Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike

Playwright:  Christopher Durang

Company:  Firehouse Theater Company

Venue:  The John Hand Theater, 7653 E. 1st Place, Denver CO

Running Time:  2 hours, 30 minutes (includes 15 minute intermission) 

Date of Performance:  Sunday, August 30, 2015.

For those who may have missed the reference, the characters in the title Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike (hereafter VSMS) are throwbacks to plays written by Anton Chekov in the late 19th century.  That is, the first three title characters.  Spike is playwright Christopher Durang’s creation and comedic upgrade to Chekov’s somewhat dark and depressing themes.

Chekov is an acquired taste, and one (along with broccoli) that I have yet to fully acquire.  His moody work (including the play Uncle Vanya, from which VSMS takes considerable inspiration) centers on the meaningless lives of the leisure class, materialistic values, and self denial.  His plays border on the absurd, using characters who seek meaning in a situation that seems meaningless.  Although he was not always identified with it, his work is thematically related to the 20th century existentialist movement. 

From this laugh free zone, Durang has fashioned a comedy of the absurd.  Vanya (Stephen Maestas) and Sonia (Caitlin Conklin) are brother and sister (she by adoption) who have long cared for their invalid but now deceased parents.  Having devoted most of their lives to caring for ailing “professor” parents, both are utterly unprepared for the real world.  Indeed, their lives have been wasted caring for others.  Their actress/celebrity sister Masha (Jennifer Bass) has become very successful after leaving Vanya and Sonia behind as caregivers.  Now that her career is sunsetting, she must sell the family home to pay the bills.  In the process, she must evict her siblings from the home they grew up in.  

What Durang has done is impressive; VSMS got a Tony Award for Best Play and a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Play in 2013.  David Hyde Pierce and Sigorney Weaver appeared in the Broadway cast.  There is no shortage of praise for those productions, and for Durang’s script.  The Firehouse production makes it clear that neither Durang nor Chekov is a flash in the pan.  Chekov was one of the leading writers of his time, and Durang has the justified confidence to believe he can improve on the original. Somehow I picture Durang on his 5th martini as the bar is closing at 2:00 AM, and someone dares him to improve on Chekov.  If there was such a dare, VSMS was surely the result.  

It's fair to say that Durang has made the Chekov work more accessible (and more fun) by painting the characters more as clowns than philosophers.   Vanya is the sad sack clown (Buster Keaton and Emmett Kelly come to mind).  Masha is the Lucille Ball of the family.  Sonia is a mix of Ellen DeGeneres and Joan Rivers.  Spike (Keegan O’Brien) is a sexy blend of Chris Rock and George Clooney.  Cassandra (Lisa Young) goes all Whoopi Goldberg on Masha.  Where Chekov was somber and pensive, Durang is bold and funny.

Durang liberally sprinkles the Chekov references throughout his script, including a cherry orchard (The Cherry Orchard), a play within a play (The Seagull), and of course the title characters (Uncle Vanya).  Doing so is clever, but perhaps too clever by half.  Those who are unfamiliar with Chekov’s plays will hardly appreciate the references.  Those who are familiar with Chekov may worry that Durang’s script diminishes the original work through subtle exploitation.  It’s a legitimate concern.   Rather than a subtle exploitation, however, I prefer to see VSMS as an updated adaption of the Chekov’s work.  It’s more engaging, more accessible, and definitely funnier than Chekov’s original, and Durang adds an upbeat ending that would probably make Chekov wince.  

With that as background, you may be wondering, “so what did you think of the show?”  And, as you may have guessed, it’s a bit of a mixed experience.  

First, I think it’s decidedly helpful to know something of Chekov’s original works.  Perhaps not a requirement, but a very helpful “plus.”

Second, Chekov challenged audiences with both his subject matter and style.  Durang’s style (contemporary setting with lots of laughter) improves the experience for the audience.  Still, Durang’s work is nearly as challenging as Chekov’s.

