Bill Hanney’s award-winning North Shore Music Theatre (NSMT) concludes the 2018 Subscription Season with Broadway’s big, fat, hit musical, HAIRSPRAY, playing for two-weeks only from Tuesday, October 30 thru Sunday, November 11, 2018.
“I cannot think of more satisfying way to end this record-breaking season than with a bubbly, eye-popping, and powerful production of Hairspray,” said Bill Hanney, NSMT owner and producer. “The final show of the subscription season has to be like a fantastic dessert. It needs to be memorable, put a smile on your face, fill you up, and make you want to come back for more. This hysterical and heartwarming show is a favorite of mine, and with Blake Hammond, Brooke Shapiro and this amazing cast under the direction of Jeff Whiting, I know we have the recipe for success!”
HAIRSPRAY, winner of the 2003 Tony Award for ‘Best Musical,’ is piled bouffant-high with laughter, romance, and infectious musical numbers. Set in Baltimore, 1962, Tracy Turnblad is a big girl with big hair and an even bigger dream: to dance her way onto TV, and into the heart of teen idol Link Larkin. Tracy’s audition makes her a local star and soon she is using her new-found fame to fight for something bigger than her hair – racial integration. HAIRSPRAY is an irresistible, feel-good show with a Tony Award-winning book by Mark O’Donnell and Thomas Meehan and a Tony Award-winning score by Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman featuring the hit songs “Welcome To The ‘60s,” “You Can’t Stop The Beat,” “Mamma, I’m A Big Girl Now,” “I Know Where I’ve Boon,” and many more.
The cast of HAIRSPRAY will be led by Blake Hammond as Edna Turnblad and Brooke Shapiro as Tracy Turnblad. Blake Hammond is stepping into the role of Edna Turnblad once more having played her in the Broadway company of Hairspray. He has also appeared on Broadway in Living on Love, First Date, Sister Act, Elf, Billy Elliot, The Lion King, The Music Man, Kiss Me Kate, and On The Town. His Off-Broadway credits include When Pigs Fly, Carnival and Do Re Mi at Encores. Other credits include National Tours of Something Rotten, Cinderella, The Addams Family, and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. Brooke Shapiro returns to North Shore Music Theatre where she was last seen as Jan in the 2014 production of Grease. She has performed off-Broadway in My Big Gay Italian Midlife Crisis, The Calico Buffalo, and did the first NYC reading of Love in Hate Nation (a new musical by Joe Iconis). Brooke has also performed in regional theaters across the country including Goodspeed Opera House, Cape Playhouse, Zach Theatre, Florida Studio Theatre, and Gateway Playhouse.
Performances are October 30 thru November 11, Tue – Thurs at 7:30 pm, Fri & Sat at 8 pm, matinees Wed, Sat and Sun at 2 pm. For tickets and information call (978) 232-7200, visit nsmt.org, or visit the box office at 62 Dunham Rd., Beverly, MA.
Joe Kinosian, the original star and co-creator of the Off-Broadway sensation Murder for Two will lead the Merrimack Repertory Theatre (MRT) cast of the musical-comedy whodunit October 17 – November 11 at the Nancy L. Donahue Theatre at Liberty Hall, according to Artistic Director Sean Daniels and Executive Director Bonnie J. Butkas.
Murder for Two, framed by the authors, Kinosian and Kellen Blair, as The Marx Brothers meet Agatha Christie, will be the second show of MRT’s 40th Anniversary Season and its 264th production since 1979.
“A hilarious musical whodunit,” according to The New Yorker, Murder for Two played Off-Broadway for nearly two years and earned a slew of Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle awards and nominations. The New York Times called the show, “Ingenious! A snazzy double-act.”
Making his New England debut in the show, Kinosian plays all six of the suspects in the murder mystery, and he will be joined by Martin Landry as the detective in this original musical with book and music by Kinosian and book and lyrics by Blair. JC Clementz will direct.
