

and I Think to Myself, What a Wonderful World*

A Theater Review by Julinda D. Lewis

By: Virginia Repertory Theatre (Virginia Rep)

At: The Sara Belle and Neil November Theatre | Marjorie Arenstein Stage

When: March 1 – April 7, 2024

Ticket Prices: $39-$59.

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

I see trees of green
Red roses too
I see them bloom
For me and you
And I think to myself
What a wonderful world

American trumpeter, vocalist, and jazz innovator Louis Armstrong died in New York City, July 6, 1971 at age 69 of a heart attack. Terry Teachout’s one-man play, SATCHMO AT THE WALDORF (2012),is a work of historical fiction set in a comfortably appointed dressing room at the Waldorf Astoria’s Empire Room a few months before Armstrong’s death. The VaRep production features Jerold E. Solomon, who catches us off-guard in the first 30 seconds of the play by (a) stumbling into the dressing room and heading straight for an oxygen tank, (b) speaking in an amazingly accurate approximation of Armstrong’s gravelly voice, and (c) immediately announcing, “I shit my pants.”

Although it is a work of fiction, SATCHMO AT THE WALDORF has so much historical truth that it is an educational experience. We learn of Armstrong’s four wives and how he finally got it right with his fourth wife, Lucille – the first dark-skinned Black woman hired by Harlem’s Cotton Club. We share the outrage when he talks about traveling in the south during the era of Jim Crow segregation when even internationally known starts like Armstrong could not stay in a hotel or eat in a restaurant. We hear about Armstrong’s long-tern symbiotic relationship with his manager, Joe Glaser, and the heartache the followed when all Glaser left him on his death – his best friend and client/business partner – was a “tip.” There was a time spent working for the notorious crime boss Al Capone. He had beef with jazz trumpeter and bandleader Dizzie Gillespie and unpleasant rivalry with the influential jazz trumpeter and bandleader Miles Davis, who called him an Uncle Tom. We learn of Armstrong’s wide-ranging and eclectic interest in multiple music genres, including classical, opera, and country.

I see skies of blue
And clouds of white
The bright blessed day
The dark sacred night
And I think to myself
What a wonderful world

Solomon arrives onstage carrying a trumpet, which he immediately places in its case. He does not attempt to play or portray trumpet playing, nor does he sing, although he does toss off a little scatting. Solomon’s depiction of Armstrong’s voice is unwavering and I kept wondering if it was painful. But wait, that’s not all. When portraying Glaser, Solomon seamlessly shifts to a stereotypical New York Jewish accent without missing a beat. The portrayals of the outspoken Davis are less outstanding – although I think the reason lies less with Solomon than with the script. For someone known to be so outspoken and independent, Davis is written as a flat, uni-dimensional.

The colors of the rainbow
So pretty in the sky
Are also on the faces
Of people going by
I see friends shaking hands
Saying, “How do you do?”
They’re really saying
I love you

Mercedes Schaum’s set is sturdy and well appointed with a makeup area, a lounge area, two carpets, a wardrobe, an offstage bathroom and all the amenities one would expect from an exclusive venue located in a five-star hotel. Joe Doran’s lighting is mostly non-descript, but occasionally reaches for some noteworthy effects. I was surprised by the short audience on a Saturday night, the second night of the run. I’m not sure if this was due to a lack of interest in the subject matter or to the political activity occurring in the nearby downtown area, or to the 7PM curtain, or the fact that this play is a one-hander (rare for a VaRep mainstage production), or a combination of factors. Granted, Louis Armstrong may not be everyone’s cup of tea, and – as I found out shortly after the show – not everyone knows that Satchmo, a contraction of Satchel Mouth, was one Armstrong’s nicknames.

I hear babies cry
I watch them grow
They’ll learn much more
Than I’ll ever know
And I think to myself
What a wonderful world
Yes, I think to myself
What a wonderful world
Ooh, yes

I, for one, thoroughly enjoyed Solomon’s performance and the impromptu history lesson of Satchmo at the Waldorf – it appealed to my artsy side and my nerdy side. What a wonderful combination.

———-

Julinda D. Lewis is a dancer, teacher, and writer who recently had both knees replaced due to a manufacturer’s recall. Born in Brooklyn, NY, she now lives in Eastern Henrico County where she can be found kicking up her heels as best she can any day of the week.

———-

SATCHMO AT THE WALDORF

Written by Terry Teachout

Directed by Rick Hammerly

Cast

Louis Armstrong/Joe Glaser/Miles Davis ………. Jerold E. Solomon

u/s Louis Armstrong/Joe Glaser/Miles Davis ………. David Watkins

Direction & Design

Direction …………………………. Rick Hammerly

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

Costume Design ………………… Sue Griffin

Lighting Design …………..……… Joe Doran

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

Stage Management ………….….. Donna Warfield

Ticket Information

Box Office: (804) 282-2620

www.virginiarep.org

Tickets range from $39 – $59

Run Time

The play runs for approximately 95 minutes; there is no intermission.

Lyrics to “It’s a Wonderful World”

Source: LyricFind

Songwriters: George David Weiss & Robert Thiele

“What a Wonderful World” lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Concord Music Publishing LLC

Photo Credits: Aaron Sutten

Jerold E. Solomon. Photo by Aaron Sutten.

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TORCH SONG

Do Four Wrongs Make a Right? – OR – Is She Still Gonna Make Us Dinner?

A Theater Review by Julinda D. Lewis

At: Richmond Triangle Players at the Robert B. Moss Theatre | Carpenter Foundation Stage, 1300 Altamont Ave, RVA 23230

Performances: February 14 – March 2, 2024

Ticket Prices: $10 – $40

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

———-

I came late to the TORCH SONG party because of other obligations, but I am SO glad I made it! TORCH SONG (2018) is apparently a shortened and revised version of Harvey Fierstein’s original 1982 (pre-AIDS pandemic) production, Torch Song Trilogy – the production that earned Fierstein his first two Tony awards (Best Play and Best Actor). This version consists of three scenes in two acts (“The International Stud, June 1974,” “Fugue in a Nursery, Summer 1975,” and ”Widows and Children First, June 1980”) and runs about 75 minutes with one intermission. Whatever the version or length of the TORCH SONG, the work remains one of the prolific* writer’s most enduring works.

