The Monsters Are Needed at the BSB

Brigit Saint Brigit is holding auditions for our next production ‘The Monsters are Due on Maple Street and Other Assorted Treats’ directed by Scott Kurz. Casting will be gender/race-blind. All roles are open. All roles are paid. Roles will be tailored to suit the actor not the other way around.

When/Where: Saturday, Oct., 19 @ 1:00 PM @ UNO (Fine Arts Building Rm. 333) & Monday, Oct., 21 @ 7:00 PM @ First Central Congregational Church (421 South 36th St.)

Details: A rep company will be cast for this production. All members will be cast in ‘The Monsters are Due on Maple Street’ and others will be double-cast in other shorts/one-acts that evening (including Kurt Vonnegut’s ‘The Long Walk to Forever,’ an original work written by the director and more…) The original ‘Monsters…’ Twilight Zone episode can be found on Netflix (Season 1, Episode 22)—this version is being updated to a contemporary setting/sensibility. This will be a fun, stimulating and collaborative production!

If you are unable to attend either night and would like to be considered for a role, please contact Scott Kurz (skurz@bsbtheatre.com).

Bitter Fruit

A mother and her genius, but ill-mannered, son relocate to Crested Butte, CO to begin a new life.  Running parallel paths, the mother begins to find happiness once again while the son takes a step towards living life for the very first time.  But an insatiable need to know may tear both of their lives asunder.  This is Wildflower by Lila Rose Kaplan and is currently playing at the University of Nebraska-Omaha.

While Ms Kaplan’s script is interesting in some respects, it suffers from the flaw of not being a strong narrative.  By that I mean there really isn’t an arc to this play.  It’s really vignettes of the lives of the characters of this show.

Where the writing excels is in the characters themselves.  Not only are the characters fully formed people, but they have distinctive and well developed arcs with plenty of meat in which actors can sink their teeth.  The powerful characters help to cover the fact that the overall story lacks a unifying core.

Lara Marsh is a bit of auteur with this production as she not only directs, but also designed the set and helped to design the sounds.  Her direction is tight and sure.  Each character gets its fair due and chance to shine and Ms Marsh knows how to maximize each climax and resolution in the interrelationships of these characters.  Her staging is admirable with the entire blackbox being utilized and her mastery in crafting emotional moments cannot be argued.  She also gets thoroughly capable performances out of her cast.

Solid supporting performances are supplied by Francisco Franco and Jarod Cernousek.  As Mitchell, Franco plays a former burlesque performer turned hotel owner/chef who dispenses wise advice and has found peace in his life in the most extraordinary way.  Cernousek’s James is a forest ranger with a power complex and the rod up his back has a rod up its back which I’m pretty certain has a rod up its back.

Aaron Sorilla is exceptional in his performance as Randolph.  Randolph is a high functioning autistic and Sorilla does truly wonderful work in communicating the aspects of autism such as his focus on self, rudeness, fixations, and a bit of a sing-song cadence to his speaking patterns.  His timing is excellent and he knows how to elicit a good laugh from a line.  But he also handles the drama side of the role equally well.  There is a real tragedy to his character as he is unable to understand emotion and his literal nature means everything needs to be spelled out to him in excruciating detail.  And that need to know leads him down a treacherous path.

Jocelyn Reed plays Erica, Randolph’s mother.  Ms Reed does a good job of encasing Erica’s core of sadness in a bubbly personality.  The bubblyness is not a put on.  It’s more like if Erica focuses on being happy, then she’ll forget the sadness which is always threatening to rear its ugly face.  This is a person who has had a rough go of things.  It’s implied she was in an emotionally abusive marriage from which she is trying to recover and while she loves her son, Ms Reed’s body language conveys the sense that she sometimes feels chained to him due to his special needs.  Indeed, as a loving mother, she makes sacrifices to her own happiness for the sake of her son.  But her shining moment is when we get to see her exude utter joy when her son forms a special friendship with a girl.  Not only is she happy for him, but she is happy for herself as she sees the possibilities that each of them can live their own life.

