Tag: Buck Creek Players

Posted in Indianapolis theater: previews

Stages, Sprouts and Other Stuff: Weekly event roundup starting May 2

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Stages 

Footlite Musicals: “Fiddler on the Roof” 

Daniel Draves as Tevye in Footlite Musicals’ “Fiddler on the Roof.” Photo by IndyGhostLight.com.

Winner of nine Tony Awards, “Fiddler on the Roof” tells the tale of Tevye, a poor Jewish milkman, his wife and their five daughters as the adjust to a changing Russia in 1905. With the help of a colorful and tight-knit Jewish community, Tevye tries to protect his daughters and instill them with traditional values in the face of changing social mores and the growing anti-Semitism of Czarist Russia. The show’s universal theme of tradition cuts across barriers of race, class, nationality and religion, with iconic and beloved songs such as “Tradition,” “Sunrise, Sunset,” “If I Were a Rich Man” and “Matchmaker, Matchmaker.” 

  • When: May 3-19, Thursdays-Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 2:30 p.m.; ASL interpreted performance Thursday, May 16 
  • Where: Hedback Theatre 
  • Tickets: $25; students $20; ages 17 and under $15; Thursdays and the first Sunday performances are $15 for all seats. https://footlite.org/ 

Indianapolis Shakespeare Company and Zach & Zack: “Julius Caesar” 

A fresh, modern take on Shakespeare’s iconic political thriller. 

  • When: May 2-19, Thursdays-Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. 
  • Where: Phoenix Theatre Cultural Centre Basile Theatre 
  • Tickets: $15-$35; phoenixtheatre.org 

Indianapolis Black Theatre Company: “Platanos y Collard Greens” 

“Platanos y Collard Greens” will be at the District Theatre.

This love story between a Black man, Freeman, and a Latina woman, Angelita, unfolds through hilarity, hip-hop, spoken word and thought-provoking history to reveal the parallels and tensions between the two communities. Can Freeman and Angelita navigate the opinions and pitfalls of their family and friends to make their relationship work, or are they doomed to be star-crossed lovers? A dynamically compelling play, “Platanos y Collard Greens” by David Lamb comes to the Indianapolis stage from New York City for the first time. The play is presented by the newly formed Indianapolis Black Theatre Company, Cultured Urban Winery and Teresa Reynolds Arts & Events. The show’s director, Teresa Reynolds, starred in “Platanos y Collard Greens” in NYC when it became the longest-running Off-Broadway show featuring a minority cast. She is thrilled to revisit this stirring show, which tells a powerful story about how we experience contrasting cultures with similarly fraught pasts. “The New York Times” called “Platanos y Collard Greens” “a modern-day ‘West Side Story’… [which] has developed a huge following among people who come to see it again and again.” Recommended ages 16+. 

Read the NUVO article about the IBTC. 

  • When: Thursday-Saturday, May 2-4, at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday, May 4 at 2 p.m. A community forum will follow the final show on May 4 
  • Where: The District Theatre Mainstage  
  • Tickets: $25; $18 seniors, students; indydistricttheatre.org 

Sprouts 

The Reef Aquarium Shop’s water garden is fully stocked with pond plants and a variety of koi/goldfish. Most house plants and annuals will be moving outside as well. Support this local store! 

“Spring Flower Show: What’s in a Name?” continues through May 12 at the Garfield Conservatory. “What’s in a Name?” explains the history and science of botanical nomenclature alongside a beautiful flower show full of blooms. Plant names are an important way of communicating history, culture and identity. In addition, because there are many plants with the same common name, or many common names for the same plant, knowing the botanical name helps people know exactly which plant is which. Learn about how to identify plants amongst stunning spring blooms like Tulipa Rococo, Lilium Josephine, Viola ‘Matrix Yellow and Anemone Giant Blue Poppy. 

“Spring Blooms” at Newfields also continues through May 12. 

Nature of Trees at Holliday Park continues Saturdays through May 18. Learn from a naturalist this spring during a series of hikes exploring our native trees. The Nature of Trees hikes will take a deep dive into identification and what makes each species so special. Free! No registration required. Saturdays, May 4, May 11 and May 18 from 11 a.m.-noon.  

No-Till Garden Workshops with the Marion County Soil and Water Conservation District: Learn the ins and outs of a no-till garden with Kevin Allison, soil health specialist, of the Marion County SWCD. The workshop includes an in-depth garden tour of garden and crop planning, no-till vegetables, cover crops, use of tarps for bed preparation and weed control, use of compost and mulches and use of native plantings for beneficial insects and pollinators. Upcoming sessions: Saturday, May 11 at 10 a.m. and Thursday, May 16 at 7 p.m. Capacity is limited, so only register if you can attend. Location: Mayor’s Garden, West 56th Street and Reed Road, Indianapolis, IN, 46254. 

Fungi Foray, May 4, 11a.m.-1p.m. at Arbuckle Acres Park, 200 North Green St., Brownsburg. Join a naturalist as she leads you through the forest, unveiling the hidden treasures beneath the canopy. Learn about the diverse shapes, colors and roles these mysterious mushrooms play in our ecosystem. Discover the magic beneath your feet and cultivate a newfound appreciation for the incredible diversity of nature. Free! Meet at Shelter #6. 

May 4, 9 a.m.-3 p.m., the Johnson County Garden Celebration will be held at Johnson County Fairgrounds, 250 Fairground St., Franklin, inside of Scott Hall and Herring Hall. Indoor and outdoor vendors, giveaways and workshops related to gardening. Entrance fee $2, parking is free. 

The Indiana Native Plant Society plant auction is May 5-11. Snag fantastic offers of rare native plants, private garden tours or celebrity guided hikes as well as choice natives from invasive-free “Grow Indiana Natives” vendors. 

Container Gardening – A Garden Workshop will be held Monday, May 6, 6-7 p.m. at Central Library. Join Master Gardener Danielle Randles to learn about growing when you can’t grow in the ground.   

Other stuff 

Buck Creek Players 50th anniversary gala 

Enjoy an afternoon of laughter and tears as Buck Creel Players reminisces about its past and looks forward to its future! The event includes cocktail entertainment and buffet dinner provided by Simply Served Catering by Ritz Carlton and will include a choice of lemonade, iced tea or water. A cash bar will be available. This event will be held inside the playhouse and open to all!   

Woodruff Place Neighborhood Tour

Woodruff Place fountain. Photo by Evan Hale.

Indiana Landmarks’ guided tours will highlight Woodruff Place’s long and storied history and include an inside look at three private homes not ordinarily open to the public, in addition to the neighborhood’s 1920s Tudor Revival-style Woodruff Town Hall, built when Woodruff Place functioned as an independent municipality. As a special conclusion to the tour, the Woodruff Place Foundation invites attendees to enjoy light refreshments and chat with neighborhood residents.

  • When: May 9 
  • Where: This tour departs from Woodruff Place Town Hall, 735 Woodruff Place East Drive, Indianapolis. Groups will cover approximately 1.5 miles over the course of two hours.  
  • Tickets: $20 (ages 12 and up), $17 for Indiana Landmarks members, $15 for children (ages 6-11) and free for children ages 5 and under. Purchase tickets online and to choose a tour time: WoodruffPlaceTour24.eventbrite.com 

Free Comic Book Day

Stop by any Indianapolis Public Library branch on Saturday, May 4: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. to pick up a free comic book from their selection for all ages, while supplies last. 

Indianapolis Meatpacking History: Kingan & Company

Learn about the history of Kingan & Company and its enduring impact on the city of Indianapolis. This history lecture is part of the Culture, History and Society: Historic Indianapolis Metropolitan Area programs. Sunday, May 5, 2-3 p.m. at Central Library.

Virtual Author Talk: A Murder Mystery, Family Story & Love Letter to Strong Women Everywhere — An Author Talk with Nina Simon

Join Nina Simon online as she chats about her lighthearted whodunnit about a grandmother-mother-daughter trio of amateur sleuths, “Mother-Daughter Murder Night.” Wednesday, May 8, 7-8 p.m. Registration requested.

Posted in Indianapolis theater: previews

Openings for the weekend of 3/29

Posted on by LRGM

Broadway In Indianapolis: “Hadestown”  

“Hadestown” comes to Clowes Hall April 2-7

Come see how the world could be! Welcome to “Hadestown,” where a song can change your fate. Winner of eight 2019 Tony Awards, this acclaimed new musical by celebrated singer-songwriter Anaïs Mitchell and innovative director Rachel Chavkin (“Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812”) is a love story for today … and always. Intertwining two mythic tales — that of young dreamers Orpheus and Eurydice, and that of King Hades and his wife Persephone — “Hadestown” is a haunting and hopeful theatrical experience that grabs you and never lets go. 

Sun King Brewery has created Don’t Look Back, an exclusive Sun King brew to celebrate the upcoming engagement of “Hadestown.” Don’t Look Back will be tapped at the Jazz Kitchen (5377 N. College Ave.) on Thursday, March 28 beginning at 5:30 p.m. for an exclusive private event benefiting the Indianapolis Jazz Foundation. Don’t Look Back will also be available for a limited time only on tap at Sun King in Indianapolis, Carmel, Fishers and Kokomo, as well as at Clowes Memorial Hall throughout the run of “Hadestown” while supplies last beginning March 29. Don’t Look Back is a smooth drinking ale with ginger, lemon and chilis to take tastebuds on a journey to the underworld and back.  

Buck Creek Players: “Bell, Book, and Candle” 

Anna Spack in Buck Creek Player’s “Bell, Book, and Candle”

Buck Creek continues its 50th season! Gillian Holroyd is one of the few people who can cast spells and perform supernatural feats. But when she casts a spell over an unattached publisher who falls madly in love with her, the modern-day witch finds herself bewitched by real human love. 

  • March 29-April 7, Fridays-Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 2:30 p.m. 
  • $18; $16 for seniors and students 
  • www.buckcreekplayers.com 
Posted in Indianapolis theater: previews

Productions and other events beginning 3/21

Posted on by LRGM

Theater productions opening this weekend 

“And I Will Follow” by Bennett Ayres  

Mark Goetzinger in “And I Will Follow.” Photo by InyGhostLight.com.

This mesmerizing one-man play starring Mark Goetzinger, a veteran actor of the Phoenix Theatre, Indiana Repertory Theatre, Beef and Boards and regional theaters across the country. 

Joseph Werner, a veteran newspaper reporter from Chicago, investigates a harrowing crime where a former member of an Amish community confesses to the shocking murder of his wife and three children in a small town in Illinois during the early 1900s. This narrative play unravels the mystery surrounding the man’s actions while also exploring profound themes of identity, love, faith and resilience. 

Following the show on Friday, March 22, a post-show discussion will be held about the true-crime story with playwright Bennett Ayres, actor Mark Goetzinger, director Tim Ocel and Amy Kinzer Steidinger, author of “So Many Fragile Things” about the Moser Family Murders.” 

  • March 21-April 7, Thursdays-Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. 
  • $30; $15 students; $40 supporter 
  • Phoenix Theatre 
  • www.phoenixtheatre.org 

“Herding Cats” presented by Theatre Unchained as part of the 2023/2024 Spotlight Season 

“Herding Cats” is an adorable comedy for all ages featuring Stella the cat and her quest to save her owner’s job! Stella, a plucky housecat, is willing to do anything to save the career of her beloved but struggling human owner — including deploying the fabled and dreaded “nuclear option.” But she’ll have to convince her fellow cats to go along with her radical plan. And matters get complicated when Stella’s worst fear — a dog — is introduced into the household. “Herding Cats” is a heartwarming comedy for all ages about friendship, acceptance, and the circle of life. It is written by Neil Martin and directed by Theatre Unchained Artistic Director Megan Ann Jacobs. Check out a preview video for the show. Note: This production contains flashing lights and strobe effects.  

  • March 22-30, Thursdays-Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 3 p.m. 
  • $21-$26 (including fees) 
  • Want to save on your tickets? Bring a donation item for Indy Cats Haven (cat food, kitty litter, cat toys, cleaning supplies) and receive a $5 discount at the door! 
  • March 29 and 30, meet the playwright, Neil Martin. Talkbacks are directly after the show, 
  • The Basile Theatre, Indy Fringe building 
  • https://indyfringe.org/ 

Indiana Repertory Theatre: “Little Shop of Horrors” promo code

Save $15 off performances with promo code SHOP1 when you book by April 5, 2024. Offer valid on performances through May 5 on individual tickets priced $40 and higher. Other exclusions may apply. irtlive.com.

Lectures/Workshops/Etc. 

The Vivian S. Delbrook Visiting Writers Series: Tiana Clark 

Tiana Clark

Clark is an award-winning poet, essayist and professor best known for her poetry collection, “I Can’t Talk About the Trees Without the Blood,” winner of the 2017 Agnes Lynch Starrett Prize. In 2016, her first book, “Equilibrium,” was selected by Afaa Michael Weaver for the Frost Place Chapbook Competition. In addition to scholarships at Bread Loaf, Sewanee Writers’ Conference, the Frost Place Seminar and Kenyon Review Writers Workshop, Clark is the winner of the 2020 Kate Tufts Discovery Award. She is the recipient of the 2021-2022 Amy Lowell Poetry Traveling Scholarship, a 2019 Pushcart Prize, and is a 2019 National Endowment for the Arts Literature Fellow. Clark is currently the Grace Hazard Conkling Writer-in-Residence at Smith College. 

Book Launch Celebration: “Faith, Hope, Action: Ushering in a New Earth Era Together” by Diana Ensign 

Join Diana Ensign for an author reading and signing of her new book. Co-hosted by the Sierra Club and the Center for Interfaith Cooperation. 

Crown Hill speaker series: Caring for Your Trees — Pruning and Landscape Practices 

From seedling to sentinel, International Society of Arboriculture certified arborist Carrie Tauscher will discuss the most common types of care your trees need to flourish in an urban landscape. This program will cover science-backed best management practices, seasonal tips and refreshers on basic tree care/landscape practices that affect trees. This program will give you the knowledge you need to do it yourself or help you communicate with your tree care provider to get the best result for you and your trees. 

Spirits of the Athenaeum: Overnight Ghost Hunt 

Do you believe in ghosts? Have you dreamed of being a paranormal investigator? Are you ready to meet the spirits who’ve been living in this building for over 100 years? The Athenaeum Foundation and Unseen Press bring you an exclusive opportunity to experience, interact and investigate one of the most haunted buildings in Indiana. Put your ghost hunting abilities and your psychic sense to the test at the historic Athenaeum! This is not a tour or a teaching moment, but an interactive investigation. Bring your own equipment (it will not be provided) such as cameras, digital voice recorders, dowsing rods, pendulums and a flashlight. Group leaders will share some of their experiences and past investigations’ experiences, and they want to hear from you throughout the night about your experience. 

In addition to ghost hunting, Lorenda Carr will be offering tarot readings. Lorenda is offering special rates of $15 for a 10-minute time slot and $25 for 20 minutes. In addition, anyone who does a reading with Lorenda the night of the ghost hunt will also receive a 20 percent discount for a full one-hour reading at a later date. 

Participants must be 16 years of age or older. Anyone under the age of 18 must be accompanied by an adult. Investigation includes exclusive access to 13-14 haunted areas and a brief history of the amazing building. 

“Exploring Labor and Union Struggles in The Cold Millions Era” 

Join the Kurt Vonnegut Museum and Library and The Eugene V. Debs Museum as part of the NEA Big Reads programming for a lecture followed by a discussion of “The Cold Millions,” a novel by Jess Walter. 