Torch Song:

to carry a torch for someone

to keep aflame the light of an unrequited love

TORCH SONG was groundbreaking in presenting the intersectionality of Jewish and queer identities with authenticity, avoiding both stereotypes and dumbing down the difficult conversations. The former – avoiding stereotypes – was no small feat, considering that main character Arnold Beckoff (played by Richmond Triangle Players own Artistic Director Lucian Restivo) is a habitual complainer who does not hesitate to use guilt as a weapon of choice. (I would describe him as a kvetch, but don’t want to appear to be engaging in cultural appropriation, although I did grow up in Brooklyn and there were mezuzahs on the doorposts of my grandmother’s house.) In the first scene, we see Restivo as a smart-mouthed, fast-talking, somewhat jaded drag queen who despite all her words to the contrary is really looking for love – the same type of enduring love their mother experienced during thirty-five years of marriage.

The problem is that Arnold’s love interest, Ed (played by Axle Burtness) is bi-sexual and is torn between the safety of his girlfriend/fiancée/wife Laurel (Emily Berry) and Arnold. The tension is palpable, and comes to a head in a most amazing scene in which Laurel invites Arnold and his new young beau Alan (Zach Barnard) to spend a weekend with her and Ed in their country home. Wow. Each member of this queer quartet gets to spend one-on-one time with the other three, leading to any number of revelations, confessions, scandals, and ordinary little moments that both Arnold and Laurel refer to as, “this is so civilized.”

As amazing as that first act quartet may be, the real highlight of TORCH SONG occurs in Act 2 when Arnold’s mother pays a visit. Alan has died, and Arnold had adopted a teen son, David (Liam Storm) – but Arnold has not explained any of this to Mrs. Beckoff. Things really come to a head when the mother and son face off in a shouting match, to determine whose grief is more valid. It’s heart-wrenching to hear Mrs. Beckoff, who had appeared to accept her son’s homosexuality when he first came out to her at age 13, speak disparagingly of his life and tell him she’s too old to change.

On Thursday night, understudy Sara Heifetz stood in for Debra Clinton, and Heifetz wore the shoes – and the wig – well. It was a delicate balancing act not to cross over that line into the stereotypical Jewish mother – she was there, hoovering, waiting in the wings. To some extent, the humor of the stereotype was a necessary antidote to the harsh reality of the hopelessness of their relationship. Kudos to Restivo and Heifetz for establishing that balance.

For me, the highlight of Act 2 was Arnold’s newly adopted/about to be adopted son, David (played by Liam Storm in his RTP debut). Storm’s compact stature, unruly curls, and unrestrained demeanor were refreshing and brought humor and energy to the storyline and to the physical space.

Speaking of the space, there was a most amazing set change during the intermission. The minimalist backstage area, dominated by a brick wall, was transformed into a homey two-bedroom Manhattan apartment. The credit for this goes to scenic designer Daniel Allen – and the team who made this happen in fifteen minutes each night. I’m not one who always pays attention to the lighting and sound design, but the work of Michaeal Jarett and Nicholas Seaver, respectively, were subtle but effective collaborations that contributed to the overall magic of RTP’s TORCH SONG, under the able direction of Gary C. Hopper. My one complaint would be that – at least from my otherwise ideal seat in Row E, the second row from the back at RTP’s Robert B. Moss Theatre – there were far too many times when some of the actors’ words got swallowed up or were just unintelligible.

Even given that, the semi-autobiographical story of Harvey Fierstein’s TORCH SONG has you laughing, crying, and laughing to keep from crying. If it doesn’t reflect your own experience, it surely reflects the experiences of someone you know. It’s emotional, revelatory, cathartic, and honest.

*Fierstein is also author of Kinky Boots, La Cage aux Folles, and Newsies. He performed onstage in Torch Song Trilogy, Hairspray, and Fiddler on the Roof, and on film in Mrs. Doubtfire, and Independence Day, and on television in The Good Wife and Cheers to mention just a few of his accomplishments.

———-

TORCH SONG

Written by Harvey Fierstein

Director by Gary C. Hopper

CAST

Arnold ….. Lucien Restivo

Mrs. Beckoff ….. Debra Clinton**

Ed ….. Axle Burtness

David ….. Liam Storm

Laurel ….. Emily Berry

Alan ….. Zach Bernard

**Sara Heifetz played the roll of Mrs. Beckoff the night I attended

Understudies

u/s Arnold ….. Keegan Ferrell

u/s Mrs.Beckoff… Sara Heifetz

u/s David &Alan.. Billy Heckman

u/s Laurel ….. Theresa Mantiply

Torch Song Production Team

Playwright: Harvey Fierstein

Director: Gary C. Hopper

Scenic Designer: Daniel Allen

Lighting Designer: Michael Jarett

Costume Design: William Luther

Sound Design: Nicholas Seaver

Props Design: Tim Moehring

Hair & Makeup Design: Luke Newsome

Production Stage Manager: Lauren Langston

Assistant Stage Manager: Nora Ogunleye

Intimacy Coordinator: Hannah Sikora

Dialect Coach: Erica Hughes

Dramaturg: Kendall Walker

Gender Consultant: August Hundley

Technical Director: Chris Foote

Scenic Artist: Becke Russo

Mural Artist: Liz Lundberg

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MEMORIES OF OVERDEVELOPMENT

The New Theatre at Firehouse on the Carol Piersol Stage Presents

A WORLD PREMIERE

A Theater Review by Julinda D. Lewis

At: The Firehouse 1609 West Broad St., Richmond, RVA 23220

Performances: February 7 – 25, 2024

Ticket Prices: $0-$35

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

I know I’ve said this before, but every now and again a new play comes along that is quite unlike anything I’ve ever seen before. Caridad Svich’s new play, Memories of Overdevelopment is one such play. It’s a play about a filmmaker interviewing people for a documentary. Or maybe its documentary play about a filmmaker and the people they are interviewing for a documentary. Or maybe it’s a film that plays out on a stage.