Hannah Davis makes her acting debut as Astor and does quite well in her first outing.  There’s a lot of fun to this character.  One is never certain if she is also a high functioning autistic or just very immature due to a combination of an odd upbringing and her own exceptional intelligence.  She comes off as much younger than 16 especially when she’s bossing Erica around in the visitor’s center and engaging in childish arguments with Randolph.  Yet she has startling moments of pseudo-sophistication and clearly has the longings of a young girl coming of age due to her wanting intimacy so she isn’t inexperienced when she shortly heads off to college.  While Ms Davis’ character foundation is rock solid, I think she has the leeway to amp up what’s she’s doing a notch or two.

Lara Marsh has provided a simple, but effective set for the production with a counter full of brochures, seeds, and flowers for the visitor’s center and a rolling counter for Mitchell’s kitchen.  Kendra Newby’s costumes well suit the personalities of the characters from the perfectly pressed forest ranger’s uniform of James to the too big sports coat (it’s his father’s) of Randolph to the childlike clothing of Astor as well as her beautiful sundress as she comes of age.  Riley Campbell and Craig & Lara Marsh team up for some fantastic sounds such as the hotline’s ringing telephone and the blast of fireworks.  Rebecca Roth’s lights are top of the line especially with the stars of the outdoors and the flash and colors of exploding fireworks.

In spite of a missing centrality to the story, this show is a strong showcase in character work aided by surefire direction.  It’ll make you laugh.  It’ll make you wonder.  It’ll even tug at your heartstrings a little.

Wildflower plays in the Weber Fine Arts Building in Room 006 at the University of Nebraska-Omaha through April 28.  Showtimes are Thurs-Sat at 8pm and Sunday at 2pm.  Tickets are free.  Due to adult subject matter and language, this show is recommended for mature audiences.  The University of Nebraska-Omaha is located at 6001 Dodge St in Omaha, NE.

Catch a Whiff of this ‘Wildflower’

The University of Nebraska-Omaha Theatre Department Presents:

Wildflower by Lila Rose Kaplan

Directed by Lara Marsh

Synopsis

A woman and her son look to escape their past in Crested Butte, a small town with its share of secrets. They encounter a curious girl, a forest ranger, and an innkeeper. The five collide in a summer of botany and sexual awakening. Wildflower explores the discovery of desire and its consequences.

Cast

Randolph – Aaron Sorilla

Erica – Jocelyn Reed

Astor – Hannah Davis

James-Jarod Cernousek

Mitchell – Francisco Franco

Performance Dates:  April 24-28 (Wed-Sat at 8pm.  Sun at 2pm.)

Location:  University of Nebraska-Omaha (6001 Dodge St in Omaha, NE) Weber Fine Arts Building, Rom 006

Tickets are free.  Due to explicit language and sexual content, this show is for mature audiences.

The Death of Innocence

A group of youths in provincial Germany experience the thrill of their emerging adulthood and the pain of losing their childhood innocence.  This is Spring Awakening with book and lyrics by Steven Sater and music by Duncan Sheik based off of Frank Wedekind’s original play of the same name.  It is currently playing at the UNO Theatre.

I’m not familiar with Wedekind’s original play, but have read praise for Sater remaining reasonably faithful to the original work.  Wedekind’s tale poses some very challenging ideas and themes that still resonate today.  The theme of emerging adulthood takes the form of their sexual awakening and the youths are thrilled and unnerved by the changes taking place within them.  However, this awakening comes at a price.

The change into adulthood comes at the cost of their innocence and hope.  Even worse, they are ill equipped to handle these changes due to a society of adults which refuses to educate and help them cope with these changes.  Instead they label the youths’ burgeoning desires as evil and hypocritically hide their own evil and cruelty to maintain a world that suits their vision.

Sater does a fine job updating Wedekind’s work for a modern audience and Sheik has written a punchy score full of catchy, memorable tunes.

It’s unusual to see two directors at the helm of a show, but Doran Schmidt and Wai Yim do quality work in guiding this musical.  Clearly both are on the exact same page with their vision, fusing their unique talents to create a strong show.  Their performers know what they are doing with their roles and where they are going.  Ms Schmidt’s musical direction is spot on and Yim’s gift for designing movement keeps this story going as there is never a static movement.  The actors make full use of the performance space in an effortless and unceasing flow of movement and action.

