Round the World Stage

Alternative NUTCRACKERS To Start Your Holiday Season Off Right

November 24, 2021 / Tami Shaloum / 0 Comments

Have you been jonesing for a way to spice up your beloved holiday classics? Do visions of Sugar Plum Fairies dance through your head? Are you dreaming of kitchen appliances turning into princes? Sure, you could go watch any of the major NYC dance companies put on a great show. But if you want something a little bit different, then groove on over to one of these non-traditional Nutcrackers to get you in the holiday spirit.

First up is The Bang Group‘s 19th season of Nut/Cracked, coming to the Flea Theater December 16-18. Bringing together many different styles of dance, it’s a contemporary take on the classic story, with jazzy arrangements of some of Tchaikovsky’s tunes along with classical ones. Choreographer David Parker attempts to unmoor E. T. A. Hoffman’s story from its roots with a cross-genre vaudeville. What results is sure to upend your notion of the classic dance piece.

Next is The Hip Hop Nutcracker, currently on a 34-city tour and stopping at Brooklyn’s Kings Theatre on December 19. Directed and choreographed by Jennifer Weber, The Hip Hop Nutcracker is a fun mash-up of the contemporary and the classical. It’s still set to Tchaikovsky’s classical score (with some hip hop flourishes), but instead of ballet and tutus, it’s got breakdancing and sneakers. With legendary rapper Kurtis Blow as MC, this is definitely not your grandma’s Nutcracker.

Finally, there is the 11th season of Company XIV’s baroque burlesque ballet, Nutcracker Rouge. The triumphant return of the perennial show comes after a 19-month closure of the Bushwick-based theater. More Nutcracker-themed than a true adaptation of the story, Austin McCormick’s Nutcracker Rouge is a wildly decadent cabaret featuring some of the city’s most talented dancers, singers, aerialists, and circus and burlesque performers, not to mention visionary costume and set designer Zane Pihlström. Last year’s streaming show was a fine placeholder for the live version. But after the year we’ve had, experiencing Nutcracker Rouge in person has never tasted so sweet.

The ladies of Disney get their due in “The Fairest”

October 23, 2021 / Tami Shaloum

Snow White may have been animated by men, but it’s the women who worked at Walt Disney Studios in the 1930s that gave her life. The Fairest, the first play in a two part series called A Venomous Color, is an historical fiction about five artists who worked in “The Nunnery,” the all-woman ink and paint department, toiling long hours in the 100-degree heat to painstakingly finish “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.” Produced by streaming theater company Thirdwing, it’s the second show in the company’s repertoire to try out a new way of making theater more accessible.

Thirdwing touts itself as “the most affordable way to get back to the theatre” and “the only streaming service that cuts down your screen time.” How does it accomplish this? A Venomous Color is presented in two parts, Part I: The Fairest, which is on stage at The Wild Project through October 24, and Part II: Burbank, which all ticket holders can view as episodic teleplays on Thirdwing’s streaming platform starting in December. As a bonus, anyone with a membership can view all of Thirdwing’s content, which includes The Female Genius (which I wrote about last year). By combining access to both live theater and streaming, Thirdwing is helping bridge the gap for those who may not yet feel comfortable returning to the theater but still want to experience it. And with subscription packages starting at $4.99, it’s one of the most affordable ways to do so.

But back to The Fairest, which is a really compelling story told with a feminist angle, and still sadly relevant today. The idea that women’s work is undervalued is the main theme. The women of “The Nunnery” feel replaceable and underappreciated. Relegated to an airless room, forced to work mandatory overtime, and paid peanuts, they are overlooked and disrespected by the so-called genius male animators. The only one in their corner is Hazel Sewell (Meghan E. Jones), the kind but stern manager who also happens to be Walt Disney’s sister-in-law, and even she holds little sway with the higher ups at the studio.

At times, The Fairest takes a turn into psychological drama. Frances (Sivan Gordon-Buxbaum) gets promoted when Helen (Emma DeCorsey), frustrated by a sudden change after putting in months of work, storms out and quits. When Frances pulls an all-nighter to catch up with the demanding schedule, she starts to imagine she is talking to the real Snow White (Winnifred Bonjean-Alpart). She is further tormented by the fact that Margie, the Disney Princess-perfect model for Snow White, is engaged to the top animator, Arthur Babbitt, a man Frances admires but who doesn’t even know she exists.

