7-7-06
Review Roundup for July 7, 2006
Don't Make Me Over – Black Ensemble Theater
Chris Jones, Tribune—"Black Ensemble Theater's justly famed musical biographies have never exactly been hard-hitting indictments of their subjects—the point here long has been appreciation and understanding for the tricky lot of the star, not rehashed scandals or tabloid titillation. But Jackie Taylor's famously generous appreciation for her subjects reaches new heights with Don't Make Me Over, a shamelessly rose-colored but immensely enjoyable celebration of the life and music of Dionne Warwick."
Hedy Weiss, Sun-Times—"The musical elements of this Black Ensemble show—the singers and the band—are, as always, sensational. As always—though a good deal more so this time around—Jackie Taylor's script is a mess. The essential formula is still at work; it takes a loosely biographical approach to the singer that serves as a hanger for the thrilling performance of nearly two dozen songs. But there is far more pop psychology and Oprah-style 'I'm talking to you, girlfriend' kind of stuff in this production."
Mary Shen Barnidge, Reader—"You won't hear anything but good about Dionne Warwick in writer-director Jackie Taylor's latest bio-revue, framed as a tribute concert hosted by the statuesque Ms. Divine. She trades lead vocals with three other actresses playing different aspects of Warwick, a studio vocalist who developed a solo career as the voice for such composers as Burt Bacharach. Forty-five years later she's still working, though this evening is devoted mostly to nostalgic replications of the brass-driven orchestrations that defined '60s pop (with forays into gospel, jazz, and Philly soul). Improved amplification allows audience members to sing, cheer, and otherwise show their enthusiasm without interfering with the show."
Electronic Baby – Bobkat Productions
Nina Metz, Tribune—"First things first: There is nothing 'rock' about the score. This is a chamber musical with a few occasional beats and melodies that vaguely reference pop music of the early '60s. And despite its Tom Wolfe-ish title, the show is preternaturally square... The show's narrative is 100 percent trippy but, as staged by the usually stellar Kimberly Senior, the packaging is strictly Leave it to Beaver—a combination that makes for an interminable 80 minutes of theater."
Hedy Weiss, Sun-Times—"But cute premise aside, Electronic Baby, which also is the title of the 80-minute musical now being presented by Bobkat Productions, is a mess. There is virtually no acceleration in this little vehicle, which comes with a clumsy book and lyrics by Kathleen Lombardo, a duller-than-dishwater score by John Austin (played by an on stage band), surprisingly wooden direction by Kimberly Senior, even more wooden choreography by Jenny Shore and a cast that, with very few exceptions, would barely pass muster as a school show."
Brian Nemtusak, Reader—"Some statements are so well encoded you never guess they're there. On the other end of the spectrum are plays like Electronic Baby, so skewed toward an offbeat concept that you can't believe they're not metaphoric. This rock opera by John Austin (music) and Kathleen Lombardo (book) focuses on a 17-year-old who prefers cars to boys. Her parents' weird dismay at her lack of sexualization seems allegorical by default, while their efforts to straighten her out and pry her away from a gearhead aunt scream homosexual panic. But no: maddeningly, what you see is exactly what you get. However, big, bright performances and some vibrant ensemble numbers make this a pleasant if perplexing experience."
Tim Sauers, Gay Chicago—"If you've ever seen an actual crazy person for any length of time, then you will understand what I'm writing about. By watching him/her maneuver through nonsensical, inane antics that only he/she understands, you find yourself not wanting to laugh at him/her because you understand that something is terribly wrong, but you laugh anyway... Eventually, an underlying sadness creeps in for what you're experiencing, and you feel sorry for the condition of this crazy person and ashamed at yourself for your own actions. Bobkat Productions' Electronic Baby is so bad that a crazy person can hold your attention much longer than this world premiere, which should never have been produced."
Mary Shen Barnidge, Windy City—"None of this would matter if Bobkat Productions' revival had been developed farther beyond its roots as a high-school project. "Expanded" from 40 to 90 minutes, too many of the songs are little more than orchestrated-recitative filler, with those featuring traces of engaging melodies (e.g., the age-of-Aquarius 'Beautiful Thing On Wheels') finishing before they get started. And while Sara Hoyer endows Baby with pitch-perfect vocals, assisted by a nimble four-piece band, the garage-like acoustics of the American Theater Company space further muddy composer John Austin's already-baroque harmonies."
Flora, the Red Menace – Theo Unique Theatre Company
Lawrence Bommer, Reader—"Songwriters John Kander and Fred Ebb (Cabaret, Chicago) launched their partnership with this nearly forgotten 1965 delight, about a hopeful Hungarian fashion illustrator who gets entangled with the Communist Party—until she's asked to sacrifice love for independence. The Theo Ubique Theatre Company's plucky staging of the musical's 1988 revision showcases the inventive score and the performers' rich if raw talent."
Dennis Polkow, New City—"Nonetheless, when you have a singer and actress who can bring the lead character to life with the perfect balance of comedy, pathos and sing-her-heart out pipes like Elizabeth Lesinski can, a night with Flora is certainly a memorable one. (Lesinski's uncanny similarities to the real-life Fanny Brice makes doing Funny Girl an obvious follow-up.) The entire Theo Ubique Theatre cast gives the show plenty of 'razzle dazzle,' to quote a later Kander & Ebb line, and they present the flawed material as if their lives depended on it."