The supporting cast is skilled and unified.  They harmonize well.  They play well off each other.  All manage to find the ebbs and flows and the humorous and serious moments of the production.  But I’d like to single out Bethany Bresnahan for a memorable cameo performance as Ilse.  Ms Bresnahan’s Ilse is the lone character who seems to retain her childhood innocence as she transitions into adulthood.  She had a dynamic presence, beautiful animation, and a haunting sequence in “Don’t Do Sadness/Blue Wind”.

Ryan McCann is wonderful as Melchior.  McCann well plays the duality of this character as Melchior is both the angel and the devil.  He is a playful, intelligent wit and loyal friend.  But he also has the makings of a fiend within him with his whipping (albeit requested) and possible raping of a childhood friend.  Truly, he seems to be the character in the most danger of becoming part of the cruel, hypocritical society he lives in until he finds the strength to overcome it with a little help from his spiritual friends.

McCann’s tenor was in fine form all night.  His voice captured all of the important nuances both musically and orally.  He especially shone in “The Guilty Ones”, “Those You’ve Known”, and the night’s best number, “Totally F@!#ed”.

Seldom have I felt the kind of empathy for a character as I did for Nick Jansen’s Moritz.  Moritz has pressures on him that few adults could be expected to handle, let alone a child.  His parents demand perfection from him.  He studies beyond the point of exhaustion.  He’s uncomfortable with his new “sticky dreams”.  Jansen does superior work in communicating the ever mounting weight on Moritz’s shoulders until he collapses under the pressure.  Jansen also has a fine tenor and falsetto best utilized in “Don’t Do Sadness/Blue Wind” and “And Then There Were None”.

Roni Shelley-Perez soars as Wendla.  Wendla may be the show’s most tragic character as her innocence makes her truly childlike.  An overprotective mother refuses to help her understand her transition into adulthood.  Her safe lifestyle has rendered her unable to feel, pushing her to request to get whipped by Melchior so she can empathize with a classmate who is routinely beaten by her father.  Due to her safety and immaturity, Wendla simply does not know how to protect herself and those who should protect her fail utterly.

Ms Shelley-Perez brilliantly essays the confusion and innocence of Wendla.  I was especially impressed with her facial expressions during her moment of intimacy with Melchior which left it beautifully ambiguous as to whether or not it was rape.

Ms Shelley-Perez can also belt out a tune with a monstrously strong soprano in “Mama Who Bore Me” and “The Word of Your Body”.

Steven Williams has designed a simple, yet imposing set of black pillars and balcony with chalk drawings all over it.  Audrey Wardian’s lights were incredible with strobe flashes and emotional colors which were all variations of the rainbow leading to subtler shades of meaning.  Valerie St Pierre Smith’s costumes invoked the sedate elegance of 19^th century school uniforms and clothing.

At this preview night performance, the cast started off a bit hesitantly and quietly.  Once they reached “Totally F@!#ed” they were firing on all cylinders and the theatre was overflowing with their confidence and I do believe they are on to something quite magical.  Sound also suffered a touch from either microphone issues or dead spots on the stage.

Growing up is hard to do, especially when there isn’t an instruction book or a person with experience to lend a helping hand.  Spring Awakening does a dandy job in sharing the difficulty and pain of growing up, but it also leaves a glimmer of hope that the current generation will fix the mistakes of the previous.

Spring Awakening plays at the UNO Theatre in the Weber Fine Arts Building through Dec 2.  Showtimes are 7:30pm on Fridays and Saturdays.  Tickets cost $16 (a 2^nd preview night performance on Nov 16 will be $6).  UNO students can attend the show for free.  For tickets, call 402-554-PLAY or visit www.unomaha.edu/unotheatre.  Due to strong language and sensitive themes, Spring Awakening is not suitable for children.  The UNO Theatre is located at 6001 Dodge St in Omaha, NE.

“Dracula” Lacks Bite

The evil vampire, Count Dracula, stalks the streets of London. He, himself, is hunted by a group of adventurers pledging to end his reign of terror. This is the story of Dracula written by Steven Dietz and based off of Bram Stoker’s classic novel and is currently playing at the UNO Theatre.

I have always considered this version of the legendary tale one of the better ones as it is based much more closely on the novel. Dietz manages to capture the most important elements of Stoker’s novel though he does eliminate two crucial characters and compresses events down to size for the sake of the play.

