The look of the production was very cool and creative and resourceful (set design by Peter McManus and lighting design by Benjamin Dionysis). They had these boxes (by Katelin Thomas) that were on the top of these screens and the boxes would light up with scenes from the Worlds's Fair. My favorite one was the Ferris Wheel; it was so beautiful and neatly crafted. And it was even kind of eerie, which I love. And on the screens, people would stand behind them and light would be projected on it so you could only see the shadows and that was very cool and creepy and very artistic.
All the women that H.H. Holmes murders had their own story and eventually they all wanted the same thing: justice. I liked how all the women had power when they were dead, even though when they were alive they didn't have that much power. Minnie Williams (Erin Gordon) was a very peppy and happy kind of girl and she fell in love with H.H. Holmes. She seemed so sweet and nice that it made it especially sad. Clara Loverling (Sarah Wisterman) was H.H. Holmes' first wife and he seduced her at a party and then he asked to marry her a few seconds after he met her, which I don't think it is very smart to accept that invitation because probably it won't go very well. She probably did it because here was this really smart and charming guy that her parents would approve of and she was probably like, "Well, here's my chance. Let's go." Back in that time, women didn't have many options for work so it would be easier for her if she could just stay home and not have to earn money. Julia Smythe-Connor (Alexandra Cross) was one of the most sad stories because her life was just ruined by this guy and she didn't even notice. It was all happening behind her back and she didn't even have a chance to defend herself or her kid Pearl (Lucinda Lodder Lindstrom). I liked the symbolism of the victims giving their ribbons to Lady Columbia (Genevieve Lally-Knuth) when they died. The ribbons symbolized the connection between the women because even though they all had different patterns on their outfits (costume design by Emma Cullimore), they had the same ribbon. And they were leaving a small bit of them behind.
Everything was very very suspenseful, and you didn't know if someone was going to die in the next few seconds or not. And also, H.H. Holmes was so creepy, I couldn't believe it! It was just his facial expressions and how he killed people. I might have nightmares about that character trying to kill me! The fights were super cool and scary too. Moriarty (Richard Eisloeffel) trained H.H. Holmes to murder people in the "right way," but then Moriarty gets mad at him about the way he kills people and gets into a fight with him with an umbrella sword, and I thought that was really cool. In another cool fight, Sherlock Holmes comes in using a vocal disguise so people don't know that it is him. But then H.H. Holmes realizes that Holmes is Holmes. And then they engage in a one-third verbal, one-third hurting each other, and one-third tea fight. It was so cool! My favorite move was how H.H. Holmes shoved the tea up in Sherlock Holmes's face.
People who would like this show are people who like the Columbian Exposition, murder mysteries, and tea fights. I think that people should definitely go see this show. I thought it was so intriguing and scary. I really enjoyed it!
Photos: Jennifer Frankfurter
The language that the people who were from America used was really awesome. It showed you Nick's perspective because he was speaking English and the American language sounded like gibberish with little words that kind of sounded familiar. And it was super fun and exciting to try to figure out what all the words that they were saying meant. Like hockey is schlamschtick which is hilarious because it kind of is just slamming a stick against the ground. You knew what it was because they started playing hockey. And gibba may actually sounds like "give it to me" and they would put out their hand so that they could have it. And cronkit meant broken and the word reminded me of gears springing out of a robot. It showed that even though you might be clueless about a new language at first, eventually you get used to it and you'll start understanding it.
The issues seemed very real. It made me feel bad for Nick when he was getting bullied. He doesn't know how to speak their language so he is very confused at first when they talk to him. When he takes his friend Mencha home to meet his Mom, his mom thinks Mencha is a bad person, even though he is a good person, because of her experiences of people yelling at her because she is different from the other people in the city. But then she realizes that not all people who are not from Homeland are bad because he becomes nice to her and likes her food and also Nick said he was ok because he stood up for him. When she gives him pudding, it was really funny how he ate it. He just started out really scared, and the he ate it and ate it and said "More, please." That shows that if you try something new you might like it. The play seemed also to be saying that prejudice could even come from people who had been prejudiced against. I think that is right, and a lot of time shows and movies don't realize that. That doesn't mean the mom is bad, it just means she goes with her instincts, and when she sees that kind of person she tries to protect herself. I'm glad that she learned that not all people who are not from Homeland are bad.
People who would like this show are people who like delicious pudding, new languages, and schlamschtick. I think people should definitely go see this show because it is funny, interesting, and a fun and complex thing to bring your kids to. It only runs until November 21st, so hurry and see it!
