Author: Allan

Singin’ in the Rain – Musical

Type: Musical

Recommendation: It’s worth seeing. Old timey musicals are not really my preference but this one is a classic. I haven’t seen the movie but the stranger sitting next to me in the theater said she liked the live Village Theater version better than the movie.

Negatives: The story may not be as accessible to millennial like myself (but I’m an old soul) since this is based on the 1951 movie, which is based on the “roaring 1920s.”

Story, Script, and Lyrics: The story was about traditional silent movie Hollywood stars struggling with actually having to act/speak in “talkies” (talking motion pictures). A lot of the comedy was corny, old timey, slapstick, and/or campy but I guess it was a different time back then.

Cast and Theater Company: Village Theater consistently provides quality theatrical productions and this is no exception.

  • John David Scott: Really, no noteworthy comments. I did detect a lisp on a couple of lines but all around, he did well as the male lead.
  • Kathy Selden: Like John, I don’t have any noteworthy comments. All around, she played a great female lead.
  • Gabriel Corey: Provided much of the comic relief. Initially, I found his humor annoying but as the show progressed I warmed up to him. He was not Equity so I was pretty impressed at the quality of his performance. He was probably my favorite performer in this production.
  • Jessica Skerritt: She was very difficult to assess since her character was supposed to be annoying with a shrill voice. I’m so curious how she really sings/acts/speaks for more traditional roles.

Venue and Set: The audience ended up having to watch pre-recorded video instead of live-action drama during several scenes. It was a little annoying because I paid to watch live-action drama but this was probably a necessity because of the subject matter (silent films vs “talkies”). However, I was impressed with the real water raining on the stage while the main character danced soaking wet! Kudos for that Village Theater!

Music and Audio: Like every Village Theater production, the live music and audio engineering was high quality. I’m still trying to figure out how they were able to preserve the microphones during the rain scene! Despite all this, I was a bit disappointed the actors only pretended to play the piano and violin. This was after I saw “Pump Boys and Dinettes.”  But hey, you can’t be everything!

Price: $$ – Moderately Priced at $50-78 from the Village Theater Website

Dates:

  • November 10 — December 31, 2016 in Issaquah, WA
  • January 6 — 29, 2017 in Everett, WA

Seating: Assigned Seating

Link: http://www.villagetheatre.org/issaquah/singin-in-the-rain.php

Fly by Night – Musical

Type: Rock Musical

Recommendation: Yes but only if you’re into local theater productions that are mostly high talented (with some rough edges) but are also low budget. I will say that I bought the soundtrack shortly after the performance so that’s usually a good sign.

Negatives: As mentioned above, it was very low budget. Also, one of the character roles was not cast well according to vocal range.

Story, Script, and Lyrics: It’s a story of 2 opposite mid-western country bumpkin sisters moving to New York City and forming a love triangle with a guy. The characters in this main vein and other side storylines all try to find meaning during different phases of life.  It’s a very moving combination of journeys. I’ll admit, I did shed a tear (or two).

Cast and Theater Company: Reboot Theater Company provided a superb group of non-equity actors. They took liberties to do gender-neutral casting for 3 characters who were supposed to be male. I’ve noticed Seattle seems to like doing gender-neutral and color-blind casting.  For the most part, it worked out well except for one because the role was outside of her vocal range.

  • Mandy Rose Nichols: Adequately filled the narrator role. The narrator in this piece actually plays several minor characters as well. Mandy was able to transition between these characters and the narrator seamlessly.
  • Garrett Dill: Played the dorky but cute male lead. I was impressed with his ability to play guitar through the musical (even though he had to constantly look down at the strings during each chord change). It didn’t hurt that he was kinda hot too! ;-P
  • Tara Nix and Janet McWilliams: Such a great beautiful sister character duo! Despite playing opposite personalities, they were equal in both providing powerful voices and strong acting.
  • Kylee Gano: This was another gender bender that confused me a bit. Her character’s name was Joey so I wasn’t sure if she played a guy, a straight girl, or a lesbian. After listening to the soundtrack, I finally learned that she was supposed to play a guy. Other than the gender/orientation confusion, she fit well playing an eccentric anxious playwright.
  • Stacie Hart: I was not a fan of her character’s casting, which was supposed to be a grumpy old man. Honestly, it’s hard to imagine any woman adequately filing that role. Also, his solo song was definitely not within her vocal range.
  • Jeff Church: Initially, I wondered why they even had his character since he had so few lines. Later on in the second act, his role really blossomed and he actually presented the most moving part of the musical.

Venue and Set: This was performed at the Pocket Theater’s smaller venue called “The Slate.” It’s a tiny room in an old building that used to either be an elementary school or a federal immigration office. There was no ventilation so it got pretty stuffy inside the “theater.” Again, this was very low budget so the set/props were extremely austere (phones were imaginary). The room was so tiny, actors were sometimes a foot away from you and might have even touched you. Bathrooms were old. Drinks were allowed inside the set/audience.

Music and Audio: Live music with adequate volume. There were no microphones but the room was so small that it wasn’t necessary.

Price: $ – Cheap!

Dates: 11-4-2016 to 11-19-2016

Seating: Open seating

Link: http://www.reboottheatre.org/20162017-season