Review: A Relationship on Shuffle

By Michael Block

Writing is a cathartic way to let go of heartbreak. Believe me, this writer is no stranger to the practice. In Brad Baron's Last Ditch Playlist, the memories that rattle in the mind are projected onto the stage as the romance of a young couple is recounted. An interesting look at the rise and fall of a relationship, Last Ditch Playlist sings a common tune.
Told through a mostly nonlinear story structure, Last Ditch Playlist follows the range of love between Aaron, a hopeless romantic, and Wes, an intellect seeker, as they navigate their relationship through the huddles of intimacy and distance. Told through Aaron's eyes, he tries everything he can to hold onto something that may actually be nothing. Written by Brad Baron, Last Ditch Playlist takes a common theme yet explores it in a unique approach. Rather then playing sequentially, Baron plays with time. Doing so illuminates the relationship and the structure greatly. With time loosely free, Baron has room to play with structure and streamline repetition out of the story. Firstly, Last Ditch Playlist takes on a heightened theatricality but when it moves linearly near the end, it falls into a different genre. When the angst feels closer to a CW melodrama, the plays loses steam. Baron includes a sense of closure for the relationship. There’s a mutual coming to terms. It’s a cathartic ending that seemed to work best for the writer but not necessarily the piece as a whole. As it stands now, the story is wrapped up beautifully with a bow. We jump ahead in time and see the aftermath of Wes and Aaron’s parting. But do we really want to? Yes, there is a scene or two that offers some important character information but with the nonlinear structure, Baron can easily jumble the puzzle pieces and throw them in somewhere else. If that should happen, Baron has two potentially gorgeously ambiguous endings that resonated beyond belief. The reality is we likely know the result, but keeping the audience wondering as they leave the theater? It leaves them wanting more. Having the room to continue to explore and play with the puzzle will certainly help with the arc of the story. Baron has the death of his hometown friend as a key cog into Aaron’s inability to truly trust and get close to a person. It may be useful to track her presence and other amplify it or eliminate her as a character as it comes across as a superfluous blindside. The information is important, the physical character may not be.

photo by Joseph Prestamo

Rather than make Last Ditch Playlist a big production, the piece was staged so the words would take precedence. There were no thrills or frills attached. Directed by Baron and alongside a tag team of names, Last Ditch Playlist had an experimental essence about it, similar to how Cock was original staged. For a piece about intimacy, it lacked the direct intimacy it desired. With two sides of seating, Baron and co had a long alleyway of playing space. Wes and Aaron spend much of their time as a long distance pair, so finding a way to make the distance intimate was quite difficult. There was something unnatural about how they spoke on the phone to one another. But that may also be due to the inconsistency of prop usage throughout the play. The video design by Joseph Prestamo was quite striking. It was another aide that helped heighten the play. One of the strongest moments of the entire show was watching Wes dance on the rooftop in video and then match Casey Bagnall’s exquisite choreography live on stage.
Playing a bit of an extension of himself, Brad Baron as Aaron was our way into the world. Aaron’s emotion from scene to scene was a bit stagnant but when he was at the extremes, puppy love and on the brink of a breakup, Baron was at his best. Taking on the emotionally distracted and intellectually hungry Wes, Ross McCorkell brought a magnetism and allure that was a dominating force in the show. McCorkell gave Wes a slight entitlement as he dangled love and hope over Aaron in a slightly emotionally abusive manner. There was a slight lack of chemistry between Aaron and Wes, but that may be the moral of the story.
Brad Baron wore a plethora of hats for Last Ditch Playlist. Taking one or two off may be beneficial as Last Ditch Playlist moves forward. And it is a play that will move forward. Baron has written something filled to the brim with great potential. With a little more massaging, Last Ditch Playlist could be a universally revered relationship play.

