Oscar E Moore

Can it really be that Charles Busch has written this one dimensional play?  Or has it been written by the ghost in the mirror, a man named Howard?  Or has April Fools Day come around again to taunt us?  

This is not your typical laugh fest created by Mr. Busch.  No drag queens.  No glamour-puss-actress.  No sense as to what is going on at Primary Stages at 59 E 59 Street until September 3^rd and insipidly directed by Mark Brokaw.   

It’s as if Mr. Busch had all these ideas and characters stored away in a box, put in his hand, pulled some out and created the preposterous plot of Olive and the Bitter Herbs, which I have renamed Olive of the Bitter Tongue – after its central character Olive (Marcia Jean Kurtz). 

Olive is an actress in her sixties (I’m being kind) who is opinionated, combative, totally unlikable and Jewish.  A woman whose main claim to fame is being the “sausage lady” (kosher?) in a popular TV commercial and is “the last surviving renter” in her co-op building in Kips Bay.

Olive is a woman who hates her gay neighbors Trey, just as bitchy as Olive (Dan Butler) and Robert (David Garrison) heart attack survivor – working in Kiddie Lit – not because they are gay but because of the horrible smell of gourmet cheese seeping through their walls from their apartment that they have recently moved into where Olive discovered the past owner dead in her bed that they bought from her estate.  Just an example. 

Olive is a reprehensible woman who is looked after by non-relative Wendy (Julie Halston) who is connected to some theatrical enterprise but is up for a job in LA and has invited Trey and Robert over for drinks. 

Then there is the peacemaker Sylvan (Richard Masur) a widower three times over who is the father of the President of the Co-Op Board who is visiting from Buenos Aires.  And finally Howard the mysterious man in the mirror that everyone is drawn to.  Everyone on stage, that is.

We care little for any of them.  Except when they get to say some of the sometimes funny one-liners inserted to keep this show running through to the second act.  The highlight of Act I (I’m being kind) is an abridged Seder.  I have always wanted to go to a Seder but this play has cured me of that wish.   During intermission I wondered if Chanukah awaited celebration in Act II.

No.  It’s the viewing of a TV movie that Olive (a Holocaust survivor) has starred in with disastrous results that lead to the unbelievable ending where we discover the importance of being Howard.

Perhaps if Mr. Busch played Olive…No, that wouldn’t work either.

www.primarystages.org  Photo:  Jamaes Leynse

Tags: No Comments.

Mary-Beth Manning is a remarkable actor.  Her Irish-Catholic mother was a remarkable woman.  And character.  The two meet head on in Ms. Manning’s one woman show “Mother – she’s with you wherever you go” being presented at IATI Theater as part of the NY Int’l Fringe Festival.

It’s a show filled with quirky family and famous people stories (Joanne Woodward, Paul Newman, Mayor Koch, Alicia Alonzo) that linger long after you leave as the depth of her affection and deep love for her opinionated mom, despite their ups and downs, has a surprisingly emotional, personal effect on you.

Extremely well written, created and performed by Ms. Manning and directed by Roma Maffia, “Mother” is a sometimes hysterical, sometimes lyrical and altogether wonderful retelling of their relationship from age five till death did them part.  Between the tears and heart wrenching humor Ms. Manning, alone on a bare stage except for one solitary chair, brings to vivid life her life with Joanie her mom, a mom with a tough veneer and a heart of gold and Ray her dad who would blow her a kiss every morning to be used later on and a host of other characters which include a wry therapist and a pseudo psychic.  Even after death mom is close at hand.

Ms. Manning is bright and charming and quite attractive bringing to mind a young Blythe Danner whose daughter is Gwyneth Paltrow – another mother/daughter duo.

She commands the stage and you are riveted to her for 85 minutes of incredible story telling.  With Bostonian accent for mom intact, she becomes Joanie – gesturing, posturing and advising.  And Mary-Beth a child afraid to be herself, fearing she would never fit in.

It is her mom’s sage advice that Mary-Beth seeks throughout her bi-coastal quest for stardom and a man who isn’t an alcoholic.  Her mom has two sides: the nice and the mean and we see them both on display as Ms. Manning connects 100 percent with her audience.  Her body language is a prime asset as she portrays the shy Mary-Beth and the outgoing, feisty woman who when stricken with cancer plows ahead not willing to give in as she becomes a fragile shadow of herself with her quick comebacks still coming on loud and strong, remaining indestructible until the end.