Let’s try this approach. Memories of Overdevelopment is a two-person play that can be performed by a cast of 2-8 people, and it runs from 60-90 minutes. It is also a stage play in which technology is virtually a character in its own right. Video and projections are so fully integrated into the production that the play would be unrecognizable without them.

Now, how do I tell you about the awesomeness of Memories of Overdevelopment without giving away too much? That might not be possible, so be forewarned.

As directed by New Theatre at Firehouse’s Artistic Director Nathaniel Shaw, Memories of Overdevelopment is a two-person play that runs 90 minutes without intermission. Keaton Hillman (who started as the show’s understudy and stepped in at the eleventh hour for Juliana Caycedo, due to health reasons) plays Actor 1. Katrinah Carol Lewis (who was publicly announced as the New Theatre at Firehouse’s new Associate Artistic Director just days before opening) plays Actor 2. But sometimes Lewis and Hillman switch roles. And sometimes they are “acting” as the people being interviewed for a documentary that follows the stories of people who grew up in dictatorships (underdeveloped countries?), escaped, and lived to tell the tale of how they survived.

There’s a former shop owner, a university student, a professor, a dancer, an artist, a former friend, and a fascist. Interspersed with the sometimes intense and edgy interviews are a series of “memory reels” and while the work is not interactive the audience is inevitably drawn into the mist of the proceedings by sometimes larger than life, real-time video projections of the actors – and the characters they portray – on a backdrop of panels in a workspace intended to replicate a recording studio.

Memories of Overdevelopment has a unique worldview on politics, society, tyranny, resistance, art, immigration, assimilation, fascism, globalization, and all things rebellious. Inspired by true stories, the author reveals uncanny insight and wisdom and challenges us to rethink, well, everything. “Becoming everything you believe in” may be a blessing and a curse and both things can be true at the same time.

Hillman opens the play with a brief overview, seemingly forgetting to introduce his documentarian, Lewis, who calmly sets up cameras and tests light intensities and does all the other things a filmmaker does to prepare – and the next thing you know they have switched roles. Things rapidly progress to a Level 10 out of 10 of intensity, and stays there for most of the next 85 minutes.

Nonetheless, a couple of scenes stand out. When Lewis interviews Hillman and the subject of fascism comes up, Lewis ramps up the intensity even further. What started out as a documentary interview becomes an interrogation. Hillman matches Lewis word for word, phrase for phrase. At one point Hillman blurts out, “We’re just sheep,” and offers a strident, “baaa, baaa.” And at the end, Lewis, returning to the role of the shopkeeper, exclaims, “Everyone just want to buy things,” and concludes with an eerily unhinged giggle that, more than her words, more than her expression, more than her posture, expresses who and what we have become.

There are many such poignant moments, duly captured in this dynamic collaboration between playwright, director, actor, and scenic/projection designer Tennessee Dixon. Dixon has truly outdone herself with the integration of projections and real-time video.

My first encounter with The New Theatre was with a reading of The Red Bike, also by Caridad Svich, a prolific playwright, and one that seems to have captured the heart of Shaw. After seeing Memories of Overdevelopment Svich may capture your attention as well.

———-

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.

———-

MEMORIES OF OVERDEVELOPMENT

A World Premiere by Caridad Svich

Directed by Nathaniel Shaw

February 7 – 25, 2024

CAST

ACTOR 1 ………. Keaton Hillman

ACTOR 2 ………. Katrinah Carol Lewis

PRODUCTION TEAM

Production ………. Nathaniel Shaw

Associate Direction ………. Sarbajeet Das

Scenic/Projection Design ………. Tennessee Dixon

Costume Design ………. Ruth Hedberg

Lighting Design ………. Andrew Boniwell

Sound Design/Original Music ….. Kate Statelman

Videography ………. Andrew Keeton

Stage Management ………. Grace LaBelle

Assistant Stage Management ..…. Isabel Stone

RUN TIME

90 minutes with no intermission

PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE

Previews Wednesday – Thursday, February 7 -8 at 7:30pm
Opening Night – Friday, February 9 at 7:30pm
Running Thursday – Sunday through February 25, 2024
Members Only Post-Show Mixer on Sunday, February 11 after 2:00pm show
Post-Show Talkback on Friday, February 16 after 7:30pm show
Pay-What-You-Will on Saturday, February 17 at 2:00pm
ASL Interpreted and Pay-What-You-Will Performance on Saturday, February 17 at 2:00pm
ASL Interpreted Show on Thursday, February 22 at 7:30pm
Post-Show Talkback on Friday, February 23 after 7:30pm show

TICKETS

$0-$35

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BORN WITH TEETH

Words Matter

A Theater Review of an East Coast Premiere by Julinda D. Lewis

By: Richmond Shakespeare

At: Gottwald Playhouse at Dominion Energy Center, 600 E. Grace St., Richmond, VA 23219

Performances: January 25 – February 11, 2024

Ticket Prices: $20 – $45

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

Death and life are in the power of the tongue… – Proverbs 18:21

The time is the late 1590s. The place is a private room in a London tavern. The political climate is volatile – an authoritarian regime is in charge, freedom of speech does not exist, heretics and atheists – and apparently Catholics – are tortured and killed. A plague was ravaging society – the Black Death – a pandemic that killed thousands, causing the collapse of what little social structure remained after the political purge, leaving fields unplowed, and little to eat.

