James Goldman’s 1966 historical drama, The Lion in Winter, depicts a dynastic standoff between King Henry II of England and his wife, Eleanor of Aquitaine, a case, if ever there was, of bedfellows making strange politics. Goldman’s script, which had a successful run on Broadway and an even more successful film version (with Peter O’Toole and Katherine Hepburn), reduces the byzantine royal power struggles of late 12th century England and France to a matter of dysfunctional family dynamics.

To succeed, this wordy and sporadically witty script requires strong and consistent pacing, crackling chemistry between the leads, and fully believable performances from the five supporting players. These are precisely the qualities that Zemfira Stage’s current production lacks. What results is an evening of slow, tedious line readings, punctuated by occasional outbursts of loud, vigorous scenery chewing.

The pacing sags throughout. Lines are often delivered one-word-at-a-time, or even one-syl-la-ble-at-a-time, precluding a smooth flow of language. There are frequent slow cue pickups by one actor after another has completed speaking. The pace isn’t helped by scene changes that seem much slower than the relatively modest movements of set dressing pieces involved should call for. The set changes are typically accompanied by repetitive music and instrumentation that belong some centuries in the future from 1183.

In the past, Jim Mitchell has played roles like Max Bialystock, Pseudolus, and Tevye; his physicality appears to suit those roles well. However, as King Henry, his bearing is a good deal less regal than one might hope for. Playing his character as one governed by emotions of the moment, he makes one wonder how Henry became a politically successful monarch. Perhaps thinking that this is what lions do, his way of expressing strong feeling is to bellow.

As Eleanor, Michelle Ballard appears at times to try to channel some of Hepburn’s take on the role, particularly the tight, talking through her teeth smile she employs when she is scheming to manipulate others to achieve her political objectives. Like some other great political figures (Franklin Roosevelt comes to mind), Ballard’s Eleanor is someone who, when faced with a choice of accomplishing something by straightforward or devious means, instinctively chooses the latter.

Much of the impact of the play derives from the tension created by Eleanor and Henry being simultaneously quite vicious political opponents and a couple who, despite their estrangement, have a deeply powerful and lasting emotional bond. As scene partners, Ballard and Mitchell are reasonably effective plotting against one another, but they do not have the chemistry to convey their attachment. The words are there, but the feeling doesn’t develop.

Among the supporting cast, Shaina Higgins is an attractive Alais (Henry’s current mistress), who plays her character as being chronically depressed, albeit with occasional sparks of insight. One wishes Prozac existed in the 12th century. In contrast, John, the king’s youngest son (Will McLeod) is exceedingly hyper. While the script does paint John as an immature and insecure young man, the runt of this royal litter, McLeod goes over the top in creating a temper tantrum prone, whiny prince whose emotional age is around 10. As King Phillip of France, Brett Steven Abelman is particularly susceptible to the one-word-at-a-time virus infecting the cast, but he does show Phillip beginning to mature as a political player.

As the middle son Geoffrey, Andrew Tippie avoids, with the exception of a come-to-mommy scene with Eleanor, the temptation to overact, portraying a cool (to the point of blandness), cerebral, amoral operator who seeks influence by attaching himself to whoever seems to be winning the power game. The oldest son, Richard (Don Bruns), is the most capable of the three princes, a military man whose bluntness and directness place him at something of a disadvantage in the court intrigues. While, like others in the cast, Bruns succumbs to the temptation to overact in some scenes, he gives Richard greater intelligence than some portrayals of the character.

The set is a loose semicircle of flats to which a number of gray slabs, not touching each other, are attached. This does not succeed in creating the look or feel of a medieval stone castle. Occasionally, set dressings are laid on the flats, most humorously in a scene where the three princes hide behind tapestries, Polonius-like, to overhear conspiratorial conversations involving Eleanor and Henry.

The play ran two and a half hours. It seemed longer.

The Cast

• Henry II, King of England: Jim Mitchell
• Alais Capet, a French Princess: Shaina Higgins
• John, the youngest son: Will MacLeod
• Geoffrey, the middle son: Andrew Tippie
• Richard, the Lionheart: Don Bruns
• Elanor, Henry’s wife: Michelle Ballard
• Philip, King of France: Brett Steven Abelman

The Production Team

• Producer/Director: Zina T. Bleck
• Assistant Director/Stage Manager: Miguel Lopez
• Stage Manager/Running Crew Chief: Rich Prien
• Lighting Design: Stacy King
• Sound Design: Herb Tax
• Scenic Artist: Alexa Wilson

Disclaimer: Zemfira Stage provided two complimentary media tickets to ShowBizRadio for this review.

Mel Brooks’ The Producers has outrageous fun with Jews, gays, neo-Nazis, Irish cops, accountants, Swedish sex bombshells and, above all, show business clichés. Zemfira Stage’s production pulls out all the show’s stops, creating a highly enjoyable evening of theater.

