By Sue Merrell
The
It's the kind of September Barn Theatre fans will remember, no doubt, thanks to the cockeyed humor and memorable music of "The Fantasticks."
Both theater and stage seemed unusually bare for Tuesday night's opening, with only about a fourth of the 400 seats filled. But it was an enthusiastic audience, and about two dozen responded they had seen all eight of the Barn's shows this summer. They applauded each of the theater-company regulars as they appeared onstage, and many jumped up for a standing ovation at the close of the two-hour and 20-minute show.
Many of the company members have left to return to college or other jobs, so there seemed barely enough for the eight-member cast and four-member band, yet every role was perfectly cast.
With music by Harvey Schmidt and book and lyrics by Tom Jones, "The Fantasticks" is a deceptively simple yet amazingly universal, all-purpose musical, which probably explains how it ended up running for 41 years in Greenwich Village.
Set like a makeshift show behind a bedsheet curtain, "The Fantasticks" contrasts foolhardy fantasies with rewarding reality. It's the story of a boy and girl, both dreamers, who celebrate a fairy-tale ending by the end of the first act. Bored by the second act, they seek other adventures and return a little wiser.
Wickedly funny, even in death
Barn favorite Scott Burkell adds his wry smile to the role of narrator/villain, and his exaggerated death scene inspired applause. He doesn't get the girl, but he gets some of the best songs, including the wistful "Try to Remember," which opens and closes the show.
He also sings "I Can See It" in a pair of meaningful duets with The Boy, played with wide-eyed wonder by Eric Petersen. In the first duet, The Boy sees only adventure on the road ahead while the deeper-voiced narrator/villain foretells problems. But the parts are reversed in the second duet as the villain tries to entice The Girl by singing of adventure while The Boy, returning disillusioned, sees what can go wrong.
Emily May Smith gives a stellar portrayal as the determined but dreamy-eyed Girl. Her polished soprano dances through several songs, including a tender duet of "Soon It's Gonna Rain," with Petersen, and a disturbing "Round and Round" with the narrator.
Eric Parker and Joe Aiello create intriguing characters as the fathers of The Girl and The Boy. Parker, who has portrayed an interesting assortment of characters this season, is a natty, mustachioed button merchant while Aiello pulls a Don Knotts voice and a pair of hedge trimmers out of his bag of tricks.
The fathers have a couple of catchy song-and-dance numbers -- "Never Say No" and "Plant a Radish" -- both lamenting problems of parenthood.
Howard McBride and Roy Brown steal most of the laughs as a pair of traveling actors. McBride seems truly in his element as an elderly Shakespearean actor who can't remember his lines. Brown adds a padded paunch and a cockney accent to his usual spirited comedy.
In the context of the final show of The Barn season, "The Fantasticks" takes on an extra real-life dimension as Smith and Petersen -- who are completing with this show requirements for membership in Actors' Equity, the professional actors union -- sing of dreams and adventure ahead. Meanwhile, Barn veterans such as Burkell are giving advice.
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'The Fantasticks' is just that
A 40th anniversary of sorts was celebrated Tuesday at the Barn Theatre.
Producer Brendan Ragotzy opened one of his father’s favorite musicals, “The Fantasticks,” last performed at the historic
But, maybe the Barnies forgot to send out invitations. After full houses on opening nights for much of the season, the Barn was nearly empty Tuesday night.
Maybe the problem is that the show is not “Disney’s The Fantasticks.”
And yet, “The Fantasticks” is the longest-playing show in American theater history and the longest-running musical in the world. It played for 41 years in
It features one of the best scores (by Harvey Schmidt) and books/lyrics (Tom Jones) in musical theater history. Songs like “Try to Remember,” “Soon It’s Gonna Rain,” “Metaphor,” and “They Were You” are not just the playlist of the thespian-minded, but they are all well-known songs that became an integral part of 20th century American culture.
This classic of the American stage is brought to life in the capable hands of director Dusty Reeds.
Introduced by the classic line: “Try to remember, the kind of September, when life was sweet and oh so mellow,” the story unfolds of a girl (Emily May Smith) and a boy (Eric Peterson) kept apart by the garden wall built by their fathers (Eric Parker and Joe Aiello).
Things go according to plan as the bandito, El Gallo (Scott Burkell), abducts the girl and allows the boy to play the hero. El Gallo hires two players (Howard McBride and Roy Brown) who along with two mutes (Kelley Bray and Ben Bucher) stage a fake danger meant to end the feud between the fathers. But then, things in these stories never go as planned.