  • Thursday, March 21, 4:30 p.m.  
  • Free 
  • VIRTUAL or Eugene V. Debs Museum, 451 N. 8th St., Terre Haute 

2023 Blaine Jarrett Memorial Scholarship application 

The Blaine Jarrett Memorial Scholarship Fund is managed by Buck Creek Players. Any graduating high school senior or college freshman who is currently enrolled or accepted into a performing-art-related major/minor at a college or university is eligible to apply. Majors/minors that will be considered include dance, theater performance, technical theater, instrumental music, vocal music or related fields. Recipients will be based on the applicant’s participation, accomplishments and involvement in the performing arts in the Central Indiana region. Recipients will receive a minimum scholarship of $1,000. Applications are available to download on the scholarship’s website and must be postmarked no later than April 30, 2024, to be considered for a scholarship this year. 

The Blaine Jarrett Memorial Scholarship Fund was started by Blaine’s family and friends. The first scholarship awards were made in 2008 when funding reached a sufficient level to allow meaningful annual scholarships to be awarded on an on-going basis. The fund has since been growing steadily thanks to contributions of a variety of donors and various fundraising activities. Donations are continuously being accepted and can be made via the website or can be mailed to BJMSF, 11150 Southeastern Ave., Indianapolis, IN 46259. 

Africana Repertory Theatre of IU Indianapolis: CenterStage Conference  

CenterStage is a one-day conference for those involved in every aspect of theater — creating access to expert resources to expand knowledge and enhance skills. The conference culminates with a luncheon keynote address and panel discussion on “The Role of Black Arts in Addressing Our Current Sociopolitical Identities.” 

The Africana Repertory Theatre of IUPUI (ARTI) is a program of study offered by the IU School of Liberal Arts at IUPUI, the School of Education and the IUPUI Office of Community Engagement using a multidisciplinary approach to “edutainment.” ARTI was developed to document and artistically reflect the history, cultural life and politics of peoples of the African Diaspora. As a public arts initiative, ARTI has a deep commitment to and focuses on artistic and community engagement. Learning in the arts is invaluable at all stages of life, and the integration of the arts into the fabric of community life may advance civic engagement while also creating a college and career pathway. 

Don’t forget about the Indy Indie Book Crawl 

Posted in Indianapolis theater: reviews

Buck Creek Players: “Moon Over the Brewery”

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Tony Brazelton in “Moon Over the Brewery” at Buck Creek Players 

Moon Over the Brewery is a funny yet melancholic coming-of-age story. Miriam is a lonely single mother because her genius 13-year-old daughter, Amanda, IQ of 160, systematically undermines her mother’s potential suitors with the help of her “perfect” imaginary friend and stand-in father figure, Randolph, who styles himself after the main character of whatever book Amanda is currently reading. Miriam was a young mom, a college student abandoned by her professor lover when he found out she was pregnant. She pays the bills (or tries to – she’s really bad with money) by waitressing, but her passion lies in art. Amanda is trying to raise money for a school trip by selling one of her mother’s intricate, handmade quilts. Mariam sculpts, too, but she is most prolific at painting. Her mother’s painting opportunities only come at night, after work, house and family are seen to. So, moonscapes cover the walls of their home (well designed by Ed Trout), and she has more hanging in the diner where she works, which are also for sale. While Miriam tries to stay positive, her loneliness and melancholy constantly surround her in shades of blue, gray, and lunar white. But Amanda might have found her match in her mother’s newest lover, their mailman, Warren, who is too sweet and goofy – and emotionally intelligent — for her barbed tongue to scare off. 

AnnaStacia Nuffer and Tony Brazelton in “Moon Over the Brewery” at Buck Creek Players

The characters’ interactions get a lot of laughs, with Brooke Dennis as Amanda, AnnaStacia Nuffer (in her acting debut) as Miriam, Tony Brazelton as Randolph, and Grant Bowen as Warren under the direction of Mac Bellner. Brazelton shines every time he’s on stage. He gives Randolph a vibrant, energetic personality – completely opposite the mundane, small-town life that is reality. He holds sway over every scene he’s in, whether he’s in Great Gatsby white or swashbuckling Shogun style. Ellie Harrison’s costume designs for Brazelton are entertaining, but the straight-edge clothing choices for Dennis as teenage Amanda, a mini-intellectual elitist, confuse the character’s actual age. There are no visual cues to let the audience know Amanda is still a kid, even if a weird one. While Amanda often acts as the responsible one, making her old beyond her years, we still need to remember that she is just a kid who doesn’t want her mom’s attention split. After all, Randolph appears only for that specific situation.

Brooke Dennis and AnnaStacia Nuffer in “Moon Over the Brewery” at Buck Creek Players 

Nuffer feels a little stilted or forced at times, but this will fade with experience. Dennis shows us how Amanda gradually gets roped in by Warren. I loved seeing her try not to smile at him – Amanda’s conflict unwillingly drags her into emotional growth. Bowen’s nervous laughter is so wonderfully awkward, and while Warren is a simple person, his genuine moments tell you he’s a good guy. 

The compelling story, idiosyncratic characters, and heart of the actors make the show charming … even provocative when you start breaking down character motivation. Nicely done, Buck Creek.

  • Buck Creek Players  
  • Through Feb. 11 
  • $18; $16 for children, students and senior citizens (62 and up) 

This article was originally published at https://www.nuvo.net/arts/buck-creeks-moon-over-the-brewery/article_6aecd456-c45f-11ee-8024-fbd9805c6cdd.html

Posted in Indianapolis theater: previews

Openings for 2/2

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Josie & Grace 

Tymisha Harris and Rachel Comeau in “Josie & Grace” 

From the creators of the hit off-Broadway show Josephine, this new musical explores the extraordinary, mostly untold story of the friendship between two of the most remarkable women of the 20th century: legendary singer/dancer/activist/spy Josephine Baker and Academy Award winner and European princess Grace Kelly/Princess Grace of Monaco. The show goes deep into the peaks and valleys of their friendship as their lives — and the world, shifted drastically over the decades. Kelly going from Oscar winner to royalty (the Princess of Monaco) puts a tight vice on her life and career; Baker’s personal life and professional opportunities start to implode.  

The story begins in 1951 at New York City’s famous Stork Club, where an incident of racial discrimination and Josephine’s public denouncement of it would lead her to be savaged by the media, exiled from the country of her birth and branded a communist, a label that would tarnish and diminish much of her career from that point forward. Here she meets a young and beautiful aspiring actress named Grace Kelly, who walks out of the exclusive NYC night club in solidarity with Josephine. Grace begins a lifelong friendship with “Josie” that lasts through Baker’s death in 1975. 

Josie & Grace combines cabaret-style songs and cinematic scenes and narration to give audiences a peek behind the curtains of Josephine’s Chateau Millandes in France and The Royal Palace of Monaco as these iconic women navigate each of their meteoric rises to success and challenge the limits placed on them by society and powerful men. Luscious period costumes, bling aplenty and gorgeous songs! 

Buck Creek Players: Moon Over the Brewery  

Grant Bowen and AnnaStacia Nuffer in Buck Creek Players’ “Moon Over the Brewery” 

Playwright Bruce Graham’s story is a coming-of-age tale of conflict between free-spirited single mother Miriam, a creative sculptor, quilter and painter whose day job as a waitress means she can paint only at night, and her precocious 13-year-old daughter Amanda. Miriam, perhaps in keeping with her free spirit and artistically bohemian approach to life, does not manage money well, and Amanda must use her financial intelligence to be sure they make ends meet. Miriam would like to be in a companionable, even romantic relationship, but Amanda disapproves of any suitors and attempts to run them off before they can get too comfortable. So far, her efforts have been successful. Warren Zimmerman, calm and competent, who happens to be their mail carrier, is Miriam’s latest beau and perhaps more determined than others. He becomes Amanda’s latest target. Randolph is Amanda’s imaginary friend-in-lieu-of-a-father and co-conspirator — the conspiracy being to get rid of all Miriam’s potential companions. He takes on characteristics of main characters in whatever book Amanda is reading. Both with and without the help of Warren and Randolph, both Amanda and Miriam must come to terms with the changes in their lives.  

  • Feb. 2-11 
  • $18; $16 for seniors and students. To get a 25 percent discount for the Saturday, Feb. 3, 7:30 p.m. performance, use the code Brewery25 at checkout. 
  • www.buckcreekplayers.com 

Actors Theatre of Indiana: Route 66  

Actors Theatre of Indiana presents the musical cabaret “Route 66”

Take a dollop of Grease, mix in some Pump Boys and Dinettes and add a generous dose of Forever Plaid and you’ve got the high-octane fun of Route 66! Beginning with the sounds of 1950s Chicago and traveling along the “Main Street of America” to the California coast with the surf music of the 1960s, this exciting musical revue features 34 of the greatest rock ’n’ road hits of the 20th century. Created by Roger Bean, you’ll hear songs such as “Dead Man’s Curve,” “King of the Road,” “Six Days on the Road,” “Little GTO,” “Fun, Fun, Fun” and many more. Check out a preview video here: https://vimeo.com/906122484 

  • Feb. 2-18 
  • $30+ 
  • The Studio Theatre at The Center for the Performing Arts, Carmel 
  • atistage.org 

Belfrey Theatre: One Man, Two Guvnors  

In 1963 Brighton, out-of-work skiffle player Francis Henshall becomes separately employed by two men — Roscoe Crabbe, a gangster, and Stanley Stubbers, an upper-class twit. Francis tries to keep the two from meeting, to prevent each of them learning that Francis is also working for someone else. Complicating events, Roscoe is really Rachel Crabbe in disguise, his twin sister. Roscoe had been killed by Rachel’s boyfriend, who is none other than Stanley. Complicating it further still is local mobster Charlie the Duck, who has arranged his daughter Pauline’s engagement to Roscoe despite her preference for over-the-top amateur actor Alan Dangle. Even further complications are prompted by several letters, a very heavy trunk, several unlucky audience volunteers, an extremely elderly waiter and Francis’ pursuit of his two passions: Dolly (Charlie’s feminist bookkeeper) and fish & chips. 

Agape Theater Company: Julius Caesar 

Agape Theater Company presents “Julius Caesar”

How would you respond when you fear your greatest hero has become a villain? Shakespeare’s most popular political thriller will draw you into the clash between honor and ambition. Agape Theater Company presents a mix of students and seasoned community performers for this performance. 

Alan Cumming and Ari Shapiro: Och & Oy! A Considered Cabaret  

Alan Cumming and Ari Shapiro

Alan Cumming (Cabaret, The Good Wife) and Ari Shapiro (Pink Martini, NPR’s All Things Considered) are both known for transporting audiences to other worlds through their stories. Now, they’re joining forces in song. Witness the Palladium debut of their new evening of tunes and tall tales, with musical direction by Henry Koperski. “We’re both storytellers who try to help audiences better understand themselves and the world around them,” Shapiro says. “This show lets us explore those shared ideals on stage together, through stories and songs.” Check them out here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QehmJjyrnFU 

The Stinky Cheese Man & Other Fairly Stupid Tales  

Jack has a problem. He’s successfully grown an enormous beanstalk, scaled to the top and stolen a golden harp and gold-laying goose from the sleeping giant. However, the giant has now awoken, and Jack has scurried back down the beanstalk in the hopes of chopping it down before the giant can catch him. Jack could possibly even make a clean escape if only the Little Red Hen would quit harping on and on about all the lazy animals who refuse to help her with her wheat. As the hungry giant catches up to Jack, Jack is forced to find ways to divert the giant’s attention to avoid becoming an afternoon snack. When he is unable to find a suitable hiding place, Jack convinces the giant that a good story or two would be the perfect way to begin a meal. And so it happens that Jack begins telling his own versions of some very familiar stories. With each tale the giant becomes more and more dissatisfied, and Jack becomes more and more determined to make it up to the giant by spinning a new yarn. The giant (and the audience as well) is treated to some new treatments of some old favorites, such as a tortoise racing a hair-growing hare, Cinderumplestiltskin, Little Red Running Shorts and a couple of princesses who kiss frogs and sleep on peas. Jack must not only tell tales as fast as he can for as long as he can to avoid being eaten, but he must also overcome the disturbances caused by that pesky, bread-obsessed Red Hen and a very smelly hero made of cheese. The Stinky Cheese Man & Other Fairly Stupid Tales, both as a book and stage play, shares with its audience the joys of making stories your own and creating new possibilities for the familiar. Recommended for grades 1-3. 

Posted in Indianapolis theater: previews

Openings for the weekend of 12/1

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Civic Theatre: Elf: The Musical  

Brett Edwards as Buddy in “Elf: The Musical”

Based on the cherished 2003 movie, Elf features songs by Tony Award nominees Matthew Sklar and Chad Beguelin (Disney’s Aladdin on Broadway, The Wedding Singer), with a book by Tony Award winners Thomas Meehan (Annie, The Producers, Hairspray) and Bob Martin (The Drowsy Chaperone). Buddy, a young orphan, mistakenly crawls into Santa’s bag of gifts and is transported to the North Pole. The would-be elf is raised there, unaware that he is actually a human, until his enormous size and poor toy-making abilities cause him to face the truth. With Santa’s permission, Buddy embarks on a journey to New York City to find his birth father and discover his true identity. Faced with the harsh realities that his father is on the naughty list and his half-brother doesn’t even believe in Santa, Buddy is determined to win over his new family and help New York remember the true meaning of Christmas.  

  • https://www.facebook.com/btcivic/videos/867594465029516 
  • Dec. 1-24, Fridays at 7 p.m.; Saturdays at 2 p.m. (on Dec. 9, 16, 23) and 7 p.m.; Sundays at 2 p.m.; final Sunday (Dec. 24) at noon; Wednesday, Dec. 20 at 7 p.m.; Thursdays, Dec. 14 and 21 at 7 p.m. 
  • $34 students; $64 regular 
  • Arrive at the theater early; with the Carmel Christkindlmarkt in session during the run of the show, the parking garages in the area can be slow and backed up. 
  • www.civictheatre.org 

Defiance Comedy: Claus Out: A Holiday Murder Mystery Musical 

This holiday season, get ready for a festive ride like no other, where Christmas cheer meets mystery and intrigue. In the shadow of Rudolph’s mysterious death, Santa’s remaining reindeer gather for a reunion, only to face dark secrets as they confront the truth that threatens to shatter Christmas forever … But like funny and naughty with lots of singing and dancing. Filled with catchy songs, colorful characters and a snowstorm of surprises, Claus Out is a must-see theatrical treat that will leave you guessing until the final note. Content advisory: This production contains loud noises, adult language and comedic depictions of physical violence. It is recommended for audiences 16+. 

Storytelling Arts of Indiana: Jennifer Munro’s version of A Christmas Carol  

Jennifer Munro

A native of Great Britain, Jennifer Munro, award-winning storyteller, actor and author, brings Scrooge, the Cratchits and Fezziwigs vibrantly to life in her dramatic, and thoroughly English, interpretation of Charles Dickens’s literary classic. Audiences will enjoy this tale of heartbreak, redemption and joy as Dickens intended it, on a bare stage with just the power of the human voice to capture hearts and imaginations.  

  • Saturday, Dec. 2, 7 p.m. 
  • $10 students; $25 general admission, online or in person; $35 for a household to watch the live stream  
  • Indiana History Center 
  • storytellingarts.org 

Buck Creek Players: Dad’s Christmas Miracle  

From left to right: Marie McNelis, Spencer Pipkin, Spencer Bland and Jacob Bush in Buck Creek Players’ production of “Dad’s Christmas Miracle”

Connor Murphy wants a go-cart for Christmas in the worst way. And judging from his report card just before vacation, that’s just how he sets out to get it. Hysterical situations abound in this loving memory of Yuletide charm, where it’s up to Dad to perform the impossible by Christmas morning.   

