Mar 31, 2008
TOUCH YOU, BRANDON CUTRELL!!
The nominees for the 22nd Annual MAC Awards – that’s Manhattan Association of Cabarets and Clubs -- have been announced, honoring excellence in New York City cabaret, comedy and jazz – and CCM grad, past MAC winner and our favorite cabaret performer Brandon Cutrell has scored THREE nominations, for male vocalist, for his weekly gig The After-Party and for his new self-named CD, “Brandon Cutrell.” The awards ceremony is May 6, send the love to Cutrell at brandoncutrell.com and give a listen at his MySpace page. Jackie Demaline
WHERE IN THE WORLD IS KATE ROCKWELL?
Kate Rockwell has been plenty busy since she was a finalist last year on “Grease”-y TV reality show “You’re the One That I Want.” She’s about to make her Broadway debut, starting rehearsals in April for “Legally Blonde.” She plays Elle Woods gal pal Margo. Jackie Demaline
WHERE IN THE WORLD IS LEE ROY?
Tonight find Broadway veteran and Northern Kentucky’s own Lee Roy Reams on stage in NYC, in a panel discussion remembering late director-choreographer Gower Champion for Dancers Over 40. Reams, fresh back from the recently shuttered Vegas edition of “The Producers,” worked for Champion in “Hello, Dolly!” and “42 nd Street.” For more information visit www.dancersover40.org. Jackie Demaline
Mar 29, 2008
SAY SO-LONG TO CCM'S SOON-TO-BE-FAMOUS DRAMA AND MUSICAL THEATRE (CLASS OF 2008)
This coming week is time to wish a fond farewell to CCM graduating seniors. Drama and Musical Theatre will both preview the senior (audition) showcases they’ll take on the road to New York (with Drama continuing on to El-lay.) Want to see what the industry pros see? You can – for free. Details at the end of the blog entry. Drama starts things off on Wednesday, with 2 and 7 p.m. shows. The evening performance includes the 2008 Dolly Awards (named for CCM philanthropist Dolly Cohen). Aaron Serotsky (class of ’97) wins the Julia Winter Cohen Career Excellence Award, but since he’s in NYC hard at work on “August: Osage County” (covering two roles) the award will be taken to NYC, where the 2008 grads will see the show and get a backstage tour the day before they perform for New York agents and producers on April 7. This year’s terrific class includes talent who have performed memorably at Know, New Edgecliff, Cincinnati Fringe and New Stage Collective as well as on their home stage, including (alphabetically): Brandon Burton (who stepped into New Stage’s “Take Me Out” at the 11th hour); Lauren Carter (tiny but mighty); Adrienne Clark (a knock-out for CCM and Satori Group); Nathan Elam; Adrien Elliott; Jacob Jones; Joy Lanceta; Ian Lokey; Kyle Nunn; Mikhail Roberts (loved him in “Charley’s Aunt” on campus, among his many off-campus roles were “Thrill Me” at Know and “Radiant Baby” at New Stage); and Sarah Stephens. Musical Theatre takes the stage Thursday-Saturday with the annual “Not Famous Yet” showcase before performing on April 10 at NYC’s Westside Theater. Applause to: Christy Altomare, Preston Truman Boyd, Kyle Brown, Julie Conuel, Alexa Green, Sarah Jay, Ashley Landroche, Alessa Neeck, Max Quinlan, Natalie Reder, Sara Sheperd, Lynette Toomey, Danny Visconti, Mitchell Walker and Christopher Williams. We knew them when. The showcases are open to the general public except for Thursday, which is a gala fundraiser. Musical theater grad Ashley Brown, (a.k.a. Mary Poppins on Broadway) will stop by to pick up the department’s 2008 Distinguished Alumni Award. (Tickets $75, check availability by calling 513-556-5000.) You can order free showcase tickets beginning NOON MONDAY at the CCM box office, 513-556-4183. This is traditionally a hot ticket, so don’t dawdle in making a rez. Jackie Demaline
Mar 28, 2008
FRINGE SKED -- WHAT'S IN AND OUT
Cincinnati Fringe Festival is already making some changes since the 2008 edition was announced last week – hey, it’s Fringe. OUT: the original musical “Landlord” led by Constance Brenneman. I’m told she has a very nice offer that precludes the project. More on that to come. Jen Spillane also had to bow out of her annual solo entry. IN: Fringe vet Matt Slaybaugh (three appearances on his resume) and Available Light Theatre from Columbus return with “then after water,” described as “a violent love story inspired by real events.” Columbus Dispatch called the “haiku-like performance” “one of the year’s best. Lyrical Insurrection, Hip Hop Congress and Eagle to Squirrel collaborate on “SoulVerses,” a 90-minute “blend of hip hop, spoken word, poetry and motion.” Busy Ed Cohen, fresh off directing gigs at NKU and CCM Drama and partnering on the opening Madison Arts Center, revives IF Theatre Collective with a world premiere of “The Hotel Plays: 3 Plays by Israel Horowitz.” (Cincy Fringe will be the first time the plays are presented as a program.) Cohen struck up an acquaintance with the honored American playwright when he direted the admired “Lebensraum” a few season back. Horowitz is letting Cohen bundle three short plays about quirky love and relationships centered around a hotel room and restaurant. Fringe producer Eric Vosmeier says the Fringe schedule will be announced in late April. Jackie Demaline
STANDING "O" TO XAVIER'S MUSKETEERS
Whupping Bob Huggins & Co. in OVERTIME??? That’s entertainment! BRAVO, MUSKETEERS!!! Jackie D.