“The Fantasticks” blends the sensibilities of “Waiting for Godot” with “Romeo and Juliet.” It is modernist in execution, philosophical in content, very much like Beckett and yet completely accessible for audiences of all ages as a timeless story of love, friendship, life, hardship and happiness.
With most of the Barn’s company gone for the summer, a core group of some of the best performers remains. For those keeping an eye on the Barn’s talent pool, it’s long overdue that Emily May Smith landed a substantial role in a musical. After playing a lead role in her first year at the Barn in “Caught in the Net,” Smith has been relegated to small roles and chorus parts. But here, she shines. Smith possesses a clear voice and a wide vocal range. She’s a marvelous actress, working facial expression and gesture every moment for maximum effect.
Eric Peterson also is a company member who deserves as much stage-center time as possible. Well-known this season as the Chinese waiter in “Two into One” and the asylum doctor in “Beauty and the Beast,” Peterson again reveals his great capacity to play roles completely opposite of the kind he’s played before. If Peterson does not return to the Barn next year, look for his picture in the gallery of now-famous performers who once appeared there.
Another candidate for the Barn’s hall of fame is Roy Brown, who appears here as Mortimer. Brown is one of the most talented actors to come from the Barn’s equity candidates in years and is off to
These accolades are not necessary for Aiello, Burkell and Parker, who have reaped them before and in abundance. Burkell’s El Gallo may not be as “Snideley Whiplash” as others, but he brings flair and great singing talent to the role. Aiello manages to find new ways to generate laughs with impeccable timing and characterization. And Parker once again shows that he can play virtually any role, tackling the dithering, button-maker father and nailing the role.
The Barn ends its season with a show that everyone should see as it is a testament to why the live theater is able to accomplish things that no other art form can. If Jack Ragotzy were still with us, he would be beaming with pride from the stage, face flushed red with affection for the great work of the cast and crew of the theater he and Betty Ebert Ragotzy built 60 years ago.
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'Fantasticks' fantastic finale
by Marcia Fulmer
AUGUSTA,
The answers are given -- metaphorically -- in The Barn Theatre production of "The Fantasticks," on stage through Sept. 19 and the grand finale of its 2004 season.
I say "grand finale" because "The Fantasticks" -- as assembled by director Dusty Reeds, musical director Steven Zumbrun, a top tech team, small-but-excellent orchestra of four and a very talented group of nine performers -- proves beyond a shadow of a doubt it doesn't take a stage full of people to create something "grand."
Watching the cast -- Emily May Smith, Eric Petersen, Scott Burkell, Eric Parker, Joe Aiello, Howard McBride, Roy Brown, Kelley Bray and Ben Busher -- create characters and places on the nearly bare stage, it is easy to understand why "The Fantasticks" is the longest running musical in the world and the longest-running stage production of any kind in American theater history.
Produced in 1940 in the Sullivan Street Theatre in
Having sat through more productions of the romantic fantasy than I can count, I can say with a good amount of certainty that, however Orbach (then best known as a musical comedy actor) created the mysterious illusionist, it could not have been better than Burkell's interpretation.
Sporting a dark mustache and a tiny triangle mini-beard and twirling a large red-lined black cape, Burkell moves fluidly around the central platform that serves as the only non-moveable set piece. When not in motion, he rests on a wooden box down stage right and observes the action. His baritone is richer than ever and his diction, thankfully sharp. Even in the midst of a frantic duel ("The Rape Ballet") he makes every word intelligible. Far from the "onlooker only" choice of so many who play the role, he lets us see that, even as he creates the pain, he also feels it. He has the show's best known ballad, "Try to Remember."
Smith is absolutely delightful as Luisa, the 16-year-old who longs to see the world and be "kissed upon the eyes." She sings beautifully and her interpretation is right on the money. As Matt, her neighbor and would-be boyfriend, Peterson displays a solid baritone and, though not as believable as a teenager, delineates the young man's painful growth with empathetic angst. Together, they blend in a haunting "Soon It's Gonna Rain."
Erica Parker is Bellomy, Luisa's father, and Joe Aiello, Matt's dad, Hucklebee. It is their plan to join their offspring by saying "No!" to the blossoming romance that sets the downfall of their manipulations in motion.
Parker's quirky, bespectacled button maker (and amateur gardener) is charming. Aiello, whose character learned horticulture in the Navy, is a broader dad but sometimes pushes the comedic envelope too far and might remember that less is more.
They have two hilarious showstopping duets, "Never Say 'No'," and "Plant a Radish," which resonate in the heart of every parent.
