Friday, February 27, 2015

Review of 906 Theatre Company's Boeing Boeing

Once upon a time I went to a show and it was called Boeing Boeing. It was translated from the French play by Marc Camoletti by Beverly Cross and Francis Evans. It was directed by Emma Couling. It was about a man named Bernard (Aaron Sarka) who had three fiancées and his best friend Robert (Billy Sullivan) comes over and finds out about this, but all his fiancées don't know. The three fiancées are Gloria (Sarah Sarka) from America, Gabriella (T'Arah Julieta) from Italy, and Gretchen (Kaelea Rovinksy) from Germany. And they are all flight attendants and a bunch of their flights get delayed, so all of them come back at once and Robert and Bernard don't know what to do. With their sassy, short-tempered housekeeper Berthe (Christine Arnold), they have to save the day and make all the fiancées not furious with him. I thought this was a very fun show. I was nervous for the characters the entire time because I didn't want any of them to find out that he had other fiancées, which was kind of dumb of him, but it makes a really exciting and awesome play!

I thought that all the fiancées were really hilarious. They were all very different, and it seemed like they all loved Bernard, but it turns out that some of them have better choices. I thought Gloria was a very strange human being. She really loved ketchup and pancakes. Her taste in food is very strange. I thought that she did a very good job of making her seem like she was the most cooperative of all his fiancées. Then, at another point, your mind explodes because of, well, I won't tell you or your mind won't explode. My favorite thing that she did was when they all started colliding and she found one of the other flight attendant's purses. And the she asks Robert, "What is this?" and then she found all kinds of womanly clothing all around and he was like, "Those are mine." And once she had found all of them, she said, "So, you're that kind of man!" And the way she said it was just like it was the most strange thing she had ever heard!

Gabriella was an Italian lady and I really liked when Bernard was saying to her they should go out into the country (because Gloria was in the other room) and then she was like, "No let's just stay here." And she got so mad about going into the countryside that she started screaming. It was insane and very funny. I really liked all the flight attendants' costumes and I especially liked the hat (by Couling) that Gabriella wore.

I really loved Gretchen. I thought her character was so over the top--in a great way. When she was talking about Bernard, she acted like her heart was pouring out because she was so happy! I loved when she got angry at Robert and said, "I am going on a valk alone." Then she stormed out of the room and she seemed so furious she seemed like she could be blowing fire if only she were a professional dragon instead of a flight attendant. I thought that all the dialects (coached by Lindsay Bartlett) were great!

I thought that Bernard and Robert seemed like they were really good friends but Robert didn't like Bernard's choices. But then he did like one of his choices and wanted it to be his own! I really liked when all three ladies were there at the same time and Bernard went into complete panic mode. And Robert had to hold Bernard down to help him stay focused so he didn't have to leave Robert with all the women. I thought they were both very hilarious. They both were very expressive but not so expressive that it was annoying.

I really loved the housekeeper. I thought that she was very funny and sassy and I want that character to be in every single play. I thought she was absolutely hilarious when they were going to have sauerkraut and sausages for dinner and she was so exasperated like it was the worst thing she had ever heard. I thought it was so funny how she had to switch the decor to a different color each time you found out one of the girls would be coming. She seems like she would be a great servant if it wasn't for her big mouth, but it wouldn't make for as good of a play. Definitely not!

People who would like this show are people who like sassy French housekeepers, airline bags, and angry flight attendants. I think people should definitely go see this show. I had so so much fun. The theatre space may not be great, because it is just the upstairs of a bar, but the acting is fantastic!


Photos: 906 Theatre Company

Wednesday, February 25, 2015

Review of Akvavit Theatre's Blue Planet

Once upon a time I went to a show and it was called Blue Planet. It was by Andri Snær Magnason. It was directed by Wm. Bullion. It was about a planet that just had children on it. No grownups. And one day, a grown man named Jolly-Goodday (Michael T. Downey) came and said that he could make them fly. And on the Blue Planet they all wanted to have sun forever so they had Jolly-Goodday nail the sun to the sky. But that means it didn't benefit so well for other people. I really liked this show; i thought it was circusy and fun. It was pretty complex, but not so complex that a kid couldn't understand it.