The production is full of well-defined, vivid, hilarious performances. Brian Johnson and Jonathan Faircloth, as Roger DeBris, the director/accidental star of musical-within-the-musical Springtime for Hitler, and Carmen Ghia, his partner and assistant, spoof every gay stereotype in the book while maintaining a consistently believable and sweet relationship. Johnson also hoofs nicely through a song-and-dance number (“Heil Myself”) as Der Fuhrer. As neo-Nazi playwright Franz Liebkind, Cameron Conlan is gracefully fanatical, while Coleen Connor (Ulla) handles the lyrical and belt portions of her music with aplomb while projecting the self-aware, over-the-top comic sexiness her role demands.

As the producers, Max Bialystock and Leo Bloom respectively, Jim Mitchell and Joe Phillipoom carry much of the show. Both give sound performances, and they have good chemistry together in duets like “We Can Do It” and “Where Did We Go Right?” As the initially frightened mouse of an accountant, Philipoom cowers well, and he displays a pleasing tenor voice in “That Face,” “I Wanna Be a Producer,” and other numbers. His hangdog posture persists a bit too long into the second act, however. As Bialystock, a role created by Zero Mostel (in the original movie) and Nathan Lane (in the stage and film versions of the musical), Mitchell is appropriately opportunistic and cunning, never one to let even a stray consideration of honesty cramp his style. Mitchell has a strong baritone voice that is more than adequate in the role. His second-act soliloquy “Betrayed,” in which he recapitulates much of the plot, lacks some of the frenetic physical humor that helps to sell the number.

The Producers is a strong ensemble show, and the large group assembled by Zemfira Stage is excellent, its members portraying multiple roles as cops, gay theater types, showgirls, old ladies, etc. They sing clearly and move well and, of course, lead the show’s signature number, “Springtime for Hitler.” Michelle Ballard deserves mention for her fine soprano solo at the top of that number.

The show is well choreographed by Stacy Crickmer, her contributions including such varied items as a walker chorus line for a group of purportedly old ladies, a nice pair dance for Leo and Ulla, and the big show biz movement of “Springtime for Hitler.” After some jitters in the overture, Charlie Manship’s orchestra settled in to accompany the singers effectively. Orchestra/singer balance was generally well maintained, and the miking of lead actors was less obnoxious than in many productions.

There is virtually no set for the show, a wise choice by director Zina Bleck given the large cast and limited stage space. A small number of furniture pieces in front of a cloth backdrop are sufficient. The lighting design is likewise simple, consisting mostly of various colors to illuminate the backdrop and a somewhat overused follow spot.

The varied and colorful costume design, by Sabrina Chandler and Claudia Tameris, is the outstanding technical feature of the production. The “Chrysler Building” dress for DeBris, with a touch of art deco in its design, was particularly well done. The ensemble has multiple changes, and the costumes work for all the varied roles ensemble members play. Some way of making young ensemble women appear old for “Along Came Bialy” other than gray fright wigs would have been helpful.

An historical footnote: “Keep It Gay,” an ensemble number in the first act of The Producers, is not the first show tune by that name. A song with the same title appears in the 1953 Rogers and Hammerstein show Me and Juliet, also a play-within-a-play about the production of a Broadway musical. In the 1953 song, a Don Juan character explains his goal of avoiding emotional entanglements with his women. The two songs provide a nice illustration of the changes in the meaning of a word over time. Like many Bialystock productions, by the way, Me and Juliet was not a success.

Photo Gallery

Photos by Meganne McCawley Johnson

The Cast

• Max Bialystock: Jim Mitchell
• Leo Bloom: Joe Philipoom
• Mr. Marks: Geoffrey Baskir
• Franz Liebkind: Cameron Conlan
• Gunter: Brady W. Russell
• Roger DeBris: Brian Johnson
• Carmen Ghia: Jonathan Faircloth
• Bryan (Set Designer): Roger Yawson
• Scott (Choreographer): Justin Janke
• Kevin (Costume Designer): Chris Rios
• Shirley Markowitz: Denise Mattingly
• Ulla Inga Hansen Bensen Yonsen Tallen-Hallen Svaden-Svanson: Colleen Connor
• Hold Me Touch Me: Stacy Crickmer
• Lick Me Bite Me: Amy Treat
• Kiss Me Feel Me: Aimee Snow
• Judge: Mark Shaffstall
• Ensemble: Michelle Ballard, Geoffrey Baskir, Katy Chmura, Stacy Crickmer, Justin Janke, Ashley Kinnery, Lisa Koenig, Miguel Lopez, Denise Mattingly, Grace McCarthy, Julie Philipoom, Rodrigo Pool, Samantha Reau, Chris Rios, Mike Rudden, Brady W. Russell, Mark Shaffstall, Amy Treat, Aimee Snow, Roger Yawson

The Production Team

• Director/Producer: Zina Bleck
• Music Director: Charlie Manship
• Choral Director: Rachel Harrington
• Assistant Choral Directors: Jonathan Blank, Michelle Ballard
• Choreographer: Stacy Crickmer
• Rehearsal Accompanist: Jonathan Blank, Charlie Manship
• Assistant Choreographer/Dance Captain: Emma Philpoom
• Stage Manager: Rich Prien
• Lighting Director: Stacy King
• Costume Designers: Sabrina Chandler, Claudia Tameris
• Hair & Make-up Design: Cameron Conlan
• Ulla’s Hair: Kerry Ann Durbin

Disclaimer: Zemfira Stage provided two complimentary media tickets to ShowBizRadio for this review.

