Aladdin 2019

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 Disney’s Aladdin, a brash, exciting production based on the popular animated movie, opened a two-week run as the final show for Broadway Sacramento’s Broadway on Tour series, bringing this big hit show to Sacramento for the first time in a full stage production, before the summer season kicks off with the Broadway at Music Circus shows in June.

The familiar story follows the modern Disney model of a young woman longing to be free and choose the path of her own life, rather following the wishes of her father, in this case as royalty. Her plight is contrasted with the poor young man from the streets who falls in love with a girl he knows he could never attain, at least not without a lot of help. But what they have in common is the feeling that they are trapped with no control over their lives, and that helps bring them together. The music for the original movie was written by Alan Menken with lyrics from Howard Ashman, and after he died, Tim Rice. Chad Beguelin wrote the book, and lyrics for new songs written for the stage production.

The starring characters might seem to be Aladdin and Princess Jasmine, but the attention is all on the Genie, famously voiced by the late Robin Williams in the original movie. For this production, Major Attaway, a larger-than-life black man with a bald head, has taken on the role showing off his dazzling personality, owning the part of the famous Genie. He is a real force of nature when he is on stage, like the Genie, taking control of everything and everyone. He introduces the show with “Arabian Nights” before disappearing for a while in anticipation of his big number.

Clinton Greenspan plays the title role of Aladdin. (Jacob Dickey will play the role in some performances.) He has a good voice and is a talented and athletic dancer, covering the stage in “One Jump Ahead” as he is constantly on the run from the authorities. And instead of a pet monkey on his shoulder, like in the animated film, he has three loyal sidekicks, played by Zach Bencal, Ben Chavez, and Colt Prattes. They have some great scenes with Aladdin, although the four of them sound more like guys from the streets of New York than peasants from a kingdom in the Middle East. The three of them are great support throughout the story, and get a chance to really show off in their Act 2 number, “Somebody’s Got Your Back.”

Princess Jasmine is played by Kaenaonālani Kekoa, who looks the part and has a beautiful voice, perfect for her songs like “These Palace Walls” when she laments to her maids about her fate to marry someone her father chooses, and her duets with Aladdin in “A Million Miles Away,” after she meets him on the streets while she’s disguised as a peasant, and of course the famous “A Whole New World,” as she and her new friend explore the world on his magic carpet. The carpet itself is an amazing effect, as it flies about the stage seemingly on its own. There are several magical moments using techniques taken from real stage magicians that add to the mysteriousness of the world of Aladdin as presented in the theater.

Bringing both the sinister and comic elements to the story are Jafar and his sidekick, Iago. Jonathan Weir places the scheming, but for the most part, ineffectual “Grand Vizier” of the Sultan, who plays all sides in his quest for power, and Iago, a wisecracking parrot in the film, is a diminutive, round ball of energy echoing Jafar’s sentiments—kind of a Mr. Smee to Captain Hook from Peter Pan. (Look for the inside parrot and monkey jokes that acknowledge the changes.) Reggie De Leon is hilarious in the role, and like a miniature Genie, he is hard to ignore any time he’s on stage.

The staging and choreography of the ensemble cast was very well done, with lots of fun sword fights and chase scenes. And the sets are simply amazing, especially when Aladdin is sent to the “Cave of Wonders” to find the magic lamp. And at the conclusion of that scene, the big number “Friend Like Me,” led by Major Attaway as the Genie, is great fun and involves the whole dance company, as the Genie pulls out all the stops to show his stuff to his new master. The audience greeted it with an extended ovation, and Attaway looked like he needed the rest!

The other big production number is the opening for Act 2, “Prince Ali.” The catchy tune, accompanied by the entire company and lots of colorful costume changes and dancing, is a great bookend to the “Friend Like Me” number, and gets the energy of the show back to a peak to start the second half. The 18-piece orchestra, a combination of the touring group led by Faith Seetoo and a group of local musicians, sounds great, especially the prominent brass instruments.