Photos: Johnny Knight
I loved the "I Love a Piano" song. I thought it was really good and catchy. And I loved the tap dance, led by Phil and Judy. It was so impressive; they all were so coordinated with each other's movements and they were so fast! I was inspired. It was fun that I knew some of the moves because I take tap, but it is also super exciting for anyone to watch. The costumes (by Robert Kuhn) for this song were super cool and exciting. I loved the train on Judy's dress. It was so pretty. You wouldn't expect that kind of thing for a tap number, but there it was! The costumes were piano colors, black & white, and they were all different patterns. This number shows what the show they are putting on will be like, and it adds a lot of spectacle to the show and shows you it is going to be very cool and exciting.
One of my favorite songs in the entire show is the song "Snow" because it is so peppy and funny. I loved the snoring man (Devin DeSantis); he was so funny and I loved how he would just sit up and start singing this beautiful melody. The entire scene was really funny. Bob Wallace saw a bunch of people carrying skis onto the train car. But he just thought they were all idiots because he thought the train was going to Miami, which is where Bob and Phil were scheduled to go, but then two love birds (Phil and Judy) came along and decided they needed to go spend more time together in Vermont where Judy was doing a show. And they needed to spend more time together with snow! My favorite line is "I want to wash my hands, my face and hair with snow." It is so ridiculous because you'd just be freezing! It is so funny.
There was one woman in the show, Alene Robertson who played Martha, who I would call the Ethel Merman of Chicago because she was so good at belting and she was so funny and amazing that I couldn't take my eyes off her. I loved how she said how Ethel Merman had told her to be quiet! But sometimes Martha makes some bad decision; like hiding bills from people is never a good idea because they usually need to know about them. "Let Me Sing and I'm Happy" was super belty and fun and it showed Martha's capability of being able to be an innkeeper and an amazing performer. And the performer showed great capability of being funny and a good performer. Then the song was reprised later by Susan (Maya Lou Hlava), the granddaughter of the General, and I thought it was very good. I thought it was really funny to see this cute tween doing something that a fabulous middle-aged woman did in the last act. And as the song goes on, Martha starts to realize that this is her song and I thought she was going to get up and yell at Susan, but she just gave her a hug and that was really sweet.
People who would like this show are people who like fabulous belters, amazing tap dancing, and washing your hair with snow. I think people should definitely go see this show. It was so much fun and it definitely got me in the holiday spirit even though I saw it just a few days after Halloween!
Photos: Brett Beiner
The look of the show is very realistic looking. It looked like two apartments (set design by Scott Davis) that had very different styles. George's apartment showed that he was very learned and that he liked old-fashioned things. Jennie's apartment looked very modern and chic. It tells you that they are very different. But there is no wall separating them which shows that there could be a chance for them. Also their costumes (by Melissa Torchia) showed a lot about their relationship. Jennie was always in very sunny, happy-looking outfits. George's outfits were very dignified and he was kind of like a freshly-pressed-suit kind of guy. Leo wasn't dignified or distinguished; he wore mix-matched patterns and larger glasses. I really liked his look; if I was a boy that is what I would wear right now. Some of Faye's outfits showed that she was trying to be all super-sexy and sometimes the effort that she made was just so funny and amazing.
What I found was that Barefoot in the Park is pretty similar to this show, so similar that they might actually be the same characters in the future, just with different names. It seems like Paul might be George and Corie might have been his dead wife Barbara. Jennie is a lot like Corie too in that they are both kind of dippy but Jennie has a job and Corie doesn't. Jennie is older than Corie, so you see a lot of the similarities, but they still are different. George is also very strict to his job like Paul. Both Leo and Victor Velasco are kind of flirts, and they have really big personalities. They are both sweet and don't seem like womanizers at all, but they are. Faye (Amy J. Carle) is kind of like Corie's mother; both of them realize they have to loosen up, but Faye realizes that she has to stay true to her husband while she loosens up because she is not relaxed when she is cheating on her husband. Both plays are about the first few days of marriage and trying to make things better. Both of them are comedies with dark moments. And sometimes the dark moments are dark comedy moments.
Faye and Leo were the comic relief. When you were worried about George and Jennie's relationship, Faye and Leo would make you laugh. The thing is that the other characters are funny too, but not in the same way. Leo and Faye are funny in a more classically comical way, like how they both want to cheat with each other but they are both really bad at it. That is like some classic comedy right there. George and Jennie kind of have a how-stupid-the-thing-they-are-fighting-about-is kind of comedy, which is a darker comedy because it isn't like slip-on-a-banana-peel comedy. Faye and Leo are more like that because they keep getting caught at cheating by the same person and it is more ridiculous and less actual-real-life-problems comedy. I loved how they kept getting caught and they would just have this moment where they would all see each other and then Faye and George would make up silly excuses that were just so insane. It made me laugh. It was how they said them that was so funny.
