In the Heights

In the Heights
Town Hall Arts Center
Littleton, CO 
September 8 - October 8, 2017

With the enormous success of Hamilton, theater goers will have an increased interest in Lin-Manuel Miranda’s first show, In the Heights. And with Hamilton scheduled to travel to Denver next spring, the Town Hall Arts Center’s production is well timed.

Despite their space limitations, the set designers did a fantastic job of creating a Washington Height’s block onstage. Each storefront had pieces which rolled out easily to expand the size of the store space. With the pieces rolled in, a street that was more perception than set, was revealed.

It didn’t take long for the audience to get to know the characters in the show. For the most part, they are people just like our neighbors and friends – very different people brought together by geography. And through the wonderful dialogue, we learned they have very different stories and backgrounds.
The costumes appear much like what young people wear today. The choreography was perfect for them.

At times, the music seemed a bit overwhelming for the cast. Some of the rap pieces were difficult to understand. But overall, the music was enjoyable.

The weakness of the show came from the plot. It was thin at best. There were the obligatory boy meets girl stories. The rest of the action was mostly centered everyday problems. The issues were resolved realistically, but the action isn’t as exciting as it could have been. The character of Abuela was too far in the background to have the emotional impact she should in Act 2.

This production of In the Heights is enjoyable, but it does not have the impact that Hamilton has. Denver audiences will have to wait to see if Miranda’s sophomore effort lives up to the hype.

The Music Man

The Music Man
Candlelight Dinner Playhouse
Johnstown, CO 
September 7 - November 5, 2017

Candlelight Dinner Playhouse is celebrating its tenth anniversary this year. This group has found their sweet spot in the Colorado theater scene by presenting classic shows that aren’t often performed in the Denver metro area. The first show of their second decade is The Music Man – shows don’t get much more classic than this.

The show centered around Harold Hill, a smooth travelling salesman. Their Harold had a smile as wide as Iowa and enough charisma to charm the hardest of hearts. His antics gave the people of River City a much needed diversion from their dull daily lives. This character was so well performed that we couldn’t help but love him, despite his questionable motives.

Marian the librarian was lovely to look at and hear, even if she was a bit dull. She seemed too easily swayed by Harold’s charms, but it’s the scenario the audience longed for.

The main characters were surrounded by a wide range of crazy characters. The best was the Mayor’s wife who was a comedy show on her own. The barbershop quartet were spectacular to listen to, and I loved their silly antics when their situations were less than harmonious.

As always, the sets at the Candlelight transported the audience into the right setting. The scenes changed deftly and smoothly, never taking away from the action. I also appreciated how the characters changed costumes to denote changes in time. (A costumer for this show could easily decide to keep everyone dressed in the same costume throughout.)

There wasn’t anything to dislike about this show, It is not a deep social or political commentary and they never tried to make it into one. It’s a a fun time at the theater with something for everyone. And be prepared for one of the best curtain calls you will ever see.

A Chorus Line

A Chorus Line
Arvada Center
Arvada, CO
September 12 - October 1, 2017

Back before Cats and The Phantom of the Opera, A Chorus Line was the longest running show in Broadway history. Despite that success, a generation of theater-goers have not had many opportunities to see the show. The current Arvada Center production gives these audiences a chance to see it.

The two most famous songs from the show “One” and “What I Did For Love” do little to prepare an audience for the story. The show is an audition where 16 hopeful dancers compete for roles in an upcoming Broadway show. Through a rigorous interview process, the audiences got to know each character.

The result is we got to know the dream behind each dancer. These were fully realized people and not caricatures. Each role was well cast. Their skills were equal to the task of taking a small snippet of the script and creating a believable character.

The music was beautifully arranged. The choral treatment of “What I Did For Love” was exquisite. Of course, the real star of the show was the dancing. The dancers here displayed incredible skill.

