Performer, reformer: Dickens still the star in ‘A Merry Little Christmas Carol’

NORFOLK — Those of us who encounter Charles Dickens already dead and deified at the hands of English teachers might be amazed to learn what a rock star he was in his day (1812-1870).

A scene from Virginia Stage Company's "A Merry Little Christmas Carol." Left to right, actors Mesgana Jackson, Meredith Noël, Adalee Alt and Sarah Manton. (Matthew Omilianowski)

The consummate popular artist, he sold copies of his 15 masterpiece novels at the rate of a Victorian David Baldacci. On his two American tours, he hobnobbed with superstars such as Edgar Allan Poe and Mark Twain, even venturing to Richmond, pre-Civil War, to see slavery firsthand. (According to David Perdue’s website, The Charles Dickens Page, Dickens, a staunch abolitionist, was horrified.) He was besieged by fans as voracious for tickets to his readings as Swifties are to see their Taylor. Among his fan favorites was ”A Christmas Carol,” a cash cow for him at readings, home and abroad.

The title of Mark Shanahan’s stage adaptation of Dickens’ classic 1843 novella, now at Virginia Stage Company, also alludes to the 1944 song made famous by Judy Garland in “Meet Me in St. Louis.” Shanahan’s reference to the sentimental “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” is one of the only faux pas in this otherwise sure-footed show. The adapter’s choice of title (in which the VSC likely had no role, though it did select this adaptation) is unfortunate because the words “merry” and “little” together diminish and even infantilize the classic’s content and repute. Fortunately, the show itself, however, does neither; on the contrary, this production, featuring five fine Equity actors, reveals and fulfills Dickens’ fight for social justice and the VSC’s ethos on achieving the same.

Actors Mesgana Jackson, left, and Beatty Barnes in "A Merry Little Christmas Carol" at the Wells Theatre. (Matthew Omilianowski)

How does this adaptation differ from Dickens’ traditional “A Christmas Carol”? Well, in Bob Cratchit’s words, it’s a “wonderful pudding.” It’s been trimmed a good bit in both senses of the word “trim.” It’s been invigorated with incidental carols, though they are secondary in importance to plot and performance. And Shanahan’s adaptation has some leavening: contemporary break-the-fourth-wall patter with the audience, tactfully hushed in the most dramatic parts. Rest assured that the Ghost of Christmas Future will still scare the dickens out of you, aided by spooky lighting and Steven Allegretto’s impressive sound effects, including “chimes at midnight” sounding from the rear of the house.

Jeni Schaefer’s costumes (with the exception of Bob Cratchit’s office jacket?) are Victorian. (Recall that the Wells was built only 11 years after Queen Victoria’s demise!) Dahlia Al-Habieli’s serviceable uniset is surprisingly nautical in feeling (wheelhouse to conceal the piano, ship’s wheel, etc.) but begins to make sense when one considers the Wells’ proximity to old Norfolk’s waterfront plus a brief section of the play’s being set at sea.

But everyone goes to see Scrooge, and Beatty Barnes Jr., reprising his role from last year’s production, never disappoints.

Barnes draws on his talent as a stand-up comedian to execute Dickens’ puns, augmented or emphasized by adapter Shanahan (e.g., “no time like the present” said to the Ghost of Christmas Present). But even more important than comic chops is Barnes’ ability to pace his transformation from a man who despises the poor, turning down charity-seeking philanthropists by saying “Are there no prisons?” and “Are there no workhouses?” into a man who can promise to “honour Christmas in (his) heart, and try to keep it all the year.” The transformation begins as soon as his encounter with Marley, but it must not be rushed — comprising, as it does, the very backbone and arc of the story.

Actors in "A Merry Little Christmas Carol" at the Wells Theatre in Norfolk: Left to right, Beatty Barnes, Adalee Alt and Sarah Manton. (Matthew Omilianowski)

By Dr. Page Laws

Page Laws is dean emerita of the Nusbaum Honors College at Norfolk State University. prlaws@aya.yale.edu

Spotlight News: On a Stage in Downtown Norfolk Lives a Hobbit...

(left to right): Alana Dodds Sharp, Ryan Clemens, Thomas Hall, Jeffrey A. Haddock, and Anna Sosa

Words by BA Ciccolella. Images by Sam Flint.

Full Disclosure: I’ve been wanting to see this show since I found out that my college did it years before I attended. Their dragon puppet lived under the stage in costume storage, and I wanted to play with it SO BAD. So in a way, this review was something like 20 years in the making, and in another way, the cast had 20 years of fan-girl build-up in my mind to overcome.