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way To The Forum is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by Burt Shevelove and Larry Gelbart, inspired by the plays of Plautus. The slave Pseudolus desperately wants his freedom. Young Hero has fallen desperately in love with a virgin courtesan. Erronius is desperate to find his long-lost children. And Senex is just desperate. It’s everything you need for a raucous musical farce. It’s too bad the parts didn’t combine to create the hilarity the script deserves. Zemfira Stage may have set the goal a bit too high for their first musical production.

Some of the performers in Thursday night’s Pay-What-You-Can-performance seemed unsure of themselves and a bit uneasy on stage. Director Zina Bleck may have needed a little more rehearsal time to work with the actors on their characterizations. The performers seemed to have one eye on the conductor (Ken Farley) at all times, leading to several awkward transitions before a song. There were a few lighting miscues that interrupted the flow of the show. The set was minimal, made up of a series of columns in different styles to represent the show’s three houses.

Jim Mitchell as the slave Psedulos played to the audience with much comedic style and laughter. His booming voice was easily heard above the orchestra. Hysterium, the slave tasked with keeping Hero young and innocent, was played by Denise Mattingly. Mattingly, though believable as the handwringing, anxious slave, wasn’t the best vocalist, but presented a convincing “nervous Nellie.” Eric Worcester as Hero, the love-sick boy, seemed somewhat flat Thursday night. He appeared to drift from scene to scene with no real emotion. His love Philia (Rachel Harrington), a courtesan pledged to another man, was also flat. But for the dim-witted character of Philia it came across as a conscious acting decision.

Another group that managed to play up to the audience with great flare were the three Proteans played by Katherine Bisulca, Jasmine Bull and Rich Prien. Playing several minor background characters, they were each making faces and seemed involved with their characters. The Gymnasia courtesan was some what off-color, but managed to elicit some laughter. Brian Johnson as Miles Glorious, the captain coming to retrieve the courtesan Philia, was larger than life, though Johnson’s vocals were strained. Also larger than life was Domina, wife of Senex. Her over the top gestures and emotions were sometimes too much. Yet with his kind of performance one could argue that there is no such thing as too much!

Now that the opening night is over, perhaps the performers can settle in and come together to make a cohesive unit.

Photo Gallery

Hysterium (Denise Mattingly), Pseudolous (Jim Mitchell)	Pseudolous (Jim Mitchell), Hysterium (Denise Mattingly)
Pseudolous (Jim Mitchell), Tintinabula, a courtesan from the House of Marcus Lycus (Colleen Conner), Hysterium (Denise Mattingly)	One of the Geminae twins, a courtesan (Bethany Michel), Marcus Lycus (Justin Mohay), Tintinabula, a courtesan (Colleen Conner)

Photos provided by Zemfira Stage

Cast

• Senex: David Birkenbilt
• Courtesan Panacea, Protean: Katherine Bisulca
• Courtesan Vibrata, Protean: Jasmine Bull
• Erronius: Bailey R. Center
• Courtesan Tintinabula: Colleen Connor
• Philia: Rachel Harrington
• Miles Gloriosus: Brian Johnson
• Domina: Meganne McCawley Johnson
• Hysterium: Denise Mattingly
• Courtesan Geminae: Bethany Michel
• Psedolus: Jim Mitchell
• Marcus Lycus: Justin Mohay
• Protean, Gymnasia: Richard prien
• Courtesan Geminae: Samantha Reau
• Hero: Eric Worcester

Crew

• Director/Producer: Zina Bleck
• Orchestra Director: Ken Farley
• Co-Choral Directors: Jonathan Blanck, Rachel Harrington, Richard Yingling
• Choreographer: Amy Treat
• Assistant Choreographer/ Dance Captain: Bethany Michel
• Stage Manager: Natalie Woods
• Lighting Designer: Stacy King
• Front of House/ Box Office: Erin DiCaprio, Sallie Willows

Orchestra

• French Horn: Allan Badrow
• Keyboard: Jonathan Blank
• Cello: Kate Borg
• Bass: Leslie Collins
• Clarinet: Annette Fakoury
• Flute, piccolo: Carolyn Farley
• Saxophone: Barbara Koehler
• Violin: Sandra Ludes
• Violin: Hanna Lee Rodriguez
• Clarinet, Flute, Saxophone: Howard McCullers
• Trumpet: Dave Shuma

Disclaimer: Zemfira Stage provided two complimentary media tickets to ShowBizRadio for this review. We have worked with many of the cast and crew of this show in the past, and Laura will be stage managing for one of the actors in the fall.