Brian Kirst, Free Press—"Fine direction and performances make this production a standout. Flora, which is known primarily for being Liza Minnelli's 1965 star-making vehicle and for introducing the beautiful ballad 'A Quiet Thing,' is middle-of-the-road Kander and Ebb. It has only a small handful of good production numbers. Still, there is much to be said for the heart and soul that the writers poured into this piece. Co-directors Fred Anzevino and Beverle Bloch set this production in a Depression era-style cafe, effectively utilizing No Exit Cafe's performance space. They get uniformly excellent performances from their talented cast."
Jeff Rossen, Gay Chicago—"But the show, as the title would suggest, succeeds or fails on the strength of the performance of the title character, and that's where Theo Ubique's production of this seldom-seen musical comes up short. We never really believe Elizabeth Lesinski's Flora, doubting her sincerity and recoiling at the often just-flat tones of her vocals and shuddering when she belts out much of 'A Quiet Thing... This is a recommended production, but it's a shame that its central element disappoints, because it had the potential and just misses being highly recommended."
Rick Reed, Windy City—"Under Fred Anzevino and Beverle Bloch's deft direction, Flora, the Red Menace comes to rousing, romantic and engaging life, transporting audience members into a world that's in the past, but a world we can all identify with. Who hasn't been young and idealistic, hungry to fulfill a dream or two? Anzevino and Bloch are blessed with a talented young ensemble to flesh out the story and characters one can easily love... As Flora, newcomer Elizabeth Lesinski sparkles; brassy and bigger than life, this Flora charms and captivates, and Lesinski makes it easy to imagine a life filled with love and success for this character."
M. Proust – About Face
Chris Jones, Tribune—"It's worth pondering who has the greater insight into the mind of a literary genius such as Marcel Proust. Is it the literary academician who has scoured every extant poetic word for unconscious symbol and hidden metaphor? Or is it the housekeeper who personally washed the fellow's dirty underwear, every night for years? ... In fact, one wishes this leading issue were more centrally in play, since that would serve the very necessary task of universalizing this one-actress piece (elegantly performed by Mary Beth Peil) beyond the Proust scholars and devotees for whom it will currently have the most interest."
Hedy Weiss, Sun-Times—"[Mary Beth] Peil, a highly skilled actress, navigates her way through the sometimes overly dense script in a way that reveals Celeste's suppressed emotionalism, her dry and surprising sense of humor, her fierce dependability, her conscience, her rectitude. The fact that her long marriage might have been less than satisfying is hinted at, never voiced. Her occasional 'betrayals' of Proust are confessed. Finally, her understanding of Proust's working methods, of his immense drive in the face of physical deterioration, and of the possibility for achieving immortality through art are all beautifully rendered."
Barbara Vitello, Daily Herald—"But the production has more than Peil's refined performance going for it. It has Proust's lovely, longing prose and droll humor and Eric Rosen's articulate direction. The show also has Chris Binder's exquisite, finely attuned lighting that perfectly accents the melancholy mood and Daniel Ostling's genteel, caramel-colored parlor. The walls are scrims that reveal Proust's dimly lit bedroom, and in one especially memorable effect, flowers arranged and lit to look like masks—an appropriate metaphor for the author and the woman who tended his memory."
Jack Helbig, Reader—"Adapted by Mary Zimmerman from Marcel Proust's own writings and from the memoirs of his housekeeper, this one-woman show feels like a dramatized book report. It may be proof that Zimmerman, deprived of a young, athletic, gorgeously clad and choreographed ensemble, cannot maintain the dramatic tension needed to keep an audience awake for 90 minutes. Or, since Eric Rosen directs for About Face Theatre, it might prove that only Zimmerman can release the magic in her words."
John Beer, New City—"The dutiful structure by which Zimmerman's play alternates the narration of Celeste's life with dramatized episodes from the book falls uncomfortably near the realm of public television documentary; a less schematic execution might have allowed the novel's language to breathe more vitally. But M. Proust succeeds in perhaps the primary task such a project can assume: it evokes the addictive, almost suffocating atmosphere of the book for those who have read it, and it provides a well-chosen sampler of text to tempt in those who haven't."
Jennifer Vanasco, Free Press—"M. Proust should work. In fact, it should be wonderful. It is backed by an extraordinary team—the playwright is the incredible Mary Zimmerman, the director is the creative Eric Rosen, the actor is Tony Award-nominated and Obie Award-winning actress Mary Beth Peil ...M. Proust, in short, should be magic. But it is not."
Venus Zarris, Gay Chicago—"About Face Theatre produces this world premiere with impeccable style and sophistication. Director Eric Rosen compiles an exceptional design team to reinforce Peil's subtly startling performance and Zimmerman's erudite script. The result is a truly captivating theatrical encounter of both personal and literary depth. This is an exquisite accomplishment of inspired cerebral gentleness and intricately delicate intimacy."
Mary Shen Barnidge, Windy City—"The major part of this 90-minute production is comprised of our hostess mimicking Marcel, in turn mimicking HIS characters. These scenes alternate with recitations from his literary oeuvre to accompany Daniel Ostling, Andre Pluess and Chris Binder's pretty technical effects. After darling Marcel dies, however, we hear no more. 'I lived for HIS needs,' says Mme. Celeste. So does Zimmerman, apparently: A trio of Proust's books is given its own curtain call."
Quote of the Fortnight:
"Only Elvis, it seems, could star in corny movies and still emerge with his patina of cool well intact."—Nina Metz reviewing Factory's production of GI's in Europe in the Tribune.