Though this show is based on the famous Disney movie, it is not really a kids’ play. Though young people would enjoy it, the jokes and action all appeal to an adult audience. At about two and a half hours long, including intermission, the production would be enjoyed by kids who are patient enough for a fairly long show, though there is always plenty of action. And the opening night audience gave the cast an enthusiastic standing ovation in appreciation of the high energy fun and broad humor they brought to the show.

Disney’s Aladdin is playing through Sunday, June 2 at the Community Center Theater in downtown Sacramento.   For more information and tickets, see www.BroadwaySacramento.com. The 2019 Broadway at Music Circus kicks off with Shrek the Musical running from June 11 through 16.

Ken Kiunke, 5/20/19

Originally published in GoldCountryMarketing.com. Reprintable with attribution to Gold Country Marketing and Ken Kiunke

You might not think that a show about a bunch of junkyard cats pondering reincarnation would be a return to traditional theatre, but after presenting two good, but unusual shows, STOMP and Falsettos, Broadway Sacramento is now showing a modern classic, one of the first big blockbuster stage musicals, Cats. The brainchild of Andrew Lloyd Weber, who pulled lyrics from T.S. Eliot’s Old Possum’s Book of Cats with some help from Trevor Nunn, the original production—which won seven Tony Awards during its 1982 Broadway premiere, including Best Musical, Book, and Score—set a new high-water mark for stage musicals, both in its popularity and the elaborate costuming and set design. It was unlike anything that had come before it, and would lead to other phenomenal successes like Phantom of the Opera, Les Miserables, and Hamilton. The show returned to the Sacramento stage on Tuesday, April 2, as part of Broadway Sacramento’s Broadway on Tour 2018–2019 season.

Trevor Nunn, the original director when the show premiered in London in 1981 and Broadway in 1982, has returned to lead this new production with a national touring company that is presenting the show in Sacramento for the first time, and features new sound design, direction, and choreography by Andy Blankenbuehler, based on the original choreography by Gillian Lynne. (It has been presented here before in local productions, including the Music Circus.) One of the first things you notice is that the set, which looks like a fairly ordinary junkyard at first, really comes to life with the elaborate lighting design by Natasha Katz, which will add to the magic of the scenes as the show progresses.

The story begins with “Act 1: When Cats Are Maddened by the Midnight Dance,” and the stage is filled by the “Jellicle” cats, who sing "Jellicle Songs for Jellicle Cats." Munkustrap, the main narrator of the story, is played by Dan Hoy, who explains that Old Deuteronomy will choose one of the cats to be reborn into a new life in the Heaviside Layer. That is the entire basis for whatever narrative there is in the story. But the show is one of the most ensemble-driven musicals I have ever seen, as each song relies on the company to sing and dance along with each cat as they are featured. And the dancing is extraordinary. The cats in the company mix ballet with jazz dance, along with gymnastics, and even tap dancing, and moves evocative of real cats. Victoria, played by Caitlin Bond, is the white cat, who has no solo singing parts, but is an amazing dancer—you can’t take your eyes off her during the dance sequences, especially in “Invitation to the Jellicle Ball.”

 The individual cat songs are a mix of styles, as when the whimsical Jennyanydots, played by Emily Jeanne Phillips, introduces herself as the “Old Gumbie Cat,” and “Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer,” played by Tony d’Alelio and Rose Iannaccone, come on as a mischievous pair who like to shake things up. But songs like “Rum Tum Tugger,” played by McGee Maddox, and “Macavity, The Mystery Cat” which features Tyler John Logan, bring a menacing glam-rock quality to their songs.

Highlights from “Act 2: Why Will the Summer Day Delay—When Will Time Flow Away?” include “Skimbleshanks the Railway Cat” (Ethan Saviet), when the company puts together a junkyard train during his song and dance number, and “Magical Mister Mistoffelees,” when Tion Gaston descends from on high to perform some amazing dance work—once frozen in mid-air thanks to some cool lighting effects—along with his rousing, upbeat number. Asparagus, played by Timothy Gulan, leads the company in “Gus the Theatre Cat” as an aging star of the stage who tries to recapture his former glory.