Zero Hour is a one man play that highlights the ups and downs of Samuel Joel “Zero” Mostel better known as “Zero Mostel. From his two rocky marriages, his blacklisting in 1955, to his rise to Broadway in Forum, Fiddler on The Roof, and The Producers and later tv and movie roles, and his escape into the world of his paintings.

Told from the point of view of an invisible NY Times reporter coming to interview Mostel, Jim Mitchell portrays Zero Mostel with strong emotion and and a passion to get the true story told. You could see and feel the despair in his mood when he told about his family disowning him when he announced he wanted to be an actor and brought home a non-Jewish woman to marry. He played his character with strength, but also tenderness. His recollection of his friend who was also blacklisted and later jumped off the building to his death was told with a lot of strong emotion and Mitchell pulled up a lot of sadness to end the first act.

Since Zero Mostel was also a comedian, Mitchell also was able to bring out quite a bit of humor. His mood changed again to a much more lighthearted and laid back telling of his bus accident that crushed his leg. When he was saying something funny his speech was slower and maybe a bit more uneven than when he became angry. Then his speech became faster and louder. Always Mitchell got his point across.

Zero Hour ran one hour and forty minutes with one intermission. It is playing through July 17, Thursday through Saturday at 8 PM at the Lyceum in Old town Alexandria. A fascinating look at a dark time in American history played by a talented actor.

Photo Gallery

Photos provided by Zemfira Stage

Cast

• Zero Mostel: James E. Mitchell III

Crew

• Producer/Director: Zina T. Bleck
• Sound Design: Becky Farris
• Lighting Design: Zina Bleck
• Original Painting: Mary Hrabe
• Technical Staff: Katherine Bisulca, Becky Farris, Lynn Lacey
• Front of House/Box Office: Erin DeCaprio, Erin Gallalee, Margaret Snow
• Publicity: Harry Kantrovich

Disclaimer: Zemfira Stage provided two complimentary media tickets to ShowBizRadio for this review.

The celebrated Tuna theatrical brand has three assets: 1. Affectionately and wittily drawn small town types, complete with quirky eccentricities. 2. Gentle satire of small town foibles. 3. Droll dialogue.

The Tuna canon consists of four works — Greater Tuna, Red, White and Tuna, Tuna Does Las Vegas and A Christmas Tuna. They are the work of Texas actors/writers Jaston Williams and Joe Sears, with an assist from director Ed Howard. Since 1981, with the premiere of Greater Tuna in Austin, Tuna tales have been tickling audiences all over the country.

Alexandria’s Zemfira Stage is currently staging the Christmas edition.

Zemfira director Zina Bleck grabs onto the show’s satirical element. The affectionately drawn vignettes and the droll dialogue, however, are slighted.

Actresses Katherine Bisulca and Erin Gallalee play some two dozen characters, ranging from goofy young men to batty old women. Yes, this light farce demands heavy work. Bisulca and Gallalee’s portrayals demonstrate the difficulties without freeing up the airy humor. Their characterizations are so one-dimensional — gun nut, Humane Society geek, callous plutocrat, etc. etc. — that what might be nuanced satire comes across as mere ridicule.

As for the droll dialogue, Bisulca and Gallalee do a peculiar take on the central Texas drawl. Their pronunciation is generic rural southern. But a drawl it is not. The deliveries are so hurried that much of Sears and Williams’ verbal ingenuity and wit is muffled and lost.

Blackouts between the dozens of brief scenes are protracted. Momentum suffers. The snappy pace essential to comedy never develops. Now and then a brisk phrase will come through clearly: Someone looks like “death chewing a cracker.” An iguana is described as a “four-legged handbag.”

Welcome nuggets such as these, however, don’t save this Tuna Christmas from crude acting, hurried diction and pokey pacing.

Photo Gallery

Katherine Bisulca	Erin Gallalee

Photos by Zina Bleck for Zemfira Stage

Cast

• Arles Stuvie, Didi Snavely, Petey Fisk, Jody Bumiller, Charlene Bumiller, Stanley Bumiller, Vera Carp, Dixie Deberry, Helen Bedd, Farley Burkhalter: Katherine Bisulca
• Thurston Wheellis, Elmer Wtakins, Mertha Bumiller, R.R. Snavely, Aunt Pearl Burras, Sheriff Givens, Ike Thompson, Inita Goodwin, Leonard Childers, Phoebe Burkhalter, Joe Bob Lipose: Erin Gallalee

Crew

• Producer/Director: Zina T. Bleck
• Sound Design: Becky Farris
• Lighting Design: Zina Bleck
• Set Design: Katherina Bisulca, Erin Gallalee
• Technical Staff: Becky Farris, John G. McCracken, Lynn Taylor
• Publicity: Harry Kantrovich

Disclaimer: Zemfira Stage provided two complimentary media tickets to ShowBizRadio for this review.

