Review -GLT-Noises Off

Last night, Rose and I joined Al and Maureen Edick along with Marion Holmes, a friend of theirs from Alexandria Virginia (Pres. of L.T.A.) and attended a performance of “Noises Off” at Greenville Little Theatre. This was probably the best choreographed series of action and pratfalls around a stage I’ve ever experienced. Al and I agreed they must have spent at least a month practicing the second act alone… and the third act – oh my! How those cast members keep from walking away with their bodies covered with bruises I can’t imagine. Sliding down a set of stairs face-first, uninjured, is quite an accomplishment. And the SET… GLT has a wide proscenium and this two-story beautifully designed set is full-width. Twice during the play they actually spin it around to so we can see the activities going on front or backstage… what perfect coordination of design and movement in full view of the audience… the business of scene changes was equal to the play iteslf. For anyone who enjoyed the movie “Noises Off” with Carol Burnette, I can only say this play has two to three times the action, timing and quality of performance. This play is a MUST SEE… I give it my personal choice of “Best Comedy Ever!” Kudo’s to everyone involved in the play. I’m truly envious of their achievement. Respectfully submitted, Sam Stone

An Evening of Short Plays Review 7/25 – Brian Green

An Evening of Short Plays
Reviewed by B.C. Greene
Presented by The Lost Playwrights of Western North Carolina

A warm and pleasant shelter from the rain and Asheville street party’s. Seven individual plays set out for our enjoyment. All of them set up to make us laugh, with Dock’s Deli serving excellent sandwiches and summer time ice cream to order.

The evening begins with music from talented Stephen Smartt and Brian Pieare. There two guitars strum out modern blues as Stephen performs sonic tai chi in tune with his instrument.

The opening skit was Blink Blink by Shirley King. Gordon Pendarvis played Tom a fire fly of the traditional sense. Richard Brown played Sam a fire fly who wished to light the night with poetry and art. Paula Orr a first on this particular stage played Gloria who found she could accept a bug of a different wattage.

Elevator Operator by Janis Butler Holm was the second skit. This play was preformed buy the Thompson family. Teenager #1 (Andy Thompson) plays a prank on Businessperson #1 (Mark Thompson). The skit ends with Teenager #2 (Zac Thompson) beginning the same prank on Businessperson #2 (Sandi Thompson)

How I won the Lottery by David Meth is presented next. This clever play is greatly enhanced buy the talents of Gordon Pendarvis as Baggy the sails clerk during a impromptu heist. Richard Brown plays Bobby Bob the not quite dedicated ex-con stick up man. Lu-Ellen Bobby Bob’s current Beau is played buy Carolyn Elgin. Luckily I had finished my tasty pizza sandwich from Dock’s Deli before holding my gut as I laughed.

The intermission was kicked off buy Jose on the Harmonica and leopard puppet. Wet from his athletic bike ride in the rain, Jose confidently displayed his innovative talent as we all took a short break.

A Study in Art by Robert E. Jamison launched the second Act. Now Richard Brown, Gordon Pendarvis and Paula Orr had a chance to really shine as Sam, George, and A Gorgeous Girl. The play was a comment on all the different venues we men might try to find a date, and how it’s our true interests that surpass the locations we might pick.

How Blue is My Crocodile by Janis Arthur M. Jolly had a tremendous arch to the short play. Teenager #1 and Teenager #2 played buy Andy and Zac Thompson muscled us threw the first half of the skit. It was full of odd dialog that slowly began to make sense, this was just what we needed to understand where the playwright was taking us. At times the chatter of the characters was humorous, until we saw where we where going. Two children playing while awaiting a father’s fate in the war in the Middle East.

Pirate Bitches of the Caribbean by Clyde James Aragon played with our gender stereotypes. Captain Jill (Rosmary O’Brien) lead her crew on a search for plunder on the high seas. The crew was Marina (Paula Orr), Victoria (Rose Stone), and Danielle (Dot Drew).

An Honest Arrangement by David Wiener told the story of Willie (Gordon Pendarvis), and Nara (The lovely Paula Orr). The story of a modern day e-mail order bride and her soon to be husband. There was much wit and honesty, well worth seeing especially with this cast.