There are more spies than crimes to spy out. – BWT

This is where playwright Liz Duffy Adams saw fit to open up a voyeuristic window into the world of two writers – the well-established Christopher “Kit” Marlowe (Avery Michael Johnson) and the upstart William Shakespeare (James Murphy) – as they meet in the private back room of a pub to collaborate on a series of historic plays. But this collaboration is a contentious literary partnership, rife with jealousy, political unrest, and rumors of espionage, religious persecution, and sexual tension. This collaboration is Born With Teeth.

We are subjects, not citizens. – BWT

The flexible space of the Gottwald Theatre has been transformed for this occasion. A long (perhaps 12’?) table dominates the room, slashing diagonally through the space. It is placed on a sturdy parquet floor, and surrounded by 10 leather topped rectangular stools. The audience is seated on either side of the table, close enough for the first row to be showered by scattered sheets of paper during the two playwrights’ scuffles. This awesome set was designed and constructed by W. Reed West III.

You are so much stupider than you look; how is that possible? – BWT

William Shakespeare and Christopher Marlowe did indeed collaborate on the Henry VI trilogy, Parts I, II, and III, Marlow was stabbed to death in the summer of 1593. But much of the relationship between Shakespeare and Marlowe – both their authorship and personal – is a matter of speculation and mystery. So that raises the question, how much of Born With Teeth is historical clarification, and how much is pure fantasy? And given the truths expressed and exposed of human interaction – oppression, suppression, persecution, ego, love – does the former question matter?

Worse than nowhere is somewhere you don’t want to be. – BWT

Avery Michael Johnson and James Murphy literally burst onstage, and give us a solid 90 minutes of drama, melodrama, angst, bravado, fear, backstabbing, lust, equivocation, love, revelation, caution, optimism, conciliation, espionage, and more. Born With Teeth is loud, frightening, and funny – sometimes all at once. Marlowe denigrates the upstart Shakespeare, until he reads a page or two of the play they’re working on and realizes that Shakespeare can, indeed, write. But at a time when there is not such thing as freedom of speech or religion, words can cut more sharply that a sword, and speech can be the currency of life or death.

I don’t deny God, I just don’t like him very much. – BWT

Murphy plays the role of Shakespeare with a bit of caution, much more reserved than his more outgoing and outrageous counterpart who may, in turn, be overly confident in the sovereignty of his benefactor. Johnson’s Marlowe never walks but strides. He stomps about in his tall boots – there’s a knife strapped into the right one – he leaps from the floor to the top of the table and lands on the tabletop, the floor, or Shakespeare like a cross between a pouncing panther and a WWE wrestler. Sitting in the front row, I could see each bead of sweat on Johnson’s brow and distinctly hear the intake of breath when he rapaciously sniffed Murphy. Born With Teeth is a physically demanding play, fueled by quick dialogue that is alternately witty, cutting, and always demanding. It isn’t Shakespeare, but it is the essence of Shakespeare. It isn’t classical, but it is archetypal. It isn’t orthodox, but it does all the things you want live theatre to do.

—–

BORN WITH TEETH

by Liz Duffy Adams

Directed by Andrew Gall

Cast

Kit …………… Avery Michael Johnson

Will …………… James Murphy

Production & Design Team

Artistic Director ……. James Ricks

Managing Director ……. Jase Smith Sullivan

Playwright ……. Liz Duffy Adams

Director ……. Andrew Gall

Stage Manager ……. MariaElisa Costa

Assistant Stage Manager … Kiari Hicks

Costume Design ……. Anna Bialkowski

Intimacy Choreographer … Lucinda McDermott

Lighting Design ……. Tristan Ketcham

Set Design ……. W. Reed West III

Sound Design ……. James Ricks

Run Time: About 90 minutes; no intermission

Content Disclosure: This production contains mature themes, strong language, & sexual/suggestive content.

———-

Photo Credits: Promotional Video by Eric Hackler & Photos from Richmond Shakespeare Facebook

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1088997112419759

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LONELY PLANET

LONELY PLANET

Sorry, We’re Closed

5^th Wall Theatre in Collaboration with the Firehouse Theatre

A Theater Review by Julinda D. Lewis

At: The Firehouse, 1609 West Broad St., Richmond, RVA 23220

Performances: November 10-26, 2023

Ticket Prices: $1 – $35

Info: (804) 355-2001 or firehousetheatre.org or https://www.5thwalltheatre.org/

NOTE: It’s just about impossible to talk about this play without giving away some of the best parts. If you haven’t seen it yet and wasn’t to be surprised, you might want to wait until after you’ve seen it to read this. But yes – do see it – and then comment if you like. I’d love to hear what you think. -JDL

Steven Dietz’ two-person play, Lonely Planet (1993) borrows freely from (as in pays homage to) Eugène Ionesco’s absurdist play, The Chairs (1952), but while there are elements of the absurd and quite a bit of humor in Dietz’ play, it is at heart neither absurd nor a comedy – it is a play about manifested grief.

Set in an unnamed American city during the 1980s, Lonely Planet tells the story of two friends, Jody and Carl, who are each in his own way handicapped by the AIDS epidemic that is raging outside the doors of Jody’s quiet little map store.

Jody copes by withdrawing into the safety of his store, where the distortions of the Mercator map become a metaphor for the distortions of the world around him. At one point Carl quotes some frighteningly high number of deaths among people they know. Where Jody withdraws, Carl feels compelled to do something.

One day a single chair appears in Jody’s shop. Then another and another, until his safe haven is cluttered with chairs – each representing a dead friend. Carl’s place is too small to hold these monuments. He describes his apartment as so small that he has only one chair – a silver kitchen chair with a turquoise seat. In the final scene, Jody – who has finally found the strength to venture back outside – arrives at his shop to find Carl’s chair in the center of the space.