I defy anyone not to be moved by this incredibly poignant relationship and the original, refreshing way in which it is told.  “Mother – she’s with you wherever you go” will remain with you wherever you go.

www.marybethmanning.com www.fringenyc.org

Tags: 1 Comment

There’s a monkey in John’s bed.  No, not a monkey but a female chimpanzee brought back from Tanzania by his wife, Mary since their marriage has become stale.  John is a professor of anthropology who firmly believes that there is no missing link in the evolution of man. 

But wait, Lola-Lola, the chimp begins to connect with him to the extent that he falls in love with her as he teaches her to stand erect, dance a fox-trot, fornicate and wear fashionable high heels. 

In this bizarre two act play which starts out as a great idea and then grows tedious as it unfolds much too slowly we get the arguments both pro Darwin and anti.   And that animals have feelings too. 

It is written by Peter Michalos as a series of disjointed short scenes that director Rebecca Hengstenberg fails to pull together fast enough to keep our attention from wandering.

Lola-Lola is sometimes very funny and surprisingly touching.  It appears that Mr. Michalos has been inspired by A. R. Gurney’s Sylvia (a dog) and Edward Albee’s The Goat or Who is Sylvia?  But he is not in their league yet.  Lola-Lola needs more work and lots of editing.

Melissa Sussman makes a terrific Lola-Lola.  She has the mannerisms of the simian down pat and connects with her human family with gestures while we hear her speaking her thoughts.  Nice.  Later on when she is given a Bionic Voice Box by mad Doctor/Scientist Godfrey (Dennis Z. Gagomiros – who plays three other characters – all exceptionally well) unfortunately nary a simian trait remains.

Christopher Sutton makes an excellent John.  Torn between his work, his reputation, his wife (Leanne Barrineau) who is having an affair with his best friend Ted (Colin McFadden), his blossoming love for Lola-Lola, his religious faith and his sanity he is believable throughout and dead pan funny.

Will they live happily ever after as husband and chimpanzee?  Will they be more famous than Lady Gaga?  Will Mary’s documentation of this affair “The Lola Chronicles” become a best seller? 

Answers will be found at Venue 6 – The Living Theatre, 21 Clinton St.

www.PeterMichalos.com     www.fringenyc.org

Tags: Comments Off on Lola-Lola – Monkey business at NY Int’l Fringe Festival

Death Takes a Holiday, the new Maury Yeston, Thomas Meehan, Peter Stone musical ensconced at the underground grotto theatre named Laura Pels simply dulls the spirits.  I couldn’t ever imagine that meeting “Death” face to face could be so listless as it is in this  Roundabout production.

Not Maury Yeston’s finest hour.  Actually, two and a half hours of sung dialogue interspersed with some MGM-ish, Andrew Lloyd Webber-ish flourishes and some old fashioned operetta-ish arias that fail to soar but which hold their last notes long after you have tired of hearing them, polite applause ensuing.

I have admired Mr. Yeston’s Nine and Titantic but this time out I started counting the roses, the thousands of roses, that adorn the trellises on the lovely but not very practical unit set of an Italian villa right after the end of WWI designed by Derek McLane.  And when you start counting roses there obviously is a problem.

The score notwithstanding, Death Takes a Holiday has also lost its leading man Julian Ovenden to a severe case of laryngitis.  What we get is Death warmed over as understudy Kevin Earley valiantly tries to make sense of a role that has him inviting himself as the Russian Prince Nikolai Sirki into the lives of the many guests of Duke and Duchess Lamberti (an exaggerated Michael Siberry and the down to earth Rebecca Luker) for a weekend in the country so that he can learn why everyone fears “Death”.

A weekend, following the near fatal car accident that he has caused, resulting in the Lamberti’s daughter Grazia (a Disney type heroine – Jill Paice) being thrown from the car and into a tizzy while returning from Venice with her fiancé Corrado (Max Von Essen).

The beauty and the beast meet and fall hopelessly in love.  Will love conquer all?  Will the power of love be stronger than that of death?  Will he learn to like fried eggs?

This silly story has been based on a dramatic play by Alberto Casella and rewritten for the American stage by Walter Ferris and worked on for many a year by its creators both living and dead.  Why?

The program wisely notes who the characters are and their relationships to one another which helps sort out the many people populating the stage.   Not that it matters all that much.