I thought the puppets (co-designed by Adam MacAleavey and Kim Morris) were super cool. I really liked the little mole (Linsey Falls) outfit. It was like half-puppet, half-mask with little arms. And there was also cute dog-like sloth-like creature (Deborah Craft) who just crawls up on people on stage and it opens its mouth and is like ea-eah! I thought it was funny how it seemed like it wanted to bite off something when it opened its mouth, but then when it moved away it was like, "Well, there went my meal!" But it was the cutest little murderer. I liked how all the puppets blended cuteness and art together, and cuteness and art are two of my favorite things.

I really liked the character of Jolly-Goodday, even though he was slightly evil. All he wanted was to be the king though. I think he was sympathetic because he seemed like he needed help but he didn't know how to have help and he wanted to do everything by himself. The king wish showed a kid side to Jolly-Goodday because kids want to be the rulers of everything. But adults also want kids to immediately understand them and for the adult to be the ruler. But kids don't want the adults to be the rulers; they want to be free. But by the end, the kids have decided that Jolly-Goodday can have what he wants because he gave them something they wanted, even though it was foolish. It was basically like playing kings and queens with little kids, because of course they don't have any law structure. It was just pretending all day long.

Brimir (Joshua Davis) and Hulda (Sarah Scanlon) are the two heroes of the story. They get swept away into the darkness while they are flying and get swept into this forest full of monsters. One of them, Hulda, loves to fight and thinks that evil monsters and stuff like that are super awesome. I think it is cool how a girl gets to be a the big fighter and get all the monsters and that stuff. And Brimir brought the sweet loving side because he was willing to give up his heart to save the Blue Planet. They make the mistake of telling the children on the other side of the planet that the other side of the Blue Planet was worse off, but that is not true because they are the people who have the sun. But then one of the lessons they learn is that you shouldn't lie to people so then you can get what you want because then you will regret if afterwards. The other lesson is that you shouldn't keep something good for yourself, even if it benefits you greatly, if the other side will be way worse than you. On our planet, it is saying, well, it is kind of a message about war; you shouldn't take something even if it benefits you greatly. With our resources we should try to help other people with them and not just keep them ourselves. I don't think the kids were being horrible when they nailed up the sun because they didn't know there were kids on the other side of the planet, but it was still a pretty bad thing to do because plants couldn't grow there and then that destroys the environment too.

The circus elements were very cool. I really liked how when they were flying sometimes they would go on the silks and try to climb to the top. One of my favorite circus moments was when they were on the silks (choreographed by Scanlon) and Hulda wanted Brimir to always be lower than her, but then he fell and he did basically a silks drop, and I thought that was really cool. They also did stuff like where they would lift another person up in the air while he or she was pretending to fly (movement direction by Nicole Jordan). They already had a bunch of awesome puppets, and a bunch of cool set pieces (designed by Chad Eric Bergman) like the sun/moon and the vacuum ship, and amazing pretty lighting (by John Kelly), and awesome butterflies that Loa (Kim Boler) threw into the audience, and then they added a bunch of awesome circus elements! What more would you need?

People who would like this show are people who like butterflies, circus, and adorable, murderous sloth-dogs. I think people should definitely go see this show. I had tons of laughs and I was on the edge of my seat the whole time. I loved it!

Photo: Sooz Main

Saturday, February 21, 2015

Review of The Addams Family at the Mercury Theater

Once upon a time I went to a show and it was called The Addams Family. It was directed by L. Walter Stearns. The musical director was Eugene Dizon and the choreographer was Brenda Didier. The book was by Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice and the music and lyrics were by Andrew Lippa. This show is about a girl names Wednesday Addams (Dara Cameron) who has fallen in love with a boy from Ohio named Lucas (Henry McGinnis). But her brother Pugsley (Brennan Dougherty), her mother Morticia (Rebecca Prescott) and her father Gomez (Karl Hamilton) are not super keen on that idea. And Lucas's parents, Alice (Cory Goodrich) and Mal (Jason Grimm), were also not very happy about it. So then they are going to have a dinner so Wednesday and her future husband can tell their parents that they are getting married. Will love find a way? Uncle Fester (Harter Clingman) thinks it will. He and his team of skeleton ancestor people (Sarah Hayes, Leah Morrow, Jared Rein, Sawyer Smith, Alexander Walker, Lucy Zukaitis) will metaphorically punch the hate in the face and throw it in the water. I thought this show was super fun and spooky. I didn't think that the writing was perfect, but the show was still great because the actors were so good and the dancing and singing were so fantastic.

