Hit or Miss | Cinderella

Hit or Miss

Reviews of the latest movies, plays, concerts and performances in and around town.

The Play:

Cinderella

What’s Going On:

Shiny ball gowns and glitter. Beef and Boards Dinner Theater simply sparkles as the enchanted world of Rogers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella is brought to life. Originally written for Julie Andrews in 1957, the slipper was then passed to Leslie Ann Warren in 1965 and again to pop star Brandy in 1997. But one thing remains the same; the notion that a simple wave of a wand can solve all of your problems.

It’s Like This:

When watching Cinderella through the starry eyes of an 8-year-old girl, there are three “must haves”:

1. The Princess must be beautiful. (Her personality, voice, hair and, of course, her gown.)

2. The Wicked Stepsisters must be, well, wicked. (They are, after all, the evil couplet keeping her from her prince.)

3. The magic must be magical. (The fairy Godmother’s tricks, the pumpkin coach, the Prince’s kiss…even though it makes little girls cover their eyes in mock embarrassment.)

When, at intermission, my 2nd grade guests turned to me and declared the show to be “Awesome!”, I knew Beef and Boards had cast its spell perfectly.

The lovely Lindsay Sutton is a delightful Cinderella. With the sweet, articulate voice that every good Cinderella must possess, Lindsay captivated the princesses at my table with her cascading hair and gracious nature. (And, I don’t know anything about typecasting, but she has the most perfectly dainty feet. So much so, that her glass slippers look like Barbie shoes!)

By contrast, the Step Sisters are simply horrid. Which makes them equally perfect for their roles. (Now, I always feel a bit nervous for those brave women who audition for the part of the ugly sisters; voluntarily subjecting themselves to being mocked.) But, I joined in the hearty laughter all around when Jeff Stockberger and Doug King took the stage with their hilariously affected girlish natures and ridiculously garish costumes. We were still chuckling at their antics long after the show had ended.

The rest of the cast is equally charming: The bumbling but well-intentioned King and his doting Queen, the wise and magical Godmother, the pompous and overly indulgent Stepmother, and of course, the handsome and deeply smitten Prince, along with the rest of the entertaining troupe and amazingly talented orchestra. The whole ensemble makes for a very enchanting performance.

See it? Or skip it?:

If you have a princess in your life, if she’s 8 or even 80, by all means, take her to see it. Beef and Boards reminds us that dreams really do come true. That is, if the shoe fits.

If it doesn’t, then you can always put on a tiara and dance.

Info:

Playing through July 1st. Tickets range from $36 to $59 with a $10 discount for kids ages 3-15. Includes dinner buffet. Visit www.beefandboards.com, or call 317-872-9664.

by Lisa Whitman (a.k.a Local Lisa)

HIt or Miss | Annie Get Your Gun

Hit or Miss

Reviews of the latest movies, plays, concerts and performances in and around town

The Play

Annie Get Your Gun

What’s Going On?

Beef and Boards Dinner Theatre once again delights audiences with the classic musical Annie Get Your Gun, onstage until May 8, 2011. Annie Get Your Gun, written by Herbert and Dorothy Fields, features music and lyrics by the legendary lyricist and composer, Irving Berlin.

It’s Like This

Annie Oakley, played by the charismatic and vocally talented Tiana Checchia, is a spunky and skilled shooter out selling game when she ends up in a shooting contest in the Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show. Her opponent, Frank Butler, made memorable by Curt Dale Clark, is as handsome as he is melodically gifted. It’s no wonder Annie falls in love with Frank at first sight... all without knowing the he’s the same man she’s bragging that she’ll beat.

The stage is set for a great show down by Buffalo Bill (Jeff Stockberger) and Charlie Davenport (J.R. Stuart), the loveable but slightly devious co-owners of the Wild West Show. Annie’s competitive nature gets the best of her and she proves to Frank that, “Anything You Can Do, I Can Do Better.” Annie’s win earns against Frank earns her co-billing and eventually top billing because “There’s No Business Like Show Business.” Frank then signs with a competing show and he and Annie once again find themselves in a shooting contest.