Simon Jones keeps his head above water with his elegant and humorous portrayal of Doctor Albione.  On the other hand we get an over the top Majordomo (Don Stephenson) who seems to have wandered in from a Feydeau farce.

I especially enjoyed the performance of Alexandra Socha as Daisy who after learning that the engagement between Grazia and Corrado is off is off and running after Corrado.

Matt Cavenaugh as an American aviator almost gets applause and the biggest laugh of the evening with his break-away costume.  Speaking of which, Catherine Zuber has created some extremely beautiful, breathtaking period frocks for the women and formal wear for the men that at least gives us something to look at when the monotony of counting roses has ceased and the static staging by Doug Hughes has failed to bring Death to Life.

www.roundabouttheatre.org Through Sept. 4^th.

Tags: Comments Off on Death Takes a Holiday dulls the spirits

The Gateway Theatre’s production of SUNSET BOULEVARD is exceptional for many reasons.  First and foremost is their casting veteran Broadway star (Evita, Cats, No No Nanette) Loni Ackerman as Norma Desmond – silent screen star.  Ms. Ackerman is a perfect fit.  She has the look.  The attitude.  The vulnerability.  The strength.  The desperation.  The loneliness.  And the voice.

Loni Ackerman has waited twenty five years to make her long delayed, well deserved and most very welcomed comeback.  Taking time off to raise two sons with her husband Steve Kennedy.

“Not a comeback,” as Norma Desmond declares – “but a return.”   She began six years ago doing small parts.  Anything that would get her back on stage.  And now she is back center stage.  In the spotlight.

Singing Andrew Lloyd Webber’s “With One Look” Ms. Ackerman sends chills down your spine as she relishes every moment of her triumphant return singing “This time I’m staying, staying for good.  Back where I was born to be.”  With this stellar performance we will surely see more of Loni Ackerman.  Yes, Loni Ackerman you’ve come home at last.  Your rendition of “As If We Never Said Goodbye” is worthy of the shouts of acclaim from the audience sitting out there in the dark.  Now this is where Loni would say, “Oscar, enough of me.  What about the show, everyone else?”

Based on the iconic movie by Billy Wilder, SUNSET BOULEVARD is not an easy show to produce.  Especially in ten days.  But director/choreographer Larry Raben and his creative staff have done a wonderful job evoking the period with terrific black and white vintage moving pictures and projections. 

The costumes are quite elaborate for Norma and fine for all the other characters telling the story of Joe Gillis, a fantastic Robert J. Townsend who must be as strong and as interesting as Norma for this show to work.  He is a star on the rise.  A leading man who is virile, sexy and can sing and act circles around other less commanding men on Broadway right now.  I expect a shining future for Mr. Townsend.  They have terrific chemistry on stage together.  She the cougar with her boy toy.  Their “New Year Tango” and “The Perfect Year” are nicely staged and the set sizzles with sexual tension.

As Joe, an out of work screenwriter who is escaping some goons after being late in car payments, he stumbles onto the estate of Norma Desmond who mistakes him for the undertaker for her pet chimpanzee and persuades him to stay and help her with her script for SALOME that she will submit to C.B. DeMille (Philip Hoffman) and star in for her return to Paramount – the Studio that she made famous.  But he falls for Betty Schaefer, an outstanding Gail Bennett who really makes something of this thankless part.  She reminded me of a young Emily Skinner whom I adore.  Her boyfriend Artie – another discovery – Andrew Pandaleon – has a great stage presence and a wonderful voice.  Noticing him as a standout early on I was disappointed that his part was so underwritten.

Joel Robertson as Max Von Mayerling, Norma’s butler and protector has a most difficult song “The Greatest Star of All” and does it beautifully, rendering all his love for Norma.

A love that you will all share when you see SUNSET BOULEVARD.  Be quick it only runs through August 20^th.

www.gatewayplayhouse.com  Box Office 631 286 1133

NOTE:  Loni and I appeared together in DAMES AT SEA in 1969.  We have remained great friends over the years and I am so very proud of her determination and accomplishments.

Making a wrong turn can sometimes be a good thing.  I asked directions from someone at “PORTERS”.  My instinct for finding a nice place to eat was alerted and after finding the theatre we went back and had a most delicious lunch on the porch.  It was another wonderful discovery that day.  Please go and enjoy the food and the service.   www.portersonthelane.com

Tags: No Comments.