People who would like this show are people who like Barefoot in the Park, hilarious cheating, and mix-matched clothes and relationships. I think people should go see this show. It is funny and has a very intriguing plot. I really liked it.
Photos:Michael Brosilow
The production looked like they were telling you a folk story in a barn (set design by John Musial). I think that was perfect for the story because it was about a traveling rabbit who goes a lot of places all around the country. Edward (designed by Rachel Anne Healy) and all of his outfits stuck out because the colors were so big and vibrant. He was so beautiful and shiny up on the stage. He looked like real china. All of his outfits were so creative and cool and he looked exactly like what I thought Edward Tulane should look like. And I loved the pocket watch. It was so beautiful and so magical. It really added a lot to have everything seem so magical and it really was so perfect. There are beautiful and magical things, but they happen in everyday life, and the look of the production shows that to you. There was another beautiful puppet (designed by Emily Breyer) as well. It was a dog named Lucy (Brezill) who was one of the various owners of Edward. She was made out of sewing patches, so original and cool, and it went with the ordinary country theme.
The person telling you the story is the Grandmother (Jessie Fisher) who gives Edward to his first owner, Abilene (Brezill). And then she starts to take a disliking to Edward because he doesn't know how to love yet. Her grandmother is very dark all the time and does not tell very comforting bedtime stories. They are all about a princess that turns into a warthog! She tells that story as a cautionary tale to Edward that he should always love people. I loved the shadow puppets that they used while the grandmother was telling the story. Jessie Fisher switched her characters a lot, like when she told the really scary story as the grandmother then a moment later she was the much nicer character of the narrator. Everyone (except Edward) in the show played a bunch of different characters. You got to see their voices and the way they move change on the spot and that was really cool to watch. One moment Melanie Brezill was a sick girl and the next moment she was a very angry cook. Kelvin Roston Jr. was very different when he was playing and adult from when he was playing a kid. He didn't make fun of children--no one in the show did--when he was pretending to be one, and I really loved that. His body changed from being kind of slumped over as Bull and then being more energetic and peppy as the kid Bryce.
When Edward was thrown off the boat was a very moving scene because there was nothing he could do to save himself. Even though he had a mind, he still wasn't able to save himself from sinking and the whole time he was on the bottom of the ocean he said that it was really unpleasant. And that makes you see that he really does have feelings. I think one of my favorite families that he went to was the fisherman Lawrence (Roston) and his wife Nellie (Brezill). I felt like they seemed like really sweet people but they had a lot of bad things happen to them. One of them, was their daughter's (Fisher) attitude! Why would she just throw out her parents' things? That's not for her to decide! One of the most moving scenes for me (spoiler alert!) was when Sarah Ruth (Brezill) died because she was so sweet and she didn't deserve anything that was happening to her; she was just an innocent kid. And Bryce took care of her so well and he helped her in every single way possible. I was sad for him because he had tried so hard to keep her well and alive, but it was just too hard for a tween to handle.
People who would like this show are people who like china rabbits, moving stories, and warthog princesses. I think people should definitely definitely go see this show. It is a great show for everyone. It was beautiful. I loved it!
Photos: Charles Osgood
I think that Micah seemed like a troubled kid. Something really bad had happened to him when the tornado came. And he lost his parents. To make his life even more hard, his guardian is too overprotective and doesn't think Micah should fight his own battles, which I think he should be able to at this age. I find his story really sad. One part of his performance that I thought really drew me more into the story was that whenever the tornado drills would happen he would get so scared that he would just hide under a table. He is very religious and he thinks that if anyone offends God that God will take it out on the entire town. I'm not sure whether Catherine Trieschmann believes in God or not because it seemed like after Micah had told Susan that if she offended God something bad would happen, something bad happened. That kind of indicates that she does believe in God, but then sometimes she seems to put everything into Susan's perspective, but Susan doesn't believe in God. I really like how she is not just making the story from one voice; she is making a point about both ways of thinking: that both make sense to the people who think them. As long as no one hurts themselves or other people because they have different religions, then it is okay to express your opinion. Since there is no way to know when you are alive, then everyone can believe what they want.
Susan seems to be the main character and you follow her perspective the most and it is mostly about her problems. She is going to have a kid and I think that it must be hard because she is going to have to be a single mom but she is going to raise him in a little town so he is away from his father and she feels like it is more safe. I think that she is a good person a lot of the time and I can understand why she gets so angry when the person she is talking is not using any empathy and is not seeing that other people can believe different things than he does--which is not the right thing to do. The right thing to do is to listen to the people around you. But that is not what she does either, which is why it makes everything so frustrating and interesting, because you can't choose sides. Each person has a point and each person is being kind of an idiot about something. Her point is that everyone can have their own beliefs, but she says a lot of very hurtful things to Micah about his religion. So, you aren't really sure if she actually has empathy.