The Addams family is a very strange family. They are all basically monsters or are maniacs and love murder and death. It seemed like the parents loved each other very much, but the thing is they were so in love with each other that sometimes even the audience felt a little awkward because Gomez and Morticia were dipping each other and tangoing and kissing each other whenever they wanted in public. But you still want their relationship to work because they seemed so in love. I think Gomez seemed very insane and strange but then he also seemed slightly normal because he was one of the only people who didn't have a special power. His singing was really good. When he was singing about this not being the day Morticia leaves him, he sounded like an male opera singer. The grandma (Amanda Hartley) and Pugsley had a very strange relationship because they kind of hated each other, but then they were like, "Oh you are so sweet; I love you" right afterwards. And no one really knew whose mother she was. Wednesday and her fiancé loved each other but they were very different. But they also had some things that they were similar in, which you find out in the song "Crazier Than You." That song is basically about having a competition with the person you love about who is the craziest, which I think is kind of a strange competition to have. Of course, they are the Addams family, so of course they have competitions about being crazier than the other person.

Lucas is a very nerdy boy. He wore brightly colored ties and all that kind of stuff. I thought that the costumes (by Frances Maggio) overall were really cool. Lucas seemed kind of completely imperfect for Wednesday because he loved bright colors and he was happy all the time. But he wasn't, really, because once you get to know the character better you see he is like her because he wants to be a doctor so he can see inside people's bodies, and that means he is also kind of creepy himself. His parents both were regular people who do regular things except they both love rock and roll and don't want to show it. But Alice turns into sort of a maniac and I thought the actress was very good at being completely insane and kind of scary and ridiculous when she turned into that crazy woman.

I loved the butler, Lurch (Jeff Diebold). He is probably one of the most lovable characters I have ever seen on stage because he was just so cute. He couldn't really speak in human language; he just spoke in grunts because he was a zombie/Frankenstein. My favorite scene was when Alice and Mal Beineke came in and the butler opened the door and he started talking just in grunts. And he just grunted this entire heartbreaking story about something exploding, I think. That scene was so funny. When his eyes just grew wide and he made these exploding gestures like it was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen, I just cracked up so hard I couldn't breathe. He was so good. This character reminded me a lot of Groot, who is another of the cutest and funniest and best characters ever created. I also really liked the fencing scene where Gomez was doing this elaborate sword fighting and Lurch was just moving slightly back and forth with his wrist--and he still won!

Uncle Fester was in love with the Moon, which I thought was very funny. He had this entire song to the moon. The song was a love song that sounded like it was from the 1900s. And I really loved the skeleton costumes; they were like black and white 1900s swimsuits. They were very fashionable and I want one for myself! Fester wore a striped swimsuit that is like a one-piece bathing suit. That was funny because he burst out of his jacket and everyone started laughing. I loved the song he sang to the moon, because it was just such a ridiculous song and the moon was just bouncing around and he would throw it into the audience and it was just so funny. I think he loved the moon so much because he kind of looked like a moon himself. Uncle Fester was a good character to narrate because he is a very recognizable character. He has the bald head, he has the strange coat and he is so odd. And when you have an odd person as the narrator you think about the family from a different perspective. If you just had a narrator or Alice was the narrator you'd think, "They basically see it like we do."

People who would like this show are people who like love songs to moons, heartbreaking grunting stories, and elaborate fencing. I had so much fun at this show. It made me laugh so hard. I loved it!

Photos: Brett A. Beiner

Wednesday, February 18, 2015

Review of Porchlight Music Theatre's Sondheim on Sondheim

Once upon a time I went to a show and it was called Sondheim on Sondheim. The music and lyrics were by Stephen Sondheim. It was conceived and originally directed by James Lapine. It was directed by Nick Bowling. The music direction was by Austin Cook and the choreography was by Emily Ariel Rodgers. This show was about Stephen Sondheim's life and his music and how his music was like his life. It was a bunch of actors and singers who sang a bunch of Stephen Sondheim songs and then Stephen Sondheim would narrate through projectors (projection design by Mike Tutaj). I really liked this show. I had so much fun watching it. It was fun to see the actors just switch characters so quickly, like first to be a witch and then to be a sweet woman in love. I also liked finding out how Stephen Sondheim wrote his music and lived his life. I learned about several musicals I want to see, like Merrily We Roll Along and Follies. I want to see every single one of Sondheim's musicals. I think they should do something like the Hypocrite's All Our Tragic but with Stephen Sondheim musicals so you can see them all in one day. I would definitely go to see that. But this a great stepping stone to getting to that probably more than 12-hour show.