The setting for the action was an audition for a Broadway show. Anyone who has participated in theater knows this often takes place in an empty space. Hardly glamorous. And the set for the show looked just that way. However, at specific points in the show, cleverly hidden mirrors appear behind the dancers for added depth to the set. It also morphs into a glittery backdrop for the showy finale.

With its talented cast and thoughtful staging, A Chorus Line looks good for its age.

Rock of Ages

Rock of Ages
BDT Stage
Boulder, CO
August 25 - November 11, 2017

Rock of Ages seems like an odd musical - a showcase of eighties songs wrapped around a story. This season, BDT Stage tackled this challenge for their season opener.

Unlike many “jukebox musicals,” this show didn’t force songs to fit into the story line. Instead, only the relevant parts were used. In some cases that many mean that the audience members may not hear the entirety of their favorite song, but it kept the action moving along nicely.

Another nice feature was the medley of songs at parts in the show to show the stream of consciousness of multiple characters. (It would be called a “mash-up” today.) While the blending may not have been perfect, it was interesting to hear these familiar songs used in a completely new way.

The costumes were also a fun reminder of the era. The women’s outfits were decidedly Madonna inspired and the men mostly wore jeans. But there were brilliant touches by someone who vividly remembers the time. Lonnie’s “Frankie Says Relax” t-shirt was fantastic to see. And the gaudy European jacket worn by Franz took me back to the flamboyant fashion of that era.

The poster outside the theater mentioned the “big hair” of the eighties and it was on display. The actors who grew out and teased their hair captured the right looks. Those who wore wigs gave us the mullet style in a way most of us would like to forget.

The talent of the cast was undeniable. While the characters in the show may be somewhat superficial, they do evoke real people. While Lonnie was a bit over the top in his antics, I was constantly reminded of the behavior I saw in the eighties. The songs were performed in a way that didn’t leave the audience longing for the original version. 

The storyline was simple, but uplifting. The cast seemed to have a good time performing it and it was contagious. Rock of Ages was at times over-sexualized and vulgar, but it was appropriate for the show. It was a fun evening of theater and music that felt like a party.

Frozen

Frozen
Pre-Broadway Engagement
Buell Theater
Denver, CO 
August 17 - October 1, 2017

With Frozen, it’s hard to imagine that Disney Broadway doesn’t have a hit on their hands. After all, this new stage musical is based on the highest grossing animated film of all time. I saw the show on opening night and the excitement in the crowd was contagious.

The show started with music similar to the opening scene of the movie, but quickly diverged to a different story. We were introduced to the “Hidden Folk” who replaced the trolls in the show. These characters a puzzling. They appear to be indigenous people, but their attire would be more
appropriate in a tropical setting than the frozen north. The leader of the hidden folk acted as a narrator throughout. He was often difficult to understand, but he really wasn’t necessary in that capacity.

The cast of the show was fantastic. Anna was even sillier on stage than in the film. Elsa had a beautiful tone to her voice. Even the two young girls playing the princesses as children were incredible to watch. Before they built the snowman onstage, both girls were awkwardly running offstage and bringing the props back with them. The show stopped for technical difficulties. When the girls reappeared, we saw that the set pieces the props were stored on had not come out, so the girls did what they had to so the show would go on.

Olaf the snowman was a puppet with the actor voicing him clearly visible, It was the same convention used in The Lion King for Timon. It was a bit disappointing that Disney was not more innovative for this show. Sven the reindeer was a costume which was slightly awkward around the back legs. But the actor inside worked well in the role.

When a show is already beloved as Frozen the costumes couldn’t be a radical departure from the film. They didn’t disappoint. There are a few new additions – Anna borrowed a green snow suit before donning her burgundy and blue “trekking” outfit. Elsa also had a new dress in Act 2. While it wasn’t as spectacular as her ”ice dress,” it was perfect for her.

The sets were relatively simple. There was no castle rising from the ground during “Let It Go.” But overall the lighting and set pieces created the right mood for each scene. We were even treated to an ice bridge above the stage.