There are two musical themes that are repeated throughout the show. The “Old Deuteronomy” song introduces the old, plodding leader of the cats, who will choose the one to be reborn. Brandon Michael Nase plays Deuteronomy, and has a powerful, commanding voice (and even sits on the stage throughout intermission!) His theme is a haunting, powerful melody, at once rousing and inspirational, but with a sadness and wariness that tells you all may not be well.

The other theme is, of course, “Memory,” which refers to “Grizabella: The Glamour Cat,” who was once beautiful but is now old, decrepit, and shunned by the other cats. Played by Keri René Fuller, Grizabella introduces the song in Act 1, and it appears again in small sections throughout Act 2, until the climax, when Sillabub, played by Ahren Victory, has accepted Grizabella and begins her song, to be joined and then taken over by Fuller, who gives it her full, powerful delivery. As sung by Fuller, the song is a transcendent moment in the show. Had it been sung in the style of a pop diva, such as a Mariah Carey or Celine Dion, it would just be a nice song. But sung straight and pure, and with such an amazing voice, the song is the emotional center that makes the entire production otherworldly and great, rather than just a fun show about cats with good singing and dancing.

Despite the fact that Cats is an older musical and has been around for nearly 40 years, it still feels new, and the audience on opening night showed their love with a rousing standing ovation, especially for Keri René Fuller and Tion Gaston, but with great appreciation for the entire cast, all of whom had moments of important contributions to the success of the show. The nine-piece orchestra, led by Eric Kang, was spot-on, but remained hidden behind the stage throughout the production, though you could see Kang conducting on a video screen mounted on the balcony section.

The show is just over two hours long, including intermission. It is suitable for all ages, and would be enjoyed by kids who are patient enough for a long theatre production. Cats is playing through Sunday, April 7 at the Community Center Theater in downtown Sacramento.  For more information and tickets, see www.BroadwaySacramento.com. The 2018–19 Broadway on Tour season will continue with The Lightning Thief, the Percy Jackson Musical running from April 18 through 21.

Ken Kiunke, 4/3/19

Originally published in GoldCountryMarketing.com Reprintable with attribution to Gold Country Marketing and Ken Kiunke

I must admit that when I saw that the show Falsettos was coming to Sacramento, I thought it was another tale of a Doo-Wop group making it big, like Jersey Boys. But, of course, it is nothing of the kind, and if you have followed the important and award-winning shows coming out of Broadway for the past 20 years, you’ll be aware that this show touches on relationships between couples, both gay and straight, and their children, and deals with intense feelings mixed in with the tragedy of AIDS. But it is also humorous, heartwarming, and full of great music. The show premiered in Sacramento on Tuesday, March 11, as part of Broadway Sacramento’s Broadway on Tour 2018–2019 season.

The show was the brainchild of William Finn, and began as an off-Broadway play called In Trousers, which evolved into a trilogy of one-act plays with the addition of March of the Falsettos and Falsettoland and the creative input of James Lapine to flesh out the stories. The second two plays were then combined as Act 1 and Act 2 to create this musical show, Falsettos, which premiered in 1992 on Broadway, and won Tony Awards for Best Book and Best Score, and was nominated for seven awards in total.

Max Von Essen stars as Marvin, the man at the center of the story. In "Act 1: March of the Falsettos," we learn that he has split up with his wife, Trina, to be with his new boyfriend, Whizzer, played by Nick Adams. This drastic change has thrown his family into turmoil, including Marvin’s relationship with his 10-year-old son, Jason, played alternately by Thatcher Jacobs and Jonah Mussolino. Marvin, Whizzer, Trina, Jason, and Marvin’s psychiatrist, Mendel, played by Nick Blaemire, outline the situation with the uproarious opening song “Four Jews in a Room Bitching.”

The first thing you notice about the show is a large rectangular object in the middle of the stage—a kind of puzzle that is deconstructed to provide various shapes of set pieces the actors will rearrange throughout the show to serve each scene—it reminded me of a school drama class where the students improvise with whatever is around for their scenes. Along with a background of the New York City skyline, this is the entire set. And since the actors mostly remain on stage, even when not directly in the scene, the show has a real intimate feel, as if it were an improv show presented in a smaller theater.

