current issue | main page | infotainment | past editions | special events | classifieds...a-l | classifieds...m-z | feedback!

by George Patterson
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA

Bring On The Bodies

The North Star Theatre, located in Mandeville, has a real winner presently gracing its boards, the hysterical farce by British playwright, Alan Bennett, called Habeas Corpus. Mr. Bennett is probably best known in this country as the writer of the play (and film) The Madness of King George. His comedic credentials are impeccable, however, with his salad days success-a musical revue called Beyond The Fringe, which also launched the careers of Dudley Moore, Peter Cook and Jonathan Miller.

Director Lori Bennett (no relation to the playwright) did virtually everything right in staging this production. Her cast, led by the indefatigable Becky Allen, is just about perfect; the pace she has instilled is breathtaking; her blocking borders on choreography it is so fluid (set designer Henry Heymann's minimalist non-set contributes mightily-with no furniture to sit on, there is no relaxing on this stage-the cast remains hot-wired throughout the high-energy proceedings.) Since there are no doors to slam as an audible punctuation mark, Ms. Bennett uses an extensive synthesizer score (composed by George Stiles and performed admirably by keyboardist Michael Tiefer) which underscores the physicality of the production brilliantly.

This farce has everything to do with its title which translates roughly as: "bring the body." The play revolves around a northern England middle-class family, led by the Northstar's resident leading actor, Michael Bennett (no relation to either of the above Bennetts), as Arthur Wicksteed, a General Practitioner, who spends all day inspecting them in a most laughingly laconic, laid-back manner. His over-sexed wife, Muriel, (Ms. Allen) spends her days trying to lay male ones; their son, Dennis (Adam Schexnider), is roaring through puberty trying to get a peak at female ones; and, Arthur's spinster, live-in sister, Constance (Debbie Morvant), is trying to augment hers with the help of Mr. Shanks (Sean Patterson), who sells breast enlargers and is fixated on the real thing.

Even though this particular play is several years old, its theme of adultery is more up to date than Kansas City.

In spite of the many inside-the-British-Isles jokes (the National Health Care system as embodied most hypocritically through Sir Percy Shorter, played by real Brit Julian Dalzell, described in the playbill as "a leading light in the medical profession" who is more interested in sex than being British); the continuing class struggle (Lady Rumpers-Sandra Landry and her daughter, Felicity-Jane Catalanello); the gross hypocrisy of the church as embodied in the lecherous Canon Throbbing ("a celibate" made incarnate by actor John Bostic), there is enough human comedy here to entertain the most jaded non-British playgoer.

I would be remiss in not mentioning the solid work turned in by Lynn Toal as Mrs. Swabb, the cleaning lady, who is beneath-or rather, above-the fray and sets the scenes for us in a most unique way; and, the running joke that is Mr. Purdue (Chris Beard), a "sick man" trying unsucessfully in many hilarious ways, to commit suicide.

This show is sick, phat, bad-and very, very good.

La Traviata

The New Orleans Opera Association ended the season with a very, very good production of one of Verdi's most over-produced hits, La Traviata, an operatic interpretation of Dumas' La Dame aux Camelias.

The highlight of this production did not reside in the performances of its two leads, Violetta (Maria Spacagna) or her enamorato, Alfredo Germont (Vladimir Grishko) but in the secondary role of Alfredo's father, Giorgio Germont. Mark Delavan essayed this role with consummate skill and a rich baritone that left the audience spellbound. This young man is going to be HUGE one day (I hope only in the fame department).

Physical limitations in casting and costuming were the only drawbacks to this otherwise lovely to look at and listen to production-the two leads simply did not convey infatuation nor mutual attraction with each other nor did they evince any musical pyrotechnics; however, neither were out of voice either. Theirs was a thoroughly professional rendering of their roles, but without fire. The costumes for Violetta, uncredited, did nothing to mask her avoirdupois; indeed, in her final death scene, instead of a long flowing diaphanous negligee, she was saddled with a heavy white flannel night shirt, ruffled on the bottom, that accented her healthiness and dumpiness-this was the real tragedy of the evening.

Local soprano Karen Schowalter's Flora, Gerald Stroup's Gastone de Letorieres and especially Wanda Brister's Annina added immeasurably to the opera's success.

The other happy news was the astute and effective direction by Robert Tannenbaum, replacing Adelaide Bishop. Mr. Tannenbaum will have a more permanent connection with the N. O. Opera in May when he assumes the General Directorship, a post held for the past 25 years by Arthur Cosenza (who has been connected to the N.O. Opera for 44 years). Mr. Tannenbaum moved the large cast about (in Act I, sc. 1 and Act II, sc. 2) David Gano's opulent scenery like a four star traffic cop-never allowing us to lose focus, miss a note of Carol Rausch's always-perfect chorus, nor a Joseph Giacobbe dance step. Likewise, the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra under the artful direction of Chris Nance also contributed mightily to the evening's many musical joys.

