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Review: ‘Bunnicula’ gives all ages plenty to sink their teeth into

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Nicholas Hodge of South Amana, Elizabeth Higbee (seated) of Tonganoxie, Kan., and Jeff Haffner of Cleveland star in

AMANA — My youngest child is a very serious Bunnicula fan. She had her mom make her a Bunnicula costume for Halloween last year. She wore it with great pride, patiently (mostly) explaining to her misguided friends that she most certainly was not dressed as the Easter Bunny.

When we arrived at the Old Creamery Theatre for Young Audiences production of “Bunnicula” on Saturday afternoon (10/20/12), she looked at her program and immediately raised some concerns about the eponymous character’s costume for the play. She was convinced it wasn’t an accurate representation of author James Howe’s description of the rabbit in the book of the same name. She had a point. On the other hand, the on-stage bunny didn’t look likely to hide any jelly bean-filled eggs.

But costume quibbles or no, this production won her approval in the end. “I really like it,” she told me at intermission. “I loved it!” she enthused at the end, before hauling me off to stand in line for autographs.

The cast, under the direction of Sean McCall, gave her plenty to love. In fact, a full house of young people and the adults who love them had a great afternoon.

The story is perfect for Halloween. Harold (Jeff Haffner of Cleveland), a dog, and Chester (Nicholas Hodge of South Amana), a cat, find their happy life in the Monroe home disrupted when the family discovers a rabbit at a showing of “Dracula.” When the family’s vegetables start turning white in the night, Chester concludes that Bunnicula (Elizabeth Higbee of Tonganoxie, Kan.) is a vampire and a threat to the entire household. Mayhem ensues.

Haffner and Hodge were simply delightful from beginning to end. Whether singing and dancing (the show has three musical numbers plus a reprise), trading banter, or engaging in animal-appropriate physical comedy, they were perfect. Vaughn Irving of Washington, D.C., and Jackie McCall of Marengo as Mr. and Mrs. Monroe were excellent, as were ninth grader Brennan Urbi and fifth grader Max Locher of Cedar Rapids as the Monroe boys, Toby and Pete.

Higbee doesn’t speak a single word in the play, but she brought plenty of personality to her role. From magically escaping from the hutch to baring fangs at Chester, Bunnicula’s mysterious and mischievous sides were brought to life by Higbee’s portrayal.

From a technical point of view the production also was flawless. The set, designed by Tom Milligan, is simple — no doubt in part because Old Creamery is also presenting “The 39 Steps” in the same space during this period and must be able to change the set easily — but effective. Hodge’s lighting design allows for some fun effects and isolation of characters for key moments, and Annette Rubin’s costumes — despite my daughter’s notes about the Bunnicula suit — are charming. Ryan Milligan’s sound design is appropriately creepy and Higbee’s props — especially the large white vegetables that figure so prominently — are great.

“Bunnicula” is, in short, great entertainment for young people. My daughter and I recommend the source material, too.

ARTS EXTRA

What: “Bunnicula”

Where: Old Creamery Theatre main stage, 39 38th Ave., Amana

When: 1 p.m. Oct. 27 and Nov. 3; 10 a.m. Oct. 23, 25 and 27

Tickets: Reserved seats $8 all ages, Old Creamery Box Office, 1-(800) 352-6262 or Oldcreamery.com

 

 

 

 

REVIEW: Old Creamery dials M for madcap mayhem in Hitchcock spoof

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Vaughn Irving and Lisa Margolin star in "The 39 Steps" at The Old Creamery Theatre.

AMANA — For being a silly bit of escapism, the 2005 comic stage adaptation of “The 39 Steps” is remarkably true to the late Alfred Hitchcock’s anything-but-funny 1935 thriller.

In the hands of the Old Creamery Theatre’s tongue-in-cheeky master cast, many scenes play out fast enough to induce vertigo. Toward the end, however, the pace goes downhill, only to pick up once again to tie up all the loose ends. Sort of. The title revelation kind of peters out, without clearly stating the reason everyone has been running around in a frenzy for two hours.

But no matter, it’s all fun, with enough laugh-out-loud moments during Friday’s opening matinee (10/11/12) to have the audience chuckling and chatting on the way out the door.