Vanities explores topics that women are all too familiar with. Vanities follows the friendship of three friends, Joanne, Kathy and Mary, throughout the course of their lives. Separated into three Acts, we are first introduced to them as high school cheerleaders, concerned with boys, cheers, dances and pep rallies. In the second Act, they are in their college years, they talk of sorority life and their fears of life after college. In the third Act, years later after they have all graduated and gone their separate ways, the girls meet up with each other for a long overdue get together. It is at this point personalities clash as the girls realize just how different they’ve become from one another.

Actresses Carla Francischetti, Pamela Sabella, and Natalie Christina played the three main roles of Joanne, Mary and Kathy. All three actresses were successful in making good physical and emotional choices that distinguished themselves from teenagers to women. It seemed to take a while for the momentum of the show to get going. The first Act was a bit one leveled, as the three girls concern themselves with their high school troubles. It’s cute at first, but gets to be exhausting after a while. The second Act was more intriguing, but things didn’t really get going until the last Act.

The time in between Acts represented the passing of time as the girls got older and older. In between Acts the girls would get dressed, undressed and do their makeup in front of the audience, transforming right before our eyes. I give props to the three actresses for being bold enough to bare themselves in front of a live audience, continuing to stay in character the whole time.

The set and lighting were very simple. The stage was a small elevated platform not more than a foot tall. Most of the action took place on the stage. Off stage left was where the girls got dressed and prepared in between each Act. It would be nice if Zemfira Stage provided a soundtrack to this show. Throughout the show they played music that reflected the time period, playing such songs as “Lady Marmalade,” “My Boyfriend’s Back,” and “My Guy.”

The intent through each Act was clear, the gradual progression of the first two acts gave room for the third act to really take off. Unfortunately the action came off as a bit sluggish; I did not feel entirely encompassed by the show until the end when they were all grown women. It’s understandable that the concerns of teenage girls may be an exhausting topic for anyone, but the subject kind of killed the action in the beginning of the play.

Director’s Notes

When I first told one of my oldest theatre friends that I was directing Vanities, the response was “Are you nuts? You can’t direct this show unless you’re a woman or gay-straight men can’t understand the meaning.” Once I got over the shock, I thought about it a bit and in some ways I could see their point-I’ve never been a girl/woman or cheerleader/sorority girl. Then again, I never slashed anyone before I played Jack the Ripper. Vanities to me is a study of personalities and maturation or lack thereof. I do remember High School albeit through the mist of 30 years, I played in the band, played football and knew cheerleaders. While it is true that we tend to wax nostalgic about “the good old days” and forget the bad things, it is those experiences which begin our formation as the people we become.

I firmly believe that there is more than a little Joanne, Kathy and Mary in all of us. When we were that age we felt that each loss or setback was the end of the world and each victory the ultimate source of joy. We believed in our hearts and souls that we were destined for great things and that one day we would be “popular” even if it was not true at the time. Over time those dreams and plans may have faded, we may have changed our goals or had them changed but it does not in any way demean them.

You have the opportunity to glimpse into the lives of three women going through the process. I hope that you enjoy the journey as performed by three incredibly talented actresses. They have taught me as much as I have taught them and each of us has made the others greater than the sum of the parts and their understudies have been equally a part of this process. Together they have made magic and I am so proud of the results.

So relax and allow yourself to go back to a “simpler” time-enjoy the laughter and tears.

Photo Gallery

Joanne (Carla Francischetti), Kathy (Pamela Sabella), Mary (Natalie Christina) during their high school cheerleading days planning for the football pa	Joanne (Carla Francischetti), Kathy (Pamela Sabella), Mary (Natalie Christina) during their high school cheerleading days planning for the football pa
Joanne (Carla Francischetti), Kathy (Pamela Sabella), Mary (Natalie Christina) during their college days planning their last senior year activities.	Joanne (Carla Francischetti), Kathy (Pamela Sabella), Mary (Natalie Christina) during their high school cheerleading days planning their last senior y
Kathy (Pamela Sabella), Joanne (Carla Francischetti), Mary (Natalie Christina) 7 years after graduating from high school at a reunion tea party.	Kathy (Pamela Sabella), Joanne (Carla Francischetti), Mary (Natalie Christina) 7 years after graduating from high school at a reunion tea party.

