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Tag: Cleveland Theater

  • ‘Stereophonic’ at Playhouse Square an Example of Right Play, Wrong Place – Cleveland Scene

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    If you’ve been privy to any of the marketing for the national tour of “Stereophonic,” you’re already well aware that the show is “the most Tony Award-nominated play of all time,” as this accolade is plastered so prominently on every bit of promotional material that it might as well become the show’s official tagline. And yet, on the opening night of “Stereophonic” at Playhouse Square, many audience members abandoned their seats at intermission.

    How did a show so lauded by critics garner such a lukewarm – even downright cold – response from Playhouse Square audiences? The problem is not with the play or the production, both of which are exquisite, but instead lies with expectations garnered by the performance space.

    “Stereophonic” follows an unnamed British-American rock band in 1976. Drummer Simon acts as the manager for this up-and-coming group, which is also composed of guitarist Peter, vocalist Diana, keyboardist Holly and bassist Reg. When they enter a studio in Sausalito to record their second album with the help of sound engineers Grover and Charlie, they are on the brink of fame. Over the course of nearly a year, the band experiences the extreme highs and lows of the creative process while trying to overcome rapidly deteriorating intrapersonal relationships.

    The entirety of the show takes place in a gorgeous, multi-tiered recording studio designed by David Zinn. Although the cast is really playing instruments and the show has drawn numerous parallels to Fleetwood Mac (enough to spark a lawsuit), playwright David Adjmi’s show is not about music, per se. While it features snippets of original, `70s-era music by Arcade Fire’s Will Butler, “Stereophonic” is more about the creative process of making music, much to many audience members’ chagrin.

    Adjmi’s script is masterful: the characters are rich, the dialogue is authentic, the dynamics are complex and the interactions are realistic. Adjmi allows audiences a glimpse into the creative process, showcasing the often dichotic emotions experienced while creating art, be it frustration, elation, discomfort, excitement, obsession or enthusiasm. Multiply these emotions by seven, then place them in the pressure cooker brought about by fame, shaky relationships and lots and lots of drugs, and you have a robust, substantive play.

    Denver Milord plays Peter, the de facto leader of the band, who becomes increasingly obsessed with every element of the album. Milord can be commended for his authentic portrayal of the controlling character, who becomes more and more unsavory as the show progresses. Peter’s longtime partner, Diana, is played by Claire DeJean. DeJean’s voice is utterly captivating, and although the musical performances are not the focus of the show, her prowess makes it difficult not to want to hear more.

    Holly, played by Emilie Kouatchou, also has a wonderful voice, but Kouatchou’s rambling monologues are where she really shines. Christopher Mowod is cast as Holly’s husband, Reg. Mowod is terribly convincing as he stumbles and bumbles about in drug-addled states, yet he still maintains a sort of sweet lovability.

    Cornelius McMoyler as Simon is the most level-headed, likable member of the band, and he delivers an endearing and charming performance. Much welcome comedic relief is supplied by Jack Barrett as Grover and Steven Lee Johnson as Charlie, who are trying their damnedest to engineer an album while navigating the drama, egos and volatility of their very unstable clients.

    Jiyoun Chang’s lighting design is well-suited for the studio space while Ryan Rumery’s sound design is so convincing that you could truly believe that the sound board at the center of the set design is controlling the audio. Enver Chakartash’s flowy, pattern-heavy costume design is from the `70s head-to-toe.

    This is a show that doesn’t just call for realism, it relies on it. While the play might have stunned on Broadway and impressed this reviewer, the meandering script and subtle staging that lends the show its realism are the very elements that do not translate effectively in Playhouse Square’s 2,800-seat Connor Palace theater.

    Director Daniel Aukin employs plenty of pregnant pauses that help sell the script’s authentic dialogue, and the stellar cast at the heart of the show conveys gobs of emotions through their facial expressions alone – if you are seated close enough to see them.

    Not only does subtlety lose its effectiveness in such a large house, but it is not what audiences of Playhouse Square have come to expect from the KeyBank Broadway Series. The 2025-26 season consists of “The Notebook,” “Hell’s Kitchen,” “Stereophonic,” “Suffs,” “Water for Elephants,” “The Outsiders” and “The Great Gatsby.” It’s fairly obvious that one of these titles is not like the others.

    Playhouse Square’s 40,000-plus annual season ticket holders – more than any other touring Broadway venue in North America – expect to be dazzled with sweeping music, complex choreography and larger-than-life production designs that translate all the way to the very last row of seats. “Stereophonic” is simply not built to live up to these expectations.

    It certainly doesn’t help that the touring “Stereophonic” is composed of four acts that clock in at almost three hours, leaving audiences antsy and yawning.

    “Stereophonic” is exceptionally written and performed, but it does not feel as at home at Playhouse Square as it would in one of Northeast Ohio’s many professional, regional theaters. While some audiences will still appreciate the gentle artistry of the play, if the tepid reception on opening night is any indication, most will leave the performance with dashed expectations born from the play’s Tony Award-heavy marketing and the energetic caliber of shows they’ve come to expect from Playhouse Square. And they can hardly be blamed, for this is a case of the right play, the wrong place.

    “Stereophonic” runs through Jan. 25, 2026, at Playhouse Square,1501 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland. Visit playhousesquare.org or call (216) 241-6000 for tickets, $35-$135.

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    Gwendolyn Kochur

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  • Beck Center’s ‘The SpongeBob Musical’ is Swimming With Saturated Nostalgia – Cleveland Scene

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    SpongeBob SquarePants, that anthropomorphic, yellow sea sponge with his animated laugh and bizarre set of underwater friends, was a cultural phenomenon in the early 2000s. So impactful was Stephen Hillenburg’s 1999 cartoon that even today, kids of the SpongeBob generation can be separated into two categories: those whose parents didn’t allow SquarePants’ high-pitched antics to overtake their television (therefore depriving them of participating in endless insider references), and those who were cool. 

    Just kidding…well, sort of–it really was a big deal whether or not you watched SpongeBob. And, no matter how silly, nonsensical or plain ridiculous the show might seem looking back, those who grew up with the characters of Bikini Bottom tend to have a fondness for the cartoon even as adults. 

    While it might not resonate with the SpongeBob rookie, those who feel nostalgia for that absorbent and yellow and porous cartoon sponge will find Beck Center’s production of “The SpongeBob Musical” to be boatloads of fun. 

    In “The SpongeBob Musical,” the titular sponge wakes up in his usual chipper mood, ready to make this day “the best day ever.” While on his way to work, he greets fellow citizens of Bikini Bottom, including his curmudgeonly neighbor, Squidward Tentacles; his best friend and loyal supporter, Patrick Star; the brilliant squirrel scientist, Sandy Cheeks; and his greedy boss, Mr. Krabs. But this is no normal day. A nearby volcano suddenly shows signs of erupting, threatening to destroy Bikini Bottom in little more than a day. While the evil genius Plankton and his computer wife, Karen, scheme to convince residents to abandon their home, SpongeBob is determined to rally his friends to disrupt the volcano’s impending eruption. 

    “The SpongeBob Musical” premiered in 2017 with a book by Kyle Jarrow and musical production conceived by Tina Landau to rather positive reviews. One of the keys to a successful adaptation is paying proper homage to the original source material, and director Scott Spence has filled Beck Center’s cast with talented actors who are more than capable of emulating the cartoon’s colorful characters. 

    Not only are the cast’s acting chops up to par, but they are vocally adept. Guided by music director Larry Goodpaster and accompanied by an orchestra, the cast deftfully tackles a variety of songs that were conceived by a slew of artists, including Sara Bareilles, Jonathan Coulton, Cyndi Lauper, John Legend, Panic! At the Disco, Plain White T’s, They Might Be Giants, David Bowie and Tom Kenny, to name a few. 

    Seth Crawford as the lead character has large, rectangle-shaped pants to fill, and he steps up to the challenge with a beaming smile, jaunty gait and infectious positivity. It’s no simple task to bring SpongeBob’s characteristic voice, laughter and personality to life, but Crawford does a great job emulating the 2-D icon. 

    A loveable Tripp DeMille is cast as the bumbling, naive Patrick Star. DeMille nails the pink seastar’s deep voice and simplistic cadence. Patrick’s subplot is one of the more inessential tangents partaken by a secondary character, but DeMille manages to make even these moments more delightful. 

    Grace Pressley is Sandy Cheeks, the squirrel from Texas who lives in Bikini Bottom thanks to her underwater air dome. Pressley uses an endearing twang and a can-do attitude to portray Sandy, and her vocal performance is stellar. 

    Also delivering spot-on voices are Michael Glavan as Squidward Tentacles and Tyler Ferrebee as Mr. Krabs. Glavan’s Squidward is properly grumpy–and a character that is far more relatable and humorous as an adult–and Ferrebee’s Krabs is just as grubby and money-driven as ever. 

    Chris Richards and Sara Nearenberg are the squabbling evil couple, Plankton and Karen. Richards is just maniacal enough to capture the small villain’s essence, and Nearenberg’s nasally, robotic voice is charming. Together, they make for entertaining scoundrels.

    A large ensemble of supporting fish dressed in colorful outfits proper for any reef dweller execute high-energy choreography by Lauren Marousek. The most captivating dances utilize glowing sponges and tap shoes. 

    The 2017 Broadway Musical received 12 nominations at the following year’s Tony Awards, but it only took away one win for Best Scenic Design. The Broadway design used various bits of flotsam and jetsam to create the structures of Bikini Bottom and even featured a Rube Goldberg machine. While not nearly as complex, Tim McMath’s flower-patterned proscenium and Nickelodeon-esque color palette fit the Bikini Bottom brand. Saturated lighting by Jaemin Park and amusing projections featuring SpongeBob’s signature playful font help sell the underwater setting. 

    “The SpongeBob Musical” does a great job of weaving together childish antics with jokes geared toward adults. Sure, those familiar with the cartoon might laugh harder at the couple of inside jokes thrown in, but many adults who don’t fall into the previous category will still get a chuckle out of the many jokes about the tedium of bureaucracy or Squidward’s self-loathing. 

    Families looking to attend with children should be advised that this is not Disney On Ice; you won’t find any mascot-like, foam body suits here. Apart from Squidward and Mr. Krabs, who wear an extra pair of legs and meaty crab claws, Inda Blatch-Geib keeps the overall costuming simplistic. Also rather straightforward is the show’s plot, which is entertaining, but contains quite a few detours that give the large cast of characters individual moments to shine. In total, the show runs two and a half hours (including intermission), which might find some kids squirming in their seats. 

    Beck Center for the Arts’ “The SpongeBob Musical” is an energetic, colorful and campy production that’s determined to entertain. Whether or not you find it successful might hinge on your familiarity with that sponge who lives in a pineapple under the sea. But if merely reading that last sentence made the SpongeBob SquarePants theme song automatically begin playing in your head, you’re likely the intended audience. 