Beef & Boards: A Christmas Carol  

From the pages of Dickens comes this delightful musical adaptation of the holiday classic with traditional carols. Experience the transformation of the miserly Scrooge into someone who understands the true meaning of kindness and love, accomplished with the help of three spirits from the past, present and future. This one-hour show is performed without intermission and includes a buffet lunch or dinner prior to all performances. Notice: This production uses strobe effects. 

Posted in Indianapolis theater: reviews

Buck Creek Players: “Brighton Beach Memoirs”

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Dylan Acquaviva as Eugene Jerome in Buck Creek’s “Brighton Beach Memoirs.” Photo by IndyGhostLight.com.

Read the review here: https://www.nuvo.net/arts/buck-creeks-brighton-beach-memoirs-is-sweet/article_b776bfc6-6177-11ee-86c3-9749d1a514fa.html

Buck Creek Players continues its 50th season with Brighton Beach Memoirs, the first in Neil Simon’s semi-autobiographical Eugene Trilogy, including Biloxi Blues and Broadway Bound. This first chapter follows Eugene Jerome, a 15-year-old kid in Brooklyn, New York, in 1937. The slice-of-life, coming-of-age, Depression-era story is set in a house full of problems and puberty. The Polish-Jewish family is beset by unemployment, scarce dollars, underlying family tension (in more ways than one), and principles – what is the “right” thing to do? In short, it’s a powder keg. 

As Eugene Jerome, Dylan Acquaviva, an eighth-grader at Zionsville Middle School, portrays a plucky but naïve boy. He’s almost always on stage as either a participant in the scene or narrating for the audience. He leans into that Brooklyn accent a little too much compared to the rest of the cast, but he powers his way believably and consistently to the end. 

Eugene lives with his exhausted dad, Jack, played by Jeremy Tuterow, who works two jobs just to barely pay the bills, and his mom, Kate, played by Barb Weaver, who embodies the stereotypical Polish-Jewish homemaker. Eugene has an 18-year-old brother, Stanley (Tallon Wynne), who is expected to contribute financially to the family but still has some growing up. Tuterow and Acquaviva have a good rapport as siblings. 

Also taking up living space in the house is Kate’s widowed sister, Blanch (Letitia Clemons), who moved in after her husband’s death with her two daughters (Brooke Dennis as Nora and Quincy Carman as Laurie) and has yet to move back out. There is no escaping your family members when your home is fit to burst with them. Clemons is the picture of a woman lost without a man to make her decisions, an indecisive but apologetic presence in the house. Her children don’t make it easy on her: 16-year-old Nora wants to quit school and pursue a career on Broadway, and 13-year-old Laurie is treated like a china doll due to a heart flutter. 

Jim LaMonte directs a sweet little show overall. It captures a time past, but its family dynamics are unchanging. 

I like Buck Creek. It’s a little out of the way, but the seats are comfy, snacks are cheap, and shows are almost always worth the drive. 

Brighton Beach Memoirs continues through Oct. 8, Friday-Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 2:30 p.m. Tickets are $18; students and seniors are $16. For more information, visit www.buckcreekplayers.com. 

Posted in Indianapolis theater: previews

Openings for the weekend of Aug. 11

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Footlite Musicals: Godspell, a Young Artists Production 

footlite.org

The timeless tale of friendship, loyalty and love based on the Gospel according to St. Matthew. A small group of people help Jesus Christ tell parables by using a wide variety of games, storytelling techniques and hefty doses of comic timing. An eclectic blend of songs, ranging in style from pop to vaudeville, brings the story of Jesus’ life to the stage. Dissolving hauntingly into the Last Supper and the Crucifixion, Jesus’ messages of kindness, tolerance and love come vibrantly to life.  

Aug. 11-20; ASL interpreted performance, Thursday, Aug. 17 

$25 

Phoenix Theatre: Thirst by C.A. Johnson — a Staged Reading 

phoenixtheatre.org 

A professional staged reading of a fierce play. In a post-apocalyptic, segregated society, two women fight to hold onto love and family. 

Saturday, Aug. 12, 7:30 p.m. 

$10-$20 

Continuing this weekend 

Beef & Boards: Sophisticated Ladies, with music by Duke Ellington 

https://beefandboards.com

The musical legacy of The Duke is celebrated in this stylish and brassy retrospective, taking audiences from Ellington’s early days at The Cotton Club through his widening acceptance around the world. It’s a high-stepping salute inspired by the glamorous nightlife and sensuous high liffe of a man who lived to love. 

Through Aug. 20 

$52.50-$74.50 

Buck Creek Players: Sordid Lives 

http://www.buckcreekplayers.com 

Chaos erupts in Winters, Texas, when good Christian woman Peggy trips over her lover’s wooden legs, hits her head and bleeds to death in a motel room. In this ‘coming out’ story, the hilarious, sad, trashy truth about their lives runs amuck as three generations of her family prepare for Peggy’s funeral. 
  
Through Aug. 13.   

$16-$18 

Carmel Community Players: Murder on the Orient Express at The Cat in Carmel 

carmelplayers.org

The exotic Orient Express is about to go off the rails. With a train full of remarkable suspects and an alibi for each one, it’s the perfect mystery for detective Hercule Poirot. When the Agatha Christie estate approached Ken Ludwig to adapt Dame Agatha Christie’s most enduring novel and put it on stage, he agreed immediately and added his amazing gift of humor to this show, along with a tongue-in-cheek look at the entire production. 

Through Aug.13 

$13-$18 

Fast Apple Artists: Spring Awakening at District Theatre 

indydistricttheatre.org

The dark musical (with songs by popsmith Duncan Sheik) based on an old, weird German expressionist drama about disenfranchised youth, is an award-winning coming-of-age show.

Through Aug. 4-13 

$15-$20 

Posted in Indianapolis theater: reviews

Buck Creek Players: “Disaster: The Musical”

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Buck Creek Players’ “Disaster: The Musical”

You have to work for it, but when Disaster: The Musical hits a good gag, it makes the wait worth it, all while cleverly inserting songs from the ‘70s.

The setup is the opening of a new floating casino. Chad (Scott A. Fleshood) is hoping to meet some “Hot Stuff” and so he accompanies his pal Scott (Jamison Hemmert) to the opening as a server. Professor Ted Scheider (Joe Wagner) is looking for “hot stuff” in the water; as a disaster professional, he has predicted a series of natural disasters heretofore unheard of. Marianne (Allie Buchanan), a reporter, is there to get the scoop on owner Tony Del Vecchio (Corey Yeaman), who allegedly cut some safety corners to save some money. Sister Mary Downy stands as a single protestor with a one-note guitar, letting everyone know they are going to hell, even though she is “Torn Between Two Lovers,” God and a new Hawaii 5-0-themed slot machine, herself. Shirley and Maury Summers (Laura Duvall-Whitson and Michael Davis) are the decades-long married couple still in love and off to celebrate his retirement; but Maury doesn’t know his wife is terminal with a grocery list of bizarre symptoms, like inappropriate pelvic thrusts. Levora Verona, a washed up disco star, shows up at the pier avoiding her cab fare; this is her last chance to win back some of her faded fortune. Already onboard, Jackie (Jessica Crum Hawkins), a lounge singer, also has her life on the line. She tells her twins Ben and Lisa (Ava Lusby) that if all goes well tonight, Tony might “possibly” ask her to marry him.

And there are piranha puppets. Oh the piranha puppets.

There are genuinely funny or ew, or “oh hell” moments here, such as a particularly good piece with Jackie and her “kids,” where Ava gets to play the Susan-Sharron-Parent-Trap shtick with the aid of some fake hands. And did I mention the piranhas?

The B-grade special effects are an apt reflection of the source material as Disaster is meant to be a spoof of all 1970s disaster movies. As I said, there’s down time between good sight gags, but when they come up, they are worth it. The dedicated cast and crew with director D. Scott Robinson put their all into this goofy farce.

  • Through June 16, Fridays–Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2:30 p.m.
  • $20; $18 for students (through college) and senior citizens (aged 62 or older)
  • http://www.buckcreekplayers.com

 

Posted in Indianapolis theater: previews

Openings for the weekend of 5/31

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seeyouthereSummer Stock Stage’s Eclipse: Violet

Based on the short story “The Ugliest Pilgrim” by Doris Betts. It tells the story of a young disfigured woman who embarks on a journey by bus from her farm in Spruce Pine, North Carolina, all the way to Tulsa, Oklahoma, in order to be healed.

  • May 30-June 15; various times and dates
  • $20 opening weekend; $30 thereafter
  • Phoenix Theatre
  •  summerstockstage.com

 

At IndyFringe:

Fan Me, Lord!: In the 1950s, Chicago native Patricia Wilson visits home to share her big news after studying abroad in London. Little did she know her entire world will flip upside down as the beans spill about family secrets. Can she face the challenges and keep her “new-found self-confidence”?

Big Beautiful Women of Broadway (BBWOB): Actor/singer James Solomon Benn presents his 75-minute cabaret show featuring songs sung by or made famous by the women of Broadway.

seeyouthereBuck Creek Players: Disaster: The Musical

“Hustle” back to the 1970s for the Indianapolis premiere of Disaster: The Musical. It’s 1979, and New York’s hottest A-listers are lining up for the opening of a floating casino and discotheque. What begins as a night of boogie fever quickly changes to panic as the ship succumbs to earthquakes, tidal waves, and so much more! As the night turns into day, everyone struggles to survive and, quite possibly, repair the love that they’ve lost … or at least escape the killer rats. Disaster: The Musical features some of the most unforgettable songs of the 1970s. “Knock on Wood,” “Hooked on a Feeling,” “Sky High,” “I Am Woman,” and “Hot Stuff” are just a few of the scintillating hits in this hilarious musical comedy which played to Broadway audiences in 2012.

  • May 31-June 16, Fridays-Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2:30 p.m.
  • $20; $18 for students (through college and senior citizens (aged 62 or older)
  • http://www.buckcreekplayers.com

PLUS:

Bidding Begins Friday, May 31, for The Rocky Horror Show 2019 BCP PLay-A-Part Fundraiser. Play the role of your dreams! All roles in the Play-A-Part Fundraisers are “won” through an online silent auction with no required auditions! Veteran performers join first-timers to give classic musicals a comedic twist.

Magic Thread Cabaret: “Bill Book: It’s a Most Unusual Day”

Veteran Indy theater artist Bill Book headlines an eclectic, 90-minute program of his favorite classic, pop, swing, comedy, and country songs, weaved together with personal memories and stories of love, laughter, friendship and family.

  • Friday, May 31-Saturday, June 1 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, June 2 at 4 p.m.
  • The Cat, 254 Veterans Way in Carmel
  • $30 general admission/$25 seniors/$20 students with valid ID
  • magicthreadcabaret.com
Posted in Indianapolis theater: previews

Openings for the weekend of 2/8

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Catalyst Repertory: Arcadefire! [The Redemption of Billy Mitchell]

billy
The real Billy Mitchell at Tappers Arcade Bar before the 2018 Fringe premiere of “Arcadefire!”

This is an upgraded, full-length version of the IndyFringe Festival show from this past summer.

billymitchell
Friday’s lineup of events. Check the website for more throughout the show’s run.

Billy Mitchell, the 1982 Donkey Kong world-record holder and Video Game Player of the Century, had it all until a 2007 cult-classic documentary brought the public gamer back into the public eye. Years after the explosive premiere of King of Kong: Fist Full of Quarters, Billy faces a new challenge — the worst accusation a competitive gamer can face: They’re saying he cheated. When his scores are removed from the record boards and the “MAMEing” begins, it’s up to video gaming’s most polarizing figure to start dodging some barrels. Arcadefire! [The Redemption of Billy Mitchell] is a musical theater and gaming experience unlike any kill screen you’ve witnessed.

billymitchell2
Saturday’s lineup of events. Check the website for more throughout the show’s run.

Level Up, along with Team Scorechasers and Videogamepalooza bring Play-Play POPcade (that’s an Arcadefire! Pop-Up Arcade) experience to Irvington at Level Up Lounge before and after every performance. Gaming contests, celebrity appearances, drinks, food, and the hot sauce will be flowing! The King of Kong, Bil  l Mitchell will return (with friends!) to Indy for opening weekend only! 

  • Feb. 8-17, Fridays-Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 2:30 p.m.
  • $20. This ticket allows you into ONLY the production Arcadefire! This ticket does not include access to extra events and meet & greets.
  • Tickets for Play-Play POPcade Passes are $35. These weekend passes allow you full access to the Level Up Gaming Lounge events and after-parties, as well as your entry for any desired tournaments and meet & greets. Team Scorechasers creator Sid Seattle will moderate fast-paced tournaments, while legendary gamers play and stream … for a good cause! (Find out more about supported charities through the website link below).
  • Historic Irvington Lodge
  • For a full schedule of events, tournaments, celebrity guests, and available game consoles visit https://uncannycasey.wixsite.com/arcadefiremusical

Civic Theatre: To Kill a Mockingbird

Scout, a young girl in a quiet Southern town, is about to experience dramatic events that will affect the rest of her life. She and her brother, Jem, are being raised by their widowed father, Atticus, and by a strong-minded housekeeper, Calpurnia. Wide-eyed Scout is fascinated with the sensitively revealed people of her small town, but, from the start, there’s a rumble of thunder just under the calm surface of the life there.

  • Feb. 8-23, Thursdays-Saturdays at 7 p.m. (except the last Saturday at 5 p.m.) and Sundays at 2 p.m.
  • $43; $25 students
  • http://civictheatre.org

Beef & Boards: Grease

Welcome back to 1959 and Rydell High. Greaser Danny and new girl Sandy try to relive the romance of their “Summer Nights” as the rest of the gang sings and dances its way through songs like “Greased Lightnin” and “We Go Together” in this rollicking musical!

Storytelling Arts of Indiana: “Come Sit on My Front Porch” featuring Josh Goforth 

Josh Goforth
Josh Goforth

Goforth was just a boy when he played the fiddle in the 2000 feature film Songcatcher. The movie, starring Aidan Quinn and Emmy Rossum, among other big names, is about a musicologist who stumbled upon the Scots-Irish ballads of Appalachia, beautiful and unadulterated, handed down  through generations of families  secluded by the mountains. The musicologist wants to share this “discovery” with the world but is met with resistance from musicians and singers who want to preserve their proud heritage. These are Josh Goforth’s people. You’ll hear their stories and songs at his show.

And don’t forget about the Indy Story Slam next Tuesday, 7 p.m. at IndyFringe with its theme of “The Agony & Ecstasy of Love.” Whether you’re feeling amorous or alone this Valentine’s, there’s a story for you. 

The Alley Theatre: Picnic

This Pulitzer Prize-winning play takes place on Labor Day Weekend in the joint backyards of two middle-aged widows. Flo Owens lives in one house with her two maturing daughters, Madge and Millie, and a boarder. Helen Potts lives with her elderly and invalid mother. Into this female atmosphere comes a young man whose animal vitality seriously upsets the entire group.

Buck Creek Players’ After the Fair ticket sale

Receive 25% off all tickets to the FINAL WEEKEND of the Indianapolis premiere musical  when using coupon code AFTER online at http://www.buckcreekplayers.com/what-is-playing.html.

 

cinderella

Posted in Indianapolis theater: reviews

Buck Creek Players: “After the Fair”

Posted on by LRGM

afterthefair2
Buck Creek Players’ “After the Fair.” Photos by photogary.net.

After the Fair is a little musical based on the Thomas Hardy short story On the Western Circuit. (If you don’t know the name, Hardy’s most well-known work is Tess of the d’Urbervilles, written in 1891.) I’m not a big Hardy fan, even if I was an English major, but After the Fair is sweet and funny if not fast-paced.