Cast

• Joanne: Carla Francischetti
• Kathy: Pamela Sabella
• Mary: Natalie Christina
• Joanne/Kathy- Understudy: Natalie Woods
• Mary- Understudy: Sara Drehmer

Crew

• Director: Herb Tax
• Stage Manager: Natalie Woods
• Cheer Choreography: Alyssa and Belinda Ryberg and the cast
• Props Acquisition: Zina T. Bleck, Herb Tax
• Set Construction: Ken Woods, Natalie Woods, Herb Tax
• Lighting Design: Herb Tax
• Lighting Operation: Sara Drehmer, Natalie Woods
• Sound Design: Herb Tax
• Sound Operation: Sara Drehmer, Natalie Woods
• Costumes: the cast, Zina T. Bleck, Herb Tax
• Photography: Zina T. Bleck
• Publicity: Zina T. Bleck, Herb Tax
• Poster/Cover Art/ Program: Herb Tax
• Voice Over: Herb Tax

This review is also available as an audio version. [MP3 2:43 2.5MB]

Oleanna is a drama by David Mamet. A university professor and one of his female students clash over what should be said to others and how people should be treated. Emotions run high in this tense drama. Who is “innocent”? Who is “guilty”? Both? Neither? You decide.

This was an intense drama that will give you lots to discuss after seeing it. The two performers created a tension that held the audience’s attention throughout the show. The fast pace allowed the two actors to talk over each other. However this may have been done on purpose to heighten the ultimate fireworks which occurred between the two characters.

Carol, the confused and frustrated college student, was played by Christine Lange. Her character changed the most in this play. Lange’s Carol started out shy, rarely making eye contact with her professor until the second act. Her demeanor was withdrawn; almost like a whipped puppy dog. In the second act you could see an almost visible change. Lange was much more self aware and strong. The defiance and disdain in her eyes when confronting her professor was very apparent.

John, Carol’s college professor was played by Jay Tilley. Lange and Tilley complemented each other well. Whereas Lange became more confident and angry throughout the play, Tilley seemed to grow less confident and sure of himself. It was interesting to watch Tilley’s overbearing demeanor and used car salesman attitude in the first act change to depression and despair in the second act. The final scene his rage took over which was unsettling to watch, but powerfully performed.

The technical aspects of the show, the lighting and the sound, helped keep the mood tense. The set was the professor’s office and had the right amount of books and papers on a desk to make it all look fairly realistic. The Technical Director and Light Board Operator was Melissa Jo York-Tilley.

Oleanna ran an hour and a half with one intermission. It is closing this weekend. The final performances will be Friday at 8 pm and a Saturday matinee at 3 pm and an evening performance at 8 pm at the Lyceum in Alexandria, Virginia. This is a powerful drama that was well acted. This show involves mature themes and contains strong language. It is not recommended for anyone under 16.

Once you’ve seen Oleanna, please share your thoughts about it. We’d also like to invite you to join our free mailing list so you can stay informed with theater happenings in the DC region.

And now, on with the show.

Photos

Christine Lange as Carol and Jay Tilley as John	Christine Lange as Carol and Jay Tilley as John
Christine Lange as Carol and Jay Tilley as John	Christine Lange as Carol and Jay Tilley as John

Cast

• Carol: Christine Lange
• John: Jay Tilley

Crew

• Producer/Director: Zina T. Bleck
• Original Music: Herb Tax
• Technical Staff: Melissa Jo York-Tilley
• Publicity: Jay Tilley
• Flyer Artwork: Kaya Andoque-Walton
• Publicity Photography: Dave Harback

This is the ShowBizRadio Review of The Littlest Angel and Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol performed by Zemfira Stage in Alexandria, Virginia. We saw the performance on Saturday evening December 6, 2008.

The Littlest Angel is a play by Patricia Grey, based on the children’s story of the same name. There was, in Paradise, a most unruly small child known throughout Heaven as the Littlest Angel. She sang off-key and her halo was tarnished. Then she meets the Understanding Angel and explains how difficult it is for a child who suddenly finds himself transformed into an angel and that she’s unhappy because she longs for a box of toys that she left under her bed. A Heavenly Messenger brings the box and the Littlest Angel is overjoyed. But hers isn’t the only joy in Heaven, for Jesus is to be born. The Littlest Angel has only one thing to give and she places his box among the other splendid presents.

The Littlest Angel was simple in it’s execution, but made it’s point about giving all you have no matter how seemingly insignificant to announce the birth of Christ. The five actors did a great job in staging this production. They kept it simple. There were sheets strew about to represent clouds (this is Heaven after all, what more do you need)? Katherine Bisulca was exuberant as the Littlest Angel. She was overly pouty when the need arose, yet her excitement at giving her box to the baby Jesus was sincere. The Understanding Angel played by Erin Gallallee also did well in trying to show the Littlest Angel “the ropes” in heaven.

Then after a twenty minute intermission the audience returned for the second Christmas show: Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol. This is a play by Tom Mula. The classic story told from Scrooge’s partner’s point of view, as he gets the assignment to redeem Ebeneezer Scrooge.

