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Riverdance
The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
Jordan Wright
March 18, 2022
Special to TheZebra.Org
 Riverdance 25th Anniversary Show (Photo/Anna-Livia) On a balmy Spring evening perfectly timed to kick off the celebratory season of Saint Patrick’s Day, Irish Ambassador and Mrs. Daniel Mulhall hosted a swank cocktail party in the South Tier Opera Lounge before the performance of Riverdance. In attendance were Taoiseach Micháel Martin, Ireland’s Prime Minister, and American diplomat and former Ambassador to Japan, Caroline Kennedy. Delicious savory treats featuring Ireland’s best beef, cheeses and cured salmon were served capping the gathering with coffee, tea and a sumptuous Irish Whiskey Cake and Crème Brûlée, after which guests proceeded to the Opera House for the performance where audience members frequently leapt to their feet for standing ovations between acts.
 Taoiseach Michael Martin delivers remarks to the guests (Photo/Jordan Wright)  Ambassador Daniel Mulhall with Caroline Kennedy (right) and guest at the reception. (Photo/Jordan Wright) Celebrating their 25th anniversary and first time performing at the Kennedy Center, the Riverdance troupe was in fine form and their staccato taps could be heard up to the rafters. Originally an Irish folk dancing and musical production, Riverdance has gone on to include both Russian and Flamenco dance, acknowledging some of the roots of Irish dance. I couldn’t help but conjure up the evolution of these dances in the American heartland where the Irish immigrated in droves and the style of clogging emerged.
 Riverdance 25 Anniversary Show Lead Couple Interspersed with the tightly choreographed syncopated-formation dances by the troupe, a coloratura soprano performed haunting Irish melodies in octaves that soared into the stratosphere and a beautiful lassie played the pipes honoring an ancient Irish warrior from the Bronze Age. Between 18 electrifying scenes a narrator weaves Celtic tales and stories from the land of the faeries. Video projections of picturesque scenes frame the evening’s entertainment.
Many stories can be told of the history of this extraordinary production that began with the choreography and iconic dance skills of Michael Flatley and has toured around the world many times over. Their epic success on six continents, a Grammy Award and generous fundraising efforts are but a few of their achievements, but their promotion of Irish dance supported by the exceptional singers, dancers and musicians who perform in the show, give gravitas to this exciting one-of-a-kind experience.
 Riverdance 25 Anniversary Show Reel around the Sun Directed by John McColgan, Produced by Moya Doherty, Composed by Bill Whelan, Costumes by Joan Bergin, Sound by Michael O’Gorman, Lighting by Andrew Voller, Sets by Alan Farquhason and High Res by Peter Canning.
Through March 27th at The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, 2700 F Street, NW, Washington, DC 20566. For tickets and information call 202 467-4600 or visit www.Kennedy-Center.org.
Così Fan Tutte
The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
March 14, 2022
Jordan Wright
 Laura Wilde (soprano) and Andrey Zhilikhovsky (baritone) in Cosi fan tutte at the WNO (photo by Scott Suchman) Introducing the Washington National Opera Company’s Cafritz Young Artists who sang the Ukrainian National Anthem, General Director Timothy Leary welcomed back the audience of opera lovers to the first of the season’s offerings, “We have learned to gather together in community and safety,” he announced with pride. A standing ovation honored both the students’ exceptional talents as well as the audience’s heartfelt sympathies to the Ukrainian people (two Ukraine nationals were in the cast) to set the evening’s enthusiastic tone. Beginning the season with such light-hearted fare, is just the ticket for our COVID doldrums.
 Ana-Maria-Martinez-soprano-and-Ferruccio-Furlanetto-bass-in-Cosi-fan-tutte-at-the-WNO (photo-by-Scott-Suchman) A bit of background:
Commissioned by the Emperor Joseph II, Mozart’s fan fave two-act opera, with text by Lorenzo da Ponte, was first performed in Vienna in January of 1790 and characters of the sisters, Fiordiligi and Dorabella, were actually sisters in real life with their story well-known in Vienna society. It first came to the London stage in 1811 and later to New York at the Metropolitan Opera House in 1922 conducted by Artur Bodanzky. This was at the acme of Mozart’s career and the comic opera is well-regarded as one of his finest compositions.