Anna (Tara Sorg) is an illiterate maid in the Harnham household. Both she and the lady of the house, Edith (Lori Ecker), feel smothered in their sequestered, humdrum lives, and so Edith, hoping to live vicariously through Anna, allows Anna to go to the fair. Anna meets a man there, playboy Charles (Zachary Hoover), and after a tryst with him the next day, finds herself pregnant and Charles 100 miles away. Before discovering she is pregnant, Anna and Charles had been writing to each other, but since Anna is illiterate, Edith had been the one writing the letters for her. Through these letters, Edith begins to remember what is missing from her life … and her marriage: passion. Charles thinks he has finally fallen in love, and Edith certainly has, but what of Anna and the baby, not to mention the deceit of the letters’ author?

Vocally, I have to say that I felt I caught Ecker and Hoover on a somewhat off day this past Sunday afternoon. (I was having an off day too.) While certainly good, neither rose to the level I have heard from them before. Character-wise, however, they were spot on. Hoover only has to switch on that panty-poofing smile to make you believe he could get a Victorian lass out of her drawers. Ecker takes Edith on a subtle transformation as she reclaims her youth.

Alongside Ecker and Hoover, Sorg holds her own as the dim Anna, as does Scott S. Semester as the narcoleptic Arthur Harnham. A nice touch was the onstage orchestra, something you don’t see  at BCP often.

Directed by D. Scott Robinson with musical director Jill Stewart and period costumes by Cathy Cutshall and set by John Walker, After the Fair is a pleasant diversion, but it’s not something that will stick with you much past the final bow.

  • Through Feb. 10, Fridays-Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2:30 p.m.
  • $20; $18 for children, students, and senior citizens. Use coupon code LETTER online to get $2 off each seat.
  • www.buckcreekplayers.com  
Posted in Indianapolis theater: previews

Openings for the weekend of 1/25

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Fonseca Theatre Company: The Ballad of Klook and Vinette

klook
Fonseca Theatre Company’s “The Ballad of Klook and Vinette

Soulful music and compelling choreography combined with witty and poetic storytelling makes this a mesmerizing theater experience. Tender, funny, and incredibly moving, this contemporary new love story will grab you from the inside out. Klook is a drifter who’s tired of drifting. Vinette is on the run, but she doesn’t know what’s chasing her. Together they make a tentative stab at love … until the past catches up to the future and smacks it in the face.

  • Jan. 25-Feb. 17, Fridays at 8 p.m., Saturdays at 5 p.m. and 8 p.m., and Sundays at 2 p.m.
  • $25; $20 for students; $15 for Near West residents.
  • Indy Convergence
  • There will be post-show discussions following the Sunday matinees on Jan. 27 and Feb. 10. The panel on Jan. 27 will feature Dan Wakefield and Phyllis Boyd from Groundwork Indy. Dan will be sharing his experiences covering the Emmett Till murder trial and unpack the enduring relevance of this pivotal case. The panel on Feb. 10 will feature guests from the Greater Indianapolis Progress Committee, the Indiana Prison Writers Workshop, and PACE Indy, who will help further explore issues in today’s criminal justice system.
  • fonsecatheatre.org

Indy Men’s Chorus: Queen Day

queenday
Indy Men’s Chorus presents an encore of “Queen Day”

(Ed. note: One of my favorite shows at the IndyFringe Festival. Highly recommended.)

This is an encore run back by popular demand. The show blends the hard edge of rock and roll and punk with the drama of musical theater and features the music of Queen and Green Day. The show received rave reviews across sold-out performances during IndyFringe this past summer.

  • Jan. 25-27, Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m.; Sunday at 6 p.m. Plus, an additional 9:30 p.m. performance on Saturday is a Sun King Brewery sing-along show with free beer for ticket buyers.
  • $25; seniors and students $20
  • IndyFringe Basile Theatre
  • http://www.indyfringe.org/theatre-show/queen-day-0

Buck Creek Players: After the Fair

afterthefair
Lori Ecker and Tara Sorg in Buck Creek Players’ “After the Fair.” Photo by photogary.net.

The show is an Indianapolis premiere. What happens when a married Victorian British woman writes letters for her illiterate maid and falls in love with the man to whom she is writing? A romantic, literate musicalization of Thomas Hardy’s short story On the Western Circuit, this award-winning four-character musical has played Off-Broadway, London, and various cities throughout the USA. 

  • Jan. 25-Feb. 10, Fridays-Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at with 2:30 p.m.
  • $20; $18 for children, students, and senior citizens
  • www.buckcreekplayers.com

Actors Theatre of Indiana: Ruthless: The Musical

Ruthless is based on the 1956 thriller The Bad Seed. It is an aggressively outrageous musical hit that garnered rave reviews during its long Off-Broadway run. Eight-year-old Tina Denmark knows she was born to play Pippi Longstocking and she will do anything to win the part in her school play. Anything includes murdering the leading lady! This spoof has enough plot twists and multiple identities to fill several old movies … the fun comes from the sheer brazenness!

  • Jan. 25-Feb. 17, Wednesdays-Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m.
  • $20-$45; all tickets $25 on Wednesdays
  • The Studio Theater at the Carmel Performing Arts Center
  • www.ATIStage.org

Indiana Repertory Theatre: The Diary of Anne Frank

annfrank
The IRT’s “The Diary of Anne Frank”

This stage play is by Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett and adapted by Wendy Kesselman. In a world turned upside down by the Holocaust, Anne Frank held on to her faith in humanity. This story of resilience, optimism, and a young girl’s extraordinary spirit that transcends time and offers hope to today’s world.

  • Jan. 25-Feb. 24, times and dates vary
  • Tickets start at $25
  • Many programs will be presented in conjunction with the show. One notable event is the Community Night honoring The Diary of Anne Frank and International Holocaust Remembrance Day. Special Community Night programming will take place around the Jan. 27, 6 p.m. performance and feature special pricing. There will be a post-show candle lighting ceremony that will feature representatives from a variety of marginalized Indianapolis communities, as well as readings from Anne Frank’s writing. IRT’s Community Night encourages patrons to pay what they choose to enjoy a night of top-quality and thought-provoking live theater. Community Night suggested ticket pricing starts at $10. Patrons who wish to purchase tickets for Community Night can do so by calling the Ticket Office at 317-635-5252.
  • www.irtlive.com

Broadway in Indianapolis: School of Rock

school
“School of Rock”

School of Rock is a New York Times Critics’ Pick. Based on the hit film, this hilarious new musical follows Dewey Finn, a wannabe rock star posing as a substitute teacher who turns a class of straight-A students into a guitar-shredding, bass-slapping, mind-blowing rock band. This high-octane smash features 14 new songs from Andrew Lloyd Webber, all the original songs from the movie, and musical theater’s first-ever kids rock band playing their instruments live on stage. 

Phoenix Theatre: Apples in Winter 

The show has been extended through Feb. 3.

Posted in Indianapolis theater: reviews

Buck Creek Players: “37 Postcards”

Posted on by LRGM

37postcards
Buck Creek Players’ “37 Postcards.” Photo credit: photogary.net

You really can’t beat a gnome-like grandma with Tourette’s. I say this so that you won’t skip over this show and wave it off as just another family comedy. Gnome. Grandma. Tourette’s.

Thirty-seven postcards over eight years are only about four a year. When your only son is wandering Europe listlessly, that small amount of communication could wreak havoc on a mother. Especially one that’s already a little … off.

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Dave Hoffman in Buck Creek Players’ “37 Postcards.” Photo credit: photogary.net

This makes it especially awkward when Avery (Dave Hoffman) brings his fiancée Gillian (Letitia Clemons) home to meet his family. His mother Evelyn (Marie McNelis) is aflutter with her anticipation. Avery had prepped Gillian on his “eccentric” family, but neither of them was ready for the incredulity that awaited them, beginning with a house that is sinking, a full-sized moose, his mother’s perpetual confusion,” and Aunt Ester’s (Tracy Brunner) geriatric phone sex “cottage industry.”

Hoffman’s progressively shocked expressions and reactions are priceless. You can almost hear, “Oh. My. God,” from his eyes alone. McNelis as his spacy mother is a convincing resident of the ether, a foil for Brunner’s unshakable ability to just roll with the bizarre, maintaining a matter-of-fact attitude and a straight face no matter what is happening around her.

And oh, there is bizarre.

That would be Avery’s grandmother, who has been living in “a little room off the kitchen” while Evelyn thought she was dead and even (she thought) attended her funeral. Wendy Brown is hysterical as the almost feral Nana, who has devolved into a stooped old woman in red feather slippers and a stunted vocabulary — much of which consists of curse words that she hurdles at Gillian.

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Wendy Brown in Buck Creek Players’ “37 Postcards.” Photo credit: photogary.net

Clemons as Gillian bravely tries to keep it together in the face of this amusement park fun house, including being chastised as the maid due to Evelyn’s Dory-like memory. Gillian even acquiesces to Avery’s dad, Stanford (Mike Harold), taking her out for midnight putting with glow-in-the-dark balls. But Gillian inevitably reaches a (deserved — or, given the outcome, maybe not) breaking point.

Of the strange household, Stanford’s eccentricity is the most normal. Harold is congenial and upbeat, probably the most innocuous of the family.

The story and its production, directed by Jan Jamison (who also designed the slightly tilted set), is lots of fun and well-done. Take the drive way out on Southeastern for this one.

  • Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 5-6 at 8 p.m. and Sunday, Oct. 7 at 2:30 p.m.
  • $18 adults; $16 children, students, and senior citizens (62+)
  • http://www.buckcreekplayers.com

 

Posted in Indianapolis theater: previews

Openings for the weekend of 8/3

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Phoenix Theatre: Cry It Out 

cryitout
Phoenix Theatre’s “Cry It Out”

Motherhood is terrifying. Through a burgeoning friendship in a Long Island suburb, two women seek to redefine their lives as “mother” with poignant moments of doubt sprinkled in the mix. This heartwarming story explores the times of quiet between the general chaos of raising a child that reveal the sheer comedy of motherhood balanced with the unrelenting truth of a life forever changed. 

  • Aug. 2-26, Thursdays-Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 2:30 p.m.
  • Before the official opening night, a single Thursday preview ticket is $25; regular ticket prices are $33-$37
  • http://www.phoenixtheatre.org/

Indianapolis Shakespeare Company: Coriolanus

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Ren Jackson as Titus Martius (aka Coriolanus) in the Indianapolis Shakespeare Company’s production

Coriolanus is an intriguing political thriller for times past, present, and future. Set in Ancient Rome and written in the early 1600s, the play has readily reflected the contemporary political climate of each of its professional productions. And it will do so once again for Indianapolis audiences. Shakespeare’s unerring instinct to tap into what matters to us, what we value, and what we are willing to fight for shines brightly in Coriolanus. But Shakespeare does not take sides — he asks us to decide which causes call our name and who and what we want our leaders to be.

Pack a picnic or enjoy food and drinks for sale in the park. Come early for the pre-show band Dog Mamas!, food trucks, Sun King, and Vino Winemobile beginning at 6 p.m. Bring a blanket or chairs for the show. The best parking is at the zoo ($15 nonmembers). Once you are parked at the zoo, look for the Shakespeare signs between the Butterfly Building and the zoo. Walk up through these building (also handicapped accessible) and you will arrive at the free shuttle stop. Take the shuttle or walk across the Washington Street pedestrian bridge and you will arrive at White River State Park.

Buck Creek Players: The Rainmaker

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Steve Jerk and Jenni White in Buck Creek Players’ “The Rainmaker.” Photo by Gary Nelson, http://www.photoGary.net.

During a time of a paralyzing drought in the West, we discover a girl whose father and two brothers are worried as much about her potential future as an old maid as they are about their dying cattle. The brothers try every possible scheme to marry her off, without success. Nor is there any sign of relief from the dry heat, but suddenly, from out of nowhere, appears a sweet-talking man with quite the sales pitch. Claiming to be a “rainmaker,” the man promises to bring rain for $100. Meanwhile, the rainmaker also turns his magic on the girl and persuades her that she has a very real beauty of her own. She believes it, just as her father believes the fellow can actually bring rain. Rain does come … and so does love.

Brent Marty & Claire Wilcher:

In Character!

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Brent Marty and Claire Wilcher

Have you ever wondered what it takes to create a cabaret? Local artists will be answering that question (and more) in the all-new Cabaret Incubator Series, starting with Indy’s own Brent Marty and Claire Wilcher. These local divas are bringing their big voices and even bigger personalities to The Cabaret. They’ve joined forces to serve up hot, local vocal delicacies with personal favorites, retro hits, and their favorite pastime — matching wits! Learn more about their creative process in a post-show Q&A!

Fat Turtle Theatre Company: Godspell

Godspell was the first major musical theater offering from three-time Grammy and Academy Award winner Stephen Schwartz (Wicked, Pippin, Children of Eden), and it took the world by storm, led by the international hit “Day by Day.” A small group of people help Jesus Christ tell different parables by using a wide variety of games, storytelling techniques, and a hefty dose of comic timing. An eclectic blend of songs, ranging in style from pop to vaudeville, is employed as the story of Jesus’ life dances across the stage. Dissolving hauntingly into the Last Supper and the Crucifixion, Jesus’ messages of kindness, tolerance and love come vibrantly to life.

  • Aug. 4 at 7:30 p.m.; Aug. 5. at 2:30 p.m.; Aug. 9 at 7:30 p.m.; Aug. 10 at 7:30 p.m.; Aug. 11 at 7:30 p.m.; Aug. 12 at 2:30 p.m.
  • $15 ($20 at the door); senior/student/military pre-sale $12 ($15 at the door)
  • Theater at the Fort
  • https://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/3443516

Intern Theatre: A Night of One Acts

The Cat’s interns Tristan Zavaleta, Blake Miller, Emma Rund, and Audrey Larkin present their own night of one acts. 

Check, Please by Jonathan Rand: Dating can be hard. Especially when your date happens to be a raging kleptomaniac, or your grandmother’s bridge partner, or a mime. Check, Please follows a series of blind dinner dates that couldn’t get any worse — until they do. Could there possibly be a light at the end of the tunnel?

Personal Library by Emma Rund: Have you ever wanted to live inside a book? Megan does. In fact, she never leaves her house, living vicariously through books and speaking only to her best friend, Claire. When her concerned ex-boyfriend shows up at the door, he unearths a trauma that will force Megan to navigate that frightening place between reality and fantasy. 

Posted in Indianapolis theater: previews

Openings for the weekend of 5/30

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The Indianapolis Shakespeare Company: Macbeth

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Indianapolis Shakespeare Company’s “Macbeth.” Photo by Zach Rosing.

Indianapolis Shakespeare Company presents the Traveling Troupe, the new community outreach arm of Indy Shakes that is an extension of the professional company. It will present a one-hour performance of Shakespeare’s Macbeth in multiple venues throughout the month of June 2018. Thanks to the support of the Indianapolis Parks Foundation and Indy Parks, Indy Shakes is excited to provide programming within Indy Parks to bring free, high-quality Shakespeare productions to several parks across the city. Please bring your own lawn chairs or blankets for the outdoor performances. Go to www.indyshakes.com for more info.