Playwright and Director Cameron Darwin Bossert (also the mastermind of Thirdwing) has written a smart and polished script, and treats his subject with the utmost respect. None of the women portrayed smack of stereotype. They are fully formed individuals with hopes and dreams, not all the same.

Under Bossert’s direction, even some last-minute casting changes were mostly seamless. The character of Grace, a fellow inker who tries to befriend the manic Frances, is normally played by Sara Ruth Brown. Taylor Cozort, who plays the sarcastic Betty Ann, stepped in when Brown got sick, and the character of Betty Ann was played by Kelley Lord, who had no trouble diving right in.

The Fairest is a dark bit of history about the early days of a now-beloved studio, and it’s fascinating to see this underbelly. I’m already looking forward to the sequel, Burbank, which is about a labor strike at Disney. Maybe, finally, these ladies will get some respect.

The International Puppet Fringe Festival brings joy to audiences young and old

August 16, 2021 / Tami Shaloum

The sheer diversity of puppetry as an art form is something that doesn’t often get its proper due. Because of its association with children, I think, puppetry doesn’t always get the respect it deserves as a fine art. The International Puppet Fringe Festival is here to change that. This series of shows, films, exhibits, and panels produced by Teatro SEA, Grupo Morán (The Morán Group), and The Clemente Soto Velez Cultural & Education Center will renew your appreciation for the art form. On top of that, it does a great job of catering to both kids and adults. There is something for every kind of puppet taste and plenty of room for discovery.

Teatro SEA, Los Grises/The Gray Ones
Photo by George Riveron

Puppetry is so much more than hand puppets (not that there’s anything wrong with that!) and the Puppet Fringe NYC sets out to prove that with a festival full of marionettes, shadow puppets, and body puppets. The latter is exemplified best in the impressive Teatro SEA show Los Grises/The Gray Ones. The Latino Theatre for Young Audiences employs eight full body puppets that represent the elderly community of the Lower East Side. Through music, movement, and a bit of humor, the puppeteers demonstrate the unique joys and frustrations that come with reaching a more mature age.

Deborah Hunt, La Macanuda
Photo by George Riveron

Deborah Hunt’s The Macanuda showcases the Puerto Rico-based artist’s unique whimsy and surreal, childlike drawings. The Red Macanuda is a body/mask that moves as part of her and Hunt employs many other hand-made and colorful objects to create a visually stunning story. There is a fire-breathing sea monster, a fish head with a scroll inside that unspools to reveal a random assortment of items inside the fish, and a magical suitcase theatre with a crank to move the scenes along.

Chinese Theatre Works, The Triple Zhongkui Pageant
Photo by George Riveron

The Triple Zhongkui Pageant by Chinese Theatre Works goes big and small with a giant hand puppet (manipulated by three puppeteers!) as well as miniature versions to represent Zhong Kui, the judge of the dead in Chinese mythology. This piece employs spoken-word, opera, dance, and song to apply an ancient story to contemporary times.

There are many more events and performances to check out as well as an ongoing exhibit called Puppets of New York at the Museum of the City of New York through March 2022. This exhibit features a sampling of some of the creations by Jim Henson, Julie Taymor, Basil Twist, and puppets featured in the Tony award-winning musical Avenue Q. All throughout the month of August, there will also be virtual programming at the Puppet Fringe NYC Facebook page. So bring out your inner child and let the puppets entertain you.

The Extremely Grey Line helps you cross over to the other side

July 4, 2021 / Tami Shaloum

Elizagrace Madrone as the CycloPomp
Photo by Mallory Kinney

I’ve always enjoyed a nice walk in the rain. Of course, it wasn’t meant to rain but it sure did add to the macabre mood of The Extremely Grey Line, which is essentially a tour of the West Village to find your final resting place. Produced by 23.5° Tilt and part of New Ohio Theatre’s Ice Factory Festival, The Extremely Grey Line is a humorous dig at death, gentrification, and the absurd value of real estate.

