PicksInSix Review: 1776 - Marriott Theatre

“TO THINK THAT HERE WE ARE.”
PicksInSix® Review | Ed Tracy

The inspiring production of “1776” that opened Wednesday at the Marriott Theatre brought a few familiar thoughts to mind about our young and exuberant country.  Democracy is messy. The more things change, the more they stay the same. And a line from one of Sherman Edwards’ songs: “To think that here we are.”

That jubilant statement is sung out by Benjamin Franklin (Richard R. Henry) to John Adams (Tyrick Wiltez Jones) and Thomas Jefferson (Erik Hellman) as the newly drafted Declaration of Independence is being read to the 2nd Continental Congress. They know that there are pitfalls and more debate ahead—and the reality of the bloody war already underway that is underscored throughout the show with missives from ‘G. Washington’ himself—but for a brief instant, getting to this point feels like a small victory.

Obviously, no one truly knows what transpired in the room where this happened. That said, Edwards’ 1969 Tony Award-winning concept, music and lyrics and Peter Stone’s book together create a captivating menagerie of historical characters who are (mostly) bent on unification. All those years later we are today mired in a never-ending election cycle and immersed in an escalating debate about the future vision for our democracy. There is hope and we do generally agree that a new, yet imperfect, nation was formed on July 4, 1776 for the people of the thirteen original colonies, even as freedom and equality for all is still lagging woefully behind.

With director Nick Bowling’s steady hand, sharp choreography by Tanji Harper and a casting coup that has assembled many of Chicago’s top performing artists together on one stage, Marriott Theatre’s “1776” has a sweeping professional sheen as one of the finest and most unique shows on stage right now.

The opposing voice to Adams’s passionate colonial independence is embodied in Pennsylvania delegate John Dickinson, a stellar performance by Heidi Kettenring. The two opposing forces—mediated by Joel Gelman’s stalwart John Hancock and Gabriel Lott-Rogers‘s Charles Thomson with assistance from the ever-present Karl Hamilton as Andrew McNair—weave arguments and slow progress to a bitter stalemate. Along the way, songs teeter from the humorous—“Sit Down, John,” “The Lees of Old Virginia” and “He Plays The Violin”—to the horrific, by South Carolina’s Edward Rutledge (Matthew Hommel) whose chilling referendum to slavery “Molasses to Rum” is alarmingly prophetic. The moving performances of Katherine Alexis Thomas (Abigail Adams), Alicia Kaori (Martha Jefferson), Lucy Godinez (Richard Henry Lee) and a remarkable performance by Jay Westbrook (Courier) in “Momma Look Sharp” deserve special mention in a company stocked with extraordinary voices under the musical direction of Ryan T. Nelson and conductor Brad Haak.

Regina Garcia’s crisp, multi-level scenic design expands Marriott’s in-the-round configuration to create a wide and striking panorama of the chamber interior punctuated by Jesse Klug’s evocative light design and Michael Daly’s pinpoint sound design. The visual picture is complete with Theresa Ham’s gorgeous costumes that make “1776” a truly wonderful—and historic—theatrical event.  

PHOTO|Liz Lauren

Marriott Theatre Lincolnshire
presents
1776
through October 13, 2024

Ten Marriott Drive
Lincolnshire, IL 60069

WEBSITE

TICKETS

847-634-0200 (Box Office)

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PicksInSix Review: Damn Yankees - Marriott Theatre

A DEVIL OF A GOOD TIME!
PicksInSix® Review | Ed Tracy

Looking to fill your breezy summer evening with the crack of the bat and a stadium-size offering of blockbuster musical numbers mixed with an offer of immortality? All these merge in “Damn Yankees,” the 1955 award-winning hit with book by George Abbott and Douglass Wallop, lyrics and music by Richard Adler and Jerry Ross, choreography by Bob Fosse and starring Ray Walston and Gwen Verdon. “Damn Yankees” received seven Tony Awards, spawned a hit film, and is playing now in a robust and rollicking revival at Marriott Theatre that’s a devil of a good time!

The musical, based on Wallop’s “The Year the Yankees Lost the Pennant,” holds up well nearly 70 years later even with a cluster of eye rollers in the script that require a special comic touch these days. But all is forgiven when this time capsule begins delivering a string of socko company numbers like “Heart,” “Shoeless Joe from Hannibul, MO,” “Who’s Got the Pain,” and “The Game” in showstopping style. And that’s exactly what happened—twice—at Wednesday’s opening performance with the top-flight talent assembled by director James Vásquez and Tyler Hanes’s Fosse-infused choreography.

Vásquez has stacked the lineup for laughs, too, with Sean Fortunato in a wickedly sardonic performance as the devious devil Mr. Applegate who grants the wish of Joe Boyd (Ron E. Rains) for the Washington Senators to win the pennant. With a slight of hand, a whiff of smoke and a change of name, Applegate creates Joe Hardy (Andrew Alstat) whose youth, power and abilities will pick the hapless Senators out of the cellar and into the World Series for the small price of Joe’s eternal damnation. As the team rises in the standings, the story clings to some detective work by ace reporter Gloria Thorpe (Erica Stephan) whose curiosity threatens to expose Joe before he can finish the job and lead the team to victory.

