JHP Entertainment – Page 13 – Entertainment News, Reviews and Interviews

Rapid Fire 20Q with director and cast of Circle Players’ “Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express”; onstage at Looby theatre January 13-29

January 13, 2023 by Jonathan

Agatha Christie has long been my favorite mystery writer, having first discovered her by way of film adaptations when I was younger. With an introduction to her work via film versions of The Mirror Crack’d, Death on The Nile and Murder on the Orient Express, I was quickly obsessed. Heck, I even began reading Christie’s novels in a thematic manner…the first time I flew in an airplane, I read Death in the Air, at Halloween and Christmas I read stories featuring her most famous detective, Hercule Poirot that took place during those holidays. When I heard Circle Players was mounting Ken Ludwig’s stage adaptation of Murder on the Orient Express I hoped I’d kick off the new year by featuring some of the cast and crew for my latest Rapid Fire 20Q. In spite of the fact that they were in the throes of tech week, I was thrilled when director Clay Hillwig and cast members Elliott Robinson, Antonio Nappo and Bailey Borders graciously agreed to chat with me in the days just prior the show opening at Looby Theatre Friday, January 13. What follows are those conversations.

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RAPID FIRE 20Q WITH DIRECTOR AND CAST OF CIRCLE PLAYERS’ AGATHA CHRISTIE’s MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS

RAPID FIRE WITH MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS DIRECTOR CLAY HILLWIG

JHPENTERTAINMENT: How did directing Murder on the Orient Express for Circle come about?

CLAY HILLWIG: A little over a year ago, Circle Players reached out to me and asked if I would be interested in directing this show. I could not type “Y-E-S” out quick enough in my response. To be honest, it had not been on my list. I am still questioning how it wasn’t. I guess fortune placed it in front of me and I am very thankful to Circle Players that it did.

JHPENTERTAINMENT: This may seem a simple, obvious question, but having appeared both in shows, as well as being part of various productions’ crews, do you think that gives you an advantage as a director guiding actors?

CLAY HILLWIG: That is a good question. I do not know if it necessarily gives me and advantage, but it definitely gives me a full understanding of the moving parts of a production. In regards to guiding actors. I have always approached directing style and my relationship with my cast, based my own desires as an actor. How do I what to be directed? How do I want to be treated during the process? Am I being challenged to grow in my craft as an actor? Do I trust my director to provide both positive and negative feedback in a constructive manner, Is my director available, to guide me in defining the character I am playing and my relationships with the other characters within the story? Most importantly, is my director providing a safe environment to work in? I have been labeled as “an actors director”, which tells me that my approach is making a positive impression. Communication with my actors is crucial to me. Making sure that I am listening to them and their ideas with the same patience and respect that I require from them. That being said, I believe that it is also very important to strike a balance of directing through the process and knowing when to get out of the actors way. My goal is always to provide a drama free, safe environment, for my actors to work and grow in their art. If the production is flawless and receives rave reviews, but I have failed in this important part of the process, I cannot walk away with the satisfaction that is was a successful production. I would like to take this opportunity to say that this cast had been a pure joy to work with. They have showed up prepared from the very beginning of the process and have made my role as their leader as smooth as it could have possibly been.

JHPENTERTAINMENT: I myself am a lifelong Christie fan, heck I recently finished my annual holiday re-read of her seasonal mystery, Hercule Poirot’s Christmas, so suffice it to say I’m perhaps a tad more familiar with Christie than some of your audience might be. That said, Christie’s novel includes 12 suspects, but playwright Ken Ludwig opted to par down the suspect list to eight. How does this enhance the telling of the story of the stage play

CLAY HILLWIG: It is an interesting choice by Ludwig to reduce our suspects from 12 to 8. He took some license in the melding of characters from the original 12 to the 8 that we have here, without taking away from the original writing of Ms. Christie . The result is a very tight, fast paced, well written script. Though Christie purist may not agree, I believe that the choice in this adaptation works very well for the stage. The strongest endorsement is from the Agatha Christie Limited, who personally requested he take on this adaptation. Ludwig refers to this project as one of the highlights of his career. I think we can all understand why.

JHPENTERTAINMENT: In addition to directing, you’re doing double duty as the show’s set designer. As the title might suggest, the action takes place primarily aboard the infamous train. What’s the biggest advantage—aside from the assumed less number of sets—to directing a show that takes place in a relatively confined solitary space?

CLAY HILLWIG: Not easy!!! Yes, there are limited sets, but the size of the set and the limited space for our scenes to play out has been challenging. When you research the original Orient Express, space is very tight throughout. It is important that we are telling our story from within the tight confines of the train and not the expanse of the theater stage.

JHPENTERTAINMENT: While the story is set in the confines of the legendary train, the cast of characters provide an international flare with travelers from England, France, Belgium, Russia, the US and more, so I gotta know…who’s the show’s dialect coach?

CLAY HILLWIG: Early in the production process I had reached out to candidates to join us as dialect coaches, Of course schedules and conflicts tend to alter our best laid plans as you get closer to the target date.. But, there is always a solution. In this case I was very fortunate to cast two actors, Barrett Thomas and Kaleigh Ruiz, who have both a minor and major in French and Belgium.. They have worked closely with our players in perfecting these accents. As for our other dialects, the actors came prepared, some with accents already in place, others working very hard using various tools that are available. YouTube is a wonderful thing!!

RAPID FIRE WITH MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS’s HERCULE POIROT, ELLIOTT ROBINSON

JHPENTERTAINMENT: As you reveal in your cast bio, Murder on the Orient Express marks your tenth time to appear onstage with Circle Players. I think I’ve seen you in each of the previous nine. Whenever an actor has such a longstanding relationship with a theatre company, I always like to ask…What is it that keeps you coming back?

ELLIOTT ROBINSON: Bottom line is, Circle Players always mounts quality productions. The rehearsal processes are drama-free, I always get to work with amazingly talented casts and crews, and the end result is something that all of us, and all of Nashville can be proud of: professional-quality live theatre productions, and a great variety of them, whether they be musicals or not.

JHPENTERTAINMENT: Hercule Poirot and Miss Jane Marple, another of Christie’s best-known detectives, are among the most beloved literary detectives of all time. What’s it like portraying such an iconic character?

ELLIOTT ROBINSON: It’s a huge challenge because so many people know the character. When I mention the role, so many people have shared their recollections of Poirot, and sometimes ask me whether I am going to try to recreate this scene, or this mannerism, or whatever; simply, the answer is no. I am going to make the character my own. I wouldn’t dare watch a movie or anything like that involving a character I’m working on, for fear that – even subconsciously – I might imitate something that someone else did. So, I take all my cues from the words in the script, plus my director’s notes and my own research about the character.

JHPENTERTAINMENT: Having just chatted with your show’s director, I brought up the subject of the variety of character dialects. As Poirot, your character is infamously from Belgium. If you were to teach a quick course in the Belgian dialect, what would your top two helpful hints?

ELLIOTT ROBINSON: I would NOT be able to teach a course! It is clear that, with all of the French phrases peppered into the script, that Poirot is from a part of Belgium that is French-influenced, as opposed to some Belgians that have more of a Dutch flavor to their speech (I learned that searching youtube clips!). I will say that a couple of fluent French-speakers in the cast have been tremendously helpful, guiding me through the French phrases, as well as helping me with the accent. Ultimately, I am more worried about the audience understanding what I’m saying than I am about being the “most French,” if that makes sense.

JHPENTERTAINMENT: Do you think you’d be a good detective in real life?

ELLIOTT ROBINSON: I think I have some good detective-ish qualities, like attention to detail, and I feel that I’m a pretty observant person. What I don’t know is how much pleasure I could derive from it. Could I truly enjoy running headlong into brick wall after brick wall, figuring out new clues or ideas because the previous ones have not panned out? Also, I’m one that does not much go for the thrill of danger; I prefer a much calmer existence.

JHPENTERTAINMENT: What is your favorite aspect of Poirot’s personality?

ELLIOTT ROBINSON: His intelligence. He is very well-read, and very well-rounded. He speaks multiple languages, has a grasp of world history, he knows his Shakespeare, and he is somewhat of a psychologist (as well as a bit of a flirt). He is not swayed by false evidence, and his calculating manner gets to the exact way things went down. Brilliant man!

RAPID FIRE WITH MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS’s MONSIEUR BOUC, ANTONIO NAPPO

JHPENTERTAINMENT: What can you tell me about Monsieur Bouc?

ANTONIO NAPPO: He is larger than life.

JHPENTERTAINMENT: Circle shared cast portraits on socials recently and the first thing I notice was that you’ve apparently cut your hair and trimmed your beard. The story takes place in the early 1930s. Was it a no-brainer to alter your appearance to better fit the aesthetic of the show?

ANTONIO NAPPO: Absolutely, Clay’s question to me at auditions was if I was married to the long hair/beard look. I said I’m not, but my wife is. She’s the one who took some convincing.

JHPENTERTAINMENT: In Christie’s original novel, Monsieur Constantine Bouc is a military man from Belgium. The 1974 film adaptation and playwright Ken Ludwig’s all but drop the character’s military background, instead focusing on his current position as a high-level employee of the rail company.As you’ve developed your portrayal of Bouc, have you created any backstory in your mind that you’d care to share?

ANTONIO NAPPO: His deep friendship with Poirot is paramount to me. It’s at the core of who Bouc is.

JHPENTERTAINMENT: When Christie’s novel was released, it was immediately apparent that the events that open the story were directly lifted from the now-historic 1932 kidnapping of Charles Lindbergh, Jr. Was that bit of trivial ever discussed during rehearsals or is that something you knew prior?

ANTONIO NAPPO: We did discuss it, at length. But I did know about it prior to going into this show.

JHPENTERTAINMENT: In keeping with the subject of the show…If you could get away with a crime…would you?

ANTONIO NAPPO: How do you know I haven’t already?

RAPID FIRE WITH MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS’s HELEN HUBBARD, BAILEY BORDERS

JHPENTERTAINMENT: Alright, as this show’s Circle Players newbie, I gotta ask…what’s the experience been like so far, working with Nashville’s oldest continuing theatre company?

BAILEY BORDERS: This has been the smoothest experience I’ve ever had in community theater and I’d like to thank our whole team for that! The cast has been so supportive and Clay is such a wonderful director to collaborate with. We’re leaving the drama for the stage for this one!

JHPENTERTAINMENT: While it’s your first show with Circle, you’re a Nashville native, having studied at Nashville School of the Arts. After school you relocated to Los Angeles to continue your pursuit of acting and recently relocated back to Music City. What’s your impression of the changes and growth of Nashville since you were last here?

BAILEY BORDERS: I’m loving the growth of the city, but I have to say I miss some of our local hangs that couldn’t withstand the rent increase. While there’s so much more to do and explore, I hope we’re able to keep the charm Nashville has always had!

JHPENTERTAINMENT: In Agatha Christie’s source material, as well as subsequent film adaptations and now this stage version, Helen Hubbard has always been portrayed with a certain air of elegance and a bit of initial arrogance. How much fun are you having playing her?

BAILEY BORDERS: Helen Hubbard has been an absolute blast to play! I love a strong, outspoken character. She has so many levels to explore. My favorite part of Mrs. Hubbard is her brashness. She’s somehow able to maintain an elegance while being the life of the party.

JHPENTERTAINMENT: From the legendary Lauren Bacall’s portrayal of Mrs. Hubbard in the 1974 film to the equally glamorous Michelle Pfeiffer in Kenneth Branagh’s 2017 remake, a huge part of the character’s mystique manifests itself in her fabulous wardrobe. For Circle’s production, Denese Evans is the show’s costumer. What can you tell me about your Mrs. Hubbard’s style?

BAILEY BORDERS: Denese has been outstanding at creating Mrs. Hubbard’s aesthetic. Collaborating together on her hair, makeup, and classic pieces has been one of the most fun elements of seeing Helen brought to life. Mrs. Hubbard is glamorous and does not shy away from a show stopping garment. She uses her wardrobe as her space to shine!

JHPENTERTAINMENT: So, whodunnit? Just kidding. What is it about Murder on the Orient Express that you think audiences will enjoy most?

BAILEY BORDERS: I think audiences will be pleasantly surprised at the amount of comic relief in our show! The tension is always there, as the mystery unfolds, but there are some wonderful moments in between that provide a certain lightness.