I thought it was awesome how Stephen Sondheim actually narrated the entire thing because, once you hear Sondheim talk about his work ,then little sniblets of his life come to you when you are hearing the songs. He is not so serious about his songwriting that he can't have fun and joke around a little bit, like when he talks about his fingernail clippings and how they should be in the Smithsonian. I really liked the song "God" that he made which is basically about himself and about how he thinks other people see him. He thinks they see him as a god. And I think I see him as a god of musical theater. I think that he was sort of making fun of himself and his writing. It showed the funny side to him in the way that he would just goof off on camera during the song. There was also a character (Stephen Rader) on stage who was completely Sondheim-ist (against Sondheim), and he is basically like the haters of his world. And by the end the hater has basically warmed up to Sondheim because he is just singing along and not arguing anymore.

Stephen Sondhein said that Merrily We Roll Along was his only even slightly autobiographical play. That is part of the reason that I liked the songs from that one so much, because they were relatable to a reviewer/actor. "Opening Doors" was about the life of a writer (Amelia Hefferon) and the life of a musician (Austin Cook) and the life of a lyricist (Yando Lopez). I like how they used the typewriter like a beat, sort of like the drums, like a backup beat. They are singing about how they are trying to make it in show business. I liked the part where they came to the producer (James Earl Jones II) and he was like, "There is no melody, you just need something they can tap their toes to, goodbye." I liked that because it seemed very autobiographical because Sondheim’s songs are very complicated and you don't know where the song is going next. "Franklin Shepherd, Inc" is all about buzzing and what it is like to be behind the scenes. The story of this song is that this man (Rader) is fed up with his friend (Jones) getting all the attention. And they are on television being interviewed by a talk show host (Adrienne Walker). The talk show host is only asking questions of the main producer who is the one who doesn't work on the songs very much and cares most about money. But the other man is in it for the work and wants to make theater. I really liked this song because it was different from a lot of songs; it was like hearing a workday, but somebody singing it. I thought the talk show host was great because she had the cheesy "I'm on Television" air to her character.

I really liked the song called “The Best Thing That Ever Happened” from Road Show. I thought it was cool how they changed the sex of the character who was being sung to. It used to be a man (Matthew Keffer) singing to a woman (Emily Berman) but now when they do the show it is a man (Rader) singing to a man (Lopez). I really liked that idea. It reminded me of Stephen Sondheim’s life because he is gay and he didn’t fall in love until he was in his sixties. They were pretty small changes to the song, but I found both versions very sweet. At the end they are all singing to each other and I think he was trying to say that no matter what sexuality you are, you can still love all kinds of people.

I really liked the song "Children Will Listen" from Into the Woods. It was just about the children's understanding of what grown-ups say to them and how kids will not always do what you want, but they will hear you and they will understand you. And it is about how this mom who is a witch (Rebecca Finnegan) wants her child (Lopez) to stay with her forever and always be a child. But the child wants to go out and see the world. Stephen Sondheim's mom didn't really want to have a kid so she basically sent him off to live with Oscar Hammerstein. So he would basically live at his own house but spend most of his time at their house. And I think the song might be what he wanted his mom to be like; he wanted her to love him and not want him to grow up, but when he was growing up it seemed like she was happy that he was growing up and getting to go away from her. And Mama Rose (Finnegan) from Gypsy is also pretty sympathetic even though she doesn't really know how to parent because you see she loves her kids. Mama Rose and the witch have in common that they both don't want their children to grow up or become strippers. Mama Rose's song "Smile, Girls" was about having to smile on the stage while they performed. I don't think they should have cut that song from Gypsy because I really liked it; it seemed like a well-written song. Mama Rose is a divorced mom like Stephen Sondheim's mom and he feels like his mom didn't love him, but he thinks maybe his dad had something to do with that. But I think he probably still loved his mom even though she didn't love him back and you see that by how he makes these characters kind of like his mom, troubled but still lovable.