Third, the cast is very good, but somewhat uneven.  Caitlin Conklin is electric as the sometimes low key and sometimes hostile, prop smashing Sonia.  She goes from weepy to angry in a heartbeat.  Conklin puts in an emotional performance that is, at times, stunning.  She beams as she preens after upstaging Masha at a party; for the audience, Conklin is delivering a much needed dose of humility to Masha.  Think professional bad guy wrestler body slammed by the good guy.

Keegan O'Brien (Spike)

Lisa Young (Cassandra)

Lisa Young’s Cassandra is a colorful contrast to her self absorbed cast mates, bringing us voodoo and common sense in equal measures.  Jennifer Bass is sassy and sexy, as Masha with her boy toy Spike in tow.  Keegan O’Brien plays Spike for all the laughs possible, letting his libido run wild with his unbelievably limber and sculpted physique.  (Note to the ladies…no, on second thought, to the ladies and gentlemen:  Keegan is delicious eye candy.  I don’t think he will mind if you leer while laughing.  I did.)  Mollie Horne (Nina) is the picture of naiveté, swooning over Masha’s very presence.

It is Vanya, though, who is central to the title and the plot, and Stephen Maestas delivers an uneven rendering of his character.  It’s a quibble, but his monologue in the second act is masterful (“WE HAD TO LICK POSTAGE STAMPS!”), whereas at other times his timing seemed off and his delivery tentative.  If his entire performance were as complete, as convincing, and as powerful as his monologue, Maestas would unquestionably be the star of VSMS.

Caitlin Conklin (Sonia), Stephen Maestas (Vanya), Jennifer Bass (Snow White/Masha).

Director Steve Tangedal keeps the laughs coming with outrageous costumes by Deborah Montgomery and Kris Paddock (Snow White is marvelous, as is Spike in bun hugging tights), gymnastic feats rarely seen on any stage, and precision timing of offstage screams with onstage voodoo.  Tangedal’s touch is particularly evident as Masha discovers that Spike has taken an interest in Nina.  Despite Masha’s abundance of self esteem, Tangedal lets us see her softer side as she starts to realize that her dream is over.

VSMS will keep you laughing.  Keegan O’Brien’s gymnastics will be forever burned into your memory bank.  You may be inspired to read Chekov’s Uncle Vanya to get a handle on the history.  All of which is to say that despite my quibble with one performance, Vanya, Sonia, Masha and Spike is a rollicking revision of Chekov’s legacy.  If you’re a Chekov fan, VSMS is a no brainer.  Get a ticket.  If you’re not a Chekov fan, you will almost certainly prefer Durang’s generous glimmer of hope for the hapless characters who have escaped from Uncle Vanya.  

“Here Comes the Sun.”  And it’s shining for both of you, Vanya and Sonia.  

CAST (l-r):  Keegan O'Brien, Lisa Young, Mollie Horne, Jennifer Bass, Stephen Maestas, Caitlin Conklin.

NOTES:

There is ample free parking behind the theater, and on surrounding streets.  

There are adult themes and adult language in VSMS.  Discretion is advised for children under 15. 

This show closes on September 26, 2015.

PHOTO CREDITS:  Firehouse Theater Company/Meghan Ralph of Soular Radiant Photography.

TICKETS HERE:  

PRE/POST SHOW DINING RECOMMENDATION:

Steak Teriyaki with brown rice.

There are a number of restaurants nearby in the Lowry Town Center.  We've eaten several, including Salty Rita's and Serioz Pizza.  As we didn't have much time before the 2:00 matinee, we stopped at Pei Wei, also in the Lowry Town Center.  

I'm probably the last one to be giving advice on Chinese cuisine, but Pei Wei is freshly prepared to order after you order it.  I had the steak teriyaki on brown rice, and it was delicious.  Roxie had the shrimp, which while tasty, only had 5 shrimp.  Two meals, two drinks, and a tab of just over $19.00 made for a quick, delicious lunch before the show.  Also recommended in the Lowry Town Center:  The Tavern.

