"The Perfect Family Summer Musical"

Posted by Bruce Miller
The extraordinary musical that brings down the curtain on both the Barksdale and Theatre IV Seasons earned its first rave review this morning from Susie Haubenstock. She LOVED it, writing a review almost as glowing as last week's review of Henley Street Theatre's A Doll's House.

Considering that The Sound of Music is America's favorite musical, and that pre-sales in advance of opening have already hit a record high, I strongly urge everyone to get their tickets to 1938 Austria as soon as possible. I'm convinced that the Times-Dispatch review will be only the first of several great notices. No one should miss out on the fun.

Here's what Susie has to say:

"What does it take to revive Rodgers and Hammerstein's The Sound of Music? Seven adorable children -- check. A Maria who's full of fun and energy and sings like an angel -- check. A Mother Abbess with a thrilling, inspiring voice -- check.

The new Theatre IV/Barksdale Theatre co-production at the Empire Theatre has all that and much, much more. Under the ebullient direction of Chase Kniffen, The Sound of Music is the perfect family summer musical, with much for each generation to love.

Even after a thousand viewings of the movie, it's possible to forget that there are serious political themes here, as well as grown-up relationships. Rodgers and Hammerstein were romantics, of course, but the Howard Lindsay/Russel Crouse book takes on Nazism, patriotism, pragmatism, moral relativism and religious faith -- and the show won the 1960 Tony Award to boot.

No need to recap the moving story of the von Trapp family in Austria; suffice it to say that Kniffen has reinvigorated what might be a saccharine bore and infused it with youthful enthusiasm. Most of the underpinnings are lush, from Brian Barker's opulent set to Sarah Grady's charming costumes to Lynne M. Hartman's beautiful lighting.

The orchestra, under Sandy Dacus' direction, is almost full enough, sounding thin only on the first-act finale, Climb Ev'ry Mountain, and Derek Dumais' sound design is nearly perfect despite its complexity.

The splendid cast is led by the delightful Stacey Cabaj as Maria, who bursts with warmth and joy and sings clear as a chapel bell. Jody Ashworth plays Captain von Trapp with admirable liveliness but a near-total lack of romantic appeal; nevertheless, his voice is stirring, his Edelweiss moving.

Susan Sanford and Michael Hawke are perfectly cast as the worldly Elsa and Max, more wryly lovable than despicable, and Kara Charise Harman provides that fabulous voice for Mother Abbess, as well as her loving manner.

All seven von Trapp children are delightful -- Ali Thibodeau, Eric Pastore, McKelvey Ewing Harrison, Cooper Timberline, Meghan Rose Cordner, Sydney Morgan Hall and Ellie Wilson -- and nowhere is Kniffen's deft touch more evident than in their performances; he elicits great work from young actors. His deceptively simple staging of The Lonely Goatherd is one of the highlights of the show.

All but the youngest kids in the audience were kept entertained by the 2½-hour show. My grandma took me to see The Sound of Music when I was little, and I've always been grateful. Given this lovely production, any grandma -- or mom, or dad, or aunt or big brother -- shouldn't hesitate to do the same."

Susan Haubenstock - The Richmond Times-Dispatch

You can reach our box office at 282-2620. I hope to hear from you soon. And I look forward to seeing you at the theatre.

--Bruce Miller

Something Old, Something New

Posted by Bruce Miller
We decided to try something different this year on Theatre IV’s mainstage season at the Empire. Change is good.
Our audience for this series includes children age 3 to around 12—and their families. In the past, we’ve offered four shows for everyone. We’ve asked the wigglers to stretch to reach the shows with more developmentally advanced content; we’ve asked the children approaching adolescence to remain comfortable with shows clearly directed to their younger siblings.

This year we’re offering six shows and allowing subscribers to choose the three or four best suited to their child’s age and maturity. For the pre-schoolers and primary grades, we have The Ugly Duckling (which opened last Friday at our historic Empire Theatre), The Song of Mulan, and Jack and the Beanstalk. Upper elementary types may find more enjoyment in A Christmas Carol, Buffalo Soldier, and The Sound of Music. Families are free to mix and match to their hearts’ content.

The Ugly Duckling is one of our oldest and most successful shows for the squirm and learn set. It was written and composed about 30 years ago by Richard Giersch, a former Richmonder now living in Northern Virginia. Throughout the decades, it’s been one of our most parent-and-teacher-requested titles for K-3.

For me, watching The Ugly Duckling is like being visited by the Ghost of Children’s Theatre Past—an oddly satisfying experience. There’s audience participation (everyone is invited to stand in front of their seats and join in dancing the Funky Eagle), humans in animal suits, a moral lesson that is clear as day--even a chase scene. It’s a revival of a classic form, to be sure. Nothing like this would be written today.

It even asks children to have an attention span of more than 60 seconds and listen to extended narrative. How well I remember when extended narrative was the norm. But those were before the days of the explosion of rapid-fire children’s television.