Good grief!  When is it too soon to revive a legendary cash cow musical?  A musical whose composer and lyricist died suddenly at the age of 35 the night before it was to open in 1996.  A musical that won the Pulitzer Prize.   A musical that won the Tony for Best Musical  and various Drama Desk Awards that very same year and ran for twelve more before vacating in September of 2008. 

The musical I am referring to is, of course, RENT by Jonathan Larson loosely inspired by La Boheme by Puccini which closed its doors just three years ago and has reopened them at the New World Stages last night.

Can I be the only person in the universe that believes RENT to be an over hyped phenomenon?  I had seen RENT when it first appeared at the New York Theatre Workshop.  I wondered then what all the excitement was about.  I wonder still.

I remember an almost bare stage with some scaffolding.  Some tables.  A drag queen in a Santa outfit.  Some glorious harmonies.  Some exciting performances.  And a long boring “performance piece” segment by Maureen about a cow.  There was a lot going on.  The story line was unclear.  The music with the exception of a few songs was loud, lackluster and unmemorable.   

“Seasons of Love” became a hit.  That coupled with Mr. Larson’s untimely death created the RENT mythology and the rest is history.

This new production of RENT directed by Michael Greif with some choreography by Lawrence Keigwin has a much more sophisticated look.  Grungy worked better.  The two tier monkey bar set enables the actors to climb and perform hanging from the rafters.  It houses the band.  It reveals many more hi tech video screens.  It turns.  The extraordinary lighting design is spectacular (Kevin Admas).  The sound – especially for the many incoming Voice Mail segments is scratchy (Brian Ronan).

It’s a long haul.  Running about two and a half hours.  Sitting there I was sometimes elated, sometimes bored but mostly wondering how RENT has fooled so many people.  Mostly young people buy the look of the audience.  An audience that can pre-order intermission drinks.  Tiny drinks with a hefty price tag attached.  I didn’t notice anyone checking IDs.

The plot loosely follows that of La Boheme.  Artists from the lower East side wondering how to pay the rent while living among the homeless and drug addicts, many of whom are HIV positive and following their dreams to be free and to love one another.

The young, energetic cast is really exceptional.  Highest honors go to Adam Chanler-Berat.  This is a young man coming into his own as a fine actor and singer.  He is relaxed and natural and one can really care for him as Mark Cohen – our video taping chronicler.  Roommate Roger (Matt Shingledecker) also delivers.  Mimi the sexy dancer infected with Aids is a gyrating dynamo called Arianda Fernandez.  When not sizzling she has some beautiful quiet moments with Roger.  However her faux death scene is ridiculous as written. 

Angel (an excellent MJ Rodriquez) winningly portrays the RuPaul-like drag queen who falls in love with Tom Collins (the majestic Nicholas Christopher).  His eulogy scene is breathtaking. 

As the two lesbian lovers Joanne (Corbin Reid) and Maureen (Annaleigh Ashford) have a wonderful time with “Take Me or Leave Me”.  And I have to admit that I was totally impressed with Ms. Ashford’s “performance piece” – “Over the Moon”.  Outstanding.  She has the looks the voice and the humor.

I wasn’t a huge fan of RENT to begin with and I am afraid that this production hasn’t changed my opinion of the legendary and extremely popular MTV rock musical.

NOTE:  The escalators were not working.  They should be.

www.siteforrent.com       www.newworldstages.com  Photo:  Joan Marcus

Tags: 1 Comment

Somewhere betwixt and between Mary Shelley (Frankenstein), Stephen Sondheim (Somewhere) and Rod Serling (The Twilight Zone) can be found this very intriguing, never boring, sometimes spooky and worthwhile foray into the future and back to the past  double feature production of “Frankenstein with Mary Shelley” adapted by Virginia Bartholomew and “Gabriel” written by Will Le Vasseur.

These two connected at the umbilical cord one act plays can be currently seen at Nicu’s Spoon Theatre 38 West 38 Street – 5^th Floor produced by the REDD TALE THEATRE COMPANY as part of its Fifth Season.  Just around the corner from Lord & Taylor on Fifth.

If you have a hankering for tales told around the camp fire sort of thing, some excellent acting and great production values on a shoestring budget I suggest you pay your $15.00 and be delightfully surprised at the high caliber work being done by this small troupe of actors.

Virginia Bartholomew, strikingly elegant in her Victorian garb, lights her four candles and steps into the role of the so-very-British Mary Shelley with a barely audible heat beat in the background explaining how she came to write her famous opus Frankenstein and then takes on the parts of creator and monster in this very special one woman show which has been directed and edited by Will Le Vasseur.