CREATIVE TEAM:

Director:  Steve Tangedal

Assistant Director/Stage Manager:  Andrew KC Nicholas

Lighting & Sound Design: T. Marc Stevens

Set Design:  Jeffrey Jesmer

Production Coordinators/Costumes:  Deborah Montgomery & Kris Paddock

CAST:

Vanya:  Stephen Maestas

Sonia:  Caitlin Conklin

Masha:  Jennifer Bass

Cassandra:  Lisa Young

Spike:  Keegan O’Brien

Nina:  Mollie Horne

Lysistrata

Playwright:  Aristophanes

Company:  Funky Little Theater Company

Venue:  Funky Little Theater, 2109 Templeton Gap, Colorado Springs CO, 80907.

Running Time:  2 hours (includes 15 minute intermission) 

Date of Performance:  Saturday, August 22, 2015.

Despite the contemporary vibe you’ve come to expect from a theater called “funky,” you might be surprised to know that they have revived a very old script for their current production.  Lysistrata opened in 411 B.C. in Greece.  I’m not that great with math, but 2,015 + 411 would make Lysistrata 2,426 years old this year.  Can a script that old be either relevant or contemporary?  

The answer is a resounding yes.  Lysistrata speaks to two issues that apparently never go out of style:  the real or apparent power of women, and war.  

We don’t have any reviews of the original production, but we can assume that Aristophanes made some waves in his Greek theater community.  The script gets very specific about sex, as the women go on strike, refusing to satisfy their mates until they make peace between Athens and Sparta.  Lest you think I exaggerate, here’s the plan:

All we have to do is idly sit indoors

With smooth roses powdered on our cheeks,

Our bodies burning naked through the folds

Of shining Amorgos' silk, and meet the men

With our dear Venus-plats plucked trim and neat.

Their stirring love will rise up furiously,

They'll beg our arms to open. That's our time!

We'll disregard their knocking, beat them off—

And they will soon be rabid for a Peace.

“Their stirring love will rise up furiously.”  This text is loaded with puns, double entendres, and downright graphic references to genitalia and intimate acts.  Some things haven’t changed in 2,500 years.

Funky Director Chris Medina maximizes the comedic elements of Lysistrata, hamming up the sexy parts with gestures, facial expressions, and some phallic props of extreme dimensions.  It’s a wise move; one can’t miss the tension, the frustration, and the discomfort the women visit on the men until they relent and make peace.  Medina doesn’t miss any opportunity to squeeze a laugh out of these upright, rigid, suffering males.

Which brings me to something important; Lysistrata is not for everyone.  It’s adult fare, based on the language and subject matter.  That said, though, some adults apparently have a problem with strong, smart women getting the best of some fairly lame guys.  Chris Medina tells me that a couple of customers complained of “man bashing” as they left.  That’s unfortunate.  Theaters don’t deliberately antagonize customers, but they often challenge their audience.  It’s a legitimate role for theaters.  So if you’re uncomfortable with a show that uses humor to show women getting the best of men, Lysistrata is not for you.  That’s a shame; you will miss a very funny show.

Not to be lost in the carnal comedy here is the message about war.  It has depleted the supply of husbands.  Whether the women go on strike because they miss their men or because they oppose the war is a difference without a distinction.  War widows then, as war widows now, would generally do anything in their power to bring their men home safely.  Lysistrata makes that point by pooling the power of women 

The source of all the mayhem is Lysistrata, played here by Jenny Maloney.  Maloney is a cunning, scheming Lysistrata.  She manipulates both sexes by turning horniness into a tool for peace.  Maloney is indignant when she catches the women sneaking out for encounters, and she comes down hard on them (pun intended).  Maloney shames them into chastity, all in the name of peace.

