Pat Reviews

Barefoot in the Park still funny at 44

February, 1963 . . . Manhattan . . . East 48th Street . . . Five story walk--up. . . Newlyweds . . . . Barefoot in the Park, Neil Simon’s longest running Broadway show – 1530 performances. Barefoot in the Park, inspired by the early days of his marriage at the time, was Simon’s third play and first major hit. Yes, at 44, she’s a bit of a dowager. However, the story of fresh love (married six days), contrasting characters (he’s a straight-laced attorney, she’s a spontaneous free spirit), a garret apartment (slanted roof window and broken skylight), a strange neighbor, and his mother-in-law; all the ingredients for comedy.

Newlyweds Corie and Paul Bratter (Michelle Burkhart and Joseph Baker) are moving into their new apartment after a six-day honeymoon at the Plaza Hotel. She found it, rented it, and has ordered the furniture brought in. Alas and alack, Paul hasn’t seen it until just this moment. As with any old converted brownstone, there are a few problems such as broken skylight (good for indoor snow), unpredictable heat, no closet space, and much more.
The Bratters also have an eccentric neighbor, Victor Velasco (Kirk Irvine), who bounces in unannounced. Mrs. Banks (Lee Donnelly), Corie’s mother, is not really a terrible mother-in-law to Paul. She does, however, get into enough trouble on her own.

Jeff Laurence plays a telephone man not too thrilled by a second trip to the fifth floor. Mike Rush as a Lord and Taylor delivery man is a delight. He doesn’t have any lines, but pants his way through the package delivery. The six flights, counting the tall stoop, would wind anybody.

The PowPAC production was directed by Mark Loveless and Krystal Price Workman. Their teaming worked well. The timing is flawless. Burkhart and Baker are just the perfect contrast both physically and in their style of acting and moving. Donna Reed’s costumes worked well. Sherrie Colbourn’s set reminded me of some of the Manhattan digs I’ve been in. Simon’s humor still plays well even after all these years.

PowPAC’s production does the playwright justice. I hope you have an opportunity to see Barefoot in the Park in the ensuing weeks. Be prepared to laugh and have a good time at the expense of the Bratters. It plays weekends through May 18, 2008. PowPAC is located 13250 Poway Road in Poway. For reservations and information call 858 679-8085 or www.powpac.org.

Dates: Weekends, thru May 18, 2008
Running Time: 152 minutes with 25-minutes of intermissions

PowPAC 13250 Poway Road Poway, CA 92064

Box Office Phone: (858) 679-8085
Edress: www.powpac.org

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Theatre is a live and well in the Kid’s world

Saturday I learned all about reduplicative compounds, not from San Diego’s friendly verbavore Richard Lederer but from 11-year-old Lily Corbett. Ms. Corbett plays Mabel in Open Curtain Troupe’s production of A Tale of Higgledy-Piggledy Mumbo Jumbo. The show has a one date a month schedule throughout the summer. 

The script by Matthew J. Hanson and Christine D’Amico is based on her book, Higgledy-Piggledy. The play is designed for the very young, beginning with pre-schoolers. The audience, at Compass Theatre (formerly 6^th@Penn) was comprised about 60 percent target audience. The play was a resounding hit.

A Tale of Higgledy-Piggledy Mumbo Jumbo is about words. Is a sneaky little learning tool hidden inside of a play based on a book that introduces the young reader to the fun world of words. Interestingly, the play works for adult, who simply watching as the players interact with their audience. Mabel, an inquisitive young lady, creates this strange word, Higgledy-Piggledy, only to find it in her dictionary.

Note: Higgledy-Piggledy, adv. 1. In a jumbled, confused, or disorderly manner;  helter-skelter. –adj. 2. Confused, jumbled [1590-1600; rhyming compound of uncertain origin.] Random House Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary, 2001 ed.

Mabel has a cat, Porkchop (Antonio Hays), who has a penchant for knocking over flowerpots. Her mom Maria (Cindy Lewis) is often at wit’s-end between the cat and her daughter. Dad Roger (Alexander Wells III) seems, for the most part, oblivious of these problems. His redeeming trait is that of being a good cook. Rounding out the family is sister Annabelle (Larissa Garcia), who, at times, considers her sister a bit of a pain.