Review: Three Wishes for Jackie

By Michael Block 

Barbara Eden is best known for her iconic role as Jeannie, the 2,000-year-old genie, on the hit 60s sitcom “I Dream of Jeannie.” It was a simpler time of punny titles and names. If you’ve been stuck in a bottle yourself, the premise of the show followed the antics and romances of Jeannie and her newfound “master.” This is the jumping off point for I Dream of Jackie, Jackie Cox’s debut solo show at the Laurie Beechman. Jackie becomes her own master as she finds herself out of her bottle and gets to grant herself three wishes.

photo by Michael Block

Using “I Dream of Jeannie” as inspiration, I Dream of Jackie follows Jackie Cox as she gets out of her bottle and into the fabulous real world. With a conglomeration of music including that obvious song about a genie in a bottle by Christina Aguilera and parodies ranging from “Aladdin” songs to “I Speak Six Languages,” Jackie’s whirlwind adventure is a cohesive camp cabaret that leaves you wanting more. And luckily, there’s a sequel in the works. Traveling alongside her back-up boy toys, Blake McIver, playing the sensible one, and Drew Bloom, playing the dimwitted eye candy, Jackie sings and dances her way through this Arabian night. Jackie infuses bright and bubbly into every beat of the show. The text is comical candy. It’s smartly written and could easily be expanded. Though some of the jokes can be seen miles away, they’re nailed to perfection. To cover costume changes, the show incorporated some video but when you have singing secondary characters, giving them “Secondary Characters” to wail on was a brilliant choice. Generally, drag is an art form meant for pure entertainment. Laughs are inevitable. But sometimes when reflection on the world is necessarily, using drag as a platform can be powerful. Jackie incorporated such a moment with a repurposed number from Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat accompanied by a look at the current refugee crisis. And it was simply beautiful. To accomplish such a feat in this setting takes immense skill. Jackie and director Blake McIver accomplished it with ease. The piece flowed seamlessly against the lantern backdrop.
Jackie Cox was the secondary character for Paige Turner recently at the Beechman but she triumphantly shined in the starring role. I Dream of Jackie fulfilled more than her three wishes.

Spotlight On...Brad Baron

Name: Brad Baron

Hometown: Glen Rock, NJ

Education: Princeton University, AB in English with Certificates in Music and Theater. Louisiana State University, MM in Music (Vocal Performance)

Select Credits: Kiss Me, Kate (Fred Graham), Brigadoon (Jeff), Sweeney Todd. Lots of Gilbert and Sullivan including The Pirate King in The Pirates of Penzance in productions across the country (so far Baton Rouge, Cape Cod, Memphis, and back home in New Jersey). I've had one acts and short plays produced in festivals and theaters around the country too, including at the La Strada Ensemble Theater, the Ringwald Theatre, and various 1-Minute Play Festivals

Why theater?: Why not? But truthfully, I don't know what I'd do without it. Plus nowadays I think it's one of the few modes of entertainment left where people come together and experience something at the same time. You go on a journey with friends and total strangers; you'll probably never see them again. But you shared something. I love Netflix just as much as everyone else, but there's nothing like the communal experience that theater demands.

Who do you play in Last Ditch Playlist?: I play Aaron, who is based on a very specific version of myself circa 2012 - 2013.

Tell us about Last Ditch Playlist: Last Ditch Playlist began as a cathartic exercise for me when getting over my first breakup. I spent months writing the first draft pretty much nonstop. That was about four or five years ago. It's been cool to put distance between myself and the events dramatized in the play, because I don't think it really started to work until I could see it objectively. So the play is a very personal and specific journey. But I hope the specificity and detail in which this relationship is described is what ultimately makes it relatable in a broader sense. I just want it to be honest.

What is it like being a part of Last Ditch Playlist?: I find it really natural and invigorating, which is actually a big surprise for me. This is my first time acting in something I wrote. I used to distance myself from doing that on principle, wanting to leave it to other actors and directors to unearth things in my writing that I never considered. I actually never had the intention of acting in Last Ditch Playlist until my on-stage boyfriend (Ross McCorkell) put the idea in my head. It was a risk, but I'm very excited by the results. Ultimately, I think giving myself permission to act in my play has helped me to understand it better.

What kind of theater speaks to you? What or who inspires you as an artist?: If I'm being completely honest, I'm pretty obsessed with Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812. I think there are a lot of great new musicals that have made their way to Broadway in the last few years, but this one takes the cake for me. I mentioned how I liked being a part of a community of theatergoers earlier, and I love that The Great Comet forces you to acknowledge the audience all around you. I definitely enjoy measuring the reactions of audience members around me when I see a piece of theater. Our setup for Last Ditch Playlist also allows for some of that. Beyond that, I love how The Great Comet makes a cohesive whole out of elements that shouldn't otherwise fit together. Also considering my opera upbringing, I enjoy The Great Comet (and other sung-thru musicals like Hamilton) that, in my opinion, do new opera better than actual new operas.

