Richmond Theatre Critics Circle Awards

Posted by Bruce Miller
The nominations for the RTCCAs (popularly pronounced Artsies or Ratcocs, depending on the sassiness of the one doing the pronouncing) were posted on Dave's Theater Blog late Monday evening. Many also refer to the actual awards as "hockey pucks," because of the circular design of the handsome acrylic trophies that are handed out. Meaning no disrespect, I've chosen a Canadian hockey puck to illustrate this article because: A - I couldn't find a photo on line of an actual Artsy, and B - well, I'll let you speculate about B.

Because I swim in the technological backwaters, I knew nothing about the announced nominations until Tuesday morning when I read a nice message that Jacquie O'Connor wrote on my Facebook wall. Our Managing Director, Phil Whiteway, received some sort of message on his blackberry, or whatever phone thing he has, on Monday night. From all reports, the phone of our Associate Artistic Director, Chase Kniffen, began ringing furiously shortly after Dave's initial posting.

I'm so out of the loop that it sometimes startles me.

Anyway, what a nice surprise to discover that Barksdale and Theatre IV are parties to 48 nominations--49 if you count our connections to Neil and SaraBelle November. I greatly appreciate all this recognition.

I really really really don't envy the Richmond theatre critics and the challenges they face in trying to come up with this list of nominees. I think it's great that they're giving kudos to theatres and theatre artists in Richmond. As an economic sector, we need all the attention we can get. But their job is next to impossible. With so many worthy performances, how can anyone possibly choose one set of theatre artists over another. All I can say is, I'm glad I don't have to do it.

My job is an easier one. I get to Monday morning (Wednesday night?) quarterback and make some additional "nominations" of performances that I admired, performances that didn't make it on to the final roster selected by the critics. My "nominations" represent nothing more than one humble opinion--which ain't worth squat. Like the critics, I'm sure I too will leave out people I really liked and am now forgetting, but since these nods of mine carry no weight whatsoever, I hope everyone will put up with my whimsy.

I also get to toss out some comments that have little to do with anything, but interest me nonetheless. It's a blog. So sue me.

First off, I loved everyone in the acting and design teams of the three shows I had the privilege to direct this season: Boleros for the Disenchanted (the wonderful and nominated Carmen Zilles is pictured to the left, next to the wonderful and not nominated Michelle Guadalupe), First Baptist of Ivy Gap, and On Golden Pond. Since I'm completely biased in their favor, I won't single out any one of them individually for recognition here. Except one. I know Joe Inscoe is nominated several times for other performances, but not to nominate him for On Golden Pond?? I thought he was exceptional. I'm just sayin'.

I'm a little surprised (but delighted) to see that Souvenir is considered to be a musical. At the end of the day, I don't care if the critics call it a musical, a non-musical, or an egg salad sandwich--I'm really glad that the excellent work that went into this show was recognized.

I already wrote to Jase Smith individually, and told him I thought his direction of Rent represented his best work thus far and deserved a nomination. I also think that Terence Sullivan was terrific in Rent. In my opinion, he was the major new "discovery" of the year. I thought Durron Tyre was incredible in Rent and deservedly nominated, but I don't think the character of Tom Collins is a lead. In my little world, Durron should be up for Best Supporting Actor in a Musical.

In like manner, I was surprised to see that Ford Flannagan's wonderful performance in Putnam County Spelling Bee was nominated in the Leading Actor category, while Debra Wagoner's performance in the same show in a role that was actually larger than Ford's was recognized in the Supporting Actor category. It seems like both of them were outstanding supporting actors to me.

And speaking of directors--I was, a couple paragraphs back--I thought Molly Hood (pictured to the left) did a terrific job with Twelfth Night. Here again, I applaud each of Barksdale's and Theatre IV's directors, but I'm biased so I won't single them out.

I enjoyed noting that The Sound of Music was abbreviated SOM and Servant of Two Masters was abbreviated SOTM. It reminded me of the previous season when Barksdale did Children of a Lesser God and Stage 1 did Children's Letters to God almost simultaneously. Good times. It made me try to think of other plays we might have produced last season with titles that could be abbreviated with some variation of SOM. But I came up with bupkis. It's late at night.

I think the strongest category may be Best Supporting Actor in a Play. All five nominees are equally deserving. And I can think of more than a few others who turned in equally impressive performances in this category--too many to single out. I'm excited that there's a new category for original work--something lacking in the past.