    “The SpongeBob Musical” runs through January 4, 2026 at Beck Center for the Arts. 17801 Detroit Ave, Lakewood. Tickets can be purchased by calling (216) 521-2540 or by visiting beckcenter.org, $18-46.

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    Gwendolyn Kochur

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  • Dark Fairy Tales Abound in con-con’s ‘The Secret in the Wings’ – Cleveland Scene

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    As adults, we have the distance and wherewithal to look back at the media we consumed when we were young and reflect on how it might have traumatized us. Whether it was the death of an animated parental figure, be it lion, deer or dinosaur (The Lion King, Bambi, The Land Before Time), losing a faithful steed in the Swamp of Sadness (The NeverEnding Story) or brutal lab experiments on animals (The Secret of NIMH), we all have stories about the stories that scarred us as kids. 

    “The Secret in the Wings,” a play that features old, lesser-known fairy tales, demonstrates that scaring children with stories of harsh consequences and dark, gruesome events is nothing new; however, it is wildly entertaining. 

    Written by Tony Award-winning playwright Mary Zimmerman, “A Secret in the Wings” begins when a young child is left alone with her babysitter for the night–a frightening, gruff man with a monster’s tail. The babysitter reads to her from a book, telling her tales of princesses and kingdoms, love and magic. But these fairy tales don’t feature picturesque weddings or happily ever afters as much as gouged out eyes, cannibalism and beheadings.

    “The Secret in the Wings,” under the astute direction of Anne McEvoy, is convergence-continuum’s warped version of a holiday show. This might feel like a bizarre choice; after all, you’re not likely to pack the kids into the minivan to go see a show rife with maimings and murder. Yet, this less conventional offering is not unexpected from convergence-continuum, and it’s a decision that has paid off. 

    Tis the season for familiarity and nostalgia, and a large majority of Northeast Ohio’s theater scene is currently staging all manner of shows that tap into audiences’ seasonal desire for cheer and ease. con-con’s show, on the other hand, tells stories that–while established fairy tales–are not likely to be recognized. Both are valuable offerings, but “The Secret in the Wings” provides audiences with something familiarity doesn’t always contain: surprise. 

    In “The Secret in the Wings,” playwright Zimmerman slices and splices together a handful of tales in an especially intriguing fashion, launching into a new “once upon a time” before a previous story reaches its version of “the end.” Rest assured that all threads are untangled by the time the cast takes their final bow, but the unique intermingling of stories keeps you on the edge of your seat. When combined with the unexpected and unpredictable nature of fairy tales that don’t follow modern conventions, it makes for a consistently entertaining 90 minutes of theater. 

    convergence-continuum deploys a cast of ten players to portray the various characters in the handful of stories, including rowdy children who are turned into swans, an evil nursemaid who demands the eyes of her enemies, a widowed king determined to marry his daughter and an unamused princess who calls for the death of her suitors, among many others. 

    So varied and numerous are the characters that the cast members are not credited to any individual role. Instead, actors Calvin Adkins, Wolfgang Coulan, Michael Frye, Nicholas Hassan, Abby Jarvis, Connor Krohn, Abbey Marshall, Katherine Nash, Susan Stein and Yuval Tal are given equal billing. Director McEvoy ensures that this eager, inexhaustible cast works seamlessly together to unravel narratives as a team and that one player never outshines another. The actors energetically approach every story and can be commended for their ability to craft atmospheres that are at one minute light and joyful, and foreboding and creepy the next. 

    The play unfolds in a dark, uninviting basement designed by Scot Zolkowski. It features all the trappings that you’d expect to see in an unfinished basement used primarily for storage; there’s an old cabinet, some metal chairs along the wall, stacked cardboard boxes and racks of clothing. The cornerstone of the set is a staircase that leads to nowhere, ending at the ceiling of the theater–a confusing choice considering that the players use an inexplicable entrance located midway up the staircase. 

    Also designed by Zolkowski are simple but distinctive costumes that help the audience differentiate between fairytales, making sure that one story does not bleed too much into another. 

    Prop designer Kate Smith uses various objects that might be found in a basement to help the cast bring the fairy tales to life: a ball represents a rolling head, flexible duct hosing becomes a writhing snake, a tennis racket doubles as a rifle and a draped cloth signifies a swan’s wing. 

    Sound designer Léo Fez contributes sound effects that provide emphasis and ambiance, and lighting designer Robert Wachala uses stark, dramatic lighting to help set what are often intense moods. 

    There’s something about morbid stories that stick with us–and “The Secret in the Wings” is no exception. While it’s not a traditional holiday offering, the interesting structure and unpredictable, unhinged plotlines will certainly serve to entertain. Still, it’s probably best to keep the kids at home for this one, lest a night at the theater be the source of their early childhood scarring. 

    “The Secret in the Wings” runs through December 20, 2025, at convergence-continuum, 2438 Scranton Road, Cleveland. Visit convergence-continuum.org or call 216-687-0074 for tickets, $18-$23.

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    Gwendolyn Kochur

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  • Touring Production of ‘Six’ Crowns Six Deserving Queens at Playhouse Square – Cleveland Scene

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    In 1985, Alison Bechdel introduced the world to a simple test used to measure the representation of women in fiction, now commonly known as the Bechdel Test. In order to pass the Bechdel Test, a piece of media must meet three criteria, including: 1) there must be at least two women represented, 2) those women must have a conversation with one another and 3) that conversation cannot be about a man. 

    Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss’s “Six,” a musical that tells the story of the six wives of Henry VIII in the form of a modern pop concert, features only women and passes the first two criterion of the Bechdel test with ease. The third criteria is where “Six” falls short. Despite the all-female cast, Henry VIII tends to loom over the proceedings as if he were a character himself. As the musical comes to explain, the queens on stage, and in the history books, are forever tied to their ex-husband.

    However, “Six” attempts to give the queens back their autonomy with a musical that doesn’t just tell the oft-unknown stories of the monarchs in flashy, pop music numbers, but also cheekily addresses the patriarchal system that allowed their suffering in the first place. 

    A traditional curtain and Elizabethan-era music (think “Greensleeves”) greet the audience as they file into their seats in the Connor Palace. But when the curtain rises for “Six,” it becomes immediately obvious that this is no traditional musical. 

    Emma Bailey’s stagnant set design features semi-circular, tiered steps where the band underneath music director Julia Schade, called the Ladies in Waiting, sits. The six cast members portraying Catherine of Aragon, Anne Boleyn, Jane Seymour, Anna of Cleves, Katherine Howard and Catherine Parr, are immediately welcomed by raucous cheers from the audience as they open up the show describing their respective fates: “divorced, beheaded, died, divorced, beheaded, survived.” 

    The sound is loud, Tim Deiling’s lighting design is a non-stop freight train of movement and activity and the costuming is practically a character in itself. The women wear color-coordinated, exquisite rhinestone skirts, sparkly heels, fishnet leggings and alternative crowns provided by costume designer Gabriella Slade. When the queens directly address the audience, they call out Cleveland by name, encouraging clapping and dancing and cheers–which are procured easily from an audience eager for an entertaining night. 

    It’s easy to forget that this is not an actual concert where six ex-wives-turned-pop-stars are hosting a singing competition to decide which queen suffered the worst abuse, but a National Tour of a hit musical that officially opened on Broadway in 2021.

    It’s also easy to get lost in the explosion of color, sound and downright entertaining, high-octane choreography by Carrie-Anne Ingrouille–but the underlying themes conveyed through the nine, uber-catchy songs are always present. While each queen delivers a signature song, the entirety of the score works in cohesion to shed a light on abuse while reclaiming power and identity. 

    After an introductory ensemble number, the powerful and confident Emma Elizabeth Smith as Catherine of Aragon begins the singing competition with “No Way,” a song where she describes how Henry VIII wanted to annul their marriage and send her to a nunnery after he caught eyes for Anne Boleyn. 

    Queen Anne, played by the spunky, expressive Nella Cole, follows up with “Don’t Lose Ur Head,” a number that pokes fun at the previous queen for losing her hold on Henry VIII, until she also loses his interest. When she retaliates with infidelity of her own, she is beheaded, which Anne believes is enough cause for her to win the competition outright. 

    Her successor, Jane Seymour, had what the other queens considered to be the easiest time with the king, widely agreeing that she was the only one that he truly loved. A super-sweet and charming Kelly Denice Taylor delivers Jane’s signature ballad, “Heart of Stone,” with sincerity and grace, even as it outlines Henry VIII’s conditional love. 

    The show once again picks up pace when Hailey Alexis Lewis, an unapologetic, independent Anna of Cleves, takes the mic. Henry VIII fell in love with a portrait of Anna, but was disappointed by the actual woman. The story of the lucrative life she lived after her short marriage is explored in the catchy song, “Get Down.”

    Originally deemed “the least relevant Catherine” by the other queens is Katherine Howard, played by a quietly powerful Alizé Cruz. “All You Wanna Do,” where Katherine describes how her beauty was taken advantage of from a young age, is an unsuspecting, emotional punch to the gut. 

    Rounding out the individual performances is Tasia Jungbauer as a mature, steady-headed Catherine Parr. As she explains in her song “I Don’t Need Your Love,” Catherine was also robbed of her future by her marriage to Henry VIII, even though she survived the ordeal. 

    Directors Lucy Moss & Jamie Armitage keep the show moving at a fast clip–totalling 80 minutes sans intermission–and some lyrics of the songs get lost in the coordinated commotion of a concert performance. The quippy, clever lyrics will be best appreciated by audiences who familiarize themselves with the music ahead of time. And the dialogue will best be appreciated by those who don’t find modern lingo totes cringe, lol.

    “Six” was doomed to fail the Bechdel Test, as Henry VIII is forever tied to these six queens’ stories. But what “Six” does so wonderfully, and with such talent and great entertainment, is rip the crown away from the king and place it firmly on the heads of important women who deserve to have their stories told in their own right. 

    “Six” runs through November 16 at Playhouse Square,1501 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland. Visit playhousesquare.org or call (216) 241-6000 for tickets, $70-174.

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    Gwendolyn Kochur

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  • Big Lights and Big Talent Looking Pretty in ‘Hell’s Kitchen’ at Playhouse Square – Cleveland Scene

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    “Hell’s Kitchen,” the jukebox musical that uses the songs of Alicia Keys to tell a semi-autobiographical story of her upbringing, has been described as a love letter to New York City. With this, and the title of the show, in mind, it comes as no surprise that the musical ends with a flashy rendition of “Empire State of Mind.”

    Concrete jungle where dreams are made of

    There’s nothin’ you can’t do 

    Now you’re in New York

    These streets will make you feel brand new

    Big lights will inspire you

    These are the lyrics to the chorus sung by Alicia Keys in “Empire State of Mind,” and the ones that are featured during “Hell’s Kitchen.” Missing from the song are Jay-Z’s rap lyrics, which give a grittier, harder look at the realities of the city. 