The Tennessee Williams Fest

Having already suffered through the over-long Michael Arata production of Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire (still at Le Petit through Apr. 11) this reviewer opted, during the hectic weekend that is the Tennessee Williams/New Orleans Literary Festival, to see an alternative production based on this Williams classic-Allison Gonzalez' terpsichorean interpretation for the New Orleans Ballet Ensemble (still on the CAC's Freeport MacMaRon Theatre boards through Apr. 11). Not only was Ms. Gonzalez able to convey the story brilliantly, she also interpreted Williams' poem, "In The Winter Of Cities." Both ballets were less than 2 hours of solid balletic entertainment.

Utilizing the original score for the Arata production penned by local jazz trombonist Delfeayo Marsalis, Ms. Gonzalez broke the steamy story of brutality and lemon cokes down into four terse scenes: The Visit (Blanche arrives), The Poker Game, The Date & The Rape. With Lawrence Gibas as Stanley, David Capitano as Mitch, Nikki Wilson as Stella and Danielle Albright as Blanche and a few set pieces of old veneered furniture-and a naked light bulb-the company tells the story through a combination of classical and modern dance-a flower seller (Erin Samuels) en pointe with a single red flower, Cheryl O'Sullivan's Eunice also en pointe, a true guardian angel. Mr. Marsalis' music was augmented on occasion with music from old [scratchy] recordings, most notably the utilization of the Varsouviana ("Put Your Little Foot") as Blanche tells of her ill-fated affair with a homosexual (Lyle Guidroz). (The Varsouviana is a musical suggestion the playwright makes strongly in underscoring Blanche's monologue-one of many of the author's notes that are ignored in the Arata production). Mr. Marsalis' rich jazz works much better as ballet accompaniement than as underscoring for a drama.

The music for "In the Winter of Cities" is an oratorio by Matthew Nash (and sung by the New Orleans Gay Men's Chorus under the direction of Cedric Bridges with piano accompaniment by Greg Wesner) and is equally unique for this pas de deux danced by Ms. Gonzalez and Mr. Gibas, which is a lamentation on the vicissitudes of poverty. A musical highlight of this ballet is a gorgeous baritone solo by Kelly Kerr.

Ms. Gonzalez is a solid choreographer and dancer whose imminent departure to New York to follow her muse will leave us with a void, so don't let this experience, her final contribution to the New Orleans dance scene, pass you by.

If A Streetcar Named Desire (The Ballet) is considered an ancillary event of the Fest, Tennesse And Me, The Good Man's Wife and Orpheus Descending were presented by the fest itself and so were only given two or three productions over the weekend. Of these, only one is by Mr. Williams himself and that is Orpheus Descending, his first Broadway bomb (it was made into a successful film starring Marlon Brando & Anna Magnani as The Fugitive Kind), staged by the Duke Players from Duke University and directed cogently by Jody McAuliffe. This tale of small town brutes destroying a Jesus-like poet (the traveling troubadour Valentine Xavier played by Aaron Lazar--an excellent actor who also sings beautifully) is important in its display of Williams' acquisition of a unique voice tinged with Southern honey and lots of grits. Dana Bennison as Lady Torrance (the Anna Magnani role), although too young, nevertheless displayed a self-confidence and theatrical savvy way beyond her years and experience.

Tennessee and Me, a super short skit (15 minutes long) by Will Scheffer, directed by Bob Balaban and starring Joseph Siravo, is a monologue in which a street-smart New York hustler recounts the time, at the moment of Tennessee's death, when Tennessee's soul comes to reside in him while he's at the baths servicing a trick. The real humor of this piece occurs when the hapless hustler is also occupied by the spirit of a recently deceased Truman Capote and the two flamboyant queens take over. Actor Siravo had these three characters down pat; exhibited this accomplishment with bravura and disappeared into the darkness. Wonderful.

Likewise, local playwright Phyllis Clemons' new one act play, The Good Man's Wife, was more than satisfying. Set in New Orleans in the 40's, this is a comedy about an overprotective mother (Adella Gautier) who stoops to voo-doo to keep her newly married daughter (Nina Domingue) from moving with her husband (Terence Rosemore) to the West Coast-the New Orleans syndrome: don't leave mama or bad things'll happen to you!

The good man is her husband (Harold Evans) who, after discovering his wife's perfidy in utilizing voodoo, turns the tables on her, putting her potion in her own drink and finally reducing her to a more servile, and less voracious, woman who, at the end, is doing what she's told.

Directed with calm assurance by Carol Sutton, this was by far the most rewarding, and humorous, experience of the entire fest, exhibiting as it did the continuing local connection to one of the century's most famous playwrights who was himself a "local."

Aside: Not About Nightingales, a never before produced early Williams effort (1938), recently discovered, has been given a winning production in London at the Cottesloe Theatre through the ministrations of Vanessa Redgrave.

The popular (London) press is generally impressed by this production. John Peter of The Sunday Times said the production is "A superlative achievement the National [Theatre] ought to be very proud of it." Nicholas De Jongh of The Evening Standard was very excited about the play saying, "This is one of the most remarkable theatrical discoveries of the last quarter century. And Darren Dalglish said: "Nightingales is a violent play that some will find disturbing, but it is so well written, acted and produced...it is a play that should not be missed."

And now we have word that it will be produced by Alley Theatre in Houston in June. Hey, Elizabeth Barron and members of the TWFest board--how about this one for next year?

current issue | main page | infotainment | past editions | special events | classifieds...a-l | classifieds...m-z | feedback!