  • June 1, 6:30 p.m. Garfield Arts Center
  • June 5, 7:00 p.m. Perry Park
  • June 6, 11-noon at Central Library
  • June 11, 1:00 p.m. Brookside Park
  • June 12, 6:30 p.m. Martin Luther King
  • June 14, 2:00 p.m. Tarkington Park
  • June 15, 7:00 p.m. Broad Ripple
  • June 16, 1:00 p.m. Garfield Arts Center
  • June 19, 6:30 p.m. Eagle Creek
  • June 21, TBD Watkins Park
  • June 21, 7:00 p.m. Holliday Park
  • June 30, 11:00 AM Martin Luther King Park
  • June 30, 1:00 p.m. Frederick Douglass
  • June 30, 3:00 p.m. Tarkington Park

Nathan Wilusz left and Addison R. Koehler in Pasek & Paul's DOGFIGHT Photo by Gary Nelson, www.photoGary.net
Nathan Wilusz and Addison R. Koehler in Buck Creek Players’ “Dogfight.” Photo by Gary Nelson, http://www.photoGary.net.

Buck Creek Players: Dogfight

The hauntingly beautiful musical Dogfight takes audiences on a romantic and heartbreaking theatrical journey. It’s November 21, 1963. On the eve of their deployment to a small but growing conflict in Southeast Asia, three young Marines set out for one final boys’ night of debauchery, partying, and maybe a little trouble. But, when Corporal Eddie Birdlace meets Rose, an awkward and idealistic waitress whom he enlists to win a cruel bet with his fellow recruits, she rewrites the rules of the game and teaches him the power of love and compassion. From the Oscar-winning lyricists of the film La La Land, composers of the film The Greatest Showman, and the creators of Broadway’s current Tony Award-winning best musical, Dear Evan Hansen, comes the 2012 Off-Broadway musical based on the 1991 film starring River Phoenix and Lili Taylor.

  • June 1-17, Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 2:30 p.m.
  • $20 adults; $18 children, students, senior citizens (62+)
  • Note that this show is rated R
  • www.buckcreekplayers.com

And Dogfight again, this time from Eclipse, Emerging Artists Program of Summer Stock Stage

Actors Theatre of Indiana: Million Dollar Quartet

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Actors Theatre of Indiana: “Million Dollar Quartet”

This Tony Award-winning musical takes place on Dec. 4, 1956, when an extraordinary twist of fate brought Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, and Elvis Presley together at Sun Records in Memphis for what would be one of the greatest jam sessions ever.

  • June 1-17, Wednesdays-Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m.
  • Carmel Center for the Performing Arts
  • $25+
  • http://atistage.org

Sip-N-Song benefiting Actors Theatre of Indiana

Join Actors Theatre of Indiana and the Million Dollar Quartet for an evening of wine and music. June 5, 2018 6-9 pm at Peace Water Winery in Carmel. Appetizers provided by Donatello’s. $25 Donation to enjoy an evening of fun and fabulous music.

Beef & Boards: Annie

Claire Kauffman as Annie 2018
Claire Kauffman as “Annie” at Beef & Boards

Little orphan Annie charms everyone’s hearts despite a next-to-nothing start in 1930s New York City. Songs include “Tomorrow,” “Hard Knock Life,” and “Maybe.” Rated G, but children under age 3 cannot be admitted to this show.

  • May 31-July 15; dates and times vary. Check the website for a full schedule.
  • $44-$66. Discount of $10 off per ticket available to children ages 3-15.
  • www.beefandboards.com

Longshot Theater: 24-Hour Playhouse

This is the second edition of the show in which several 10-minute plays are written, rehearsed, and then performed for you all within 24 hours. Some of Indianapolis’ best talents push themselves to new heights.

​​​​If you would like to write, act, or direct, e-mail Bob at 24hrplayhouse@gmail.com. Actors: Take a picture of yourself in a costume of your choosing with a prop of your choosing. Those pictures will be given to the writers for inspiration.

  • June 2; actors rehearsal from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Show at 8 p.m.
  • Wheeler Community Arts Center
  • $5 online; $7 door
  • www.longshottheater.com

Civic Theatre’s Education Fundraiser

Show your support for Civic Theatre’s Education Programs. Celebrate theater education and have a “peachy” time! Song, dance, food, fun, and themed cocktails!

Posted in Indianapolis theater: reviews

“The Matchmaker” at Buck Creek Players

Posted on by LRGM

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Brigette McCleary Short and Gloria Bray in Buck Creek Players’ “The Matchmaker.” Photo by photoGary.net.

The best part of Buck Creek Players’ The Matchmaker is Gloria Bray. As Dolly Gallagher Levi, Bray can spit out dialogue at a breakneck speed like a caffeinated puppy with ADD on fast-forward.

Bray makes Dolly demand your attention whether she is central to the scene or not—Dolly will find a way to make it about her. She’s not one to stand by idly while other people talk—unless she is eavesdropping. And while Dolly cloaks her matchmaking duties in beneficence, each maneuver is part of a strategic plan to land her the rich merchant Horace Vandegelder (C. Leroy Delph).

Bray keeps Dolly smart and sly without comprising her character’s reflection of the times, the 1880s. In that era, intelligence wasn’t a characteristic many men were interested in for a wife. So Dolly manipulates Vandegelder into thinking her ideas were actually his ideas. She knows what kind of lifestyle she wants, and she immediately pivots when necessary to make it happen.

Dolly is a complex meddler, and it’s no wonder she was given her own musical, Hello, Dolly!

Bray’s closest contender is the taking-no-shit whip-cracker Brigette McCleary Short as Irene Molloy, with her impertinent, unapologetic ways when it comes to men. Molloy takes what she wants, the best demonstration of which is McCleary Short roaring a declaration with a finger almost shoved up the other person’s nose. I wouldn’t have been surprised if Molloy had declared,” Fuck off!” at that moment. Of course, Molloy was drunk at the time, but I think McCleary Short would have allowed it sober.

  • Through April 8, Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 2:30 p.m.
  • $18 for adults; $16 for children, students (through college), and senior citizens (aged 62 or older)
  • http://www.buckcreekplayers.com
Posted in Indianapolis theater: reviews

Buck Creek Players: “The Rink” (4 stars)

Posted on by LRGM

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Buck Creek Players: “The Rink”

The Rink has an impressive by-line. Terrence McNally (Love! Valour! Compassion!, Master Class, Kiss of the Spider Woman, etc.) wrote the book, and the duo best known as Kander and Ebb (Cabaret, Chicago, Kiss of the Spider Woman, etc.) created its music and lyrics. Despite its impressive pedigree, the show doesn’t boast the kind of songs that so many of the other musicals associated with these names often do. However, it is a sweet story about family and home.

Set in a dilapidated skating rink in the 1980s, Anna (Georgeanna Teipen) is on her way out the door and headed to Florida for retirement after selling the rink. The wrecking crew is onsite and ready to go. At this eleventh hour, her estranged daughter Angel (Miranda Nehrig) shows up and goes ballistic when she finds out the rink is being demolished. Verbal warfare and threats of lawyers bounce between the two like a Super Pinky ball.

Teipen has a voice made for a Kander and Ebb production. Her single-note stamina is impressive, and her Jersey accent is catching. Nehrig also has a powerful voice with several good numbers, but she does show some vocal strain at times. The two work well together in a mother-daughter head-to-head relationship. Some of that typical teenage hostility lingers in Angel, and Anna confronts it with a mother’s exasperation. But there is love hidden underlying that friction.

The two are backed up by a surprisingly large cast, and there’s a little drag thrown in for a laugh. In fact, for a show that sounds overly emotional plot-wise, the cast and director D. Scott Robinson make sure that there are some good guffaws to break up the mother-daughter hostility on stage. The wreckers get to do a little skating, which turns out to be really cute, but I assure you this is no Starlight Express.

The set (Aaron B. Bailey) looks authentic, and both the sound system and the live band sounded awesome. Woot!

  • Through Feb. 11, Friday-Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 2:30 p.m.
  • $20; $18 students and seniors
  • Recommended for ages 13+
  • www.buckcreekplayers.com

PS: If you want to read something short and fun, follow the Super Pinky link.

Posted in Indianapolis theater: previews

Openings for the weekend of 1/26

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Carmel Community Players: Other Desert Cities

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Carmel Community Players: “Other Desert Cities”

The play’s events occur around Christmas Eve 2004, when the family of Polly and Lyman Wyeth gather in Palm Springs, California. Their daughter Brooke Wyeth returns home after six years in New York writing magazine pieces. Polly’s sister Silda is also visiting, out of a time spent in rehab. Polly and Lyman are Republicans, while Silda is a liberal who has fallen into alcoholism. The sisters co-wrote a series of MGM comedies in the 1960s but have since become estranged, chiefly due to Silda’s resenting Polly for shifting social worldviews over time. Brooke announces and presents to her family a memoir recounting a pivotal and tragic event in the family’s history. During the course of the story, Brooke experiences bitter conflict between her yearning for independent understanding and reliance and her parents’ doting yet secretive motives towards her. During this, she also comes to terms with her family’s sorrowing frustration in dealing with her post-divorce depressive episode.

  • Preview Thursday, Jan. 25′ official opening night Friday, Jan. 26 at 7:30 p.m. Through Feb. 11, 7:30 p.m. Fridays-Saturdays; 2:30 p.m. Sundays
  •  $16; $14 seniors and students
  • carmelplayers.org

Buck Creek Players: The Rink

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Buck Creek Players: “The Rink.” Photo by photoGary.net.

The Indianapolis premiere of the musical from the composers of Chicago and Cabaret. This innovative musical is set on the ragged fringe of the New York show-biz world. Anna Antonelli’s roller rink is about to be demolished, and with it Anna’s sour memories of her husband and her painfully shy daughter Angel. The rink becomes an arena in which mother and daughter examine their personal journey through past, present, and future as real-life mother/daughter duo Georgeanna Teipen and Miranda Nehrig star in the roles originated by Chita Rivera and Liza Minnelli in the original Broadway production.

  • Jan. 26-Feb. 11, Friday-Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 2:30 p.m.
  • $20; $18 students and seniors
  • Recommended for ages 13+
  • www.buckcreekplayers.com

Indiana Repertory Theatre: Romeo and Juliet

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“Romeo and Juliet” at the Indiana Repertory Theatre

IRT presents a contemporary staging of Shakespeare’s beloved classic. This timeless and timely tale of young love struggling to survive amid old hatreds is as vibrant as ever, speaking boldly across the centuries to the divided world we live in today.

  • Jan. 27-March 4
  • Tickets $25-$60
  • Save $10 when you book tickets using promo code VERONA1. Valid through Feb. 10 on individual seats priced $35 and higher.
  • Opening night Jan. 27 at 7 p.m.: Immediately following the performance, join cast, staff, and patrons in the lobby for appetizers and a celebratory champagne toast. Afterwards, join IRT staff on stage to explore the set and connect with the artisans who bring it to life.
  • Post-Show Discussion Jan. 27-March 4: Immediately following each performance. Join IRT staff and cast for a post-show discussion that covers a variety of interesting topics including Shakespeare, history of the IRT, the production’s design elements, and more.  Post-show discussions typically last for 20 minutes.
  • Valentine’s Day: This special one-time offer includes two tickets, two beverages of your choice (each valued up to $7), and sweet treats from DeBrand Fine Chocolates  for only $60. To book this deal, contact the IRT Ticket Office at 317-635-5252 or book online using promo code RJLOVE.
  • irtlive.com

Actors Theatre of Indiana: The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee

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Actors Theatre of Indiana: “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee”

The show centers on a fictional middle school spelling bee where six quirky adolescents compete in the Bee, run by three equally quirky grown-ups. The 2005 Broadway production was nominated for six Tony Awards, winning two, including Best Book.

  • Feb. 2-18, Wednesdays at 7:30 p.m. (discounted ticket rate of $25), Thursdays-Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m.
  • $45; $39 for seniors; $20 for students
  • The Studio Theater
  • ATIstage.org

Storytelling Arts of Indiana: “That This Nation Might Live: The Civil War Letters of Captain David Beem”

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Storytelling Arts of Indiana:n D. Paul Thomas

A Sharing Hoosier History Through Stories premiere told by D. Paul Thomas The premiere of the story commissioned by Storytelling Arts of Indiana and the Indiana Historical Society ties in with the You Are There 1863: Letter Home from Gettysburg so come early and experience the exhibit before the story at 8 p.m.

Drawing from the 192 letters that Captain David Enoch Beem of the 14th Indiana Volunteer Regiment sent home to his wife, Mahala, in Spencer, Indiana, D. Paul Thomas brings Captain Beem’s story to life in a stirring, one-person performance. While giving us a stunning, first-hand account of some of the greatest battles of the Civil War, Mr. Thomas reveals both the triumphs and misfortunes of Captain Beem’s life – a life of extraordinary courage, faith and steadfast duty to one’s country.

  • Friday, Jan. 26, 8 p.m.
  • Indiana History Center
  • $15 in advance; $20 at the door
  • Reception immediately following the story with D. Paul Thomas
  • http://storytellingarts.org/

Longshot Theater: The 24-Hour Playhouse

A show in which several ten-minute plays are written, rehearsed, and then performed for you all within 24 hours. Actors submit a photo of themselves in a costume of their choosing with one prop of their choosing. Photos of the actors are randomly distributed to each writer at 8 p.m. on Friday. Each writer has 12 hours to write a ten-minute play. Actors and directors then rehearse from 8 a.m. Saturday up until show time at 8 p.m.

Posted in Indianapolis theater: previews

Openings for the weekend of 12/1

Posted on by LRGM

It’s a Wonderful Life — The Radio Play

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Buck Creek Players: “It’s a Wonderful Life — The Radio Play.” Photo by photoGary.net.

This beloved American holiday classic comes to captivating life as a live 1940s radio broadcast. With the help of an ensemble that brings a few dozen characters to the stage, the journey of idealistic George Bailey unfolds as he considers ending his life one fateful Christmas Eve.

Buck Creek Players

  • Dec. 1-17, Fridays-Saturdays at 8 p.m.; Sundays at 2:30 p.m.
  • $18; $16 students and seniors (ages 62 and up)
  • www.buckcreekplayers.com

Carmel Community Players

  • Dec. 1-17, Fridays-Saturdays at 7:30 p.m.; Sundays, Dec. 10 and 17 at 2:30 p.m.
  • $15; $12 students/seniors
  • The Cat
  • Tickets

Messages Untold: Odds of Oz

A fairy tale with a twist. The land has been cured by the one trusted to protect it. Is there no one left to save Oz from being destroyed. Maybe it’s time the legend of Oz come to an end. This is the apocalypse!

  • Dec. 1-2 at 5 and 7 p.m.; Dec. 3 at 5 p.m.
  • $12; $10 students/seniors
  • IndyFringe building
  • Tickets

Nickel Plate Players: Coming Home: A  Christmas Cabaret

A melancholy, down-on-his-luck songwriter is on his own for Christmas and unable to spend it with family. He attempts to write a spirited Christmas song in an effort to recover from a difficult year but can’t find the words, the will, the hook or the melody. Through interaction with his close friends he learns that home is where the heart is and ultimately finds the inspiration to write the song “Coming Home,” a heartfelt tribute that reveals his true feelings and desires: to be with his family during the holidays. The brand-new Christmas song, “Coming Home,” written by Barbara F. Cullen, co-founder and co-artistic director of Fleur De Lis Theatricals in Louisville, KY, will be the highlight of the evening in this touching and poignant holiday tale that includes classic Christmas songs and timeless melodies from the holiday season.

  • Dec. 1-3, Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 2:30 p.m.
  • $20; seniors and students $18; veterans: $15
  • Theatre on the Fort
  • Tickets

Defiance Comedy: The North Wing: An Original Christmas Musical

From the creators and actors who brought you the Haul & Oatz: Time Traveling Detectives series and Spaceship to Nowhere. Cutthroat advisers get their personal lives hopelessly tangled up with professional duties as they try to conduct the business of running a holiday. Meet the behind-the-scenes players who support the big guy, and do whatever it takes to make Christmas happen.