Trina, played by Eden Espinosa, steps to the forefront when she shares her concerns about the situation while being treated by Mendel, who (if only to complicate matters even further) falls for her in the song “Love is Blind,” one of the catchier tunes of the show. It is a bit difficult, however, to highlight many individual songs, as the entire show is sung and there are a total of 37 songs listed running one into the next. Espinosa has a very commanding voice, and as the only female in Act 1, she really stands out in her solos like “I’m Breaking Down” and “Trina’s Song.”

By the end of Act 1, it becomes clear that it is Marvin who is causing all the chaos in their lives, as he has not only left his original family, he has split with Whizzer and is jealous of Trina and Mendel. All the other characters seem to know what they want or need, it’s just a matter of getting it. Marvin himself desires a “Tight Knit Family” as he tells Mendel, but he is the one, due to his conflicted feelings, that does everything to tear it apart. Those emotions are revealed for all the others in “I Never Wanted to Love You,” and von Essen does a nice job portraying this conflicted character.

In "Act 2: Falsettoland," we meet two new characters, Dr. Charlotte, played by Bryonha Marie Parkham, and Cordelia, played by Audrey Cardwell, a lesbian couple who are Marvin’s new neighbors. Their addition adds a nice mix to the ensemble with two more female voices and some new perspectives. That is just one of the changes in Act 2—in the story, two years have passed, and Jason is getting ready for his Bar Mitzvah, some of the relationships have shifted, the set now features some actual set pieces instead of just the block shapes, and, being the 1980s, the specter of AIDS is now looming over the scene, as Dr. Charlotte explains to Cordelia in the ominous song “Something Bad is Happening.” But there is also more humor and warmth in the second act, as in the company’s song “The Baseball Game” as Jason tries to do well in Little League. The adults cheer him on but are skeptical about Jews playing baseball, until Mendel reminds them of Sandy Kofax and Hank Greenberg, and Whizzer gives Jason some good coaching. (It is also revealed in Act 2 that the terrific small band, led by P. Jason Yarcho, is hidden above and behind the main set.)

For a child actor, Thatcher Jacobs does an amazing job carrying such a big role, and he has several chances to take center stage, as in his hilarious song “Miracle of Judaism.” Nick Adams and Nick Blaemire, as Whizzer and Mendel, are also great in their roles, with strong voices and characters that mix perfectly with the other characters, individually or in group songs. The cast is a true ensemble with each role and actor being of nearly equal importance (though Charlotte and Cordelia are in only the second half, but have their share of nice moments together and with the others.)

The conclusion of the story revolving around the Bar Mitzvah is quite touching and heartwarming, but I won’t go into detail to spoil the ending. One of the best moments, though, is a wonderful scene with some beautiful harmonies featuring Marvin, Whizzer, Charlotte, and Cordelia in the song “Unlikely Lovers.” I did notice that after intermission a small but noticeable segment of the audience did not come back, which is sad in itself because the show really is more enjoyable in the second half. But perhaps they were expecting a Frankie Valli singing “Sherry” or Brian Wilson singing “California Girls” type of “falsettos” performance. In actuality, the song “March of the Falsettos” in Act 1 is the only real use of the actual term, as Mendel, Marvin, Whizzer, and Jason appear in rather strange get-ups to sing that song in, of course, falsetto voices. I never really figured out what deeper meaning the title could suggest, unless it is the “false” nature of Marvin’s affections throughout the story. But he is always seeking to know his true self, and the others are all self-assured in their own natures, so perhaps it is up to each viewer to decide what it means to them.

The show is almost three hours long, including intermission. And though some bailed out early, the bulk of the opening-night audience was very appreciative of the small cast, and gave them a very warm standing ovation. Due to the themes and language, and adult situations, this show is most suitable for adults and older teens. Falsettos is playing through Sunday, March 17 at the Community Center Theater in downtown Sacramento. For more information and tickets, see www.BroadwaySacramento.com. The 2018–19 Broadway on Tour season will continue with Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Cats running from April 2 through 7.