    The “Hell’s Kitchen” musical is much like the adapted version of “Empire State of Mind” that it uses to close out the show: it foregoes grittiness and a hard plot for big lights (and even bigger talent) that will inspire (and entertain) you.

    The coming-of-age musical follows 17-year-old Ali, who lives in artist housing in the neighborhood of Hell’s Kitchen with her hard-working mother, Jersey. As Ali seeks out greater freedom, adventure and love in New York, Jersey will go to no end to protect her daughter from trouble, using Ali’s absent father, Davis, as an example and a warning. When a secret relationship puts the mother and daughter at odds, Ali finds friendship and comfort in Miss Liza Jane, her neighbor, who teaches her to play the piano.

    Alicia Keys began developing “Hell’s Kitchen” in 2011 alongside Kristoffer Diaz, who wrote the book for the show. It finally opened on Broadway in 2024 under the direction of Michael Greif and launched its North American Tour in Cleveland this month. 

    This is a jukebox musical, meaning that it uses pre-existing songs to tell a story. Popular songs written for the radio don’t often contain the plot-advancing qualities characteristic of those written for musical theater, and if it’s not careful, a jukebox musical can exist just a half step away from a glorified tribute concert. Fortunately, this isn’t the case for “Hell’s Kitchen.”

    Keys, who is responsible for the music and lyrics, shifted the cadence of most of her songs so that although they still contain the same lyrics, the melody is altered enough to (blessedly) not have a sing-along quality. The numbers are also performed with a variety of vocal treatments across the cast. “Fallin’” becomes a jazzy, flirtatious number performed between Jersey and Davis. “Girl on Fire” is delivered by Ali’s two friends, one who uses the ballad to inspire while the other warns Ali of the consequences to her actions. “No One” becomes a touching duet between mother and daughter. 

    There are still instances of songs that are not as effective at advancing the story as they are pausing it, but they are performed with such gusto and flash that they are entertaining all the same. This is due in large part to the choreography by Camille A. Brown that acts as a nearly constant, enrapturing companion to the music. We also have to recognize the vocal performances that are nothing short of stellar, and “Hell’s Kitchen” provides ample opportunity for the vocalists to showboat. 

    Maya Drake, a young, recent high school graduate, is making her professional debut as Ali. Drake brings youth, spunk and charisma to the stage, which is perfect for portraying Ali, a rambunctious teen eager to discover the world and her place in it. Drake is not only a talented singer, but as a performer, she is downright lovable. 

    Kennedy Caughell plays Jersey, Ali’s overprotective but loving mother, and she is an absolute powerhouse. Her vocal prowess is on full display in this show, so much so that it wouldn’t be surprising if audiences were caught with their mouths agape as Caughell performs the equivalent of vocal trapeze. Her number “Pawn It All,” in which Jersey rages at Davis, feels like an excuse to wow viewers with vocal acrobatics–and damn, is it successful.

    Opposite Caughell in the role of Davis is an equally adept performer, Desmond Sean Ellington. Davis is full of charm and swagger, and this is translated well through Ellington’s suave, charismatic performance. 

    Ali’s interactions with Knuck, a drummer who plays music on buckets outside of Ali’s building, are also quite cute. Knuck, played by a talented JonAvery Worrell, is Ali’s older (we’re never told how old, but we can assume he’s in his twenties) love interest. As Ali comes to find out, Knuck is a sweet, hardworking man, not a thug like the world and her mother believes him to be. 

    Most compelling are Ali’s interactions with her neighbor-turned-piano-teacher, Miss Liza Jane. Played with a fitting balance of sternness and compassion by the magnificent Roz White, Liza Jane serves as the mentor figure within Ali’s life, and is the one who teaches her the capacity art has to transport, honor and heal. Her knock-out number is “Perfect Way to Die,” a rare song reflecting on very real issues of racism and violence. 

    In reality, Alicia Keys learned how to play piano at age seven and signed with Columbia Records by age 15. According to Keys, living in Manhattan exposed her to street violence, drugs and prostitution from an early age. She also carried a homemade knife and dressed in gender-neutral clothing to avoid harassment. This is not the image that is painted in “Hell’s Kitchen.” The set design by Robert Brill is a captivating combination of fire escapes that are lit by designer Natasha Katz’ dynamic LEDs. Creative, clever projections by Peter Nigrini help create a beautiful city backdrop in which the characters, all dressed in nostalgic ‘90s era baggy pants, FUBU and Reebok by Dede Ayite, exist. 

    This is certainly not the city where “half of y’all won’t make it” as described in Jay-Z’s portion of “Empire State of Mind.” “Hell’s Kitchen” doesn’t contain a hard-hitting or especially poignant plot; instead, it celebrates music and provides its performers with ample opportunity to exhibit their abilities. This is where “street lights, big dreams, [are] all lookin’ pretty.”

    “Hell’s Kitchen” runs through November 1 at Playhouse Square,1501 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland. Visit playhousesquare.org or call (216) 241-6000 for tickets, $42-150.

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    Gwendolyn Kochur

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  • ‘Canadian Gothic’ & ‘American Modern’ at Cesear’s Forum is a Cerebral Exercise – Cleveland Scene

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    When audiences leave a show, it’s common to hear them chatting about how much they loved a production or making special note of which moments were their favorite. The conversation following a showing of “Canadian Gothic” and “American Modern” is more nuanced; you’ll be wondering at the reasoning behind artistic choices, or explaining your interpretation of the work and its structure, comparing and contrasting your analysis with your guest.

    “Canadian Gothic” and “American Modern” at Cesear’s Forum will not spoon-feed you an easy narrative; it challenges you almost every step of the way. This production requires that your brain be fully engaged–it is a refreshing experience, but one that is not, perhaps, suited for the theater novice. 

    “Canadian Gothic” and “American Modern” are two one-act plays published in 1972 by Tony-nominated playwright Joanna McClelland Glass that are often performed together with double-billing. 

    “Canadian Gothic” follows the story of a dysfunctional family living in rural Saskatchewan. Already tense familial relationships are heightened when the daughter of the family falls in love with a local Indigenous man. After intermission, “American Modern” features a suburban couple who have drifted apart over the years as they reminisce on the journey that brought them to their present, highly unusual situation. 

    You might be wondering: “what ties these plays together?” The honest answer? Not very much. They both explore identity and tense family relationships, and it is not difficult to quickly drum up at least a half-dozen examples of other shows that do the same. It feels a bit bizarre at first as your brain wants to connect what you saw pre- and post-intermission. It wants to dot the “i”s and cross the “t”s; to mentally wrap up what you saw with a bow and leave everything nice and tidy before driving home and leaving the night behind you.

    Alas, Cesear’s Forum won’t let you get away that easily. 

    This production, under the direction of Greg Cesear, is staged quite simply in the small playing space in Kennedy’s Cabaret at Playhouse Square. Daniel Telford’s set design utilizes an area rug, a small bar and some ornamental chairs. Standing near the back of the stage, which is draped with burlap, are three large triangular prisms that are rotated throughout the show to display different colors. 

    These rotating prisms are utilized in a highly poetic fashion, which is a fitting complement to McClelland Glass’ scripts that artistically stitch together dialogue and direct addresses to the audience to craft their narratives.

    The set design is simple and the lighting design by Andrew Kaletta is practically stagnant, which requires that the actors help the audience fill in any gaps. Fortunately, this cast steps up to that challenge.

    Tricia Bestic and Joseph Milan play the Mother and Father in “Canadian Gothic.” Bestic’s Mother character is a free spirit who will write off phenomena as nature’s magic, whereas Milan’s Father figure prefers scientific, rational explanations. While Bestic is warm and inviting, Milan is stoic, guarded and complex, but both deliver engaging performances.

    The challenges posed by the Mother and Father’s incompatible outlooks on life are heightened upon the birth of their daughter, Jean, played by Graceyn Cecelia Dowd. She successfully portrays Jean throughout significant stages in her life, from the age of seven to her late teens, as she experiences loss and love. Dowd is a joy to watch, and her liveliness is palpable. 

    Filling the role of Ben, Jean’s Indigenous love interest, is Jonathan Duran. Duran’s portrayal is underlined with a simmering rage–a fitting choice for a character that has been continuously and unjustly wronged by society. Together, Dowd and Duran make it easy to root for their characters’ forbidden love.

    Bestic returns to the stage to portray Pat in “American Gothic,” a colorful woman who has just attended her first session with a new therapist. She recounts her session with her husband Mike, played by Gilgamesh Taggett, over a few drinks. Over the course of the show, we watch Pat and Mike discuss the realities of their rather unhealthy lives and struggles with mental health. 

    Bestic once again delivers an emotional performance. She portrays depression and mania in a highly accessible, very empathetic way. Taggett’s Mike is impassive and largely unruffled by his wife’s antics, providing a very different–but still powerful–view into how poor mental health can manifest. 

    Aside from the reshuffling of a few set pieces and the addition of a chair during intermission, the set for “American Modern” remains largely the same as “Canadian Gothic.” And while Bestic is given a new, more modern dress by costume designer Sarah Russell to signify a different era, other costuming is, rather disappointingly, only slightly altered from the previous show. 

    “Canadian Gothic” is meant to feature four actors, two men and two women, but director Cesear adds another man, Taggett, to the stage to provide support–although his role is quite puzzling at first. Cesear does the same, far more successfully, with “American Modern,” a play intended to feature one man and one woman, when Dowd joins the cast as an extra. 

    Although “Canadian Gothic” and “American Modern” are not for the theater novice–it takes more effort than most shows to fully digest the unique narrative style and staging–those ready to challenge themselves with a show that puts their brain to work will find themselves rewarded.

    “Canadian Gothic” & “American Modern” runs through October 25 at Cesear’s Forum in Playhouse Square’s Kennedy’s Cabaret, 1501 Euclid Avenue Cleveland, Ohio 44115. Visit playhousesquare.org or call (216) 241-6000 for tickets, $33.60.

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  • Cleveland Play House’s ‘Our Town’ Will Humble You With Hard Life Lessons – Cleveland Scene

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    It’s an interesting feeling to be humbled by a play. It’s even more interesting considering that the play doing the humbling was written almost nine decades ago. 

    And yet, that is exactly what Cleveland Play House manages to accomplish with the first show of their 2025-26 season. CPH’s “Our Town” uses a precise, firm hand to deliver the life lessons of Thornton Wilder’s great American play in a rendition that demands audiences confront the preciousness of life. 

    In this show-within-a-show, the Stage Manager character sets the stage (quite literally, as he begins the show by pulling chairs and tables into an empty playing space) and serves as our guide to the small town of Grover’s Corners, New Hampshire. The three-Act play spans across 12 years, following the townspeople, specifically the Webb and Gibbs families, through the turn of the 20th century, where they grow, fall in love and penultimately die. 