This was a different and enjoyable twist to the traditional story. It was enjoyable learning Jacob Marley’s back story. Douglas Nelson as Jacob Marley did a believable job of embodying the crusty and confused man. When he confronted his living partner Ebenezer Scrooge, played by John G. McCracken, Jr., the two seemed to make eye contact and square off. Erin Gallellee played Marley’s guide, Bogel, well. She was in her character and was ready to duke it out when things did not go right. The three Ghosts were played believably by Mitch Irzinski.

The main prop for this show were the chains that Marley wore around his neck. The rest of the props were brought on and off the stage by the actors. The lighting was well designed, with different colored lights used effectively to set the tone of the show. Lighting Design, Technical Director and the Artwork were designed by Herb Tax.

The shows’ director Zina Bleck set a quick pace to the shows. It would have been simple to have either piece dwell too long on various aspects, such as the childishness of the Littlest Angel, or the confusion Marley experienced immediately after his death.

The entire evening, with intermission was just short of two hours. The Littlest Angel and Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol are playing through December 20 at the Lyceum in Alexandria, Virginia. These were fun stories with a different take on a traditional Christmas Carol story that are suitable for the whole family.

Once you’ve seen the show, please feel free to leave a comment here on our website at Show Biz Radio.net. We’d also like to invite you to join our free mailing list so you can stay informed with theater events in the DC Region.

And now, on with the show.

Cast

• Littlest Angel; Record keeper: Katherine Bisulca
• Angel; Bogel: Erin Gallalee
• Angel; Bob Crachitt, Ghost of Christmas Past, Present, Future: Mitch Irzinski
• Angel; Scrooge: John G. McCracken, Jr.
• Gatekeeper Angel; Marley: Douglas Nelson

Crew

• Producer/Director: Zina T. Bleck
• Sound Design: Jen Foster
• Lighting Design, Technical Director, Artwork: Herb Tax
• Set Design: Katherine Bisulca, Erin Gallalee, Herb Tax
• Technical Staff: Becky Farris, Herb Tax, Lynn Taylor
• Publicity: Harry Kantrovich

Laura: This is the ShowBizRadio Review of Tea at Five, performed by Zemfira Stage, in Alexandria, Virginia. We saw the performance on Sunday evening, July 20, 2008.

Mike: Tea at Five is a one woman play written by Matthew Lombardo. It tells the story of Katharine Hepburn as a monologue and is based on Hepburn’s book, “Me, Stories of My Life.”

Laura: I thought this show was very well performed. The actress Katharine Hepburn was played by Laura Russell. I thought she did a good job of breaking down the fourth wall. She made it seem very engaging. You felt like you were a part of her life. You had empathy for her situation and what was going on around her. I enjoyed her stories.

Mike: This was a very well performed show. Laura Russell was on stage the entire time performing in this one woman show. I remembered only a few shows from Katharine Hepburn’s career, such as On Golden Pond. I remember asking myself whether she was in Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner? After looking it up we realized that she was. I also remembered The Philadelphia Story. Although those were the only movies I remember seeing her in, she did so many movies and so many plays in her life. I did not know a lot about her so I learned a lot about her during the show.

It did cause me to wonder if these biography type shows have a purpose? It seems like it is feeding into the whole celebrity frenzy that people go through via the Paris Hiltons of the world and the Heath Ledger stories that have gone on? Do we really need to know all that? Do we really need to know about all the personal tragedies that form the actors that we see.

Laura: In a way I see it as living through the eyes of somebody else. How many of us say we are going to make it big in New York or Hollywood and then we never see or hear from them again. I guess it is living vicariously through someone else. I learned a lot about Katharine Hepburn’s life. I think Laura Russell did a good job.

Mike: I think this was a very well performed show. Tea at Five is playing for two more nights. Thursday the 24th and Friday the 25th at 8 pm at the Lyceum in Alexandria Virginia. The show ran two hours with one intermission.

Laura: I think this was an interesting and educational show. I recommend that you go see it. We’d also like to invite you to join our free mailing list so you can stay informed with theatre happenings in the Northern Virginia, DC, Maryland region.

Mike: And now, on with the show.

Cast

• Katharine Hepburn: Laura Russell

Crew

• Producer/Director: Zina T. Blek
• Technical Director/Sound Design: Herb Tax
• Technical Crew: Lynn Lacey, John G. McCracken, Jr.
• Front of House: Eleni Aldridge

Laura: This is the ShowBizRadio Review of A Few Good Men performed by Zemfira Stage in Alexandria, Virginia. We saw the performance on Sunday evening May 18, 2008.

Mike: A Few Good Men is a play by Aaron Sorkin. It tells the story of military lawyers at a court-martial who uncover a high-level conspiracy in the course of defending their clients, United States Marines accused of murder. This play was made into a film in 1992 and starred Tom Cruise, Demi Moore, and Jack Nicholson.

Laura: This was an intense show. I was on the edge of my seat for most of it. There were some funny lines as well as some intense moments.