Mar 27, 2008
YOU MAY AS WELL LAUGH
Local playwright Bridget Ossmann gets her first (workshop) production of “Teachers Left Behind,” a comedy with music about the state of education in America (“or: you may as well laugh about it’) tonight through Sunday at Miami University Hamilton. “Teachers,” says director Bekka Eaton, “deals with state testing, No Child Left Behind, funding curriculum, parents, administrators and, of course, students,” as seen through the eyes of meddlesome retiring teacher Virginia Budge. Ossmann, Eaton continues, took a playwriting course through Fairfield Community Arts Center after she had been gathering raw material for some years. “It has had several incarnations. First it was envisioned as a book, then stand-up and or/a one-woman play. Upon taking Pat Davis’ course, it turned into a multi-character full-length play with music. (The playwright was a professional musician as well as a teacher for many years.)
“I attended the reading of Bridget’s play given at the FCAC months ago. During the reading itself, I was struck by how much everyone laughed. Not an easy task to pull off in a reading. “During the talk-back session, in my capacity as director/professor, I was impressed by the passionate and thoughtful response the play engendered. The play packs a pretty big wallop regarding education and the insanity surrounding it in this country. It will step on a few toes, to be sure, but hopefully tickle them at the same time. “Further, I had been looking for an opportunity to work with a Fairfield theatre group. (Part of our mission/vision statement involves an emphasis on community engagement.) On top of that, I was in the market for a comedy for our spring production.
The cast, production team, crew and band are a mixture of community members, kids and Miami students. It is going to be a hoot.
Meanwhile, the playwright is also my sister.” There’s a reception and talk-back after the March 28 performance. For reservations and information call 513-529-3200 or www.tickets.muohio.edu. Warning: strong language. Read more about Virginia Budge at myspace.com/virginiabudge. Jackie Demaline
Mar 26, 2008
"LA MANCHA" CLOSES COVEDALE SEASON
Starting April 14, the Covedale Center for the Performing Arts will be getting new “sidewalks,” says artistic director Tim Perrino. “But they’re not just sidewalks. It will be a strikingly designed entryway that utilizes pavers, stamped and dyed concrete and colors from the building incorporated into the look. “This is the result of a Neighborhood Business District Improvement grant that is administered by the City of Cincinnati using Federal dollars.” But first – Covedale 2007-2008 closer “Man of La Mancha” opens Thursday and continues through April 13. Cast includes (in alphabetical order): Joseph Jones (Cervantes/Don Quixote), Bob Brunner (Sancho Panza), Chris Wyllie (Governor/Innkeeper), Mark Helphinstine (Duke/Dr. Carrasco) and Michelle Wells (Aldonza). Putting on his showboat captain’s hat, Perrino reports with the Ohio River back at a manageable level, work re-commences aboard Showboat Majestic, where there’s going to have to be some scurrying to get all the spiffing up (including risers beneath theater seats to relieve aching knees) for the summer season -- #85! -- opening in May with “Always, Patsy Cline.” Jackie Demaline
Mar 25, 2008
JOHN, JOHNNY, JUKEBOX -- HERE THEY COME
It’s jukebox musical time in Greater Cincinnati. “Almost Heaven: Songs of John Denver” makes a two-night stop at the Carnegie on Wednesday and Thursday. The “Rocky Mountain High” bio/revue is sung by a five-person cast “against a backdrop of stunning visual images Of America in the ‘60s and ‘70s,” which sounds like it means a slide show of Colorado and Haight-Ashbury… Call the box office at 859-957-1940. Denver’s 29 songs are out-stripped by 38 by Johnny Cash in a one-night whistle-stop at the Aronoff of “Ring of Fire” on April 5. Casting guy Mark Minnick says the show starts out loosely following his life (early years, wooing June Carter, prison then goes into pure concert mode.) Nobody, says Minnick, sounding moderately horrified, impersonates “The Man in Black.” Four men and four women sing the songs, backed by eight onstage musicians. Just about everybody hails from Nashville, Minnick adds, so the show sounds like authentic country, not Broadway. Call the box office at 513-621-2787 Jackie Demaline
Mar 24, 2008
HUMANA FEST REPORT
I’m fresh back from 12 hours of new play-going at the annual Humana Festival of New American Plays at Actors Theatre of Louisville (10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday). I’ll start with a few observations: - I caught all or part of five of six main stage entries and it’s a good year. I didn’t see one total clunker – even if a play wasn’t stellar, the idea that drove it was worth exploring. And, really, that’s what a festival is about.