So, here’s a taste of the convoluted plot.

It’s 1935, and Richard Hannay (expertly played by the dashing Vaughn Irving) has headed to the theater to alleviate his boredom. The amazing Mr. Memory is onstage (played by the amazing Sean McCall). The mysterious Annabella (the comely chameleon Lisa Margolin) slides into the seat next to Hannay, and before you know it, she’s baring her soul. Shots ring out, mayhem ensues and Hannay and Annabella slip out to his apartment.

Hannay then stumbles upon a murder, and suddenly this man who knew too little knows too much. He’s off and running, first meeting some hilarious strangers on a train, then fleeing on foot through a rear window, zigzagging north by northwest to Scotland.

Along the way, Hannay meets more lovely women, bumbling inspectors, shady spies, an inkeeper and his wife, vaudevillians and assorted villains — all played by three actors — Margolin in most of the female roles, McCall in most of the goofiest roles and the spunky Nicholas Hodge in assorted other roles.

Half the fun is watching them slip in and out of the skin and costumes of their various characters. In one especially captivating scene, the guys only have time to change hats and accents, yet we never lose track of who’s who.

A few key scenery pieces are all that’s needed to keep a tight rope on the place settings.

And yes, the script is peppered with references to some of Hitchcock’s iconic, notorious films.

While I prefer my Hitchcock undiluted, it’s fun to look through this blatantly torn curtain to see the master played for laughs.

ARTS EXTRA

What: “The 39 Steps”

Where: Old Creamery Theatre mainstage, 39 38th Ave., Amana

When: Through Nov. 11, 2012; 3 p.m. Wednesdays, Thursdays and Sunday, 7:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays

Tickets: $27 adults, $17.50 students, at 1-(800) 352-6262 or Oldcreamery.com;$12 student rush 30 minutes before curtain

Information: Oldcreamery.com

REVIEW: Old Creamery’s church ladies back with even more uff in their uff-da

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Deborah Kennedy (left) and Nikki Savitt whip up some fun in

AMANA — The church basement Marthas at the Old Creamery Theatre are dishing up a second helping of homespun humor that leaves you wanting thirds.

These covered dish denizens charmed audiences at first glance in September 2010. Then as now, the transitions in their lives mirror the transitions in their regimented roles  feeding the masses at the East Cornucopia Lutheran Church of the Prairie in rural Minnesota.

“A Second Helping: The Church Basement Ladies Sequel” opened to howling laughter from 128 converts in the opening audience on July 26. The show runs through Sept. 2 on the main stage in Amana.

The transitions continue as the ladies, their church and their minister progress from the 1960s to the ’70s. All is not groovy as they prepare meals for the Lutheran League Banquet, the Mission Festival and the congregational meeting, before they tidy things up with a thorough spring cleaning of the kitchen and their lives.

What you need to know:

  • What: “A Second Helping: The Church Basement Ladies Sequel”
  • Where: Old Creamery Theatre, 39 38th Ave., Amana
  • When: Through Sept. 2; 3 p.m. Wednesdays, Thursdays and Sunday, 7:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays
  • Tickets: $27 adults, $17.50 students, $12 student rush 30 minutes before curtain; Old Creamery Box Office, 1-(800) 352-6262 or Old creamery.com
  • Information: Oldcreamery.com

Anyone can be a Mary, strutting around in high heels and short skirts. It takes a real woman to roll up her sleeves and be a Martha, serving not so quietly behind the scenes.

Resident funnyman Sean McCall is the lone male voice in the show, playing a pastor who’s trying to hold it all together as the ladies are falling apart. He’s a master at physical comedy, channeling Jerry Lewis and Elvis Presley with equal aplomb. He’s met his match in Nikki Savitt as Mavis Gilmerson, a saucy senior with plenty of kick and an earthy world view born on the farm.

Each commands the stage on their own, but when they’re sharing the spotlight, it’s just magic.

Kay Francis sniffs her way through the role of widow Vivian Snustad, former kitchen boss clinging to her Victorian moral code while dipping her toes ever so slightly into the changing tides.