Assisting El Gallo in his nefarious schemes are Howard McBride as Henry, an old actor, and Roy Brown, The Barn's outstanding character actor, as his sidekick, Mortimer, whose main claim to fame is the ability to "die" on stage in any manner requested.
Both are perfect in their roles.
Bray and Bucher speak not a word as The Mutes, bringing on props, banners and set pieces and changing them as required while standing in for the Wall. Usually, there is only one Mute, but doubling up is no problem here as they manage to be gracefully "on" and "off" as the same time.
The simple platform set is beautifully lit and provides much depth to the basically barren stage.
For "The Fantasticks," the orchestra is on stage throughout and Courtney Lang does an excellent job at the keyboards, in full view of the audience.
Director Reeds turns in her usual outstanding job, closing the season with a "Fantasticks" grace and charm.
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Theater review: 'The Fantasticks'
Published
By Lamont Clegg
For the
"Try to remember the kind of September ... And if you remember, follow."
Those lyrics are from "The Fantasticks," the longest-running production in American stage history, and the current offering at the Augusta Barn Theatre. It just may be the most perfect show to hit that venue in many years.
Perhaps that is because
The story is simple: a boy (Eric Petersen), a girl (Emily May Smith), two fathers (Joe Aiello and Eric Parker) and a wall. Add El Gallo, a narrator with attitude (Scott Burkell), and two surprise performers (Howard McBride and Roy Brown), and the ingredients are set for a wonderful evening of theater.
The intimate nature of the show and the Barn's stage are an ideal combination. The talented cast doesn't just tell the story, they all but invite the audience onstage to participate in it with them.
Particularly benefiting from the show's intimacy is Burkell's superior rendition of "Try to Remember." There is no reason to try to remember - there is no choice but to do so as his voice and emotion transport all who listen to another time and place.
Petersen and Smith play their roles with unfaltering honesty, from the innocents of Act I to the wounded but wiser people of Act II. Their singing of "They Were You" is nothing short of inspired.
Burkell's El Gallo has just the right measure of cynicism and compassion. His duet with Petersen ("I Can See It") is a highlight in a uniformly strong show.
McBride and Brown are delightfully silly in a couple of scenes, and their performances should not be missed.
The Barn originally planned to close with its previous show, "Aida." But now, director Dusty Reeds and her staff have crafted a "Fantastick" new ending to this year's Barn season.
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AUGUSTA The Fantasticks, the longest-running musical in the world will play it's final week at the Barn Theatre in Augusta and is certainly worth seeing.
A favorite of the late Jack Ragotzy, who founded the Barn Theatre, it is easy to understand why when watching the Barn troupe's latest rendition of the popular musical that was first performed at the local theater 40 years ago.
The Fantasticks tells the story of two fathers who scheme to bring their two children in love with one another, only to find out just how little control they have on their offspring¹s decisions.
Freely adapted from Edmond Rostand¹s 1894 play Les Romanesques, The Fantasticks utilizes a simple set and a cast of characters dressed in bizarre attire that immediately makes the audience feel as if they are entering a fantasy world, yet one that deals with very realistic problems that modern-day people face.
Utilizing direct eye contact with the audience, the actors in The Fantasticks lend an air of immediacy to the play, perhaps in an attempt to hold the audience¹s attention.
But the theater trick isn¹t really necessary with the capable acting and singing of the Barn ensemble, notably the vocal talent displayed by Emily May Smith and Eric Petersen who portray the young lovers, Luisa and Matt. Barn regular Scott Burkell who performs the role of the narrator, El Gallo, also performs a very pleasant rendition of Try to Remember, while Joe Aiello (the boy's father), Eric Parker (the girl's father) and Howard McBride and Roy Brown, (two eccentric actors), provide comic relief and strong vocal performances in their roles.
Performed during the early 1960s, The Fantasticks with words by Tom Jones and music by Harvey L. Schmidt, was a departure from earlier musicals that celebrated a romantic view of life and its problems.
The Fantasticks almost seems to poke fun at musicals whose endings implied and they all lived happily forever. Its first half tells the glorious story of the two young lovers getting together, while the second half deals more with the reality of holding a young love together through trial and error.
The Fantasticks ends the 59th season of the Barn Theatre, which was led this year by producer Brendan Ragotzy, who took over the duties of his father, Jack, who died earlier this year. The younger Ragotzy provided this year's audience with a variety of shows, including Disney's Beauty and the Beast, Guys and Dolls,Bat Boy (The Musical), Escanaba in da Moonlight, and Disney's Aida. Judging from the reaction of audiences throughout the season, Brendan Ragotzy is off to a good start in determining what people like to see in summer stock theater productions!
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