There are three ways to experience The Extremely Grey Line: on foot, by bike, and sitting in the theater. All three end up outside the theater for a final celebration. I chose the walking tour and, despite some slightly misty rain, enjoyed ambling around the tony West Village. Our guide was the Unrealtor (Alejandra Venancio), dressed in a sickly green skirt suit, who led our small group through the streets while she narrated about old gravesites, memorials, and the newest and hottest places where we, audience members, can be buried. Essentially, a real estate tour but for a more permanent home.

Alejandra Venancio as the Unrealtor
Photo by Mallory Kinney

One downside to being on the street: At one point, the Unrealtor stops the tour to excuse herself and slip away, while another cast member plays a radio call that sounds mysteriously like the Unrealtor. However, the sound was muted somewhat by street noise and it was almost unintelligible. I’m sure it was supposed to add something to the experience but it was lost.

Because we would periodically stop to let the Unrealtor speak about a headstone here or history of some burial ground there, I found myself noticing things I never had before while walking through the same streets. A playground with an empty pool, a bunch of graffiti, closed storefronts–the effects of the pandemic all around this upscale neighborhood. Despite the emptiness, there still are beautiful brick and brownstone houses, flower gardens, and signs of “Black Lives Matter” all around. It reminds me that while it must be nice to be able to afford a place here, no place is untouched by the pandemic. It kind of parallels The Extremely Grey Line — while we all go through life differently, we end up in the same place. The where, in the end, is meaningless.

There’s more to come at the Ice Factory Festival. Next up: Kim Loo Gets a Redo. If you’re so inclined, you can arrive at the theater early for the interactive sound installation, An Endless Loop of Gratitude. This five-minute experience allows you to listen to and speak on what gratitude means to you and others.

Love is love in “Lilies, or the Revival of a Romantic Drama”

May 18, 2021 / Tami Shaloum

Big lies and religious repression in a small French Canadian town threaten to smother the flames of love between two young men in Lilies, or the Revival of a Romantic Drama. This all-male Off-Broadway revival of the 1987 play by Michel Marc Bouchard (with English translation by Linda Gaboriau) is produced by The Drama Company NYC and directed by Artistic Director Andrew Benvenuti. This timeless story of passion and redemption resonates today.

Hartley Parker and Florimond Le Goupil-Maier
*Photo by Andrew Daniel Dick*

It’s 1952 and Simon Doucet (JJ Miller) has just been released from prison after a 30-year sentence. He has always maintained his innocence and now he’s back to visit his old schoolmate, now Bishop, Jean Bilodeau (Marc Verzatt) to settle the score. He forces the bewildered bishop to watch a reenactment of what transpired all those years ago.

In a play-within-the play, we are back in 1912 Roberval, Canada at Saint Sebastian’s School for Boys, during a rehearsal of The Martyrdom of Saint Sebastian. Young Simon (Hartley Parker) is playing the titular saint and the young Count Vallier De Tilly (Florimond Le Goupil-Maier) is playing his friend, Sanae. During a break in rehearsal, we see that Simon and Vallier are more than just classmates. They are lovers who have been forced to hide in the shadows for fear of castigation. The only one who knows is the arrogant and pious Bilodeau (Grant Hale), who catches them in the act. Secretly obsessed with Simon, Bilodeau threatens to hold this secret over their heads.

Bill Morton and Grant Hale
*Photo by Andrew Daniel Dick*

Meanwhile, Vallier’s mother, the Countess Marie-Laure De Tilly (Bill Morton), has lost her mind ever since her husband left them in Canada five years ago and absconded to France. She holds tight to the delusion that he will return one day. She believes they are still rich and powerful aristocrats, even though her husband left them penniless. All her hopes lie in a recent arrival in town, the rich Parisienne Lydie-Anne De Rozier (J.P. Ross), who will surely have news of her husband’s return. Lydie-Anne, however, has her sights set on the handsome Simon, who has spurned Vallier under threat of a beating from his father. The web of lies and deceit wrought in this small village unravel one night as Simon and Vallier commit a series of acts that will test their bond and threaten their lives.