The audience will enjoy Sitting Bull (Jack Milo) who also has joined the competing show to give them an edge over Annie. This doesn’t stop Buffalo Bill and Charlie as they try to persuade Sitting Bull to invest his recent financial windfall in their show. Sitting Bull lives by a few rules. One being, “Never invest in show business.” After witnessing Annie’s skills, he not only changes his mind but adopts Annie as his Indian daughter and helps her realize she and Frank belong together. Annie then has to decide what she wants to win most — the contest or Frank’s heart. She realizes, “You Can’t Get A Man With A Gun.”

See it? Or Skip It?

This highly entertaining musical has something for everyone, dueling sharpshooters, crooked businessmen, high society ladies and adorable children, all with tremendous vocal talent. The band skillful accompaniment adds to the immense fun to be had by audiences of all ages.

by Nicole Kearney Cooper

Hit or Miss | Sucker Punch

Hit or Miss

Reviews of the latest movies, plays, concerts and performances in and around town

The Movie

Sucker Punch, IMAX

The Players

Emily Browning, Vanessa Hudgens, Abbie Cornish, Jena Malone, Jamie Chung, Carla Gugino, Oscar Isaac, John Hamm, Scott Glen, Richard Cetrone, Gerard Plunkett and a lot of other actors/actresses playing an array of interesting roles like Lobotomy Nurse, Tommy Soldier and Bitter Clipboard Nurse.

What’s Going On?

As Babydoll, Emily Browning plays a young woman faced with a series of unfortunate events that land her in a mental institution. With her wicked stepfather and a greedy insider played by Richard Cetrone conspiring to keep her in there for good, Babydoll plans an intriguing escape plan along with Sweet Pea, Rocket, Amber and Blondie — four other unfortunate wards.

It’s Like This

During the first 15 to 20 minutes of the movie, director Zack Snyder delivered a masterpiece when it comes to movie-going experiences. The combination of cinematography, the music and lighting — not a word of dialogue — immediately sucked you into the plot (No pun intended. Really. That just came out). With that intro alone, Snyder gives movie-goers something quite original. What follows is a movie packed with action as Babydoll copes with reality by escaping into a fantastical world where she and her girl-team kick the butts of the bad guys in the form of giants, aliens, zombie soldiers and fire-breathing dragons.

See it? Or Skip It?

OK. This is a loaded question. If you’re a male — from teenage years on up — and you’re into the action hero/videogame stuff, there’s no doubt you should check it out. When I went to the Hamilton 16 IMAX in Noblesville, the crowd definitely was dominated by young men. I’m guessing about 75 percent. And the teen boys in my group came out uttering words like “awesome” in breathless tones. While the movie went over OK with the gals, there was plenty of debate about the portrayal of women as victims. And, even though the characters were heroines in the fantasy sequences, they were all dolled up with heavy makeup, sexy black clothing, high-heeled boots and sucking lollipops while firing away at the enemy. (Boy stuff). There also was plenty of debate over the blurring of the lines between reality and fantasy. Overall, Sucker Punch is a psychedelic cinematic adventure — with incredible songs like Jefferson Airplane’s White Rabbit (“go ask Alice”) — that make it worth the journey to the big screen.

by Shari Scales Finnell

The Gospel According to James | IRT Review

“The Gospel According to James” | Indiana Repertory Theatre

Playing through April 10, 2011

Go to www.irtlive.com for schedule, ticket prices

What It’s About: “The Gospel According to James” by Charles Smith and directed by Chuck Smith graces the stage of the Indiana Repertory Theater (IRT) until April 10, 2011. The play examines the subjective recollections of James Cameron (Andre De Shields) and Marie/Mary Ball (Linda Kimbrough), and their connected past. The play is historical fiction, told more than 50 years after the 1930 Marion, Indiana, lynching of Abe Smith and Tommy Shipp, two young Black men charged with murdering Claude Deeter, a white man. James and Marie/Mary are the only remaining survivors of the lynching. James, the third intended victim life was spared, “When a voice from heaven spoke.”