  • Dec. 1-16, Friday-Saturday at 8 p.m.
  • $15 online/$20 at door
  • 16+ up
  • IndyFringe building
  • Tickets

Carmel Community Players: Holiday Cabaret

A new holiday tradition that is a season bonus production with songs of the season by local singers, dancers, and other acts to put you in the holiday mood.

  • Dec. 1-3, Friday-Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 2:30 p.m.
  • $10
  • Carmel Community Playhouse
  • www.carmelplayers.org

Storytelling Arts of Indiana: “Come Go Home with Me” told by Sheila Kay Adams

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Storytelling Arts of Indiana: Sheila Kay Adams

Sheila is a seventh-generation ballad singer, storyteller, and claw hammer banjo player from the mountains of North Carolina. Storyteller Lou Ann Homan will kick-off the evening with one of her signature stories. Lou Ann travels the state for Arts for Learning and is an adjunct professor at Trine University.

 

  • Saturday, Dec. 2, 7-9 p.m. Come as early as 6:30 p.m.to enjoy the cash bar and the Festival of Trees (80 decorated trees) before the start of the show.
  • $20/advance, $25/door; $15 with high school or college ID.
  •  www.storytellingarts.org

Posted in Indianapolis theater: reviews

“Nuts” at Buck Creek Players (4 stars)

Posted on by LRGM

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“Nuts” at Buck Creek Players. Photo by photoGary.net.

In 1979, mental health care wasn’t what it is now (heck, it still isn’t that great in a lot of ways). Women especially were still subjected to condescending attitudes regarding the “weaker” sex.

Playwright Tom Torpor, a journalist, based his play on a story he wrote in the 1970s. High-class prostitute Claudia Faith Draper (Jenni White) has been arrested for first-degree manslaughter for killing a client in self-defense. She was transferred to Bellevue Hospital in New York City, and her mother, Rose Kirk (Miki Mathioudakis), and step-father, Arthur Kirk (Tim Latimer), want her to be declared incompetent to stand trial in the hopes that she would be institutionalized. Claudia, however, wants to stand trial, knowing that if found guilty, prison would be far preferable to the years and treatment she would suffer in the hospital.

The play is set in the courtroom in the psychiatric wing of the hospital. Claudia is represented by Aaron Levinsky (Michael Swinford) while “the people” are represented by Franklin MacMillan (Dave Hoffman), with Judge Murdoch (Ed Mobley) presiding over the court. Only one of the two psychiatrists who examined Claudia appears before the court. Dr. Roesnthal (Graham Brinklow) uses “symptoms” from Claudia’s past—a list that contains typical actions of any teenager—and adds them to her current aggressive personality to declare her a paranoid schizophrenic—after spending fifteen minutes with her. However, Claudia is far from mentally ill. She is a smart, strong woman who knows what she wants; and her past has some damned good reasons for her teenage actions.

Saturday night there was still some stumbling over lines, but overall the cast effectively captures the gravitas of the underlying issues behind the play: preconceived notions, societal expectations, treatment of the mentally ill in general, and the lingering effects of incest. Swinford as Levinsky mercilessly cuts into the prosecution’s witnesses, whittling down Hoffman’s MacMillan, and Roesnthal is made to look like the ass he is.

White only gets one good explosive speech, but all the character’s rage and exasperation come through. But the highlight of the show is Latimer as Claudia’s step-dad. Latimer wraps himself in his messed-up character’s personality like a Snuggie. Every movement, every line delivered is 100 percent convincing. Every word from his mouth is carelessly and obliviously offensive, and Latimer pulls it off start to finish.

Director Tim Spradlin and everyone at Buck Creek get mad kudos for taking on such a challenging work.

  • Sept. 29-Oct. 8, Fridays-Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2:30 p.m.
  • $18; $16 for senior citizens (aged 62 or older)
  • www.buckcreekplayers.com, 317-862-2270
Posted in Indianapolis theater: previews

Openings for the weekend of 9/29

Posted on by LRGM

Nuts at Buck Creek Players

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“Nuts” at Buck Creek Players. Photo by photoGary.net.

Nuts has been called the best courtroom melodrama since Witness for the Prosecution and The Caine Mutiny Court Martial, and it inspired the 1987 film starring Barbra Streisand and Richard Dreyfus. Set in a courtroom in New York’s Bellevue Hospital, the story follows the journey of a high-priced call girl incarcerated on a charge for killing a violent “john.”  The state says Claudia Faith Draper is unfit to stand trial. As testimony from experts, physicians, and her parents unfolds, can she prove to the judge that she isn’t “nuts” and stand legally sane at trial for manslaughter?

  • Sept. 29-Oct. 8, Fridays-Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2:30 p.m.
  • $18; $16 for senior citizens (aged 62 or older)
  • www.buckcreekplayers.com, 317-862-2270

Storytelling Arts of Indiana: Don White

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Don White

Storyteller and folksinger

  • Sept. 29, Don will perform at Sakana, 5252 E 82nd St, Ste 102, Indy 46250. This concert will benefit WITT-FM (91.9). $20 with limited seating.
  • Sept. 30 is a benefit “Tools for School,” a program that provides school supplies for low-income families in Hamilton County. This past July, Tools for School served over 2,200 children with everything from school supplies and backpacks, to new shoes, socks, underwear, and new or gently worn jackets. This show will be held at the Ritz Charles in Carmel. Tickets are $30.

The Shape of Things at Khaos Company Theatre

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“Infinity” at Khaos Theatre Company

Neil LaBute’s 2001 play focuses on the nature of stoicism, art, psychopathy, intimacy, explorations of love, and people’s willingness to do things for love. It is set in a small university town in the American Midwest and centers on the lives of four young students who become emotionally and romantically involved with each other.

Storefront Theatre: Infinity at IndyFringe

How does a new theory of time change everything we know about ourselves? Three brilliant minds — a musician, a mathematician, and a theoretical physicist — smash together like colliding particles in an accelerator. Together they learn that love and time are connected in ways they couldn’t have imagined. Infinity is a shocking, funny, and revelatory play about love, sex, and math by Canadian playwright Hannah Moscovitch with original violin composition by Njo Kong Kie.

Lafferty’s Wake at Westfield Playhouse

The darlin’ wild rover, Charlie Lafferty, is being waked in grand style in his home away from home, the local pub. The audience joins Charlie’s widow, his sweet daughter, bumbling son-in-law, the parish priest, and the savvy innkeeper as they celebrate the life and times of ramblin’, gamblin’ Lafferty. Two hours of sheer fun replete with jokes, jigs, games, stories, and songs including such old favorites as “Molly Malone,” “Whiskey in the Jar,” and “When Irish Eyes Are Smiling.”

  • Sept. 29-Oct. 15, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 and Sundays at 2:30 p.m.
  • $15; $13 seniors and students; free for active military and vets with ID
  • 317-402-3341 or www.westfieldplayhouse.org
Posted in Indianapolis theater: previews

Openings for the weekend of 9/8

Posted on by LRGM

Celebrate James Still’s 20th Season as Playwright-in-Residence at the Indiana Repertory Theatre

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James Still, playwright-in-residence at the IRT

A yearlong celebration of his work at the IRT. This evening will feature readings from Looking Over the President’s Shoulder and Appoggiatura, tours of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time set, drinks, hors d’oeuvres, and much more!

  • James Still Celebration Kickoff
  • September 12, 6 p.m.
  • Free
  • Indiana Repertory Theatre
  • E-mail ticketoffice @irtlive.com to RSVP

Fringe Against Hate

A partnership with the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), Fringe brings you an opportunity to learn how to Make a World of Difference. Sunday, Sept. 10, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Free, but registration is requested.

  • No Place for Hate ® Zone – 10:00 a.m.-4:30 p.m., Indy Eleven Theatre: The small theater will host informational booths, activities for younger children, story tellers, crafts, child-friendly programming, puppets, magic, and a special visit by the FBI.
  • Responding to Bullying – 10:00 a.m., Main Theater: ADL Education Professionals will discuss definitions of bullying, its impact on individual students and school communities, and what educators and families can do to prevent its escalation. Attendees will come away from the session with tools for preventing and intervening in bullying incidents.
  • Hate Crimes 101 – 11:30 a.m., Main Theater: ADL’s Civil Rights Professionals will discuss the impact of Indiana being one of only 5 states in our country without a hate crimes law, and why it is important that Indiana enact such a law. We will explore the issue of hate crimes in America – including discussing the unique nature and impact of hate crimes, the way in which hate crime laws operate, myths and facts about the issue, and the distinction between hate crimes and bias incidents.
  • Addressing Gender Bias in the Early-Childhood and Elementary-School Years – 1:00 p.m., Main Theater: We will focus on gender bias and its impact on individuals, schools, and communities. Participants will be given tools to engage in conversations around gender bias, gender identification, and transgender issues to create environments that are welcoming to all students and colleagues.
  • Confronting Anti-Semitism: From Words to Action – 2:30 p.m., Main Theater: Allison Rosenfeld, ADL Assistant Regional Director, will focus on empowering and equipping communities with constructive and effective strategies for responding to persistent anti-Semitic stereotypes and incidents while fostering critical thinking and creative thought among participants.
  • Building an Ally – For Students and Groups of All Ages – 4:00 p.m., Main Theater: Join A World of Difference Institute facilitators, who will provide participants with an opportunity to understand and reflect on what it means to stand up and advocate for others. Participants will work together to develop the skills to confront bias and bullying in their schools and communities through a hands-on, creative activity for people of all ages.

Belles: The Reunion at Epilogue Players

This show continues the family drama of six sisters. In the sequel to Belles, the sisters are back on the phone 25 years later for another Mama-caused crisis-filled weekend. Will they ever meet in person?

Drag at IndyFringe

Presented by NoExit and IndyFringe.

  • Broadway Drag Sept. 8, 10 p.m.
  • Creatures of the Night Sept. 15, 10 p.m.
  • $8. Cash bar (beer & wine)
  • www.indyfringe.org

Nuts at Buck Creek Players ticket discount

Through Sept. 17 ONLY: Purchase any quantity of tickets to any performance of Nuts by Tom Topor (BCP) using the Buck Creek Players secure online ticketing system, and receive 25% off of each seat! No limit. Just enter the coupon code of BELLEVUE at checkout, and you will see the discount after you click on “Apply.” Cannot be combined with any other discount offer (group rates, etc.). Visit http://www.buckcreekplayers.com/what-is-playing.html to get your tickets!

Storytelling Arts of Indiana: Forest Story Night (aka Jabberwocky)

Jabberwocky is a monthly night of storytelling hosted by Storytelling Arts of Indiana and IndyFringe. September’s theme is “Lost and Found in the Forest,” presented by IFA. Hunker down for 7-15 minute stories by five forest voices. Consider sharing your own 3-5 minute “lost-and-found” forest story during the open mike portion of the evening. Event includes snacks and a cash bar.

PRESENTERS:

  • Rae Schnapp

STORY: Both deep humiliation and great pride factor in to an adventure of being locked out of his van while on a scientific field study in Morgan-Monroe State Forest in the middle of the night.

ABOUT RAE: Rae Schnaap, Ph.D., is conservation director for the Indiana Forest Alliance and is also the Wabash Riverkeeper.

  • Clarke Kahlo

STORY: What happens when a tree-hugger (Clarke) and a lumberman (his friend) travel together in an RV.

ABOUT CLARKE: Clarke Kahlo is a retired man with time on his hands for storytelling, troublemaking, and canoeing. He’s a lifelong resident of Indianapolis, a former city planner and environmental advocate for the past two decades who enjoys participating in land use/zoning battles where our natural heritage or livability is threatened by commercial over-reach. He blogs at www.heartoftheriver.wordpr ess.com.

  • Carrie Tauscher

STORY: How her childhood in the “North woods” of Wisconsin made her so passionate about exposing children to trees and forests.

ABOUT CARRIE: Carrie is a certified arborist and serves as the State Community and Urban Forestry Coordinator at the Indiana Department of Natural Resources.

  • Chuck Turner

STORY: He loses and finds humself in the forest, against all odds, over and over.

ABOUT CHUCK: Chuck Turner heads the conservation committee for the Indianapolis Hiking Club.

  • Glory-June Greiff

STORY: How the spirits of two loved ones helped her find her way in the forest.

ABOUT GLORY-JUNE: A native of the rolling moraine of northern Indiana, Glory-June Greiff is a historian, environmental and preservation activist, and woodsprite. She lives in a tiny urban forest—a certified backyard wildlife habitat—in downtown Indianapolis.

Posted in Indianapolis theater: previews

Openings (and events) for the weekend of 8/25

Posted on by LRGM

New shows opening at IndyFringe

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“The Secret of Castle Alphabet” at IndyFringe

Starting tonight, the Indianapolis Fringe Festival has even more shows in its roster.

  • Secret of Castle Alphabet: A must see for the kids in the family
  • Hedy!: Hitting Indy’s festival after a fabulous run in Ireland. “Best Actress” Galway Fringe

And under Music & Dance

  • Dudesical
  • Red Couch
  • Haul & Oatz
  • Pervy Prancing: A Dirty Dancing Improv Spectacular
  • IndyScape

TONIGHT: The Crowning of the First-Ever Miss IndyFringe!

Drag queens compete for the title in front of celebrity guest judges in categories such as Q&A, Fringe-wear, and talent. All proceeds benefit IndyFringe. Bring your dollars to tip the girls! The contestant with the most tips gets bonus points. Audience participation is encouraged!

Phoenix Theatre fundraisers

Brad Hinshaw and Friends

A stand-up comedy event! Eight of the best local comics under one roof for one night only. Mixed with the classic Phoenix style of no-holds-barred fun, this night is one not to miss. All proceeds benefit the Phoenix Theatre operations budget so they can bring us more productions just the way we love to see them.

  • Saturday, Aug 26. 8 p.m.
  • $15
  • Wheeler Arts Center, 1035 Sanders St.

Mathew Street: A Beatles Celebration

A rocking evening with the most beloved music of our time. All proceeds benefit the Phoenix Theatre’s operating fund. Appropriate for all ages.

  • Thursday, Aug. 31, 7:30 p.m.
  • $20
  • Phoenix Theatre

Tickets for both events can be bought here.

Buck Creek Players’ Ice Cream Social

Enjoy some pie, ice cream, and other desserts and get to know other members and supporters of BCP. There is no cost to attend this event, so stop by to enjoy everyone’s company and enjoy some summertime treats. Catch up with some old friends, make some new ones, or come learn more about BCP. Following the social will be a short membership meeting and kickoff of the play-reading committee for the 2018-2019 season. Not a member? Interested in possibly becoming a member? Stop by for more information and to pay your membership fee.

 

Posted in Indianapolis theater: reviews

“Bonnie & Clyde: The Musical” at Buck Creek Players (4.5 stars)

Posted on by LRGM

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“Bonnie & Clyde” at Buck Creek Players

The first glimpse you get at Bonnie & Clyde: The Musical is of the couple riddled with bullets, dead in their car. While it takes some liberties with the actual details, the gruesome point is clear: theirs was a story fated to have a solemn, bloody ending.

But from there, the show steps back to how it all ended that way. This isn’t a shoot-‘em-up story (though of course it’s in there), but a love story—romantic love and familial love, and what one will do for said love.

Annie Miller as Bonnie and Joseph D. Massingale as Clyde lead up a massive cast under the direction of D. Scott Robinson. And every actor on stage more than holds up his or her own. The talent that has been accumulated for this production is impressive.