Mike: Despite being very familiar with the film, I was looking forward to this play and it did not disappoint me. I had a good time. It was different from the movie (don’t rent the movie before you go see the show). I think the acting was solid throughout the entire show. I think you’ll have a good time with it.

Laura: There were three defense lawyers in this play. Lieutenant junior grade Daniel Kaffee was played by John G. McCracken, Jr. I thought he was good. Maybe a little stiff in the beginning and had some timing issues at the beginning, but as the play went on he got into a rhythm and I think he did a really good job.

Mike: The other two defense attorneys were Sam Weinberg (played by Mitch Irzinski) and Joanne Galloway (played by Jessica Billones). I think they did a fine job. The relationship between Irzinski and McCracken was almost like brothers. They seemed to know each other really well. There were a few scenes at the end where they decided to battle on in the court case where they just clicked together and it felt like they were just really good friends. Then of course you had Joanne Galloway who was just a bur in their saddle. They were not quite sure what to do with her. She was so annoying to them. At the beginning of the show no one liked her, but as it wore on everyone did get closer to her. She got more friendly and more open. I liked that the relationships between the different performers did change throughout the show. They all had the same goal throughout and it was interesting to see how the relationships changed.

Laura: Lieutenant Colonel Nathan Jessep was played by Tom Pentecost. He was actually kind of scary. He had a lot of rage on his face that he kept in check pretty well until the end of the show. Then he really let the attorneys have it. Jessup was evil in my opinion, but he gave a good strong performance and he was very believable.

Mike: The show took place entirely within the legal system of the military. You do not need to know the details of that. I got a little confused sometimes by the different ranks of the different characters. But it was not too distracting, partially because I have seen the movie so I knew what was coming. There were some things in the movie that did not happen in the stage version. But that was OK because they covered what they needed to cover to make it make sense. If anything, I think a couple things made more sense. In the movie Sam Weinberg did not really have a closer. In the show he has a nice scene with the two accused, Harold Dawson (played by Greg Gallagher) and Louden Downey (played by Alex Avila). It worked really well and I liked that scene.

Laura: This show had a lot of adult language in it. I would not recommend this for under upper high school because the language was prolific. But when you have a bunch of testosterone laden Marines that it come out.

Mike: The set was fairly simple. There were three primary areas of the stage that were used: left, right, and center. The lights were brightened and dimmed appropriately. This worked fine. We were siting in the middle kind of near the front, and for some of the courtroom scenes I felt like I was watching a tennis match because I had to swing my head all the way left and all the way right and go back and forth. So when you see this show, you may want to sit farther back in the auditorium. It is not a real deep auditorium. It may help be able to take everything in at once.

Behind each of the areas there were some scenes that were drawn. The Scenic Artist was Jeanne Trimble. They worked really well. They were scenes from around the DC region. There was also a scene from Guantanamo Bay and I think it added to the feel of the show.

Laura: A Few Good Men ran approximately two hours and forty minutes with one intermission. It is playing through Saturday May 31. Friday and Saturdays at 8. Sunday the 25th at 7:30 and a Thursday show on the 29th at 8 pm at the Lyceum in Alexandria, Virginia.

Mike: We’d like to invite you to join our free mailing list to stay informed with theater in the DC area.

Laura: And now, on with the show.

Photo Gallery

Kaffee and Galloway	Lt. Col. Nathan Jessep
Galloway talks to Dawson and Downey	Kendrick advises against Code Reds
Jessep, Kendrick, Markinson	Jessep attacks Kaffee

Photos by Zina Bleck

Cast

• Military Police, Sergeant at Arms: Lynn Lacey
• Military Police, Dave: Nick Heath
• Lance Corporal Harold W. Dawson: Greg Gallagher
• Private First Class Louden Downey: Alex Avila
• Lieutenant Junior Grade Sam Weinberg: Mitch Irzinski
• Lieutenant Junior Grade Daniel A. Kaffee: John G. McCracken, Jr.
• Lieutenant Commander Joanne Galloway: Jessica Billones
• Captain Whitaker: Robin Parker
• Captain Matthew A. Markinson: Jeff Murray
• Private First Class William T. Santiago: Soneyet Muhammad
• Lieutenant Colonel Nathan Jessup: Tom Pentecost
• Lieutenant Jonathan James Kendrick: Claude Stark
• Lieutenant Jack Ross: Howie Brown
• Corporal Jeffery Owen Howard: Carl M. Tenny
• Captain Julius Alexander Randolph: Ardith Collins
• Commander Walter Stone: Paul Flippin

Crew

• Producer, Director: Zina Bleck
• Assistant Director, Light Design, Technical Director: Herb Tax
• Sound Design: Jen Foster
• Costumes: Jessica Billones
• Scenic Artist Jeanne Trimble
• Publicity: Jay Tilley
• Technical Staff: Katherine Bisulca, Mary Brick
• Front of House Staff: Eleni Aldridge, Margaret Snow