Displaying items by tag: Freddy Mauricio

What the hell is pantomime anyway?  Will I be reviewing a game of Charades?  

Google to the rescue! But I searched in vain for a definition: 

1. pan·to·mime      [ˈpan(t)əˌmīm] a play or entertainment in which performers express themselves mutely by gestures.

PrideArts mounting a silent production? Um …. I find that unlikely in the extreme

2. theatrical entertainment based on a fairy tale and using Slapstick humor, designed for children and family entertainment. 

Has PrideArts become a children’s theatre? A venue for family entertainment?! Oi!  Tell me ain’t so!

3. Pantomime is a production of songs and dancing generally using gender-crossing actors…. 

Aha! That’s more like it!

1. Gender-crossing actors …check!
2. Singing and dancing … check!
3. Based on a fairy story … check!
4. Slapstick humor … check!

Put ‘em together and whaddaya got?  Bibbity Bobbity Boo!

But we can’t expect the internet to do all our work for us. It was time for field research.  So I pulled up my socks and set out for PrideArts Theatre, wherein I found:

All of the above, sans kids. What I was not expecting was the phenomenon of the SLAPSTICK DAME. Wikipedia helped me there: a British  pantomime dame  involves portrayal of female characters by male actors in drag, often in an extremely camp style with heavy makeup and big hair, exaggerated physical features [c’mon Wiki, just say ‘big tits’], performing in an over-the-top style.   

Oh yeah!  NOW we’re on the same page! 

OK, are we good with the definitions now? Let’s get to the freakin’ play!

Nanny Fanny (Neill Kelly), despite appearing in none of the fables, had a lead role in THROBBIN’ WOOD, along with her son Silly Willy (Freddy Mauricio). Every time N.F. came on stage [erm… I mean she mounted … erm …entered the stage] we were expected to.…

… Oh yeah! Forgot to mention – pantomime also requires audience participation. We were instructed to yell: “Spank me, Nanny!” each time Nanny Fanny came on stage [oh dear. I did it again!]. Other characters/situations provoked divers reactions.

There. See? That’s the sort of humor you’ll find in THROBBIN’ WOOD. 

Pantomime is a Brit thing, and you know those Brits and their idea of humor: vulgar puns, dirty double entendre, indecent innuendo, and other forms of vulgar waggery and unseemly buffoonery.  But pantomime requires a bit more than indecorous dialogue, and that’s where the acting comes in! Neill Kelly’s Nanny Fanny was outrageously OTT; her son Willy (Freddie Mauricio) was demonstrably Silly. Bryan Fowler’s Throbbin’ Wood was extremely debonair (though not too bright; but obstetrics was dodgier back then). Kyle Johnson was a perfectly glorious Anal-A-Dale, while Jack Gordon disseminated ecclesiastical good cheer and spiritous libations. I’d sure like to be a fly on the wall during his Confession! 

Don’t forget the Villain: Ryder Dean McDaniel had the perfect eyebrows for the job, and he employed them masterfully, the nefarious rapscallion!

Which brings me to the final Merry Man, Little Jonny (Jackson Anderson). Little Jonny was such a disappointment to me: a damp squid; a flash in the pan; a lead balloon. Mind you don’t misconstrue my meaning here! Jackson Anderson was superb, his character indispensable, and his appearance … mm mm mm. Finger-lickin’ good. BUT he never, not ever, no way, no how, NEVER authenticated his name!  We were told the appellation was chosen due to his extreme modesty, but still I left PrideArts without being allowed to appraise this crucial nominative characteristic personally.

I won’t go into details about the plot, partly to avoid spoilers but primarily because I’m not certain there was one. But here’s the layout:

Silly Willy (Freddy Mauricio) is telling his mum [Spank me!] about joining the Merry Men with Throbbin’ Wood (Bryan Fowler) — quite understandable, for Throbbin’ is tall, handsome, noble, and possesses … well, THROBBIN’ WOOD! What more couldja want???

