Tag Archives: Jared Troilo

Camelot at the Lyric Stage

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A Bright Shining Moment 

Camelot

Directed by Spiro Veloudos

The Lyric Stage, Boston

Through June 25th

Reviewed by Bobby Franklin

Ed Hoopman and Maritza Bostic
(Photo Credit: Mark S. Howard)

As Camelot ends King Arthur tells Tom of Warick to run from the battle so he may live and “Ask every person if he’s heard the story, and tell him strong and clear if he has not.” And that story, the legend of Camelot, is what is given to us in the Lyric Stage’s current production of the Lerner and Loewe classic.

On a beautiful multi-level set that gives the feel of a haunted forest with serpent like trees that appear to be watching the events that unfold, we are treated to a story, the story, that young Tom has passed down through the years. We, the audience, feel as if we are seated by a campfire while the tale is related to us by Arthur, Guenevere, Lancelot, Mordred, and the Knights and Ladies of the Court of King Arthur.

This has been called a “stripped down production”, but I would call it an enhanced work. It is no secret the original Camelot was too long. Shortening it was a challenge from the beginning, and this adaptation by David Lee finally meets that challenge. All of the songs are here, the story is complete, and it moves along seamlessly. Director Spiro Veloudos adds his magic touch to bring it all together for an evening of theatre that will not be forgotten.

Don’t let this brief shining moment pass you by.

The cast led by Ed Hoopman as Arthur speaks in naturalistic voices, so don’t plan on hearing imitations of Burton and Andrews. Hoopman’s voice is rich and smooth connoting the kindness and humanity of the King who wished for a society that was just and fair. Maritza Bostic as Guenevere is lovely and warm with a voice that captivates. It is hard to lose with this score, but with so many people familiar with the original cast album ears may be programmed to hear something else. What is great is how the actor’s make this their own version, and it is a great one.

Ed Hoopman, Jared Troilo, Maritza Bostic
(Photo Credit: Mark S. Howard)

Jared Troilo, who is a familiar face to Boston theatre goers, takes on the part of the brash Lancelot. Troilo’s rendition of If Ever I Would Leave You is positively wonderful. It had to be a challenge.

I have to say that Rory Boyd’s Mordred is truly amazing. His name alone cues us to expect an evil character, but Boyd manages to move him into more of a grey area. He certainly brings a great energy and just enough ambiguity to the role to make one possibly feel a bit of sympathy for him Mordred, and that is something I doubt has been seen before.

What makes this production so special is the intimacy. Not only is it warm because it is set in a small theater, but it feels the players have invited us to sit by the campfire and hear their stories. It is oh so captivating.

What makes this production so special is the intimacy.

Accompanied by an eight piece orchestra, the cast, who work without amplification, fill the theatre with beautiful sounds. There is not a bad seat in the house, and in this age of an over reliance on electronics it is a pleasure to hear such lovely voices going directly to our ears. It is one of the many things that makes the Lyric Stage so special.

I am sure tickets for this run will sell fast, so don’t wait. Don’t let this brief shining moment pass you by.

Camelot Through June 25th
The Lyric Stage, Copley Square, Boston
lyricstage.com 617.585.5678

Theatre to Die For

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Murder For Two

At The Lyric Stage, Boston

Jared Troilo, Kirsten Salpini. Photo by Mark S. Howard
Jared Troilo, Kirsten Salpini. Photo by Mark S. Howard

Two actors playing thirteen characters while singing, dancing, and playing the piano. Sounds a bit complicated. That’s what I thought as Murder For Two began Sunday afternoon. How would I ever be able to keep track of all that was going on? Well, when the two actors are Jared Troilo and Kirsten Salpini it is not a problem. Add in the fine direction of A. Nora Long and a very funny and fast moving script and music by Joe Kinosian and Kellen Blair, and you can just sit back, relax, and enjoy a great time at the theater.

The story is set at the home of the great American novelist Arthur Whitney where his wife has arranged a surprise birthday party for him.

A little song, a little dance, a little murder, what could be more enjoyable?

Unfortunately for poor Arthur, he runs into a bullet before he is able to open his presents. This is where police officer Marcus Moscowitz (Jared Troilo) comes on the scene. Moscowitz is mistaken for a detective, a confusion he does nothing to dissuade the suspects from believing. Marcus sees cracking this case as his ticket to a promotion, as long as he can do it before his superior officer gets there. He is going to go strictly by Protocol, which also happens to be the name of his first musical number.

Ms Salpini is funny, creative, and a joy to watch.