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To take a ride on the Orient Express, CLICK HERE to purchase tickets to Circle Players’ presentation of Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express. The show runs Friday, January 13 through Sunday, January 29 at Z. Alexander Looby Theatre (2301 Rosa Parks Blvd). Tickets are $20 for Thursday performances and $25 Fridays-Sundays. To keep up with the latest from Circle Players follow them on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

If you’ve enjoyed this latest Rapid Fire 20 Q, be sure and CLICK HERE to check out previous conversations. if you are interested in coverage for your latest entertaining endeavor, simply click the contact page and drop me a note. You can also follow JHP Entertainment on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.

RAPID FIRE 20Q WITH CAST OF LARRY KEETON THEATRE’s ‘WHITE CHRISTMAS’

December 1, 2022 by Jonathan

If you know me at all, or you’ve read any of my holiday reviews over the last decade or so, you likely know Irving Berlin’s White Christmas is my hands-down favorite movie musical, in any incarnation. Doesn’t matter whether we’re talking about the classic 1954 film, or the subsequent stage musical. I love all things White Christmas. Given that bit of insider info about myself, of course I had to chat with Kevin Raymond, Micheal Walley, Casey Cuba and Dani Haines for my latest Rapid Fire 20Q. The quartet of talented performers are starring in White Christmas directed by Keith Hardy at The Larry Keeton Dinner Theatre (108 Donelson Pike) beginning tonight, Thursday, December 1and continuing through Sunday, December 18.

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RAPID FIRE 20Q WITH THE CAST OF THE LARRY KEETON THEATRE’S WHITE CHRISTMAS

RAPID FIRE WITH KEVIN RAYMOND, BOB WALLACE IN WHITE CHRISTMAS

JHPENTERTAINMENT: Tell me a little about Bob Wallace.

KEVIN RAYMOND: Bob Wallace is a lovable character but sometimes he appears to be a bit sarcastic because he’s missing something in his life. There’s no romance going on he doesn’t have anybody to love. Even his partner Phil points out that he should “add a little romance to his life“ and maybe he’d be happier. He spends most of his time working on business deals and the Wallace and Davis act on his entire life since the army. The transition of his character in White Christmas is truly a beautiful one through his rocky relationship with Betty Haynes. Hopefully, you’ll have a chance to see the love in his heart, his joy in his business and performing as well as his general love for his fellow mankind.

JHPENTERTAINMENT: Taking on the role made famous by Bing Crosby…daunting, a dream, or a combination of both?

KEVIN RAYMOND: I have to say, it is a daunting task! Bob sings a majority of the music in the show and appears in every scene except for two in the entire musical. One of the biggest things that I’ve enjoyed about this is the challenge set before me. But to be perfectly honest, this has been a dream role for my entire life. I feel as if I’m in an age right now to be the perfect Bob Wallace because 10 years ago I may have been too young and 10 years from now I’ll definitely be too old to play this character.

JHPENTERTAINMENT: Your creative credits go beyond on-stage performing, you’ve also been involved in a number of productions at The Keeton and other theatre companies behind the scenes. Do you think that gives you an advantage when cast in a show?

KEVIN RAYMOND: I’m delighted to also be the choreographer for this production and one of the things that I generally always tell the cast is to think like a director or to think like a choreographer. I feel as if it’s a life learning lesson to have someone nurture you to the fact that if there’s an even number of people on stage, someone will split the center line when it comes to blocking a dance. If there’s an odd number of people on stage someone will always be on that center line. If you have thoughts like this in your head going in to a learning experience then it makes life so much more easy for you. Also, when you’re moving set pieces think about what might need to go off before some thing else comes on and vice versa. The knowledge that it takes to be able to pull things off like that is a vital life lesson for the arts. I think that my interaction with people and all of the previous artistic elements I’ve been involved in at the Keeton certainly help me to develop this and others as well. On top of that, because I generally think like a Director and Choreographer, blocking, staging and other elements come really easy for me and I can pour that natural instinct into a character.

JHPENTERTAINMENT: Speaking of other gigs, a couple years ago you released a Christmas cd. What can you tell me about that project?

KEVIN RAYMOND: Christmas music is and always will be my favorite! I love being in the studio and creating art on a recorded medium. It’s very different than live performing because you can do quite a few takes and pick the best one or splice things together very easily. The CD was basically a labor of love and a really fun project that one of my best friends, Gabe Wateski, recorded and produced for me. The title of the CD is called Christmas Is… and can be found on my website at kevinfraymond.com. It has 18 truly wonderful tracks, some old and familiar and some new material.

JHPENTERTAINMENT: I’m about to chat with you costars, so I gotta ask…what’s it been like to share the stage with Micheal Walley’s Phil Davis to your Bob Wallace?

KEVIN RAYMOND: Micheal is an absolute joy! I’m so thankful that the director, Keith Hardy, cast him because if I was directing, he would’ve gotten my first vote as well! Filling the shoes of Phil Davis (not to mention having everyone always comparing you to Danny Kaye) is not an easy one because he hast to be an absolute funny man. Every successful vaudeville act has to have two comedians where one is acting in the funny man capacity and the other as the straight man. Micheal is the perfect funny man for the show. He brings Phil to a light that I could’ve never even imagined. It is so easy to work off of him that I’m truly blessed to be on stage with Micheal. In real life, Micheal is a tremendously likable young man with a great personality and though I only met him when we started rehearsals for the show I feel as if I’ve known him forever already. I think at the Wallace and Davis combo along with the Haynes Sisters will leave you very pleased with White Christmas!

RAPID FIRE WITH MICHEAL WALLEY, PHIL DAVIS IN WHITE CHRISTMAS

JHPENTERTAINMENT: I just interviewed your co-star, Kevin and asked about working with you, so turn about is fair play…how is Kevin as a scene partner?

MICHEAL WALLEY: Oh, Kevin! When I auditioned for the show and read a scene with Kevin, I thought to myself, “I really would love to play opposite that guy!” It’s been a dream. Kevin truly is the ideal song-and-dance man, and getting to feed off of his energy and stage presence is so much fun. He and I also accidentally showed up wearing matching shirts at rehearsal one day, so he has great style.

JHPENTERTAINMENT: I last saw you at the Darkhorse Theatre in Bucket List Productions’ Assassins earlier this year, but first saw you in Chaffin’s Barn Dinner Theatre’s Minnie Pearl: All the News from Grinder’s Switch. All very diverse roles. What draws you to a role?

MICHEAL WALLEY: It’s been so fun getting to bring to life all sorts of different characters. Honestly, I’m grateful to do any role that is offered- whatever the type of role! I went a long time without doing any sort of theatre, and am in awe that people have trusted me with some really wonderful roles. The incredible team at Chaffin’s Barn (gosh – I miss it!), the cast mates that became family in Assassins, and the new friends in White Christmas have made Nashville feel like home. Each role has pushed me to be a better performer, and I’m so grateful for the community here. I’d jump at any chance to work with the wonderful people that make up the Nashville theatre community!

JHPENTERTAINMENT: If you could apply an aspect of Phil’s character into your real life, what would it be?

MICHEAL WALLEY: I love Phil’s optimism and glass-half-full nature. I’m usually an optimistic person, but man, the pandemic and the past few years have affected us all, and it’s a little harder to look on the bright side of things. I’m challenged to refocus and reconnect with my own optimism to ensure Phil’s joy is authentic onstage.

JHPENTERTAINMENT: Snow is my favorite moment in the show…what’s yours?

MICHEAL WALLEY: I absolutely adore the Act 2 opener, I Love a Piano. While I’m sad that Choreography from the movie isn’t in the live stage show, this song is a pretty good substitute and a blast to perform. It’s such a big production number, and I’m really proud of what the cast has accomplished with it over the past few weeks. Plus – the costumes are fantastic!

JHPENTERTAINMENT: Singing, dancing, comedy and a little bit of drama…White Christmas has it all. I understand you co-star, Kevin is also the show’s choreographer. What has rehearsal been like?

MICHEAL WALLEY: Yes, the choreographer is none other than our Bob Wallace, Kevin Raymond. Kevin has pushed us beyond what we thought was possible. At our first rehearsal, I said, “I hope people watch my face and not my feet” because I don’t consider myself a great dancer. But Kevin has been a fantastic, patient teacher and I’ve learned so much from him. He’s helped create something really impressive on the Keeton stage, and we can’t wait for the audience to see our tapping feet! In the words of Clark Griswold, “This will be the hap, hap, happpiest Christmas since Bing Crosby tap-danced with Danny…Kaye!”

RAPID FIRE WITH CASEY CUBA, BETTY HAYNES IN WHITE CHRISTMAS

JHPENTERTAINMENT: While preparing for the role of Betty Haynes, what or who have you drawn from to channel certain attributes?

CASEY CUBA: Looking the part of Betty during this time period, I focused on the elegance and poise of my grandmothers. I always loved looking at their old photographs from the 1940s and envied how glamorous life seemed. As for the character of Betty, I have drawn on my own raw emotions, vulnerability, and life experiences. Betty is very independent and strong willed, traits that sometimes cause her to sabotage her own happiness. I often recognize these traits in myself.

JHPENTERTAINMENT: Of course there are parallels between the two featured couples…Betty and Bob share more serious traits while Phil and Judy are a bit more carefree. In real life are you more a Betty or a Judy?

CASEY CUBA: I am definitely more of a Judy in real life! I am the one finding humor in almost ANY situation. Who doesn’t enjoy laughing?

JHPENTERTAINMENT: I’ve said it a hundred times…White Christmas isn’t just my favorite Christmas movie. Heck, it’s my favorite stage musical…of all-time. Aside from White Christmas, naturally…what’s your favorite holiday viewing?

CASEY CUBA: I can only choose one?!? Planes, Trains, and Automobiles is my favorite movie for Thanksgiving, but for Christmas…there are so many good ones! My top 2 favorites are probably It’s a Wonderful Life and Christmas Vacation.

JHPENTERTAINMENT: The wardrobe…can we talk about the wardrobe? The show’s director, Keith Hardy is doing double duty as the costumer as well. Do you have a favorite look?

CASEY CUBA: Yes, Keith is also the costumer. How amazing is that? He has knocked it out of the park…per usual. The dresses for Sisters, the iconic blue dresses and fans, are UNREAL! They are just gorgeous. But my absolute favorite look in the show is the black velvet gown that Betty wears for her solo of Love, You Didn’t Do Right By Me. It was made to look just like the gown Rosemary Clooney wore in the film and it is just stunning. I feel so connected to Betty in that scene with the glamour and the raw emotion. It’s just beautiful.

JHPENTERTAINMENT: If you hadn’t been cast as Betty, regardless of whether you’re the ‘type’, what other White Christmas role would you love to play?

CASEY CUBA: I would love to play Rita or Rhoda! Haha I mean c’mon! I think it would be so fun to play a ditzy, blonde bimbo! Their lines are so ridiculously funny and their costumes are hysterical!

RAPID FIRE WITH DANI HAINES, JUDY HAYNES IN WHITE CHRISTMAS JHPENTERTAINMENT: I’ve heard playing Judy a dream role for you. What is is about Judy Haynes that drew you to the part?

DANI HAINES: I’ve always had a connection with Judy since I first saw the movie when I was younger. She was a charismatic and dynamic performer and I think that really influenced how I’ve approached all the roles I’ve gotten the chance to do throughout my stage career.

JHPENTERTAINMENT: I understand you’re a relative newcomer to Nashville and this is your first show at The Keeton. How’s your time in Music City been thus far and are you enjoying being part of the Keeton family?

DANI HAINES: I’ve lived in a lot of different places in my life, and Nashville has been one of my favorites! I’m excited to put down roots in a diverse, entertaining city. Joining a new theatre family will always come with unique challenges and barriers, but I’ve learned so much about myself and the community through the experience; and I’m extremely grateful for the love and support from my new friends.

JHPENTERTAINMENT: The role of Judy is dance-heavy, having first been portrayed on screen by the iconic Vera-Lynn. Do you have a dance background?

DANI HAINES: I’ve actually been a dancer most of my life! I started lessons at a young age in various genres of dance, and that was what created the gateway to my love for musical theatre. I’m so fortunate to have had the experiences I’ve been given and use them in this show.

JHPENTERTAINMENT: A little online sleuthing revealed when you’re not on stage, you work at an escape room. If you could create a White Christmas-themed escape room, what would it consist of?

DANI HAINES: Hmmm… Without a doubt, there would have to be a lot of music! I’d probably create a puzzle involving the iconic songs of the movie and the show. The theme would be “backstage and get ready so the show can go on”!

