Displaying items by tag: Bill Chamberlain

Many of us already know the story of the spirited, loveable orphan girl who is saved from an abusive orphanage after a billionaire takes a liking to her and decides to adopt her. Daddy Warbucks is that billionaire, Miss Hannigan is the abusive, alcoholic who runs the orphanage and the musical is ‘Annie’. Yet, if you know the story or not, it is a musical that inspires, offers hope and shows us that positivity can go a long way.

Citadel Theatre, located in Lake Forest, is the latest to bring ‘Annie’ to the stage. Directed by Robert D. Estrin, ‘Annie’ is a fun production for the whole family to enjoy.

It’s 1933 and Annie (Sophie Kaegi) and her gang are often mistreated at the orphanage by Miss Hannigan (Ellen Phelps), who finds sadistic pleasure in disciplining the kids. Miss Hannigan drinks openly, flirts with every serviceman that enters the orphanage and resents Annie most of all. The only thing the kids can do is hope they get adopted and, in the meantime, praise Miss Hannigan on command and sing “It’s A Hard Knock Life” while scrubbing floors. But everything changes when a billionaire’s assistant, Grace Farrell (Chamaya Moody), drops in unexpectedly to pick out a child to spend with the powerful Oliver Warbucks (John B Boss) over the holidays. And guess who she picks? Yep. Annie.

After Mr. Warbucks takes a liking to Annie he offers to adopt her, but Annie is determined to find her real parents. So the billionaire offers a huge monetary reward to the father and mother that come forward and claim Annie as their own - though he must be careful of imposters.  When Miss Hannigan finds out the reward offerd by Mr. Warbucks, she, her jailbird brother Rooster (Kyle Ryan) and his girlfriend Lily (Becca Duff) begin scheming. But can they fool Mr. Warbucks and his sharp assistant, Miss Farrell?

Citadel makes the best of their space to accommodate such a large cast and include a changing set that that takes us from the orphanage to Warbucks giant mansion – and it works quite well. With this production you also get strong ensemble and individual vocal performances, particularly from lead Sopia Kaegi, Chamaya Moody and Bill Chamberlain who plays Franklin D. Roosevelt, Oliver Warbucks very good friend. The children actors add much of the show's charm while players of multiple roles like Nick Mendelson (who killed it in Hell in a Handbag's 'Poseidon! The Musical'), Alexander Rubin and Emily Lewis (to name a few) lend strong credibility to the ensemble's sturdiness.

The show's many catchy song and dance numbers (music by Charles Strouse and lyrics by Martin Charnin) are admirably performed by its ensemble and there is a lot to like in this production although I would have liked to have seen a bit more put-up-your-dukes-spunkiness out of Annie, more gruffness from Oliver Warbucks so that we can more effectively feel him gradually soften to Annie's warmth and good-heartedness, and a bit more tongue-in-cheek, over-the-top, cruel and erratic behavior out of Miss Hannigan (not sure if there is a reason she is not portrayed as an alcoholic as much as we are used to seeing her, outside of her opening appearance in the orphanage). I also didn't feel that a romance was blooming between Miss Farrell and Mr. Warbucks until near the show's end scene. Still, the leading characters are effective, each having their share of fine moments, while the entire cast pulls off a solid all around performance and delivers a nice fun-filled production providing one hit after another including “Tomorrow,” “I Don’t Need Anything But You” and “Easy Street,” a deliciously pleasing song and dance number that has Miss Hannigan, Rooster and his girlfriend Lily (Becca Duff) setting their scheme into place.

‘Annie’ is an entertaining production that reminds us of the things we should not take for granted and the little things in life to be thankful for – sometimes it takes a special kid to show us the way. Extended through January 5th, ‘Annie’ is being performed at Citadel Theatre in Lake Forest.

For tickets and/or more show information, visit www.citadeltheatre.org.

Please note that Kayla Norris plays the role of Annie on alternating nights. 

City Lit Theater artistic director Terry McCabe brings us an inspired pairing with Two Days in Court, a double-bill of one act plays with a legal theme - and pieces not often seen.

The Devil & Daniel Webster is a 1938 play about the famed 19th century orator who reclaims the soul of a client who has ill-advisedly sold it to the devil; and Gilbert & Sullivan’s breakthrough 1875 operetta, Trial By Jury, brings us a woman who sues for breech of promise when her fiancé abandons her for another woman.

The legal themes aside, the works couldn’t be more different. Gilbert & Sullivan serve up sly wit in a marvelous parody of society, and skillful mimicry of operatic forms, in a highly polished, high caliber musical work. The Devil & Daniel Webster is interesting as a bit of Americana, a decidedly rustic and really rather primitive morality play that originated as a 1936 story in the Saturday Evening Post by Stephen Vincent Benet.

Despite being stilted and laced with phrases like “Tarnation!” The Devil & Daniel Webster is also packed with still-biting commentary on American social foibles, and a backcountry wit. (It’s set in rural New Hampshire sometime after 1830.) And it trades on the abiding respect and affection felt for Daniel Webster, whose oratorical skills were legendary – and thus the reason the character was tapped to argue the case to save a soul. The story is also a cultural meme, reappearing regularly including in a Simpson’s episode and in a video game by Cuphead.

Terry McCabe added one more insightful touch: he found a cast that could sing, dance, and mine period language for its humor. Trained voices are required for any Gilbert & Sullivan piece, and this cast has them. To bind the two works in Two Days in Court more securely, McCabe inserted two songs from a 1938 folk opera version of The Devil & Daniel Webster - a nice touch.

City Lit does a lot with limited props and sets, and successfully relies on its devoted players who turned in strong performances. The polished pro Bill Chamberlain, as Daniel Webster, displayed his notable voice in “I’ve Got a Ram,” a song from the opera version of the play. Playing the Devil – known as Scratch – with an otherworldly style, was Lee Wechman. Though at certain moments his style seemed a little bit out of synch with the rest of the players, overall it worked.

On the Gilbert & Sullivan side we had a chance to really hear some voices, with Ryan Smetana a standout as Counsel for the Plaintiff and Sarah Beth Tanner as the Plaintiff. The one-act Gilbert & Sullivan work left me wanting more – a good feeling to depart with from any production. City Lit Theatre’s Two Days in Court runs through May 26. It ‘s highly recommended for those who don’t want to miss two rarely-played works that are important cultural touchstones.