Any roles you’re dying to play?: I've done it before, but I will seize any opportunity to do Don Quixote in Man of La Mancha again. I also want to be a part of more queer theater. One day, Angels in America would be cool. Otherwise, I really do think I want to keep writing for myself moving forward.

What’s your favorite showtune?: Do I have to pick?? Hmm. Well, I tend to really like the women's numbers more. A current favorite is "No One Else" from The Great Comet. I like "Take a Break" a lot from Hamilton for whatever reason. Stalwart favorites include "Losing My Mind," "It's All the Same" (Man of La Mancha), anything by Rodgers and Hammerstein or Lerner and Loewe, or Kurt Weill. Ugh, see, I can't pick!

If you could work with anyone you’ve yet to work with, who would it be?: Madeline Kahn. Unfortunately, I think I missed the boat there. Otherwise, dream colleagues include Kelli O'Hara, Jinkx Monsoon, Phillipa Soo, Michael Urie, and Steven Pasquale.

Who would play you in a movie about yourself and what would it be called?: Actually, I think Last Ditch Playlist could make a good movie. Dare I say Michael Urie again?

If you could go back in time and see any play or musical you missed, what would it be?: WOOF. That's tough. The original productions of Man of La Mancha, Angels in America, and a live taping of "The Carol Burnett Show."

What show have you recommended to your friends?: The Great Comet and I used to be a big proponent of August: Osage County back when it was playing.

What’s your biggest guilty pleasure?: Video Games. Hands down.

What’s up next?: After we conclude our NYC run of Last Ditch Playlist, we head to Philly for the FringeArts Festival! We're doing Last Ditch Playlist at Performance Garage (1515 Brandywine Street, Philadelphia, PA 19130) for three performances on September 12, 13, and 15!

For more on Last Ditch Playlist, visit www.lastditchplaylist.com

Review: A Super Fan Takes on Babs

By Michael Block

Rufus did Judy at Carnegie Hall now Blake is doing Barbra at the Laurie Beechman. In a return engagement, Blake McIver pays homage to Barbra Streisand in Blake Sings Barbra. A classic and simply stated evening of music and story, McIver humbly showcases his talents.

photo by Michael Block

Barbra Streisand is an icon to all, especially in the gay community. Best known for her roles on stage and screen, Streisand returned to the live performance world in 1994 with “The Concert.” And that's the basis of Blake McIver's solo cabaret. Bringing tales of his life in the year of the concert, McIver offers parallels to the stories Streisand told as well as bringing everything full circle to today. A beautiful homage presented by a super fan, Blake Sings Barbra is more than just a tribute to “the greatest star.” McIver brings a unique spin to many of the standards yet maintains integrity. There’s a humbleness to McIver’s performance, especially as her talks of his idol. It’s delicate, yet confident. Even when he jokes about having AOSD, or acute obsessive Streisand disorder, there’s a bashful charm about him. As he dives into some more personal anecdotes, he’s able to pull from within to give an emotionally riveting performance. Blake Sings Barbra is more than a beat by beat recount of the concert. It's evident he's done his homework when he unleashes a trio with Barbra and, well, Barbra. Director Mary Lane Haskell guides McIver on a well-rounded journey through song and patter, helping the evening move in a streamlined manner. Incorporating video from the concert into the show, those few audience members who may not have worn out their VHS copies can feel as if they know the inside jokes. Even if you didn’t know the setlist from the original concert, McIver walks you through why each song was included and how Streisand related to each number.
McIver has nestled himself into the world of Barbra Streisand to provide a beautiful product. Many artists have done their own tributes to Babs but there’s something distinctively special about Blake Sings Barbra. Thankfully the show will return once again to New York later to this fall.

Review: Paige's Fabulous Confessions

By Michael Block

At first glance, you might think Paige Turner is going to give you a sugary sweet night of entertainment. But don't judge this book by its cover. Her sweet facade quickly gives way to twisted hilarity. "Mushroom Head." Need I say more? With an encore engagement of her acclaimed Confessions of an Un-Natural Blonde, Paige Turner sings and shares stories of her not so PC life.