Mary Shelley’s love of science, alchemy, anatomy and story telling make for a riveting performance piece.  Ms. Bartholomew is simply mesmerizing.  She is aided expertly by lighting designer Jason Richards.

After a fifteen minute intermission where the audience is asked to adjoin to the lobby so that a new set can be installed we return to the future with “Gabriel” – directed by Lynn Kenny.

It’s Twilight Zone time here.  As written by Mr. Le Vasseur the candles have been replaced by an Apple Lap Top and large screen where technical DNA data is projected.

Henry (Will Le Vasseur), a wealthy British geneticist has invited married couple Pierce (James Stewart) and Susan (Cameran Hebb) to his inner sanctuary to introduce his creation Gabriel who can only speak telepathically.  And so we have the off stage voice of Gabriel (Michael Komala) speaking for the on stage embodiment of Gabriel (Michael Wetherbee).  It’s weird but it works.

Henry has also been researching an HIV Vaccine which becomes important to the denouement that I won’t divulge.  I’ll only say that I did expect at any moment to hear the strains of Sondheim’s “Somewhere” waft into this brave new world. 

“Gabriel” verges on the edge of melodramatic futuristic camp but never goes over the top due to the seriousness and honesty of its actors.

It’s an exciting company to keep a watchful eye on.

Through August 27^th.    www.reddtale.org  Thurs.-Sat 8pm Sat 2pm  NO SHOW 8/12

Tags: No Comments.

Can a gay valet find continued bliss with his employer after being stranded with him on a deserted island for five years (cavorting around like naked savages) and then returning, unexplained, to his wife and his New York townhouse?  Complicating matters is that his employer’s socialite wife Daphane has just remarried after patiently waiting for him to be found.

This silly plot of “Lavender Shore” has been contrived by Lawson Caldwell to do some serious talking about what he truly wants to say about homosexuality circa 1936 or for that matter, today. 

Mr. Caldwell has a worthwhile message to impart.  He has a gay sensibility.  And an incredible imagination – to come up with such a plot that enables him to have some extremely beautiful scenes between the two men in question – Gerald Tyler (Colin Pritchard) valet to Mr. Harrison Anderson (Markus Potter) who get to explore their secret sexuality with a kiss or two.  However, some rewrites are in order.

Colin Pritchard is the character and actor who anchors this entire production.  He is a true gentleman’s gentleman.  A British butler one can only dream about.  Patiently waiting in the background.  Fondly but discreetly gazing on the man he loves.  Patiently waiting to see if the outcome is as he desires.  Mr. Pritchard is one of the main reasons to attend the Midtown Int’l Theatre Festival of which “Lavender Shore” is a participant.  To discover new talent makes it all worth while.  And with Mr. Pritchard we hit the jackpot.

There are others in the cast that are good but not up to the level of Mr. Pritchard.  Markus Potter as the confused Harrison does very well indeed trying to come to terms with his admiration and affection for Gerald while trying to placate his still preening wife Daphane (Katie Yamulla) who has just said “I do” again to Thomas Darrow (a caught in the middle Patrick James Lynch) who was once involved with Gwendolyn (a ravishing and stylish Rachael Claire) who understands what is really going on. 

As does friend of the family, confirmed bachelor Phillip Timmons (a sarcastic and all too stiff Marc Geller – I wish this fine actor and comic would simply relax) and a surprising treat of a maid Lucy (Alison K. Phillips).  As the fussy uptight Aunty Charlotte who is determined not to have any scandal intrude, Colleen Kennedy has the right tone and the right look in her period costumes supplied by Susan Nester.

Lenny Leibowitz has carefully guided his cast through their paces in this very bare bones production – almost a staged reading.  That wouldn’t matter at all if the play and the players were of the highest caliber.  While enjoyable “Lavender Shore” misses the high water mark.

www.midtownfestival.org        www.lawsoncaldwell.com             Artwork:Scott Williams

Tags: No Comments.

Family reunions are never much fun, especially if they are taking place in the Flowering Fields Nursing Home where Gus Gunther lies in a coma, deaf and dying of cancer with his extremely dysfunctional family in attendance.  

The body is there (Bob Vega) not moving, not saying a word yet suffering along with the rest of us through most of this darkly humorous comedy by Vicki Vodrey.