An impossibly balanced jumble of chairs greets the audience on entering the space, and Daniel Allen’s set filled with racks of rolled maps and map tables and all things cartographic is stunning and immersive. Todd LaBelle’s sound design likewise lulls us willingly and unsuspectingly into Jody and Carl’s world – before we realize that this world’s foundation is grief, loss, and tragedy.

Eddie Webster brings a gentleness and vulnerability to Jody that is both endearing and authentic. Adam Turck infuses Carl with an intensity that at times leaves us breathless. The two characters appear to be polar opposites, and yet they are long-time friends. More than that, they each understand things about the other that they cannot share with anyone else. Add to that Carl’s propensity to lie about his true profession and Turck’s character takes on mythic proportions.

Carl’s manufactured occupations are just as metaphorical as the chairs. He says he restores paintings, but appears to know nothing about art. His art restoration represents a way to commemorate the memories of his friends. He says he works for an auto glass repair shop, but what he is really trying to repair are the shattered pieces of broken lives. He says he writes for a tabloid newspaper, but what he really wants to do is preserve the stories of his friend’s lives.

Just as the Mercator projection was designed to help improve navigation, at the expense of distorted shapes and sizes of all but the local or most immediate locations, these two friends have found ways to navigate through the deadly waters of the AIDS epidemic by distorting the world around them. It’s amazing that Turck and Webster, director Nathaniel Shaw, and the author have been able to pull this off and still maintain a sense of humor and humanity.

Along the way to its crashing conclusion the play is grounded by the mundane details of daily life: the yellow pages, a standard black desk phone, self-adhesive stamps, a cell phone (?) In the final scene, Jody – who has finally found the strength to venture back outside – arrives at his shop to find a silver legged kitchen chair with a turquoise seat in the center of the space.

Lonely Planet is a play that will linger long after the two actors take their final bows.

———-

Julinda D. Lewis is a dancer, teacher, and writer who was born in Brooklyn, NY and now lives in Eastern Henrico County.

———-

LONELY PLANET

By Steven Dietz

Directed by Nathaniel Shaw

November 10 – 26, 2023

CAST

Carl ………. Adam Turck

Jody ………. Eddie Webster

u/s ………. Alex Harris and William Vaughn

PRODUCTION TEAM

Director ………. Nathaniel Shaw

Scenic Design ………. Daniel Allen

Costume Design ………. Colin Lowrey, II

Lighting & Sund Design …. Todd LaBelle, Jr

Dramaturgy ………. Kendall Walker

Stage Management ………. Emily Vial

Production Consultant ….. Michael Hawke

Performance Schedule:

● Opening Night – November 10, 2023 at 7:30 PM

● Running Thursday – Friday – Saturday at 7:30 PM through November 25, 2023

● Running Sundays at 2:00 PM through November 26, 2023

● Pay-What-You-Will shows on November 12 at 2:00 PM and November 16 at 7:30 PM

● Post-Show Talkback on November 19 after the 2:00 PM performance

Tickets:

$1 – $35

Run time:

About 2 hours, with one intermission

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ONE IN TWO

This is the play that has no end. . .

A Theater Review by Julinda D. Lewis

At: Richmond Triangle Players at the Robert B. Moss Theatre | Carpenter Foundation Stage, 1300 Altamont Ave, RVA 23230

Performances: September 20 – October 14, 2023

Ticket Prices: $10 – $40

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

———-

After seeing Donja R. Love’s phenomenal Sugar in Our Wounds, produced at Richmond Triangle Players (RTP) during April-May 2022, I was excited to see One in Two (2019) and I was not disappointed. One in Two is a three-person drama set in a waiting room, in the crossroads of “Now, until; Everywhere, nowhere.”

I was very intentional in my use of the word “crossroads.” While the literal meaning of a crossroads is an intersection, a place where two roads meet, it is commonly used figuratively and spiritually to refer to life-changing situations that require special attention, a decision, and are often marked by rituals of protection or transition.

One in Two is a masterful example of storytelling, but not the kind of story that is meant to entertain. This story is autobiographical – written by the playwright around the tenth anniversary of his own HIV positive diagnosis. It is not an entertainment, but rather a call to action, the urgency of which is suggested by the knowledge that Love began writing this play on the Notes app of his phone, from his bed. Presumably he, like the character Number One, was struggling with the need to define himself aside from a diagnosis that many considered a death sentence.

There is an experimental and inclusive nature to this work as well. Audience members are asked to take a number from a ticket machine as we enter. While the purpose is never explained, it eventually becomes clear that each ticket has been re-designated as either a “1,” a “2,” or a “3.” The three actors do not know, at the start of the show each night, which of them will be playing the role of “1,” “2,” or “3” until the audience chooses, by applause. [I applauded equally loudly for each because I know and admire Keaton Hillman and Tedarryl Perry as actors and was immediately drawn to Garrett D. Reese’s “extra-ness.”]

The actors begin to drift onto the stage one by one, about ten minutes before the show starts. They stand, stretch, linger. The action begins with a scream. On Friday, opening night, Perry was chosen to be Number One, and soon after a “safe word” was established. Overkill? No. It is, indeed, that intense.

One in Two is not lacking in humor. The three romp in a recreated memory of their youth. Perry progressed through the role of Dante from a carefree little boy to a young man exploring his sexuality until stumbling at the crossroads of an HIV positive diagnosis. Hillman played a number of roles, from bossy, king-of-the-hill kid to bartender to supportive [female] nurse, and even a member of an HIV support group – whose marriage was surrounded by secrecy and the unwillingness of his in-laws to accept their son’s marriage to another man. Reese also took on various roles, from the playground mediator to a streetwise booty call or, to put it more graphically, trade, to Dante’s warm but worried mother.