The cast is obviously having fun; I suspect there are some raging parties after the performances at Funky.  Myrhine (Michelle Pantle) exudes both an innocence and a worldliness, and she clearly enjoys torturing her husband Cinesias (Jareth Spiro).  She leads him on, then stands him up, time after time.  (Again.  Pun intended)  Spiro, for his part, is beyond frustrated, and it’s too hard for him to handle.  (Again.)  He’s unable to hide his growing, throbbing concern (last one for now):

Ah, what shall I do? Whom shall I screw,

cheated of the loveliest of them all!

How will I raise and rear this orphaned cock?

Is Fox Dog out there anywhere?

Lease me a nursemaid!

It would be blogger malpractice to leave Désirée Myers out of this piece.  Not only does she stir the pot with a mischievous charm, she does so in the most outrageous wig ever seen onstage.  Her afro must be the size of a bushel basket, and she wears it well…at least when it doesn't slip off her head.  

I could go on, but I think I’ve made my point.  (Oops. That one wasn’t intentional.)  It’s about the laughs, and there are a LOT of them.  I could point out that sex and politics are still entertainment fodder for the masses, just as they were in Aristophanes day, but that would be stating the obvious.  2,426 years later, men are not always thinking with the head they find on their shoulders, and women are still left home when the politicians decide someone else must go to war.  

Perhaps Funky Little Theater could do a Lysistrata benefit performance at Fort Carson.  Take the show on the road to the place where men, women, and war mix it up every day.  I’m sure they would recognize the tension of long deployments and the power of intimacy denied.

I suspect many of the men and women at Fort Carson could use some laughs, and Funky’s Lysistrata might just be the way to get them.

Funky Cast

NOTES:

There is ample free parking at the strip mall where the theater is located.  

There are adult themes and adult language in Lysistrata.  Discretion is advised for children under 15. 

It doesn't hurt to do a little research before the show if you're unfamiliar with Lysistrata.  Doing so would be helpful to understand both the context and the comedy.

This show closes on August 28, 2015.

PHOTO CREDITS:  Funky Little Theater Company & Tenacious Photography

TICKETS HERE:  

CREATIVE TEAM:

Director:  Chris Medina

Set & Lighting Design:  Chelsie Rigor

Costume Design:  Delaney Hallauer

Stage Manager:  Will Sobolik

CAST:

Lysistrata:  Jenny Maloney

Calonice:  Emma Colligan

Lampito:  Jennifer Westrom-Crabtree

Myrhine:  Michelle Pantle

Councilor/Spartan Ambassador:  Earnest Mazyck

Cinesias/Athenian Ambassador:  Jareth Spirio

Men’s Chorus Leader:  Taylor Geiman

Men’s Chorus:  Grant Langdon, Dylan McClintock

Women’s Chorus Leader:  Desirée Myers

Women’s Chorus:  Sallie Walker, Christina Vilgiate

Ensemble: Kailey Gillen

The 9th Annual Front Range Playwright's Showcase

The 9th Annual Front Range Playwright's Showcase

Playwrights:  Isme, by Kelly McMahan, Once Widowed, Twice Divorced, by Jacqueline Garcia, and Gus’s Very First Shift by Oliver Gerland

Company:  Coal Creek Theater of Louisville

Venue:  Louisville Centrer for the Arts, 801 Grant Street, Louisville CO

Running Time:  3 hours (includes 15 minute intermission) 

Date of Performance:  Friday, August 21, 2015.

The Front Range Playwright’s Showcase is in it’s 9th season, with a single night dedicated to readings of 3 new plays submitted to the company.  This year they received 24 submissions to sift through.  Judging by the three plays they selected, 2015 is a very strong year for the Showcase and for new work.

The Showcase is structured somewhat like American Idol.  Three “adjudicators” (Alphonse Keasley, Madge Montgomery, and Gene Kato) watch the readings from front and center.  

After the reading is over, the playwright is given a seat directly in front of the three judges, who then critique the script.  