Not only do Miller and Massingale create sympathetic characters, but the musical numbers put their exceptional vocal talents on display as well. (A side note: the show’s music is by Frank Wildhorn of Jekyll & Hyde.) But others get center stage as well: Jonathan D. Krouse as Bonnie’s love-struck friend Ted has a memorable duet with Massingale, and Miranda Nehrig as Blanche, Clyde’s sister in law, is a hoot singing about her husband going back to jail.

This is an exceptional piece of stagecraft. My only nitpicking is that the spotlights smooth out and Massingale remembers to unsnap his holster before trying to pull out his gun.

  • June 9-25, Fridays-Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m.
  • $20 ($18 for children, students, and senior citizens)
  • www.buckcreekplayers.com
Posted in Indianapolis theater: previews

Openings for the weekend of 6/9

Posted on by LRGM

Theatre on the Square: The Great Bike Race

 

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“The Great Bike Race” at Theatre on the Square

The Great Bike Race, one of the top sellers of the 2014 IndyFringe Festival, returns to Theatre on the Square in a new full-length production. The Great Bike Race tells of the disastrous running of the second annual Tour de France. In 1904, France’s greatest cyclists met and then preceded to cheat, lie, and sabotage their way through the historic race. Check out a preview here.

 

  • June 9-24, Fridays-Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 5 p.m.
  • $25 ($20 for student, senior, or military). IndyPride pricing specials for the Saturday, June 10 performance: all tickets are BOGO, as well as special $10 industry pricing for Indianapolis-area theater professionals.
  • zrpevents.vbotickets.com to purchase online or visit www.tots.org to learn more

 

Bonnie & Clyde at Buck Creek Players

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“Bonnie & Clyde” at Buck Creek Players

The new musical by Frank Wildhorn, Don Black, and Ivan Menchell. At the height of the Great Depression, Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow went from two small-town nobodies in West Texas to two of America’s favorite folk heroes, and the Texas law enforcement’s worst nightmares. Fearless, shameless, and alluring, the Tony-nominated show (from Jekyll & Hyde‘s Frank Wildhorn) is the electrifying story of love, adventure, and crime that captured the attention of an entire country.

 

  • June 9-25, Fridays-Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m.
  • $20 ($18 for children, students, and senior citizens)
  • www.buckcreekplayers.com

 

And don’t forget …

Khaos Company Theatre’s “Much Ado About Something” IndieGogo fundraiser continues through July 22. The goal is to raise $30,000 by midnight on July 22. These funds will be used to cover expansion costs, including rent, maintenance, set-design, costumes and general up-keep of the theater for the next year. The theater will accept any donation but has some incentives for those who donate more. Some prizes include KCT T-shirts, KCT mugs, tickets to KCT’s production of Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing, KCT 2017 season passes, A Cast-Talk Back after the performance of Much Ado About Nothing, and a masquerade festival. The summer masquerade festival includes local artist booths, local musicians, local food trucks, masquerade mask contest (bring your own!), face painting, silent auction, and more.
Go to https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/much-ado-about-something for the full campaign description and to donate to the cause.

Sunday, June 11 is the Tony Awards. Kevin Spacey (meh) is the host for this year’s event. Performances include the casts of Bandstand, Come From Away, Dear Evan Hansen, Falsettos, Groundhog Day: The Musical, Hello, Dolly!, Miss Saigon, War Paint, and Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812, along with additional performances by The Radio City Rockettes and Tony Award winners Cynthia Erivo and Leslie Odom Jr. (meh). The show will be broadcast live from Radio City Music Hall in New York City, on CBS from 8-11 p.m. (ET/PT time delay). You can also watch the Tony Awards online with CBS All Access. More info at cbs.com/all-access, www.tonyawards.com.

Posted in Indianapolis theater: previews

Openings for the weekend of 4/28

Posted on by LRGM

Theatre on the Square opens “MF*er with the Hat”

mfkrStruggling with addiction, love, friendship and the responsibilities of being an adult are at the center of MF*er With The Hat.

Jackie, a petty drug dealer just out of prison, is trying to stay clean. He is still in love with his childhood sweetheart, Veronica, who is addicted to cocaine and alcohol. His sponsor in AA is Ralph D., who has his own somewhat misguided and comedic interpretation of “the big book.” Ralph’s wife, Victoria, is bitter about her marriage and has the hots for Jackie. Jackie has a code of behavior that his cousin, Julio, a stand-up guy, is eager to help him enforce.

As complications around addiction and recovery ensue, we see each character’s true colors emerge in humorous and heartbreaking fashion.

  • April 28-May 13; Friday-Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 5 p.m.
  • $25/$20 for students/seniors/military.
  • Use coupon code HAT to get 25% off tickets for opening weekend
  • www.tots.org

Actors Theatre of Indiana opens “Beyond the Rainbow”

The time is April 23, 1961, when a 38-year old Judy Garland performed at Carnegie Hall in what the New York Times called “the concert of the century.” Set both on the stage of Carnegie Hall and in Garland’s mind, Beyond the Rainbow simultaneously treats its audience to the famed concert while telling the life story of one of Hollywood’s most unforgettable icons: a portrait of a child actor turned star who captivated the nation with her spectacular talent and tumultuous life. Featuring 24 of her hit songs including “The Man That Got Away,” “That’s Entertainment,” and “Get Happy” … just to name a few.

  • April 28-May 14; Wednesday-Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m.
  • $43; seniors $37; students $20 (with valid student I.D.); Wednesdays all seats are $25
  • http://atistage.org/

petrerpanBidding is open for Buck Creek Players’ Play-a-Part fundraiser: “Peter Pan”

All roles in this popular Broadway musical will be auctioned off to the highest bidder in an online silent auction. Roles begin at just $25, and there is no audition necessary! Just have the money in the bank and the availability of approximately five weeks to rehearse and perform the role of your dreams! http://www.buckcreekplayers.com.

Posted in Indianapolis theater: reviews

“M*A*S*H” at Buck Creek Players (2 stars)

Posted on by LRGM

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Kurt F. Clemenz (left) and Ryan Powell in “M*A*S*H” at Buck Creek Players. Photo by photoGary.net

For those who love the well-known TV series M*A*S*H, you may be interested to know that as well as a movie, there is also a stage version. However, the play is, according to my husband, decidedly off cannon. For this reason, he was a little disappointed. I, though, was disappointed because the show itself isn’t funny and completely lacks any of the more series subject matter surrounding the Korean War. In addition, the stereotyping of Koreans and the USSO blondes are distressing.

In a series of short skits, with a flimsy at best plot line that could have been removed, you meet characters such as Hawkeye Pierce, Duke Forrest, Col. Blake, Maj. Burns, Trapper John, Maj. “Hot Lips” Houlihan, and many more. It’s a huge cast.

Sadly, only Ryan Powell as Hawkeye has a good performance. He looks much more at ease on stage than the others do, and he pulls off the only couple of scenes that evoke real laughter. Also, the Buck Creek Players’ stage is well turned out with set design by Lea Viney.

  • March 3-April 9; 8 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, with 2:30 p.m. matinees on Sunday
  • $18 for adults and $16 for students and senior citizens
  • http://www.buckcreekplayers.com
Posted in Indianapolis theater: previews

Openings for the weekend of March 31

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Khaos Company Theatre: Alternative Fact Improv Tours

zombieKhaos Company Theatre is fighting back against the de-funding of the arts and is proud to announce the launch of Alternitive Fact Improv Tours: Walking Zombie Tours of the Indianapolis Canal. $1 of each tour will be donated to the ACLU Join your Zombie Tour Guide as you walk the Indianapolis Canal and learn the Canal’s Alternative History. Learn the Plight of the Circle City Zombie Plague during which the government of Indiana, desperate to evacuate their citizens from zombie-ridden Indianapolis, commissioned the construction of the Indianapolis Canal to allow its citizens to escape the city by boat because, as we all know, zombies can’t swim.

Indiana Repertory Theatre: “Miranda”

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Arya Daire and Jennifer Coombs in IRT’s “Miranda.” Photo by Zach Rosing

A CIA operative working in the Middle East goes through a mind-bending existential crisis. Who are her friends? Who is the enemy? And just who is Miranda? The IRT’s award-winning playwright in residence, James Still, brings a psychological riddle set in the world’s most explosive region.

Content Advisory: Recommended for patrons in 11th grade and older. “Miranda” is a psychological drama that contains strong language, references to sexuality, and offstage references to war-like situations.

  • March 28 – April 23
  • $25-$75
  • Backstage tour April 6, performance at 7:30 PM
  • IRTea Talk April 9, performance at 2 PM
  • Happy Hour April 11, performance at 6:30 PM
  • Post-show discussion April 15, performance at 1 PM
  • Cookies & Coffee April 13, performance at 2 PM
  • Post-show discussion April 22, performance at 4 PM
  • http://www.irtlive.com

 

Buck Cree Players: “M*A*S*H”

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“M*A*S*H” at Buck Creek Players

Experience the stage version of the popular book, film, and television series, “M*A*S*H,” by Tim Kelly, adapted from the book by Richard Hooker. Wedged somewhere between the popular television series and the 1970 Oscar-nominated film, the play picks up with Hawkeye and Duke, two of the best chest surgeons in South Korea, joining M*A*S*H, or the Mobile Army Surgical Hospital. When the pair’s antics are added to Trapper John and Walt Waldowski’s outrageous pranks, Colonel Blake has his hands full. They decide to wage a campaign to get a young Korean named Ho-Jon to the United States and entered in a good school. The thread of this effort helps tie together the pileup of comic adventures involving other beloved characters.

  • March 3-April 9; 8 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, with 2:30 p.m. matinees on Sunday
  • $18 for adults and $16 for students and senior citizens
  • http://www.buckcreekplayers.com

Theatre on the Square

Check out “Going … Going … Gone.” Ed has passed away after 40 years in the auction business, and those close to him face the task of selling off his last worldly possessions. How? By having the audience bid on items using fake money they receive when they enter the theater. As a long-form improv show with no script and different actors and props at every performance, “Going … Going … Gone” is never the same show twice! This year, every show will benefit a charity. The April show will benefit Camp Yes, The Center on Education and Lifelong Learning, and the Indiana Resource Center for Autism at Indiana University.

Taylor Martin’s Indy Magic Monthly 9th Anniversary Celebration presents one of the most influential magicians of all time, from Chicago, Eugene Burger. Master Burger has taught and consulted with some of the top magic acts in the world. His writings on magic teach magicians how to turn a trick into magic. And to top it off, Mr. Burger will lecture after the show. His movie, “From Divinity School to Mystery School,” has been reviewed by some of best critics in magic as a revelation. He rarely makes appearances in public shows, as he is in high demand for corporate events. Joining him will be two other great magicians from Chicago. Benjamin Barnes, one of the founders of Magic Chicago, returns with his wonderful brand of mentalism. Magic Chicago is one of the shows that inspired Taylor Martin to create IMM. Luis Carreon also returns after his performance last fall. He is one of the new generation of wizards and can be put in the same company as Francis Menotti and others.\

  • $25 for adults, $20 for under 16 and over 61, and $60 for a family ticket of up to 5 (2 children)
  • Lecture is $15 with show ticket and $20 without
  • April 4, 7 p.m. Lecture to follow at 9 p.m.
  • http://www.tots.org

Ricks-Weil Theatre Company: “Greater Tuna”

tunaThe fictitious town of Tuna (population, 24) is located somewhere in Texas about half-way between San Angelo and Hell. In Tuna, very little has changed since the 1980s, and colorful characters such as Thurston Wheelis, Didi Snavely, Bertha Bumiller, and Petey Fisk will be more than happy to tell you all about it. The play is at once an affectionate commentary on small-town Southern life and attitudes, but also a withering satire of the same.

  • Friday, March 31, 7:30 PM
  • Saturday, April 1, 7:30 PM
  • Saturday, April 8, 7:30 PM
  • Sunday, April 9, 2:30 PM
  • $10
  • Production contains some adult language and sensitive cultural themes
  • Seating is very limited; reserve tickets early by calling 317-477-8689; tickets are CASH OR CHECK ONLY.
Posted in Indianapolis theater: previews

Openings for the weekend of Feb. 17

Posted on by LRGM

Ha, look at me being all responsible and doing this early. Yay me!

theater_masks_silhouetteEver wanted to be on the inside of a theater’s workings? Buck Creek Players is having an annual Dinner and General Membership meeting Sunday, February 26. Dinner is at 6 p.m. with the meeting at 7 p.m. All current Buck Creek Players members and their families are invited. Not a member? Join up here. Donations  are appreciated to help cover the cost of the dinner. RSVP by Friday, February 24th, to reserve your place by e-mailing buckcreekplayers@yahoo.com.

And on to the openings.

Theatre on the Square: “The Money Shot”

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Enter a caption

Photography: ZACH ROSING

Poster design: LORI RAFFEL

Neil LaBute’s darkly funny look at all things Hollywood. Steve (Earl Campbell) and Karen (Sarah McGee), screen idols past their peak in desperate need of a hit, have assembled in her Hollywood hills home to discuss a sensitive professional matter with their respective partners. But before they commit their coupling to digital eternity, they want to clear it with Bev (LisaMarie Smith), Karen’s live-in girlfriend, and Missy (Lauren Hall), Steve’s much younger wife. The meeting starts nasty, turns nastier, and is consistently hilarious.

Feb. 17-March 4

$20-$25

Phoenix Theatre: “An Act of God”

In this sinfully funny new play, the Almighty and His devoted Angels answer some of the deepest existential questions to ever plague mankind. He’s returned to set the record straight…and he’s not holding back! The stage play is adapted from Javerbaum’s “The Last Testament: A Memoir By God,” which itself began as “a series of Tweets.”

Feb. 16-March 12

$20-$33

Mud Creek Players: “Rabbit Hole”

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“Rabbit Hole” at Mud Creek Players

“Rabbit Hole” is a Pulitzer Prize-winning, contemporary American drama with a huge heart and good-natured sense of humor. We meet Becca and Howie, a successful, professional couple, some months after the loss of their only child in a terrible accident. While the soul of the story reflects the struggles of a family learning to cope with their loss, it is in the subtle humor of real life that we are invited to explore what it means to be human: to love, to laugh, to lose and to keep on living. Rated PG13.

Feb. 17-March 4

$15 per person; $13 Sunday matinee

Posted in Indianapolis theater: previews

Preview for the weekend of Jan. 27, 2017

Posted on by LRGM

NUVO doesn’t have me slated for any reviewing this weekend, so instead I am passing on some openings for the weekend.

Actors Theatre of Indiana “It Shoulda Been You.” From their website:

isby_wedding_images-02-2A wild musical comedy with blushing brides, nervous grooms, overbearing moms, unexpected guests, and plenty of crazy twists and turns. In a world where nothing is what it seems, religions collide, Machiavellian plots are revealed, promises broken, secrets exposed, and hope springs from the most unlikely of places. Is it the latest conflict in the Middle East? No, it’s just the Steinberg wedding. The charming, funny and original NEW MUSICAL “It Shoulda Been You” invites you to a wedding day you’ll never forget, where anything that can go wrong does and love pops up in mysterious places. The bride is Jewish. The groom is Catholic. Her mother is a force of nature. His mother is a tempest in a cocktail shaker.
And…when the bride’s ex-boyfriend crashes the party, the perfect wedding starts to unravel faster than you can whistle “Here Comes the Bride!” Plots are hatched, pacts are made, secrets are exposed – and the sister of the bride is left to turn a tangled mess into happily ever after in this musical comedy for anyone with parents.

The show runs Friday, January 27 through Sunday, February 12. Performances are Wednesdays at 7:30pm (discounted ticket rate of $25.00), Thursdays at 7:30pm, Fridays at 7:30pm, Saturdays at 7:30pm and Sundays at 2:00pm in The Studio Theater, 4 Center Green, Carmel, IN 46032.