- If you wanted to identify a theme, it would be youth. Lee Blessings’ “Great Falls” is centered on a relationship between an ex-stepfather and his estranged teenaged stepdaughter; “the break/s” is a hip-hop bio that explores the love of Marc Bamuthi Joseph, who writes and performs; “Neighborhood 3: Requisition of Doom” attempts to meld theater with video game.
- It has been suggested that The Civilians’ “This Beautiful City,” all about the evangelical movement in Colorado Springs, will be the breakout hit from Humana, but my vote is for Gina (“After Ashley) Gionfriddo’s shuddery black comedy “Becky Shaw.”
- When Playhouse in the Park starts seriously designing a theater, it should consider including standing room. Actors Theatre does this cool thing with $20 use-anytime standing room tickets, and a free standing room option. The $20 tickets are given prioriyy. For the matinee of “Becky Shaw” that I attended, everyone was seated. Being broke, I opted for the free ticket, and I got a seat, too. The free option seems to be taken advantage mostly by college students. Love it.
On to capsule reviews: “Becky Shaw” – I’ve been a fan-fan-fan of Gionfriddo for a while. A product of Brown University’s legendary playwriting program, she’s employed by “Law & Order.” (Watch for her credits.) I liked her blisteringly funny, media-directed rage in “After Ashley,” which premiered at Humana in 2004. (It was done locally by Know Theatre last year, although they softened it up.) “Ashley” kind of fell apart, but Gionfriddo gave us plenty to think about. The title character in “Becky Shaw” is an emotional vampire disguised as a joke. Interestingly, it’s more of a horror story than fellow Brownie Jennifer Haley’s purposeful terrors of “Neighborhood 3.” “Becky Shaw” is laugh-out-loud nasty funny in its tale of deeply, madly flawed people and particularly of a couple who, in another playwright’s hands, would be at the center of a romantic comedy but you know they’re not going to have that good luck here. The play is a satisfactory exploration of toxic relationships and how we end up in them. As long as I’ve mentioned Haley, I’ll move on toe “Neighborhood 3.” Haley was a favorite of Women’s Theatre Initiative, when it was functioning a few years back, and we got a look at her intriguing “Dreampuffs of War” and “The Butcher’s Daughter.” “Neighborhood 3” is heavy-handed: kids don’t talk to parents, parents don’t want to know the worst stuff about their kids and suddenly you have Columbine – or a murderous rampage on a suburban cul-de-sac, where nobody can tell the difference between the game and reality (if there is any) but there are monsters out there that Must Be Destroyed. “Neighborhood 3” was presented in ATL’s tiny Victor Jory Theatre, and the production design amounted to basic black – a floor that suggested it would have reflective qualities, a rear wall entirely of diamond hard angles. It would have been intriguing to see a mutli-media production that took advantage of Haley’s concept, that global positioning puts the action where the kids live, and that would have brought the audience into play. Haley’s points would still be – so what else is new? – but creating some suggestion of the game would have a visceral punch. “This Beautiful City” is a musical built on interviews with the folks of Colorado Springs, which, over the years, has become the unofficial headquarters of the American evangelical movement, home to the New Life Church and Focus on the Family. Topical? You’d better believe it, especially as “This Beautiful City” considers how the evangelicals interact with the area’s strong military presence, to say nothing of the more moderate townspeople, and the fall from grace of New Life pastor Ted Haggard. But the music is a yawn and the script is much too long. Less would be much more. Lee Blessing’s ambiguous “Great Falls” is about a road trip across the Badlands (and along the route of Lewis and Clark), about a middle-aged guy who wants to re-connect with the step-kids he lost when he divorced their mother. He starts with the girl who’s about to turn 18. Every one of us in the audience brings our own stuff into the theater with us, and it may just be that this well-crafted play turned me off because I have the sneaky feeling Blessing thinks his guy, if not a hero, is at least average, and simply caught up in situations beyond his ability to deal. I think he’s a creep. And for a slice-of-life drama, a lot of Blessing’s plot turns are near operatic (that is – over the top.) Before Joseph’s “the break/s” begins, a guy with a mic comes into the audience and asks us questions – what do we think of women hip-hop performers? What is hip-hop theater? If we had one question we could ask Jay Z, what would it be? If jazz is the broom Africans jump over to become Americans, then what is hip-hop? Audience members were game but lacked enlightening answers; Joseph addresses each of his questions in autobiographical “the break/s,” which runs about 70 minutes and uses different aspects of his life – his travels, his romances, his art – to explore who he is as a man. Video of performance and interviewees with their own answers play on overhead screens. It’s the kind of slight but thoughtful, smart and contemporary show that belongs in a festival setting, bringing in an outside voice one would never otherwise hear. I’m glad it made the cut in this year’s Humana. I missed Carly Mensch’s “All Hail Hurricane Gordo.” If you’ve already caught Humana, or are going next week – let me know what you think. Jackie Demaline
Mar 23, 2008
THEATER EDUCATOR AWARD: STUDENTS -- DO NOT BE CONFUSED!!!