Part Vaudeville, part murder mystery spoof, Murder for Two features one murder, two actors, six suspects, and one piano, wildly shared by both actors. In the zany story, every guest has a motive. Was it the prima ballerina, the widow, the niece, the psychiatrist, or even the detective? The two actors play 13 roles in the homage to everything from Agatha Christie to “Murder She Wrote” to the board game Clue.
A veteran of more than 700 performances in the role, Kinosian said his grandmother showed him his first Marx Brothers film as preschooler. “Their anarchic combination of intellectual screwball wordplay and physical zaniness has never stopped appealing to me. Like Vaudeville, we definitely wanted to channel that comedically broad ‘anything for a laugh’ approach.”
Kinosian has played the role in a two-year tour of America, as well as in productions in Korea, Japan, England, and China. His New York credits as an actor also include the cult favorite Dear Edwina. His regional theatre credits include The Nerd, An Act of God, and Dirty Blond with Emily Skinner.
Landry’s credits include the national tour of Murder for Two and the Off-Broadway productions of Dragons Love Tacos and Dear Edwina. A longtime affiliate of Steppenwolf Theatre in Chicago, director Clementz lists Irving Berlin’s I Love a Piano and The Devil’s Music: The Life and Blues of Bessie Smith among his credits.
For tickets or information, visit www.mrt.org, or call the Box Office at 978-654-4678.
A concert to benefit the Alzheimer’s Foundation will take place Saturday, October 20, 7 p.m. at The Congregational Church in 21 Front Street, Exeter, NH.
The program of music featuring piano, vocalists, woodwind, guitar, and stand-up bass, will be presented by the Forget-Me-Knots.They are a group of musicians who decided to come together to share their love of music in support of Alzheimer’s. Vocalist Jean Strazdes has performed throughout the world in various operas and currently teaches at Phillips Exeter Academy.Mary Carol Kennedy is a clinical social worker as well as a woodwind player.She teaches and performs locally in southern Maine. Kim Karchenes, pianist, is the Music Director at The Congregational Church in Exeter and the accompanist for several local community choruses.Bob Daigle is a self-employed environmental consultant.His true passion is music, which he celebrates through guitar, stand-up bass and voice.
The concert will be a celebration of “memories” through several musical moments There are many ongoing studies researching the effects of music on the brains of patients struggling with this disease. Studies have shown that music may provide an opportunity to connect with a patient even when verbal communication has become difficult.
The Forget-Me-Knots have each been touched by Alzheimer’s and will donate all proceeds collected at the door to The Alzheimer’s Foundation. All donations will be gratefully received. Please come and enjoy a wonderful evening of music in support of this worthy cause. For more information please contact Kim Karchenes at kkarchenes [at] maine [dot] rr [dot] com.
CONTEMPORARY SOCIETY AND SHAKESPEARE’S POLITICAL EPIC COLLIDE IN
MEASURE FOR MEASURE
FEATURED AT ARTSEMERSON
BY CHEEK BY JOWL AND THE PUSHKIN THEATRE MOSCOW ——
SIX PERFORMANCES ONLY – OCTOBER 24-28, 2018 EMERSON CUTLER MAJESTIC THEATRE, BOSTON
ALEXANDER ARSENTYEV AND ANNA VARDEVANIAN Photo credit: Johan Persson
Boston’s leading presenter of contemporary world theatre, proudly welcomes Cheek by Jowl (UK) and The Pushkin Theatre Moscow (Russia) with Measure for Measure. This production of Shakespeare’s play by the international award-winning director Declan Donnellan and designer Nick Ormerod asks vital and unsettling questions about how we are governed and, in the process, unmasks the true nature of authority, love and justice. Performed in Russian with English surtitles, The Pushkin Theatre Moscow and Cheek by Jowl will share Shakespeare’s tale through an unsettling dissection of power and shame that is as shocking as it is revelatory. The Times (London) calls the cast of Measure for Measure electrifyingly intense and disturbing that they make your hair stand on end.” Novaya Gazeta calls it “a shattering portrait of contemporary Russia.”