Hartley Parker and J.P. Ross
*Photo by Andrew Daniel Dick*

Lilies is one of those plays that, despite taking place 100 years ago, still feels relevant today. That is helped by the fact that Parker and Le Goupil-Maier have great chemistry as Simon and Vallier. Sadly, it’s still important to tell these stories because, even with all the progress society has made, LGBTQ rights are still being threatened worldwide. Lilies adds another crucial voice to the litany of lives destroyed by anti-gay crusaders.

Go On A Trip Without Leaving Your Room

January 3, 2021 / Tami Shaloum

Explore with Xavi, Joseph, and Monsieur de Maistre
in “Journey Around My Bedroom”
Photo by New Ohio Theatre

Journey Around My Bedroom is virtual children’s theater at its most charmant. Inspired by the book, “A Journey Around My Room” by 18th-century Frenchman Xavier de Maistre, Journey Around My Bedroom takes the audience on an adventure inside one single room using puppets, music, and one extraordinary aeronautical machine.

Journey Around My Bedroom begins with Xavi (Ashley Kristeen Vega), a young girl living in New York City right now (aka pandemic times), who just wants to get to the moon in her video game. Her mom (Laura Kay, also the narrator), exasperated by all the screen time her daughter has been getting being stuck at home, finally coaxes her to bed. No sooner does she settle in with her dog, Joseph, than a mysterious figure appears in her bedroom. French explorer Xavier de Maistre (Starr Kirkland) has crash landed his Amazing Flying Contraption (patent pending) to teach Xavi all about Room Travel.

Split screen with de Maistre, Xavi, and Starr Kirkland interacting with audience
Photo by New Ohio Theatre

The play, adapted by Dianne Nora and directed, is performed on Zoom with completely voluntary audience participation. Director Jaclyn Biskup pulls off a grand technical achievement as none of the performers are in the same room. Instead, a split screen and duplicate dioramas and puppets (marvelously done by Myra G. Reavis) are used to approximate a continuous set and characters that are manipulated by all three performers.

Music is incorporated in dynamic ways, as original songs by Hyeyoung Kim are sung by the characters as well as some members of the audience as part of a sing-along. The children (and their adults, of course) get a few other chances to participate at specific times throughout the 35-minute run. Otherwise, it’s cameras and microphones off while the show goes on.

Xavier’s Amazing Flying Contraption (patent pending)
Photo by New Ohio Theatre

Journey Around My Bedroom is a very sweet and charming way to convey the message that, even though we’re all cooped up in our homes, we can still find ways to travel using our imaginations.

Journey Around My Bedroom is presented by New Ohio Theatre for Young Minds live through January 10, 2021 and then on demand January 11 to February 11, 2021.

Bring dance, cocktails, and burlesque to your living room with “Nutcracker Rouge Cocktails & Burlesque at Home”

December 7, 2020 / Tami Shaloum

For all you theater-goers missing the ultra-glitzy decadence of Company XIV, “Nutcracker Rouge Cocktails & Burlesque at Home” is here to save you from the pandemic theater doldrums. This streaming version of the Bushwick-based dance theater’s classic annual extravaganza, “Nutcracker Rouge,” includes eight short episodes that feature a different act from the show paired with a craft cocktail tutorial.

Marcy Richardson in “Candied Violet”
Photo by *Alexander Sargent*

New episodes are released regularly from now until New Year’s Eve. I recently had the pleasure of viewing the first three and I can tell you they are extremely high quality productions, featuring the standard fare you love about Company XIV — barely clad beauties, copious amounts of glitter, a kickass soundtrack, and that special blend of dance, circus arts, and burlesque.

Lilin and LEXXE in “Red Velvet”
Photo by Alexander Sargent

I, for one, have missed watching the gorgeous and talented humans of Company XIV, not to mention the sensory experience of being inside their theater. “Nutcracker Rouge Cocktails & Burlesque at Home” is certainly the next best thing aside from actually being there. The episodes bring to mind many past productions, especially as they are filmed inside the theater.

Jacoby Pruitt drinking Red Velvet
*Photo by Alexander Sargent*

“Candied Violet” brings back opera-singing aerial performer Marcy Richardson in an aerial hoop act, accompanied by a namesake cocktail lovingly mixed by Sam Urdang. “Red Velvet” features extremely flexible burlesque performer Lilin, accompanied by singer LEXXE and bartender Jacoby Pruitt. “Turkish Delight” is another aerial performance by a bejeweled and corseted Troy Lingelbach. The highly complex bespoke cocktail is seductively mixed by Erin Dillon.