Director Shanea N. Taylor pulls us into this world that unfolds in a non-linear, sometimes dream-like format that carries the audience from laughter to the point of tears in a matter of seconds. The stark white background, with a nurse’s station, a bathtub, and a bar hidden behind convenient cabinet doors, supports this fragile paradox – there’s nowhere to hide, while hidden in plain sight.

While it is impossible to know exactly how someone feels in this situation, One in Two takes us as close as humanly possible with a roller coaster of emotion including shock, shame, anger, depression and despair, compassion, fear, and more. The trauma is real. The acting, the play, is just an effective delivery vehicle.

Oh. That title? At the time this play was written, according to the CDC statistics: One in fourteen gay white men will be diagnosed with HIV in their lifetime. One I four gay Hispanic men will be diagnosed HIV positive. And one in two gay Black men will be diagnosed with HIV. That is why, at the end of this play, there is no bow. There is no applause. There is no end. Yet.

FROM THE PLAYWRIGHT: “There is still trauma that’s hard to write, there are still remnants of fear that tremble the voice found in my writing. I’ve gotten to a point where there are no words, characters, dialogue, or subtext to hide behind anymore. Fear can no longer overshadow truth.”

Bravo to this cast and creative team and to Richmond Triangle Players for moving past fear and presenting us with the cold, harsh truth.

Julinda D. Lewis is a dancer, teacher, and writer who was born in Brooklyn, NY and now lives in Eastern Henrico County.

———-

ONE IN TWO

Written by Donja R. Love

Directed by Shanea N. Taylor

CAST:

Keaton Hillman – Person on the Left

Tedarryl Perry – Person in the Middle

Garrett D. Reese – Perso on the Right

Understudies: Da’Rek Early Bennett and Larry Lewis, Jr.

CREATIVE TEAM:

Scenic Design – Dasia Gregg

Lighting Design – Michael Jarett

Sound Design – Nicholas Seaver

Projection Design – Lucian Restivo

Costume, Hair & Makeup Design – Margarette Joyner

Props Design – Tim Moehring

Production State Management – Lauren Langston

Assistant Direction – Dwight Merritt

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GHOST QUARTET

A Song Cycle About Love, Death, and Whiskey

An Immersive Theatrical Experience Review by Julinda D. Lewis

At: The Firehouse 1609 West Broad St., Richmond, RVA 23220

Performances: January 19 – February 18, 2023 [NOTE: This includes extended dates]

Ticket Prices: $35 general admission, $45 VIP two-top, $20 students

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

If you like the unique and different, if you are comfortable with ambiguity, if dramatic explorations of death and non-linear story-telling pique your interest, then GHOST QUARTET was written for you. Not fully a play, not fully a musical, more akin to an opera, Dave Malloy’s creation was first produced in 2014 and was soon after nominated for awards for Best Music and Best Musical.

While I assert that the term “musical” is too confining to describe Ghost Quartet, there is no doubt that the music – much of which is played or engineered by Amy L Oblinger – is amazing. There are vocals and instrumental music involving a piano, a cello, a violin, and percussion. At one point small percussion instruments – a tambourine, a rattle, small rattles – are distributed to audience members.

Two of the Quartet members perform a delightfully unexpected tap and clog dance. And most of the cast members are quite comfortable breaking the fourth wall and addressing the audience – some of whom, the VIPs, are seated at small table right on stage where they are served whiskey shots by the cast members who are gathered for a reunion of sorts at a bar that is apparently owned by one of the Quartet members.

Whew! That’s just by way of introduction, and doesn’t even begin to explain Ghost Quartet, Instead of Acts and Scenes, Ghost Quartet is divided into Sides and Tracks – which are announced at the top of each segment. While intentionally non-linear in structure, the sections are, in fact, related to one another. So, “The Camera Shop” in Side 1, Track 2 is related to “The Photograph” in Side 3, Track 2 and there is an “Usher” track – as in Poe’s “The Fall of the House of User” – in Sides 1, 2, and 3.

Family is another common theme woven throughout the production in which cast members play multiple characters, across generations, and encompassing – the program says – seven centuries. This makes it possible for Ghost Quartet to seamlessly discuss and conquer death, include sassy little girls and monks, have storytelling by Schéhérazade (yes, the one from Arabian nights), and sing an ode to whiskey (e.g., Jamieson, Maker’s Mark, Lagavulin), call a family meeting to deliver an ultimatum about an invisible friend, and conflate monks (the religious kind) with Thelonious Monk (the musician).

Bringing a wide range of talents, sass, and gifts to this production: Jaylin Brown, Valerie Chinn, Céilí Galante, Marjie Southerland, and Musical Director Amy L. Oblinger. They sing, they dance, they act, tell stories, play instruments, and drink whiskey for two hours (including one intermission). Todd Labelle’s design, featuring a standard wooden bar as well as a vertical “floating” bar and walls of wide-spaced wooden slats, is simultaneously minimalist and luxurious. It provides a welcoming backdrop for an unfamiliar performance genre. Andrew Bonniwell’s lighting organically partners with the live music, electronic arrangements, and some surprisingly stunning vocal moments.

If, as Director PJ Freebourn wrote in their notes, the goal is to transport the audience and take us on a surreal journey that explores, among other things, love, family, hope, memory, and emotions, then Ghost Quartet is a smashing success. If you leave still wondering just what the hell happened and why it made you feel confused and amazed, if you leave talking about it, thinking about it, or asking questions about it — it was successful. February 4 was originally supposed to be the final performance, but four additional performances have been added over the next two weekends – Friday evenings, February 10 and 17, and Saturday matinees, February 11 and 18. If you haven’t seen it yet, recommend you try to reserve a ticket or two to one of these performances – then we can talk about it together.

———-

Julinda D. Lewis is a dancer, teacher, and writer who was born in Brooklyn, NY and now lives in Eastern Henrico County.