photo by Michael Block

A dominant fixture in New York nightlife, Paige Turner is the epitome of showbiz. In Confessions of an Un-Natural Blonde, Paige takes her adoring fans on a whacky journey through her life as she makes her way in New York City. Filled to the brim with perversion, Paige keeps her audience roaring, and leaves an occasional jaw on the floor. Showing off her Gluten-free figure decked out in her best Lisa Frank Quinceanera dress, Paige fulfills every colorful fantasy you have. There are some drag performers who simply put on a character, and that’s it. Paige Turner goes beyond that. She creates a complete wonderful world of her own that we are privileged to be a part of. With the assistance of some incredible video features, the show was absolutely elevated beyond compared. If you’re a fan of Mika, Paige’s “Lollipop” bit and accompanying music video was a safe highlight. If you like your humor a little more politically incorrect, see the previously mentioned “Mushroom Head.” I don’t think my jaw has ever dropped faster onto the floor. For fans of the Disney classic “Frozen,” Paige completely defiles one of the tuners in the best way possible. The things seasoned drag queens can get away with! As Paige shares her anecdotes, she throws shady zingers left and right to her friends and acquaintances. But she’s not being mean, she’s just being Paige! And she doesn’t leave the audience out of the fun. Oh no. Many daddies get asked to teach her how to bottom while those who are granted a Sugar Daddy lollipop must answer the age old question, unicorn or pony. From a writing perspective, Paige’s show is streamlined yet packed to the brim with fun. She smartly leaves you wanting more. And lucky for you, you can see her at her various gigs throughout New York City.
If you didn’t get a chance to see Confessions of an Un-Natural Blonde, well, be disappointed. This was likely the last presentation of this show as Paige is creating a new show. In the world of evolving media, Paige Turner has made a case why her brand deserves it’s own web series. It’s easy to compare her to Pee Wee Herman. Just imagine what the world she shared could potentially look like. It’s pretty fabulous. Perhaps that should be the next frontier.

Spotlight On...Sanaz Ghajar

Name: Sanaz Ghajar

Hometown: Burlingame, California

Education: New York University, Tisch

Favorite Credits:  I have developed works nationally and internationally with New York Theatre Workshop, The Civilians, The Drama League, BRIC Arts | Media House, Ars Nova, Three Legged Dog, Clubbed Thumb/Playwrights Horizons Downtown, Prelude, HERE, Red House Center for Culture and Debate in Bulgaria, Prague Film and Theater Center, Goldex Poldex Gallery in Poland, and others. I’m also a DJ.

Why theater?: I love making art in all different forms. What I find the most exciting about theater is that it is a highly collaborative medium. To create new multidisciplinary art, we need others, and as someone who is obsessed with other people (working with, thinking about, and studying them), I am most drawn to theatrical spaces that nurture the human impulse to generate new work together. For me, theatre is a practice, meant to wake us up. Artaud described it as an awakening of our "nerves and heart," through which we experience, "immediate violent action," that "inspires us with the fiery magnetism of the images and acts upon us like a spiritual therapeutics whose touch can never be forgotten."

Tell us about Danger Signals: Danger Signals is a collaboration between my company Built for Collapse and writer Nina Segal. The show is a multidisciplinary fantasia about monkeys, brains and how we deal with our problems. It’s about women and men and war and how pain is processed in the brain. It’s about arctic ice rifts and trauma and America.

What inspired you to create Danger Signals: About four years ago I read a book about Doctor Walter Freeman, who popularized lobotomies in America back in the 40s and 50s as a ‘cure’ for mental illness. A few months later, I got into a major a car accident, ended up in a coma, and woke four days later strapped to a hospital bed. The doctor told me a drunk driver had slammed into my car at seventy miles per hour and I had been airlifted to the emergency room. The collision caused severe internal bleeding in my brain and major damage to my frontal lobes. In short, I had a traumatic brain injury. “Oh.” I said. “That’s interesting. I’m working on a show about brains.” When asked what recovery was like, I tend to say, “the brain is a mysterious thing.” What I have learned is that the beauty, terror, and drama of a deeply distressing or disturbing experience is often the fuel we need to brave the making of life changing choices. It's scary. It's exciting. It's freeing. I strive to bring people together to create a space of hope and possibility within trauma.

What kind of theater speaks to you? What or who inspires you as an artist?: I often draw inspiration from visual references and am constantly invigorated by absorbing other artists’ ways of working. We begin every rehearsal process by collecting and sharing images with each other in response to the subject matter we are working on. These images inform the narrative and physical life of the piece and as the work develops we integrate sound in the rehearsal room to lend new insight to the world of the play. While the results of our process vary greatly depending the content we are working with, it is always highly emotional and expressionistic in style. Other artists who constantly inspire me include writer Virginia Woolf, choreographer Pina Bausch, and Doug Wheeler, pioneer of the “Light and Space” movement that flourished in California back in the 60s and 70s. I’m drawn to how each of these artists wrestles with memory, perception, abstraction and love.