Gene is more toward the believing-strongly-in-God side, but he is less pushy about it. This makes him seem like a nicer person. The thing is a lot of people would choose Gene's way of doing things, but there are some unlikable things about him too. He sugarcoats everything and tries to say people's opinions for them. It is good to be a peacemaker some of the time, but don't step into people's arguments and talk for them. He thinks that it is really easy to cure their argument, but it isn't. There needs to be a conclusion; he can't just bring her a pie and make everything better. He is trying to have empathy, and I think he has the most empathy of anyone in the show because he is actually trying to see things from other people's perspectives. He does just believe what he believes, but he does try to see what other people think. He wants everyone to get what they want, but then he doesn't do so well with that. It is not until he leaves them alone that they actually talk to each other like they are both humans. At the end Micah gives Susan money for her and her baby and Susan tries to comfort him when there is a tornado. But that doesn't mean that they both believe the same things, it just means they are starting to try to accept that there are different kinds of people in the world and try to treat them like humans.
People who would like this show are people who like interesting stories, being able to see different perspectives, and pie. This was a really great show. I loved watching it. I was so dragged into the story. I found it really interesting and I am still thinking about it.
Photos: Michael Brosilow
The vibe of the show was very very fun and exciting. I felt like they stayed very true to the book and didn't add in a lot of things that weren't needed. I really liked the music (composed by Andrew Pluess, played by Greg Hirte, Foster, L.J. Slavin, and Matthew C. Yee). It was very pirate-y and very catchy and I am still singing the songs. The set (designed by Todd Rosenthal) looked like a huge boat and it could rock back and forth, which was very cool. And it worked just as well for all the different places because they would decorate the set with vines when it was the jungle and bring down a sign and set up some tables when it was the pub. And I thought it was cool how they made it work for all the different places and I loved the set. The costumes (by Ana Kuzmanic) were so authentic and real-life looking. They really drew me into the story. Class was very important because some people had holes in their stockings, like Black Dog, and some people were wearing sails, like Ben Gunn (Pickering), and some people had frilly pink outfits, like the Squire. But even the Squire didn't maintain his fancy clothes the entire time because they were looking for treasure in the jungle. You probably shouldn't wear that fancy outfit out there anyway, but it showed you that he thought it wasn't going to be that bad.
Redruth was maybe my favorite character because he had a very refined air about him, but then he was going on a pirate journey. He always has his nose in the air and he has one of the most refined British accents. He is doing such a ridiculous thing (going to sea) because his master told him to. That is what a butler is supposed to do: take care of his master no matter what. And that also shows that he is very courageous. I liked that he still maintains his dignity throughout the trip. Captain Smollett was a really fun character. He was very serious about everything he did, even when it was completely ridiculous. And a lot of his scenes were hilarious. I also liked how at the beginning he had the right idea about the crew (Travis Delgado, Foster, Anthony Irons, Ariel Shafir, and Yee) the entire time. And the Squire and the Doctor were like, "Oh how can you think that?" The Squire and the Doctor were also hilarious. Long John Silver was a very serious and scary character. He was scary because even though he only had one leg, he was very threatening and it seemed like if he wanted you dead you could be dead in a few minutes. He seemed to only care about himself, which is basically true. But he did have some redeeming by the end because he didn't want to hurt Jim. Another one of my favorite characters was Ben Gunn who was stranded on an island by his pirate buddies and when Jim's ship comes, he finally gets to see humanity again. And one of my favorite parts of the show is when he is reunited with his one true love: cheese. He is just so happy to see cheese again and it is just so funny and I love it so much. I would definitely go see this show again just for that moment. But luckily there were other great moments as well.
One of my favorite funny moments was when they were running away from the pirates but it was all in slow motion and so hilarious. That is one of the reasons I love the Captain so much because this scene showcases how dramatic and still-doing-his-job he is and it made me laugh so hard. I loved it. My favorite touching moment was when Jim was about to set out on his journey and his mom was so sad because she wasn't going to see him for a while and she didn't want him to be in danger. It was touching because his mom seemed kind of mad at him that he was going but you could tell that she was just sad. Another thing I really liked was when the pirates would attack the other sailors they would climb down from the top of the stage like from the crow's nest, but really the catwalk above the stage. I also really liked it when there were supposedly canon balls coming onto the stage but they were really heavy black bean bags. And that was super funny and creative.
People who would like this show are people who like treasure maps, slo-mo running, and cheese. I think people should definitely go see this show. I love all the shows I've seen at Lookingglass and this was no exception. I loved it!
Photos: Liz Lauren