Once all three judges have weighed in, the audience is given a chance to ask questions or offer reactions to the scripts.  After the criticism of all the scripts, the adjudicators announce their choice for the winning script.

For those aspiring playwrights who have a justified fear of an American Idol panel, hold your fire.  These adjudicators were civilized, respectful, and brilliant in their criticism.  The three playwrights in this Showcase should take their feedback to heart.  The adjudicators offered them advice that is difficult for a playwright or author to get in any other forum.  

The contestants for the 9th Annual Showcase were:

1.  Isme by Kelly McMahan

Director: Vonalda Utterback

Isme:  Veronica Straight-Lingo

James:  Bill Graham

Siobhan/Eteocles/Antigone:  Erica Jo Young

Costos/Polyneices:  Evan Marquez
Macha:  Lisa Lowery

Narrator:  Vonalda Utterback

SYNOPSIS:

Ismene has suffered numerous family tragedies that leave her adrift in her own life.  She tries to make sense of her past by creating a theatrical production of her own personal journey.

2.  Once Widowed, Twice Divorced, by Jacqueline Garcia

Director:  Ash VanScoyoc

Eileen:  Lynn Fleming

James:  Dan Schock

Narrator:  Beth Beckel Fitzjarrald

SYNOPSIS:

Eileen, a feisty resident of an assisted living facility, receives a new cell phone from her family but doesn’t know how to use it.  One of the facility’s orderlies, James, lends a hand.  In the process the two end up discussing her long life as Eileen tried to use her new gift to achieve closure for a tragedy that occurred decades before.

3.  Gus’s Very First Shift by Oliver Gerland

Director:  Lynn Fleming

Marion:  Rachel Cohen-Birzer

Margery:  Kathleen Boyle Rausch

Guss Goff:  As VanScoyoc

Gertrude:  Lynn fleming

Tony:  Jim Whiteman

Cheryl:  Rachel Cohen-Birzer

Darby:  Jim Whiteman

Narrator:  Dave Dahl

SYNOPSIS:

A grocery store manager tells her assistant how a new checkout employee, Gus, who is arriving for his first shift early that morning, will help cut labor costs:  because he has a behavioral disorder, his hourly wage is government subsidized.  Upon arriving, Gus is disappointed to learn he won’t be paid immediately, but works diligently to satisfy customers while obeying Corporate rules.  Assisted by his disorder, Gus has personally enriching engagements with three customers, each a denizen of that strange time just before dawn.

COMMENTARY

All three scripts were strong, and, of course, all three had room for improvement.  In the case of Isme, playwright Kelly McMahan jammed the 40 minute script with an abundance of themes and threads.  Elements of comedy and tragedy competed with the philosophical (“one doesn’t need death for a tragedy.  Living on might be the tragedy”), the whimsical (Motown and Disco musical breakouts), and contemporary Irish drama as the successor to Greek tragedies.  (Note:  the quotation is a paraphrase, despite the quotation marks.)  Any one of these topics alone would support a one act play; all in the same work is overload of the first order.

In Once Widowed, Twice Divorced, playwright Jacqueline Garcia cleverly evokes the loneliness of aging.  Your visibility diminishes, and the worst thing that can happen is that you spend all your time with other old people.  Eileen, the aging, tech challenged focus of Once/Twice, however, seems straight out of central casting.  She fits our stereotype (cranky, impatient, somewhat intolerant, and self righteous) of someone in the twilight of her years.  That she was touched and inspired by her orderlies’ kindness seemed a tad contrived as a result of that stereotype.

Oliver Gerland, playwright for Gus’s Very First Shift, set his play in a 24 hour grocery store where Gus begins work with an easy shift:  only 30 minutes (4:30 AM to 5:00 AM).  The script puts Gus and his cognitive disability into contact with three customers, and he handles them all with respect and sincerity.  It’s an elegant set up for some drama, and the Gus character is very strong.  I did find it to be somewhat unlikely, however, as the Store Manager comes off as oblivious, while the disabled Gus is smart enough to turn his disability into an asset.  Not that I haven't known some poor managers, but even the least capable could have easily seen through Gus's self serving inquiries about the Corporate Rules.