———-

GHOST QUARTET

By Dave Malloy

Directed by PJ Freebourn

Performers:

The Ghost Quartet

Jaylin Brown
Valerie Chinn
Céilí Galante
Marjie Southerland

Musician

Amy L. Oblinger

Production Team

PJ Freebourn – Director

Amy L. Oblinger – Music Director

Niccolo Seligmann – Electronic Arrangements, Synth Programming, Foley Art

Céilí Galante – Additional Arrangements

Nicole Morris-Anastasi – Choreographer

Todd Labelle – Production Designer

Andrew Bonniwell – Lighting Designer

Katherine Brand – Costume Designer
Grace Labelle, Emily Vial, Talon Bleacher – Stage Managers

Performance Schedule:

Thu Jan 19 @ 8pm (preview)

Fri Jan 20 @ 8pm (preview)

Sat Jan 21 @ 4pm (preview)

Sat Jan 21 @ 8pm

Fri Jan 27 @ 8pm

Sat Jan 28 @ 4pm

Sat Jan 28 @ 8pm

Fri Feb 3 @ 8pm

Sat Feb 4 @ 4pm

Sat Feb 4 @ 8pm

EXTENDED: Additional Performances!

Fri Feb 10 @ 8pm

Sat Feb 11 @ 4pm

Fri Feb 17 @ 8pm

Sat Feb 18 @ 4pm

Ticket Prices

$35 general admission, $45 VIP two-top, $20 students

Run Time: Approximately 2 hours with one intermission

Photo Credits: Bill Sigafoos

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HOW BLACK MOTHERS SAY I LOVE YOU

“Do not press me to leave you,
    to turn back from following you!
Where you go, I will go;
    where you lodge, I will lodge;
your people shall be my people
    and your God my God. – Ruth 1:16 (NRSV)

A Theater Review by Julinda D. Lewis

At: Richmond Triangle Players at the Robert B. Moss Theatre,

1300 Altamont Ave, RVA 23230

Performances: February 1-25, 2023

Ticket Prices: $10 – $40

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

———-

Sometimes a production takes awhile to grow on you. Some shows are hard to connect with on a personal, emotional, social, literary, cultural or any other level. Just the opposite is true of Trey Anthony’s tender and amusing two-act family drama, HOW BLACK MOTHERS SAY I LOVE YOU. The author identifies as “a queer, black, Canadian, West Indian womyn” but their story is familiar to many Black women in Canada, the US, and the UK. I attended with my eldest daughter, and throughout the evening we looked at one another knowingly over our masks, reached for each other’s hands, cried out in instant recognition, or just cried.

The author may be a Canadian of Jamaican heritage, but the play is set in the Brooklyn, NY home of a Jamaican immigrant woman in 2014 (although I thought the furniture and kitchen appliances harkened back a decade or two – or three? – before then). Claudette (Zakiyyah Jackson), the prodigal queer daughter of Daphne (Dorothy “Dee-D” Miller) has returned home unannounced after several silent years in Montreal, Canada. Claudette finds her mother in poor health and her younger sister Valerie (Shalandis Wheeler Smith) doing her best to care for her, despite Daphne’s refusal to follow doctor’s orders – and the added complications of Valerie’s own personal struggles. Claudette has questions that her mother is not willing to answer. Daphne left Claudette and Valerie with their grandmother in Jamaica for six years while she got established in the US.

Family secrets are painfully and reluctantly revealed, along with social and cultural histories that could bringing health and healing to many families and enlightenment to many allies. The story is brought to life by a small but mighty cast, led by Miller, the matriarch. I’m not Jamaican but I married into a Jamaican family and I found Miller’s accent spot on. She dropped the “h” where you expected to hear it and added it where you did not expect it. She called children “pickney” and pronounced the word “little” as if it were spelled with two k’s instead of two t’s. She won me over completely when she spoke about the baby’s “ackee seed eyes.” That’s how my mother-in-law used to refer to my children! My daughter looked at each other and shrieked in unison as my heart melted into a puddle on the floor. (Don’t worry, RTP staff, melted hearts do not stain the carpet.) Of course I looked to see who the dialect coach was and just as I suspected, it’s Erica Hughes. Kudos to Hughes for another amazing job.

[If you are familiar with ackee, you can skip this next paragraph.]

BTW: the ackee fruit is a Jamaican dietary staple, an essential ingredient in the Jamaica national dish of ackee and saltfish (i.e., salted cod). When ripe, the ackee plant yields fleshy yellow lobes that somewhat resemble scrambled eggs when cooked with saltfish. The fruit has shiny black seeds that people – especially Jamaican grandmothers – liken to the shiny bright eyes of babies and young children. The kicker is that, in its un-ripened state, ackee is quite poisonous.

Jackson and Wheeler Smith achieved a remarkable balance between sibling rivalry and sisterly love. Their affection appeared genuine and as the story unfolded we found that it was grounded in a history of collective trauma – unique to them, but familiar to many families whose histories are defined by the African diaspora. Significantly, my daughter wondered how these themes spoke to white viewers. This would be an interesting dialogue to introduce in a talk-back…

Let me not forget to mention Cloe. The younger, American-born sister of Claudette and Valerie who died in childhood from an unnamed illness, Cloe appears as a silent ghost. Dressed in white from head to toe, Bailey Robinson, a Henrico County Public Schools student, made her professional debut as the sometimes meddlesome, but mostly caring specter of young Cloe whose presence is welcomed and visible to Daphne – and sometimes, it seems, to Valerie. Claudette knows she is there, but cannot see her. The presence of Cloe is another strong symbol of ancestors and spirituality.

The set is a Brooklyn home sturdily and lovingly crafted by William Luther and tenderly lit by Dakota Carter. I did wonder, however, why there were several long periods of darkness or dimmed lights. Perhaps these stretches were meant to serve a visual equivalent of the dramatic pause, or to contrast with the bright white heavenly light that illuminated the runway that Cloe used to transition between the present and the hereafter. Or maybe it was just to allow for a costume change.