“Throughout our nine seasons, we’ve forged deep connections with Russian artists and narratives as part of our ‘World on Stage’ commitment,” says artistic director David Dower. “Declan Donnellan is similarly rooted in cross cultural exchange; his collaboration with Moscow’s Pushkin Theater is a perfect pairing for us. Donnellan’s visceral, visually audacious staging is stunning and his all-Russian cast is masterful. Shakespeare’s classically ‘problematic play’ suddenly emerges as a fresh, sharp, and emotionally powerful tale of our own problematic times.”
About Measure for Measure Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure was written between 1603 and 1604, classified initially as a comedy. However, the production history exemplifies the complex nature of the play, each with a nearly unique perspective. The story takes place in Vienna under Lord Angelo’s iron-fist rule. He revives forgotten laws on morality and sexual license and decides to make an example of Claudio, a young man who has had pre-marital sex with his fiancée, Juliet. Hearing of Claudio’s death sentence, his sister the novitiate Isabella resolves to petition Angelo for her brother’s life. Despite his outward strict moral code, Angelo tells Isabella he will only free her brother if she sacrifices her virginity to him.
The limited run of only six performances takes place October 24 through 28, 2018 at the Emerson Cutler Majestic Theatre, located at 219 Tremont Street in downtown Boston.
Runs October 19 Through November 24 At The Calderwood Pavilion
FUN HOME will run from October 19 through November 24 at the Calderwood Pavillon, 527 Tremont Street in Boston’s South End. Featuring music by Tony Award winner Jeanine Tesori and a book and lyrics by Tony Award winner Lisa Kron, FUN HOME is a landmark musical about seeing one’s parents through grown-up eyes. Based on Ms. Bechdel’s best-selling memoir of the same name, this groundbreaking musical introduces us to Alison at three different ages, revealing memories that celebrate the curiosity of childhood, the challenges of coming out, and the complexities of family.
SpeakEasy Founder and Producing Artistic Director Paul Daigneault will direct this production of FUN HOME. Winner of three Elliot Norton Awards including the 2014 Norton Prize for Sustained Excellence, Mr. Daigneault had directed dozens of Boston premieres, including the company’s recent productions of The Scottsboro Boys, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, and Allegiance.
The artistic team also includes IRNE Award-winning Music Director Matthew Stern and Choreographer Sarah Crane.
Amy Jo Jackson (Alison), Ellie van Amerongen (Medium Alison) and Marisa Simeqi (Small Alison) will play Ms. Bechdel at different ages in this compelling musical.Also in the cast are Laura Marie Duncan, Luke Gold, Desiré Graham, Cameron Levesque, Madi Shaer, Tyler Simahk, and Todd Yard.
FUN HOMEwill run for six weeks, from October 19 through November 24, 2018, in the Roberts Studio Theatre in the Stanford Calderwood Pavilion at the Boston Center for the Arts, 527 Tremont Street in Boston’s South End.
Rocky Marciano cried the night he knocked out Joe Louis. Louis had retried in 1948 after defending his title against Jersey Joe Walcott. Joe stopped Walcott in the 11th round. Seven months earlier Louis had won a controversial 15 round decision from Jersey Joe, so winning decisively was a great way to cap off his career and make a dignified exit.
Unfortunately, money problems forced Louis to embark on a comeback. He had a huge outstanding debt with the IRS, and the only way he knew how to make money was by stepping back into the ring. His first bout back after a two year layoff was against Ezzard Charles in an effort to regain the crown now held by the Cincinnati Cobra. After 15 brutal rounds Charles prevailed by earning a unanimous decision.