JHPENTERTAINMENT: What do you hope audiences take with them after seeing White Christmas at The Keeton?

DANI HAINES: One of the biggest lessons this show teaches its viewers is that a kind heart and goodwill towards others never goes out of style. I hope that this show serves as a reminder to us all that compassion and generosity should be celebrated year round, not just during the holiday seasons. I also hope they take home fun memories and some tapping toes!

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Irving Berlin’s White Christmas celebrates the holidays at The Larry Keeton Dinner Theatre with performances December 1-18. At the time of this posting, it would appear the entire run has sold out, but you just never know…some Scrooge might have to cancel at the last minute. You might want to call 615.231.1231 and check on last-minute availability. Dinner and Show tickets are $35/Adult and $25/children. Show Only tickets are $30/$20. CLICK HERE for more information.

Up next at The Keeton Dinner Theatre is Newsies. February 10-26. CLICK HERE for tickets. To keep up with the latest from The Larry Keeton Dinner Theatre, follow them on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Interested in coverage for your latest entertaining endeavor? Click the contact page and drop me a note. You can also follow JHP Entertainment on Instagram and Facebook.

Rapid Fire Q&A with actor/playwright/director David Alford; ‘A Holiday To Remember’ recitations of Truman Capote’s ‘The Thanksgiving Visitor’ and ‘A Christmas Memory’ at Belmont Mansion this holiday season

November 22, 2022 by Jonathan

You may know David Alford by way of his six-season role as Bucky Dawes, manager to Connie Britton’s Rayna Jaymes on the hugely popular CMT/ABC drama series Nashville, multiple tv and film roles including The Good Fight, The Blacklist and The Last Castle, his recent appearance alongside Laura Linney, Cynthia Nixon, Richard Thomas and Michael McKean in the 2017 revival of Lillian Hellman’s The Little Foxes on Broadway, or for having created Spirit: The Authentic Story of the Bell Witch, which recently celebrated its twentieth year in nearby Adams, TN. Either way, or even if you don’t know David, you’ll definitely want to check out A Holiday to Remember, Alford’s presentation of two of Truman Capote’s most-cherished stories, The Thanksgiving Visitor and A Christmas Memory, being presented in the Grand Salon of Nashville’s beautiful and historic Belmont Mansion with select performances November 23-December 17.

Having known David for years, not only by his aforementioned accolades, but through a mutual friend, as well as his tenure as Executive Artistic Director of Nashville Repertory Theatre a few years ago, when it was known as Tennessee Repertory Theatre, as soon as I learned he was returning to the Nashville theatre scene to perform this latest iteration of not one, but two Capote treasures, I knew I had to chat with him for my latest RAPID FIRE Q&A.

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RAPID FIRE Q&A WITH ‘A HOLIDAY TO REMEMBER’ STAR, DAVID ALFORD

JHPENTERTAINMENT: In preparing to chat with you, I rewatched the mid-60s television presentations of both The Thanksgiving Visitor and A Christmas Memory starring Geraldine Page as Sook. I remember seeing them on TV about a decade later when I was a kid. These stories were my introduction to Truman Capote. What was yours?

DAVID ALFORD: My first introduction to Capote, like many other people, was seeing him on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson. I was young. He struck me as a strange fellow with a funny voice that the adults seemed to find terribly amusing. I knew he had a reputation as being a bit of a provocateur, someone who liked pushing boundaries. It was many years later, shortly after graduating drama school and being cast in a stage adaptation of his holiday stories, that I learned that he was much more than his public persona. He was a true literary genius, with extraordinary range. The stories from his childhood featuring his eccentric cousin Miss Sook Faulk are beautifully written and deeply moving.

JHPENTERTAINMENT: Speaking of introductions, ABC’s recent drama series, Nashville may have served as an introduction to you for millions of TV viewers, but those of us in the actual town of Nashville have known you through your theatrical works for years. In fact, just last month you celebrated the 20th anniversary of your play, Spirit: The Authentic Story of the Bell Witch of Tennessee. Before we get into A Holiday to Remember, What was it like to revisit Spirit as director again this year?

DAVID ALFORD: Rewarding and humbling. I wrote and directed the first production in 2002, and then directed a revision I did in 2008. Other than that, I have been involved only as an unofficial advisor from time to time until this year. The group behind the production, CSI (Community Spirit, Inc.) has not only kept the show going every year, but they’ve grown the play into a month-long festival. The show’s success is really a testament to their commitment and hard work. Every performance this year was sold out. I’d look into the audience and see men in John Deere caps seated next to women in business attire with a few occultists thrown into the mix. It’s hard to describe the sense of gratitude I feel looking at an audience of people from wildly different backgrounds seated next to each other and experiencing the same story. It’s become its own unique phenomenon.

JHPENTERTAINMENT: Now on to A Holiday to Remember. Over the years you’ve presented a variation of this show from time to time. If memory serves, I believe it’s been 30-some years since you performed A Southern Christmas Sampler and about a decade since the former iteration, Christmas Down Home was presented here in Music City. What prompted you to revisit and revise it this year at Belmont and to include not only A Christmas Memory, but also Capote’s other holiday offering, The Thanksgiving Visitor?

DAVID ALFORD: I stopped doing A Christmas Memory mainly because of my commitments to the TV show. Then I moved away for a while. I’m back home now and it felt like the time was right. I’m a little older and can bring a little more life-experience to it. Plus, I’ve missed doing the piece. I still feel very connected to it. As far as pairing it with The Thanksgiving Visitor, we actually did it before in 2004 when I was Artistic Director at Tennessee Rep (now Nashville Rep) in the Polk Theatre at TPAC. It went well, though I thought the show might have worked better in a more intimate space. This is a chance to try that. Plus, it’s an opportunity to work my memorization muscles a bit. With both pieces, it’s me doing Capote’s words for about an hour-and-a-half. I like the challenge.

Composer/Guitarist Paul Carroll Binkley’s music accompanies David Alford’s storytelling in “A Christmas Memory”

JHPENTERTAINMENT: As you have done in previous incarnations, you’ve once again enlisted the talents of your friend, Paul Carrol Binkley whose original music is featured. How did you and Paul first connect?

DAVID ALFORD: I met Paul in 1985 at Austin Peay Statue University in Clarksville, where we were both students. He became the guitarist and band leader for a group I’d earlier formed with some high school friends called The Red River Boys. We gigged a lot together, and of course Paul was already composing and playing his own music at the time. Right before I went to Juilliard, he was the music director for a production of The Robber Bridegroom I was in at APSU, and he really knocked it out of the park. So I knew he had theatre chops. When I came back to Nashville in 1994 to start Mockingbird Theatre, Paul was one of the first people I called. He did the music for our second production, Tennessee Williams‘ The Glass Menagerie, and that started a long and successful working relationship. When I had the idea to do A Christmas Memory as the centerpiece for a potential Mockingbird holiday show (which became our Southern Christmas Sampler) I asked Paul to create some underscoring for it. He did, and it was perfect. Those original musical ideas have become an irreplaceable part of the performance for me. I can’t imagine doing the piece without Paul. I still get choked up every time I hear him play the opening phrase.

JHPENTERTAINMENT: This isn’t the first time you’ve performed at Belmont Mansion in the Grand Salon. What makes it such an ideal venue for these stories?

DAVID ALFORD: Well, it’s an incredibly evocative space, and the acoustics are excellent. Both pieces are about Truman’s childhood and set in the early 1930s, and though Belmont Mansion was around long before that, there are still echoes of the past that help underscore the context. And while I love working in traditional theaters, sometimes matching content with an appropriate nontraditional performance space can really resonate with an audience. I think this show in the mansion does that pretty well.

JHPENTERTAINMENT: For those who may not have seen your previous presentations, what can the audience expect?

DAVID ALFORD: The show is me doing Capote’s text uncut from memory with Paul’s original underscoring. The Thanksgiving Visitor is first. It has a four-piece combo and is a little more energetic in feel with me mostly on my feet. For A Christmas Memory, we’re performing it the same way we have since the beginning: I’m seated on a stool, with Paul in a chair just behind. It’s me, Capote’s words, and Paul’s guitar.

JHPENTERTAINMENT: Aside from Buddy, the young boy at the center of both The Thanksgiving Visitor and A Christmas Memory, both stories feature his Cousin, Sook, an eccentric relative, and Buddy’s best friend. Research also revealed that you once cited your grandmother as your voice inspiration for your Sook. What can you tell me about finding the voice for each of the characters?

DAVID ALFORD: Good question! Thankfully the stories are mostly Capote’s narrative prose, so I don’t have to do a huge amount of vocal characterization. It’s mostly Sook and Buddy (her nickname for young Truman) with a handful of other characters sprinkled in. The challenge is to honor the text and what Capote’s trying to accomplish from a narrative perspective, while finding voices that stay true to the setting (a small town in the depression-era Deep South). And then within that framework, to find enough variation so the audience doesn’t get confused. Mostly it’s a lot of experimentation and trying to use as much of my vocal range as I can!

JHPENTERTAINMENT: On the subject of voices and characters, Capote, himself was quite a character and he possessed a very distinctive voice. I mentioned earlier the mid-60s teleplays. Capote served as narrator for those, so I gotta know…do you narrate in a Capote-esque voice?

DAVID ALFORD: I do not, for a couple of reasons. First, I think trying to replicate Truman’s voice calls too much attention to the performer and not enough to the words on the page. Instead, what I try to do in the narration is present Truman’s literary voice, his written voice, which is substantially more expressive and has greater range than his speaking voice ever did. His writing in these stories is masterful: funny, lyrical, and at times breathtakingly beautiful. I wouldn’t want any impression I did to get in the way of that. There’s definitely a specific southern flavor of course: accent, playfulness, and wit, but less affectation. But also, from a practical perspective, I think the more important voice is Sook’s and the other characters, and it’s hard to imagine someone with Truman’s voice being able to alter their tonality enough to make those voices convincing. So you’re either doing Truman all the way through (including the other character’s voices) or you’re finding the voices of the other characters and making the narration more neutral. I don’t think you can do both. So I do the latter.

JHPENTERTAINMENT: Oh, I knew we should have gone ahead and done a full Rapid Fire 20Q, but I didn’t want to take up too much of your time…so….Can you share a little about cherished holiday memories of your own?

DAVID ALFORD: Well, of course, I have many, most of them from my childhood and from people that are gone now. My dad rarely provided the things on our Christmas lists, but he always made it special. He was a pastor, and this was his favorite time of year. One of the things that brings people back to A Christmas Memory is that Capote acknowledges the full range of memories of the people we love who are no longer with us. Those memories can be funny, touching, sweet, warm, awkward, joyful: but they can also make us feel a keen sense of loss. Leave it to his genius to be able to encapsulate all that in a short story. But to answer your question directly, and at the risk of sounding schmaltzy, the truth is that many of my most treasured holiday experiences have been sharing this story with a roomful of fellow human beings.

JHPENTERTAINMENT: I usually end these chats with basically the same question…What do you hope audiences take away from seeing A Holiday to Remember?

DAVID ALFORD: That Truman Capote is an under-appreciated genius and one of the greatest writers of the 20th century. That all people, no matter how odd, eccentric, or marginalized, have value and can teach us something. That love always makes a difference.

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David Alford’s A Holiday to Remember begins Wednesday, November 23 with subsequent performances November 25 & 26 and December 1,3,15 and 16. All Performances begin at 7:30 p.m. and will take place in the Grand Salon on Belmont Mansion (On the campus of Belmont University at the corner of Acklen Avenue and Belmont Blvd- behind Freeman Hall, 1901 15th Ave S., Nashville, TN 37212) Tickets to each performance are $45 and include lite refreshments and a peek at the holiday decorations of the Mansion’s first floor. CLICK HERE to purchase tickets. For more about David Alford, CLICK HERE. If you’re interested in learning more about Belmont Mansion or perhaps scheduling a full tour during the holiday, CLICK HERE.

As always, if you wanna follow JHPEntertainment to find out who I’m chatting with for my next Rapid Fire Q&A, or for my take on the latest local and national theatre, music and movie offerings, find us at Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Got an event or show we should know about, drop us a line at the Contact tab. Till then, #GoSeeTheShow!

