Reviews: Guild's 'Lovers' is hotly hilarious; Playhouse's 'Million Dollar Quartet' rocks
Editor's note: This story was changed June 28 to correct Chatham Drama Guild's phone number and website. It is 508-945-0510 and chatdramaguild.org.
CHATHAM ― Just like the hot mess of character relationships from the ‘70s production of “Lovers and Other Strangers,” the Chatham Drama Guild crew is hilarious in this steamy production.
Let’s face it, are relationships always filled with daisies and roses? Have you ever wanted to tell your significant other, “Sayonara, I’m moving to the other room”? Has jealousy ever gotten the best of you? Or has your work ever affected your attitude towards the one you love? If not, consider yourself lucky.
The show: “Lovers and Other Strangers” was written by Renee Taylor and Joseph Bologna, directed by Anna Marie Johansen, produced with Concord Theatricals, and presented by The Chatham Drama Guild.
What it’s about: Set in the lively apartment buildings of New York, these characters are tangled up in marriage, affairs, and one-way standards. Only 30 minutes after meeting, Jerry is trying to set the mood in his apartment with music, even giving himself a good spritz, only to be humorously shut down by Brenda’s tangents about life. She must check if he read the crucial books “The Prophet,” by Kahlil Gibran, or “The Art of Loving,” by Erich Fromm, and demands he call her Queen. The married life of Johnny and Wilma takes a different turn when Johnny gives her the cold shoulder, leading to comical squabbles about their marriage. Then there’s the not-so-certified bachelor, Ritchie, who wants to call it quits before he even gets married, but it’s too late. This couple is on the path to divorce, only for his parents to try to save the marriage. To them, “the highest form of love is obligation.”
Highlights of the show: What a cast. The entire production was filled with pure escapism and laughter.
Mark Roderick as Ritchie is the kind of quirky character you can’t get enough of. When he takes cover behind a chair as if a tiger is about to pounce on him, only to announce Joan’s “weird ear” is one of his deal breakers, it is just a glimpse of his uproarious performance.
John Hanright as Sal has this larger-than-life personality. He’s hysterical as he pleads with his married lover to finally tell his wife about their affair. His quit-witted responses, followed by crying, screams and tear-swelling eyes, along with the bizarre response he gets, leave you bursting with laughter.
See it or not: Definitely. Be aware, that this production does contain scenes of violence and sexual allusions.
Worth noting: Frank Carpenter’s brief bio in the program pamphlet warms your heart. As an only child, he used his imagination to make friends by pretending to be other people. Theater was his healthy outlet for expression. It also leaves you with a chuckle because “he will do anything for applause and attention. Yes, we mean anything.”
If you go: Chatham Drama Guild, 134 Crowell Road, Chatham. 7:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 4 p.m. Sundays until July 7. Tickets are $26 for cabaret seating and $23 for stadium seating. You can purchase tickets at www.chatdramaguild.org or call the box office at 508-945-0510.
Ambermae Rivard
Rock 'n' roll greats, come alive in 'Million Dollar Quartet' at Cape Playhouse
Editor's note: Due to an editing error, the date of Hunter Foster last directing "Million Dollar Quartet" was wrong. It was in 2018.
DENNIS ― “Million Dollar Quartet,” now rocking on stage at The Cape Playhouse through July 6, is a smashing jukebox musical that recounts a real-life jam session that took place on Dec. 4, 1956, in the tiny recording studio of Sun Records in Memphis, Tennessee.
On that day, studio owner Sam Phillips played host to an unplanned get-together by a quartet of four talented young rockers: Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Johnny Cash and Carl Perkins, who happened to drop by the studio and ended up recording their particular brand of energy and color in a group session that mixed rock, gospel and country sounds.
“Quartet” is a great reminder of some of the reasons we love this form of theater ― for the pure enjoyment of immersion in the energy on stage, clapping or singing along, shouting out a call-and-response to “See You Later, Alligator,” or just joining in the sound level, looking for more.
Name of show: “Million Dollar Quartet”
Book by Floyd Mutrux and Colin Escott, directed by Hunter Foster, performed at Cape Playhouse.
What it’s about: This giant celebration of rock ‘n’ roll is a grand revue of more than 20 blockbuster numbers that reflected the raw talents of the four young musicians who were newly exploding into the American musical consciousness. There’s plenty of variety to spread around, from numbers whose reverb literally causes the floor to rumble under your feet – “Brown Eyed Handsome Man,” “Great Balls of Fire” or “Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On” – to Johnny Cash immortals like “I Walk the Line, “Ghost Riders in the Sky” and “Sixteen Tons,” or the mellow harmonies of “Peace in the Valley” and “I Shall Not Be Moved.”
See it or not: How could you not? Go. Enjoy. Fall into nostalgia, or hear these rock 'and 'n' roll numbers for the first time. And it’s not just vocals. Believe it or not, this is no recording, and there’s no hidden backup band. Every uncanny piano feat, every guitar riff, is played by the musicians themselves, an amazing display of musical skill not to be missed.
Highlights: The over-the-top talents displayed by the “quartet” of Alessandro Gian Viviano (Presley), Scott Moreau (Cash), Nat Zegree (Lewis) and Jeremy Sevelovitz (Perkins) do much more than justice to the four outsize talents they’re re-creating, including not only vocals but the mannerisms, style and personal quirks of each individual personality. These big egos butt up against each other, but they also meld together in their enthusiasm for great rock ‘n’ roll.
Added to the glitz of the four headliners are the mind-boggling talents of bass player Nathan Yates Douglass (as “Brother Jay”) and drummer Matt Spencer (playing “Fluke”). Douglass is electrifying in the way he commands that bass, whether it’s upside-down or right side up.
The great female vocals belong to Megan Reinking, as Dyanne, Elvis’ girlfriend of the time.
Interesting fact: This musical also becomes a play through the talents of Chance Michael Wall, whose character of Sam Phillips is a kind of narrator, weaving together the personal stories of his four musicians, stopping the action with freeze frames in order to share a fact or anecdote that adds to the personal drama of their lives, as each searches for his path to fame.
Worth noting: Does Hunter Foster’s name sound familiar? Here’s why: In addition to his many talents as a director of numerous shows, both in regional theater and off-Broadway, Foster also served as guest artistic director at Cape Playhouse during the 2023 season. Other Playhouse shows he has directed in the past include “Cabaret,” “My Fair Lady,” “The Foreigner,” “Once,” a 2018 production of “Million Dollar Quartet” and “Clue.”
One more thing: If you go: “Million Dollar Quartet” is at Cape Playhouse, Route 6A, Dennis Village, through July 6. Performances are 7:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday, with 2 p.m. matinees on June 22, 26 and 27. Tickets from $45, discount offers for groups and those with Flex Passes. Call the box office: 508-385-3911, or visit www.capeplayhouse.com
Barbara Clark
This article originally appeared on Cape Cod Times: Reviews: 'Lovers' is saucy comedy; 'Quartet' captures jam session