That voice was Mary’s father, Hoot. He subsequently spent four years in jail for accessory for murder. He was later pardoned by Governor Evan Bayh. Mary moved away, changed her name to Marie and sealed off her memories about the events of that night. However, she has held tight to her love for Abe, whose child she bore and gave up for adoption following his lynching. Cameron and Marie/Mary share their versions the events leading to the lynching, the only memory not in dispute. The memories are subjective according to the teller. Marie accuses James of financially profiting off the deaths of her beloved Abe and Tommy. While James contends he is honoring the dead and the past by keeping their memory alive so folks will, “Never forget.”

Highlights: The play’s most powerful moments come as Marie/Mary demands that James stop telling his “lies.” He offers to stop telling his story if Marie/Mary will carry his burden and begin telling hers. Marie cannot, as she no longer knows what is real and what she has made up to comfort herself. James and Marie’s recollections are vividly bought to life in flashbacks by an outstanding cast. Stand-out performances are given by by Abe (Tyler Jacob Rollinson), Bea, Marie/Mary’s mother (Diane Kondrat), and Hoot, Marie/Mary’s Father (Christopher Jon Martin).

See it or Skip It? This is a definite must-see that doesn’t wrap up neatly. It leaves the audience knowing that the only undisputable fact is two young Black men were lynched. Somewhere between the differing viewpoints of the memories of James and Marie/Mary lies the truth.

by Nicole Kearney

How was "Hairspray"? | Beef and Boards Review

Hairspray, the play

Beef and Board Dinner Theatre

Playing through March 27. Tickets range from $36 to $59, including dinner buffet. Log on www.beefandboards.com or call (317) 872-9664.

What’s Going On?

Beef and Boards Dinner Theatre pulls out the big hair, the big dresses and the bigger than life momma-and-daughter duo of Edna and Tracy Turnblad to present its own version of the popular musical Hairspray. With so many devoted followers of the Tony Award-winning Broadway production and the ensuing films (1988 and 2007), it seems like the local venue would have to go over the top in meeting our expectations. We just can’t help it. It’s in our DNA to make comparisons.

It’s Like This

The hair. The hair. Amazing, gigantic hair everywhere. With the exception of momma Edna, the characters all managed to keep that stuff on their heads. It must be a girl thing. Yes, Dan Dowling Jr. as Edna had a little bit of a wig mishap in one of the numbers but he pulled it off with plenty of panache and got that baby situated back on his (uh, her???) head.

But enough about the hair –– on with the review of the musical.

The opening number sung by Jill Sullivan caught me a bit off guard as I tried to adjust to her characterization of the beloved Tracy. I’m sorry. There was that comparison thing. I had to shake images of Ricki Lake and Nikki Blonsky out of my head. Once that was done, I adjusted quite nicely, thank you very much. By the next number, Jill had me completely won over with the endearing genuine attributes that have us adoring the character of Tracy so much.

While Dan was hilarious as Edna, I fell in love with John Vessels’ characterization of Wilbur Turnblad. John gave Wilbur just the right dose of nerdiness and quirkiness. Carly Vernon’s Penny Pingleton and Jarvis B. Manning Jr.’s Seaweed J. Stubbs provided two other standout performances as color-blind teenagers falling in love.

It’s a musical, of course. And the top vocals for the night undoubtedly were possessed by backup singers (Teanna Berry, Shelese Franklin and Gnomi Gre) and Angela Birchett’s Motormouth Maybelle. If you want to pass out awards for dancing, by all means hand the first one to Jarvis as Seaweed.

In the midst of the comedy, the dancing and singing, the overall theme still hits strong — reminding us of the racial tension that characterized America’s era of segregation.

See it? Or Skip It?

Of course, you should see it. We can never get enough of Hairspray, and Beef and Boards pulls off a worthwhile toe-tapping experience. Kudos to director Eddie Curry. However, just a word of advice should you go. If one of the characters asks you to dance at the end of the production (as they did the night I went but with no takers), by all means get up there and shake it up a bit. It would be the icing on the cake of an overall delectable experience. 

by Shari Sclaes Finnell