Though a bit muggy, an enjoyable evening under the stars (well, more like a ceiling, but no walls) was had by a trip to Wolf Trap to see the Atlanta Theater of the Stars touring production of The King & I (Music by Richard Rodgers, book and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein, II).

Anna, a recent widow along with her son Louie travel to the country of Siam (today Thailand) to instruct the children of the King. Initially the King and Anna butt heads over a promise not kept, but eventually came to an understanding as the two learn from each other.

Anna, played by Victoria Mallory played the down to earth Lady Anna with much grace and charm. Her strong voice carried well into the audience. She was kind and her love towards the king’s children (all 76 of them, although only 16 were apparently worthy of instruction according to the king) was real. Mallory’s affection was not only for the children, but also for the wives who were currently in the king’s favor. The head wife, Lady Thiang played by Jee Hyun Lim was a woman who seemed older than her years and seemed to love the king of Siam with fear and a realization that although a great man, he was still human. The head-butting began almost the moment that Anna got off the boat in Siam. The king of Siam, played remarkably by Ronobir Lahiri, felt that living in the palace was very desirable, whereas Anna, not wishing to be on 24-hour call, decided that this would NOT do and the tug of war began. The battle between the two was quite entertaining to watch as Lahiri received lessons in how to treat English women and Mallory learned to respect the traditions of the palace. The comedy was real, as was the anger, respect, and eventually love between two people with two very different ideals about life.

A couple of the minor characters who also gave their all (including their heads) in this production were Lun Tha (Josh Dela Cruz ) who was secretly in love with and Tuptim played by the sweet, but unhappy Ali Ewoldt. A gift from the king of Burma, Lun Tha and Tuptim’s love songs were terrific and so lovingly sad that you wanted to help them escape.

Scenic Designer Kenneth Foy made positive use of sets that moved effortlessly to reveal rooms of the palace, the ship as well as the set for Uncle Tom’s Cabin in Act 2. This play-within-a play was very creative as the costumes were bright and shimmery and the make up was colorful and the use of colorful masks set an otherworldly tone. The sound was really the only drawback to the evening. Sound Designer Peter Fitzgerald was at a disadvantage becausee of the outdoor theater of Wolf Trap. The sound comes out and seems to fly to the trees which makes it difficult to understand all of the spoken words. However, the lighting was well done, and the orchestra made the notes come alive and kept the energy high.

It was interesting that the audience reacted much more strongly to the songs of the first act than the second act. The second act definitely has a darker feel, and the audience was muted throughout the excellent ballet “The Small House of Uncle Thomas.” The triumphant “Shall We Dance?” had the audience cheering again.

Photo Gallery

Cast

• Captain Orton: John Antony
• Louis Leonowens: Chase McGrath
• Anna Leonowans: Victoria Mallory
• The Interpreter: Andy Dahn
• The Kralahome: Raul Aranas
• The King of Siam: Ronobir Lahiri
• Court Dancer: Jessica Wu
• Lun Tha: Josh Dela Cruz
• Tuptim: Ali Ewoldt
• Lady Thiang: Lee Hyun Lim
• Prince Chulalongkorn: Raphael Aranas
• Fan Dancer: Yuki Ozeki
• Sir Edward Ramsey: John Antony
• Royal Wives, Slaves, Courtiers, Guards, Monks, English Guests, and Market People: Raphael Aranas, Stephanie Card, Andrew Cheng, Amy Chiang, Andy Danh, Thang Dao, Yuka Fukuda-Lahiri, Cassey K. Kivnick, Azumi Milligan, JP Moraga, Ariela Morganstern, Manna Nichols, Rommel Pierre O’Choa, Rumi Oyama, Yuki Ozeki, Jessica Wu
• The Royal Children: Samira Alami, Safiya Alami, Cassie Cope, Lewis Bliss, Lucy Gibbs, Remy Brettell, Katie Lim, Holden Brettell, Gianna Casolara, Luis Malenab, Alyssa Malenab, Kiana Khashnoud, Laura Fabriele A. De Leoz, Lance Gerard A. De Leoz
• “Small House of Uncle Thomas” Ballet
  • Eliza: Jessica Wu
  • Simon of Legree: Andrew Cheng
  • Angel George: Rumi Oyama
  • Uncle Thomas: Cassey K. Kivnick
  • Littl Eva: Azumi Milligan
  • Topsy: Yuki Ozeki
• Understudies
  • King of Siam: Raul Aranas
  • Anna: Stephanie Card
  • Lun Tha: JP Moraga
  • Tuptim: Manna Nichols
  • Lady Thiang: Ariela Morganstern

Touring Musicians

• Conductor: Eugene Gwozdz
• Associate Conductor/Keyboard: Mark Erenstoft
• Percussionist: Louis B. Crocco

Stage Management

• Production Stage Manager: John W. Calder, III
• Stage Manager: Sarah Marshall
• Assistant Stage Manager: Dan Zittel

Crew

• Scenic Design: Kenneth Foy
• Costumes Provided By: Theater of the Stars
• Lighting Design: Kirk Bookman
• Sound Design: Peter Fitzgerald
• Casting: Wojcik | Seay Casting
• Children’s Musical Director: Bill Newberry
• General Manager: Brian D. Frey
• Company Management: Cambra Overend
• Associate Director and Choreography: Susan Kikuchi
• Director: Baayork Lee

King & I Staff

• Assistants to The Choreographer: Thang Dao, Yukiko Kashiki, Cassey K. Kivnick, Yuki Ozeki
• Dance Captain: Rommel Pierre O’Choa
• Associate Lighting Designer: Brad Peterson
• Associate Sound Designer: Janet Smith