Così fan tutte is an intriguing tale of Fiordiligi and Dorabella, two sisters betrothed to two soldiers, Guglielmo and Ferrando. Enter the aged bachelor and friend to all concerned Don Alphonso who suggests to the men that all women cannot be faithful. Challenged with testing the women’s fidelity by disguising themselves and tricking their lovers under Alphonso’s direction, the men agree to the bet. Unbeknownst to the lovers, the duplicitous Alphonso enlists the aid of the ladies’ maid, Despina, who is to be handsomely paid for her efforts.
 WNO”s “Cosi Fan Tutte” The plot plays with gender identity in a way that questions the misunderstanding between the sexes. A question as old as the hills and revived by such books as “Men Are from Mars’, Women Are from Venus”. Will the women cave to such amorous machinations by the men who threaten suicide if their lovers do not break their troths and reciprocate their advances? With Don Alphonso’s secretive encouragement, these underhanded swains pull every trick in the book to unhinge the ladies’ devoted commitment to them.
As sumptuously elegant as the music is, it is neatly underpinned by the comic antics of those involved in the set up. The wonderful cast is charged with incorporating comedic abilities as well as their magnificent vocal talents to pull it off, which they do quite well. Watch for Anna María Martinez in three roles as Despina, the doctor, and later the notary to bring the house down thanks to the vivid imagination of Costume Designer Lynly A. Saunders who also nails the 18th century period ladies’ dresses with the appropriate paniers locked and loaded.
A balm for the senses. Highly recommended.
With Kang Wang as Ferrando; Andrey Zhilikhovsky as Gugielmo; Ferrucchio Furlanetto as Don Alphonso; Laura Wilde as Fiordiligi; and Rihab Chaieb as Dorabella.
Conducted by Erina Yashima; Directed by Alison Moritz; Set Design by Erhard Rom; Projection Design by S. Katy Tucker.
Through March 20th at The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, 2700 F Street, NW, Washington, DC 20566. For tickets and information visit www.Kennedy-Center.org or call 202 467-4600.
She Loves Me
Signature Theatre
Jordan Wright
March 11, 2022
Special to TheZebra.Org
 Ali Ewoldt (Photo/Christopher Mueller) If you don’t fall in love with a capital “L” with Director Matthew Gardiner’s production of She Loves Me in the first five minutes you might as well call yourself a hard-boiled cynic. It is a wonder of romance, uproarious comedy and light-hearted charm served up with the eye-catching deliciousness of a trolley of French pastries.
With music and lyrics written by Broadway icons, Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick from a 1937 play by Hungarian Miklos Laszlo, the staged musical version has seen numerous incarnations from a former cinematic life with James Stewart and Margaret Sullivan in The Shop Around the Corner, followed by a musical film version starring Judy Garland and Van Johnson In the Good Old Days, and finally in 1998 a modern movie classic with Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan in the popular You’ve Got Mail.
 Lawrence Redmond, Deven Kolluri, Maria Rizzo, Jake Loewenthal, and Emmanuel Elliot Key (Photo/Christopher Mueller) Five dedicated salespeople keep Maraczek’s Parfumerie abuzz, catering to every whim and whine of their tony clientele. It is overseen by single and sexy Ilona who is smitten with Steven, a serial cad; Ladislav an elderly gent with a family to support; Arpad, the adorable delivery boy; and Amalia and Georg, the would-be lovers.
Amalia and Georg, secret pen pals through a lonely-hearts club, they work side-by-side at the parfumerie, though they are at sixes and nines in every way. Each is unaware that it is the other to whom they are writing (they have never met) and have fallen deeply in love through their passionate correspondence.
 Ali Ewoldt and David Schlumpf (Photo/Margot_Schulman) Lee Savage’s gorgeous jewelbox set design of Maraczek’s Parfumerie glimmers with gilt-edged cosmetic counters and massive pistachio-colored cabinets chock-a-block with over-sized, pastel-colored, parfum bottles to reflect the elegant aesthetic of Budapest in the 1930’s. It is so cleverly constructed it incorporates a seamlessly rotating stage featuring the characters’ private bedrooms as well as the workshop where staff huddle to swap gossip. You could hear the audience gasp at each set transformation.
But I won’t stop with praise for the scenic design. There is so much more to fall in love with here. As Amalia, we expect Ali Ewoldt (Christine in B’way’s The Phantom of the Opera) to gift us with exquisite vocals, and she does magnificently, but full bows to the rest of the cast who match her talents sending this frothy musical soaring sky high. Choreography and casting by Kelly Crandall D’Amboise create a super-charged dynamic showcasing a top-drawer ensemble very much up to the task. Watch for Emmanuel Elliot Key as the bouncy, adorable Arpad and the comedic high jinks of Daniel Powers as the Busboy.