Erin Dillon mixing Turkish Delight
*Photo by Alexander Sargent*

View the official teaser and get information about the various packages for purchase. Subscribers get unlimited on-demand streaming through January 31, 2021. If you really want to treat yourself and get the full experience, the $1,600 VIP Luxe Package includes 24 spirits, liqueurs, and wines with accompanying garnishes and bitters to mix your own versions of all the cocktails featured in the episodes. Plus, you get a set of gold-plated barware. A little over the top, yes, but it’s the ultimate indulgence from the company that specializes in the art of decadence.

Readymade Cabaret 2.0: A new kind of interactive theater

November 15, 2020 / Tami Shaloum

Man, I miss live theater! I’m not talking about virtual, screen-between-you-and-the-action live theater. I’m talking about in-person, alive theater, where you can see the sweat on the performer’s face and feel the spray of their spit on your hand. I miss everything about it–how it’s always just a bit too chilly, how you’re always just a bit too close to your seatmate, the simple gesture of someone handing you a program. I even miss the music that’s piped in through the speakers before the show begins, fueling the anticipation of what will either be a dud or a revelation. Either way, you get to escape a little bit for an hour or two. The lights dim and nothing else matters besides what goes on between you and the stage.

I think we can all agree that virtual theater is not ideal but, in these pandemic times, we all have to make sacrifices. I’ve seen some decent attempts at socially distanced theater, and some that are riddled with technical glitches and audio failures. Not to mention some performances are extremely limited by the video platforms containing them. Perhaps one day virtual theater will be an art form studied in school, but I have a feeling there will be a collective sigh of relief when we no longer have to experience theater on our computers.

Marisa LaRuffa (L) as Amy and Christopher Morriss (R) as Peter

Until that day comes, This Is Not A Theatre Company is doing the best they can to fill the void. An experiential theater company who have done well pivoting to this new format, TINATC have created Readymade Cabaret 2.0 with a grant from the Venturous Theatre Fund. A cross between Marcel Duchamp’s concept of readymade art (see: the urinal as sculpture) and Dadaism, Readymade Cabaret is a series of randomly chosen pieces of disconnected performance art spontaneously strung together in a seemingly meaningless way, where it’s up to you, the audience, to create the meaning.

Kara Green (L) as Dr. Burton and Lipica Shah (R) as Dr. Pearl

Not only does the audience formulate the meaning, they choose how the piece is performed. Twenty-something short vignettes–some dialogue, some movement, some musical–are chosen by audience members who step up to roll a set of virtual dice. The resulting number corresponds to a different vignette performed on the spot. The whole thing is hosted on a platform called Shindig and it’s meant to be social–you can go into a private chat room with friends or strangers. You can choose to be private if you’re shy, but part of the fun is having your video on and participating. There are ways to participate other than rolling the dice, such as in the aleatory music and Chance Dance pieces, which are improvised using suggestions that the audience types into chat boxes.

Jonathan Matthews performing a Dada poem

Before the show begins, Director Erin Mee makes something of the fact that Dada emerged in response to the horrors of World War I. It was formed to challenge notions of traditional art but also to have some fun in light of the rise of right-wing nationalism in Europe. It was absurd but also optimistic. How apt that they chose this moment to re-energize the art form. Indeed, Readymade Cabaret 2.0 is pure, silly fun. You don’t have to think too much about it–or you can if you choose to. That’s the beauty of Dada–you have the freedom to make of it what you want.

The outcome of the play is determined by a roll of the dice

Readymade Cabaret 2.0 runs through December 6, 2020. Tickets are at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/readymade-cabaret-20-tickets-123960554355.

Theater in the time of social distancing

March 30, 2020 / Tami Shaloum

Somewhere in the eye of this pandemic hurricane, there are small independent theater companies trying to adapt to these crazy times by going online. They recognize the dire straits the theater world is in by being shut out of physical spaces, and the need for people to continue to have arts and culture in their lives, and so they are occupying online spaces instead.