There has been considerable confusion about how to submit nominations. Nominations will go online, but are NOT sent directly online; they are vetted first. To untangle the nominating process, NOMINATION DEADLINE IS EXTENDED THROUGH MARCH 31. STUDENTS, PARENTS and FRIENDS, if you know of a high school or university theater educator teacher who deserves to be acclaimed, please see the nomination information at CinStages. If you have questions, please e-mail me at jdemaline@enquirer.com or call me at 513-768-8530. The winning teacher will receive $2,500 for the school’s theater program and the student who submits the winning nomination will receive theater subscriptions including Playhouse in the Park, Ensemble Theatre or Cincinnati and Cincinnati Shakespeare. Tell your story! Nominate your teacher today! Jackie Demaline
Mar 21, 2008
TIM MILLER REMINDS US -- FREE SHOW MARCH 25 AT MIAMI U
(writes Tim): I will be performing near-ish Cincy March 25 at Miami University. I am doing my show GLORY BOX. The performance is FREE. Just call or email and reserve a ticket cheers, Tim more formally: March 25 Tim Miller performs GLORY BOX in Studio 88 at the Center for the Performing Arts on the campus of Miami University, Oxford Ohio. Curtain is at 8pm and admission is FREE but tickets are required. Please contact the Miami Box Office at (513) 529-3200 or email at boxoffice@muohio.edu and reserve tix. Tim M. continues:
GLORY BOX is a funny, sexy and charged exploration of Tim Miller's journeys through the challenge of love, gay marriage, and the struggle for immigration rights for gay people and their partners. From Miller's hilarious grade school playground battles over wanting to marry another boy to the harrowing travails of being in a bi-national relationship with his Australian lover, GLORY BOX leads the audience on an intense and humorous journey into the complexity of the human heart that knows no boundary. GLORY BOX (the term that Australians use for "hope chest") conjures an alternative site for the placing of memories, hopes and dreams of gay people's extraordinary potential for love.
TIM MILLER is an internationally acclaimed solo performer. Hailed for its humor and passion, Miller's performance works have delighted and emboldened audiences all over the world at such prestigious venues as Yale Repertory Theatre, the London Institute of Contemporary Art, the Walker Art Center, Actors Theatre of Louisville and the Brooklyn Academy of Music Next Wave Festival. He is the author of the books SHIRTS & SKIN, BODY BLOWS, and 1001 BEDS, an anthology of his performances and essays. Miller has taught performance at UCLA, NYU and the Claremont School of Theology. He is a founder of the two most influential performance spaces in the United States: Performance Space 122 on Manhattan's Lower East Side and Highways Performance Space in Santa Monica, CA. He can be reached at his web site: http://hometown.aol.com/millertale
Mar 20, 2008
"GREY GARDENS" IS ENSEMBLE SEASON OPENER
Ensemble producing artistic director Lynn Meyers capped a terrific opening night of “Radio Golf” by tempting season subscribers to re-up for 2008-2009 with an early announcement of the season opener. Broadway’s “Grey Gardens,” a beguiling oddball musical about Jackie Kennedy’s crazy cousins, dazzled in NYC thanks to a towering centerpiece performance by Christine Ebersole. Can’t wait to see who gets the crowning role at Ensemble. I’m told the tentative opening date is Sept. 3. Jackie Demaline .
Mar 19, 2008
GET RADIO GOLF TICKETS WHILE YOU CAN
Ensemble’s regional premiere of “Radio Golf,” final entry in August Wilson’s epic Century Cycle about the African-American experience, is looking like this season’s hot ticket. Regularly scheduled weekend performances have sold out; don’t be closed out. “Radio Golf” opens tonight, check Thursday’s Enquirer for an interview with director Ron OJ Parson. Jackie Demaline
FREE GRANT-WRITING WORKSHOP FOR CITY ARTIST GRANT PROGRAM
The City of Cincinnati seeks applicants for its 20th annual competitive Individual Artist Grant Program. “In celebration of this anniversary, the maximum award for the artist grant program has been increased to $6,000,” said Michael Cervay, Director of the Department of Community Development. “The new award level makes the funding available from the City’s program more comparable to the $5,000 to $10,000 fellowship awards offered by the state arts councils in Ohio and Kentucky and local arts agencies in our peer cities of Dayton, Columbus, and Indianapolis,” noted Cervay. The grant program is open to creative and interpretive artists who are residents of the city of Cincinnati and are age eighteen or older. Applications may be submitted in the following artistic disciplines: dance, literature, media, music, performance art, theater, and visual arts. Applications must be received by the Department of Community Development by 5:00 p.m. on April 25, 2008. Free grant-writing workshop. A workshop for prospective applicants is scheduled on Monday, March 31, 2008 from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. in the first floor conference room of Two Centennial Plaza (805 Central Avenue). Registration is required. For workshop registration and information, call 513-352-6146 by March 28, 2008. Where to get an application: Applications and program guidelines are available on the Department of Community Development website at www.cincinnati-oh.gov and may also be picked up at the following locations: Department of Community Development, Art Academy of Cincinnati, Dunham Recreation Complex, Enjoy the Arts, Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County (Information and Reference Department, Main Library and Corryville, Northside, and Walnut Hills branch libraries), University of Cincinnati School of Art, Urban Appalachian Council, Weston Art Gallery, and Westwood Town Hall. Information: For additional information, visit the Department of Community Development Web site at www.cincinnati-oh.gov or call 513-352-4985.