The evening closed out with the guitar duo, Stephen Smartt and Brian Pieare.
as we left out into the rain washed night. Sam Stone the M/C had put together a show that would keep us coming back as more enlightened people.

A Deli-cious Performance

            Okay, so the Lost Playwrights did their monthly thing again at Dock’s Deli in Hendersonville, NC.

            First of all, let me say that for a complete non-profit, donation at the door group I must say that I was duly pleased to discover that this group serves up entertainment as juicy, well cut, and well seasoned as one might expected from a full blown TicketMaster ™ Carnegie (theater? Deli? – both in NY, NY) show.

            This time the intrepid Lost Playwrights and their affiliate members served up a rather daring and slightly racy assortment of plays, some more deserving of condoms than condiments, that while being perhaps a bit adult were never crass, obscene or unpalatable.

            The first selection, a tasty little offering from one of the LP’s more reluctant chef’s, founder Ludy Wilkie, was a spiffy and appetizing item entitled Bailout, featuring long time reader, Gordon Pendarvis as a harried congressman who has two rather unusual side items on his daily docket.

            The first, a lady (of the night) from Nevada, comes seeking a bailout for her highly venerable (let’s just say it is the oldest known) profession. This highly intelligent Madam, read skillfully by Debbie Keller, proceeds to explain why she deserves a bailout.

And then we have constituent number two. A real gentleman, given to wearing mourning in the morning and in fact the whole day through. After all, whilst he also runs a parlor of sorts – you might say his clientele is rather dead.

Here we have the not so humble undertaker, read in a sonorous baritone by Clyde Keller, and frankly he is not in a growth industry.

How many more could use a hand up? Apparently far to many – and a final bailout is in order as congressman X bails on the whole nine yards.

We end this little comedy full of delightful puns and glorious twists on a high note. How high? I could not say. Depends on where our congressman’s office is…and how does it all come out?

The next entree, A Nice Restaurant in the Foothills is served up to us by long time writer, Jane Sperry – and does not (surprise) include her most famous character, Zelda Divine. Rather it serves as the entrée for a three part mini-meal within a meal and introduces us to two new characters – aspiring playwright, Barkley Moss, played with verve by repeat reader, Leslie Jones and Katty Juke, love interest, as read by relative newcomer, Valerie Newkirk. It’s a nice tidy little introduction in which we learn the flavors of these two as they get acquainted.

After that, a surprise reading of a one page bit entitled The Best Internet Joke Ever – a quick comedic morsel that elicited a lot of laughs. This piece was read for us by Ellen Palmer, a newcomer in my experiences, and a charming new taste to add to the LP stew. Welcome, Ellen.

This was followed up by our second serving of the three part Jane Sperry dish, entitled, Another Nice Restaurant in the Foothills, wherein the further adventures of Barkley and Katty are offered up for consideration and digestion.

We were then treated to a smooth and creamy ice cream overtoned ( and memorized!) monologue by in house comedian Tom Bennett, entitled The Green River County Fair.

Here we have a tale of a rural boy’s adventures and misadventures with the fairer sex as told us by one of his better friends. This is a fast paced little number, filled with detail and regional spices which takes place somewhere hereabouts in the Appalachains and also at Myrtle Beach, NC where we rednecks go to develop red bodies and splash in the ocean. Filled with pickled eggs, antiquarian swimsuits, Speedos, girls, and potatoes, this is definitely a taste of Southern humor that is really too good to miss.

Intermission then served up a soupcon of harmonica blues played by a young man, not included upon the program, more the pity, who was introduced only as Jose. Oh well, well played, Jose.

And thus we come, to Act Two.

Time for a cup of coffee…liberally spiked with brandy…and a little something served up Italian style.

The opener for this course was presented to us by published author, Ned Condini, and was entitled The Naughty Prostitute with A Heart of Gold.  

Now, Ned is actually better known for his heavier fare and he writes poetry and short plays with a more Mediterranean and even desert feel with flair, so I was pleased to see that he was capable of serving up something a little lighter.