That being said: Go see The Hobbit. Seriously, just, stop what you are doing, pause reading this, buy a ticket, and come back. It’s running through November 6th, you still have time. This one-act play (no intermission) by the Virginia Stage Company, presented in collaboration with the Governor’s School for the Arts, is just the thing to take your mind off of all the crap happening in the world today, and let you relax and enjoy a group of story-tellers, an epic world, and the tale of one relatively small person who just wants to be back home in his own bed.

Speaking of Mr. Bilbo Baggings, Jeffrey Haddock does a brilliant job bringing him to life at the Wells Theatre in a manner that both respects the complexity of Bilbo’s character while still being appropriate to the Hobbit as a children’s story. Alana Dodds Sharp plays an impressive Gandalf, and seamlessly transitions into other characters, even when the transition is played for a laugh.

(left to right) Jeffrey A. Haddock and Alana Dodds Sharp

Ryan Clemens is entertaining as always with his variety of characters, and brings a steadying but humorous voice of reason to Thomas Hall’s more emotional character, Thorin. Mr. Hall’s Thorin really made me appreciate more of the nuances of that particular character- this was probably the first time in being told/ reading the story that I truly appreciated the trauma that Thorin and his crew went through when Smaug attacked the Lonely Mountain, and how that affected him for the rest of his life.

A special shout out also must go to Anna Sosa, who, amongst her other characters, makes the character of Gollum both easily familiar to the audience, and also genuinely her own in this performance.

The ensemble does brilliant work of making a full world of Tolkien’s characters, and if you’ve read Tolkien (or listened to myself or Stephen Colbert talk for more than 5 minutes), you are well aware of just how big a world that can be. Every single one of the Governor’s School students on that stage more than holds their own with the adult union actors.

Jeni Schaefer’s costume design brilliantly transitions actors between different characters and monsters so seamlessly, it’s actually easy as an audience member to forget that the cast is relatively small compared to the list of characters. Between her work, and Tumôhq Abney’s props, though there are not even 15 people in the cast, the audience has no problem believing that 13 dwarves and a wizard have invaded Bilbo’s home at the beginning of the show, and that they are running into individual trolls, spiders, elves, goblins, wolves, and even a dragon.

Technically, the show is very well done, with Josafath Reynoso’s abstract set consisting of a few staircases, drops, and platforms transforming into every location in Tolkein’s Middle Earth (or at least most of the ones Bilbo sees on his first ever adventure- for those “super-nerds”, there are some scenes in the book which are cut for time). A large glowing circle at the back wall helps to indicate when Bilbo is wearing his famous ring. The production is set up as a group (or potentially two groups coming together), who are telling a story with the thing that they have found in this space, so many found-item props, (pool noodles, trash bags, head-lamps, crates, etc.) turn into the various monsters and other challenges that Bilbo and the dwarves tackle along the way.

(left to right): Jayden Adams-Ruiz, Anna Sosa, Katherine Cottrell, Thomas Hall, and Gunar Pencis

Christina Watanabe’s lighting design works to seamlessly to bring the different environments of Middle Earth to the stage, while also expanding and shrinking the space as needed to provide just the right amount of danger when monsters appear, and the exact relief needed to relax everyone back into a sense of security when Bilbo and the dwarves escape unharmed.

The “unsung” hero of this performance, however, was Steven Allegretto’s sound design, with brilliant but subtle environmental backgrounds that brought us directly into each of the locations, as well as vocal modulation assistance for the actors to play with to really bring home certain monsters. Jamison Foreman’s original music helped place us squarely in a Middle Earth where even super-fans of Tolkien and perhaps more “famous” adaptations of his work will be comfortable.

It’s very obvious that everyone onstage at The Hobbit is having a great time telling this story. Director Billy Bustamante has done a great job of putting together a version of our favorite bed-time story that both entertains, allows us to laugh and cry with the characters, and teaches us the lessons meant to be learned from this epic hero’s journey. In the words of Thorin Oakenshield, “If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world. But, sad or merry, The Hobbit will only be playing at the Well’s Theater until Sunday, November 6. So go see it, before it must leave us. Farewell.” …Or something like that- I may not have written down the whole quote correctly. 😉

The Hobbit is running through November 6 at the Wells Theatre in Downtown Norfolk. Tickets can be purchased here.

THE HOBBIT | Featured on Coast Live

By: Coast Live

Posted at 3:02 PM, Oct 21, 2022
and last updated 3:02 PM, Oct 21, 2022

NORFOLK, Va. — Actors Jeffrey A. Haddock and Anna Sosa from Virginia Stage Company's production of "The Hobbit" join Coast Live to discuss their experiences behind-the-scenes and onstage in this adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkein's landmark novel.