Maybe next year the critics can consider recognizing a break-through performance by someone previously unnoticed, or maybe a "Most Outstanding Debut" category. I thought Laurel Maughan, who is new to our ranks, contributed greatly to Twelfth Night. In the veteran category, I though Jackie Jones was particularly noteworthy playing Golda Meir in her one woman show at the JCC. Somewhere in between, Joe Carlson impressed, I thought, in Grapes of Wrath, carrying a difficult show on his emerging shoulders. Joe will contribute greatly to Richmond theatre's future, should we be lucky enough to hang on to him.

I'm so pleased that Hanover Tavern received some recognition this year; the Tavern was completely shut out in years one and two. I know there will always be those who feel under-appreciated, just like all of us at Hanover Tavern felt in 2008 and 2009. But I think the critics do an outstanding job trying to recognize good work everywhere, and trying to maintain a balance.

Richmond theatre lives and dies by its breadth and depth, and the critics work hard to find examples of excellence almost everywhere. Our theatre community would be greatly diminished without the estimable talents found at our dozen colleague nonprofits: African American Repertory Theatre, Cadence Theatre Company, Carpenter Science Theatre, Chamberlayne Actors Theatre, Firehouse Theatre Project, HATTheatre, Henley Street Theatre, Richmond Shakespeare, Richmond Triangle Players, Swift Creek Theatre, Sycamore Rouge, and the brand new Theatre in Battery Park.

Last but not least, I'd like to tip my hat to the kids in The Sound of Music--maybe in the best ensemble category. They were amazingly talented, professional and accomplished throughout a lengthy run, and were at the very heart of Central Virginia's most popular show of the past season.

So, those are a few random thoughts, signifying nothing. Again, I think the critics are doing a great job and I don't envy them. There's no way they could satisfy everyone. So I salute them, and thank them for their service.

--Bruce Miller

Artsies and The New Century

Posted by Bruce Miller
Everyone seems to have had a grand time last night at the RTCC Awards presentation at the historic Empire.

For me it was a little like hosting a party for 500 people in my home. We almost immediately had to restock the toilet paper and paper towels in the ladies room. (Thanks Erin and Jackie for the heads up.) I sat through the entire evening praying that no one would fall into the pit. (Note to self: next year, make sure that railings are on BOTH sides of the stairs leading to the stage.)

The mics seemed to work almost perfectly (give or take about 2 seconds of feedback), which was a miracle considering there was virtually no rehearsal. The stars twinkled with maybe a little too much enthusiasm. (Was it just me or did they start twinkling even faster whenever Audra Honaker came onstage?)

Many thanks to all who helped to make it happen without a major hitch.

Prior to the Artsies, I headed out west for The New Century and the Triangle Players. Here’s what I liked:

* Getting to see HATTheatre for the first time. I know, I should be embarrassed and I am. HATTheatre has occupied its intimate headquarters since sometime in the 90s. I’m ashamed this is the first time I’ve made it to the western border of Henrico County to enjoy the space. I love seeing new theatrical digs in Greater Richmond—even if they’re “new” only to me.

* Experiencing first hand and for the first time the expert comic timing of Annie Zannetti. This woman is a pro at delivering a punch line for maximum effect. She absolutely knows what she’s doing. I look forward to the honor of working with Annie sometime in the future, should I be so lucky.

* Every word that came out of Jackie Jones’s beautiful mouth. Not only do I love Jackie Jones, I also preferred her section of the play, entitled Crafty. It was sweet, and warm, and funny. This says more about me than it does about the rest of the play or the performances.

To be honest, I didn’t “get” about 25% of the rest of the play. I know; I’m old and unusually un-hip. Every time I trick myself into believing I’m “with it,” I discover I’m not. I sort of hate to admit it, but with the exception of Crafty, the playlets in The New Century are more “insider” and “New York” than I am. I didn’t really understand about a quarter of what they were talking about. All right—maybe a fifth.

A catchphrase much bandied about at Richmond Triangle Players is “if we didn’t do it, who would?” In the case of The New Century, and many other Triangle productions as well, I think they’re right. And that's all to the good.