As I mentioned above, all three scripts were strong, and based on the advice they got from the adjudicators and the audience, they will become stronger with the next draft.  In the end, though, the adjudicators had the difficult chore of deciding which of the three excellent scripts would be the winner.

Their decision:  Gus’s Very First Shift.

A fine choice indeed from three promising scripts.

NOTES:

A theater company's main mission isn't discovering new work.  That main mission is usually producing plays and paying the bills.  Finding new talent and giving that talent a stage and an audience is above and beyond the call of duty.  

Well done, Coal Creek.  Well done indeed.  Sorry I missed numbers 1-8, but I'll be back next year for the 10th Annual Front Range Playwright's Showcase.

PRE/POST SHOW DINING RECOMMENDATION:

I met Vonalda Utterback (Director for Isme) and her husband John at the Zucca Italian Ristorante, 808 Main Street, Louisville.  Roxie and I have been there before, and were impressed.  This visit just confirmed what we found the first time:  great service, delicious food, and great happy hour deals.

All three of us had the $6.00 Happy Hour pizza.  Mine was delicious; there wasn’t a scrap left on my plate.  Many of their ingredients come from their Three Leaf Farm in Lafayette.  Zucca gives locavores something to get out of bed for:  delicious food from local sources.

Zucca is an easy 5 minute walk to the Louisville Center for the Arts, so you won’t need to move the car.  

Ranch Dressing and Other Coping Mechanisms

Playwright:  Kelsie Huff

Company:  Square Product Theatre Company

Venue:  The Dairy Center for the Arts, 2590 Walnut Street, Boulder CO

Running Time:  1 hour (no intermission) 

Date of Performance:  Thursday, August 20, 2015.

If you’re going to do a one woman show, that woman must be able to carry the entire load.  Kelsie Huff is one such woman.  She carries that load of personal baggage and dumps it all at your feet with a loud thud.

Huff is the writer and director, as well as the only actor in Ranch Dressing and Other Coping Mechanisms (hereafter Ranch Dressing).  That makes sense, since she is the subject matter expert, the subject being herself.  She takes a deep dive into her childhood, her alcoholic family, and her life as a survivor of some pretty scary crises.

Huff’s script is a one hour monologue that starts with her locked in a ladies room, hiding away in a church basement.  Thus begins the sad saga of how Stephen Spielberg, using an oversized mechanical shark, traumatized her as a child.  Jaws never died; we only saw the alleged “chunks” of shark flesh, but not the carcass.  The 7 year old Kelsie Huff was convinced that Jaws lived in the plumbing at her house, and would attack her from the bowl below as she sat on the toilet.

The predatory marine killer trauma, though, isn’t enough.  Huff recounts a chaotic Christmas that ends in a fist fight between her father and Santa Claus.  Although it’s sometimes difficult to see the line between reality and artistic embellishment, Huff’s tales are much more the former than the latter.  

Huff goes into a seemingly funny story of an all night bender that doesn’t end until she takes a bag lady to a liquor store at 5:00 AM.  The story then takes a disturbing turn.  She and her new bestie bust open a wine bottle (they didn’t have a corkscrew) in an American History X twist that, for me at least, generated an agonizing flashback.  If you haven’t seen the movie, you can see the scene Huff refers to here.  

Fair warning, though: the scene is both barbaric and unforgettable.  You cannot “unsee” the brutality of American History X, and Ranch Dressing will take you to a very dark place with this reference.

It’s funnier when the American History X reference is to a wine bottle rather than a human being, but still, this is some very dark humor.  (For the record, the original scene in the film was not known for its comedic value.)  For Huff, dark humor is perhaps the only suitable kind, given the traumatic childhood she has survived.  That said, though, the humor isn’t really the point for Ranch Dressing.  It’s the message in Ranch Dressing that matters.