Rapid Fire 20Q with cast of ‘The Cake’; regional premiere at Nashville Rep October 21-30

October 21, 2022 by Jonathan

Directed by Lauren Shouse, 0pening Friday, October 21 and running through Sunday, October 30, Nashville Repertory Theatre presents the regional premiere of Bekah Brunstetter’s The Cake at TPAC’s Andrew Johnson Theatre (505 Deadrick Street). While perhaps best known for her writing and producing duties on the popular NBC drama, This Is Us, which garnered her and her fellow producers three consecutive Emmys from 2017-2019, Brunstetter’s also enjoyed success as a playwright. Her previous stage plays include: F*cking Art, Miss Lilly Gets Boned and Be a Good Little Widow. From the titles alone, you might surmise that the playwright pulls no punches. The Cake, which premiered in Los Angeles in 2015 and featured That 70s Show’s Debra Jo Rupp, with is simple sweet title and all, just might follow suit, considering the play was inspired, in part by her own father’s opposition to same-sex marriage and the headline-making Supreme Court case of Masterpiece Cakeshop vs Colorado Civil Rights Commission. The Cake centers ‘round Della, a kind, but conservative North Carolina baker who finds herself at an unexpected conscience crossroads when her goddaughter returns to her small town to ask Della to bake her wedding cake…for the wedding to her fiancée.

When I learned that one of my theatre crushes, Megan Murphy Chambers was heading the cast, I knew I had to chat with her and her co-stars for the latest installment of my recurring interview feature, Rapid Fire 20 Q.

RAPID FIRE 20Q WITH CAST OF NASHVILLE REPERTORY THEATRE’s THE CAKE

RAPID FIRE WITH MEGAN MURPHY CHAMBERS, DELLA IN THE REP’S THE CAKE

JHPEntertainment: Tell me everything we need to know about Della, the character you play in The Cake, The Rep’s latest production…

Megan Murphy Chambers: Della is a beautiful challenge. There are elements of her personality that are so easy for me to access – she’s friendly, enthusiastic, authentically interested in people, and loving. The acting starts when her deeply ingrained but rarely examined belief system stops her from showing an adored friend the respect and love they deserve when they need it most. There’s not an intentionally mean bone in Della’s body, but she’s short on backbone (mean or otherwise). I like to think about what might transpire in the 6 months after the play is over for her. I have high hopes for her, and her capability to open her heart and mind.

JHPEntertainment: While researching the show to prepare these questions for you and your fellow cast mates, I found the opening monologue script on line. During which, Della explains that you must follow the recipe exactly to ensure the perfect cake. This seems to pretty much lay out the thought process behind her character’s way of life and decision-making. A a general rule, are you yourself a recipe follower, a recipe adapter or a recipe creator? Feel free to answer this as it relates to the kitchen, or life as a whole.

Megan Murphy Chambers: Oh I am a recipe adaptor for sure. I’ll follow the directions enough to make sure whoever I’m feeding doesn’t end up with a plate of undercooked chicken, but in terms of the rest? All bets are off! I like cooking more than baking precisely because of the greater degree of freedom you have. And the greater degree of garlic. In life, I tend to be a rule-follower and people-pleaser, but that tendency lessens every single day. Which feels wonderful, to be honest.

JHPEntertainment: Now, I know you graduated from the University of Missouri, which, depending on who you ask, is either the midwest, or the south, and you’ve been in Nashville for some time now. Have you met any real life Dellas and might we see hints of them in your performance?

Megan Murphy Chambers: First of all, MIDWEST. I will not be taking questions at this time 🙂 I’ve lived all over the country, and have met Della-ish people everywhere. People with huge hearts that are coupled with years of a certain kind of shame and pressure. I carry pieces of some of them on stage every night, all of which help make her colorful. This one’s unfailing politeness, that one’s hypervigilance about “outsiders”, another one’s casual affection.

JHPEntertainment: From what I know, Della, though she is staunchly faithful to her convictions, isn’t made to appear the villain in this piece, but rather a sympathetic product of her environment. Is that a fair assessment? Why or why not?

Megan Murphy Chambers: Definitely a fair assessment. The brilliance of this writing means that throughout the play, we’re given reasons to root for every character, and reasons to feel disappointed in every character. Della maybe most of all. In my heart, I’m certain she’s making the wrong decision. But the generations of voices that echo in her head all day every day make it challenging to blame her in any simple way. We want to like her. We want her to do better.

JHPEntertainment: The show is titled The Cake, so I gotta know…do you have a sweet tooth? If so, what’s your favorite kind of cake? If not, what do you snack on instead?

Megan Murphy Chambers: I do indeed have a sweet tooth, but it’s not as powerful as my salt tooth. Cake is scrumptious, and it’s all I’ve thought about for the last month. I either want a spice cake with vanilla buttercream, or a classic Duncan Hines yellow cake from a box (don’t tell Della it’s not from scratch).

RAPID FIRE WITH CHRIS STRAND, TIM IN THE REP’S THE CAKE

JHPEntertainment: Alright, I tried not to gush while chatting with Megan, but just between us, how lucky are you to share the stage with one of my theatre crushes?

Christopher Strand: Very lucky! Megan is the heart and soul of this show and takes the audience on a hysterical and heartbreaking journey all at the same time- she can make you laugh out loud one minute and cry crocodile tears with her innate vulnerability the next- honored to share the stage with her!

JHPEntertainment: How would you describe Tim?

Christopher Strand: Tim is an amiable good ol boy who just happens to be a product of his upbringing and social environment- his beliefs have most likely been formed by his religious upbringing and casually soaking up Fox News and Incendiary right wing radio over the years- still he loves Della deeply and is a good hard working man who just happens to use food and humor as a substitute for the lack of Intimacy in his marriage.

JHPEntertainment: In researching to chat with you and your cast mates, it seems to me The Cake playwright, Bekah Brunstetter’s approach of using humor to spotlight a rather serious topic might have roots going back to classic sitcoms like All in the Family and The Jeffersons. Am I anywhere near close in that comparison? And why do you think that works?

Christopher Strand: Yes I think you’re close! Because even though Della and Tim are rather rigid in their beliefs , they are lovable characters , which persuades the audience to go on a sometimes difficult emotional journey with them- much like Archie Bunker , the audience is able to laugh at or with their imperfections and narrowminded-ness without necessarily agreeing with them!

JHPEntertainment: Are you a cake or pie guy in real life?

Christopher Strand: both unfortunately ! love most kinds although it may be somewhat unAmerican but I can’t do pumpkin pie sorry! banana cream, pecan pie, any kind of fruit pie- shoot I guess I am a pie guy!

JHPEntertainment: What’s one of your favorite lines in the show…yours or that of one of your fellow cast mates?

Christopher Strand: Jen says ” I don’t need you to make me a cake , I need you to LOVE me!” to me that sums up the show as much as one line could if possible

RAPID FIRE WITH MARIAH PARRIS, JEN IN THE REP’S THE CAKE

JHPEntertainment: What was it about the role of Jen that moved you to audition?

Mariah Parris: I had seen Lauren’s work before and knew working with her would be awesome, if given the chance. I was also excited to potentially work on a script with such a contemporary voice. I’ve never had the pleasure of working on a character so close to myself and feeling like I could bring so much of my own “isms” to the performance.

JHPEntertainment: As Jen, you share scenes, and an on-stage relationship with Maya Riley. You both appeared in The Rep’s Ragtime earlier this year. What is she like as a scene partner?

Mariah Parris: Maya and I used to do theatre together when we were little kids at Metro Parks with Carolyn German, and reconnected as adults when we both worked on Ragtime. We discovered that we still get on like a house on fire, so the biggest challenge with working with Maya has been to not interrupt rehearsal by laughing too much. She is an awesome scene partner and friend.

JHPEntertainment: While the show touts a cast of only four characters, there’s really a fifth, isn’t there? Care to give me an exclusive…who’s providing the voice of George, the reality show judge who’s only heard in voice-over?

Mariah Parris: Jonah Jackson is brilliant as the voice of George. He is a very accomplished and talented stage performer (last seen in The Rep’s Mary Poppins) and I’m so glad he’s getting a chance to show off his voice acting chops!

JHPEntertainment: As a kid, my birthday cakes were always a thing to behold as Mom would get the craftiest cake decorator around to recreate thematic delights featuring whatever my current obsession was, including, but not limited to: Star Wars, a Grease (the movie, not the frying additive) logo cake, a sheet-cake featuring the likeness of Miss Piggy and in my later years, as I began collecting Lucille Ball memorabilia, more than one cake decorated with classic images of I Love Lucy…Did you have theme-decorated cakes? If so, what was your favorite?

Mariah Parris: My lovely mom and dad went all out when I was a little girl- one year Barbie, one year Barney, and I’m sure there were many others though the memory escapes me now.

JHPEntertainment: Is there a moment in the show you think audiences will remember after leaving the theatre?

Mariah Parris: there are several beautifully emotional moments in the show that will resonate with different people, and it is my hope that each person leaves feeling like there was a moment that resonated with them specifically that they’ll never forget. Personally, I’ll never forget MMC hand feeding me carrot cake on stage—what a treat.

RAPID FIRE WITH MAYA RILEY, MACY IN THE REP’S THE CAKE

JHPEntertainment: This has been quite a year for you. You’ve just wrapped your fabulous starring role as AIDA, a performance everyone was raving about. Of course you started the year in Nashville Rep’s Ragtime and now you’re back at The Rep in The Cake. How excited are you for this momentum in your career as a performer and how are you keeping it going while keeping yourself grounded?

Maya Riley: Thank you so much! It’s been quite an unexpected journey, because I had planned to stay in New York City after graduating from NYU. I was just starting my career there when COVID hit, and after the theatre world basically stopped I moved back down here. I’ve really just started to get back into performing, and I’m so grateful that things are opening up again. Being back in Nashville feels right. I’m surrounded by family and friends that I love. It blows my mind that I get to do this work. The little kid in me is squealing every day. Just in the past few months, I’ve gotten to work alongside people in this theatre community that have taught me most of what I know: how to act, how to sing, how to dance, how to be gracious, how to be hard working, how to be professional. Performing beside some of them as a colleague, as well as sharing the stage with Broadway stars in AIDA, is a great gift. And performing at TPAC twice in a row? That’s almost as good as Broadway. I’m learning so much about myself, the craft of performing, and the industry. I’m just trying to soak in everything and take it one day at a time.

JHPEntertainment: What was your reaction to first reading the script for The Cake?

Maya Riley: I read the script the night before my callback. I wasn’t familiar with the play, but I’d heard of the playwright because of her work on the TV series This Is Us. When I read it, I got excited immediately. It’s so smartly written. The words jumped right off the page and grabbed me. These are people you know, this is the way people talk, these are issues we’re dealing with right now. That is a beautiful challenge as an actor. Lauren’s visionary and supportive direction is making me a more focused and engaging performer. My castmates are such a joy. I’ve known Mariah since we were kids performing in community theatre productions. Chris is a superb actor and wonderful to work with. And Megan is Nashville theatre royalty and so much fun! Having the opportunity to present this play with this lovely group of people is an honor.

JHPEntertainment: You play Macy the fiancée of Parris’ Jen. Jen’s White, Macy’s Black, they’re lesbians. She’s from the south, Macy’s a northerner. How important is it for you as an actress to take the occasional role with a message, even if, as in the case of The Cake, those messages might be sugar-coated (see what I did there?) in humor?

Maya Riley: For me, it’s incredibly important to tell stories that deal with current events, things that are happening today. I think people need stories that are simply entertaining, and also stories that are somewhat difficult to process. You need both, I think. There are a lot of projects that are one or the other. Not many plays can do both. This is what I love about The Cake. It will entertain you and have you rolling on the floor laughing one minute, then questioning that one interaction with your odd relative the next. It allows for you to be entertained while also sitting in some discomfort. I relish the opportunity to tackle a play that splits this difference so effortlessly. I’m so excited to see how audiences respond.

JHPEntertainment: While you grew up here in Nashville, after high school, you relocated to to New York, more than a few parallels with Macy. Have those similarities helped you develop her as a character?

Maya Riley: I think they have. When I lived in New York, I definitely had to develop that thick-skin, no-nonsense, demeanor. I also know what it’s like to come back down south and have to, let’s say, “readjust” to how things are down here. Which is something I can immediately connect with Macy. Honestly, Macy wasn’t a stretch for me to understand because our experiences are so similar. We belong to the same demographic, in more ways than one. I definitely think that being a southerner who has lived in New York helped me understand her. But I think I would have understood her anyway just because of our similarities. I know what it’s like to be a Black, queer woman in America. In that way, I know her pains, her hesitations, her joys, her comforts. Playing this role, in a way, is like communing with my mirror image. We got each other’s back, as we go through this play every night. At least, that’s how I like to think of it.