A running gag of a misplaced dictionary has the young audience highly amused. They all probably wondered why adults just don’t pay attention to them. They knew what was happening, even if Maria and Roger didn’t have a clue. Mabel discussed several points with the audience, getting many responses.

The second act takes place in a library. The set is designed as a traveler. The house backdrop (painted on stretched canvas) is reversed to become a reading room and the stacks of a library.  

A librarian, Ms. Walderword (Cindy Lewis), properly English, is giving some students a tour. Antonio Hays, out of his cat costume, is Max and Larissa Garcia is Vanessa, another student. They are joined by Francesca Tirpak, Erik,  and Serna Nnambi as part of the touring students. Alexander Wells III joins the cast, this time as a professor doing a science demonstration to an older group of students.

As in the first act, words are bandied about, new words are discovered, and the audience becomes an integral part of the action. Mable and Max discover much in the library and get lost, promulgating a chase sequence that the young kids loved.

Director Ashley McGuire ZeMans’ young cast, all with stage credits, along with the two older members, produce a totally convincing story of children exploring the wonderful world of words. While A Tale of Higgledy-Piggledy Mumbo Jumbo is kids’ fare (preschool to nine) it also plays well with the parents.

Open Curtain Theatre Troupe also provides summer workshops in theatre for children from Kindergarten to the eighth grade. What a pleasure to know that theatre is being brought to the attention of the very young. Our next generation of actors is here.

A Tale of Higgledy-Piggledy Mumbo Jumbo plays June 14, July 12, and August 30, 2008 at the Compass Theatre. Show time is 3 p.m. in June and August and 1 p.m. in July. This is an absolutely great opportunity to expose your young ones to theatre.

Hitch
 

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Websites of interest:  sdtheatre.com, Totaltheatre.com, NewsBlaze.com

My most favorite genre of stories when I was little were fairy tales.  I would check out every book at the library from the Grimm Brothers and Hans Christian Andersen to Arabian Nights and books on Asian Folklore.  I loved hearing about the girl in the ruby-red coat, the slipper made of glass, the girl with a fish tail, the girl who slept for 100 years, and especially the twelve dancing sisters.  Prelude to a Kiss is a modern day fairy tale set in the big city of Chicago, now playing at New Village Arts in Carlsbad. 

The show was written by Craig Lucas and premiered on Broadway in 1988, then he wrote a screenplay for it, which was produced in 1992, and was a blockbuster hit.  The play was Tony nominated for “Best Play” as well as for the Pulitzer.  There is no doubt that it was a smash hit, and totally is still working that same phenomenon in this current location. 

From the minute you walk into the theatre, you know you are about to be sucked into a land of magic and mystery.  The set, designed by Esther Emery, looks like creeping vines in silver metal, almost reminiscent of Jack and the Beanstock or the illuminated manuscripts that were being created about the time period of these fables.  Throughout the show, at climatic points, the set would shift and almost collapse.  Amanda Sitton and Kristianne Kurner designed minimal costumes, the colors matching, playing off of each other.  Bright shifts of color from reality to fantasy were made possible by the lighting designers Jason Bieber and Ashley Jenks.  Wizardly sound was designed by Tom Jones. 

Joshua Everett Johnson played Peter, a man who marries his love Rita, only to find she becomes a bit different after a kiss from an old man at their wedding.  The audience goes on a journey with Peter trying to figure out why in the world Rita is acting completely insane.  Johnson goes from in love to believing he is crazy to angry to sad, showing all the different emotions and everything in between.  Johnson commands the stage and pulls the audience into the story.  Opposite him is his wife Rita, played by Kristianne Kurner.  Kurner plays two completely different people while inhabiting her same body.  The old man is played by Charlie Riendeau and Peter’s best friend Taylor is played by Tim Parker.  With two stellar leads, the show was always fun to watch. 

Directed by Delicia Turner Sonnenberg, Prelude to a Kiss is mysterious and mystical, forever keeping the audience enthralled.  I LOVED this show!  It is definitely up there as one of the best show I have ever seen!  I really encourage those fairy tale fans to go see it!  The play runs through May 18^th and you can call (760) 433-3245 or go online to www.newvillagearts.org for more information!

 Email Alice