He begins interviewing the suspects, all of whom are played by Kirsten Salpini. She also plays the members of a boy’s chorus who have been hired to provide entertainment for the party. They are a mischievous lot and very funny. Ms Salpini switches roles from moment to moment without the aid of costume changes. She manages this, and very well I might add, by changing her voice and accent along with some very creative body language. I have seen some impressive performances where one actor plays multiple roles solely by changing voice and movement, most notably Chaz Palminteri in A Bronx Tale and John Douglas Thompson in Satchmo At The Waldorf , and while Kirsten Salpini does not rise to their level, she is certainly a contender and does a fine job in her many roles. Ms Salpini is funny, creative, and a joy to watch. Her singing is the icing on the cake.

Jared Troilo as pseudo Detective Moscowitz is right at home in his role as the nervous cop trying to solve the big crime. His singing and dancing is a reminder of how much fun theatre can be, even if it’s about a murder. While the part was not written for him he performs it like it was.

Jared Troilo, Kirsten Salpini. Photo by Mark S. Howard
Jared Troilo, Kirsten Salpini. Photo by Mark S. Howard

Finding two actors who can sing, dance, and also play the piano had to be a challenge for director Long. Finding two with these talents who could also work so well together had to be almost impossible, but with Jared and Kirsten she found a theatre match made in Heaven.

I will not spoil the fun by letting on more about the details of the play, only to say that there was also another crime committed during the party, and those of you with a sweet tooth may consider that one the more serious.

Murder For Two is a great way to take some time out during this busy time of the year to enjoy a very funny and fun play. A little song, a little dance, a little murder, what could be more enjoyable?

Murder For Two Through December 24th

The Lyric Stage, 140 Clarendon Street, Boston

(617) 585-5678 http://www.lyricstage.com

 

 

 

 

What Are Friends For

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“Significant Other”
SpeakEasy Stage
Now Through October 8th

reviewed by Bobby Franklin

Significant Other  by Joshua Harmon, who’s Bad Jews was a great hit last year, opens with Jordan Berman (Greg Maraio) celebrating the news of his friend Kiki’s (Sarah Elizabeth Bedard) engagement to be married. Kiki and Jordan are joined by two other long time friends Laura (Jordan Clark) and Vanessa (Kris Sidberry). They are sharing a scorpion bowl and Kiki is feeling no pain. Soon the conversation turns to Jordan, who is gay, and how it is time for him to find a significant other. We learn that Jordan tends to obsess over romantic interests and is now attracted to Will (Jared Troilo) from his office, who may or not be gay.

Vanessa, Jordan, and Laura (Photo: Justin Saglio)
Vanessa, Jordan, and Laura
(Photo: Justin Saglio)

As the play progresses we watch as Jordan pursues Will both in real life and in fantasy. It is very interesting to see how this is staged, having Jordan speak to his friends while also in the moment with Will. It is almost as if the action pauses so he can update his friends. The effect works very well.

As time goes on we see that Jordan has not been able to make a connection with Will or any other man. Meanwhile, Vanessa and Laura join Kiki in walking down the bridal path. This leads Jordan to feeling a bit of a loser. He also begins to feel he is losing his friends and his sadness turns to anger when he confronts Laura at her bachelorette party. it was at this point Jordan started to get under my skin. Sorry, I just cannot feel sorry for someone that selfish.

At first I felt sadness for for Jordan, but my sadness turned to anger at him for his selfishness and inability to understand that life moves on and people have changes in their lives.It does not mean friendships end, but they do change, and he just cannot accept that.

It does not mean friendships end, but they do change

Throughout the play he pays visits to his elderly grandmother Helene (Kathy St. George) and hears advice about life and aging, though nothing  really seems to resonate with him.

Vanessa, Jordan, and Kiki )Photo: Justin Seglio)
Vanessa, Jordan, and Kiki
)Photo: Justin Seglio)

As I was watching Significant Others I couldn’t help but think about Company which I had seen last week. Company had a similar theme about people moving on with their lives and dealing with how these changes effect friendships. What I found striking was, even though the characters in Company are only a few years older than those in Significant Others, they are much more mature than Jordan and his friends. Company was written in 1970, and I think by comparing the two we see how much longer it takes people to grow out of adolescence today. There were times during this play when I just wanted to shout out “Grow up, the world does not revolve around you!”

Okay, so this is not a group of people I would want to spend time with. Having said that, the production is well done, though I feel the play have been shorter. A number of points were made and did not have to be repeated.

It is very funny, and all of the players are quite good.