    Written in 1938, Wilder’s “Our Town” is famous for redefining American theater by trading realism for meta-theatricism. It received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and remains a popular piece today. 

    The show casts aside typical theatrical trappings of scenery and props, instead asking that we use our imagination and the guidance of the Stage Manager to picture the houses, gardens, flooded streets and many churches of Grover’s Corners. Set designer Daniel Ostling lays the Allen Theatre scandalously bare, revealing to us the utilitarian walls and rigs audiences were never intended to see. Even the lighting grid is dramatically lowered into our sightlines shortly after the show begins, exposing the source of T.J. Gerckens’ lighting design. 

    The Stage Manager goes to great lengths to tell us about life in Grover’s Corners in the early 1900s when cars were rare and milk and newspapers were delivered to doorsteps. The cast is clothed in early 20th-century costumes by Mara Blumenfield, but are otherwise required to do the heavy lifting when it comes to painting a picture of the time and setting. They mime stringing beans, feeding chickens and eating meals around the table, aided by their fellow talent sitting alongside the stage, visibly clucking or tinkling bottles together as ambient sound effects. 

    Act I, in which our main characters go about an ordinary day, will lull you into a false sense of security. Some may find themselves teetering dangerously towards complacency or even apathy. Act II takes place during a wedding, which most will find more engaging. Act III looks back at that foundation the show built underneath us–and it doesn’t hesitate for a second before taking a sledgehammer to it. 

    “Our Town” uses Acts I and II like a teacher uses a creative activity to introduce students to a new topic. Act III is akin to that moment when the teacher reveals how the seemingly random activity is related to a greater lesson. 

    And what a lesson it is. So much so that it would be a disservice to CPH and future audience members to reveal it here: it deserves to be experienced as intended, lest the power of the message be dampened. 

    Director and Tony Award-winner Mary Zimmerman does not pull any punches; instead, she coordinates them with precision and a steady hand, ensuring that they land with force in just the right places. 

    A fine example of this is demonstrated within the performance of Christopher Donahue as the Stage Manager. Donahue is calm and matter-of-fact, making him a trusted, pragmatic narrator. His lines are often unembellished and his air is unattached. This gives his rare moments of stern condescension and disappointment greater gravity, and his delivery of Wilder’s lessons hefty weight.

    The two families central to the story told by the Stage Manager are the Gibb and Webb families, the respective matriarchs of which are played by Louise Lamson and Derdriu Ring. Because their characters serve as the backbones of their households, Lamson and Ring are in constant movement, convincingly miming the baking, cooking, cleaning and maintenance that it takes to provide for their families. Both Lamson and Ring are accomplished, lauded actresses, and their performances here are fine testaments to their talents. 

    Less active in their characters’ households, but still delivering fine performances, are Steve Marvel as Doc Gibbs and Geoffrey Short as Mr. Webb. Marvel is stern and sensible, while Short is jovial and kind.

    The eldest of the Webb children is Emily, played by Madalyn Baker, who serves as our main protagonist for the show. It is Emily who we watch grow up and discover the highs and lows of life. Baker is relatable in her innocence and expressive in her monologues. Her impassioned, emotional deliveries, especially during Act III, are equal parts touching and sorrowful. 

    The eldest of the Gibbs family is George, played by Byron Johnson. Johnson’s George is sweet and attentive, making him an endearing counterpart and love interest to Baker’s Emily. George’s kid sister is played by the young, talented Lennon Rosiar. 

    Other notable supporting roles are Adam Ortega as Howie Newsome, Brendan Lowry as Wally Webb and Wai Yim as Simon Stimson and Professor Willard.

    CPH’s “Our Town” does not ask you to merely ponder Wilder’s lessons of life–it demands that you confront them head-on and in full force. To be humbled by a play is a truly interesting feeling, and it is a feeling well worth exploring first-hand at the Allen Theatre.

    “Our Town” runs through Sept. 28 at Cleveland Play House in the Allen Theatre,1407 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland. Tickets can be purchased by calling (216) 241-6000 or by visiting clevelandplayhouse.com, $36-$125.

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    Gwendolyn Kochur

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  • ‘we are continuous’ at convergence-continuum Shifts the Narrative

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    Sherri Tolliver (Ora) and Noah Christopher (Simon)

    “we are continuous” is a play that tells the story of a gay man’s relationship with his religious mother, but not in the theatrical way that you’d expect.

    Instead of watching scenes where the son character, Simon (Noah Christopher), meets his husband, Abe (Michael J. Montanus), the two characters guide us through their first date by speaking to the audience directly. We don’t watch Simon come out as gay to his mother, Ora (Sherri Tolliver), and his father, Hoyt. We don’t see their reactions to the news, or come to our own conclusions about the characters’ feelings via an actor. Instead, we are told about it.

    There’s a popular adage in creative writing: “show don’t tell.” Rather than giving the reader a direct interpretation of what is happening, you give them the tools to do the interpreting for themselves. Harrison David Rivers’ “we are continuous” doesn’t play by this rule, unraveling its story with a series of monologues and vignettes spoken directly through the fourth wall.

    The intimate, emotional production of “we are continuous” at convergence-continuum is proof that not all rules are meant to be followed.

    The semi-autobiographical show by Rivers premiered at the Williamstown Theatre Festival in 2022. The production at convergence-continuum under the direction of Jeannine Gaskin and Lauren Lash is the piece’s Ohio premiere.

    Gaskin and Lash approached the show with a gentle hand and simple staging. The power of Rivers’ script comes from the authentic delivery of the dialogue that often reads like personal essays. Fortunately, convergence-continuum’s actors deliver their monologues with care and honesty–both of which are necessary to make a show like “we are continuous” sing.

    The story begins with Ora fiddling with the settings on the dining room table. She straightens forks and spoons and napkins as she tells us about her son and ponders what it means to be “close” to a grown child. From this first monologue, Tolliver emits an aura that is immediately warm and nurturing, yet undeniably strong. Ora’s love for her child is at once evident, and her musings about her relationship with her son and the expectations that go hand-in-hand with parenthood are honest and raw–thanks to both the script and Tolliver’s performance.

    Our first real introduction to Simon is when he tells us about the moment he knew he was gay. Christopher delivers this monologue–and the rest of Simon’s many lengthy speeches–with confidence. Were you to run into Christopher after the performance, it might take a minute to separate them from their hyper-realistic portrayal of Simon. Christopher’s performance is most interesting in its ability to depict Simon’s gracefulness alongside a deeper, unspoken volatility that lies under the surface. Simon is outwardly gracious with his parents, but Christopher’s portrayal gives us the sense that the character is constantly tamping down a boiling frustration that is overdue to erupt.

    Not to be overlooked is Montanus as Abe. While Abe is the last to be introduced in the one-act, 90-minute show, the character slides into the narrative effortlessly. Montanus is poised and down-to-earth in his portrayal. Abe is at once likable, and his perspective as an outsider seeking acceptance from the in-laws is oh-so-relatable. His interactions with Simon and Ora also lend the production a few light-hearted, humorous moments.

    One character not brought to life by an actor, but rather by continuous reference, is Hoyt, Simon’s father. Hoyt struggles to accept his son’s sexuality, and Ora is caught between maintaining a relationship with her only child and doing what a godly woman should: obey her husband, the head of the household.

    The black box stage consists of three separate playing areas. On one side is a wooden table set for four and on the other is a bed. With the exception of a couple of chairs, the center of the stage is reserved for straightforward monologuing. Scenic designer Scott Zolkowski painted the walls and floor of the space with gray, intersecting lines reminiscent of the cracks that break a sheet of ice into individual pieces, which is both intriguing and on-theme.

    Helping to define each space are the lighting and sound design by Robert Wachala and Léo Fez, respectively. Scenes set in the family’s dining room are accompanied by the imposing tick of a grandfather clock. None of the other spaces has a consistent ambiance like the dining room, but there are plenty of sound effects to accompany the other action. Wachala’s soft lighting shifts in time and in tune with the story, using cool blues and warm yellows in a dance that highlights the characters and action.

    Coordinating with these colors is the costume design by Mia Jones. Ora wears a modest, soft yellow dress, which is in sharp contrast to Simon’s crisp, dark blue button-down. Bridging the gap and falling somewhere in the middle of the two is Abe in his jeans and button-down topped with a sweater vest.

    “we are continuous” is far from the first show to explore gay or bi-racial relationships. Nor is it rare in how it explores themes of family, acceptance and forgiveness. Instead, convergence-continuum’s show distinguishes itself by the unique way in which it journeys through those explorations: directly and with immense sincerity.

    “we are continuous” runs through Aug. 31 at convergence-continuum, 2438 Scranton Road, Cleveland. Visit convergence-continuum.org or call 216-687-0074 for tickets, $18-$23.

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    Gwendolyn Kochur

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  • In Cleveland Play House’s Production of ‘What the Constitution Means to Me,’ a Reminder All Our Voices Count

    In Cleveland Play House’s Production of ‘What the Constitution Means to Me,’ a Reminder All Our Voices Count

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    Donald Carrier and Maggie Lacey in the CPH Production of WHAT THE CONSTITUTION MEANS TO ME

    Sometimes, a cough is just a cough. At other times, though, it can signal a deeper meaning, it can indicate that there’s something wrong—not with a particular person or body—but with the body politic of our country.

    This is only one of the many revelations awaiting in Heidi Schreck’s funny and furious play What the Constitution Means to Me, now at the Cleveland Play House. In 90 minutes of engrossing theater, director Linsay Firman guides us through Schreck’s family history as well as the glories of the U.S. Constitution. It also delves into the many dark holes which that revered document has left in its path.

    Now, about the coughs. At one point in this jam-packed production, a tape is played of Supreme Court Justices discussing birth control. They interrupt themselves repeatedly with tiny coughs as they focus, awkwardly and obliquely, on details. Meanwhile, the humanity of the situation slides from their grasp. (Or, perhaps it was intentional.)

    Aside from references to specific cases heard by the Supremes, the play is largely autobiographical. As Heidi, Maggie Lacey charm the audience as she confesses that she was raised to smile more and be “pathologically polite.” She occasionally stops to deconstruct the stage ambiance surrounding her, helping the audience to see past any theatrical illusions.

    Heidi takes us back to when she was fifteen years old and competing for college money in rhetoric contests sponsored by the local American Legion Hall. Those competitions pitted high schoolers against each other as they were assigned to give a prepared speech about the question posed in the play’s title, along with speaking extemporaneously about a particular Constitutional amendment pulled at random from a jar.

    But this is no droning recitation of dry factoids, since the script executes many fast turns and pirouettes as we learn about Heidi’s family history. These include her great-great grandmother Theresa, a mail-order bride purchased for $75 who died of “melancholia” at age 36. And her grandmother Bette who was beaten by Heidi’s stepfather who also raped Bette’s oldest daughter.