A triumph for Signature! Highly recommended.
With Bobby Smith as Ladislav Sipos; Maria Rizzo as Ilona Ritter; Deven Kolluri as Georg Laszlo; Lawrence Redmond as Mr. Maraczek; Jake Loewenthal as Steven Kodaly; Christopher Mueller as Mr. Keller; and David Schlumpf as Headwaiter.
Jon Kalbfleisch conducts the ten-piece orchestra; 1930’s bespoke costumes by Alejo Vietti; Lighting Design by Adam Honoré; Sound Design by Ryan Hickey; Assistant Director Clancey Yovanovich.
Through April 24th at Signature Theatre, 4200 Campbell Avenue, Arlington, VA 22206 in Shirlington Village. For tickets and information visit www.SigTheatre.org or call the box office at 703 820-9771.
Blue Stockings
The Little Theatre of Alexandria
Jordan Wright
February 2022
Special to the Alexandria Times
 Ilyana Rose-Dávila (Maeve Sullivan), Melissa Dunlap (Celia Willbond), Elizabeth Replogle (Miss Blake), Tegan Cohen (Carolyn Addison), Madeline Byrd (Tess Moffat) Blue Stockings harkens back to the late 19th century at Cambridge University at a time when women wore bloomers, didn’t have the right to vote, nor could they earn graduate degrees from the college. The term ‘blue stockings’ was a derogatory reference to a woman with literary or intellectual interests. No wonder the popularity of writers like Virginia Woolf and the Jazz Age were a thing a mere two decades later, though it should be noted that King’s College in London had a ‘Ladies Department’ in 1897 when Woolf attended.
Jessica Swale’s play is based on the true story of Elizabeth Welsh, the mistress of Girton College and Dr. Maudsley, the renowned male psychiatrist, (other characters in the play are fictitious) are at sixes and nines. Welsh is leading the charge to graduate a small, but brilliant, incoming class of young women of differing socio-economic backgrounds and fields of study. Dr. Maudsley espouses cock-eyed Victorian notions of women’s unsuitability to the rigors of higher learning attributing hysteria to the female body (he calls it the “wandering womb”), the destruction of natural maternal instincts, their inability to land a future husband and other antiquated notions. “Degrees for women are a dangerous idea,” he proposes. Hiss! Boo!
 (Back row) Tegan Cohen (Carolyn Addison), Melissa Dunlap (Celia Willbond), Madeline Byrd (Tess Moffat), Ilyana Rose-Dávila (Maeve Sullivan)
(Front row) Robert Heinly (Dr. Maudsley/Professor Collins), Anne Hilleary (Miss Bott/Mrs. Lindley), Michael King (Holmes), Ali Cheraghpour (Edwards), James Blacker (Lloyd),
Paul Donahoe (Mr. Banks) Under this aggressive male pressure, the ladies are subjugated at every turn. Treated as a curiosity they are chaperoned, cosseted, and degraded by the male students until they join forces in solidarity with the women’s movement to gain the vote. Oh, activism! Funny how assertiveness works to the women’s advantage!
Director Marzanne Claiborne pulls together a brilliant cast who really click affording us a tightly woven production that encompasses both drama and relevance. Urged by the sympathetic professor Mr. Banks (splendidly portrayed by Paul Donahoe) for the men to explore their passions, the flirtatious Ralph Mayhew (Michael Townsend) gives a hilarious delivery of an Italian love poem to aspiring student Tess Moffat (Madeline Byrd). Byrd is the glue that drives this play ever forward. Both her comedic timing and her intensity are spot on and she is tremendously engaging as the striving student whose character is flawed but brave, whose heart is broken but rallies in her ardent quest for education.
Other notable performances are crafted by Robert Heinly as Dr. Maudsley whose evil intentions are reminiscent of Snidely Whiplash; John Paul Odle as Will Bennett, the well-intentioned brother of Tess; Melissa Dunlap as fellow student Celia Willbound; Tegan Cohen as sophisticate Carolyn Addison; and Ilyana Rose-Dávila as Maeve Sullivan, a girl from a poor family who struggles to keep her spot at the school when summoned home to care for her orphaned brothers and sisters.
