Bella: An American Tall Tale

Bella - or Isabella Patterson (Ashley D. Kelley) has a vivid and wild imagination indeed.  When she gets on a train to escape the pursuit of the law and heads west to New Mexico it really kicks into overdrive!  Her whole life, her mother (Kenita R. Miller) , aunt (Marinda Anderson), and grandmother (Natasha Yvette Williams) have known a special power to watch over her - and it is never needed as much as it is needed on this journey!  Bella meets the train conductor, Nathaniel Beckworth, (Brandon Gill) a circus master (Yurel Echezarreta), an Asian cowboy stripper, Tommie Haw, (Paolo Montalban), and many more vivid characters on the journey to meet her true love and betrothed, Aloysius T. Honeycutt (Britton Smith).  Oh the crazy and fun times she has when she falls asleep.  They are like no other.

In Kristen Child's new musical - whatever you see is real... or is it just a dream... what exactly is Bella in trouble for?  What did she do and who wants her back?  Is Aloysius real?  Can she really fly?  One thing is for sure - her booty is big and gives her the powers she needs to overcome just about any adversity.

The music and songs (all Ms. Childs) are delightful - a traditional old Broadway style - toe tappin' and fun.  The dancing is strong despite the tiny stage - which was a delightful stage within a stage due to the nature of the reality vs fantasy aspect of the plot.  Bella has the vocal cords of a giant and a personality to match - I really could picture Jennifer Hudson in the role.  One thing for sure, Ms. Childs infuses the fun and frivolity with serious undertones of race and freedom and gender equality - so that even a lay set in the late 1870's crackles with fresh perspectives.

Playwrights was right to end their season with this gem.  A common theme with plays fresh off the playwright's desk - this one is not different - too long and tries to say too much.  A few scenes cut and a few plot-lines deleted and we have a really fresh smash on our hands in just under 2 hours.  Head over to Playwrights Horizons for a summertime romp!

Porgy and Bess

To the delight of every audience member, the orchestra at the Richard Rogers Theatre roars to life from the first bar of the George and Ira Gershwin and DuBose and Dorothy Heyward's luxurious operatic musical, Porgy and Bess, and completely fills every nook and cranny of ornate theatre on West 46th until the very last bar 2 1/2 hours later.

Norm Lewis (Porgy) and Audra McDonald (Bess) turn in flawless performances along with a top-notch ensemble cast including the devilishly slick David Alan Grier (Sporting Life).  The stage is simply and appropriately shabbily adorned and the costumes are equally appropriate and well designed for the period.

Adapted by Suzan-Lori Parks and Diedre L. Murray, the story moves us swiftly through the poor neighborhood of Catfish Row in Charleston, South Carolina in the late 1930's and weaves a hopeful yet sad tale of the poor black residents who form a deFacto family to both provide for each other and protect each other.  The story and this adaptation displays their strengths and weaknesses, devotion, and desires with aplomb.

Superbly orchestrated, the show is simply a magnificent example of an appropriately refreshed revival with all its roots firmly grounded in the original.  Don't hesitate for a single minute in getting your tickets.   The price of the ticket is well worth the value received in return - and as a matter of fact, Tony-nomination worthy performances aside (one for each of the leads and many more i predict), the focus on the orchestrations and execution by a full and robust orchestra in the pit is worth the trip alone!