Mar 18, 2008
THE RIVER'S RISING TO FLOOD STAGE...
Tim Perrino, aboard Showboat Majestic is calm. Really. Even though Perrino and company, along with Cincinnati Recreation Commission, are in the middle of a remodeling project -- removing all the seats, painting the interior, putting in new carpeting, then re-installing the seats on spacers to create better leg room for audiences when the season opens in a very few weeks. Hopefully everybody’s wearing waders. Wish them well the best way you can – call the box office and order tickets. Jackie Demaline
MADISONVILLE SAVE THE DATE
Curtain up, light the lights – the Madisonville Arts Center is declaring May 10 as opening night. The dream of Dan Dermody, Ed Cohen and Dee Anne Bryll, Madisonville had been a couple of years in the making, and the fund-raising of a few hundred thousand to renovate the building into theater, gallery and classroom space; a spiffy marquee out front at 5021 Whetsel – and a lighted, fenced parking lot. Classes started earlier this year but now the plan is to get residents for the upstairs theater. Jackie Demaline
Mar 17, 2008
ARNIE SHAYNE WINS DIRECTORS SMACKDOWN AT NEW EDGECLIFF
Old pro Arnie Shayne won the title (and the grand prize of $500) in this year’s Cincinnati Directors Competition at New Edgecliff Theatre. Pones Inc. – that’s directors Kim Popa and Lindsey Jones took second place (and $250); and director Constance Brenneman placed third (for an 11th hour replacement show that she also starred in.). Event producer Nathan Gabriel reports, “The finals had a spectacular audience turn-out. (Columbia Performance Center) was filled to capacity and everyone was buzzing with energy and anticipation of the final announcement. “It was quite a day and NET was very pleased to see both audiences and contestants follow us through a snow-forced reschedule. This year’s competition was such a success that we are considering moving the event to a larger venue next year.” Jackie Demaline
KAINE EXITS, STAGE RIGHT, ON POINTE
Paul Kaine departs from his exec director post at Cincinnati Ballet on April 1 “to seek new opportunities,” according to the ballet’s hot-off-the-presses press release. All power is now vested in Ballet artistic director Victoria Morgan. (Girl Power! Yay!) Ms. Vic is now where the buck stops for both artistic and administrative decisions. Kaine has been with the ballet for two years in an office that’s had something of a revolving door. “Having accomplished the goals that were set out it is appropriate for me now to move on to new opportunities,” says Paul Kaine. He added that he’ll miss everybody. President and Chairman-Elect of the Board of Cincinnati Ballet Kathy Selker, who will take office August 1, 2008, says “we are very grateful to have had Paul Kaine as Executive Director these past two years, and wish him well in the future.” Jackie Demaline .
Mar 16, 2008
LET'S DISH PLAYHOUSE 2008-2009
If you’re like me, you care who’s directing, and general behind-the-scenes dish. Here’s a little more about Playhouse in the Park’s just-announced season: “Emma” – Playhouse has the second-ever production, it will be directed by Robert Kelley, artistic director of TheatreWorks in Palo Alto, where the musical premiered. MUCH national interest. Well, of course. Jane Austen has been the belle of the ball since the BBC’s blissful “Pride and Prejudice” (wow – is it really 13 years ago?) “Emma” is only one of two co-pros this year “Jekyll and Hyde” being the other), both with long-time producing partner St. Louis Rep. After a couple of years with lots of partnerships, and a very recent burn on one that fell through (if I say any more they’ll shoot me), producing artistic director Ed Stern says “I don’t want to become fundamentally dependent” on joint ventures. “Love Song” – This is the one about the strange house-bound dude who falls in love with a female burglar. Playwright John Kolvenbach is a former student of Stern, but that’s not how Stern found the script. He was flagged by Jasson Minadakis, former artistic director of Cincinnati Shakespeare, who continues to be a prodigious reader of new plays as artistic director of Marin Theatre Company. “Love Song” originated at Steppenwolf, was then produced in London (The Daily Telegraph wrote “Richly comic and deeply touching. Outstanding.”) Michael Haney will direct for Playhouse. Haney will also direct “Blackbird” in the Shelterhouse, giving him the corner next season on edgy fare with London cred. Stern will direct Cincinnati playwright Joseph McDonough’s “The Travels of Angelica,” which they’ve been quietly working on for the better part of a year. Stern loves its imagination and spirit of theater and art as grad students go on a literary treasure hunt. A reading by the cast of “Othello” last fall had McDonough over the moon. A summer workshop is also scheduled. While it’s set on the Virginia coast, McDonough started developing the play at New River Dramatists, a playwrights’ residency in North Carolina, and the name of the play’s location is an homage. Stern will also direct “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde,” adapted by Playhouse regular Jeffrey Hatcher (“Scotland Road,” “Turn of the Screw,” “Murderers,” the list goes on) who is busy, busy, busy – Hatcher’s latest assignment is adapting “Upstairs, Downstairs” for the big screen. Returning guest directors are Kenneth Albers, last season helming Steve Martin’s “The Underpants,” taking on “The Foreigner.” Dennis Courtney, who first directed “I Love You, You’re Perfect….” in 2000 returns for another go-round. Subscriptions now on sale… Jackie Demaline
Mar 14, 2008
REBECK'S "HOUSE" SKEDDED FOR NYC