The mulligan provided? The first man (Gordon Pendarvis) meets another man (Tom Bennett) in the foyer of a brothel. Man, the first, strongly suspects MAN, the second, of being well, not normal. There are no stated allegations but homosexuality, incompetence, impotence, and general weirdnesses are all hinted at. Result, Man bets MAN that he cannot spend a normal evening with a lady on the board.

The lady, Thin Venus (Valerie Newkirk), is not at all unwarned. Indeed as events conspire we discover that Man has paid her to tell him the full and complete truth about MAN’s prowess. Worse, it transpires that she has a sense of honor – which is to say, she will not accept MAN’s offer of a higher bride. So what is MAN to do? Well, try to talk his way through it – with quite amusing results. And Man? Well as Madame (Debbie Keller) can attest – perhaps he is not quite normal either. He spends his time just trying to chose.

            Next up, we have our third serving of Jane Sperry’s soup of love, and things have considerable heated up; what started out as consommé is now a steaming cauldron of highly stirred ingredients. Catty’s Apartment brings things nicely to a boil for Barkley and Katty, and all ends in high good taste.

            And finally, we get to our evening’s just desserts. Feeding Time at the Human House by David Weiner finds us in a baboon enclosure and Bernie Baboon (Gordon Pendarvis) has just slung some…well, it was not hash. It’s Fran Baboon’s (Debbie Keller) birthday and she is feeling blue, so for a little while things get rather existential in the baboon enclosure…but along the way we are treated to a dolphin sandwich of conspiracy, comments on the habits of humans, and speculations as to why we don’t like our butts to swell, whereas Fran wishes hers would do so with more alacrity. A fair amount of fewmets are flung, both literal and metaphorical, but in the end all ends well, or should I say swell?

            So special notes?

            Gordon Pendarvis and Debbie Keller – very well done indeed. Mucho props on the reading and the acting. Valerie Newkirk, also well – if perhaps a little stiffly done. Clyde Keller, nice voice, man.

            To be duly noted, Sam Stone, Master of Ceremonies, and Elizabeth Malzone, Stage Manager and Lighting Technician.

            Complaints?

            Just a very few. A few people need to speak up or loosen up. The whole idea here is to make the audience believe you are someone else and someone REAL. Don’t be afraid to overact – everyone does at first; and as to nerves – well, I do not advocate imagining one’s audience naked, eeeeeeeeeewwwwwwwww. But I do advocate remembering that they, like you are only human – none of them have goat parts on the bottom where the human bits leave off and none of them are going to strike out with lightning. A bread roll is the worst case scenario.

            Oh and a complaint directed at audiences – and I see this at operas, too – too many people forget that these genres were the TV of their heydays. Shakespeare wrote slapstick and his actors interacted with the audience. Rossini wrote smut and Mozart wrote beer hall bawdys. So loosen up, people. Have fun. Enjoy. Actors need feedback. Applaud; laugh, boo, hell – throw rolls.

(c) D. Elaine Calderin 2009

James A. Rock Publishing

Used with permission

Asheville Lyric Opera Gala Review

The long anticipated Asheville Lyric Opera 10th Anniversary Gala managed to live up to all of its pre-performance hype and then some.

The Gala was held at the First Baptist Church of Asheville, a highly
appropriate setting for the many beautiful and inspired moments the evening showcased, and a grand institution in its own right.

The choice of performers was also a highly auspicious mix of old friends and new, all of whom managed despite some small obstacles – such as a very limited rehearsal time – to create harmonies worthy of Heaven’s hosannas.

The night was noteworthy for any number of reasons, such as presentations by Mayor Terry M. Bellamy to the Asheville Lyric Opera, represented by the seemingly tireless General and Artistic Director, Mr. David Craig Starkey, declaring January 30th, 2009 Asheville Lyric Opera Day and making an honorary Ashevillian of very special guest, baritone legend, Sherrill Milnes.

Mr. Milnes is more than duly famous for his many amazing baritone performances over a span of forty-five years beginning with his 1964 debut with the Boston Opera Company. In the same year he made his debut appearance with the Metropolitan Opera where he was to remain for hundreds of performances (including the first U.S. performance of Prokofiev’s Fiery Angel in 1965) up until his official retirement. He is considered by most to be the leading Verdi baritone of his generation.