That fight did not earn Joe the money he needed to pay off his debts, so he continued fighting in the hope of getting another shot at the title. Louis fought often over the next year engaging in 8 fights with 8 wins. He still flashed signs of greatness, but it was clear his reflexes had slowed. At 36 years of age and after a lifetime of hard training his body was just worn down. On top of this, even with fighting so often, he could not earn enough money to pay off his debt. The interest kept compounding, and he was up against a tide that would not recede.
His bout against Rocky Marciano, which took place on October 26, 1951, was a classic match of the young up and coming star versus the fading veteran. It’s a script that has played out many times, but in this case it was cloaked in sadness. Joe Louis was well loved by the public. Everyone knew that he would rather have been enjoying a richly deserved retirement but had no choice other than to fight. So it came to be that a man who was arguably the greatest heavyweight who ever lived would face a future great.
Even after all of these years it is still painful to watch the footage of that October night 67 years ago at Madison Square Garden.
Even after all of these years it is still painful to watch the footage of that October night 67 years ago at Madison Square Garden. Louis, now 37 years of age, entered the ring a 6 to 5 betting favorite against the unbeaten Brockton Blockbuster. Many felt experience would win out over youth, but the years had caught up to Joe.
When the bell rang for the first round a balding Joe Louis moved out in his classic stance. Rocky came out very aggressively and won the first two rounds big, landing numerous overhand rights that Joe just could not avoid. He had not been hit like this since his first fight against Max Schmeling in 1936, 15 years earlier.
It is a testament to Louis’s championship heart that he was able to become competitive against his younger opponent when he won the 4th and 5th rounds. Even though he took those rounds it was obvious he was a shadow of his old self. He was throwing combinations but his punches were not firing off like they used to. It was taking just that much longer for his body to respond to what his brain was telling it. While Joe outweighed Rocky by nearly thirty pounds he could not keep the younger man off of him. The fifth round would be the last round Joe would win in his career.
In the sixth round you can see how Joe’s legs appeared stiff. He lost the bend in his knees and could not move away from Rocky. There was no spring in his legs. At this point he began to take an awful beating. Rocky was landing rights to the head while punishing Joe’s body. It was just a matter of time before the end. Suddenly, Joe became an old man. Boxing is a cruel sport where old age strikes early.
When the bell rang for the 8th round an exhausted and bruised Louis stepped forward slowly. He was not only worn out from the blows of Marciano, but also from the years of fighting and training. Louis had been fighting professionally since 1934 and as an amateur before that. He had always trained hard and he had fought often, only taking time out to serve his country during WW II. He had never failed to give his all and was doing it again on this night. However, his tank was now empty and his opponent was relentless.
About a minute and a half into the round Marciano floored Louis with a short and powerful left hook. Louis stayed on one knee while taking an eight count. When Joe rose Rocky went in to end the fight. He backed Louis up to the ropes and landed two left hooks. After the second hook, Louis’s hands dropped to his side and Marciano landed a right that drove Louis down and through the ropes. As he landed on his back members of the press sitting at ringside reached up to help him. You can see the look of sadness on their faces. A police officer jumped onto the ring apron. Cornermen and the ring doctor rushed to him and made a protective circle around the fallen champ. There was a sudden outpouring of grief that can still be felt while watching the old black and white footage. The scene made me think of a line from Shakespeare’s Richard II, “For God’s sake, let us sit upon the ground and tell sad tales of the death of kings”.
As you look at Rocky’s face as they announce him the victor, you see no joy. It has been reported Marciano wept in his dressing room. He said to Louis, “I’m sorry Joe”. Joe responded “What’s the use of crying? The better man won. I guess everything happens for the best.”
Joe Louis would retire for good after this fight, but his financial problems continued. He turned to professional wrestling for a time and did some refereeing. He eventually ended up working as a greeter in Las Vegas. While his life didn’t turn out the way it should have, he never lost the love and admiration of the American people. He was buried in Arlington National Cemetery, a fitting tribute to a man who gave so much to his country.
Rocky Marciano went on to win the championship and retired undefeated. The Rock remained retired, being one of the few who was not lured back into the ring. Tragically, he died in a plane crash in 1969 at the age of 45.