JHPEntertainment: What do you hope audiences take away from The Cake?

Maya Riley: I hope audiences take away a slice of cake and have a layered experience (wink)! The foundation of this play is love, which is what makes the stakes so high and the conflict so tense. The Cake is really a conversation in the shape of a play. My wish is that audiences truly take a bite, ride the waves of anger, laughter, and sorrow with us, and leave the theater with love and a deeper understanding of themselves or someone they care about.

For tickets to The Cake, CLICK HERE. Following their presentation of The Cake October 21-30, Nashville Rep continues their season with Elf: The Musical December 21-January 1, August Wilson’s Fences March 3-5, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time March 24-April 2 and Violet May 12-21. Season Tickets just went on sale earlier this week. CLICK HERE to purchase Season Tickets or for more info. Check out Nashville Rep online HERE and follow them on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram.

As always, if you wanna follow JHPEntertainment to find out who I’m chatting with for my next Rapid Fire Q&A, or for my take on the latest local and national theatre, music and movie offerings, find us at JHPEntertainment on Facebook, JHPEntertainment on Instagram and JHPEntertainment on Twitter. Got an event or show we should know about, drop us a line at the Contact tab. Till then, #GoSeeTheShow!

Theatre Review: ‘Blithe Spirit’ attempts to conjure laughter; Noel Coward farce continues at Larry Keeton Dinner Theatre thru October 30

October 21, 2022 by Jonathan

‘Blithe Spirit’ (all photos by Thomas Gentry/courtesy The Larry Keeton Dinner Theatre)

Just before chatting with members of the cast of the Larry Keeton Dinner Theatre’s current presentation of Blithe Spirit for my latest Rapid Fire 20Q, I rewatched the classic mid-40s film adaptation which I hadn’t seen in a decade or longer. Remembering it fondly, I again reveled in the quaintly nostalgic portrayal of an British novelist who finds himself in unlikely comedic trouble when he and his wife host a couple of friends and a kooky medium for a seance meant to inspire his next novel. What happens instead is the medium somehow summons the ghost of his first wife. Things get further complicated when an accident befalls his second wife and he finds himself doubly haunted by the ghosts of both wives past.

During my conversations with the cast for my latest Rapid Fire 20Q, I learned that the show’s director Donna Driver had opted to update the time and place of what is considered by many to be the playwright’s best work. I get it. The original having been set in the English countryside in the early 1940s, might seem a bit stale for a modern audience, and I’ll be honest. There’s little I despise more than a local theatre company attempting accents that end up being all over the place and inauthentic.

That said, you gotta wonder why then did the director opt to set the action in 1980s Texas, but only one cast member speaks with a decidedly Texan drawl? The set, however, designed and constructed by Kevin Driver, does indeed invoke visions of 80s abundant living, with ornate brocade furniture (I swear my Mom still has that sofa in her living room), bookcases filled with Reader’s Digest Book Club volumes and Encyclopedias and the occasional ginger jar. Heck, even the walls are painted in what can only be described as hints of Dark Rose and Forest Green. Donna Driver also serves as the show’s costumer, dressing her cast in some decidedly 80s trends with nods to the wrap-dress, the country club look and more. All in all, a nice representation of the 80s.

Seeing as how the show is about ghosts, I was curious how the special effects would be presented. What few there are are fun, but it seems a shame that they’re mostly left to near the end of the show, rather than being peppered throughout.

Abby Waddoups, Aaron Gray and Erin Grace Bailey in ‘Blithe Spirit’

Aaron Gray is cast as Charles Condomine, the aforementioned author. He does a fine job in the role, and as he revealed during our Rapid Fire 20 Q, he’s created the perfect backstory for his as he calls it ‘rock star’ look, but I feel compelled to mention, the constant, likely unconscious action of brushing his long tresses away from his face became quite distracting. Gray does present a perfectly flustered husband and his on-stage chemistry with both his leading ladies is enjoyable.

Abby Waddoups plays Charles’ current wife, Ruth. While she doesn’t speak with a traditional Texas accent—as mentioned earlier, only one character does, and we’ll get to her soon enough—Abby does approach Ruth with an air of sophistication. Again, a perfect reflection of that 80s-era new-money vibe. As Ruth, she brings a bit of caustic fire to her every line.

Then there’s Charles’ late wife, Elvira played by Erin Grace Bailey. OK, I know this is being super picky, but in every other stage production, film adaptation and televised presentation, Elvira isn’t pronounced like the Cassandra Peterson Mistress of the Dark character, it’s pronounced Elveeera, so this new pronunciation took me a minute to adjust. Newcomer to the Larry Keeton Theatre, Erin Grace Bailey is quite the scene-stealer as Elvira. While her name may now be pronounced like an 80s vampire, she’s just your above-average vampy ghost. She takes the tongue-in-cheek storyline and makes the most of it.

Speaking of making the most of things, Drew Ann Borsos is simply perfect as Madame Arcati, the medium who helms the seance. Borsos peppers her Madame Arcati with equal parts bumbling Aunt Clara from Bewitched and every blissfully quirky character Shirley MacLaine has played since the 80s. Every line, every movement seems both organic and spontaneous while you just know its all carefully crafted and executed brilliantly. Coward knew what he was doing when he created this character with his words and Borsos more than does it justice.

Rounding out the cast are Shelby Anderson as Edith, the maid, Michael Welch as Charles’ friend and doctor, Dr. George Bradman and Suzette Williamson as Mrs. Bradman. Anderson is quite fun as the scatterbrained, nervous maid and we even get to hear her sing a bit, which is a fun bonus. Welch and Willamson, who basically only appear in two scenes, one during the first act and one in Act 2, are amusing as marrieds, but seem to be a little overzealous in their portrayals and should perhaps reign in their reactions and facial-pulling just a bit. Then again, there’s no pulling attention from Borsos and Bailey, so why even try.

Blithe Spirit continues its three-week run onstage at The Larry Keeton Theatre (108 Donelson Pike, Nashville, TN 37214) now thru October 30. To Purchase Tickets, CLICK HERE or call the box office at 615.231.1231. Adult Dinner and Show tickets are $35. Child Dinner and Show tickets are $25. Show Only tickets are $30 and $20 respectively. During the run, the schedule is as follows: Thursdays-Doors at 6:30p.m./Show at 7p.m. (Thursdays are Show Only days). Fridays and Saturdays-Doors at 5:45p.m./Dinner at 6p.m. and Show at 7p.m. Sundays-Doors at 12:45p.m./Lunch at 1p.m. and show at 2p.m.

Following Blithe Spirit, the Larry Keeton Dinner Theatre ushers in the holidays with Irving Berlin’s White Christmas, onstage December 1-18. CLICK HERE for tickets or more information.

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Rapid Fire 20Q with cast of the Larry Keeton Theatre’s ‘Blithe Spirit’; Noel Coward classic onstage October 14-30

October 12, 2022 by Jonathan

It’s been quite some time since I’ve attended a show at The Larry Keeton Theatre, one of Nashville’s only, if not the only remaining Dinner Theatre, so you can imagine my delight when a friend, who just so happens to be one of the theatre’s board members, reached out extending an invitation to come see their upcoming production of Noel Coward’s high-spirited classic, Blithe Spirit. I then inquired if they’d be willing to have some of the cast take part in the latest installment of my recurring interview feature, Rapid Fire 20 Q. Given the fact that even before I began writing about theatre more than a decade ago, I was a season subscriber at the Keeton and have always enjoyed their productions, I’m thrilled to be writing about them again. To that end, what follows are my conversations with Erin-Grace Bailey, Abby Waddoups, Aaron Gray and Drew Ann Davis Borsos, just days before they open at the Keeton Theatre in Blithe Spirit.

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RAPID FIRE 20Q WITH CAST OF THE KEETON THEATRE’s BLITHE SPIRIT

RAPID FIRE WITH ERIN-GRACE BAILEY, ELVIRA IN BLITHE SPIRIT

JHPEntertainment: What can you tell me about Elvira, the character you’re playing in The Larry Keeton Theatre’s production of Noel Coward’s Blithe Spirit?

Erin-Grace Bailey: Charles refers to Elvira as “rather light and irresponsible,” which I think is a great way to describe her. She’s just a joy to play. To me, in her life, she would have been the person to arrive fashionably late at a party and just completely light up the room. She’s witty, feminine, and she isn’t afraid to say whatever comes to her mind.

JHPEntertainment: Playing Elvira and apparitions in general aren’t a new phenomenon to you are they? Tell me a bit about your side gig as a Ghost Tour guide?

Erin-Grace Bailey: Indeed. It’s kind of funny. I applied to be a tour guide with the ghost tours because I am a huge history nerd and always thought being a tour guide would be fun (and it is). I lead walking tours of some haunted historical sites and get to share Nashville history and ghost stories a couple times a week. The gig has sort of led me into getting involved in a lot of entertainment on the spookier side as well, including murder mysteries, a show based on the works of Edgar Allen Poe, and now Blithe Spirit. Ironically, I scare very easily, and if you’d have told me five years ago that a lot of my current work would look like it does now, I would have said you are dead wrong!

JHPEntertainment: What’s been the most fun aspect of playing a ghostly figure?

Erin-Grace Bailey: Elvira is unapologetically who she is. She gets to do and say whatever she wants, and, aside from her husband, no one else witnesses it. Playing a ghost takes away these life or death stakes we see so often in plays, and she really gets to let loose. It’s not very often we get to do something like that as actors.

JHPEntertainment: I understand this is your first show with the Keeton Theatre. What’s the experience been like so far?

Erin-Grace Bailey: It has been so lovely, and I’ve been so grateful to get to know and work with these people. I’m thankful to Donna for trusting me to take on this role and perform this text. Everyone on this team has been so supportive since the beginning. I can’t wait for the audience to see all of the love that’s been put into every aspect of this project – from the acting, to the set, to the sound design, and more.

JHPEntertainment: While it’s your first Keeton show, this isn’t your first time appearing in a work written by the great Noel Coward, having played Julia in a production of Fallen Angels. Prior to our chat you indicated Coward is your favorite playwright. What is it about his style that you enjoy?

Erin-Grace Bailey: The first time I was exposed to Noel Coward, I was in an acting class in undergrad. I was assigned a scene from Blithe Spirit, playing Madame Arcati actually, and I had a terrible time of it at first. Coward writes like you’re on a racetrack, and you don’t stop unless it’s absolutely necessary to change the tires. I had several acting classes end in tears, but once it clicked with me, I felt like it really clicked. I’ve adored him ever since. Coward’s scripts are written very intentionally. The wit in his dialogue is unmatched, and he leaves enough of his scripts up to interpretation that his works have remained relevant for the past hundred years. One of my favorite things about Blithe Spirit specifically has to do with the way he has written the female characters, particularly Ruth and Elvira. They completely juxtapose one another, yet neither of them are perfect. There aren’t these unrealistic expectations of perfect beauty or manners in either of them. I love getting to play a character who is incredibly light and feminine but also quick-witted, confrontational, and outright funny. Female identifying characters from the time period this play was written are often meant to be one thing or another, and part of why I think Coward’s works are still so cherished is that a great deal of his characters don’t fall into this trap.

RAPID FIRE WITH ABBY WADDOUPS, RUTH IN BLITHE SPIRIT

JHPEntertainment: In the Larry Keeton Theatre’s production of Noel Coward’s Blithe Spirit, you play Ruth. How would you describe her?

Abby Waddoups: Ruth is a devoted wife to Charles and considers her position of wealth and managing their household very important. Her whole world is shook when Charles believes he sees the ghost of his first wife, which continues to live with them for several days. She is naturally upset and emotional about the whole ordeal.

JHPEntertainment: As Ruth, you get the fun opportunity to play two aspects of the same character, one–her earthly human form, the other–her ghostly incarnation. Are there subtle differences in the way you play her in each of the two configurations?

Abby Waddoups: Yes, Ruth definitely has a range of emotions throughout the show and those are the best characters to play. The difference in live Ruth and spirit Ruth are great. Our director, Donna Driver, has pushed the spirits to be fun and light. I take this as the worries in the real world have been lifted from Ruth’s shoulders in death. By accepting her death, she is able to be more carefree.