Other theatres in town have produced more “mainstream” theatre with gay themes. Barksdale and Theatre IV have presented The Boys in the Band, The Normal Heart, The Fifth of July, Love Valour Compassion, Gross Indecency: The Three Trials of Oscar Wilde, The Laramie Project (co-produced, Phil Crosby reminds me, with RTP), and The Little Dog Laughed. The Firehouse has done Hedwig and the Angry Inch. The New Century, in my opinion, is a little more “niche” than any of those plays. If Triangle Players didn’t do it, I expect no other theatre in Richmond would.

I also loved the exuberance of my buddies Michael Hawke and Matt Hackman, who threw caution to the wind and gave everything they’ve got to their two roles.

If you love gay comedies, don’t miss The New Century. It’s loaded with laughs, leather and lasciviousness. It's not for everybody, but what theatre is? I applaud Richmond Triangle Players for making professional theatre in Richmond broader and more inclusive.

--Bruce Miller

What is the BTW? (Barksdale Theatre Workshop)

Posted by Bruce Miller
A respondent to the previous post about TenSpot tickets made a good comment. "Hi. I'm confused. I understand the high school ticket rate; that's great. But what is the Barksdale Theatre Workshop? Is it really some type of free workshop for high school students?? Thank you."

Great question. I'm posting the answer here rather than in the comment section so that it can be seen by more people.

The BTW (Barksdale Theatre Workshop) is our outreach program designed to improve our service to high school students who love theatre. Through the BTW, we create opportunities for young actors, directors and designers to become more interested in and more connected with Barksdale Theatre.

The word “workshop” has two definitions. Quoting Merriam-Webster, a workshop is:
· “a small establishment where manufacturing or handicrafts are carried on, and
· a usually brief intensive educational program for a relatively small group of people that focuses especially on techniques and skills in a particular field.”
To help us create the BTW, we turned to our best resource, the talented and committed high school teachers who direct the drama programs in schools throughout our community. In the fall of 2005, we invited these drama teachers to Barksdale Theatre at Willow Lawn to discuss what Barksdale should be doing to serve their programs and their students. They identified five areas where we could have a positive and much needed impact. These five areas are the five components of the BTW.

In priority order, the recommendations of the teachers were:

1. Stage a summer production in which our community’s best high school theatre students could perform with Richmond’s major professional theatre. The program should be open to high school actors from all programs and backgrounds. Students should be able to audition for and participate in the program without charge. Rehearsals should be at night so that those students who needed to hold down summer jobs could participate. No other program, at that time, was filling that need. In partnership with The Steward School, we filled it, with Grease in 2006 and Disney’s High School Musical in 2007 (pictured throughout this article).

2. Create a discount program that allows high school students to come to plays at Barksdale Theatre for $10 each. The BTW TenSpot program now fills this need.

3. Create an externship that allows students interested in the performing arts to meet in a small group with our community’s top theatre, music and dance professionals in an after-school program for academic credit, learning firsthand about careers in the performing arts. In partnership with the CenterStage Foundation we have created and now operate the SOAR program (Student Opportunities in the ARts) to fill this need.

4. Expand our website to create a place where high school students can post information about the productions they’re working on and share their theatre interest with other high school drama enthusiasts—a community-wide high school theatre bulletin board. If you go to the Students section on the Barksdale website, you’ll find the pages where we’re filling that need. We’ve also created an interactive FaceBook page that hundreds of high school drama students access and contribute to each week.

5. Create Master Classes led by Greater Richmond’s best actors, directors, designers etc. and make those classes available on tour to individual drama classrooms in Greater Richmond's high schools. Also, conduct Master Classes in our theatre facilities so that students can access them on their own. We’re planning for our Master Class program to be in place by the beginning of the 2008-09 school year. The Master Classes will be unique, not duplicative of other programs currently existing in the community, such as (in alpha order) Christian Youth Theatre, HATTheatre and/or SPARC—all of which we support.

If you or someone you know is a high school theatre lover, we hope you’ll make sure they know about the BTW (Barksdale Theatre Workshop). For more information, they can email or call Chase Kniffen, 783-1688 ext. 14.

--Bruce Miller

In Memoriam: Carlton Candler

Posted by Janine Serresseque
Our tight-knit theatre community bids a sad goodbye to our beloved friend, Carlton Candler, who passed away unexpectedly in his Manhattan home on January 6.