Margarette Joyner (founder and artistic director of the Heritage Theater that formerly closed its doors in 2022) designed the costumes, with special attention to Daphne’s collection of church hats and Valerie’s collection of coordinating handbags and shoes. Desirée Dabney directed through the eyes of a storyteller. The work and words flow with a sense of real time and a feeling of intimacy and immediacy.

HOW BLACK MOTHERS SAY I LOVE YOU is a stunningly beautiful work of theatre, one I was not familiar with, one I will not forget. See it with your mother or daughter. And take tissues.

———-

Julinda D. Lewis is a dancer, teacher, and writer who was born in Brooklyn, NY and now lives in Eastern Henrico County.

———-

HOW BLACK MOTHERS SAY I LOVE YOU

By Trey Anthony

Directed by Desirée Dabney

CAST

Daphne …………….Dorothy “Dee-D” Miller

Claudette …………….Shalandis Wheeler-Smith

Valerie ……………. Zakiyyah Jackson

Cloe ……………. Bailey Robinson

Daphne Understudy: Diana Carver

Claudette Understudy: Nora Ogunleye

Valerie Understudy: Chayla Simpson

Cloe Understudy: Sydnee Logan

THE CREATIVE TEAM

Director/Sound Design: Desirée Dabney

Assistant Director/Dramaturg: Chayla Simpson

Production Stage Manager: Jennipher Murphy-Whitcomb

Assistant Stage Manager: Nathan Ramos

Scenic Design: William Luther

Lighting Design: Dakota Carter

Props Design: Tim Moehring

Costume Design: Margarette Joyner

Hair & Make Up Design: Jahara Jennae

Intimacy Choreographer: Raja Benz

Dialect Coach: Erica Hughes

Technical Director/Scenic Painter: Becka Russo

Covid Safety Officer: William Luther

Marketing Videos: Aisthesis Productions

Photo Credits: Pre-production photos from RTP Facebook page

Shalandis Wheeler Smith, Dorothy Dee D Miller, Zakiyyah Jackson

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CHRISTMAS ON THE ROCKS

The Kids From Your Favorite Christmas Shows, All Grown Up

A Theater Review by Julinda D. Lewis

At: Richmond Triangle Players at the Robert B. Moss Theatre, 1300 Altamont Ave, RVA 23230

Performances: November 16 – December 18, 2022

Ticket Prices: $10 – $45

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

———-

We can always depend on Richmond Triangle Players to give us an edgy, snarky, comedic, or dark Christmas offering. Christmas on the Rocks, a collection of short plays or scenes by various authors, does not disappoint – it gives us all of the above.

This year, the authors are John Cariani, Jenn Harris & Matthew Wilkas, Jeffrey Hatcher, Jacques Lamarre, Theresa Rebeck, and Edwin Sanchez. The “kids,” a slightly different cast of characters than RTP’s 2015 production, include Ralphie from A Christmas Story, Zuzu Bailey from It’s A Wonderful Life, Hermey, the Elf from Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and Rudolph and the Island of Misfit Toys, Karen, an internet influencer, Tiny Tim from A Christmas Carol, Clara from The Nutcracker ballet, and the hapless Charlie Brown. Zuzu and Karen replaced Susan (Miracle on 34^th Street) and Cindy Lou Who (The Grinch Who Stole Christmas). Regional productions may feature different characters.

All these characters are portrayed by two highly talented and versatile actors. Theresa Mantiply plays all the women and Eddie Webster plays all the men. The motley cast of characters wander, one by one, into a local bar, where the friendly bartender, played by Joe Pabst, is at first surprised and ultimately perplexed at the increasingly colorful parade of characters who enter, seeking solace from the loneliness of Christmas Eve.

In the first scene, we see Ralphie, wearing an eye patch, peek through the window of the unimposing little bar – beautifully designed by William Luther with important inclusive details that provide something each of the characters can relate to on a personal level.

To answer the obvious question, yes, Ralphie finally did get his eye shot out, but it was not self-inflicted. A firearms safety instructor for the NRA, he was shot by a student and is now unemployed. On top of that, he has intimacy issues due to that infamous pink bunny suit his Aunt Clara sent, but not for the reasons one might expect. You see, he actually liked it.

Little Zuzu Bailey who, as a child, declared that every time a bell rings, an angel gets its wings, has been harassed by angels for decades – and responds in nonsensical rhyming platitudes, while Hermey, the Elf who had dreams of becoming a dentist, has become a gossipy hater who holds a long-time grudge against Rudolf – not realizing that his own misfit status makes him more like Rudolph than not.

Karen, an entitled but untalented influencer, holds the Bartender hostage, posting increasingly unhinged videos for her unfortunate followers. Tiny Tim drops by, displaying Scrooge-like qualities and Clara’s cheating Prince has left her alone for the holiday. The last customer is none other than Charlie Brown, complete with a yellow sweater with a black zigzag line. Wonder of wonders – it’s a Christmas miracle – he finally gets to talk to The Little Red Haired Girl in the only scene shared by Mantiply and Webster. Through it all, Pabst calmy mixes drinks and offers gentle advice.

Christmas on the Rocks is a non-traditional Christmas story – or collection of sequels – billed as “an offbeat collection of twisted holiday tales” for the grown up kids in all of us who love a good laugh – especially when it’s at our own expense. There are limited performances left, so ditch the kids and go see it.

Julinda D. Lewis is a dancer, teacher, and writer who was born in Brooklyn, NY and now lives in Eastern Henrico County.

———-

CHRISTMAS ON THE ROCKS:

An Epic Offbeat Collection of Twisted Holiday Tales

Written by John Cariani, Jenn Harris & Matthew Wilkas, Jeffrey hatcher, Jacques Lamarre, Theresa Rebeck, and Edwin Sanchez

Conceived by Rob Ruggiero

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