Joe Louis and Rocky Marciano were two of the greatest heavyweight champions. Both displayed class and dignity in and out of the ring. That class was displayed by each man when they met in the ring. If you want a lesson in how to be a good winner, how to be a good loser, just follow their example.
In exciting news for both boxing and theatre fans, the Huntington Theatre Company production of Man In The Ring will be opening at the Calderwood Pavilion at the Boston Center for the Arts on November 16. The play, written by Pulitzer Prize winner Michael Cristofer, will run through December 22. Man In The Ring chronicles the life of former Welterweight and Middleweight Champion Emile Griffith.
Griffith’s story will span the time of his humble beginnings in the Virgin Islands, his love affairs, and the tragedy in the ring that forever changed his life. It its a complex story that is both touching and tragic.
I am very excited to hear that John Douglas Thompson has been cast in the role Emile Griffith as an older man. Mr. Douglas is one of the best actors on stage today, and I had the pleasure of seeing him in the world premiere of Terry Teachout’s Satchmo at the Waldorf n 2012. He was simply phenomenal that night. Most recently, he played Starkeeper in the Broadway production of Carousel. It will be interesting to see him play Griffith as an older man who if suffering from the effects of his years in the ring as well as the emotional turmoil from the Benny Paret fight.
Kyle Vincent Terry
Kyle Vincent Terry will be playing the younger Griffith. Mr. Terry served as fight choreographer for The Royale which I saw last year at the Merrimack Repertory Theatre. The fight scenes in that production were very creative and well done. It is a challenge to create what happens in a boxing ring onto a stage, and Mr. Terry work was quite impressive.
Playwright Michael Cristofer won the Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize for his 1977 play The Shadow Box. In his script for Man In The Ring, Mr. Cristofer explores Emile Griffith’s struggle with his homosexuality which was an open secret in the boxing world during his career. Benny Paret’s taunts of Griffith before their tragic fight have always been thought to have contributed to Emile’s fire in the ring that night.
“Emile Griffith was a true hero in my book”, says Cristofer. “He was a young immigrant form the Virgin Islands and a man struggling with his identity while in a brutal sport who, as an older man slipping into dementia, worked to find peace amid the love, pain, and joy that was his life.”
Emile Griffith
Huntington Artistic Director Peter DuBois says “One of the hardest things to do in theatre is to tell the full story of a complex person’s life. Michael Cristofer beautifully captures the excessive, eccentric, and emotional parts of Emile’s amazing story by mixing the champ’s easy charm with the raw and traumatic things he experienced.”
The cast also includes Victor Almanzer as Luis, Griffith’s lover and later his caretaker, Starla Benford as Griffith’s mother Emelda, Krystal Joy Brown as his wife Sadie, Gordon Clapp as manager Howie Albert. Sean Boyce Johnson is cast as Benny “Kid” Paret with Carla Martinez playing his wife Lucia. Eliseo Sosa will play Paret’s manager Manuel Alfaro.
Man In The Ring will be directed by multiple Tony Awardnominee Michael Greif. Michael McElroy is the music director and composer of incidental music.
Man In The Ring
Huntington Theater Company
Playing at the Calderwood Pavilion, Boston Center For The Arts
The U.S. premiere of Dead Centre’s Hamnet now playing at the Emerson Paramount Centre in Boston is a powerful 60 minutes of theatre. The multi media production brings us into the world, past and present, of Shakespeare’s only son Hamnet who died at the age of 11. The work is an original, creative, and very interesting look at the relationship between a father and son, and the effect that relationship, or lack of, has on the mind and emotions of a young boy.
I say past and present as the ghost of Hamnet fills the theater in what could be seen as a mix of Hamlet and Waiting For Godot. Ollie West plays the title character who brings us into his world as he deals with the struggle to understand his relationship, or lack of, with his famous father whom he barely knew. Young West is first seen live with a knapsack projected onto a large screen as he makes his way from the audience onto the stage. The screen and the projections on it will be used to incredible effect throughout the performance.