 Paul Donahoe (Mr. Banks), Will Cooke (Professor Radleigh), Robert Heinly (Dr. Maudsley/Professor Collins), Joel Durgavich (Librarian/Professor Anderson/Man in Tea Parlor) There are 13 scenes in Act I alone – 12 in Act II. It seems like an improbable challenge to pull off, but pull it off they do with smooth transitions, musical interstices and a variety of set changes that place the characters in a typical dorm room, a classroom, the outdoors, the headmistress’s office and other settings typical of campus life with the backdrop of the college’s ivied towers.
Produced by Lloyd Bittinger, Margaret Chapman and Christine Farrell. Assistant Director Hilary Adams; Period Costume Design Joan Davis; Italian Dialog Coach Dominica Marchetti; Lighting by Franklin Coleman; Set Design by Charles Dragonette.
Additional cast members: Liz LeBoo as Elizabeth Welsh; Ali Cheraghpour as Mr. Banks; James Blacker as Lloyd; Michael King as Holmes; Elizabeth Repogle as Miss Blake; Anne Hilleary as Miss Bott/Mrs. Lindley; Joel Durgavich as Librarian/Professor Anderson; Hilary Adams as/Khalia Muhammad as Minnie; Michael Rufo as Billy Sullivan; Will Cooke as Professor Radleigh; Robert Heinly as Dr. Maudsley/Professor Collins; Manus Nunan as Mr. Peck/Waiter.
This is a fine piece of theater from LTA and one I can most assuredly state, is worthy of appreciation. Highly recommended.
Through March 19th at The Little Theatre of Alexandria, 600 Wolfe Street, Alexandria, VA 22314. For tickets and information call 703 683-5778 or visit www.TheLittleTheatre.com.
Jesus Christ Superstar
Special to www.TheZebra.org
The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
February 25, 2022
Jordan Wright
 Aaron LaVigne, Tommy Sherlock and the company of the North American Tour of JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR. (Photo by Matthew Murphy, Evan Zimmerman) I was looking forward to this reimagining of Jesus Christ Superstar by two Brits, Director Timothy Shearer and Choreographer Drew McOnie, if only to see how they tailor their work to a British audience. Both gentlemen have earned Olivier Awards (Britain’s equivalent to a Tony Award) for their work – Sheader earning four for “Best Musical Revival” to include one for Jesus Christ Superstar and McOnie celebrating two nominations for “Best Theatre Choreography” and winning for In the Heights. Together they spell theater royalty.
So, I was more than surprised when I found some odd choices in the staging of this iconic musical. Don’t get me wrong, I can still be found humming and tapping my foot to the glorious Andrew Lloyd Webber score and running home afterwards to listen to the beautiful music days later. But as I watched this production unfold, I found myself too frequently scratching out “Why?” in my notes.
 Jenna Rubaii in the North American Tour of JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR. (Photo by Matthew Murphy, Evan Zimmerman) Why did Jesus use a mic stand? Mary and Judas, too. Sometimes, not always. Why did some performers use a hand mic and others not? Utterly mystifying. Why did Jesus sport a hipster man bun throughout his performance, then switch over to a ponytail for the final scene? I wonder because his head shot in the program has him with long wavy blond locks. Wouldn’t it have been more apropos to let it hang in loose curls around his shoulders? And, if I may state the obvious, wouldn’t it have been the perfect opportunity to cast a person of color in the role of Jesus?
There are more mysteries to unpack here. Why did Jesus carry around an acoustic guitar? If the thought is to depict him as a rock star, wouldn’t he play a snazzy electric guitar? Why were the sound levels all over the place? Sometimes singers came across powerfully at other times they could hardly be heard no matter from which area of the stage they were singing. Why did the casting director choose a lead with the weakest voice in the entire cast? And, for Chrissake (pun intended), why did Aaron LaVigne give such a stilted, unemotional performance as Jesus? Poor Mary.
More questions vexed me. What was the point of tossing dozens of glitter bombs at Jesus to sub for the 40 lashes ordered by Pontius Pilate? And, in the strangest interpretation of all, why was Mary (Jenna RubaII) absent in so many scenes usually played by Jesus’s side? It was an especially bizarre directorial choice during her solos, especially for the lovely lullaby, “Everything’s Alright”, when she comforts Jesus urging him to, “Close your eyes, close your eyes and relax, think of nothing tonight,” which she sung in her unique, lilting and soulful vibrato. This has been one of the most poignant scenes in other productions as she caresses him to allay his fears.