He now shares his extensive knowledge and gifts with young operatic talent through the auspices of V.O.I.C.E. (Vocal and Operatic Intensive Creative Experience), which he founded in 2001. He gave a brief autobiographical talk and coached a Master class for six of WNC’s finest young singers at A-B Tech the next day, and turned out to be a thoroughly nice guy in the process. 

We were also blessed by the talented Ms. Angela Brown, the featured
soprano, stunning in a green dress that was more sensual confection than mere article of clothing, who created a glorious vocal tapestry rich in both its power and its easy grace.

An experienced and seasoned operatic soprano, she honored her audience well with selections from Tosca – the famous “Vissi d’arte” in which the Lady Tosca is bemoaning her fate as her lover is being hung; and from Aida – the “Ritorna vincitor”.

Also featured was Pavarotti protégé and tenor, Tonio DiPaolo, who offered us “Una furtive largima” from L’Elisir d’Amore with exemplary skill and whose version of “Nessun Dorma” from Puccini’s Turandot was so well and soulfully sung that it caused the very rafters to tremble with emotion. Here, indeed, was one of the high points of the evening!

Mr. DiPaolo also sang in duet with another of the evening’s stars, Mr.
David Malis, in a beautifully harmonic rendition of La Boheme’s enchanting “O Mimi, tu piu non torni”.

Mr. Malis, an accomplished baritone in his own right – he has also sung at the Met — delivered to us an excellent rendition of the audience favorite,” Largo al factotum della citti!” (Figaro! Figaro. FIG-aro!) from the Barber of Seville by Rossini, an aria familiar to Asheville Lyric Opera regulars due to last year’s exuberantly successful performance of this Rossini classic. Mr. Malis also sang the deeply melodic Mozart classic from another of the tales of Figaro, “Aprite un po’ quegl’occhi” from Le Nozze di Figaro.

These featured performers were amply backed and sometimes outshined by the virtuoso talents of the Asheville Lyric Opera Orchestra under the very able baton of very familiar and highly respected guest conductor, Dr. Robert Hart Baker, previously of Asheville, as all our Asheville Symphony crossover fans know, now – unfortunately for his many Asheville fans, of York, Pennsylvania and the York Symphony Orchestra, as well as many others.

It would be nice to hear his work a good deal more often.

And equally noteworthy in the orchestra itself are the pure and almost
pristine sounds of concertmistress, Corine Brouwer, and the harpist, Lelia Lattimore, who performed very well on a temperamental instrument in a cold room. I would also like to offer my congratulations to the steady rhythms and well-timed emphases of the percussion section. All in all this is a wonderful orchestra.

Perhaps the most familiar of the choral works of the evening, presented by the superb Asheville Lyric Opera Chorus under the baton of Michael Porter  Associate Conductor, was the “Va, pensiero, sull’ali dorate” from Verdi’s Nabucco.

But the highest point of the evening was undoubtedly the full company –joined unexpectedly by Mr. Milnes (!) - presentation of Verdi’s almost mandatory “Libiamo ne’ lieti calici” from La Traviata.

This very recognizable piece is a perfect closer with its joyous upbeat sounds and its glorious mix of beirgarten amiability and its almost elitist musical pinnacles. Filled with a little something for everyone and backed up by such marvelous talent, it is little wonder that this piece also served as the encore for what turned out to be a two (!) standing ovation showing from the Asheville Lyric Opera Company.

This was a fantastic and highly enjoyable show, so if you would like to
join such illustrious sponsors as the Grand Bohemian Hotel of Asheville, Harry’s Cadillac, Keller Williams Realty, WCQS radio, and many more in helping to keep this wondrous company alive and thriving in WNC, then please contact the ALO at

Asheville Lyric Opera
2 South Pack Square
Asheville, NC 28801
828-236-0670
info@ashevillelyric.org

(c) D. Elaine Calderin All rights reserved. 2009

Duly purchased and used w/permission