    Yes, this play makes the political personal, reminding us that the white male dominance of the Supreme Court for all those decades had left us with an often superb but highly problematic Constitution. That has resulted in serious outcomes for real people.

    Consider the pregnant women with difficult pregnancies who are now forced—due to a recent SC decision denying abortion services—to bleed sufficiently in hospital parking lots until they are sick enough to receive treatment. After such Constitutionally-protected neglect, some of them die.

    Lacey’s outstanding performance is supported by the excellent Donald Carrier, who plays a Legionnaire conducting the contest. Later he reveals himself as an actor named Danny who, aside from providing “good male energy,” shares his own past and his conflicted history and thoughts.

    Many storylines are touched on as the playwright and lead actor explore the penumbra, the shadowy human side of what the Constitution has wrought. On the lighter side, these mini-digressions involve her adolescent crush on Patrick Swayze and an equally passionate relationship with her sock puppet.

    In a brilliant final coup-de-theatre, the concluding segment of the play involves a debate between Heidi and an actual, local 15-year-old girl. At this performance, Taya Offutt Decker (the role is played at alternate performances by Logan Dior Williams) took command of the stage as she traded barbs and bristling intelligence with her 40-something adversary.

    Once they are done, an adult in the audience is called upon to be the judge. In this case, it was a fine gentleman named Gary from Cleveland Heights. And it is a reminder that we are all the judges of where the Constitution goes from here.

    Our decisions, as reflected in the votes we cast between now and Nov. 5, will make serious impacts on the lives of real people. For better or worse.

    What the Constitution Means to Me
    Through November 3 at Cleveland Play House, Playhouse Square, Outcalt Theatre, 1407 Euclid Ave., clevelandplayhouse.com, 216-241-6000.

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    Christine Howey

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  • ‘Grand Concourse’ From Seat of the Pants Productions Examines Selflessness and Self-Preservation

    ‘Grand Concourse’ From Seat of the Pants Productions Examines Selflessness and Self-Preservation

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    Grand Concourse

    In her letters to her confessors, the Catholic nun Mother Teresa wrote about her doubts saying, “My God, I have no faith.” She also wrote about feeling a sense of emptiness and silence, and that she was afraid to share her thoughts because she feared blasphemy.

    It’s hard when a nun suffers a loss of faith, and so it is with a nun named Shelley in the profound and gripping play Grand Concourse, now being staged by Seat of the Pants Productions. Playwright Heidi Schreck creates four involving characters to tell a story about the limits of benevolence, and about where selflessness ends and self-preservation begins.

    SotP is a traveling theater company, this time located in a church kitchen across from the Van Aken District in Shaker Heights—perfect for a show where all the action takes place in a Bronx soup kitchen.

    The script wastes no time addressing Shelley’s conflicts since she begins her day by lighting a candle, doing her religious rituals, and then coming up blank when she tries to offer a prayer. She is at a crisis point in her life, with her almost-estranged dad in perilous health out in California. But she is intent on soldiering on by focusing on the details of providing meals to the needy who will be arriving soon.

    As she starts preparing the meal, Shelley is teased by the church’s custodian Oscar (a solid Jonathan Rodriguez) who refers to the huge pot of victuals as “bum soup,” but he is instantly smitten when a young volunteer Emma shows up looking to help. Emma says she is a college student, revealing she’s going through cancer treatments and needs some contact with people who ae doing good things.

    Turns out some of that contact is with Oscar, whom she leads into an off-stage room—while Shelley is absent—for some hands-on games with the handyman. But they are seen going into their hidey place by Frog, a homeless man who frequently hangs around, regaling Shelley and the others with his sharp wit and penchant for bad jokes (ie. “Why did the little boy drop his ice cream cone? He was hit by a truck.”)

    Written with exquisite simplicity and directness, playwright Schreck develops each of these characters slowly and with precision. As a result, during the two-hour play (with intermission) we learn about Emma’s strong work ethic and desire to do more to help the people relying on the soup kitchen for food—such as helping them find jobs.

    As the play unfolds Shelley repeatedly tries to pray, timing herself with the one-minute button on the microwave, but to no avail. And when Act Two arrives, these four lives crash in unexpected ways thanks to the brilliant script and sensitive direction by Craig Joseph.

    As Frog, veteran local actor George Roth is believable every second, never overdoing his character’s ample quirks while making him a poignant victim of his own often entertaining but, as we finally witness, seriously disordered mind. Rachel Gold underplays Emma as well, although there are times when one wishes she pushed the envelope of her character a bit more, both early on and as her truths are revealed later.

    In the most difficult role, Zyrece Montgomery as Shelley exhibits the strength to battle through her own depression and the feeling that nothing she’s doing is making a difference. And when she finally faces her moral exhaustion, the depth of her doubt rings so true it takes your breath away.

    Grand Concourse is a play about real issues in a very real setting. This is one kitchen where you should definitely spend a couple of hours.

    Grand Concourse
    Through October 27 produced by Seat of the Pants Productions, in the kitchen of Christ Episcopal Church, 3445 Warrensville Center Road, Shaker Heights, seatofthepants.org.

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    Christine Howey

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  • Modernized Version of ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ at Great Lakes Theater Leaves You Wanting to Wake Up

    Modernized Version of ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ at Great Lakes Theater Leaves You Wanting to Wake Up

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    The cast of A Midsummer Night’s Dream

    If you were to listen to a recording of the current show at Great Lakes Theater, titled A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and you had never seen or listened to it before, you’d wonder what the big deal was about Shakespeare. You might think, why does everyone think old Will was such a great writer when the material you heard was only intermittently amusing, written in modern contemporary English with some old-fashioned stilted language stuck on like a plastic handlebar moustache.

    That’s because Shakespeare’s classic comedy gem has been translated (and ultimately transfigured) by Jeff Whitty (he wrote the book for Avenue Q), in partnership with the nonprofit group Play On Shakespeare. Evidently, the whining of people who “can’t understand Shakespeare” has birthed a cottage industry which seeks to unravel Mr. S’s complex and often confounding sentence structure.

    That is a noble effort in the abstract, but the result in this case feels like Shakespeare extruded through the old TV shows “Jackass” and “HeeHaw.” The original MND is a great story told in poetry while this version jettisons verse in favor of current word clusters such as “He’s a player.” and “What a makeover!” Those modern colloquialisms and references exist uneasily with patches of retained original verse; it’s like throwing a bowl full of marshmallows into a zesty, meaty stew.

    As directed by Sara Bruner, Whitty’s often flat and bland (but understandable!) language is accompanied by non-stop physical humor and slapstick, as if they’re trying to keep the attention of a roomful of four-year-olds. There’s also lots of one character pointing at another, so we tots don’t get confused about who the speaker is referring to.

    Allow me to interject at this point that there is plenty of laughter generated in this new Dream. Genuine, hearty belly laughs. But they aren’t laughing at the gentle (and sometimes not-so-gentle) wit of Shakespeare and his verbal constructions which, while daunting at times, can also please the mind and soul. They’re laughing at actors beating each other with colorful pool noodles as they climb and romp on the jungle gym set and adopt various funny character voices, some borrowed from SNL, to squeeze just one more easy cackle from the patrons.

    The basic MND story is there, under all the nursery school excess, with Lysander (Benjamin Michael Hall) and Demetrius (Domonique Champion) vying for the love of Helena (Royer Bokus) and Hermia (Ángela Utrera). Their romances are complicated by King of the Fairies Oberon (Derek Garza, doubling as Theseus), who sic’s his chief fairy Puck on the soon-to-be-pranked lovers.

    As Puck, Joe Wegner adopts many mannerisms of Michael Keaton in the “Beetlejuice” film franchise, just one of the many samplings of other characters and shows that are mixed into this fast-paced (and understandable!) exercise. In that regard, Nick Steen as Bottom and Jeffrey C. Hawkins as Quince also stand out.

    The scenic design by Courtney O’Neill is a slight elaboration of her design for Into the Woods, which is running in repertory. Plants made of pool noodles and the overlarge Christmas ornaments hung on the poles feel like crib decorations, continuing the production’s inadvertent theme of infantilization.

    Is the whole idea of modernizing Shakespeare by dumbing it down a good idea? We will withhold judgement until more examples are seen. But if someone thinks chess is too complicated, that’s fine. Play checkers. But don’t use the name chess and just simplify it so all the pieces only move one square in any direction. Some of us like a challenge, whether in a game or in language, and find it rewarding.

    Indeed, local theater companies such as the Cleveland Shakespeare Festival and the Ohio Shakespeare Festival regularly mount those old comedies as written (if somewhat shortened) with such style and verve the audiences laugh with no problems at all.

    By the way, in “Beetlejuice” you have to say his name twice to make him appear. And by the end of this MND adaptation, I was whispering “Shakespeare, Shakespeare” to myself. But no such luck.

    Midsummer Night’s Dream (a modern language adaptation)
    Through October 27 at Great Lakes Theater, Hanna Theatre, Playhouse Square, 2067 E. 14th Street, 216-241-6000, greatlakestheater.org.

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    Christine Howey

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  • Limited Touring Run of ‘Les Misérables’ at Playhouse Square is a Melodramatic Gusher

    Limited Touring Run of ‘Les Misérables’ at Playhouse Square is a Melodramatic Gusher

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    Les Misérables now at Playhouse Square

    One of the interesting things about seeing a play several (or more) times over the years is how it resonates with the changes you, or the country, or the world are going through.

    Take Les Misérables, which your intrepid critic has seen a minimum of nine times. It is based, of course, on the Victor Hugo novel, written more than 150 years ago, about a French peasant and his struggle for redemption, set against the Paris Uprising of 1832.

    And yet as you watch it once more at Playhouse Square where a superb touring company is in residence for only a few days, the mind shifts to current events and imminent decisions that could decide all our fates.

    As the story goes, Jean Valjean stole a loaf of bread to feed a starving child, served 19 years of hard labor, and breaks his parole to start a new life. But he is mistaken for another man, who is about to go on trial in his stead. Valjean confronts this situation in “Who Am I,” a song in which Nick Cartell deploys his powerful tenor voice to mull his dilemma: “If I speak, I am condemned/If I stay silent, I am damned.”

    While you mull his plight, your thoughts might drift to other situations in our current political climate where people who know the dangers posed by one particular presidential candidate but remain silent, on the sidelines.

    Cartell’s evocative singing voice in the lead role is well matched to the bass notes of Preston Truman Boyd, who plays Inspector Javert, Valjean’s OCD nemesis. Boyd not only sings low, he seems to scrape the ocean bottom when he delivers his two shattering solos: the hopeful (for him): “Stars” and much later his resigned “Soliloquy.”