JHPEntertainment: The original script sets the action in the English countryside. Accents can always be an issue with local productions, so I’m wondering…Did the cast work with a dialect coach Or has the setting been changed?

Abby Waddoups: The Keeton theatre decided to change the setting and time period of this production. They apparently have other British farces set at the same time and thought their audience would get tired of it. The setting has been changed to 1980s Dallas. It is still in keeping with the British humor, but with small changes of locations.

JHPEntertainment: Like Erin, this is also your first time doing a Keeton show, so I’ll ask you the same question I asked her. What’s it been like thus far?

Abby Waddoups: Working at Keeton has been great! The people are all very nice and professional. The stage is on the larger side and deep for a community theatre, so that’s fun. The theatre itself has a good reputation around town and is an important part of their community. Audiences should be large and I’m sure they will enjoy the show!

JHPEntertainment: Since Blithe Spirit features a couple of séances…If you could summon the ghost of any famous person, who would it be and what would you asked of them?

Abby Waddoups: Wow, that’s an interesting question that I’ve never thought of before… of course their are multiple classic actors who would make my list, but my first instinct goes to a specific rock star, David Bowie, and I’d ask him to play a duet with me.

RAPID FIRE WITH AARON GRAY, CHARLES IN BLITHE SPIRIT

JHPEntertainment: You play Charles, a man who’s visited by not one, but two ghosts, both of whom were married to him. Describe each of your two leading ladies in three words each.

Aaron Gray: Well to begin with these two ladies are great to share the stage with. Their performances counter and compliment one another comedically. It has been awesome to work with them.

Abby Waddoups, who plays Ruth, is powerful, surprising, and engaging on and off stage. Erin-Grace Bailey as Elvira is fierce, exciting, and witty in everything she does.

JHPEntertainment: Blithe Spirit is typically set in 40s, the time period during which it was first presented on stage. A quick look at rehearsal images reveals your longer hairstyle isn’t exactly period-authentic. I was going to ask you about that, but while chatting with one of your costars, the aforementioned Abby, about whether or not there was a dialect coach to aide with the British accents, she revealed that your production is no longer set in England, nor the 1940s. So instead I’ll ask…what do you think of the director’s decision to update the timeframe and the locale?

Aaron Gray: Great question. Our director had the idea to set the play in 1980s Dallas before we even had auditions. This is a cool spin on the play and gives it a new unique style. Charles only has a few published books, but i see him as if he thinks he is some sort of new celebrity. His recent success inspires him to keep his hair long as he likes to think he is living the 80s “rockstar” lifestyle. I was willing to cut my hair for the role if needed, but after some character development and the vision of Donna, I think the hair fits the show we are going to portray.

JHPEntertainment: Keeton patrons will no doubt recognize you as you’ve been in a few shows there. What is it about the Keeton that keeps you coming back?

Aaron Gray: After graduating from MTSU with a bachelors in theatre in 2019, the Keeton was the first theatre I auditioned for. I was cast in Mamma Mia just before the pandemic hit. When that production finally opened after being on hold for over a year, I found a family and community here that I fell in love with. For me, the Keeton isn’t just about the shows we build onstage, its about the friendships we build backstage, too.

JHPEntertainment: What’s your favorite characteristic of Charles?

Aaron Gray: Charles is an interesting character because although he is funny and relatable, he also has selfish and unlikable qualities. I personally aspire to live as a generous and good person, so to play a character like Charles has been a fun change of pace. Playing Charles’s more selfish and indignant motivations throughout the play is what makes playing him so interesting and fun.

JHPEntertainment: Charles is a novelist struggling for inspiration for his next work. If you were to write a novel, what would it be titled and what would it be about?

Aaron Gray: I used to love creative writing in school, so portraying a novelist has reminded me of those days. I would have to say that I would write a children’s story. I have a 3 year old son that means everything to me. He inspires me to tell stories and create art that means something. So, to create a story that he’d love would mean a lot to me. It would be about growing up and embracing who you are no matter what life throws at you. I would call it The You That You Are. I would want my son to know that no matter what anyone says, the best thing he can be is himself.

RAPID FIRE WITH DREW ANN DAVIS BORSOS, MADAME ARCATI IN BLITHE SPIRIT

JHPEntertainment: You’ve got the scene-stealing plum role of Madame Arcati, a role originated on the stage and in the classic 1945 film adaptation by Margaret Rutherford and subsequently by everyone from Geraldine Page and Angela Lansbury to Jennifer Saunders and, in the current 2022 film, Judi Dench. Those are some big turbans to fill. How do you feel you’ve made her your own?

Drew Ann Davis Borsos: I am tickled pink to play Madame Arcadi! I love physical comedy and playing eccentric, quirky characters. My last role was Daisy in Driving Miss Daisy. Her character was sedate, dignified, and reserved. My director, Vickie Bailey, had to reign me in constantly! I am thrilled to be able to go all out for Madame Arcadi! Our director, Donna Driver, has given me room to make Madame Arcadi bigger than life. Is she an act, or is she the real deal? She is passionate, boisterous, and self assured. Margaret Rutherford’s own personal characteristics along with Noel Coward’s words, made that part comical for which she earned an Oscar. But, I can’t imagine her, or Judi Dench, jumping, running, and throwing themselves on the furniture, or Angela Lansbury being overly melodramatic. I was sorry to hear that Angela Lansbury passed over this week.

JHPEntertainment: Since you play a medium, What are your thoughts on ghosts and such, and Have you ever attended a seance?

Drew Ann Davis Borsos: I would never be part of a real life seance, or go to a Fortune Teller, or seek out someone who talks to your deceased loved ones. My character talks to the dead! I have learned that there are different kinds of ghosts in the spirit world…Poltergeists, Emanations, Elementals, etc! My personal belief is that the spirit world is very powerful, very real, and not something to be mocked. Ghosts stories, movies, and plays can be entertaining, but let’s not forget that there is a dark power at work in the world, and it is deceptive. But, as far as participating in Halloween is concerned, it is about opening your doors to your neighbors and getting candy!

JHPEntertainment: As mentioned above, Madame Arcati is easily the most-desired role in Blithe Spirit. Had you not been cast as her, is there another role, regardless of whether you fit the ‘type’ or not, that you’d love to also play?

Drew Ann Davis Borsos: If I had not been cast as Madame Arcadi, I would love to play the role of “Edith”. Edith can be any age, and any gender. I love the the awkwardness and naivety of the character. Also, there are less lines to memorize!

JHPEntertainment: Has it really been a decade since you starred in the Keeton Theatre’s production of Lend Me a Tenor? The theatre has gone through a number of changes since then. What do you think is the best aspect of the current support system and crew at the Keeton?

Drew Ann Davis Borsos: There are a lot of improvements in the building and the theater, which had to be a joint venture with the staff and volunteers over the years. It is more secure and we now have a bathroom backstage!! I noticed right away that there is more organization and communication between the Staff, Board Members, Director, and Crew. It is not everywhere that an actor can walk into the first rehearsal and have a set already done, and costumes and props already provided. That gives us time to learn lines and to deliver a well rehearsed performance. I’m pleased to see in the last few years, there have been more staged plays, and not just musicals. The Larry Keeton Theatre is not just the community theatre hidden behind the Senior Center, but it is now a prime Nashville attraction.

JHPEntertainment: Blithe Spirit is celebrating its eighth decade since it was first staged. What is it about the show, and Noel Coward’s brand of comedy hijinks that makes it just as enjoyable today as ever?

Drew Ann Davis Borsos: Words, Words, Words! It is rich in vocabulary and every sentence is full of little gems. There is a beauty and art form in the way he constructed sentences. Most of us these days don’t know how to talk so eloquently. Or, is that just a British thing! The audience feels for the leading man and lady who gradually lose control of the situation, and has to rely on a bumbling clairvoyant, who got them into this mess in the first place, try to get them out of it. And who wouldn’t love to see the special effects and portrayal of ghosts on screen or in live theater?

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As Borsos’ Madame Arcadi’s says, Who wouldn’t love to see it. To catch Blithe Spirit during its three-week run onstage at The Larry Keeton Theatre (108 Donelson Pike, Nashville, TN 37214).For more information or to Purchase Tickets, CLICK HERE or call the box office at 615.231.1231. Adult Dinner and Show tickets are $35. Child Dinner and Show tickets are $25. Show Only tickets are $30 and $20 respectively. There is a special Pay What You Can Industry Night for fellow actors and crew who might not be able to make the weekend performances due to their own shows about town. For Blithe Spirit, Industry Night is Wednesday, October 12 with doors at 6:30p.m. and curtain at 7p.m. Industry Night show only tickets are a suggested $15. During the run, the schedule is as follows: Thursdays-Doors at 6:30p.m./Show at 7p.m. (Thursdays are Show Only days). Fridays and Saturdays-Doors at 5:45p.m./Dinner at 6p.m. and Show at 7p.m. Sundays-Doors at 12:45p.m./Lunch at 1p.m. and show at 2p.m.

To keep up with the latest from The Larry Keeton Dinner Theatre, follow them on Facebook, YouTube and Instagram.

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Theatre Review: Nashville Story Garden’s US Premiere production of The Welkin wraps two week run Friday, September 30

September 30, 2022 by Jonathan

British playwright Lucy Kirkwood, whose previous works include NSFW, Bloody Wimmin, Chimerica and Mosquitos, can always be counted on to present through-provoking, female-centered, universally themed theatrical experiences. Her latest, The Welkin, is no exception. Having premiered across the pond in 2020, the US premiere, courtesy Nashville Story Garden, wraps its all-too-brief six performance this weekend with a final performance at 7p.m. Friday, September 30 at Riverside Revival (1600 Riverside Drive, East Nashville).

The Welkin seems somewhere between an all female 12 Angry Men, The Crucible and The Scarlet Letter, with maybe a little Handmaid’s Tale thrown in for good measure. While 12 Angry Men focuses on a group of men determining the guilt or innocence of a man accused of murder, Kirkwood’s The Welkin, set in 1759, presents 12 rural Suffolk UK women tasked to not determine a woman’s guilt or innocence, but rather to ascertain whether or not the already accused and convicted woman is with child or not. Their decision then establishing whether or not she be hanged in the public square or allowed to live…at least long enough to bring her child into the world. All this while the otherwise seemingly sleepy burg awaits the spectacle of Halley’s comet.

I was thrilled when Nashville Story Garden’s Lauren Berst reached out to me to ask me to attend opening night. A new play, in a new (for me) venue. That was enough, but add to that, the cast, many of whom I’ve seen in many of my favorite plays over the years, and a few I wasn’t familiar with…always a potential added bonus.

As the play begins, a title card is illuminated on stage reading simply ‘Housework’, while silhouetted images of the players performing various household chores are seen as shadows backlit on crisp white linens hanging across the stage like laundry on the line. The cast then, removes the draping fabric as the title card is changed to read ‘The Night In Question’ as we meet Ayla Williams as Sally Poppy as we witness a bit of what leads her to her eventual sentence. Williams is spectacular as the convicted murderess. She plays the role with spirit and a no-nonsense bite that also eventually reveals innocence lost, or rather, buried away inside her long before the night of the crime.

A later title card reading ‘The Empaneling’ is where we are first fully introduced to the rest of the cast. During the show’s opening week, assistant director Joe Mobley stepped in for Matthew Rose as Mr. Coombs, the jury-appointed liaison between the court and the women. He is at times humorous and a tad bullish as he wavers between being in the minority, but never forgetting he, as a man, is always in the majority.

As for the jury of matrons, director Halena Kays has assembled a who’s who and a who will be stellar cast including Destinee Monet, Melodie Madden Adams, Tamara Todress, Diego Gomez, Candace-Omnira Lafayette, Jennifer Whitcomb-Oliva, Rachel Agee, Jessica Anderson, Lauren Berst, Megan Murphy Chambers, Matthew Rose, Inez, Rona Carter, Melinda Sewak and the aforementioned Ayla Williams. With Milly Mason and Jordan Bentley sharing the role of young Katy during the run and Brooke Ferguson understudy for all the women.

Nashville Story Garden’s co-artistic directors, Lauren Berst and Tamara Todress play Lizzy and Emma respectively. Lizzy is the neighborhood midwife, with ties to seemingly everyone, even the aforementioned Mr. Coombs. Berst’s Lizzy takes no guff from anyone and, in spite of her own demons and disappointments, seems to see the good in others. Meanwhile, Emma seems to reserve the majority of her interactions simply holding for disdain anyone she deems below her station. That said, Todress’ Emma is delightful in her disdain.