Greg Maraio has terrific talent

Greg Maraio has terrific talent which is why I disliked his character so much. Unless, of course, he was going for sympathy. If that was the case, I missed it. But i don’t think so. I believe Mr. Maraio captured the frustration and anger that too many young people feel when they realize life is a bumpy ride.

It’s funny, but the SpeakEasy Stage has a way of leaving me thinking about their productions for days after I have seen them. Leaving the theater I felt I really did not like this play. But, I think i could spend hours talking about it.

Significant Other
Directed by Paul Daigneault
SpeakEasy Stage Company
Calderwood Pavilion
527 Tremont Street In The South End
speakeasystage.com
617.933.8600

SpeakEasy Stage’s Dogfight: Solid, Touching, Emotional

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reviewed by Bobby Franklin

SpeakEasy Stage Company is closing out their 25th anniversary season with a very strong production of Dogfight directed by Paul Daigneault. The New England premiere of the musical is based on the 1991 film and screenplay by Bob Comfort, and with music by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul.

Hey Good Looking' Photo: Glenn Perry Photography
Hey Good Looking’
Photo: Glenn Perry Photography

Most of the story takes place on November 21, 1963 and focuses on three young Marines, Eddie Birdlace, Bernstein, and Boland who refer to themselves as the Three Bees. They are to be deployed the following morning to Southeast Asia and are embarking on a game the Marines call Dogfight. It is where each recruit puts up money that is pooled and will be awarded to the man who can bring the ugliest woman to a party they are having. It is demeaning to women but also serves the purpose of removing any sense of empathy from men who are about to be sent into combat.

Eddie and Rose (Glenn Perry Photography)
Eddie and Rose
(Glenn Perry Photography)

Eddie, (Jordan J. Ford) finds waitress Rose Fenny (Alejandra M. Parrilla) at a local dinner and sweet talks her into attending the party with him in the hope he has found his winning date. Rose is caught up in his flattery and is thrilled to go. The others are also finding their mates for the evening.

It would be easy to settle in at this point and see this play as being about women being objectified. It runs much deeper than that. While what the Three Bees and the other soldiers are doing is cruel, it is also juvenile and demeaning to them as well. But, they are required to give up much of their sense of humanity considering they will soon be in a very inhumane environment. They are young and, because of their weeks of basic training, feel prepared for anything the world will throw at them. Instead of this being about a group of young men acting like jerks,

it has much more serious overtones considering what is about to happen in their lives

it has much more serious overtones considering what is about to happen in their livesand in the world.

Rose is no victim. While she is deeply hurt when she finds out what Eddie was up to, she is also touching him deeply with her warmth and confidence. Eddie at first saw an overweight and insecure girl, but fast begins to learn much about himself and life from Rose. He finds it is not so easy to be cruel. As the story unfolds we are touched on many emotional levels. As one audience member stated after the performance, “I have learned to always bring a box of tissues to a SpeakEasy production.”

The play does have a number of funny and warm moments that will make you smile. Alejandra M. Parrilla as Rose and Jordan J. Ford as Eddie are simply wonderful in the restaurant scene where Rose shows she can match Eddie’s tough guy bravura as well as add a very strong wit. Her kindness is also infectious and is breathed in by Eddie. Their touching duet First Date, Last Night sung while gazing at San Francisco from the Golden Gate Bridge is a beautiful love song.

As the story moves forward in time, much has to be compressed and Director Paul Daigneault does magnificent job of putting so much into so short a time on stage. It really is a bit overwhelming but important as it conveys so many feelings that force us to think hard about all we have just seen.

Ms Parrilla and Mr. Ford are supported by a solid cast

Ms Parrilla and Mr. Ford are supported by a solid castthat includes Jared Troilo (Boland) and Drew Arisco (Bernstein). Patrick Varner will be suffering from a multi personality disorder after playing seven parts, but he handles every one of them just fine.

The theater is set with the audience sitting on three sides of the stage. This, along with two movable staircases, is extremely effective. A beautiful score, fine musical direction, and the intimate atmosphere along with this cast have very talented young actors makes this a play not to be missed.

I know I often say this after seeing a SpeakEasy production, but I left the theater with much to think about, and with much to feel.

We are lucky to have such a great company in Boston.

We are lucky to have such a great company in Boston.I hope you go down to the Calderwood Pavilion and spend a couple of hours being touched by these fine young actors.

Playing through June 4th at The Calderwood Pavilion, 527 Tremont Street, South End, Boston

617-933-6100

http://www.bostontheatrescene.com/season/dogfight/