After immersing us in the alcohol haze of her escapades, Huff ends her show with a confession we are all familiar with:  “My name is Kelsie Huff, and I’m an alcoholic.”  We are not surprised to hear this, as Huff has been demonstrating it to us for nearly an hour at this point.  Even so, we need to hear it.  We need to know she is recovering and not spiraling into a cess pool filled with cheap vodka.

Huff’s Ranch Dressing is a tale of survival.  She survived a traumatic childhood.  She survived her own self destructive behavior as an adult.  She is now able to put herself out in front of anyone, anywhere, and tell her story.

Whether alcoholism is genetic is debatable, but we do know that children of alcoholics are four times more likely to have problems with alcohol.  Huff’s declaration is testimony to her determination to survive, and that is the central message of Ranch Dressing.  You can put ranch dressing on a pizza (“cream makes everything better”), but it’s still a pizza.  You can also put ranch dressing on alcoholism, but it’s still a self-destructive addiction.  It just tastes a little different.  The solution isn’t ranch dressing.  Surviving requires determination, persistence, and a lot of courage.

Huff confronts her demons, exposes her most intimate details, and does it in front of a room full of strangers.  How many of us would do the same?  

The laugh lines do not hide her pain; the laughs are forced but the pain is real.  You will not see a more honest, more personal, more intimate display of courage on any stage.  Huff lets us into her life, partly for therapy, but more importantly in a hope that she may touch someone else.  Someone who needs the strength to battle his or her personal demons.  

Kelsie Huff

For that, Ms Huff, you get my praise and my thanks.

Ranch Dressing is an unusual piece of theater, combining stand up comedy with very dark personal experiences, and ending with a disarming and sincere personal confession.  Huff isn’t acting here.  This is all real for her.  

An unusual piece of theater, and one that might actually change some lives.  For the better.  Which is exactly why we go to the theater.

NOTES:

There is ample free parking behind the theater (The Dairy Center), and on surrounding streets.  I am not sure what the parking situation is at the Buntport Theater.

There are adult themes and adult language in Ranch Dressing.  Discretion is advised for children under 15. 

This show closes at the Dairy Center for the Arts on August 22, 2015.  It will continue at the Buntport Theater, 717 Lipan Street, Denver, August 27-29.

PHOTO CREDITS:  Square Product Theatre Company & kelsiehuff.com

TICKETS AT BUNTPORT HERE:  

PRE/POST SHOW DINING RECOMMENDATION:

We stopped at Turley’s Kitchen, 2805 Pearl Street, Boulder.  It’s a bit of a Boulder landmark, and rightly so.  They serve breakfast all day; I had the #4 Combination Creation (3 pancakes, choice of meat, 2 eggs) for $9.00.  We had a very pleasant table on the patio, although the view of the parking lot is not inspiring.

Service was spotty.  My pancakes arrived with no syrup.  We had also ordered the house speciality, a large buttermilk biscuit, to split.  The biscuit did not show up either.  I reminded the waitress that I was expecting syrup and a biscuit, and told her that we did not have enough butter either.  She seemed surprised.  Perhaps pancakes in Boulder are eaten without butter & syrup, but I doubt it.  She promised to bring them right out; she didn’t.  Nearly 10 minutes later, the biscuit, butter and syrup arrived.  By then the pancakes were barely warm enough to melt the butter.  Incidentally, the butter is served in those tiny paper cups with folded sides, making it almost impossible to dislodge all the butter from the container.

It’s not like they were slammed with customers; there were many empty tables.  I’m not sure what the problem was, but we’re a little skeptical of returning when there are so many other options nearby.

CREATIVE TEAM:

Executive Producer/Production Manager:  Emily K. Harrison

Director:  Kelsie Huff

Lighting Design:  Jess Buttery

Sound Design:  Emily K. Harrison

Costume Design:  Kelsie Huff

CAST:

Kelsie:  Kelsie Huff