It doesn’t take long for Joe to realize that he’d rather be home with his wife Meg (Daniella Dalli) than face Applegate’s mounting pressure to stay within the baselines. As Joe begins to waver, Applegate enlists the services of Lola (Michelle Aravena), an irresistible temptress, to woo Joe back on his team. But even Lola’s sexy and sultry advances fail and Lola instead conspires to help unravel Applegate’s plan. As the clock ticks down, things start to heat up in Joe’s world.

In addition to the many memorable individual highlights in the show—Aravena’s playful, coy “A Little Brains, A Little Talent” and the steamy “Whatever Lola Wants” are truly topflight and Fortunato knocks “Those Were the Good Old Days” out of the park—the ensemble’s work throughout, and especially in “Two Lost Souls,” a dark, smoky ode to Fosse that virtually oozes up from the underworld, is phenomenal.   

In a cast of venerable Chicago talent, Lorenzo Rush Jr. stands out as the Senators coach Van Buren who leads the ensemble in “Heart” and plays some solid work with Jonah D. Winston and Michael Kingston. Erica Stephan steps up front and center for the crowd-pleaser “Shoeless Joe” that includes the amazing jump rope talents of Ben Broughton. Heidi Kettenring and Lydia Burke team up on the sidelines as kooky, adoring Senators fans, spreading gaiety and a little fog around on Regina Garcia’s sharp and versatile set. With Jesse Klug’s surreal lighting effects, Michael Daly’s subterrain sound and truly gorgeous 50s era costumes by Teresa Hams, the stage is awash in vibrant color to match the music directing talents of Ryan T. Nelson and Noah Landis’ orchestra, and to make Marriott’s “Damn Yankees” the show to see in Chicago.  

PHOTO|Liz Lauren

MARRIOTT THEATRE LINCOLNSHIRE
presents
DAMN YANKEES
through June 4, 2023

WEBSITE

TICKETS

(847) 634-0200

HEALTH PROTOCALS

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PicksInSix Review: TWILIGHT BOWL

INGENIOUS ARC KEEPS ‘TWILIGHT BOWL’ ROLLING!

Ever wondered how things you did in your childhood impacted the friends and family who were around you at the time? If someone asked them years later to say something nice about you, could they, or would the conversation shift to one of those high-risk activities that surely play out much better in life’s rearview mirror? Who remembers all those stupid mistakes we made growing up that were so embarrassing you could never tell your mother?

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The absorbing backstories of the young women in “Twilight Bowl,” the world premiere of Rebecca Gilman’s delectable slice-of-rural-life directed by Erica Weiss that opened Tuesday at Goodman Theatre, flicker intensely in the neon glow of a Wisconsin bowling alley as Jaycee (Heather Chrisler), her best friend Clarice (Hayley Burgess), cousin Sam (Becca Savoy) and faith-based pal Sharlene (Anne E. Thompson) huddle around a table in the bar. Jaycee’s colorful past is sometimes shocking and there is cake, but we soon discover that she has made some bad choices recently and will be going away for a while. For the group’s members, who have spent their youth together and worked and grew up in and around the bowling alley, this is bittersweet farewell.

Sam represents the success story, a competitor who earned a bowling scholarship to Ohio State. Clarice will stay in town. Sharlene is deeply tied to the church and wants to continue to be a source of strength for Jaycee and everyone else. So, despite some harsh words about how things worked out, they all commit to their friendship going forward, or so it seems.

Several months later, during Thanksgiving break, Sam returns from college with her new-found friend Maddy (Angela Morris). The bartender Brielle (Mary Taylor), who is taking time away from her education, learns why Maddy is there, instead of with her family back in Winnetka on the North Shore. And after losing a friendly bowling wager to boost Sam’s spirits, Maddy wears out her welcome with one of the women. The ingenious arc of the 90-minute story exposes a range of youthful emotions, from regret and jealously to reconciliation, in the splendidly paced character study.

Gilman, a Pulitzer Prize finalist, Goodman Artistic Associate and Northwestern professor, created “Twilight Bowl” with a commission from the Big Ten Theatre Consortium, which is committed to improving gender equity in the theater. She developed the work in association with Goodman’s 2017 New Stages Festival. The Goodman premiere features the original New Stages cast and is unique for its all-female creative and production team, including Weiss, a Chicago-based director, filmmaker and television writer who is also co-creator and executive producer of the new CBS series “The Red Line”; Regina Garcia’s set design; costumes and lighting by Izumi Inaba and Cat Wilson; and original music and sound design by Victoria Deiorio.

This is a poignant coming-of-age story, a fascinating exploration of emerging personalities that are the sum of their individual and collective life experiences. As the women of “Twilight Bowl” confront challenging personal situations, and struggle to cope with the anxiety their decisions cause, they run headlong into the small-town nature of things—rural values that can be overwhelming for anyone not accustomed to the unique pace and rhythm. Or perhaps more to the point, in the rush to escape where we have been, let’s not forget that the sense of security of our youth, and those erstwhile relationships, will always be part of who we are and how we would like to be remembered.      

PHOTOS|Brett Beiner

GOODMAN THEATRE
Presents
TWILIGHT BOWL
through March 10th
170 N Dearborn Street
(312) 443-3800

WEBSITE
TICKETS

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