SITE GUIDE
SEARCH
REVIEWS
REVIEW ARCHIVES
ADVERTISING AT CURTAINUP
FEATURES
NEWS
Etcetera and
Short Term Listings
LISTINGS
Broadway
Off-Broadway
NYC Restaurants
BOOKS and CDs
OTHER PLACES
Berkshires
London
California
New Jersey
DC
Philadelphia
Elsewhere
QUOTES
On TKTS
PLAYWRIGHTS' ALBUMS
LETTERS TO EDITOR
FILM
LINKS
MISCELLANEOUS
Free Updates
Masthead
Writing for Us
A CurtainUp New Jersey Review
Shakespeare in Vegas
|
"
You are my Shakespearean idiot savant "—Tony
|
In Suzanne Bradbeer's very funny comedy, Shakespeare in Vegas, we see how frustrating it is for Margo to work with actors who have no discernable talent and no previous experience playing Shakespeare, as well as to fulfill entrepreneur Tony's pledge to his dying grandmother to "bring Shakespeare to the new world." That Tony carries the burden of a generations-old family curse, even as he is the target of a rival family's vendetta, adds a bit of goofy grit and some gunplay to the plot.
Laughs are abundant as Margot tries to make the most of her first production Antony and Cleopatra casting herself as "the queen of the g.d. Nile and hoping to get decent support from her handmaidens - a strip stripper Collette (Rachel Lee) who is mainly concerned with balancing her boobs in the skimpy and sparkling Egyptian attire and a jealous, loud-mouthed and curvaceous Hooter's employee Merrie Jo (Jessica O'Hara).
For her second production, Romeo and Juliet, she has to deal with the insecurities of a twenty-something, handsome ex con Mike (Barron B. Bass) who has never set foot on a stage or held a sword, but who gets some extra sexual encouragement from Merrie Jo. Expect more hilarity when the Scottish Play hits the boards and a hit man appears (also played by Bass) and interferes with Tony's ambitious plans to give the customers "tits and ass and iambic pentameter."
Under John Pietrowski's nimble direction, the silliness of the premise is buoyed by the crackling, crisply delivered dialogue. However modestly designed, all of the various locations allow opportunities for the five excellent actors to get into the full spirit of this fast-moving romp. A co-production of Dreamcatcher Rep & Playwrights Theatre of New Jersey, Shakespeare in Vegas will undoubtedly add to the award-winning playwright's growing canon of acclaimed plays that includes Full Bloom produced at the Barrington Stage in 2000. Word of mouth should generate good houses before the end of this all-too-short run.
|
Shakespeare in Vegas By Suzanne Bradbeer Directed by John Pietrowski Cast: Barron B. Bass (Mike, Buck), Laura Ekstrand (Margot), Eli Ganias (Tony), Rachael Lee (Colette), Jessica O'Hara-Baker (Merrie Jo) Scenic Design: Drew Francis Lighting Design: Zach Pizza Sound Design: Jeff Knapp Costume Design: Pia Kristjansen Running Time: 2 hours including intermission Dreamcatcher Repertory Theater, Oakes Center, 120 Morris Avenue, Summit, NJ (908) 514 - 9654 Tickets $30.00 Performances: April 4 through Sunday, April 21. Performances are Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights at 8 p.m., and Sundays at 2 p.m. From 04/04 Opened 04/06/13 Ends 04/21/13 Review by Simon Saltzman based on performance 04/11/13 |
|
Subscribe to our FREE email updates with a note from editor Elyse Sommer about additions to the website -- with main page hot links to the latest features posted at our numerous locations. To subscribe,
E-mail: esommer@curtainup.comesommer@curtainup.com
put SUBSCRIBE CURTAINUP EMAIL UPDATE in the subject line and your full name and email address in the body of the message -- if you can spare a minute, tell us how you came to CurtainUp and from what part of the country. Visit Curtainup's Blog Annex For a feed to reviews and features as they are posted add http://curtainupnewlinks.blogspot.com to your reader Curtainup at Facebook . . . Curtainup at Twitter |
|
REVIEW FEEDBACK Highlight one of the responses below and click "copy" or"CTRL+C"
Paste the highlighted text into the subject line (CTRL+ V): >Feel free to add detailed comments in the body of the email and state if you'd like your comments published in our letters section. . .also the names and emails of any friends to whom you'd like us to forward a copy of this review. You can also contact us at Curtainup at Facebook or Curtainup at Twitter and Curtainup's Blog Annex |
Book of Mormon -CDOur review of the show
Slings & Arrows-the complete set
You don't have to be a Shakespeare aficionado to love all 21 episodes of this hilarious and moving Canadian TV series about a fictional Shakespeare Company