The Hobbit
Oct 19 - Nov 6
The Wells Theatre, Norfolk
Box Office: 757-627-1234
vastage.org

Presented by Virginia Stage Company
vastage.org

THE HOBBIT | Featured on The Hampton Roads Show

Did you miss the chance to see our Director (Billy Bustamante) and Bilbo (Jeffrey A Haddock) engage in a wonderful discussion about the excitement getting made on-stage for The Hobbit? Well check out the full segment below!

PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) – The magical tale “The Hobbit” will soon be taking center stage in Hampton Roads thanks to the Virginia Stage Company. Director Billy Bustamante and actor Jeffrey Haddock share more about the upcoming production.

Virginia Stage Company
108 East Tazewell St., Norfolk
“The Hobbit” October 19 – November 6
Tickets: 757-627-1234 or visit: VAStage.org

This segment of The Hampton Roads Show is sponsored by the Virginia Stage Company.

Mirror, mirror...Hot 'Cat' raises roof at Virginia Stage Company

By Page Laws Correspondent

A lot is being done with smoke and mirrors in downtown Norfolk. “Wicked,” a hugely profitable, trucked-in show, has been using smoke and mirrors to successfully sell high-tech magic at Chrysler Hall; meanwhile, a ew blocks away, the Virginia Stage Company (nonprofit, everything made on site) is using mirrors and smoking-hot acting to conjure its long-delayed offering of Tennessee Williams’ “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.”

Though antithetical in style and production, both are see-worthy shows. But back to that mirror held up to life over at the VSC. Perhaps because the COVID-19 wait was so long (going on three years), what might have been a normal-sized mirror grew into a giant soul reflector, hung beneath the new Wells fly loft, thankfully installed during the hiatus. Director Khanisha Foster, who in 2019 helmed the VSC production of the now-controversial play “The Bluest Eye,” and her then-as-now set designer Josafath Reynoso, have slanted the giant mirror just so, in order to reveal to the audience a big brass bed plus any occupants therein.

The problem is, of course, that Maggie the Cat (Anna Sundberg plays the famous feline as a feisty redhead) can’t get her hobbling, boozing husband Brick (Gregory Warren) interested in any bed action, least of all with her. As Big Mama (Marsha Estell) later says, pointing to the bed, “When a marriage goes on the rocks, the rocks are right there.” Maggie’s frustrated; Brick is bombed; and Big Daddy, though he’s been lied to about it, is riddled with cancer. Human vultures (such as a minister, palm outstretched) are gathering.

Williams re-creates this Southern Gothic marital shipwreck by psychoanalyzing one of the great dysfunctional families of American theater. Besides Maggie and Brick and Brick’s never-seen-but-alwayspresent dead best friend Skipper (gay in an era of zero tolerance), we have well-meaning matriarch Big Mama; wife-bullying patriarch Big Daddy (Jeffrey King, in a remarkable performance); Brick’s rightfully resentful older brother Gooper (Angel Dillemuth); Gooper’s wife, Mae, aka Sister Woman (Wallis Herst); and three of Gooper and Mae’s “noneck monsters” (children, in Maggie-speak), one of whom, Trixie (Miri Quaintance), bears a sneaking resemblance to her stage mother, Herst. (Hint: they are also related offstage.)

Without the 25 plays of Thomas Lanier (“Tennessee”) Williams III (1911-83), Broadway might have long ago shut down, and the same is true for the Hollywood studios that churned out all those outrageous film adaptations. Many people who think they know the play are remembering the Hollywood-censored 1958 film starring slip-clad Elizabeth Taylor as Maggie, dreamy Paul Newman as Brick, and burly Burl Ives as Big Daddy.

Purge those portrayals from your mind, however, for director Foster’s highly theatrical, concept-driven version, beginning with her casting of actors of color in the traditionally white roles of Brick, Big Mama, Gooper and Sister Woman/Mae. Foster is forthright about her interest in race and quick to point out her own background: “I am the daughter of a Black Panther father and a white mother whose family invented Bubble Wrap,” she says in the playbill. (Bubble Wrap? That fortune likely makes Big Daddy’s $10 million look like chump change.)Foster indicates that the play clicked for her (note Brick’s sought-after “click” in the play) when she learned the story of Strom Thurmond’s forbidden love for a Black woman. That liaison produced a daughter whom the longtime U.S. senator quietly kept up with all his days. When this daughter’s Black mother died, however, Thurmond began his segregationist assault on Black rights. That displacement of thwarted love into destructive rage against innocents is what’s occurring in the play, Foster suggests in the playbill, a concept that guided her direction.