The songs added for the show were not as impactful as the ones from the movie. Most of them add character development for the four main characters. “Monster” from Act 2 was the most memorable, but having Elsa caught by Hans immediately at the end of the song took away much of the power of the song. The original songs really shone. And “Let It Go” at the end of Act 1 left me with goosebumps.

The show was enjoyable, but it still needs a bit of work. Act 2 dragged and I could hear the restlessness of the enthusiastic audience. "Hygge" is a strange start to Act 2 with the ensemble appearing to be naked and covering themselves with leaves as if in a sauna.

Fans of Frozen will love this show. It’s not an innovative staging of the show but considering the popularity of the film, it’s likely to have a huge following when it arrives on Broadway next spring.

Julius Caesar

Julius Caesar
Colorado Shakespeare Festival
Mary Rippon Theater
Boulder, CO
June 11 - August 13, 2017


William Shakespeare’s play Julius Caesar has been highly controversial this year when New York’s Public Theatre performed it with the part of Caesar played by a Donald Trump look-alike. While the Colorado Shakespeare Festival opted for a more traditional toga version, they clearly were not lost on the political implications of the work.

At the beginning of the show, several actors in modern clothes responded to the players on stage as if at a political rally. The meaning was clear – these events could happen again.

From that point, the production was performed as a costume drama. Caesar was clad in a saintly white toga while the rest of the major players wore colorful clothing. There did not seem to be any obvious meaning behind their attire. It did seem strange that they did not wear the traditional red and white Senate robes.

As the two factions formed, the colorful garb was replaced with uniforms of blue and while (the good guys) or black and red (the bad guys). Had they all started off with the unifying Senate robes, the taking of sides may have appeared more dramatic. And they seemed little reason why Marc Antony wore the short toga of a boy, except, perhaps, to harken back to Richard Burton’s attire from the classic film Cleopatra.

The casting was a bit uneven. Brutus was far more charismatic than Caesar. Cassius’s attempt to sway Brutus wasn’t convincing. Marc Antony did seem to grow before our eyes, but his relationship with Octavius seemed to appear out of nowhere.

The staging of the assassination scene was tense and disturbing. But the resulting bloodbath seemed gratuitous. Even though the script called for the conspirators to mark themselves with blood, it did seem over the top. Mark Antony’s post assassination speech delivered from the middle of the audience clearly marked him as a man of the people. However this version did not draw a strong line between the good and the bad. Perhaps that was purposeful.

While the show is interesting, and at times entertaining, it doesn’t have a clear message for the audience.

The Slipper and the Rose

The Slipper and the Rose

Candlelight Dinner Playhouse
Johnstown, CO 
June 15 - August 22, 2017

Cinderella is a beloved story. It is so well loved that more versions of it exist than any other fairy tale. The Slipper and the Rose is a lesser known version by Robert and Richard Sherman.

This is a more mature Cinderella. The story contains more political implications than most others. Many versions contain princesses from other lands who are vying for a good political match, but most do not have the king interfering with the love match to force the prince into a better political match.

The performances in this production are top notch. The prince is portrayed as a thoughtful and sincere, as well as naïve. Cinderella is sweet and humble, but also shattered by her father’s death. The Fairy Godmother brings needed humor to the story. The addition of a cute dog named “Magic” is odd, but in a loveable way.

The songs were well performed, but they aren’t all that memorable. The choreography was fun to watch – although it did seem strange to have the prince skip through a cemetery. The magic tricks were mostly uninspired, but Cinderella’s transformation into her ball gown was fun to watch.

The set was well thought out. The stairs moved from side to side of the walkway which gave the feeling of different rooms. Cinderella’s room which rolled out onto the stage was a good contrast to the more regal settings of the show.

The Slipper and the Rose is an enjoyable show for families. The second act might confuse or upset younger children, but the happily ever after ending made sure everyone left the theater happy. If the finale didn’t create warm feelings, the invitation to take photos with Cinderella on the stage certainly would.