Carlton was one of the first friends I made when I moved to Richmond in 1993. I didn't know a soul, sought out the first community theatre group I could find in order to meet people, and had the good fortune to land at Henrico Theatre Company. Carlton and I were both in a production of Rumours and we became fast friends. I'm sure anybody who knew Carlton was fast friends with him. You just got drawn in by his bright, generous and exuberant spirit, not to mention the fact that he was absolutely hilarious! The man could have a whole room of people in stitches with his antics.

He was a very enthusiastic volunteer in community theatre, having performed in and directed dozens of shows for Henrico Theatre Company, Chamberlayne Actors Theatre, Fort Lee Playhouse, and Richmond Neighborhood Players.

Kids were just as captivated by Carlton as we (so-called) grownups were. Carlton was a well-loved and devoted teacher. He didn't consider teaching to be just a way to pay the bills; he was passionate about it. It was his true calling. I'm sure there are many young people in our community who had the good fortune to be his students, as he taught at HATTheatre, Center Stage for Henrico County, and at Ridge and Shady Grove Elementary Schools. After he moved to New York in 2001, he continued his teaching career at several schools in New York, New Jersey, and most recently in Harlem.

A memorial service was held for Carlton last Saturday, January 12th at Shady Grove United Methodist Church. Memorials may be made to Fresh Youth Initiatives, Inc., 505 W. 171st St., New York, NY 10032.

Carlton, we will miss you. Thank you for all the love, compassion and humor you brought to this world.

--Janine Serresseque

"High School Musical" Megamix

I know I’m beginning to wear out my welcome, if there ever was a welcome, with these endless blog entries about Disney’s High School Musical. It’s a big show, and it’s important to me to give every kid his or her due. So, with respect and appreciation, I’m going to zip through the final ten actors who make our “megamix” of a cast so mix-worthy.

T J Otey is a rising junior at New Kent H S—quite a few of these kids have been dealing with a loooooong commute to be a part of this show. T J is the one who gives a quiet and slightly tone deaf audition in the audition scene, prompting Ms. Darvus to admire his tennis shoes and suggest that he help out with costumes.

Amanda O’Toole is a rising junior at Atlee H S, and she studies dance at Shuffles Dance Studio. She appeared in Pippin with SPARC, and is rallying pep as one of our cheerleaders.

Johanna Reckenbeil is in the a cappella and show choir at Godwin, and she studies dance at Richmond Dance Center, but this is her first theatrical production. She plays one of our “brainiacs,” and adds persuasive hand motions to that section of Counting on You when they sing about Rosa Parks.

Kristin Ricca is back for a second summer, having played Cha Cha last summer in Grease. There’s a really great photo of Kristin dancing with Robert Watkins, last summer’s charming Danny Zuko, about six blog posts back. Kristin is a rising junior at Deep Run H S, and a proud alum of Christian Youth Theatre and the Latin Ballet of Virginia.

Zack Rogers is also a returnee from Grease, and a rising junior at Thomas Dale H S. He has two stand-out moments in the show. He gives an ear wrenching vocal performance in the audition scene, and he finds surprising depth in the movements of a worm.

Andrea Ross is our third Grease alum in a row. She is a rising sophomore at Henrico H S’s Center for the Arts. In the audition scene, she belts out the song like a soulful American Idol contestant.
Hali E. Russell just graduated from Varina H S, and is pleased to be in her first musical. She appears as the “brainiac” who loves hip-hop.

Ariel Spagnolo is a rising junior at Deep Run H S, where she recently played Audrey in Little Shop of Horrors. She’s one of our beautiful cheerleaders, and lends her acrobatic skills to several musical numbers.

Suzanne Spicer was the one that we wanted last summer, playing Sandy in Grease. She just graduated from Godwin H S, and credits much of her theatrical success to her twelve years as a student at HATTheatre.

Molly Underwood will soon be a senior in the Math and Science High School at Clover Hill. So of course she’s playing a skater babe in DHSM.

As Porky Pig would say at the end of a Looney Toons cartoon, “Th – th – th - that’s all folks!” Since I’m feeling pretty loony myself right about now, I’ll leave it at that. All of us at Barksdale and Steward are proud of everyone associated with Disney’s High School Musical. I hope you’ll make it a point to stop by in the next two weeks and take in their show.

--Bruce Miller