Of the women, many of them get their moment to shine thanks to the playwright’s clever unraveling of the story, and each and every woman’s background, character and involvement, therein. Perhaps none more than the aforementioned, Ayla Williams, who’s portrayal is at times subtle and at times so explosive she seems on the verge of madness, and who wouldn’t be, given the circumstances of her character’s predicament.

Rachel Agee is marvelous as Judith. She’s played as a bit boisterous and cheeky, perfectly aligning with Agee’s generous talents at both. Jennifer Whitcomb-Oliva is splendid as well. Her Helen seems meek and sweet, but there’s some fierceness fueled by sadness revealed as the play unfolds. Other standouts include Rona Carter as Sarah Smith, portraying the eldest member of the group and Melinda Sewak’s Sarah Hollis, who without uttering one word, provides insight to her character’s pain.

Once the verdict is in, and the action nears its end, there’s a post-show scene in which the women reappear in modern wardrobe performing those same household tasks seen in the opener. A jarring reminder that what the audience has witnessed, and what these character’s portray of a world three centuries ago, seems just as much at the forefront of society today. As the adage states, “a woman’s work is never done” and I’ll add, neither is her fight for herself, her body and her rights.

Off-stage, the team responsible for technical aspects of the play should also be celebrated. Jonathan Nicholson’s stark but effective set, Tony Nappo’s mood-enhancing lighting and Matt Logan, listed as costume consultant. Of the costumes, maybe I read more into it than I should…or should I say ‘red’ more into it, but I love that each women, save one, has a bit of red fabric accented somewhere on her wardrobe. To me this symbolized life’s blood, and with the subject matter revolving around whether or not a new life exists in the belly of the accused, that just made sense. Again, perhaps reading more into it than I should, as more and more was revealed about each woman, I wove my own story in my head as to the placement of the red fabric on each woman, and even the amount of it used in her costume. Without giving too much away, a few examples: Lizzy’s arms are both bound with red fabric wrapped ‘round them, perhaps symbolic of her ties to most of the women. Helen is wrapped in a shawl of red, a visual manifestation of the sadness and burden that envelopes her. Even Sarah Smith, who only has a tiny string of red around one finger…by chance suggesting something she need recall. As I said, maybe I read too much into the fabric and the placement, maybe it was just a nice wardrobe accent that created a constant of the otherwise mostly nondescript clothing of the time period.

The Welkin concludes its run with a final performance Friday, September 30. CLICK HERE for tickets. For more from Nashville Story Garden, CLICK HERE to sign up for their newsletter or follow them on FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM and TWITTER.

Theatre Review: With talent paid in full, nothing left overdue in Nashville Rep’s ‘RENT’; Final performance Sunday, September 25 at 2pm at TPAC’s Jackson Hall

September 25, 2022 by Jonathan

I’m just gonna be honest. Since seeing RENT during it’s original Broadway run, then on tour…twice and a handful of local and regional productions, it’s just not my favorite musical. I KNOW! I KNOW! Apparently I’m not alone though as it seems you either love it or you don’t. Heck, even before it hit the stage last week as the season opening for Nashville Repertory Theatre, I may or may not have joked with a friend or two that the brightly colored wardrobe choices seen in the company’s promotional images, looked, to me like Disney+’s version of Jonathan Larson’s look at late 80s/early 90s life in the time of AIDS in the Lower East Side.

That said, under the direction of Micah-Shane Brewer, with musical direction courtesy Randy Craft and choreography by Tosha Marie, coupled with a cast peppered with a mix of fresh young talent and some remarkable vocals, I’ll admit, The Rep’s RENT (on stage at TPAC‘s Polk Theatre thru Sunday, September 25) just might live in my head rent-free for quite some time.

Still a little skeptical as the show began on opening night, I’ll also admit that when there were some initial issues with the mics of some of the primary cast members, I did lean over to my friend who was my plus1 for the evening and whispered, “I don’t care if they don’t pay the rent, but they could at least pay the electric bill so the mics work.” But I’m here to tell you, once they got into the grove of the music, it was indeed an enjoyable evening of live theatre, something I think we’re all still getting use to after the two-year shutdown without it.

It’s well-known that RENT is based, in part, on Puccini’s opera, La Boheme, which, coincidentally or not, is also currently on stage at TPAC’s larger theatre, the Andrew Jackson Theatre as presented by Nashville Opera. In Puccini’s opera, the action begins in the cold dark apartment of two artists, one a painter, the other a writer, both struggling to make a living and pay their rent. Larson’s RENT opens in a similar apartment, only this time the artists are an aspiring filmmaker and wannabe songwriter. Wood Van Meter plays Mark, the videographer, while Mike Sallee, Jr. appears as singer/songwriter, Roger.

Van Meter’s Mark is vibrant and full of hope, something not always seen in portrayals of this central character. A definite welcomed interpretation. Van Meter supports the soundtrack throughout, but it’s when he’s featured in numbers like ‘Tango Maureen’ (also featuring powerhouse vocals by Carli Hardon as Maureen’s current love interest, Joanne). Van Meter’s Act 2 solo, ‘Goodbye, Love’ also gives opportunity for his voice to be truly appreciated.

On the flip, Sallee’s Roger is played more introspective and thoughtful. His work on ‘Light My Candle’, ‘Will I’ and ‘Without You’, so rich with feeling.

Both Van Meter and Sallee possess strong vocals skills and a certain comfortability in their respective roles. They definitely play to their strength with this work.

Cast as their on-again-off-again love interests are Natalie Rankin as Maureen, who dumped Mark for a female lover and Marena Lucerno as Mimi, a drug-addicted lost soul who wonders into Mark and Roger’s apartment literally and figuratively looking for light. Rankin’s Maureen is ballsy and unafraid. Even my absolute least favorite musical number, ‘Over the Moon’ is hilariously enjoyable in the capable hands and voice of Rankin. As for Lucerno’s Mimi, she hides her insecurities behind a brash exterior. Both sides of her character are showcased in a couple of the show’s numbers. Her softer side shines bright alongside Sallee’s Roger in ‘Light My Candle’, while her more flamboyant exterior revs up the vibe in ‘Out Tonight’.

Then there’s Deonté Warren as Angel. Again, confession time. Whenever speaking about RENT, I typically recall a local theatrical production I attended about a decade ago, when, not even halfway through the show I leaned over and whispered to my companion, “I can’t wait till Angel dies”. Yes, I know….how dare I, right? Well, the reason for that comment at the time was that more often than not local productions tend to play Angel as a full-on stereotypical drag queen, whereas I’ve always felt the character was likely intended to represents a pre-transitioned trans woman. Yes, I realize Angel’s first scene shows him as a man, playing drums on the street, but the rest of the show, she’s seen in full hair and makeup and her friends refer to her as she/her. Well, in the fabulously capable hands of Warren, Angel is the absolute star of the show. Fierce, Fragile, Funny, Fabulous and Fucking Amazing…all the dang F Words!

Speaking of Fabulous, call it stunt casting, call it whatever you like, but including Lando Hawkins as Angel’s suitor, Tom Collins and Piper Jones as a frequently featured member of the ensemble, who, when together late in Act 2, duet on the reprise of ‘I’ll Cover You’’…simply the show’s best moment. Even my old cynical eyes began to sweat. Simply perfection. And yes…I’m once again a fan of RENT.

You didn’t think I was gonna review RENT without mentioning ‘Seasons of Love’, now did you? As expected, it’s glorious. Nashville Repertory Theatre’s RENT concludes its brief run at TPAC’s Polk Theatre with one final performance Sunday, September 25 at 2pm. CLICK HERE for tickets.

As The Rep’s season continues they’re presenting The Cake October 21-30, Elf: The Musical December 21-January 1, August Wilson’s Fences March 3-5, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time March 24-April 2 and Violet May 12-21. Season Tickets just went on sale earlier this week. CLICK HERE to purchase Season Tickets or for more info. Check out Nashville Rep online HERE and follow them on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram.

As always, if you wanna follow JHPEntertainment to find out who I’m chatting with for my next Rapid Fire Q&A, or for my take on the latest local and national theatre, music and movie offerings, find us at JHPEntertainment on Facebook, JHPEntertainment on Instagram and JHPEntertainment on Twitter. Got an event or show we should know about, drop us a line at the Contact tab. Till then, #GoSeeTheShow!

Rapid Fire 20 Q with vocalist Lisa Stewart; Performing a Jazz Set at Analog at the Hutton Thursday, August 4

August 3, 2022 by Jonathan

Singer/songwriter/actress/TV host, when it comes to Lisa Stewart, there’s nothing this talented beauty can’t do. What’s more, while she did indeed get her start in 90s country, she’s not one to stick with one genre. To that end, she’s teamed with a group of talented musician recently to form to provide lead vocals to a jazz ensemble who’ve played Analog at The Hutton ((1808 West End Ave, Nashville) several times over that past few months. This Thursday, August 4, Lisa and her band will be back for another jazz set at 7p.m. Having known Lisa for several years, I figured it was high time we chatted for my latest Rapid Fire 20Q.

JHP ENTERTAINMENT: As I mentioned in my intro to our chat, you’re returning to Analog at The Hutton Thursday, August 4 for another jazz set. You’ve played Analog a couple other times recently…is this becoming a regular thing?

LISA STEWART: Yes, it is! The Hutton is owned and run by creative people who love music. I’m very fortunate that they have taken me in as a sort of a “regular” on an irregular basis.

JHP ENTERTAINMENT: Some folks might know you musically as a country artist, having released your solo country project in the early days of your career, but even back when you were a frequent guest on TNN’s Music City Tonight, you’d occasionally do a jazz vocal. A sultry version of Fever comes to mind. Have you always been a fan of jazz?

LISA STEWART: Ah! Thank you for remembering that performance of Fever…that was so much fun! I’ve loved jazz standards for as long as I can remember! It was actually a jazz/piano vocal of My Funny Valentine, produced by Byron Gallimore, that opened the door to a meeting with Joe Galante in NYC. During that meeting he gave me the “thumbs up” to sign with BNA Records, a division of RCA.

JHP ENTERTAINMENT: Who are some of your favorite jazz vocalists?

LISA STEWART: I think Billie Holiday has one of the most identifiable voices across all genres. I’m a big fan of Sarah Vaughn, as well. Ah, and Julie London. But, my heart draws a straight line to Chet Baker.

JHP ENTERTAINMENT: While doing a little digging to chat with you, I discovered you first performed at a very young age in church. What do you remember about those days?

LISA STEWART: I began to sing my first solo performance after my mother dropped the needle on a 45 record of He’s Still Working on Me. When the song ended, I experienced an “Ah-ha” moment. I was 6 years old, felt the love from the audience, and knew what I wanted to do with my life.

JHP ENTERTAINMENT: In addition to music in church, did you grow up in a musical household?

LISA STEWART: My mother is a pianist and organist. She can read any piece of music you put in front of her. She and I had so much fun playing and singing together. My dad always dreamed of singing on The Grand Ole Opry. As a little boy, he would hide under the covers and listen to The Opry on Saturday nights. When I shot one of my music videos at The Ryman, Dad finally got walk onto that historic stage. It was one of my sweetest memories.

JHP ENTERTAINMENT: I can relate. My dad never really knew any ‘new country’ artist I worked with, but when I told him I worked with George Jones, I felt like he was more proud of me then than ever before. Something else you and I have in common, we’re both from small southern towns. You’re from Louisville, Mississippi. What memories of your childhood there do you hold dear?

LISA STEWART: There are so many. It was a simple, southern, small town life. Some of my fondest memories were holding my dad’s hand and walking to church. Afterwards, I’d go to “the singin'” with my grandparents. We’d go fishing on weekend and go swimming with the snapping turtles at Lake Tiak O’Khata. My folks always had a big garden and I loved picking strawberries. I was surrounded by art and music. My mom would stay up all night sewing dresses for me. My brother, Keith, and I would listen to vinyl records for hours on end. Stewart Family Pottery goes back to 1888, and my brother carries the torch at his pottery studio in Taylor, MS.

JHP ENTERTAINMENT: Speaking of your hometown. While researching in preparation of our conversation, I noticed the ‘notable people’ from your hometown, aside from you, are mostly athletes and coaches. So, I gotta ask…were you ever into sports?

LISA STEWART: I was into gymnastics for 8 years and was on the track team for about a minute.