D. Scott Glasser’s direction is fairly solid. He makes good use of the cobblestoned three tiered stage (wonderfully designed by Robbie Jones) and had his actors well placed for the multiple simultaneous scenes that take place during the course of the show. But I did disagree with his staging. The actors presented the story in a very theatrical manner which seemed over the top at certain points which resulted in snickers and chuckles from the audience. A more realistic approach would assist in making this show a true spellbinding chiller.

Michael Judah does fine work in the title role. He has a nice intimidating physical presence and lent an air of mystery to the character as he quickly appeared and disappeared on stage. I was especially impressed with his rejuvenated Dracula as he was truly a beast. He took what he wanted, succumbed to his appetites without regret, and oozed danger. His weaker, aged version of Dracula (a stellar make-up job from Charleen Willoughby) was a bit too energetic and animated. I also thought Judah needed to be more authoritative as weaker Dracula as he is a nobleman and warrior with centuries of experience and cunning on his side.

Andrew Prescott is excellent as Professor Abraham Van Helsing, Dracula’s chief nemesis. Prescott’s marvelously powerful speaking voice was well suited to his bold, decisive characterization. He was truly a man of action and convinced me that this was somebody I would want leading me into a dangerous situation. Prescott does need to be careful not to upstage himself as he turned his back on all of the audience members in the round on a couple of occasions.

Enrique Madera made some odd choices in his interpretation of Renfield. When he opened the play, he spoke with a Received Pronunciation accent and had utterly flawless diction. When he transitioned into the Renfield of the story he fell into a Cockney accent and his diction vanished. At certain points he also seemed to imbue the character with some effeminate qualities which I didn’t think worked very well. Madera also didn’t seem to quite get Renfield’s true nature, though he was on the right track. Renfield is a man of massive extremes. When he is sane, he is completely calm and controlled. When he goes through a psychotic fit, it is savagely violent and he is capable of making those changes on the turn of a dime. Madera was making those changes but they need to be sharper and more pronounced. I also thought his choice to consistently giggle was a little too clichéd.

Garrett Garniss’ portrayal of Dr. Seward was a superior work of storytelling. His rich voice captured all of the subtle nuances needed for the character. I could feel his pain when he lost Lucy, his confusion and irritation with Van Helsing who would not reveal the whole truth of the situation, his anger and disgust at what needs to be done with Lucy, and his courage and determination when he decides to accept the burden placed upon him. It was truly fine workmanship.

The only flaw in Mike Burns’ Jonathan Harker was its theatricality. Toned down a few notches, it is a gripping performance. Burns did good work in portraying Harker as the hungry new solicitor determined to do good by Dracula as his leasing agent. Most impressive was his turn as a nearly catatonic patient after the horrors he experiences at Castle Dracula.

I thought Sarah Nickolaisen made for a very sweet Lucy Westenra. She could be playful as when she was teasing Mina, empathetic when she rejected Seward’s marriage proposal, and I was chilled when she transformed into the eerie and bestial Bloofer Lady. She does need to be certain to overenunciate when she has the fangs so she can be understood.

Likewise, I thought Jordyn Petersen was loyal and steadfast as Mina Murray, but she also needs to watch her diction as her dialogue was mushy at points during the play.

Charleen Willoughby’s costumes were perfect for the gothic tale. Aaron David Wrigley’s sound was an ideal match to the mood of the story. Adam VanOsdel’s special effects could not be improved upon. Audrey Wardian’s lighting was well suited, but was a bit too dim and shadowy. For a large portion of the play, I had difficulty seeing the actors and could not read their reactions and expressions.

The play did have some group issues as well. The theatre is a black box so the actors need to really belt out their lines to be heard. Accents were a mixed bag and sometimes were dropped and changed. The pace of the show also needed to be greatly picked up and scenes of violence need to be tighter and cleaner. Still, I see untapped potential in this show. As this was the first of two preview performances, there is still time for adjustments to be made to allow the show to reach the heights I believe it can reach.

Dracula plays at the UNO Theatre in the Weber Fine Arts Building through October 10. Performances are Wed-Sat at 7:30pm. Tickets cost $16, but UNO students get one free ticket. Reservations can be made at 402-554-PLAY or their website at www.unomaha.edu/unotheatre. Dracula is a horror story and is recommended for mature audiences.