Deborah Kennedy provides the sensible anchor as middle-aged mom Karin Engleson, who’s clearly drifting out to sea. This housewife desperately wants more for her newlywed daughter Beverly (Amy Marie Stewart), who dashed off to the evil “Cities” but longs for a return to her roots.

The music provides a peppy soundtrack to their lives, laced with blues, rock and gospel, as well as the nostalgic “Cardamom, Cinnamon, Ginger and Clove,” in which Beverly recalls the sweet kitchen memories of her youth.

With a dash of snappy choreography and over-the-top physical antics sifted through gingham and enamelware, the cast and crew have again created a smorgasbord of hugs, sneers and tears — stirring in just enough naughtiness to pickle your herring.

 

 

 

 

REVIEW: ‘Busybody’ keeps actors hopping, audience guessing at Old Creamery

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Marquetta Senters of South Amana stars as Mrs. Piper, a nosey cleaning women for a suite of corporate offices who stumble onto a murder in Busybody, a comic mystery by Jack Popplewell, opened May 31 at The Old Creamery Theatre in Amana.

AMANA — Marquetta Senters is as busy as anybody in “Busybody” on the Old Creamery Theatre’s main stage through July 1.

But she’s not the only body in motion. The rest of the rollicking cast is coming and going and flirting and hiding throughout this madcap whodunit that keeps you guessing right up ’til the end.

About 170 audience members giggled and guffawed during Thursday’s opening matinee (5/31/12), chatting all the way out the door about how much fun they’d had.

This merry romp is based on a 1960s British script, wisely Americanized by the Old Creamery crew. Moving it to Chicago circa 1964 means all we lose in translation are the typically hard-to-understand accents and colloquialisms. The doings and dyings are hard enough to keep straight without bogging them down in unfamiliar territory.

In essence, lowbrow high-rise cleaning lady Mrs. Piper (Senters) stumbles upon a dead body as she’s tidying up one corporate office, runs into another office to ring up the police, only to see the body there, instead. Enter Detective Superintendent Baxter (Tom Milligan), who turns out to be Mrs. Piper’s elementary classmate. She’s entranced, he’s beyond annoyed by her insistence on butting into his investigation.

Senters is at her zany best, mugging mightily through a very physical performance. Milligan keeps pace, honking his nose and blubbering right along beside her as she quizzes the suspects and drops little clues here and there, utterly confounding his interrogations.

Weaving in and out of the intrigue is a delightful cast of co-workers, from a power couple (Jackie McCall and Jeff Haffner) to a couple of secretaries (Kay Francis and Amber Snyder), a young detective (Robert Kemp) and an accountant (Eddie Skaggs). Suspicion cleverly wafts between them all, but never really lands too long on any one person.

Yet somebody had to have done it. Try as I might, I didn’t figure it out, which was half the fun. The resolution could have been a little simplistic and disappointing, if not for the strength of the actors. They made it hilarious, even as the lights went out — over and over again.

Vintage cop show theme songs keep the mood light and lively between scenes. The overall look of the show is

delightful, as well, with a chic interior design of turquoise walls, sleek black office furniture and fun and funky costumes. McCall is the epitome of style as the corporate wife with a French twist while Snyder is all mod and flighty a go-go as the hot, young secretary whose forte does not lie in taking dictation. The men are appropriately dapper, but Milligan is going to need a new hat in short order, thanks to Senters. In turn, she has lots of pockets at her disposal and lots of ingenious ways to use them. She’s always stuffing something somewhere.

Indeed, the entire show is always stuffing something somewhere, pulling out one surprise after another.

GET OUT

REVIEW: ‘On Golden Pond’ ripples with pain, poignancy, laughter

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AMANA — The Old Creamery Theatre is opening its 41st season with a completely satisfying theatrical experience. “On Golden Pond” is the reason the term “dramedy” was born.

The show, which opened May 3 on the professional troupe’s main stage in Amana, is a perfectly paced blend of laughter and tears.  Since no family is perfect, I’m guessing everyone can identify with at least part of the turmoil the Thayers face during a bittersweet summer in their beloved lake house in Maine.