JHP ENTERTAINMENT: Aside from music, you’ve also enjoyed success as a tv host. In fact, it was during those years that we first met. How much fun was hosting #1 Country and This Week in Country Music?

LISA STEWART: I absolutely love working in television and being on a set! That’s a team sport!

JHP ENTERTAINMENT: Now, see there! You got a sports reference in after all. Your hometown will be proud. Like everyone in Nashville, we’ve had a few connections through the years. Weren’t you in a Billy Gilman music video? You know I worked with his management around that time, right?

LISA STEWART: Yes! I was! And I do recall that you were a part of his team!

JHP ENTERTAINMENT: You’ve also ventured into acting throughout your career. Heck, I remember the TV movie Xxxs and Ooos, with a theme song sing by Trisha Yearwood, no less. Didn’t you have a quick appearance as yourself in that one?

LISA STEWART: I did! I think I was in an aerobics class! LOL!

JHP ENTERTAINMENT: Gotta love a TV movie who’s theme song was a bigger success. That leads me to another aspect of your career…songwriting. In fact, along with with Burton Collins & Clay Mills, you co-wrote Sky Full of Angels which appeared on Reba’s 2003 Room to Breathe. Like singing, songwriting is something you’ve always enjoyed, isn’t it?

LISA STEWART: Yes, I’ve been writing songs since I was about 9 years old. I write almost daily.

JHP ENTERTAINMENT: Let’s jump back to your acting for a minute. A couple years ago, you appeared in an episode of Vampire Diaries and a few other projects, including the film The Novitiate. How does being on set as an actor compare to being on set as a host?

LISA STEWART: Being a host vs. playing a role as an actor are two completely different gigs. The energy, the perspective, the headspace…is like comparing apples and architecture.

JHP ENTERTAINMENT: Any acting gigs in the future? Have you ever done live theatre? You know, Nashville does have a fantastic theatre scene.

LISA STEWART: I recently auditioned for a popular TV series. We shall see! And yes, I have done some live theatre. I’ve enjoyed some wonderful plays and musicals at TPAC!

JHPENTERTAINMENT: On the subject of theatre, last time I saw your son, Evan, y’all joined me for a local production of Shrek: The Musical. According to Facebook Memories, that was 8 years ago! I’m terrible at math, but I think that means Evan’s gotta be a teenager by now. Has he shown any interest in music or performing?

LISA STEWART: Evan is 13 now! While he is musical with a great ear, a lovely voice, plays a little guitar and is a fine actor (he’s been featured in commercials and music videos), he is smart enough to express, “Mom, I don’t wanna be in show business. The road is too rough.” Fortunately, he is into academia, but just wants to lead a simple life.

JHP ENTERTAINMENT: Back to your current musical expression, who’ve you got performing alongside you for your upcoming jazz night at Analog?

LISA STEWART: I’m fortunate to get to share the stage with some of the best jazz musicians around! This Thursday will feature Andrew Carney on trumpet, Rick Reed on drums, Alex Murphy on keys and Carter Murphey on upright bass.

JHP ENTERTAINMENT: Having played The Analog before, what’s your favorite aspect of the venue itself?

LISA STEWART: The room was designed by Michael Cronin….so it sounds absolutely divine!

JHP ENTERTAINMENT: Are you keeping the set strictly jazz, or do you plan on dropping in a classic country tune or two, or perhaps one of the songs from your country project?

LISA STEWART: For this show, it seems that anything aside from jazz feels a bit left footed. I like to stay in the jazz vibe.

JHP ENTERTAINMENT: Having done a handful of these jazz sets at Analog, is the set list always the same, or does it change when the mood strikes?

LISA STEWART: I like to have a set list as a guide, which may vary from show to show. But, I think it’s important to feel the room, as well.

JHP ENTERTAINMENT: Any plans to maybe record a jazz album?

LISA STEWART: Don Was, if you’re reading this. Let’s talk.

JHP ENTERTAINMENT: Anyone who is friends with either of us knows I’ll be in the audience at Analog Thursday as it’s the day before my Aug. 5 birthday. It’s also your birthday weekend, as yours is Aug. 6. What are you doing to celebrate your big day?

LISA STEWART: I love birthdays, and I hope to be spending my day with my son and my special someone. I hope to FaceTime my parents, brother, niece and nephew, too. But, I’m looking forward to doing what I love so much to kick off the weekend Thursday night…and that’s getting lost in the music.

Lisa Stewart will perform her jazz set at Analog at The Hutton Thursday, August 4. Advance tickets are available through August 3 for $15. Day of show tickets will be $20. CLICK HERE to purchase tickets. Any remaining tickets can also be purchased at the door just before showtime for $20. Follow Lisa on Facebook and Instagram. For more performances at Analog at The Hutton, check them out on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

As always, if you wanna follow JHPEntertainment to find out who I’m chatting with for my next Rapid Fire Q&A, or for my take on the latest local and national theatre, music and movie offerings, find us at JHPEntertainment on Facebook, JHPEntertainment on Instagram and JHPEntertainment on Twitter.

Got an event or show we should know about, drop us a line at the Contact tab. Till then, #GoSeeTheShow!

Theatre Review: Directed by Cat Eberwine, the cast of Bucket List Productions’ ‘Assassins’ turns in a round of killer performances

July 21, 2022 by Jonathan

Stephen Sondheim’s Assassins may not be as well-known, as some of his other works like Company, Sweeney Todd or Into the Woods, but it’s one of his most ambitious and though-provoking shows, and I definitely count it among my personal favorites. In the hands of Bucket List Productions’ Dave Davis as producer and Cat Eberwine as director, and with the killer cast they’ve assembled, I was quickly reminded why it’s among my favorites.

Now, anyone who knows me, knows I often have a bit of a twisted sense of what I find entertaining. My frequent viewing of everything from murder mysteries to serial killer docs stands as proof. That said, since it had been quite some time since I had seen a production of Assassins, I was excited to attend opening weekend. I was not disappointed.

From the moment the curtain rose of Darkhorse’s intimate stage and I took a little sinister delight in Jim Mannings evocative set design as I spotted a furry animal skin headdress draped over a government podium, a la the now infamous Qanon Shaman. Manning’s set also features a what appears to be a slightly off-balance marbled judge’s bench. Perhaps a nod to the ever-present imbalance of justice. Half of the stage floor is even covered with a very realistic looking enlarged pattern of the familiar stars of Old Glory against a field of blue. To me, a statement of the disrespect of the union we’ve all felt at some point or other, but most universally during our country’s history of assassinations and assassination attempts of our leaders, the subject of this musical.

In particular, Assassins gives a glimpse, however fictionalized for entertainment purposes, into those who attempted—some successfully, some not—to assassinate U.S. Presidents including Lincoln (by John Wilkes Booth), James Garfield (by Charles Guiteau), William McKinley (by Leon Czolgosz) and John F. Kennedy (by Lee Harvey Oswald). The unsuccessful attempts on the lives of Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt (by Giuseppe Zangara), Richard Nixon (by Samuel Byck), Gerald Ford (by both Squeaky Fromme and Sara Jane Moore) and Ronald Reagan (by Joh Hincley, Jr).

The cast of ‘Assassins’ (photo by Rick Malkin)

Director Eberwine has indeed assembled a hot shot group of assassins. As their stories unfold, I was reminded of some sort of twisted representation of the Seven Deadly Sins, as each cast member, even when just being present on stage while others are the primary focus, embodied their characters fully, with the slightest of movements, twitches and ticks. That may sound far-reaching, but it was indeed my initial thought, as these characters before me possessed passionate emotions, jealousy, anger, even devotion and love and those emotions became the driving force of their seemingly unspeakable acts. Quite a feat, especially when you take into consideration this production is Eberwine’s first-ever musical. Heck, it’s only her second time to direct, her first being Way-Off Broadway Productions’ The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time in 2019.

As for the cast, I recognized some from having seen them in a number of shows around town. Still others seem new to me. Of the more familiar, Melissa Silengo is a stand-out as Lynette Squeaky Fromme the former Manson Family member who attempted to kill President Ford in 1975. In fact, aside from the show opening, Everybody’s Got the Right, it’s Silengo’s duet with Micheal Walley’s John Hinkley on the oddly poppy love ballad, Unworthy of Your Love, that’s among the show’s musical highlights. But it’s Silengo’s crazy eyes and sinister grin as Fromme that truly kept my attention. No matter what was happening on stage, or who was featured at the moment, I couldn’t stop glancing at Silengo to see what subtle and not so subtle scene-stealing she was up to.

A one-act with ten musical numbers, the majority of the remaining tunes are mostly forgettable, save the late-hour all-in Another National Anthem. That’s not to say anything disparaging of the this production’s musical director, Noah Rice, whose recently created original music for Tennessee Playwrights Studio’s That Woman: The Dance Show and who music directed Circle Players’ Priscilla Queen of the Desert. While Sondheim’s Assassins score may not contain the earworm of Company’s Ladies Who Lunch, with Rice at the helm, and in the moment, the score sets the perfect mood for the action at hand. It should be mentioned though that due to the limited space of the venue, the orchestra did overpower the vocals, especially near the top of the show, again, by no fault of Rice’s musical direction. Having known Rice and followed his career since seeing him as Archie in Circle Players’ 13: The Musical a decade ago…yes, he’s that young, it’s a joy to see him become a true force to watch in the Nashville theatre community.

Back to the on-stage action…Silengo’s aforementioned duet partner, Walley also kept me entertained with his nervous twitching. A testament to Eberwine’s direction and the actor’s abilities that even when not speaking, these characters are being developed. Shea Gordon, one of the stronger vocalist of the cast is enjoyable as both the show’s narrator, The Balladeer and Lee Harvey Oswald.

Among my other favorites in the cast, Dan Kevorkian’s Samuel Byck. Dressed in a disheveled Santa suit ad seated near the back of the stage during the majority of the show, Kevorkian’s Byck can be seen mumbled angrily into a tape recorder. These actions and this look are based on Byck’s having picketed the White House Christmas Eve 1973 dressed as Santa and carrying a sign that said “All I want for Christmas is my constitutional rights to peaceably my government for redress of grievances. In the following year, Byck attempted to hijack a plane in hopes of crashing it into the White House.

Dustin Davis, who I believe was a late addition to the cast, following a last-minute withdrawal of the actor originally cast, is near-perfection as John Wilkes Booth. As his story unfolds, you genuinely get the feeling he truly only assassinated Lincoln because his acting career never got noticed. Ah, the things we’ll do for fame and notoriety.

Anna Carroll’s Sara Jane Moore presents herself as a bumbling housewife of a women who just so happens to attempt to kill Gerald Ford. While Moore and Fromme’s attempts were historically separate, Assassins cleverly teams the two and under Eberwine’s direction, Carroll and Silengo’s ensuing bumbling scene, in which they nearly prematurely discharge their respective weapons, put me in mind of Carol Burnette and Vicki Lawrence in a skit that could easily have come straight from Burnette’s classic 70s tv variety show.

Andy Kanies’ Charles Guiteau is perhaps the most subtly portrayed, for he seems so gentle and upbeat, until he isn’t. On the opposite scale, Teal Davis is brilliantly unhinged as FDR’s attempted assassin, Giuseppe Zangara. Zach William approaches Leon Czologsz with a quiet unassuming air.

Rounding out the cast are ensemble members Daniel Vincent, Will Lasley, Anthony Just, Jessica Heim, Cat Glidwell and Willem Bragg playing various citizenry throughout the history of presidential assassinations in our great country.

Following their opening night earlier this month, the show had to unexpectedly go dark. To assure the audiences of their cancelled shows got their shot to experience Assassins, once they returned to the stage, they added additional shows during this, their final week of performances. Assassins continues with 7pm performances Thursday, Friday and Saturday, July 21-23 at Darkhorse Theatre. CLICK HERE for tickets.

For more on Bucket List Production’s Assassins, CLICK HERE. To see what’s coming next to Darkhorse Theatre, including various presentations presented as part of Kindling Arts Festival, CLICK HERE.

As always, if you wanna follow JHPEntertainment to find out who I’m chatting with for my next Rapid Fire Q&A, or for my take on the latest local and national theatre, music and movie offerings, find us at JHPEntertainment on Facebook, JHPEntertainment on Instagram and JHPEntertainment on Twitter.

Got an event or show we should know about, drop us a line at the Contact tab. Till then, #GoSeeTheShow!