If this enticement is insufficient, consider his Merry Men:  religieux Triar Fuck (Jack Gordon), renowned archer Anal-a-Dale (Kyle Johnson), and Little Jonnie (Jackson Anderson), of whom we’ve already spoken. See, THROBBIN’ WOOD is kinda like Lord of the Rings in that it features a bountiful cast of strong, handsome, heroic men but is bereft of females … and they consider this a problem!?  Go figure….

One imaginational figment was Fairy Glitterous (Danielle Bahn), who periodically appeared onstage for little apparent reason but to bring glitter, bling, and pink tulle into an otherwise fairly monochromatic set. But that’s OK! Everybody needs a little glitter, bling and pink tulle in their lives.

[NOTE TO DIRECTOR:  give F.G. a bag of glitter with which to shower the audience …yeah? ….no?  just sayin’]

Where was I? ah, the exiguousness of women in THROBBIN’WOOD. So let’s proceed to Maid Marion (Emma Roble), who is a pulchritudinous [isn’t that just the BEST word?!] maiden madly in love with THROBBIN’ WOOD.

Now I just know I’m forgetting someone ….  Oh yeah – we need a villain! The Sherriff is flawlessly depicted by Ryder Dean McDaniel [Boooooooo], who is ardently dedicated to, not solely the despoliation of our hero THROBBIN’ WOOD, but also to the inveiglement of Maid Marion. To this end he consigns her to a dungeon for no more malfeasance than rebuffing his advancements. 

[REVIEWER’S NOTE] I’m unfamiliar with this style of blandishment … unless M.M.is a rope bunny? …

OK, that’s the cast. Let’s slip backstage to congratulate Director Taylor Pasch and Assistant Caitlin Preuss on how skillfully they herded this bagful of cats. The ambience of many a scene was fomented by music (Music Director Chad Gearig) to provoke an appropriate response to each character: e.g. yelling Spank Me! for Nanny Fanny and Boooooo for the Sheriff. The spiritus mundi of the different scenes and characters is likewise imputable to Scenic Designer Hayley Wallenfeldt. The props were managed by Annaleigh Stone; Jen Cupani and Caitlin Preuss directed Choreography, and Costume Director Victoria Jablonski showcased an abundance of Men in Tights for our delectation.

I close this review with: I once asked a dramaturgic friend: “WTF does a Stage Manager actually do?”, to which they responded “Everything”. Corbin Paulino did everything.

THROBBIN’ WOOD is playing at PrideArts THeatre through December 15. 

I RECOMMEND you check it out!

Coming-of-age is a subject with universal appeal across the arts.  Playwright Jonathan Keebler makes it fun by putting it to music composed by Ryan Korell in GAY CARD, playing at Pride Arts Center through September 24.

Logan (Ben Ballmer) is saying goodbye to the horrors of high school and is totally stoked to celebrate his college enrollment by coming out in a big way. To this end, he chooses the dorm called ‘Diversity House’. His best friend Melanie (Sophie Murk) does the same, as they’ve always been ‘there for each other’.

Logan quickly learns that it’s not that simple; there are many prerequisites to being issued a GAY CARD. In her role as Logan’s adjuvant braniac, Melanie steers him towards GayCardBlog-dot-com, where Logan is told he must decide what kind of gay boy he’ll be. His outrageous ventures into what he considers ‘Twink’ and ‘Artsy Gay’ (among others) are celebrated in song and dance.

At Diversity House Logan and Melanie find the voraciously heterosexual house mother Danielle (Rachel Carreras) and recovering jock Justin (Nathaniel Thomas). Corey (Joey Alvey) and July (Maya Radjenovich) present themselves as blissfully bi, while Graham (Freddy Mauricio) is somewhat mysterious – which naturally makes him alluring.