Photos by Gianmarco Bresadola
We learn right off this isn’t going to be a historical work, but instead a metaphysical exploration. While bouncing a ball off the screen Hamnet tries to explain, with the use of Google, the theory of quantum tunneling. He admits he has no idea what it means but assure us if his father were there he would know.
What’s in a name? A lot when your father is William Shakespeare. But it is not the name Shakespeare that troubles him. Hamnet is aware that his name today is most often seen as a typo, and he is trying to measure his self worth. Hamnet has many questions and turns to the audience and Google for answers. But as Vladimir and Estragon find in Godot, often times there simply are no answers.
“Why would anyone chose not to be?” is one of those questions, and in the remarkable scene where he gets to face his father he asks that, and many others. The scene is done with the senior Shakespeare appearing on the screen with his son. Hamnet is seen both on the screen as well as on the stage itself at the same time. Shakespeare is with him on the screen throughout most of this time, giving it a Banquo’s ghost flavor. I’m not sure how all of this was done, but it is amazing to watch. The fact that there is a bit of the handy dandy to it does not diminish how powerful the dialog between father and son is. Whether you see the work of Shakespeare in this conversation, or Beckett, or even Bart Simpson, you will be touched by it. Can fathers and sons ever understand each other? Here, they do try, but it is emotional and awkward for them.
Photo by Gianmarco Bresadola
Using the relationship between Hamnet and Will Shakespeare to explore so many questions does not limit us to just these two people. It speaks to all of us, and it will leave you with more questions than answers, but also with more understanding.
Ollie West, who is simply outstanding as Hamnet, will be replaced by Aran Murphy midway through this run. I highly recommend you take in this amazing production. I would even go as far as saying it would be worth seeing a second time when the cast change is made.
On September 22, 1955 Rocky Marciano stepped into the ring to defend his title in Yankee Stadium against the great Archie Moore. It was a bruising fight with Moore dropping the Champion in the second round, but Rocky eventually wore down his cagey opponent and stopped him in the 9th round. While the fight was one sided in the scoring up until the stoppage, it was by no means an easy fight for the Rock. Moore was a great boxer and a powerful puncher, and he landed punches on Marciano that would have flattened other mortals. But Marciano was no mortal when he was in the heat of battle. He seemed to get stronger when he got hit, and his drive and determination were too much for the 49 men he met and defeated in the ring.
This would be Marciano’s last fight, seven months later he would retire citing his desire to spend more time with his wife and daughter. He did leave a slight window open for a return to the ring when he said “No man can say what he will do in the future, but barring poverty, the ring has seen the last of me.”
It is reported that Rocky told those close to him that the real reason for his retirement was his displeasure with his manager Al Weill and the way his money was being handled. Rocky believed he was being taking advantage of and wanted out.
I was speaking with Mike Silver, the author of The Arc of Boxing, and we both agreed that while both of these reasons are legitimate we felt that Marciano may have finally tired of the grind of training and the pain he had to go through in each of his fights. Again, while the Moore bout may have seemed one sided in the scoring, Rocky took some terrible blows in the fight and had to be feeling the effects for days afterwards. The Champ was not a stupid man and may have figured it was best to get out while he still had his faculties, a decision, sadly, too few fighters make, and one that he should be admired for.
Rocky went on to enjoy retired life, and with only a bit of a tease when he pretended to consider a comeback when made an offer by promoter Jim Norris about a year after the his retirement, he looked to be permanently out of the ring.
Rocky Marciano Training For a Comeback In 1959
Recently, I got to view some photos of Marciano that were taken in 1959. They show a healthy but bit pudgy former champ hitting a heavy bag under the watchful eye of his trainer Charley Goldman. Was this some type of a publicity stunt? I called the expert, my friend Dan Cuoco of IBRO to ask what he knew about this. He told me that Rocky had indeed contemplated a comeback in 1959. It was to be a one bout deal for in excess of a million dollars, and he would challenge Ingemar Johansson for the title. So, what happened?