Playwright and Cincinnati native Theresa Rebeck’s new “Our House,” which completed its premiere run last month in Denver as part of the Colorado New Play Summit, will get a New York production in the winter slot of the Playwrights Horizons 2008-2009 season. It’s a comedy about a power-hungry TV mogul faced with dwindling ratings who installs America's favorite news anchor as host of a popular reality show. (I copied this from Rebeck’s Web site, where I didn’t find her blogging about her upcoming Playhouse in the Park commission, but I’ll check back.) Rebeck’s new novel, “Three Girls and Their Brother” becomes available April 1 The synopsis sounds like “Three Girls” has a healthy dose of Rebeck’s stinging (and always smartly funny and observant) commentary about the current state of American culture (pop and otherwise) and the media that stalks it: “When the New Yorker dubs a noted literary critic's granddaughters “The It Girls of the Twenty-first Century,” the trio is propelled into the limelight. The sisters' resulting rivalry prompts a virtual breakdown in their brother, while an incident with a famous movie star threatens to unhinge the whole family.” Early reviews: “Rebeck shines…her insider’s look at the theater world is spot on... The crackling sature and scene-stealing secondaries carry the book.” Publisher’s Weekly “Playwright Rebeck’s first novel is a wickedly enjoyable expose of modern celebrity; the cruel power wielded by fshionistsas, PR minders, agents paparazzi, Hollywood stars and entourages…” Kirkus. If you want to know more about how Rebeck got to know so much, check out her “Free Fire Zone: A Playwright’s Adventures on the Creative Battlefields of Film, TV and Theater,” published last fall: “If one didn't know anything about Rebeck, this sympathetic guide through the often ruthless bureaucratic minefields of writing for theater, television, and film might seem like a bad author's excuse for failure. But Rebeck is an established playwright and screenwriter, successful in both New York and Hollywood, which gives her anecdotal evidence huge impact. As she says when relating the miserable audition experience of a bona fide star, "If they'll do it to her, they'll do it to anybody. And they do." The tone here is conversational and thoughtful as she shares her experiences, beginning with the charge "Learn How To Write," winding through "The Power Structure," "Mendacity," "Actors," "Directors," and "Critics," and finally offering advice on "How To Stay Sane." Rebeck changes the names of those she discusses, using humorous but effective aliases like Richard III and Attila to set the stage quickly for the reader. Sometimes caustically cynical but always brutally honest, Rebeck's entertaining volume is an essential read for anyone contemplating writing for show business.” – Library Journal Talk about telling it like it is, here’s Rebeck unleashed: “When a theater tells you that you have a home there, what they really mean is they want the right of first refusal on all your plays, and they don’t want to have to pay you for it.” You gotta love her. Jackie Demaline
KRITZER ON DOYLE
Playbill Online spotlights Broadway’s incoming “A Catered Affair” today. The new musical, opening March 25, is directed by John (“Company”) Doyle and counts CCM grads Faith Prince and Leslie Kritzer among its stars. Here’s an excerpt from the the lengthy feature: “The young woman in Catered Affair's white dress, Leslie Kritzer, echoes Prince's enthusiasm for working with Doyle, simply stating, "[He's] the best director I've ever worked with." "He's made me a better actress," Kritzer adds. "He always reminds me that I don't have to be so big and I don't have to work so hard to be a good actor. That's the essence of all good acting: Come from where you know and come from yourself and be simple, and you can color later." Well known for her comedic gifts, Kritzer explains the challenges of playing Janie, the bride-to-be: "I usually get to do funny roles, roles that are funny and over the top. This is just a plain simple girl, but it's a very complex role and a hard role to play because she's stuck in the middle of all this chaos. She doesn't want a big wedding, her mother does. . . [She would just like] a City Hall little thing and make it real simple . . . and then the whole family gets involved." Doyle's real gift, Kritzer says, is his understanding of subtlety. "He also surprises you when you least expect it. In rehearsals he would do things to bring out [our] performances . . . you didn't have to do very much, and they were so powerful. He would shut off the lights all of a sudden in the middle of rehearsal, and it would bring us to a different place. We were in darkness, but just little things like that, little adjustments, helped me so much." Jackie Demaline
Mar 13, 2008
MONMOUTH WILL BE SMOKIN' THIS SUMMER
Monmouth Theatre in Newport has a full calendar this summer. June nights will be taken up with “Smokey Joe’s Café,” the rockin’ revue of Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller pop standards from the Fifties (“Hound Dog,” “Jailhouse Rock,” “On Broadway” and a zillion more.) Gina Kleesattel will use her summer vacation from School for Creative and Performing Arts to direct. Auditions April 14-15. July will be devoted to a new theater camp, River City Rising Stars, says Joy Galbraith, who opened the theater next door to her Costume Gallery. Three weeks of sessions for theater kids ages 12 to 17 will include demos in puppetry, storytelling, lighting, costuming and lead to a production of “Disney’s Alice in Wonderland, Jr.” (gee, doesn’t Lewis Carroll get any credit any more?) the final weekend of July. Questions about any of the above, call Joy Galbraith at 859-655-9140. Jackie Demaline
HELP AARON LAVIGNE WIN FAMECAST
This from Aaron LaVigne, who’s been competing at famecast.com and is now down to the wire: “I made top 10 in Pop and Singer/songwriter but I learned that I can compete in only one if I make top 5. Taking that into consideration, along with my budget (or lack thereof)for making sweet videos, and the fact that I've barely even been in NYC for the past two and a half months led to the decision to drop out of the POP category and focus on singer/songwriter. I shot a quick, one- take acoustic video for the top 10 and it fits the Singer/songwriter spirit, I think. “It’s getting down to crunch time and trust me, I wouldn’t waste anyone’s time if I didn’t think I had a shot at this. The fact is I’m on the verge of winning the popular vote ~ as long the votes stay consistent. Thank you for every daily vote. “Your support has been truly amazing and I'm blessed to have been come this far due to the efforts of my awesome friends. And family. And fans! So again... much thanks. Hopefully this is just the beginning. “Here is the top 10 Singer/Songwriter link for my new video called ‘What the Hell?’ It’s a fun tune and I thought it might work on famecast. Also, check out my ‘close up’ video. “Vote daily if you can!” .