If you could work with anyone you’ve yet to work with, who would it be?: Andrew Schneider. He’s a friend, so I hope he reads this, and then I hope he is inspired to help me make this happen.

What show have you recommended to your friends?: Doll’s House Part 2

Who would play you in a movie about yourself and what would it be called?: Probably a duck, a really friendly and fierce and emotionally unstable duck. It’d be called: "I’ll Put My Pants on When It Gets Dangerous" … that bit is a long story involving a full moon and a waterfall.

If you could go back in time and see any play or musical you missed, what would it be?: The original Broadway production of Cabaret. It’s a little surprising to say out loud, but ya, honestly, that’s the one.

What’s your biggest guilty pleasure?: Oh man I’ve seen Bridget Jones’ Diary over a hundred times. I imagine most things involving Hugh Grant are guilty pleasures.

If you weren’t working in theater, you would be _____?: An astronaut. That’s what everyone says, right?

What’s up next?:  We are Archive Residents at the New Ohio Theatre (a 2 year residency in collaboration with IRT), and the Ice Factory is the first step towards our full premiere of Danger Signals in Spring 2018! On that note, we desire post-show audience feedback. Your brain thoughts are going to be very important for our future brain show! I intend to go out every night after the show to a bar down the street, to hang with audience members and write down feedback in my fancy notebook.

For more on Danger Signals, visit built4collapse.org

Review: Thank You for Being Our Queen

By Michael Block

When you think she couldn't top herself, she does. Current reigning Drag Race All-Stars champion triumphantly Alaska returns to the Laurie Beechman in her newest homage to America's favorite geriatric divas, "The Golden Girls." With a great assist from Handsome Jeremy on the piano, Alaska proves just why she is one of the smartest artists on any planet.

photo by Michael Block

The iconic 80s sitcom "The Golden Girls" gets a loving tribute in On Golden Girls. With a panache for comedy and performance, drag superstar Alaska structures the night in perfect fashion. And don't worry, there's no laugh track needed here. It comes naturally. She begins the show with the infamous theme song decked out in a dress of Blanche's bedspread. She deadpan reveals that this is not going to be a night of theater with costume changes and theatrical pizzazz. But it totally is. From there, she hails the holy Golden Girls scripture and channels the brown magic scripture to transform into the quarter. What happens next is nothing short of extraordinary. Yes, on the surface On Golden Girls is a tribute show but it’s more than that. It’s an artist displaying their innate gift to transcend expectations. Fans of Drag Race go to see Alaska because of what they saw her do on two seasons of a television program. And that only scratches the surface of the talent she possesses. She can sing, she can dance, she can act, and she can write. On Golden Girls is a dramaturgical wonder. It’s smartly formulaic comedy that is calculated to the beat. Dissect On Golden Girls and you will see nearly every moment, including jokes, references, and visuals, are planned out to create a cohesive piece. There are great expectations when it comes to mocking “The Golden Girls.” The archetypes of the women are strictly identifiable. Alaska played into that yet gave herself the opportunity to make them her own. Fast-talking Sophia workshopped her solo show as you pictured her time in Sicily. We watched as Blanche has a fall from grace as she waits desperately for her date. Rose was dimwitted but there was a deepness to her. And Dorothy? Well her gruffness shined through. It’s one thing to just stand there and impersonate a character. Alaska has proven her worth there on Snatch Game. But to embody each in the manner she does? Comedy gold. And those costumes were flawless and iconic. Handsome Jeremy provided the pulse of the show. To strategically cover the character changes, Handsome Jeremy played numbers iconic to the sitcom. The soundtrack that accompanied the show featured numbers that were prominently a part of the series including “Miami is Nice” and “The Saint Olaf Fight Song.” These were just some of the nuggets and Easter eggs that were hidden for the die hard fans.
It’s important to remember that the show was built for a cabaret space performed by a solo artist. Alaska took on the persona of the pastor of the scripture of the Golden Girls. But this show showcased her ability to do more. She has a background in theater, perhaps the next challenge is to see what a full show would be.

Review: Are We Ready for the Storm?