**Life on Earth** by This Is Not A Theatre Company

One example is This Is Not A Theatre Company, which is producing two virtual theatrical experiences this week and next for free: An interactive audio play you listen to in your bathtub called Play in Your Bathtub: An Immersive Audio Spa for Physical Distancing; and Life on Earth, an interactive, multilingual adaptation of Charles Mee’s play Heaven on Earth with which you participate on Discord, a video and chat app.

THIRDWING and the streaming of theater
If you had told me a month ago that the future of theater would be on a streaming platform not unlike Netflix, I would not have believed you. But digital theater company Thirdwing is doing just that, and it’s perfect for these COVID-19 times. Way before the current crisis forced everyone indoors, creator Cameron Darwin Bossert had envisioned a platform where users can watch plays filmed specifically for the small screen and then go to a theater to watch them live, all available through a membership that costs a fraction of a Netflix subscription and theater ticket combined.

Amy Lynn Stewart *(left)* as Gertrude Stein and Meghan E. Jones (right) as Alice B. Toklas in “A Rose is a Rose” by Thirdwing

Inspired by the teleplays of the mid-twentieth century, Thirdwing officially launched on International Women’s Day after a successful Kickstarter fundraising campaign. The date is apropos because the first series of plays available on the platform is titled The Female Genius. The seven-part series, written by Rachel Carey and directed by Darwin Bossert, tells the story of a different acclaimed woman writer in history spanning 200 years from Mary Shelley, author of Frankenstein, to Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling.

A run at The Wild Project April 14-18 was supposed to accompany the release of The Female Genius on the streaming platform. Unfortunately, that will not be happening, at least for the time being. But you can still stream the plays on Thirdwing. Currently streaming is the seven-and-a-half minute “A Rose is a Rose,” which explores the complicated relationship between Gertrude Stein and her live-in lover Alice B. Toklas. Starting April 14, Thirdwing will be releasing a new episode every night through April 18.

In addition to The Female Genius, Thirdwing is also developing two other projects: UN and The Fairest. Other content includes “Vision Board,” a behind-the-scenes documentary series with the artistic team behind The Female Genius, and “Shop Talk,” interviews with theater actors about their craft, including John Turturro and Danny Burstein.

Thirdwing allows new users a free 7-day trial before joining. If you want to purchase a subscription, it costs $3.99 a month or $45 a year and includes a ticket to the live show at The Wild Project. You can also use the promo code WILD for 10% off a monthly subscription ($3.59/mo). All proceeds for the first six months will go to The Wild Project NYC.

It’s more important than ever to support local, independent theater companies and small theater venues. This will ensure they will continue to rise up as the vital arts and culture we so desperately need after this storm has finally passed.

The Artist Will Be With You In A Moment

March 15, 2020 / Tami Shaloum

Being in the audience has never been an entirely safe bet for those who want to just sit back, relax, and enjoy the show. For Parallel Exit’s art gallery/clown show, The Artist Will Be With You In A Moment, the risk of joining has never been greater. No matter where in the audience you choose to sit, no spot is safe from performance artist Joel Jeske. Created and written by Jeske, and performed by Jeske and about half the audience, this is a show that keeps you on your toes.

Directed by Mark Lonergan, Artistic Director of Parallel Exit, The Artist Will Be With You In A Moment make the artist the art itself. Beginning when the audience files into the theater (after being ushered through a bizarre pseudo art exhibit), Jeske is literally sitting on a pedestal, statue-like. After comically being helped off the pedestal by a hapless audience member, Jeske proceeds with about 20 vignettes over the next hour or so that demonstrate his trademark straight-faced silliness and physical performance art.

There are a fair share of laughs and the occasional embarrassing moment as Jeske handpicks various audience members, sometimes making them the butt of the joke, sometimes being a part of the joke himself. Everyone is fair game; at one point the entire audience is involved. The Artist Will Be With You In A Moment is a great reminder of the freedom that comes when you can just let go and be a part of the art.

The Artist Will Be With You In A Moment was scheduled to play at The A.R.T./New York Theatres through March 29, 2020. Unfortunately, due to the health crisis, the show had to end its run early. Consider donating to the A.R.T. Theater or Parallel Exit and supporting non-profit theater.