Ken Kiunke, 3/14/19

Originally published in GoldCountryMarketing.com. Reprintable with attribution to Gold Country Marketing and Ken Kiunke

 There is something unique and kind of special going on at the Community Center Theater. Broadway Sacramento’s Broadway on Tour series has brought to the stage a show with no songs, no singers, and no traditional music. STOMP opened Friday, February 1st as part of the Broadway on Tour 2018–2019 season.

The show was created in Brighton, United Kingdom, in 1991 after a ten-year collaboration between Luke Cresswell and Steve McNicholas, who remain its directors as the show lives on in its 28th year. It has played in Sacramento before, in 1999 and 2008. The idea is fairly simple—people working on the streets grab the tools of their trade, such as brooms and pans, and begin to find interesting rhythms. That is the entirety of the narrative; the rest is just an expansion of that idea as the cast delves into ever more creative tools and fascinating explorations into rhythmic patterns and dance.

If you haven’t seen the official stage show, you may have still been exposed to STOMP. During the stunning closing ceremonies show of the 2012 Olympics in London, a 40-member cast presented a specially choreographed segment that fit into the grand celebration of the games. And various companies of the cast have made appearances in other shows, including the 1996 Academy Awards, where they synchronized their beats with classic film clips (see Stomp at Oscar – 1996 on Youtube.)

After its successful award-winning opening in London, STOMP began performing around the world, and reached Broadway in 1994, garnering awards for “Most Unique Theatre Experience.” Since then, it has been presented in many worldwide touring companies, and appeared on many more television shows, including Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood and Sesame Street.

The cast is a collection of talented young performers who are skilled percussionists, creating complex rhythms with broomsticks, pipes and tubes, dust pans, newspapers, giant inner tubes, plastic buckets and tubs, metal trash cans, basketballs, and more—notably their own hands and bodies. Ivan Salazar leads the group. He is the first to take the stage, sweeping up and discovering his broom can make cool sounds, as he sweeps the brushes and taps the handle, he is slowly joined by the others in the ensemble. And as the show becomes more interactive, he is the one who will also lead the audience in hand clapping sequences that keep everyone engaged and a little challenged.

 Once the show gets going, the “fourth wall” is broken, as the performers acknowledge the audience is there and watching. It reminded me of what you might see out on the streets of New York or any big city, when a group sets out a few hats and begins to perform a show in hopes that passers-by will appreciate their talents and toss in a few coins or bills. Many years ago at Disneyland, I remember the park experimented with a similar idea. Four young people dressed in standard Disney custodial outfits appeared on the streets as if to clean up, but broke into a STOMP-style performance to the surprise and delight of passing guests (but no tips were allowed!)

As the STOMP cast gets more and more engaged with the audience, it becomes more and more fun and interesting. In a show like this, even though the talents and unique style of rhythm, mixed with complex dance moves, is fascinating to watch, without a bit of humor it would be easy to lose interest after a while. Guido Mandozzi, with his flipped-up baseball cap, appears as the buffoon of the crew, and Jonathon Elkins and Joe White also contribute to the laughs. And the humor is all physical—not a word is spoken by the cast members, save for a few grunts, heys, and whoas. At times they may remind you of the great silent film comedians of long ago.

Rounding out the cast are Kayla Cowart, Desmond Howard, Alexis Juliano, Artis Olds, Jeremy Price, Krystal Renée, Cade Slattery, and Steve Weiss. All of the cast are talented dancers and percussionists, and the sound they create together is interesting and complex. The set they inhabit is a bit like a junk yard tipped on its end, with ladders so the cast can go vertical and fill the entire space.

The show is about two hours long, without an intermission. The opening-night audience was very appreciative of the unique experience, and greeted the cast with a standing ovation. It is suitable for all ages, and kids will enjoy the sound and surprises at each turn of the show. STOMP is playing through Sunday, February 10th at the Community Center Theater in downtown Sacramento.  For more information and tickets, see www.BroadwaySacramento.com. The 2018–19 Broadway on Tour season will continue with Falsettos running from March 12 through 17.

Ken Kiunke, 2/2/19

Originally published in GoldCountryMarketing.com. Reprintable with attribution to Gold Country Marketing and Ken Kiunke