A Talkback series, “UNPLUGGED” (sponsored by Sun King Brewing Company) featuring the cast/artistic staff immediately follows the Sunday, February 5, 2:00pm performance, moderated by FOX 59 personality, Sherman Burdette.  Single ticket prices are $43.00 for adults, $37.00 for seniors, $20.00 for students (with valid student I.D.) and Wednesday evening performances are $25.00 for all adults. Tickets may be purchased online, atistage.org.

Buck Creek Players  “You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown.” From their press release:

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“You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown” at Buck Creek Players

“How can anything go wrong on a day like this?” asks Charlie Brown. The show answers this question and many more, as Lucy, Linus, Sally, Schroeder, Snoopy, and Woodstock  join the fun of “a day in the life of Charlie Brown.” Full of music, humor, and insight, the stage musical tackles childhood’s memorable moments that made Schulz’s Peanuts characters a part of all our lives.

Fridays and Saturdays, January 27, 28; February 3, 4, 10 & 11 at 8 p.m.

Sundays, January 29; February 5 & 12 at 2:30 p.m.

$20 for adults; $18 for children & students (through college); $18 for senior citizens (aged 62 or older); Tickets may be purchased online, www.buckcreekplayers.com.

Indiana Repertory Theatre “The Cay.” From their website:

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“The Cay” at the IRT

Amid the dangers of World War II, a privileged young white boy and a resourceful old black man are marooned on a tiny island in the Caribbean. Adapted from the award-winning children’s novel, “The Cay” tells a story of overcoming both hardship and prejudice, reminding us that friendship has no boundaries.

January 28-February 26; tickets are $25-$35; Tickets may be purchased online, www.irtlive.com.

Opening Night gala 1/28/2017 at 6 PM

Post-Show Discussions
1/28/2017 at 2 PM; 2/3/2017 at 7 PM; 2/4/2017 at 2 PM; 2/4/2017 at 6 PM; 2/10/2017 at 7 PM; 2/11/2017 at 2 PM; 2/11/2017 at 6 PM; 2/18/2017 at 2 PM; 2/18/2017 at 6 PM; 2/25/2017 at 2 PM; 2/25/2017 at 6 PM; and 2/26/2017 at 2 PM

“Calder: The Musical” at the Indyfringe Basile Theatre. From nuvo.net:

calder-the-musicalPresented by Klein and Alvarez LLC. “Calder, The Musical” celebrates the life of American artist Alexander “Sandy” Calder, the inventor of the mobile. An uplifting homage, the original musical brings Calder’s art to life and captures his essence through a whimsical theatrical experience of drama, music, dance, and visual art.

January 27-February 12, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 pm and Sundays at 2 pm. $20 adult/$15 senior/student/$12 under 12 years age. Call 317-522-8099 or go to http://www.indyfringe.org/

Continuing this weekend

“Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner” at the IRT

“How to Use a Knife” at the Phoenix Theatre. From the website:

howtouseaknifeAmidst the chaos of a New York City restaurant, Chef George is trying to turn his life around. As he struggles to stay sober, he must also contend with two spirited Guatemalan line-cooks, a pot-smoking busboy, an eerily quiet African dishwasher, and, of course, hungry patrons. But now immigration authorities are knocking at the door and it becomes apparent to George that his life isn’t the only one he holds in his hands.

Second Sundays returns THIS Sunday,  January 29!  Stay after the performance, have a beer (compliments of Sun King Brewery), and chat with “How to Use a Knife” cast members Rob Johansen and Tommy Lewey.

During the entire run of “How to Use a Knife,” Phoenix Theatre will accept donations of unopened spices at the Box Office for Second Helpings.

Continues through February 12, Thursday, 7 pm and Sunday, 2 pm, $27 and Friday and Saturday, 8 pm, $33. Tickets are available online at www.phoenixtheatre.org.

“Little Shop of Horrors” at Footlite Musicals. From the website:

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“Little Shop of Horrors” at Footlite Musicals

Welcome to Skid Row and Mushnik’s Flower shop where a meek shop clerk named Seymour Krelborn is tired of life in the gutter and dreams of fame, fortune and love. His heart is set on a secret crush with a co-worker, Audrey, who is busy chasing her self-work through the wrong men, especially a sadistic dentist. In his quest for something better, Seymour finds and cares for a strange plant that he names Audrey II. The mysterious plant has devious dreams of its own, and promises Seymour whatever his heart wants if he only ‘feeds the plant’. This hilarious, campy, dark comedy with a science fiction twist is directed by Maria Matters.

Through January 29, Friday and Saturday at 7:30 pm and Sunday at 2:30 pm. Admission is $23 for adults and $15 for youth (17 and younger). Tickets are available online at https://footlitemusicals.wildapricot.org/.

 

Posted in Indianapolis theater: reviews

“Every Christmas Story Ever Told” at Buck Creek Players (5 stars)

Posted on by LRGM

Photo by photogary.net
Photo by photogary.net

In summary: The cast and crew have created a holiday show that is actually entertaining instead of just another tradition. This one deserves all the money.

Buck Creek Players’ production of Every Christmas Story Ever Told is what other holiday sendups only wish they were: genuinely, uproariously funny. Director D. Scott Robinson and the trio of actors, Jessica Bartley, Stacia Ann Hulen, and Steven R. Linville, get the credit for the show’s out-of-control hilarity. I laughed so hard I snorted, and I literally almost fell out of my chair when demon-Frosty boomed, “I’ll be back again someday!” And really, who can resist a shiny green codpiece on the Nutcracker? (Two weeks running, I’ve gotten to use “codpiece” in a review.)

The premise of the show is built around Steven’s insistence that A Christmas Carol is the most appropriate holiday offering, but Jessica and Stacia just as adamantly disagree, saying that other BHCs (Beloved Holiday Classics) are as deserving. And so they bust away from Carol and into the “drug-induced orgy of theft” that is How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Other memorable programs are also given the abbreviated treatment, but due to copyright issues, one claymation classic is revamped, with Gustave the Green-Nosed Goat and his oral hygiene elf heading to an island with freakish playthings, such as a Pee-wee Herman pull toy.

The show is such a success because of the genuine energy and abandonment that the cast exudes. They aren’t just playing parts—they are interacting, having a good time, and even cracking each other up. Which segues into the warning that some audience members will be conscripted onto the stage, and the show is rated PG-13.

Cathy Cutshall’s costume design adds those ingenious touches that take the joke further, and Aaron B. Bailey’s set design is a book-lover’s dream. The cast and crew have created a holiday show that is actually entertaining instead of just another tradition. This one deserves all the money. Pack the house. And if the hints during the show aren’t enough to remind you, buy the cookies in the lobby.

5stars

December 2, 3, 9, 10, 16 & 17 at 8 p.m.
December 4, 11 & 18 at 2:30 p.m.

$18 adults
$16 children & students
$16 senior citizens (62 & up)

 

 

Posted in Indianapolis theater: reviews

“Dirty Blonde” at Buck Creek Payers

Posted on by LRGM

2 stars

 

Photo by photogary.net
Photo by photogary.net

Dirty Blonde by Claudia Shear, now on stage at Buck Creek Players under the direction of Lea Viney, loosely sketches out Mae West’s career arc (1930s through her death in the ’80s) intertwined with the present-day (fictional) story of Jo and Charlie who form a relationship based on their mutual obsession over the actress. While not strictly a musical, it does feature a handful of West’s songs.

Sonja Distefano plays both West and Jo. However, Distefano does not capture the sex appeal, confidence, and propriety-snubbing aura that dripped off West, and her musical numbers feel stiff, as does her posture. She is much better in the role of Jo, giving a sweet, likable persona to a girl who tentatively forges a friendship with the equally awkward Charlie.

Jay Hemphill (as Charlie and many other characters) is the star here. He executes dexterous transformations from character to character, each with a unique look and defining personality. From bowler hat to ball gown, this dynamo convincingly carries off anything.

Michael Patrick Smiley is hit-and-miss in his portrayal of a number of characters. His performances of caricatures (as opposed to more realistic people) are actually his best scenes.

The show’s pacing is bogged down by lengthy scene changes, often-inaudible dialogue, and unnecessary movement. However, Hemphill’s performance and Distefano and Smiley’s shining moments help break up the tedium.

Posted in Indianapolis theater: reviews

“Assassins” at Buck Creek Players

Posted on by LRGM

3.5 stars

While the premise of Stephen Sondheim’s musical Assassins may sound bleak—the stories of nine presidential assassins, four of whom were successful—it is actually fascinating and, surprisingly, funny. “Funny” may not seem plausible given the subjects, but when Sara Jane Moore and Lynette “Squeaky” Fromme get high and use Colonel Sanders’s picture on a bucket of KFC as a “graven image” to curse their fathers with “the evil eye”…well, that’s priceless.

Scott Robinson directs the actors at Buck Creek Players in their depictions of desperate characters’ personalities and decade-defining markers, including authentic replicas of the original guns (created by David Schlatter), clothing style (Linda Rowand), and music (under the baton of Matthew Konrad Tippel).

The timeline spans Lincoln to Reagan, though not in that order, and the assassins defy time by interacting with each other. The lineup can get confusing, so a quick summary here may help audiences follow along.

  • Mark Meyer as John Wilkes Booth, 1865: assassin of Abraham Lincoln
  • David Wood as Charles Guiteau, 1881: assassin of James Garfield
  • Jake McDuffee as Leon Czolgosz, 1901: assassin of William McKinley
  • Scott Fleshood as Giuseppe Zangara, 1933: attempted assassin Franklin Roosevelt
  • Luke McConnell (uncredited) as Lee Harvey Oswald, 1963: assassin of John F. Kennedy
  • Daniel Draves as Samuel Byck, 1974: attempted assassin of Richard Nixon (by planning to fly a 747 into the White House)
  • Stacia Hulen as Lynette “Squeaky” Fromme and Cathy Tolzmann as Sara Jane Moore, 1975: attempted assassins of Gerald Ford
  • Trenton Baker as John Hinckley, 1981: attempted assassin of Ronald Reagan

The show also includes two fictional characters: The Proprietor (a gun salesman, portrayed by Steven R. Linville, who has a chillingly creepy grin) and The Balladeer (McConnell, who has a beautiful voice, as a narrator). In addition, the stage is fleshed out by a handful of bystanders and a few auxiliary characters.

Each assassin actor embodies someone with an excessive personality based on actual accounts, whether flamboyant (such as Fromme, Tolzmann, Draves, and Wood) or deeply angry/pained (such as Wood, McDuffee, and Fleshood). Everyone is up to the challenging task (Zangara even has lines in Italian), which makes these characters so real. While their entire background can’t be conveyed in 90 minutes, the show inspires some homework—a mark of a production that entertains while making you think.

Posted in Indianapolis theater: reviews

Buck Creek Players: “Side Show” and Civic Theatre: “1776”

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Side Show

Side Show, now having its Indianapolis premiere at Buck Creek Players, is a piece of musical theater at its best: It entertains, while allowing the audience a chance to feel, reflect, laugh. It is based on the real-life story of conjoined twins Daisy and Violet Hilton, who grew up as part of a circus sideshow.

Their break came when Buddy Foster and Terry Conner brought them to vaudeville, which led to a career in Hollywood. Director D. Scott Robinson (1998 Butler grad and two-time Encore Award winner for best director of BCP”s Nunsense and Lizzie Borden, and seen onstage recently as the yee-hawin” Miss Texas in Theatre on the Square’s Pageant) summed it up best in his director”s notes: “It”s about the “freak” in all of us. It”s about the struggle we all have looking into the mirror and loving what we see.” And Buck Creek pulls off this Broadway cult favorite marvelously.

Outside the theater, a carnival barker and the tooting of a calliope greet you. Pre-show at 7:30 is a magic performance. But then the real magic begins with the first number. An ensemble of sideshow performers, bathed in an eerie half light, sing “Come Look at the Freaks.” You are introduced to Daisy and Violet’s world (and treated to superlative eye-candy in the costumes thanks to costume coordinator Susan Freeman and rentals from Stephen R. Hollenbeck Designs).

When we first see the twins, they are sitting on opposite sides of the bleachers, which I though a bit odd. But they soon become “joined at the hip,” and slowly you begin to get insights into what their lives must be like. Daisy and Violet have distinct and differing personalities: Daisy is much more outgoing, and Violet”s only wish is for a husband and home. Sometimes their differences can cause problems. Love becomes one of those problems.

I fell in love with Amanda Lawson’s voice when she played Lucy in TOTS’ Jekyll & Hyde last year, and she was just as good as Violet – if not better – here. I had never heard Robyne Ault (Daisy) before, and was floored at her power and control. The two meshed well, both as the twins (even if a bit awkward moving about sometimes) and as a musical duet.

Tim Payne as The Boss (the man who took in the girls and made them a sideshow act) didn’t hit the range the music called for at times, but provided a good overall performance. Dante J.L. Murray as Jake, AKA The Cannibal King, has a remarkable voice, which was best heard in a moving “You Should be Loved.” Rob Leffler as Buddy and Jerry Hacker as Terry carried their sung dialog naturally, without ever being stiff or going over the top – unless it was on purpose, like in the goofy “One Plus One Equals Three” with Violet, Daisy and Buddy.

Ensemble numbers were strong, fleshing out the big Broadway feel. This really is a stunning show. Brave the road construction down I-74, and when you get there, check out the exhibit in the lobby featuring photos of incarnations of the show and the real Hilton sisters.

Side Show continues through Sept. 29. Buck Creek Players is located at 11150 Southeastern Ave.; call 862-2270 for tickets, $12.

1776

Suppose Thomas Jefferson couldn”t muster up enough creative juice to write the all-important Declaration of Independence until he had a colonial shagging session with his newly wedded wife, Martha. Better yet, ponder a congressional session which breaks into a chorus of grown men in powdered wigs singing proposed legislation in an attempt to form the United States of America as we know it today. If these suppositions sound far-fetched, think again. As Broadway flirts with a high school U.S. history textbook, the realm of unthinkable circumstance broadens, bringing audiences the hysterical and humanized account of how men fought and frolicked while creating the framework for America.

1776, now playing at the Indianapolis Civic Theatre, retells the historical saga of the birth of the Declaration of Independence. In a witty and entertaining manner, the story is told through the eyes of the individual founding fathers, each of whom is personified and filled with colorful characteristics almost always overlooked in textbooks and classrooms. These good ol” boys struggle with the fundamental issues involved with revolting against one government and creating a new one.

Director Michael J. Lasley and assistant director, choreographer and wife Marnie Lemons pull together a cast and crew consisting of promising new talent and seasoned practitioners of the theatrical arts. Actors Tom Beeler, Bill Hall and Eric Karwisch (playing the roles of John Adams, Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson, respectively) all demonstrate a firm grasp of the little quirks that make their characters unique and rightfully charming in their own ways. This threesome, backed up by an equally advanced thespian troop, bring this particular production of 1776 an extra dose of excellence.

Two performances worth highlighting are those of Congressman Richard Henry Lee, portrayed by Rusty Bush, and the little role of the Courier, portrayed by Ryan Stutz. Rusty Bush brought an uplifting amount of charisma to the stage, adding barrels of entertainment to the overall production. Ryan Stutz”s tiny but important role was charged with a visceral understanding of performance and a chillingly beautiful delivery of the song “Momma, Look Sharp.”

In the end, Civic Theatre’s 89th season opener brings laughter, education and wholesome entertainment to a rich period of America’s young history.

1776 continues through Sept. 29; for tickets, call 923-4597. The Civic is located on the grounds of the Indianapolis Museum of Art.