People who would like this show are people who like Stephen Sondheim musicals, typewriter beats, and Smithsonian-worthy toenails. I think people should definitely definitely go see this show. It is so well thought out and so fun. I absolutely loved being at this show!


Photos: Brandon Dahlquist

Thursday, February 12, 2015

Review of Lions in Illyria at Lifeline Theatre

Once upon a time I went to a show and it was called Lions in Illyria. It was directed by Amanda Delheimer Dimond. It was written by Robert Kauzlaric and based on William Shakespeare's Twelfth Night. It was about two lions who were brother and sister named Violet (Brandi Lee) and Sebastian (Ryan Stajmiger). They are shipwrecked and split apart from each other and each thinks the other one is dead. They both come ashore onto a land called Illyria (Illyria!) and go in search of money and work. One of them, Sebastian, is washed up with the monkey sea captain Antonia (Kate McDermott) who used to be a pirate. And the other was washed up all alone and pretended to be a boy and she went to go and get work from the Duke/peacock Orsino (Mykele Callicutt). She is sent to go and woo his lover Olivia (McDermott), who was a gazelle. I liked how they paired the animals with the characters because when you really think about it you are like, "Yeah, Duke Orsino does really seem like a peacock" because he is basically so in love with himself and he does not know why Olivia does not love him. I thought that it was cool how they let children know the story of Twelfth Night at a young age but let it still have that kind of child-like air to it. I thought this was a very fun show. It showed a playful side to Shakespeare and I really liked that.

I liked most of the changes they had from the original Twelfth Night, like how they made them all animals. Sir Andrew Aguecheek (Stajmiger) is sort of a dodo in the original play, so I thought it was awesome how they made him a literal dodo in this play. Sir Toby Belch (Callicutt) is a warthog because he loves his alcohol and it makes him act in an insane way. But in this version they changed alcohol to candy. That was good because you don't want kids coming home and saying "I want some cakes and ale!" I think that Maria (Lee) is sort of like a hyena because she sets up all this stuff just to laugh and get a boyfriend. The lesson about bullying is not the same as in the original. In the original it is like "Bullying will hurt people, but they deserved it!" But they also slightly regret it in the end because they are like, "maybe we shouldn't have just thrown him in jail." Lions in Illyria was different because they made Sir Andrew Aguecheek Malvolio, so you feel sorry for him. That makes the bullying seem even worse. But the characters in the end say that they are sorry and they all become friends again. I think they should have kept the character of Malvolio and just made him a little less horrible. When Aguecheek is such a doofus it already seems like normal for him to dress up in a silly way. The fun of watching Malvolio is that you think, "I don't think he will ever dress up in that way, even for Olivia." But then Malvolio does dress up. Malvolio could have been an Ostrich because he is so stuck up. But Ostriches can still be slightly lovable, just like Malvolio.

The scene where Violet/Cesario really starts to get to know Olivia was very funny. When Olivia first actually sees Cesario she's like "Hello!" and you can see her face be like "I'm in love!" Seeing a gazelle in love is very fun. And then she takes the flowers from him and he says, can I have the flowers back, and she's like "No!" in a very angry tone. Because she just wants something to remember him. I also really liked the Monkey Pirate because who really thinks about monkey pirates? But once you start thinking about monkey pirates you can't stop thinking about monkey pirates and you have to google them and look at pictures and then your life is complete. As you see, after this show, I love monkey pirates! I thought that she did a great job of really expressing herself as a monkey. She would just yell at people like monkeys do when they are angry: "oo aa kk!!" Antonia is based on Antonio who is a former pirate who is very protective of Sebastian. Monkeys are protective of their children and themselves so they make that kind of noise all the time.