By Ed Malin

Theatre 167 presents Tina Howe’s new play Singing Beach at HERE.  Ari Laura Kreith directs.  You still have a few more summer days to catch this beach play.
 The residents of Singing Beach on the North Shore of Massachusetts are warned that Hurricane Cassandra will soon be close enough to do damage to their community.  Like the Cassandra of Greek mythology, the storm speaks of an inconvenient truth (in this case, Global Warming).  The question is, who in the world is listening to the warnings and what will they do next?  Residents are advised to evacuate, but we see many people hoarding supplies and preparing to stay in their homes and wait out the storm.  The tension between staying put and going away informs much of the rest of the interesting, dreamlike story.
 Piper (Elodie Lucinda Morss) is a young girl who is first seen at the beach using a video camera.  Her brother, Tyler (Jackson Demott Hill) teases Piper while knowing that Piper’s teacher, Miss Blake, has been making the school aware of climate change and has inspired Piper to think of how she could survive in the desert with the Bedouins.  Their mother, Merrie (Erin Beirnard) and step-father, Owen (John P. Keller) are facing the difficult choice of placing Grandpa (Tuck Milligan) in a nursing home.  Grandpa currently has a live-in caregiver, Bennie (Naren Weiss), but his situation has deteriorated.  Merrie once wrote a novel called “To Let: Narrow Room For Quiet People”.
 When Piper finds out about Grandpa’s upcoming move to the nursing home—which is delayed by the storm—she hides away in her room and uses a knife once given to her by her absentee father to whittle a wooden ocean liner.  Tyler, Merrie and Owen are all dealing with their frustration about Grandpa in different ways; the people most interested in Piper’s feelings are Grandpa (who has lost the ability to communicate verbally but gives good hugs) and Bennie.  Bennie says he is going to perform in a community theater production of Gilbert and Sullivan’s Ruddigore (fans may think of the aria “My Eyes Are Fully Open To My Awful Situation”).

photo by Joel Weber

 As the storm hits, Merrie retreats into her fantasy world of the ocean liner.  The Captain of the vessel looks a lot like Bennie.  Also on board is the charming and powerful teacher, Miss Blake (Erin Beinard), young stowaway Credo (Jackson Demott Hill) and Gabriel (Devin Haqq), the host of Merrie’s favorite TV show, “Mental States”.  Could the biggest celebrity on the fantasy craft be Piper’s father, Sebastian (John P. Keller) who is a renowned artist in London?  It just so happens that Sebastian is transporting 2,000 kilos of nylon tent fabric over to his latest art exhibition. Also to Piper’s delight, Grandpa is on board and he is able to walk and talk.  The Captain catches Credo the stowaway but instead of punishing him gives his own cabin and rewards him for taking the initiative to go and see the world.  Clearly, the path to success in this tale is going away from a rigid, untenable worldview and lifestyle.    As the toy craft goes through its own storm (see: poster for the current production), the passengers use the tent material for shelter and sing a rousing chorus from Gilbert and Sullivan’s H.M.S. Pinafore.  Throughout, Piper finds her voice in a way that she is not allowed to back home.
Finally, the storm is over.  Of the residents who stayed, or couldn’t flee, many have died.  The time has come to take Grandpa to the nursing home.  However, Piper may have other ideas.   Singing Beach itself begins to sing in a joyous, cosmic way.
Jenn Price Fick’s set is a beautiful place to experience this story.  Sections of logs are arranged on several levels and painted white, a convenient setup which transforms into the ocean liner.  White cloth stands in for the sandy beach, and for the tents and sails that come out during the storm. Add Matthew J. Fick’s lighting, and the result can be positively haunting.  As the cast reference some great poems (Miss Blake is several times compared to William Blake’s “The Tyger” and on the ship we hear of the “Rime of the Ancient Mariner” and see Piper ready to transform into a mighty bird) we are reminded of the destructive power of nature but also of humanity’s ability to make a positive impact.  All it takes is a sensitivity to new ways to adapt and survive.  As the world tries to survive the current President of the U.S.A., we should abandon our narrow rooms and ideas and strive for positive change.  Not just those who live by the water, but all of us.  Director Ari Laura Kreith takes the characters on an unexpectedly intricate journey.  Elodie Lucinda Morss, the youngest performer, carries much of the play.  For me, her transformation into a defiant leader is the most striking moment.  Erin Beinard, Jackson Demott Hill, John P. Keller and Naren Weiss show great versatility in their frequent transformations between the world of Massachusetts and the world of the imagination. Tuck Milligan (Grandpa, also known as the “Sleeper”) shows us what we can hear if we truly listen.