Crew

• Head Carpenter: Edward J. Creasy
• Assistant Carpenter: Terry Behle
• Head Electrician: Dustin Adams
• Assistant Electrician/Front Light Operator: Christina Aikman
• Head Sound Engineer/Mixer: Josh Liebert
• Assistant Sound/Monitors: David Kobernuss
• Prop Head: Molly Faulk
• Wardrobe Supervisor: Betty Johnson
• Assistant Wardrobe: Don Skelton
• Hair & Wig Supervisor: Diane Spence
• Wolf Trap Musicians
• Flute: Dave Lonkevich
• Oboe, English Horn: Fatma Daglar
• Clarinet: Dave Jones
• Clarinet, Flute: Ed Walters
• Horn: Greg Miller, Mark Hughes
• Trumpet: Chris Gekker, Fred Irby
• Trombone: Mark Mauldin, Dave Sciannella
• Percussion: Bill Richards
• Bass: Jeff Cooper
• Violin: Patty Hurd, Concertmaster, Sarah Sherry, Paula McCarthy
• Viola: Jennifer Rende
• Cello: Lori Barnet, Sue Kelly
• Harp: Caroline Hudson

Disclaimer: General Motors provided two complimentary tickets to ShowBizRadio for this review, as well as a night at the Hilton, and the use of a Chevy Camaro for the holiday weekend.

Guys and Dolls is a classic musical, with music and lyrics by Frank Loesser and book by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows, about love, hate, and shooting craps, all set to lively music. With only some minor mic issues and interesting character interpretations the opening night performance of Guys and Dolls at Wolf Trap was well performed and included some excellent choreography by Patti Colombo.

Sky Masterson and Sarah Brown (Ben Crawford and Erin Davie) seemed like a good match and comfortable with each other. Davie’s projection was perhaps somewhat weak, but her solos were heartfelt and meaningful. Nathan Detroit’s fiancée of 14 years Adelaide played by Megan Sikora seemed to be channeling Lucille Ball. Her bright red hair and classic New York accent made Adelaide easy to pick out in a crowd. Her love and frustration for Nathan’s ability to evade the walk down the aisle finally came to an end and the two finally tying the knot. Steve Rosen as Nathan Detroit also gave a believable performance.

The Hot Box Dancer’s dances were well done. Their costumes (or lack there of) did not leave much to the imagination, but kudos for actually showing the women in a burlesque show as strippers. All of the ensemble really danced their hearts out Thursday night. “The Crapshooter’s Dance” and “Havana” were especially both full of high energy and high kicks.

The use of lighting in “The Crapshooter’s Dance” was also very creative. The flashes at just the right moment during the song really brought out the mood and heightened the tension of the evening. Technical Supervisor Don S. Gilmore did a masterful job getting all that coordinated. Since Wolf Trap is more or less an outdoor theatre the sound can disappear. But Sound Designer Michael H.P. Viveros kept everything up to be heard, but not over-powering.

A weather friendly evening made for an enjoyable performance.

Cast

• Nicely Nicely Johnson: Glenn Rainey
• Benny Southstreet: Garth Kravitz
• Rusty Charlie: Todd Horman
• Sarah Brown: Erin Davie
• Agatha: Wendi Bergamini
• Calvin: Eric Shorey
• Arvide Abernathy: Jamie Ross
• Harry the Horse: Adam Moreno
• Lieutenant Brannigan: Michael Scott
• Nathan Detroit: Steve Rosen
• Angie the Ox: Mark Campbell
• Havana Dancers: Taurean Everett and Arian Keddell
• Carmen the Bartender: Jan Neuberger
• Sky Masterson: Ben Crawford
• Mimi: Jesse Wildman
• Voice of Joey Biltmore: Mark Campbell
• Adelaide: Megan Sikora
• General Cartwright: Jan Neuberger
• Big Jule: Brendan Averett
• Hot Box Girls: Wendi Bergamini, Sarah Marie Jenkins, Christine Hedrick, Arian Keddell, Jesse Wildman, and Toni Elizabeth White
• Hot Box Waiter: Lee Wilkins
• Mission Band: Lee Wilkins, Sarah Marie Jenkins and Jesse Wildman
• Swings: Alissa Alter and Cameron Henderson

Understudies

• Sarah Brown and General Cartwright: Wendi Bergamini
• Sky Masterson and Lieutenant Brannigan: Mark Campbell
• Nathan Detroit: Garth Kravitz
• Nathan Detroit, Nicely Nicely and Big Jule: Todd Horman
• Arvide Abernathy: Lee Wilkins
• Benny Southstreet and Harry the horse: Eric Shorey
• Adelaide: Jesse Wildman

Crew

• Scenery Design: Kate Sutton-Johnson
• Costume Design: Charlie Morrison
• Costume Coordinator: Chad Jason
• Sound Design: Michael H. P. Viveros
• Wig/Hair Design: Chad Jason
• Musical Director: Mark Hartman
• Technical Supervisor: Don S. Gilmore
• Production Stage Manager: Kevin Brannick
• Casting By: Allison Franck
• General Management: Big League Productions, Inc. Mark Johnson
• Executive Producer: Daniel Sher
• Choreographed by: Patti Colombo
• Directed by: Gordon Greenberg

Orchestra

• Musical Director/Conductor: Mark Hartman
• Associate Conductor/keyboard: Micah Young
• Drums/Percussion: Mat Finger
• Trumpet 1: Tim Wendt
• Reeds: Ed Walters, Matt Belzer, Keith Daudelin, Charlie Young, Kyle Coughlin
• Horn: Greg Miller
• Trumpet: Craig Taylor
• Trombone: George Allen
• Violin: Bruno Nasta
• Cello: Kerry van Laanen
• Bass: Jeff Cooper

Disclaimer: We were given Wolf Trap gift certificates as a gift from a family member.