    Serving as comedic counterpoint to the testosterone-drenched struggle between Valjean and Javert are the Thénardiers, the hoteliers from hell who “Charge ’em for the lice/Extra for the mice.” While Mr. and Mrs T are often portrayed as stout, overstuffed pigs, this version is a deliciously lean and mean pairing which, in the talented hands of Matt Crowle and Victoria Huston-Elem, generates plenty of laughter.

    The music (Claude-Michel Schönberg) and lyrics (Herbert Kretzmer) are performed splendidly under the musical direction of Will Curry, which is mandatory in this sung-through masterpiece. As Fantine, Haley Dortch nails the wistful “I Dreamed a Dream.”

    And Mya Rena Hunter owns the role of Eponine, the spoiled daughter of the Thénardiers who grows up to fall in unrequited love with Marius (Jake David Smith), one of the student revolutionaries. Their Act Two duet “A Little Fall of Rain” leaves nothing to be desired.

    Several years ago, the staging of this play was updated, using projections in combination with set pieces to seamlessly move the show from one venue to another. Some of the projections are static backdrops while others glide, forward and back along a street and then from street level down into the sewers of Paris. Those projections (Finn Ross and Fifty-Nine Productions) along with the lighting Paul Constable) set the mood in an instant.

    This is particularly true when the students are at the barricade when the jumble of chairs and tables is shot through with crisscrossing beams of light that create a visual tapestry of youthful exuberance and ultimately tragedy.

    Yes, under the direction of Lawrence Connor and James Powell, Les Miz is an unapologetic melodramatic gusher. But if you respond to great music and remarkable performances, you really should see it.

    Again? Certainly. As the Thénardiers sing in their concluding bleat “Beggars at the Feast:” “Life is easy pickings/If you grab your chance.”

    Les Misérables
    Through September 22 at Playhouse Square, Connor Palace Theater, 1615 Euclid Ave., playhousesquare.org, 216-241-6000.

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    Christine Howey

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  • ‘The Sunshine Boys’ Plods Along at the Beck Center

    ‘The Sunshine Boys’ Plods Along at the Beck Center

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    The Sunshine Boys at the Beck Center

    It’s strange how some comedy material from even a few years ago feels dated (ie. the standup routines of Andrew Dice Clay), while the comedies of Shakespeare and Molière continue to delight after centuries have passed.

    It’s not that the material itself has cruised past its sell-by date, it’s that the people in the audience have changed. This is particularly true with The Sunshine Boys, now at the Beck Center.

    This play that the stage comedy master Neil Simon wrote more than 50 years ago still has all the set-ups and punchlines in the right places. And many of them do generate some gentle chuckles.

    But despite the best efforts of the acting duo playing the title characters, the script indulges too many of Simon’s favorite writing mechanisms—the instant reversals and the running gags—that drag down the pace of the show. Indeed, these running gags seem more like slowly-shuffling gags, desperately wishing for a place to sit down.

    TSB is about two aging vaudevillians who have been asked to revive one of their sketches for a TV show about the history of comedy. Trouble is the two comics, Al Lewis (Rohn Thomas) and Willie Clark (Alan Safier), can’t stand each other and haven’t seen each other for 11 years.

    Written in 1972, the show seems an attempt by playwright Simon to recapture the lightning in a bottle that was ignited by his 1965 blockbuster, The Odd Couple. But instead of presenting characters who are polar opposites, such as Oscar and Felix, The Sunshine Boys gives us two codgers who are virtually carbon copies (remember them?) of each other.

    Willie and Al are both old, both quick with a put-down, and both delivering their lines with the same Borscht-belt ba-da-bum timing. All that’s missing are rim shots. This situation becomes a bit tiresome since the essence of comedy is surprise, an element that is mostly absent in this script.

    For the first 45 minutes we are warned by Willie and his nephew/theatrical agent Ben (Doug Sutherland) that the meeting with Al might be a disaster. Then, predictably, their meeting does occur and it devolves into lots of carping and kvetching for basically the rest of the play.

    This intentional non-chemistry between the two leads works up to a point. As directed by William Roudebush the familiar shtick is mildly amusing, largely because Safier and Thomas are talented actors and know their way around a gag line.

    But this is 2024 and we in the audience have had our comedy senses refined and restructured by plays, films and comedy specials that operate at a faster pace with an edgier tone.

    After intermission in this nearly 2½-hour production, we are taken to the TV show stage where Willie and Al are trying to get through their doctor sketch. But wait, you’ll never guess, they start arguing again. About the same things, using the same jibes and insults.

    That interlude also includes some crass woman-ogling bits which may titillate some while triggering a gag reflex in others.

    In sum, The Sunshine Boys is a slight and thinly amusing diversion if you don’t ask too much from your comedy offerings. Kind of like a sitcom you’ve seen five (or 25) times before.

    The Sunshine Boys
    Through October 6 at the Beck Center, 17801 Detroit Ave., Lakewood, beckcenter.org, 216-521-2540.

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    Christine Howey

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  • ‘Come From Away’ at Playhouse Square is Pure Hope and Heart

    ‘Come From Away’ at Playhouse Square is Pure Hope and Heart

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    Photo by Matthew Murphy for MurphyMade

    Surprise visitors can be a vexing subject. Consider the person who rings a stranger’s doorbell and is shot through the front door by a terrified homeowner.

    As standup comic Sebastian Maniscalco has shown in his hilarious bit, the appearance of an unexpected visitor at your home used to be cause for jubilation by most but is now viewed with suspicion or worse.

    Expand this idea to the size of a small Canadian province and you have Come From Away, the big-hearted, jocular and poignant musical, now at Playhouse Square for a brief stay.

    It all happens on 9/11 and the days following, after the horrific attack on the World Trade Center and other targets. All planes in or approaching U.S. airspace were ordered to land immediately at the nearest airport.

    That included many planes coming across the Atlantic that were diverted to emergency landings at the huge airport near the tiny town of Gander, Newfoundland. (The airport had been built for military purposes during World War II and used later as a trans-Atlantic refueling stop for commercial airlines).

    Initially, the passengers and crews were held on the planes, but as it became obvious they wouldn’t be leaving soon, they all were brought into the small terminal and eventually welcomed into the town itself.

    This unexpected visit of almost 7,000 strangers, equal to the population of Gander itself, was turned into a rousing musical (book, music and lyrics by Irene Sankoff and David Hein) that brings out the quirky humanity of this island. As they sing in the infectious opening number “Welcome to the Rock” Gander is “the farthest place you’ll get from Disneyland.”

    Gander may not have Mickey and Minnie, but it boasts a charming selection of local eccentrics who fling open their homes to the strangers who have been marooned on their little patch of land. As one resident says when encountering a visitor, “Welcome to Walmart! Do you want to come to my house to take a shower?”

    The songs range from securing the mundane necessities of life (“Blankets and Bedding”) to a drinking ritual (“Screech In”) that includes swallowing a shot of bad Jamaican rum and then kissing a cod on the lips.

    Along the way, we learn more about an accidental couple—Nick from England and Diane from Texas— who hook up against all odds, while a gay male couple, both named Kevin, soft-pedals their relationship until they realize they’re being welcomed, not judged.

    Sure, all this requires an industrial-size suspension of disbelief, but it’s all in the service of a feel-good show that never takes itself too seriously. It does touch on some small town prejudice involving a Moslem passenger, but all is well when they discover he’s a high-end chef (who is depressed by the local fish and cheese menu item).

    The 12-person ensemble cast, diverse in all aspects, is in fine form under the direction of Christopher Ashley. Their ultra-precise group singing and movements are sharp as they each switch roles in a blink, from townspeople to stranded passengers and crew members.

    Whether they’re sitting on a plane, riding in a school bus, or getting buzzed on booze in somebody’s basement the tone of acceptance and joy is never far off.

    It all concludes with a mini-concert featuring the eight-person band and accordians, whistles, Irish flutes, Bodhran drums, and Uilleann bagpipes in addition to the standard guitars and keyboard.

    Come From Away is a collection of music, laughs and joy all wrapped inside the tragedy of 9/11. While it never minimizes the sorrow of that day, it points out a way through it to a better place. Even if that place is a little rock in a big ocean.

    Come From Away
    LIMITED RUN—Through August 18 at the Playhouse Square, Connor Palace Theater, 1615 Euclid Ave., playhousesquare.org, 216-241-6000.

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    Christine Howey

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  • Well-Worn ‘Nunsense’ at Porthouse Theatre Doesn’t Quite Hit the Heavens

    Well-Worn ‘Nunsense’ at Porthouse Theatre Doesn’t Quite Hit the Heavens

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    Through July 13 at Porthouse Theatre

    In the vast world of musical comedies, there is one undeniable truism: The older the jokes are, the better the production must be. And many of the jokes in Nunsense, the clerical warhorse now at the Porthouse Theatre, were already old when it opened 40 years ago.

    But that doesn’t matter when the actors are inventive and talented enough to make the tunes feel fresh and the gags snappy. In short, the material created by Dan Goggin (book, music and lyrics) needs a lot of help for the show to achieve lift-off. But this Porthouse production doesn’t fully come alive until the last rousing gospel number.

    If you’re unfamiliar with Nunsense, suffice to say that the story revolves around a ghastly premise: The 52 nuns of The Little Sisters of Hoboken who met their Maker due to a vicious vichyssoise dish cooked up by a fellow sister. But their meager funds ran out before all the victims could be buried. So, the mortal remains of the last four departed sisters are still chilling in a freezer until the convent comes up with the money to bury them.

    The money-making scheme they choose is staging a variety show featuring the Mother Superior and four other sisters. This is when the actors and director are supposed to take over and turn Goggin’s mediocre material into magic.

    The performers in this version give it their all under the direction of Eric van Baars, but the vaudeville-act format, with each sister taking her turn in the spotlight, means that every scene essentially starts over as we meet the different sisters and learn of their talents and peculiar challenges. While each of the performers has a shining moment or two, the whole enterprise never coalesces and builds the momentum necessary to let the laughs flow as they might.

    As Sister Mary Regina, the Mother Superior, Sandra Ross conveys a certain kind of lithe authority. But she plays too many early moments for giggles, undercutting the later scene when she accidentally takes a whiff of a substance that makes her high and giddy. As a result, the contrast isn’t as sharp as it should be, lessening the hilarity of this signature moment.

    Her sidekick Sister Mary Hubert, Mistress of Novices, is handled by Colleen Longshaw Jackson, who brings down the house with that climactic stem-winder, “Holier Than Thou,” the best tune in a remarkably undistinguished song list. But up till then, the relationship between Regina and Hubert never comes into focus so their duet, “Just a Coupla Sisters,” lacks the heft it seeks.

    The other three sisters each have their own shtick. Sister Mary Leo wants to be the first nun/ballerina, and Becca Bailey has some lovely moments in her toe shoes. But the playwright never bothers to make much of her dream. Sister Mary Amnesia (Lara Troyer) just wants to remember her name. The role is clearly constructed to be amusing and poignant, but director van Baars doesn’t maximize its comedic potential. Overall, not enough risks are taken to flesh out these thin characterizations.