The change of making Viola Violet so kids didn't have to remember two hard names (Viola and Cesario) for the same characters was very good idea. I do think she seems like a lion because she keeps pressing on even though she thinks her brother is dead. The actor did a great job of making Violet seem lovable even though she had faults, like how she just leaped to conclusions and how she decided to lie to the people instead of just being who she is. But I guess it did make her meet the love of her life in the long run. I also really liked how she acted around Olivia, like she had to go there but she was slightly scared to go back there but also she liked Olivia. I think Brandi switched characters perfectly when she became Maria because Maria is not a very nice person and Violet is like a sweetheart. But then you also sort of understand why Maria is doing all these cruel pranks; it is to make this guy that she really loves like her. That is a really bad idea. Just because you like someone and they don't like you back doesn't mean you should do anything to make them like you because then once you are in a relationship then they might find out that that is not what you really are.

I loved the dance moves that Sir Andrew Aguecheek made. They were so old-fashioned and hilarious. Like they did a bit of a Charleston-like thing. And when Violet was supposed to be fighting him, they did a dance-off instead, which I thought was hilarious. I thought that Sir Andrew Aguecheek was a doofus but so lovable. And one reason he was so lovable was his old-style dance moves. I really liked how Sebastian was just like the Huginator. He just wanted to give people hugs to make them feel better. I thought it was very sweet when Violet was talking to Olivia and she said, "My brother used to believe in the power of hugs" and then she gave her a hug to make her feel better. And I thought that was very sweet because you saw that, because of Sebastian, Violet could help people.

Orsino was a really great character. I really liked the scenes where he really showed off his plumage, which was basically a ginormous fan, and strutted about in this very fancy robe (costumes by Izumi Inaba and props by Joe Schermoly). His sadness songs were genuine depressing music that were written in today's times which I thought was cool. I really liked the scene where he was listening to the depressing music because he was just so depressed but in a peacock way. It made you kind of sad for him, but the thing was that he was making it so dramatic that it was funny. I also really liked his Sir Toby Belch because it made the character kid-like, like a kid obsessed with candy. And that made it more relatable and I thought that that was fun.

People who would like this show are people who like hugs, candy, and pirate monkeys. I think people should definitely definitely go see this show because it is funny, relatable to children, and fun for the whole family. I really loved this show!


Photos: Suzanne Plunkett

Thursday, February 5, 2015

Ada Grey Interviews for You: Actors from First Wives Club.


I had so much fun interviewing the actors from First Wives Club: Sean Murphy Cullen, Carmen Cusack, Gregg Edelman, Mike McGowan, Faith Prince, and Christine Sherrill. We talked about slumber parties, scary moments on stage, and the Scottish play. You can listen to my interview below.




Wednesday, February 4, 2015

Review of Fancy Nancy at Emerald City Theatre

Once upon a time I went to a show and it was called Fancy Nancy The Musical. It was directed by Ernie Nolan and written by Susan DiLallo based on the book by Jane O'Connor and illustrated by Robin Preiss Glasser. The music was composed by Danny Abosch and the music director was Marta Johnson. It was about a girl named Nancy (Katrina Kiss) and her best friend Bree (Angela Alise) who both wanted to be mermaids in their dance show. But then Fancy Nancy got the role of a tree and Bree got the role of an oyster. But then Bree gets the role of a mermaid after the girl who was going to play the mermaid hurts herself. The show is about being kind and feeling good for your friends when they get something that you wanted. I think this was a really fun show. It is very fun to be at because it has a character that teaches you about vocabulary but also has things to learn. You learn from her, but you also learn with her. Even though the musical is aimed at younger kids, Nancy teaches you important lessons for all ages.

I think the relationship between Nancy and her mom (Claire Kaiser) was a really sweet one. It sort of reminded me a little bit of the relationship with me and my mom. I liked the tea party song because it sort of showed that the mom wanted to cheer her up and she knew what would make her feel better. And that is like in my life if I am feeling sad, mom will say "Let's go watch a mystery program, like Miss Fisher." You won't feel better about it quicker if you just dwell on how bad it is. You can just think about something else that's good. I also really like the song that the mom sang to Nancy about how you will always be a star for me even if you don't get the biggest part. I liked that because sometimes me and my mom have conversations like that about how even if I don't get the main part, the show will still be about whatever part I get to my mom.