There hasn’t been a lot written about this subject, but it does appear the former champion trained for about a month in Florida and that these sessions did receive coverage. Dan sent me a copy of an item that appeared in the Boston Traveler on January 16, 1960. In the short piece penned by Bill Liston, he states that he has heard that Marciano is training for a comeback but hopes it doesn’t happen. Though he believes Rocky would have no problem dispatching the new Champion he thinks Rocky should leave well enough alone. He also theorizes that Marciano was doing this to enhance his marketability for public appearances and refereeing.
Charley Goldman Tapes Rocky’s Hands
Others have said he was serious about fighting Johansson and only gave up on it when his back, a life long problem he had, started giving him trouble. Mike Silver told me Rocky had met the Swede and felt he would have no problem taking him. I can see how tempting the thought must have been to Marciano. Here he would stand to make over a million dollars, hit the magic 50 and 0 mark on his record, and be on top of the world again. However, Ingo lost the title back to Floyd Patterson and that would lead to a third match between the two, and another year gone by before a bout with Marciano could be negotiated, another good reason not to keep at it.
I think the real reason is a combination of the two theories. There had to be no doubt in Rocky’s mind that he could beat Johansson and he had to have thought seriously, even if just briefly, about taking him on. He also saw how this enhanced his image as so many great athletes are forgotten not long after they leave the spotlight. By doing this, Rocky was able to keep his legend alive and his name in the news. he would go on to host a popular television show and continue to be in demand for public appearances.In a second item sent to me by Mr. Cuoco, an AP story dated January 15, 1961, once again Marciano teased the public a bit about a possible comeback. When asked about how he would do against Liston or Patterson Rocky states “ I’m not the boasting type, I don’t want to say I could whip them. But then I don’t want to lie about it either.” He seemed to be enjoying tantalizing his fans with the thought they could see him in the ring again.
Rocky would eventually return to the ring in a futuristic and bit eerie way. The Rock and Muhammad Ali sparred a number of rounds together and the footage of that sparring was pieced together to make a computer created match that was shown in theatres across the country. The sparring was filmed in 1969, just a few months before Rocky’s untimely death in a plane crash. It was shown in 1970. It is strange that Marciano’s comeback, such as it was, would happen after his death. The computer had the Rock winning by knock out in the 13th round.
This article first appeared in the Boston Post Gazette on March 20, 2015 in slightly different form.
Octavia Chavez-Richmond, Tyrees Allen, and Lewis D. Wheeler Photo Credit: Nile Scott Studios
Walter “Pops” Washington (Tyrees Allen) is a former N.Y. City police officer who is living in a rent controlled apartment. He is no longer on the force because he was shot six times by a rookie cop. The shooting took place at an after hours bar when Pops was off duty. Pops is black, the cop who shot him is white.
Between Riverside and Crazy by Stephen Adly Guirgiis does not fit into a narrative of a racist white cop shooting a black man. It gets much more complicated as the story moves along. Pops is sharing his apartment with his son Junior (Stewart Evan Smith), an ex con who is trying to turn his life around, though it appears he may still be a bit stuck in his old ways. Along with Junior is his girlfriend Lulu (Octavia Chavez-Richmond), who is pregnant and might be working as a prostitute, and Oswaldo (Alejandro Simoes), a friend of Junior’s who has been doing his best to stay clean and sober.
Alejandro Simoes, Stewart Evan Smith, and Tyrees Allen Photo: Nile Scott Studios
While the relationship between Junior and Pops is strained, Oswaldo appears to understand the cantankerous Pops and the opening dialog between the two is both funny and revealing. The elder Washington displays a degree of bitterness as he spends most of his days sipping whiskey. He is not only angry about having been shot, but also over the loss of his wife who died after a long illness. He spends time sitting in her wheelchair and you can see that he’s also dealing with the guilt of not having been the ideal husband.