    The most successful sister in this saintly ‘hood is Theresa Hall, who grabs her character Sister Robert Anne by the scruff of her neck and shakes it till laughs fall out. And while all sing well, Hall has the chops to give her songs, such as “I Just Want to be a Star,” that musical comedy zhuzh.

    Since its inception, Nunsense has birthed a lot of laughs along with six sequels and three spin-offs, proving its enduring popularity. But this iteration leaves too many small stage moments unattended to keep this quintet of nuns flying high.

    Nunsense
    Through July 13 at Porthouse Theatre, Blossom Music Center Campus, 3143 O’Neil Road, Cuyahoga Falls, OH 44223, 330-672-3884, kent.edu/porthouse

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    Christine Howey

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  • In the Wake of Several High-Profile Tours, Comedian Dave Hill Brings His Standup Show to the Winchester

    In the Wake of Several High-Profile Tours, Comedian Dave Hill Brings His Standup Show to the Winchester

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    A Cleveland native who’s a comedian, writer and rocker, Dave Hill has somehow managed a multi-faceted career. He’s written humor books with witty titles such as The Awesome Game. One Man’s Incredible, Globe-Crushing Hockey Odyssey and released albums with his terrific indie rock band Valley Lodge. He’s done some acting, and he’s taken his standup show on the road.

    In this email exchange, Dave Hill, who brings his standup show to the Winchester Music Tavern in Lakewood at 8 p.m. on Saturday, July 13, talks about some of his latest projects and what it was like to recently open for the wildly popular satirical rock act Tenacious D.

    Just the other day, I saw someone here wearing a Dangerous Snakes Who Hate Bullshit T-shirt. What’s it like knowing you have gang members here in Cleveland?
    It feels great. I started the Dangerous Snakes Who Hate Bullshit, one of the most dangerous street gangs on Earth as far as I and several other people are concerned, about a dozen years ago when I was home visiting my dad one Christmas in University Heights, a tough town if there ever was one. Back then, it was just about survival and making sure no one messed with me outside of Pizzazz, but the the gang has been growing ever since. There are now members on every continent except for Antarctica. But it’s really hard selling T-shirts in Antarctica. That’s been our biggest hurdle as a street gang so far, I think, since Antarctica is mostly penguins. But it feels good knowing the Dangerous Snakes Who Hate Bullshit are pretty much running Fairmount Circle, the shopping center down the street from where I grew up, at this point.

    You were recently a guest on the game show After Midnight. I think you finished in last place. Talk about what it was like to appear on the program.
    I did “lose” on After Midnight, but the savvy viewer knows that it was a strategic move since they give you some extra screen time to talk about losing and its effect on your mental state and general sense of self. But I had a lovely time on the show. I got to see a lot of friends and I got my hair and makeup done and they gave me a lot of snacks in my dressing home, some of which I still have in my suitcase weeks later. I can’t wait to go on the program again for all of those reasons. It’s probably the closest I’ll ever come to living my Charles Nelson Reilly dreams.

    If you could take back one answer, which one would it be and why?
    I made a reference to jack boots while responding to something that somehow worked Designer Shoe Warehouse and Mussolini into the same sentence. It felt like a home run to me, but it seemed like the majority of the in-studio audience didn’t have a strong working knowledge of WWII Axis powers footwear. I blame our schools.

    You opened for Michael Shannon and Jason Narducy on their tour that paid tribute to R.E.M.’s Murmur. How would you describe the typical R.E.M. fan’s sense of humor?
    That tour was a blast. All four of the R.E.M. guys came out to the Athens show at the 40 Watt and afterward we had a pizza party with the two bands, me, and a handful of other people, including the actor Ansel Elgort, who starred in one of my favorite new TV shows, Tokyo Vice. He was really nice and also taller than expected. And Michael Stipe gave me some solid NYC bakery recommendations since we both live there. Anyway, if someone would have told me back in high school that I’d go to a pizza party with R.E.M., I would have laughed in their face. But I’m not laughing now. Not by a long shot. Wait — what was the question? Oh yeah, I think the typical R.E.M. fan has a great sense of humor, at least based on that tour. They were “up for it” as we say in the business. And Michael, Jason, and the rest of the guys in the band killed it every night.

    You’ve been on the road with Tenacious D. I would think that you were a hard act for them to follow. How well did Jack and Kyle do?
    Yes, I just finished my second tour opening for them. This time, it was Dublin and the UK, and it was insane, sold out arenas every night. I would be in a panic for about two hours before each show, thinking I should have listened to my parents and gotten a “proper” job, but I felt great once I got out there. Anyway, as you suggested, I am a very hard act to follow, maybe the hardest in all of show business now that Tina Turner has left us, but Jack and Kyle and their band are the greatest so, once the fog from my fog machine had cleared, they had no problem establishing their dominance. The arena would be practically shaking from the sound of the whole crowd singing along to every word of every song they played. Take that, Taylor Swift! Tenacious D are also the nicest guys on Earth. And while we didn’t have any pizza parties on the tour, we got Indian food on a night off in Birmingham that was probably the best Indian food I’ve ever had in my life. I realize this has nothing to do with the question, but I still feel it was important to mention. Also, I had the aloo gobi but if I tried to tell you I didn’t sample any of the rogan josh I would be lying.

    Valley Lodge just put out a new album. Are there any candidates on the album that could replace “Go” as the opening tune on Last Week Tonight with John Oliver?
    I hope no song ever replaces “Go” as the opening tune on Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, but I’d say “Daylights,” the first song on our new album, would be a contender. I never write music with the idea that someone might use it for their TV show, but once we finished that one, I started hoping someone with a new TV show might hear it and give us a ring.

    If Jeff Lynne hears “Secret Lover,” I think he’ll be super jelly and wish he wrote the tune. Do you agree?
    Thank you. I like that song a lot. I don’t know if it’s good enough to make Jeff Lynne jelly, but I’d be psyched if he somehow heard it one day, and it gave him a sense of well-being. Also, one of my buddies and all-time favorite musicians, Happy Chichester from Royal Crescent Mob, plays keyboards and does some hot vocals on that one, which makes it extra special for me. Being able to collaborate with my heroes is my favorite thing that happens in show business aside from the free snacks.

    For your last book, you went on a quest to discover why hockey is so awesome. Recount some of the trials and tribulations you experienced in writing that book.
    My last book, The Awesome Game: One Man’s Incredible, Globe-Crushing Hockey Odyssey, in case anyone wants to buy it immediately, was a challenge in that I wanted to write a book for people that love hockey like me but also for people who have zero interest in sports, which is also me with the exception of hockey. I started writing it during the pandemic and, once things opened up a bit, was able to travel a bit for the book. The first place I visited was Katowice, Poland, where my sister-in-law’s cousin’s son was playing pro hockey. The games there were the craziest sporting events I’d ever seen. Imagine crazed soccer hooligans but at a hockey game. I felt like I might get my ass kicked the whole time but I really appreciated their hockey enthusiasm. I also got accosted by police for jaywalking almost immediately once I got to Poland. They take pedestrian traffic seriously over there. I almost went to prison. I also went to Nairobi to play hockey with the Kenya Ice Lions, the only hockey team in all of Kenya, for the book. I assumed, what with me being a 1/4 Canadian and all, that I would destroy them at the game, but I was very wrong. While I was there, I saw a baboon steal loaf of bread from a bunch of school children, and it was maybe the greatest thing I have ever witnessed in this life.

    What kinds of ideas do you have for your next book?
    At the moment, I’m writing a comic book series for Oni Press, which is exciting as it’s totally new for me. That should hopefully be out next year. And then, I’m very slowly also working on a novel, which will hopefully be my next book that would hurt if it hit you in the head. I hope that doesn’t happen. I just mean it will be a long hardcover edition.

    What will your upcoming show at the Winchester be like?
    I’m excited to come to the Winchester. I’ve performed there before, but I’ve never done a full solo show there, so that will be fun. The show will feature some jokes, stories, some sweet guitar solos and at least a couple ill-advised feats of strength. I’m hoping Westsiders who haven’t had a chance to see me before all come out. And if they don’t, I will turf their lawns. In fact, I’m getting a rental car for this very purpose. Consider yourselves warned, Westsiders!

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    Jeff Niesel

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  • ‘Back to the Future: The Musical’ Will Mainly Make You Want to Watch the Movie Instead

    ‘Back to the Future: The Musical’ Will Mainly Make You Want to Watch the Movie Instead

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    Photo by Matthew Murphy and Evan Zimmerman

    Through July 7 at Playhouse Square

    Backwards time travel always fascinates we mortals, stuck as we are in the present where nothing seems to be going right. In this Presidential Election year, many Democrats want to go back a few years to the days when Obama strolled the halls of the White house while a huge chunk of Republicans want to flash back a couple centuries to when women and minorities “knew their place.”

    In balmy 1985, the film Back to the Future dazzled us with a time jaunt back to 1955 when high-schooler Marty McFly and his Delorean met his parents when they were teenagers too and, you know, hilarity ensued.

    The stage version of that uber-popular flick—Back to the Future, the Musical—is now making a tour stop at Playhouse Square, and while the staging effects are spectacular enough to buckle your knees (even while sitting) the rest of the play often falls short on a few scores.

    Aside from the cute premise, the engine that powered the original BTTF flick was a trio of performances: Michael J. Fox as Marty; Crispin Glover as his twitchy, pathologically passive dad George; and Christopher Lloyd as the genius inventor and professional wackadoodle Doc Brown. Those three actors kept the story compelling, and the laughs followed.

    In this stage iteration directed by John Rando, Caden Brauch plays Marty as if he’s a minor character who surprisingly found himself with a lot of lines to read. His stage presence is minimal, and his singing and acting are no more than okay. But what’s missing is the goofy charm that makes his character relatable. When he finds himself in the bedroom of high schooler Lorraine (Zan Berube), the exquisite strangeness of a teen being hit on by his own mom, now young as himself, is not played to maximum effect.

    As for dad George, Burke Swanson takes Glover’s quirky physical mannerisms and turns them into a bizarre series of gyrations that are less amusing than they are curious and a bit troubling. Instead of doing his own interpretation of George, Swanson opts for a highly exaggerated and therefore pale imitation.

    Don Stephenson pays homage to Lloyd’s manic masterpiece in the juicy role of Doc Brown, but he is an agile enough performer to make many moments and laughs all his own.

    These actors and the large ensemble are not helped by the score and lyrics, which seem to have been crafted by Alan Silvestri and Glen Ballard while wearing oven mitts. The music is uninspired, and the lyrics are often circular and confusing (ie. In the song “Future Boy:” “Future boy/I’m no future boy/’Cause I think I’m here to stay/What’s the future for/If I don’t get more than today?/I’m no future boy”). The one excellent song is “The Power of Love,” written by Huey Lewis and the News for the film soundtrack.