The GayCardBlog is brought to dramatic life by the Blog Trio – Michael Idalski, Adelina Marinello, and Elijah Warfield – who personate Logan’s pilgrimage with lascivious lyrics and appalling apparel – well done, Costume Designer Shawn Quinlan!  Ensemble numbers are completed by Kyle Johnson and Dance Captain Haven Sydney Denson.

Did someone say dance? Choreographer Britta Schlict gives us one spectacle after another, assisted by Jordan Ratliff, who is also Assistant Director under Pride Arts’ Artistic Director Jay Espaῆo. Espaῆo, Sound Designer Valerio Torretta Gardner and Music Director Robert Ollis navigate every number to near-balletic synchrony, even the full-ensemble extravaganzas. Sound Engineer Kat Tilt and Lighting Designer Kyle Anderson weave the story across the stage, with illustrative assistance from Projections Designer Eme Ospina-López. The few props are well-managed by Props Designer Hannah Dains. A large cast and near-continuous action present a challenge deftly met by Stage Manager Dakota Allen, assisted by Reagan Stevenson.  No nudity (rats!) but Intimacy Director Garrett McCann has some kissing to choreograph. And I loved the brilliant set created by Scenic Designer Brett Baleski, with its multiple levels painted in Miro-esque asymmetrical blocks.

Performances overall were outstanding. Ben Ballmer as Logan was in perpetual motion – supple, vivacious, and indefatigable – I’ve no idea how he kept that going! I’d swear his jumps soared a full yard off the floor – Air Ballmer! But, though his dancing was spectacular, it’s his sensational voice that really blew me away. Singing solo, duet, or choral; accompanied or a capella, his voice carried the show, strong and clear and true.

Actually, every voice in the cast was excellent. Sophie Murk’s [Melanie] superb soprano was exceeded only by her fortitude: during her most crucial solo her microphone repeatedly broke off, cut back in for a couple of measures, then failed again – a performer’s nightmare! Losing your mike is dreadful, but having it randomly cut in and out is calamitous! I’m sure Ms Murk had plenty to say about it backstage, but in front of the audience she was totally unflappable. The ovation she received was only partially (though deservedly!) for her singing; a significant portion was an accolade to her sang-froid.

Freddy Mauricio [Graham] also had a splendid voice, but it was eclipsed by Ballmer’s far stronger one, which also sometimes shrouded Murk’s performances.  It can be a real dilemma, from casting through rehearsal and into performances: how to manage the disparities in the cast’s endowments. It is, of course, the sort of predicament directors long for, but that doesn’t necessarily make disentangling it easier.

Live theatre, even in the biggest houses, was decimated by covid, and there’s much speculation about how to revive it. Theatre, particularly my beloved tiny storefront houses packed with sensational talent, is a Chicago hallmark. A couple of seasons at Second City is virtually a prerequisite to joining the cast of Saturday Night Live!  Everybody knows about Gary Sinise, but dozens more actors have been launched to fame from the Chicago stages. It’s imperative we maintain that heritage.

Trivia break: many think Chicago’s nickname of Second City is because its live theatre is second [only!] to NYC. Actually, the name is a legacy of the great Chicago Fire – we now live in the Second City that rose like a phoenix from its own ashes. Now where was I? Ah yes – how to help a Second Stage arise from the wreckage left by covid.

Debates rage: lower ticket prices to entice audiences, or raise them to pay artists a living wage? Present thoughtful, cutting-edge plays exploring society’s most pressing issues, or fill the stages with absurdity to provide escape from said issues? The Chicago Tribune has been running a series of op-eds on the subject, speculating on how best to support theatre.  Well, I’m a simple sort o’gal, and to me the solution is simple: attend more theatre!

GAY CARD has no deep social significance; it explores no critical current issues and poses no intellectual challenges. But if you’re in the mood for a very well-performed bit of musical fluff, see GAY CARD!

GAY CARD is being performed at Pride Arts Center through September 24^th. For tickets and/or more show information click here.