So if you’d like to see an old fashioned play in our new format, please join us for The Ugly Duckling, running two more weekends, in Technocolor, starring Gordon Bass, Eric Pastore, Ali Thibodeau, Duron Tyre, and Aly Wepplo under the direction of Jan Guarino,

Hope to see you and your little ones at the theatre!

--Bruce Miller

Three Hits (No Strike!) and We're In

Posted by Bruce Miller
Last Thurs, Nov 29, the strike ended and all of Broadway returned to work. The following evening, Fri, Nov 30, Theatre IV opened A Christmas Story at the historic Empire Theatre, the third mainstage opening in 15 days for the Barksdale/Theatre IV team. Today, Sun, Dec 2, the first Christmas Story review came out in the T-D, and, just as with the first two openings of our holiday trifecta, it looks like another winner coming out of the gates!

To paraphrase a song from Swingtime Canteen, “Praise the Lord and pass the approbation!”

Under the headline: “Caution: This Play Could Lead You to Fits of Laughter,” Susan Haubenstock writes, “Theatre IV’s holiday show A Christmas Story may be too funny for children. Well, too funny for them to fully appreciate. The adults who bring them to the Empire Theatre will be laughing out loud.”

Technical glitches aside (see my Opening Night coverage), Susie basically loved the whole thing: “Off Center and Always Hilarious!” “Clever Theatrical Devices!” “Incredibly Funny!” She loved our director and designers: “Director Chase Kniffen hits every laugh.” “The house set designed by Mercedes Schaum looks like it’s laughing.” “Matthew Landwehr’s lighting contributes mightily to the scene transitions.”

She especially loved our cast: “Eric Pastore has the charisma to keep our focus throughout the play’s 2 ½ hours.” “Michael Thibodeau and Eric Evans play his buddies with thorough 1938 credibility. Chandler Hurd is delightful as a coonskin-cap-wearing bully; and Lillie Izo and Lyla Rossi are wonderful as the neighborhood girls.”

“Above all, tiny R. Cooper Timberline is hilarious as Randy, whether whining, hiding, waiting for Santa, or needing to wee-wee.”

“Tony Foley plays the narrator (the adult Ralph) with heart, and Gordon Bass is perfect as the cursing, growling Old Man. Julie Fulcher’s long suffering Mother is great, and costume designer Sarah Grady even provides her with the requisite pink chenille bathrobe. And Jacqueline Jones puts in another of her high-octane performances as Ralphie’s teacher.”

If you and your kids would like a good laugh this Christmas, and who wouldn’t, please call for your Christmas Story tickets ASAP. If you’d like to revisit comic hijinks associated with the screen-writing of Gone with the Wind, please call for tickets to Moonlight and Magnolias at Barksdale Willow Lawn. And if you’d like to tap your feet and sing along to the boogie woogie hits of the 40s in a colorful recreation of a USO Christmas show, head on out to Hanover Tavern for Swingtime Canteen.

Better yet, go see all three! And remember, theatre tickets and gift certificates make GREAT Christmas and Hanukkah presents!!

See you at the theatre.

--Bruce Miller

Photo credits: All photos by Jay Paul. At flagpole (left to right) - Lyla Rossi, Lillie Izo, Eric Pastore, Michael Thibodeau, Eric Evans. In chairs - Eric Pastore, Eric Evans. Bundled up - Michael Thibodeau, Eric Pastore, R. Cooper Timberline, Eric Evans.

Deck the Halls with Bows so Jolly

Posted by Bruce Miller

The talented cast and crew of Theatre IV's new production of A Christmas Story took their first curtain call tonight, and then gathered in the historic Empire lobby for that merry ritual known as Meet and Greet. The Opening Night cast party was put on hold for a half hour or so until all playbills were signed and every jolly juvenile was sent on his or her way home with a smile and an autograph. Meet and Greet is so rewarding for cast and audience members alike at each Theatre IV production, I often wonder why we never try it for adult audience shows at Barksdale.

A Christmas Story was our third mainstage opening in as many weeks. If I were to put on my MARKETING AND PUBLIC RELATIONS hat, I'd tell you that the evening was an unqualified success. And in many ways it was. The audience LOVED the show, awarding it a million laughs and an enthusiastic ovation. The cast did an outstanding job.

But if I were to put on my LET'S PEEK BEHIND THE SCENES FOR THE TRUTH hat, I'd have to say that we encountered a few glitches this evening, more in my opinion than we encountered at this morning's final dress rehearsal. But such is the joy of live theatre. When you mount three major mainstage productions and four national tours in 15 days, glitches are gonna happen. Having been down this road more than a few times before, we know that now is the time to iron out some of the technical kinks that tripped us up in a few places tonight. I'm confident that every aspect of this big show will soon be in sync with every other aspect, creating the holiday heartwarmer that this production is destined to be.