Ms. Vodrey has done her best to skewer the hospice care system, MacDonald’s Drive Through, and the ritual of Last Rites with her sometimes comic look into the lives of the Gunther Family, who to put it bluntly, are killing time waiting for Gus to stop breathing – complaining all the way about each other and just about everything else.

The youngest Catholic son Joe, who has the best written part and does wonders with it, is played by Rusty Sneary.  He is HIV positive and negative about most other things as he is considered to be the Black Sheep of the family.  His older brother Mike (Herman Johansen) has had the audacity to marry a Jew, the knitting needle wielding, badly accented Phyllis (Cynthia Hyer) who tries to take control.  The middle son Ed (Craig Benton) is married to a dim witted yet sharp Cathy (Jennifer Mays).  Their pain in the neck sister Lorraine (Peggy Friesen) who has not been in contact with them for two years appears late in this 90 minute show and it is with her entrance that everything comes together and we finally have a play to watch.

Abigail Walker is the Hospice worker who is there to help but doesn’t.  The part could easily disappear from the script.  An overly gracious and patient Shelly (Diane Bulan) who sporadically enters to check Gus’s vital signs which have included in his pre-coma days a pat on her backside (thus the title Hanky Panky) gives the quickest service I’ve ever seen in a hospital.  Then there is the adorable Reverend Kirby (Evan White) who Joe immediately takes a shine to.

When Gus is about to expire and no one is there to administer The Last Rites it is Reverend Kirby who with the help of a computer print out leads the family in a wickedly funny, outrageous and yes moving finale. 

In lieu of a hymn one of Gus’ favorite songs “When the Red Red Robin Comes Bob Bob Bobbin Along” is sung – taking on an entirely new and gloriously amusing meaning.

If only the rest of the play, directed by Richard Dines was as focused and up to this level of hilarity.

www.HankyPankythePlay.com    Photo:  Robert J. Meiners

Tags: No Comments.

Danny Aiello is a fine actor.  The Shoemaker is a terrible play.  Written by Susan Charlotte, The Shoemaker is an unconvincing and confounding drama that has been stretched like salt water taffy to its limits. 

It started out as a “sold out” one act play starring Mr. Aiello last year, has been made into a film “A Broken Sole” and in its latest manifestation, at the suggestion of its star Mr. Aiello, has had a second act added.  Simon Says, “Don’t try to fix things that aren’t broken.”

I reference “Simon Says” as that old game is referenced by Ms. Charlotte via one of the three on stage characters.  There is another off stage voice that is part of the illogical proceedings at the Acorn Theatre at Theatre Row.

The Shoemaker takes place in Hell’s Kitchen on September 11, 2001.  First off, the theatre is too large for such an intimate play.  I have never seen such a shoemaker’s emporium as designed by Ray Klausen of this magnitude ever.  The Italian Jewish owner has been here for forty years.  The vintage radio (circa late 1940-50) he listens to has been there even longer and it plays an odd assortment of music and tales from his dead dad who never made it to the USA thanks to Hitler.

An irate woman (Hilary – Alma Cuervo) barges into his closed shop on the day of the Twin Towers disaster insisting he fix her broken sole.  She has been walking a lot ever since “it” happened on “this beautiful day”.  She’s been Downtown and at Lincoln Center, at her teaching position at Columbia and then back to Hell’s Kitchen – a mighty long hike to look as refreshed as she does. 

Anyway, I have never heard of a sole of a shoe being broken – there is a worn out hole that has to be re-soled – a heel breaks.  Which brings me to the pair of high heel shoes left there by a young, petite investment banker (Louise – Lucy De Vito) to be repaired that are to be picked up by her.  Only they aren’t ready and she seems to be a victim, working down on Wall Street.  But then she shows up without a mention of the tragedy.  Is he fantasizing?  What’s going on here?  Didn’t she see the “CLOSED” sign on the door?  It’s all very unclear.  It seems that playwright Susan Charlotte likes it that way.  And her director, Anthony Marsellis goes along for the ride.

The offstage voice belongs to Michael Twaine playing the father of Mr. Aiello who could probably enthrall by reading the obits from your local newspaper.  He acts up a storm but the play itself is a minor mist.

Turtles, dreams, double negatives, operatic arias, family relationships and the Holocaust are featured.

Simon Says, “Stay Home.”  

Photo:  Ben Hider   www.causecelebre.info  Through Aug.14^th

Tags: No Comments.