Displaying items by tag: Christopher Ratiff

If you haven’t already made plans to see 'Hello Again' at Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre, don’t wait another minute! Director/Choreographer Brenda Didlier’s reimagination of this 1993 off-Broadway musical.

The story is composed of 10 interwoven vignettes focusing on 10 love affairs portrayed in a frolicking, whimsical, lighthearted tone and yet layered in the heaviness of sadness, loneliness, and emotional emptiness.

Performed in the intimate cabaret setting where the cast and audience were close enough to touch added another layer of depth to the characters as they were able to perform in normal voice levels and eye level, making the connection between the characters and the audience members more real, intimate, and believable.

The love affairs take place throughout the 20th century, so the scenes and the musical numbers cover 100 year of musical styles, wardrobes and fashion, and historical events and lifestyles. Music Director/Conductor Jeremy Ramey and the orchestra produced the perfect mood as he helped us travel from New York City in 1900 to present with stop offs in a 1930’s movie house, a 1970’s disco, and even a stop on a luxury liner in 1912. The five-piece orchestra produced a full sound to fill the room when required but never drew us away from the characters. Costumes and sets were fast-changing and minimalist, but eye catching and definitely transformative with the changing timeline.

As for the stars of the show, I was delighted that the entire cast are the stars together. While each brought their strengths to their characters, they all complemented each other perfectly and each of the love affairs played an equally important part in the overarching story. Neala Barron’s (The Actress) and Christopher Ratiff’s (The Soldier), both Jeff Award nominees for 110 in the Shade (Boho), lend their strong vocals and acting skills to a very talented cast.

I certainly felt an emotional connection to several of the characters, specifically the Husband (Royen Kent), the Writer (Max J. Cervantes) and the Senator (Courtney Jones). All of the characters were very honest and relatable.

While all the scenes and numbers were exceptional as well, a couple of my favorites include the opening number “Hello Again” featuring the Whore (Megan Elk) and the Soldier (Ratliff), “The One I love” featuring the Young Thing (Marco Tzunux) and the Writer (Cervantes)and “The Bed Was Not My Own” featuring the Senator (Jones) and the Whore (Elk).

'Hello Again' continues at Theo Ubique through November 3, 2019. This is an excellent show which I highly recommend.