Roy Berko - Page 27

Apollo's Fire, Cleveland's 'other' orchestra is credited with having built the largest audience in the nation for 'early-music' (Renaissance, Baroque and early Classical). Headed by Jeannette Sorrell, the orchestra is forging 'a vibrant approach to the re-making of authenticity.'

How does the musical black comedy LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS fit into the Cleveland Play House's 100th anniversary theme of paying homage to their history? To find the answer requires going back to May, 1916, when the theatre staged THE DEATH OF TINTAGILES. The avant-garde play starred marionettes created by Helen Haiman Joseph, who created The Puppet Players Theatre at CPH in the mid-1920s.

July 18, 1966 is a day that will long be noted in the Cleveland community. That hot, muggy day festered into what is now called 'The Hough Riots.'

If you had asked Lauren Molina during her high school days in Detroit what she was going to be when she grew up, the self-described 'brainiac,' would probably have answered, 'A doctor or a vet.' Though not thinking of a life behind the footlights, she did attend arts summer programs at Northwestern, Yale and NYU.

A recent trip to New York included a tour of Carnegie Hall. As we entered the famous auditorium someone asked, 'How are the acoustics?' The seasoned tour guide answered, 'they are good, but not as good as Cleveland's Severance Hall.' He went on to say, 'Though this is a beautiful setting, it doesn't compare to Cleveland's Severance Hall. This was followed, about ten minutes later by the comment, 'The orchestras that play here are top-notch, especially the Cleveland Orchestra.' Following the tour I asked if he was a northern Ohio native. He responded that he wasn't, but came to Cleveland at least twice a year to hear the orchestra and always attended their performances in the Big Apple.

Last month the Cleveland area played host to what was a hoped for new Christmas musical that would go to Broadway and be holiday entertainment. Unfortunately, KRIS KRINGLE, with book by Maria Ciampi and music by Tim Janis, lacked clear structure, emotional-generating glee, and joyous songs. It's lead character was charming, but not endearing.

'The Cleveland Musical Theatre' and 'Making It on Broadway' may not mean much to many in the local community, but soon, if Sean Patrick and Miles Sternfeld have their way, those organizations will become a regular part of the Cleveland theater agenda.

Even though the movement may have been slowed down by the recent Ohio election, the march toward legalization of marijuana seems on its way in this country.

World premiere of KRIS KRINGLE THE MUSICAL proves show is a work in progress.

Mention author J. M. Barrie, and the immediate thought is Peter Pan. Peter Pan, the tale of a boy who refused to grow up, has become a cottage industry. Dolls, movies, a musical play, coloring books, cartoons, Halloween costumes, a non-musical play, and books are all available. There is even a psychological condition, 'The Peter Pan Syndrome,' which puts the spotlight on men who refuse to assume responsibility for their boyish actions.

Yes, A CHRISTMAS STORY is again lighting up the stage at the Cleveland Play House. It's a new production, which incites new comments, but the history and my unexpected involvement in the tale is still the same!

Little did Frank Baum realize in 1900 when he wrote the book, THE WONDERFUL WIZARD OF OZ, that he was creating a cottage industry. 'Chachkas' such as snow globes, stuffed Toto dogs and figurines of the characters dot many a household. Clothing, including red crystal shoes, checkered gingham 'Dorothy' dresses and Halloween costumes galore, relate aspects of the tale.

The American Folklore Theatre (AFT), located in Door County, Wisconsin, is a theater company that creates musicals and plays which are based on the populist culture and heritage of the United States. They have developed such works as MULE FOR BREAKFAST AGAIN, LUMBERJACKS IN LOVE, LOOSE LIPS SINK SHIPS, and GUYS ON ICE. The latter is now being staged by Actors Summit.

It's that time of year when local theatre offerings center on 'peace on earth' and how each of us should be kind and better (e.g., Great Lakes Theater's A CHRISTMAS CAROL), family holiday memories (Cleveland Play House's A CHRISTMAS STORY), and musical escapes (Beck Center's MARY POPPINS and PlayhouseSquare's ELF).

Geoffrey Hoffman, in his directorial notes in the convergence-continuum program for BOB: A LIFE IN FIVE ACTS, states, 'Bob is an everyman . . .He is born with nothing and becomes a passionate adventurer-part myth, part reality, and completely legendary. . . For better or worse, he is the most memorable person you've ever met.'

It's that time of year when local theatres fill their stages with holiday cheer. Yes, it's the season of A CHRISTMAS CAROL, A CHRISTMAS STORY, A CHRISTMAS STORY: THE MUSICAL, WHITE CHRISTMAS, and ELF THE MUSICAL.

Sam Shepard, the author of AGES OF THE MOON, now on stage at Ensemble Theatre, is noted for writing plays that are frank and often absurd. His language choice is gritty, the setting is the American west, and his characters usually self-destruct. He sometimes includes in his stage directions the requirement that part of the set is to be demolished, much like the lives of the people about whom he writes. The actions of the actors carry out these destructions. AGES OF THE MOON is no exception.

'I believe in grabbing at life.' 'Every minute is a new minute.' Thus states Zorba, the lead character in ZORBA!, a musical that 'captures of the spirit of Greece and celebrates a people who embrace love, life and death with equal passion.'

Last season over twenty performers with Cleveland area connections played on Broadway. So far this season, the trend continues. Chris McCarrell is in LES MISERABLES, Cassie Okenka will be in SCHOOL OF ROCK, Steel Burkhart appears in ALADDIN, Jill Paice stars in AN AMERICAN IN PARIS, Kyle Post kicks up his heels in KINKY BOOTS and Alex Wyse has a major role in SPRING AWAKENING.