Mar 12, 2008
CCM SHOWCASES -- AND MARY POPPINS
We knew ‘em when. Was it just a couple of years ago that Ashley Brown, Broadway’s “Mary Poppins,” was part of a CCM Musical Theater showcase, and, now legend, got her first call, from Disney, between New York presentations? Well, yes. Word is that Brown will take a night off from her supercalifragilisticexbealidocious governessing gig to accept the musical theatre department’s Distinguished Alumni award on April 3, the first night of this year’s musical theater showcase, annually reserved as a fundraiser to keep graduating classes going to NYC. If you want to wish a fond farewell to College-Conservatory of Music’s theatrical classes of 2008, mark these dates: The CCM Drama showcase will be at 2 and 7 p.m. April 2, then the troupe sets off for New York and Los Angeles; the Musical Theater showcase is April 3-5 and then it’s on to NYC. In each case, you’ll see what the new grads will be performing for agents, casting and producer reps in hopes of getting representation and work. Tickets go fast-fast-fast, as soon as I get details on reserving, you’ll get details. Jackie Demaline .
Mar 11, 2008
ON PLAYS AND PLAYWRITING
Wendy Goldberg, who directed “Doubt” for Playhouse in the Park (continuing through April 4), has a day job as artistic director of the National Playwright Conference at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center in Connecticut. Every summer it’s plays, plays and more plays, and most of the year, when Goldberg as freelance directing, she takes her makeshift literary office with her. Her best advice to new playwrights: “You have to write what’s in your heart. What’s the story you have to tell? And find someplace you can go for feedback! Playwriting is not a solitary art form! Get the feedback, listen, learn – and stick to your guns.” Goldberg points to Sarah Ruhl (Playhouse produced her “The Clean House” and nowher “Dead Man’s Cell Phone” is playing in New York), Adam Bock, Mark Schultz and Deb Laufer (you’ll hear from her soon) as the talents to watch today. Goldberg crows that nine recent O’Neill plays are enjoying world premieres and reports that this year’s O’Neill Center scripts will be announced soon, which is of significant interest to at least one local playwright, but we won’t say who. Jackie Demaline
CPI DOUBLE BILL TONIGHT
One of our favorite actors demonstrates his talents as playwright and director tonight with Cincinnati Playwright Initiative’s New Voices play reading series.
Kevin Crowley, who returned to his hometown a couple of years ago after a career in Chicago and L.A., and memorable as part of the terrific cast of “Opus” at Ensemble last season, has been writing for years. His “Monkey’s Paw” was showcased in last year’s Cincinnati Fringe Festival. Crowley says its under consideration for production in London.