Gracing the cast party were our Ralphie and Ralph (the same character as a boy and a man), played with wonderful humor and charm by Eric Pastore and Tony Foley (pictured to the left). Tony is well remembered as the young lawyer husband in Barefoot in the Park, and the innkeeper husband in Agatha Christie's The Mousetrap.

When not rubbing shoulders with his adult self, Eric Pastore decided to hang with his compadres Michael Thibodeau and Eric Evans, who play Ralphie's best pals Flick and Schwartz. These three multi-talented young men (pictured to the right) are all Barksdale veterans, having appeared in leading roles in Mame, The Member of the Wedding, and Mame, respectively (yes, the role of Young Patrick in Mame was triple-cast).

And let us not forget the fourth hooligan who contributes so much to this production. Chandler Hurd, a sixth grader at Byrd Middle School, plays the hooliganiest of all--Scut Farkas, bully to the stars. Chandler was taken ill during our opening weekend, but as one would expect from such a young trooper, he's been there for every rehearsal and performance, twisting arms and laughing villainously. In fact, the only thing he's missed was the Opening Night Party! We missed him, too.


Gordon Bass and Julie Fulcher (pictured to the left) do a terrific job playing Ralphie's dad and mom, known affectionately by grown-up Ralph as "Mother" and "The Old Man." It's Gordon who wins the leg lamp as a "major prize," and Julie who keeps trying to disconnect it so that the neighbors won't see. And in case you're starting to wonder if the cast party for A Christmas Story was a slumber party, remember that Meet and Greet is conducted in costume.

The three other stage wunderkind's who are knocking everyone's socks off are R. Cooper Timberline as baby brother Randy, Lillie Izo as brainiac Helen, and Lyla Rossi as Ester Jane, the young girl whose heart Ralphie has won. They are pictured to the right in front of the sign recognizing our wonderful sponsors for this production: Dominion, PriceWaterhouseCoopers, The Supply Room, STYLE Weekly and Radio Disney.

This is Lyla's second show with Theatre IV, having appeared in The Wizard of Oz as a Munchkin last spring. But this is the first time she's been part of a mother/daughter act. Lila's mom, Theatre IV All Star AnnaMarie Rossi, shares the role of Miss Shields, the teacher, with another Theatre IV All Star, Jackie Jones.

Chase Kniffen, our talented young director, goes cheek to cheek with STYLE critic Mary Burress at the post performance cast party. And our hard working stage manager, Ariel Osborne, and house manager, Catherine Dudley, survey the joyous goings on from the historic marble and forged iron staircase that leads to the balcony. Terrie Powers (Swingtime's exemplary set designer) and Virginia actors extraordinaire--Jill Bari Steinberg, Robert Throckmorton and Robyn O'Neill--discuss the latest theatre news in the background.

As the party wore on, one little bro had to call it a night in the comforting arms of his dad, Dave Timberline, henceforward known as "Cooper's old man."

So, before you get too tired, make your plans to join us for A Christmas Story at the historic Empire Theatre. It's 2 1/4 hours of holiday delight for young and old.

--Bruce Miller

"A Christmas Story" Opens Tomorrow

Posted by Billy Christopher Maupin

Tomorrow night at Barksdale Theatre's "sister theatre," Theatre IV, A Christmas Story opens. Not the movie, of course, but a stage adaptation of the movie. And it took a heckuva lot of people to get it to the stage. The author billing credit is required by the publisher to read:

A Christmas Story
Adapted by Philip Grecian. Based on the motion picture A Christmas Story,
© 1983 Turner Entertainment Co., Distributed by Warner Bros.,
Written by Jean Shepherd, Leigh Brown and Bob Clark;
Also based on the book In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash by Jean Shepherd.

Now that's a mouthful. But all those writing credits make me think of all the people who are involved in getting the show onstage after the script is written. There's a talented team of people on this one.

A Christmas Story is directed by Chase Kniffen, with scenic design by Mercedes Schaum, lighting design by Matthew Landwehr, costume design by Sarah Grady, stage management by Ariel C. Osborne, and a whole slew of electricians, sound technicians, scene painters, costumers, and more.

And it's A Christmas Story onstage! I can hardly wait to see it! Especially because of the great cast: Tony Foley, Julie Fulcher, Gordon Bass, Eric Pastore, Jacqueline Jones/AnnaMarie Rossi, R. Cooper Timberline, Eric Evans, Michael Thibodeau, Lillie Izo, Lyla Rossi, and Chandler Hurd.

It's the holiday classic, live and on-stage! To order tickets, call the box office at 344-8040 or visit the Theatre IV website at http://www.theatreivrichmond.org/. I hope to see you at the show!

(Photos by Jay Paul. From top to bottom: Eric Pastore; Julie Fulcher and Gordon Bass; Michael Thibodeau, Eric Pastore, R. Cooper Timberline, and Eric Evans; Tony Foley)

--Billy Christopher Maupin