I really liked all of Nancy's friends. I think that they all were great characters because they each had their own personality--except for the twins, Wanda (Samantha Mitchell) and Rhonda (Hayley Reynolds); they were sort of the same. That wasn't bad--that was one of the things that made the twins interesting. I liked the twins' costumes (by Alarie Hammock) because they really showed their personality because they were so sporty. They each had an initial on them so you could remember which one was which. And I found that kind of funny. Lionel (Micah Kronlokken) was very funny because he acted silly and he made jokes and puns no matter what he was doing. I liked how they said boys could be fancy too and didn't just cut out the character of Lionel completely. Bree was an amazing character because she was very very likable. I was seeing it with one of my friends so Fancy Nancy and Bree reminded me of me and Lana. When Bree came in during the tea party song, she started singing "Oysters don't dance; they just sit there" like it is the most depressing thing on earth. I thought that was super funny!

At the very end they show this big dance number where Nancy and all her friends are doing their big show about sea creatures. I really liked every single part of it, but I really liked the jellyfish umbrellas, and the slightly silly seahorse, and the maypole thing at the end where Nancy got to be front and center as a tree. And the shark! Lionel played the shark and the shark did this really cool rap which was just about being a shark and the whole audience would chomp their hands together like a shark mouth and go "Chomp chomp. Chomp chomp." It was just like being at a rap concert for a shark and that is probably one of the funniest and most ridiculous things ever. And he was actually really good at rapping too! "Cause I'm a shark! Yeah!"

People who would like this show are people who like tea parties, oysters, and rapping sharks. I think people should definitely go see this show, especially with a little one because then you get to witness them seeing the magic of theater. I saw it with my friend's little sister, and it was so fun to see her being so happy to see this.

Photos: Johnny Knight

Tuesday, February 3, 2015

Review of The Adventures of Tapman by Tapman Productions

Once upon a time I went to a show and it was called The Adventures of Tapman. The director was Lauren Girard Forster and the choreographers were Tristan Bruns and Zada Cheeks. It was about a tap-dancing superhero named Tapman (Bruns) who was in love with a modern-dancing superhero named Modern Marvel (Kate O'Hanlon). And his nemesis is the MADD Tapper (Kelsey Schlabaugh) who has a bunch of minions called the MADD Rhythms Jr Squad (Mackenzie Coden, Megan Davis, and Alexandria Fryson). I thought that this was a fun show. The tap dancing was really amazing. I liked that they had some acting involved. Sometimes it is fun to see someone talk on stage as well as dance on stage. I think this show was tap-a-riffic and fun for the whole family!

I thought that Modern Marvel was a really great dancer and a great character to have because Tapman had taken this potion so he could be a great dancer so he could impress her. But then he found out that she was a modern dancer not a tap dancer. But then she seemed to pick up on the tap dancing pretty quickly! I really liked right after Tapman and the Modern Marvel were supposedly dead how once they came back alive, the MADD Tapper said, "But you died!" and then the Modern Marvel said, "We got better!" in this very stern and serious voice. There was one scene that I thought went on for a little too much time. It was a scene where they had a game show and they were trying to make matches for the Modern Marvel, but then she didn't like any of them, so then she just left. But the thing was that the time before she left was a pretty long time for these people to be talking to her about themselves and what their super power was. I liked how she didn't want to be with any of the people, but I thought that scene went on too long for something that didn't have to do with the plot.

The MADD Tapper was a pretty awesome super villain because she was basically like Tapman, but female and evil. She sort of reminded me of Bizarro Superman because she was sort of like a doppelgänger but she had some differences. She was similar in how her power was to tap dance really well. And also they sort of had the exact same outfit, but in different colors. Their masks were the same and they both had awesome Shazam-like belts with sparkly lightning bolts on them. I thought that the tap-dancing stage combat was really awesome because usually someone gets hit the face, but here they hit with a tap shoe in the other person's tap shoe. So it was basically like a tap block. I liked how the dance had actual contact in it because it made it feel more like you were in that world where there is a Tapman.

I thought that the "Mystic Sands of India" was a very cool dance. Tapman poured out sand onto the ground and then started tapping on it. That was cool because the sound that it made was very scratchy but it still sounded awesome. I thought that Tapman's tapping was great. It was really amazing, and you felt like tap dancing really was his super power! There usually aren't shows about tap-dancing superheroes, and I would love to see another.

People who would like this show are people who like tap dancing, doppelgängers, and mystic sands. I thought this show was very fun to go and see and it only has one more weekend in its run, so go see it!

Photos: Javier Villamil