Crowley’s “Hitchhikers May Be Inmates” opens the evening. It’s described as “two recovering alcoholics battle their demons and each other as they flirt with falling back into the arms of their personal addictions. Back in Chicago, "A friend and I started getting together to write," Crowley says, but somehow it would devolve into a party. "So I wrote about two guys and drinking. I think it's a dark comedy. Of course, I tend to think everything is a comedy." Gary McGurk and Charlie Roetting are the readers. Crowley also directs. “Booty of the Year,” scheduled earlier in the season but cancelled due to a Cincy winter weather issue (what else is new), will be the second half of the playbill. Cisco Montgomery (from Dayton) has written a story of sibling rivalry set in the world of professional wrestling. Crowley directs Khrys Styes, Piper Davis, Reggie Willis and Khisaun Ferguson. 7:30 p.m., Fifth Third Bank Theater, Aronoff Center, Main at Seventh. Tickets $7 at the door. Jackie Demaline
Mar 10, 2008
ANDY B.'S CHOREO HITS "THE HEIGHTS" WITH NYC CRITICS
I was about one minute into “In the Heights” at a preview last week when I realized that I hadn’t felt that pure, onstage joy of exuberantly realizing New York in song and dance since Bernstein/Robbins and Company had embraced Greenwich Village in “Wonderful Town.” (And sent three sailors dancing from the Bronx to Battery Park in “On the Town.”) “In the Heights” is a ‘what’s not to love?’ musical, a spirited, merengue-infused valentine to its neighborhood – Washington Heights – and the Golden Age of Broadway. Some folks will be sniffy about its sentimentality; I say what’s so bad about feeling good, especially these days. There’s genuine affection in everything about this show, and plenty of street savvy. And as for the fresh talent – worth the price of admission. You’ll be seeing Cincinnati native Andy Blankenbuehler at Tony Awards time for his great, never-stop-moving, character- and community-defining choreo. Blankenbuehler should be not just in the heights but over the moon with his New York reviews – and here’s a sample: New York Times: “…zesty choreography by Andy Blankenbuehler that seems to put invisible wings on the young cast’s neon-colored sneakers.” Newsday: “Andy Blankenbuehler's smart and slinky street/modern dances.” Star-Ledger: “Most of all, there's simply no resisting the rhythmic appeal of Miranda's music, which vividly merges Latino spiciness with Broadway pizzazz. Little wonder the 27-member company rarely ever stops swaying and undulating in the street and dance club styles devised by choreographer Andy Blankenbuehler.” Bloomberg News: “Andy Blankenbuehler's choreography is paradigmatic. Dance and acrobatics, strategy and spontaneity, ensemble and individual blend in an infectious whirl and there is, happily, an abundance of it.” Variety – “Director Thomas Kail and choreographer Andy Blankenbuehler take full advantage of the playing space, smoothly weaving the action and dancing in and out of doorways, up and down stairs, and into every cubby hole, giving the show a vitality that seems more spontaneous than studied. This is some of the most spirited dancing on Broadway and one of the most limber ensembles. Blankenbuehler's choreography shows a pleasing aversion to slickness and rarely lingers long in one style. Instead it evolves freely through flexing urban moves, sinuous Latin lines and wild aerial tumbles, refreshingly maintaining an element of considered chaos that heightens the energy and echoes the vibrant textures of Miranda's toe-tapping score.” Backstage: – “Andy Blankenbuehler's choreography is an electric combination of styles, danced with fire by an attractive ensemble.” Associated Press: “Much of that motion is supplied by Andy Blankenbuehler whose sexy, hip-swaying choreography showcases a cast that can dance as well as it sings - and that's saying something. Dance was an important part of the musical's off-Broadway incarnation and here it is even better - from the hip-hop style of Seth Stewart to the more sinuous gyrations of the lithe Karen Olivo who serves as the object of Usnavi's adoration.” USA Today: “Another key player is choreographer Andy Blankenbuehler, whose street-savvy stylings and exuberant production numbers should make him a front-runner when this season's Tonys are handed out.” Jackie Demaline
ARNIE SHAYNE WINS DIRECTOR "ROUND ONE"
Before the snow swept away the rest of New Edgecliff’s Cincinnati Directors Competition, local theater vet Arnie Shayne took round one.
The rest of the weekend-long event has been postponed a week:
FRIDAY, MARCH 14th 7:30 p.m.
Constance Brenneman
Rene Marrero
Tim Waldrip
Saturday, MARCH 15th 7:30 p.m.
Pones, Inc.
Illana Stein
Deondra Means
Sunday, MARCH 16th 4 p.m.
**final competition order TBD**
Arnie Shayne
??
??
Jackie Demaline
THERESA REBECK'S BEDSIDE TABLE
The way to get inside a person’s head is to snoop through their home. The spring issue of O at Home takes a snapshot of Cincinnati-born playwright Theresa Rebeck’s bedside table. There’s some knitting, a remote control, an amethyst crystal cluster (to treat her chronic insomnia?) and a stack of books, which happily include “Cincinnati: The Queen City” by our favorite Queen City historian Daniel Hurley. That means she’s thinking about her Playhouse in the Park commission. Pick up a copy and check out the entire Rebeck nighttime collection. Jackie Demaline
Mar 7, 2008
BROADWAY BLOG COMING
Great, great stuff to talk about, from “August: Osage County” and “The Homecoming” to “The 39 Steps,” “In the Heights,” and “Conversations in Tusculum” (now extended at the Public.). And “Young Frankenstein” – oh, excuse me, Mel Brooks “Young Frankenstein” – is truly not to be believed. But first I have to find my way home in what the weather guys are warning me is snow-zilla. Be careful – and patient – out there. And if you have theater reservations, remember to call the box office and see what’s up. Also, Lynn Meyers says she’s very glad she doesn’t have a show up this weekend (August Wilson’s “Radio Golf” coming soon, the cast is hunkered down rehearsing at the Vernon Manor) and she’s very sad that there’s leaking water back at the theater. That Ensemble renovation can’t start soon enough. Jackie Demaline
DIRECTORS ON DIRECTING -- AND SNOW
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