He filed a law suit against the city eight years earlier and is seeking $5 million dollars in damages, but the city has not settled because of the circumstances of the shooting, which we learn more about as the play progresses. He is also receiving eviction notices.
As I said, this is not a play about police shootings. It is about how people play the game and play a bit fast with the truth to get what they want. While at times it seems underhanded, it never really goes over the top. How the rules are bent is in the eye of the beholder.
It is also a play about relationships. Pops finds it difficult to show affection to Junior, while he is more comfortable getting closer to Oswaldo and Lulu, both of whom he shows much empathy to.
Pops former partner Detective O’Connor (Maureen Keiller) and a Lieutenant Caro (Lewis D. Miller) visit Pops for dinner one evening. It doesn’t take long to realize there is an ulterior motive for the meeting as Caro attempts to get Pops to agree to a deal with the city. The smarmy Caro, the smarminess is overplayed here, is not so much looking out for Pops as he is advancing his own career by helping the city put this lawsuit behind them. Pops, as well as the audience, quickly sees through this game.
There are a number of other stories playing around all of this including Junior’s relationship with Lulu as well as how he seeks to receive words of affection from Pops, Oswaldo’s own issues with his father and his set back with staying clean. All are interesting, but I found a certain depth lacking in the way these stories are portrayed. While good, I thought there was so much to work with here that was left not fully developed.
There are two scenes where things seemed to really catch fire. When tempers flare between Pops and Caro over settling the lawsuit, it appears things are really going to get moving. It is a powerful scene, but the action fades shortly thereafter.It does regain steam later, but it felt to me like momentum was lost.
Celeste Oliva and Tyrees Allen Photo: Nile Scott Studios
The other scene is when the Brazilian Church Lady (Celeste Oliva)comes to visit Pops. She is filling in for another caregiver, and like many of the characters in the play, is looking to get something for herself. It is quite the perfomance, both steamy and funny, Ms Oliva plays it outstandingly. Its a scene you will not forget.
Towards the end of the play Pops finds out Lieutenant Caro likes to play poker, and this is when we see how much of what is going on is like a giant poker game, with each player looking at his cards and seeing just how much he can bluff.
The play ends on an interesting note as the characters are pretty much revealed and while we may be tempted to judge some, if not all of them, harshly, just think about how you may have acted if you were in any of their positions.
Yes, I think this play could have been better, but it is definitely worth seeing. Tyrees Allen’s portrayal of Pops is a pleasure to watch. His humor, his anger, his human weaknesses, and his quest to find what he considers justice is well served in the hands of Mr. Tyrees, who does a wonderful job in the role. You’ll feel much the way Junior does when watching him. He will aggravate you, frustrate you, anger you, but you won’t be able to resist liking him.
I would also like to say that Alejandro Simoes is touching as Oswaldo. It is heartbreaking to see how bad things engulf good people. You will be rooting for him to make it and overcome the demons in his life. People make bad choices, but that doesn’t mean they are bad people. Smith’s Oswaldo shows us that.
I would recommend not approaching this play as a commentary on the ills of society, but rather to look at it throughmore personal lens. I believe in doing so, you will develop a more sympathetic view of people who play life’s poker game while keeping a few cards up their sleeves.
Just a note for those considering taking children to this play. It has much adult language and situations.
Between Riverside and Crazy
By Stephen Adly Gurgis, Directed by Tiffany Nichole Greene
At The SpeakEasy Stage Company, Calderwood Pavillon, 527 Tremont Street, South End, Boston.
Bill Hanney’s award-winning North Shore Music Theatre (NSMT) concludes the 2018 Subscription Season with Broadway’s big, fat, hit musical, HAIRSPRAY, playing for two-weeks only from Tuesday, October 30 thru Sunday, November 11, 2018.