As for the musical element, 11 onstage musicians in second tier cubicles are joined by members of the Kennedy Center Opera House Orchestra for a concert-like sound. Add Omar Lopez-Cepero as Judas (that falsetto!) and the experience is worth the price of admission. With his epic rocker voice, he brought the house down several times over. Wailing electric guitars and a hot licks sax solo that nearly shook the great Opera House chandelier ratchet up the temperature. As to the choreography, rest easy. McOnie chose ace dancers who sing their faces off.
With Alvin Crawford as Caiaphas; Tommy Sherlock as Pilate; Tyce Green as Annas and an ensemble of 18 singer/dancers.
Through March 13th at The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts 2700 F Street, NW, Washington, DC 20566. For tickets and information call 202 467-4600 or visit www.Kennedy-Center.org
Daphne’s Dive
Signature Theatre
February 15, 2022
Jordan Wright
Special to www.TheZebra.org
Pull up a Barstool and Enjoy “Daphne’s Dive” Now Playing at Signature Theatre
 Rayanne Gonzales, Jonathan Atkinson, Yesenia Iglesias, Jyline Carranza, Quynh-My Luu, (Photo by Christopher Mueller) Have you ever been to a dive bar? And I don’t mean Cheers. If not, you should enter the world of Daphne’s Dive. In this exciting work Playwright Quiara Alegría Hudes offers us a barstool at a Puerto Rican-centric dive bar on Philly’s seedier side and she has filled it with the most colorful characters this side of San Juan.
There’s Daphne (Rayanne Gonzales), the full-throated, take-no-prisoners owner with a heart of gold and years of hard luck; Jenn (Quynh-My Luu), the political activist who openly admits to a messiah complex though nicely tempered by her adorableness; Rey (Jefferson A. Russell), the leather-clad biker looking for love; Inez (Yesenia Iglesias), married to dapper businessman slash politician, Acosta (Dylan Arredondo), and finding her independence; Pablo (Jonathan Atkinson), the dumpster-diving artist; and Ruby (Jyline Carranza), Daphne’s stepdaughter, who is growing up surrounded by a quirky family of barflies.
 Quynh-My Luu and Jyline Carranza (Photo by Christopher Mueller) Their story begins in the 1990’s and goes through the 2000’s – so a lot of major life changes for all the characters. What keeps it barreling along is how they navigate these curve balls with the help of their tight-knit bar familia. Watching them evolve and interact, alternately challenging and supporting each other through the worst of times and the worst of disagreements, is both heartwarming and fraught. It’s a bird’s eye view into a unique cultural dynamic – one that Hudes invites us to appreciate and understand. As for Hudes’s street cred, she wrote the book for In the Heights so she knows barrio life and is a two-time Pulitzer Prize nominee.
 James Whalen, Yesenia Iglesias, and Jefferson A Russell (Photo by Christopher Mueller) Director Paige Hernandez’s friendship with Hudes began at the Kennedy Center with Hudes’s production of Barrio Grrrl! and continued as Hernandez searched for some of Hudes’s lesser-known plays to bring to the attention of Signature audiences. This is exactly the sort of uplifting yet serious diversity that audiences are searching for. Set in the intimate ARK theater, it’s an up-close-and-personal experience putting the audience mere feet from the stage.
 Rayanne Gonzales and Jonathan Atkinson (Photo by Christopher Mueller) The excitement is further enhanced by Scenic Designer Meghan Raham and Lighting Designer John D. Alexander who together create a credibly dingy bar decorated with neon bar signs, funky period beer ads, shelves of cheap booze and what appear to be actual working beer taps. Pacifico anyone?
You’ll seat-dance to the hot rhythms of their Latino music, laugh at their drinking games, and marvel at their personal transformations inspired by Jenn’s motto of “Peace, Liberty, Ecology and Democracy”.
This cast is phenomenal! See it!!!
P.S. Sig’s lobby bar has reopened. Plan ahead!
With Costume Design by Moyenda Kulemeka and Sound Design by Kenny Neal.
Through March 20th at Signature Theater, 4200 Campbell Avenue (in the Village at Shirlington), Arlington, VA 22206. For tickets and information visit www.SigTheatre.org or call the box office at 703 820-9771.
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