Now “clicks” are a personal thing, and, although I can’t identify with Foster’s inspiration, it has engendered strikingly unified results. They are clear in Reynoso’s flamboyant, ultra-classical set design: Greek columns, sweeping colonnade and double staircase, billowing long gauzy curtains, and, of course, the truth-telling mirror. It all adds up to surreal nouveau riche excess. My only suggestion for remodeling would be to add the ’50s equivalent of a Jacuzzi. The small bathtub behind a screen seems a bit déclassé.

Foster’s sound design, by Steven Allegretto, follows surreal suit by spookily echoing the offstage sound of a croquet ball being struck, as if to presage doom. Allegretto’s sonically conveyed thunderstorm is also apocalyptic. Costumer Bryce Turgeon must have also been told to succeed by excess. His glittering, Indian-inspired maternity suit for Herst is so beautiful, however, it makes it hard to concentrate on what Sister Woman (generally played as just drab and pregnant) is saying to increase her future fortune. Her husband Gooper is likewise costumed in a suit so outré that Dillemuth is lost behind its stripes. Not to be outdone, Maggie wears an orange ombré slip. Did they even do ombré in the ’50s?

Still, the whole is greater than any slip, and Big Daddy and Brick, both of them unremarkably costumed, raise the roof with their visceral acting, a choreographed dance of mutual pain and repression. In the first act pasde- deux of hate and avoidance with Maggie, Warren’s Brick comes across as a bit stolid. Shakespeare veteran Jeffrey King — 20 seasons with the Oregon Shakespeare Festival — comes playfully bouncing across the brass bed in Act 2, and elevates the acting of the whole cast, but especially that of Brick. The audience notes that Big Daddy is punished for his bed-jumping stunt by an attack of pain so fierce he can scarcely conceal it.

A famous, eventually out gay figure in real life, Williams was capable in his great works of crazy excess and careful craftsmanship. Foster respects and conveys both. Known for his directorial stage directions, Williams insisted that the characters we so dislike also be human beings with whom we can empathize. Even the egotistical, racist, philandering Big Daddy, so brutal to his long-suffering wife (played by Estell as a little dim but never oblivious) earns a modicum of sympathy via his physical suffering, but also through his surprising tolerance for Brick, whom everyone suspects of also being gay. Big Daddy is on to the Southernfried liars who surround him (“Mendacity, mendacity!”), including his eldest son Gooper, armed with a corporate law degree and fecund wife. Mae is equally insistent that her husband and ill-behaved gaggle of children (plus one in the oven) should rate higher than the family favorite, Brick the lush and his childless, ill-tempered wife.

Maggie, besides being catty, has estranged Brick by sleeping with poor Skipper. (“We made love to each other to dream it was you.”) That’s projection/displacement, all right: Foster’s concept in action. The director concludes her playbill remarks with a provocative invitation: “Now, let’s tell some family secrets.” And that she does, with the help of that provocative, bawdy-house mirror.

You can safely jump off that hot tin roof now, Maggie. This production ensures you’ll always land on your feet.

Page Laws is dean emerita of the Nusbaum Honors College at Norfolk State University. prlaws@aya.yale.edu

Cat on a Hot Tin Roof @ The Wells Theatre

Catch just a small glimpse into this tour-de-force production that is captivating audiences from across Hampton Roads.

Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Directed by Khanisha Foster, is performing on The Wells Theatre Stage from September 14th - October 2nd. Make sure you get tickets today at vastage.org/cat

Cat on a Hot Tin Roof | Featured on CoastLive

Take a look at this wonderful segment on CoastLive with actors Angel Dillemuth and Wallis Herst who play Brick’s older brother Gooper, and Gooper’s wife Mae respectively.

HAMPTON ROADS, Va — Chandler Nunnally sits down with Wallis Herst and Angel Dillemuth to discuss their work in Virginia Stage Company's production of Tennessee Williams’ Pulitzer Prize-winning drama, "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof," which paints a portrait of a family in crisis in the steamy Mississippi South.

"Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" is running now through October 2! For tickets and more details, visit vastage.org.

Presented by Virginia Stage Company
vastage.org

Cat on a Hot Tin Roof | Featured on The Hampton Roads Show

Virginia Stage Company’s Production of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof was featured on The Hampton Roads Show!

Director Khanisha Foster and actor Gregory Warren (Brick) got to share some of the inspiration behind this production, and the eagerness to finally mount this production after a long two-year wait! Hear more about what they have to say here!

Cat on a Hot Tin Roof runs September 14th - October 2nd at The Wells Theatre. Tickets are available at vastage.org/cat or by calling 757.627.1234 Mon-Fri. between 10am - 5pm.