    There is also a lame subplot featuring Cartreze Tucker as a Black man who also dreams of the future, but despite Tucker’s best efforts it feels tacked on. Even the show “villain,” in the form of town bully Biff (Ethan Rogers), seems like he’s been borrowed from a thousand other scripts and performances.

    Still, the production is damn near saved by the video effects (designer Finn Ross) which are blended with Gareth Owen’s sound and the lighting design by Tim Lutkin and Hugh Vanstone to make the full-size Delorean sports car leap to life. The sequence when Doc Brown is climbing a video staircase (!) to the top of the clocktower while Marty floors the car to make his escape back to present-day time is a sure-fire Broadway boner and receives its own well-deserved ovation.

    If the rest of the production displayed that level of theatrical invention, this would be a show to remember. As it is, it only makes us want to go back to the past for another viewing of the original film.

    Back to the Future, the Musical
    Through July 7 at Playhouse Square, KeyBank State Theater, 1615 Euclid Ave., playhousesquare.org, 216-241-6000.

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    Christine Howey

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  • ‘The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee’ at Cain Park is Filled With Lovably Clumsy Characters

    ‘The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee’ at Cain Park is Filled With Lovably Clumsy Characters

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    Photo credit: Every Angle Photography

    Through June 9 at Cain Park

    There are some shows in the huge and groaning anthology of stage musicals that are simply impervious to critical comment. Because no matter how bad some or all of the performers are, and no matter how ham-handed the direction, something like The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee will always be saved by the Tony Award-winning book by Rachel Sheinkin.

    The entire two-act play is basically a spelling bee in which a gaggle of snot-nosed (literally) middle-schoolers fence with letters to spell unpronounceable words. Happily, in this Cain Park version which I saw at a preview performance, the direction by Patrick Ciamacco was energetic and the characters were all sufficiently dweeby as they fought off family issues, physical complications, and in one case a rogue boner to nab the championship.

    There are six finalists in the competition, a lineup which is temporarily enlarged at every performance with four volunteer audience members selected beforehand, each of whom are quickly dispatched. After that, the play mostly consists of the usual spelling bee mechanics.

    Vice-Principal Douglas Panch (Brian Altman) says each spelling word while gazing longingly at his alluring assistant Rona Lisa Peretti (Bridie Carroll), a former spelling bee champ—BTW, that’s not the stiffy in question. The contestants ask questions about the word, then they spell. If they hear the dreaded ding of a bell, they are comforted and ushered off the stage by a terrifying ex-con named Mitch (Geoffrey Short, who sings as well as he glowers), who is doing the gig as part of his mandatory community service.

    If you question how many laughs could be generated by a play featuring a geeky middle-school spelling bee, the answer is a ton. Each time the spellers are introduced, and every time the participants ask for their spelling word to be defined or used in a sentence, Sheinkin nails a laugh line you don’t see coming. After providing the definition of the word cystitis as a bladder infection, Panch offers the helpful sentence usage: “Susie’s mother said it was her cystitis that made her special.”

    The student contestants each have their entertaining moments. The adorable son of hippies named Leaf Coneybear (Andres Martinez) falls into a trance when spelling his words while Logainne SchwartzandGrubenierre (a sparky Sophia Ruiz), the daughter of a hyphen-rejecting gay male couple, lisps juicily through her spelling challenges.

    As the spookily efficient spelling machine Marcy Park, Kayla Petersen not only nails her letters but also fashions a loose-limbed dance in her song “I Speak Six Languages,” a number that falls just short of being a showstopper. And Gabriel J. Hill turns boy scout Chip Tolentino from an uber-confident spelling jock to a quivering lump of embarrassment when his Trouser Weasel decides to rise to the occasion.

    The show tries to reach for some real emotion when William Barfee (a perpetually tormented and contorted Seth Crawford) and Olive Ostrovsky (Kate Day Magocsi, who has a killer singing voice) fall in spelling bee love. But as good as they are individually, the attempted bee-utiful pairing falls flat.

    Even though the show’s one-joke format begins to feel exhausted in the second act, Bee is held together by Altman and Carroll. The former offers a richly amusing deadpan delivery of his lines and the latter gets consistent laughs with her fractured mini-profiles of the students.

    While the music and lyrics by William Finn are serviceable, the engine of this Bee is in the sting of Sheinkin’s timeless gags. Long may this clumsily titled show with these lovably clumsy characters live, spell and prosper.

    The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee
    Through June 9 at Cain Park. 14591 Superior Road between Taylor Road and Lee Road in Cleveland Heights, 216-371-3000, www.cainpark.com.

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    Christine Howey

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  • Goofy Gore and an Odd Ending in ‘A Behanding in Spokane’ at Blank Canvas Theatre

    Goofy Gore and an Odd Ending in ‘A Behanding in Spokane’ at Blank Canvas Theatre

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    A Behanding in Spokane, through June 8

    Usually, when the centerpiece of a show involves a motel room where a full can of gas with a lighted candle stuck in the spout illuminates a floor littered with chopped-off hands, you’d think something interesting might be going on.

    And you’d mostly be right during the goofily gory A Behanding in Spokane by playwright Martin McDonagh. This production at Blank Canvas Theatre, under the direction of Andrew Keller, brings out the cringe-inducing features of this script while managing to create a couple characters who, if you look past their scuzzy personas, are worth encountering.

    The motel room is rented by scumbag Carmichael (Keith Kornacjik), who is missing his left hand. Turns out, he was relieved of it a few years before by a gang of rednecks who held his arm on railroad tracks as a choo-choo came by. And to rub it in, they waved goodbye to the screaming Carmichael with his own hand.

    Ever since, he’s been on the hunt for his displaced digits, placing ads offering a $500 reward for such information. But so far, he’s only come up with jack-offs trying to nab the loot by passing off counterfeit amputated hands as Carmichael’s, including a couple kids’ hands. And he carries those hands with him, stuffed into a briefcase.

    Did I mention this is a dark comedy? These kinds of monstrous doings are the stock in trade for McDonagh, and the four characters he creates are of a piece. Also occupying the room are Marilyn (Jillian Mesaros) and her Black boyfriend Toby (Christian “CJ” Hall), the guy Carmichael shot at. At time, the front desk guy Mervyn shows up to check on suspicious activities.

    Toby and Marilyn, who are lovers, are the latest two-bit con artists trying to fool Carmichael and that’s where this one-act hits the skids a bit. They are working against a difficult obstacle since the actor who was cast to play Toby had to leave the production a day before opening.

    As a result, at this performance Hall was working with book in hand, which limited his ability to create a believable character. To his credit, Hall fashioned some agile line readings and kept the pace of the show moving, but the vaccuum where his full character should have been affected not just his performance but all the other actors and the piece as a whole.

    That said, Kornajcik establishes Carmichael as the surly sort you cross the street to avoid, and Mesaros trembles and rages with style in her spot-on portrayal of Marilyn.

    Good as they are, the show is almost stolen by Daniel Telford as the spacey front-desk drone Mervyn. In addition to his verbal fencing with Carmichael, he launches into a borderless diatribe about monkeys which he manages to make almost sensible in a thoroughly nonsensical way.

    Trouble is, playwright McDonagh creates a comical standoff he doesn’t quite finish, so the play meanders to an odd ending that isn’t consistent with what’s gone before. Perhaps it proves that it’s hard to top a play that starts with a gas can bomb and a collection of loose hands.

    In any case, it’s an interesting piece that will only get better, one assumes, as performer Hall gets his feet under him.

    A Behanding in Spokane
    Through June 8 at Blank Canvas Theatre, 78th Street Studios, 1305 West 78th St., Suite 211, 440-941-0458, blankcanvastheatre.com.

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    Christine Howey

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  • ‘Stomp’ Gives the Audience What it Wants at Playhouse Square

    ‘Stomp’ Gives the Audience What it Wants at Playhouse Square

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    Courtesy Photo

    Stomp, through April 21

    It’s not hard to understand why we all appreciate rhythmical music with a strong percussive element. After all, we were born with a drumbeat in our chest that plays nonstop every day of our lives and when it stops, we do. That’s one way to get your attention.

    Another way is to attend Stomp, the percussion-palooza now visiting Playhouse Square for the umpty-umpth time since it opened on Broadway in 1994. This brilliant re-imagining (or rediscovery) of the quotidian sounds that occupy our world has been dazzling audiences with its explosive dance moves and its wry sense of humor.

    The question is whether almost two uninterrupted hours of watching people bang, strum, squeeze, toss, shove and yes, stomp various ordinary household and industrial objects amounts to theatrical satisfaction. Clearly, there are plenty of Stomp addicts out there and for them, this show is catnip accented with a microscopic dose of meth.

    For the unindoctrinated, Stomp romps on a street-wise set abloom with raw partial walls and a panorama of worn hubcaps and other detritus mounted above a second-level platform. This is where the performers, who never speak, pound on and abuse all manner of things, starting with push brooms and moving on to rubber tubes, crashing shopping carts (Heinen’s family, hide your eyes), water-filled kitchen sinks (with an added pissing gag), garbage cans with lids, newspapers (!), and large rubber rafts.

    This performance answers several burning questions, such as how you can generate an ensemble musical piece out of plastic bags of various sizes. Or what you can do with hard-sided rolling luggage when you’re not travelling. Or how you can use empty metal barrels as DIY stilts.

    The basic forms of rhythm-making for the hard-working eight-person cast (at this performance: Micah Cowher, Jose Filgueira, Declan Hayden, Cary Lamb Jr., John Gavin, Cade Slattery, Tami, and Madeline Jafari) are their hands and feet, which they clap and (sorry) stomp throughout the piece. During this time, there’s an extended portion of audience participation as patrons are invited to echo the different clapping sequences. That bit is charming at first but, for those who are not dyed-in-the-wool Stomp geeks, it becomes less so after the 5th iteration.

    The same is true for the comedy relief (similar to the Blue Man Group), which is mostly handled by a tall guy with wispy hair. He presents as a put-upon schlemiel and his shtick is cute early, but Charlie Chaplin he ain’t and it gets tired after the 10th time he poses coyly with a section of drainpipe.

    Of course, none of that matters to the card-carrying Stomp fans in the audience, and that is as it should be. This is an extravaganza of odd and funny noises that often replicate jazz and other musical genres. They know their audience and give ’em what they want. And that is, in the immortal words of Christopher Walken in the renowned SNL skit, “More cowbell!”

    If you haven’t experienced Stomp, the only way you’ll know if you’re a Stomp-aniac is to give it a try. Who knows, it may lead you to entirely new and fulfilling relationship with your kitchen sink.

    Stomp
    Through April 21 at Playhouse Square, Connor Palace Theater, 1615 Euclid Ave., playhousesquare.org, 216-241-6000.

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    Christine Howey

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