Crusty old patriarch Norman (Tom Milligan) zings everyone with the sharpest barbs. His long-suffering wife, Ethel (Kay Francis), calls his bluff when they’re alone, but turns into peacekeeper when their estranged daughter, Chelsea (Deborah Kennedy), stops for a brief, tense visit to introduce her parents to her fiance, Bill (Jeff Haffner), and his tough-talking teenage son, Billy Jr. (double-cast with Brennan Urbi of Cedar Rapids and Ellis Fontana of Iowa City).

So much anguish roils beneath the surface, just waiting to bubble and bite when anyone casts out the least little bait. But it’s that kind of fishing that picks at old, festering wounds, bringing the confrontations that allow a measure of healing to begin.

Milligan strikes the right balance for Norman, a retired English professor who is constantly challenging and grading everyone who steps into the classroom of his life. He loves nothing better than toying with his prey, dangling just enough charm to lure them in, then saying the most horrible things to push them away. He’s been doing that to everyone but Ethel, who is watching and denying her husband’s slow fade into twilight. Francis plays this inner conflict with aplomb.

The whole picture is wrapped in nostalgia tinged with poignancy and decline through the scenery, music and lighting enhancing every shifting mood.

While it’s painful to watch the way Norman treats his daughter and her fiance, the payoff comes in the way Norman receives as much as he gives to young Billy, played beautifully by Urbi in Thursday’s opening performance. Eddie Skaggs as mailman Charlie — still pining for Chelsea — offers sweet comic relief with his goofy giggle.

Laughter — and a few gasps — rippled and spread through the 157 audience members. The lovely thing about this show, is that despite the heartache that unfolds over two hours, you do leave with a smile.

 

GET OUT

  • What: “On Golden Pond”
  • Where:Old Creamery Theatre, 39 38th Ave., Amana
  • When: Through May 27; 3 p.m. Wednesday, Thursday, Sunday, 7:30 p.m. Friday, Saturday
  • Tickets: $17.50 and $27, at 1-(800) 352-6262 or Oldcreamery.com

Theatre Cedar Rapids will do a staged reading of “On Golden Pond” in its Grandon Studio from June 22 to July 1.

Best Bets July 7 to 13

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Meskwaki Country Music Jam

Saturday, July 9

Country music star Travis Tritt will light up the Meskwaki Outdoor Arena as part of the venue’s Country Music Jam. Others on the bill are Gary Allan, Love & Theft and Jason Jones. When Tritt sang “I’m Gonna Be Somebody,” he was right. He was Billboard’s Top New Artist in 1990, has won two Grammys and several County Music Association awards. Between 1990 and 2000 he topped the charts with “Help Me Hold On,”“Anymore,”“Can I Trust You with My Heart,”“Foolish Pride”and “Best of Intentions.” His style whips up a raucous blend of Southern fried rock and country, tinged with soul. Listen real hard, and you’ll hear a bit of his honky-tonk history, too.

Meskwaki Country Music Jam
4 p.m. Saturday (7/9), Meskwaki Outdoor Arena, casino complex, 1504 305th St., Tama; $20 general admission, $45 floor, at Club Meskwaki, www.meskwaki.com or 1-(800) 728-4263, Ext. 2230

The Queen of Bingo

Today through July 24

The queen is back on her throne, ready to yell “bingo!” The Old Creamery Theatre is bringing back a hit from 2009, when Sis and Babe drive each other crazy once again in “The Queen of Bingo.” The show explores the worlds of bingo, family ties, diet crazes, widowhood, hot flashes and winning. The intimate black box theater just seats 80, so don’t dillydally getting tickets, or you might end up with a blackout instead of a jackpot.

The Queen of Bingo
Today (7/7) through July 24, Old Creamery Theatre’s Studio Stage, elementary school complex, 3023 220th Trl., Middle Amana; 3 p.m. Thursdays and Sundays, 7:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays; $27 adults, $17.50 students, 1-(800) 35 AMANA, (319) 622-6194 or www.oldcreamery.com/ticketWin.php

Harness racing

Monday, July 11

Can’t make it to Kentucky Downs or Royal Ascot? Don’t sulk. The Linn County Fair in Central City is harnessing a different kind of horsepower for racing ’round the dirt track Monday night. Harness racers hitch their two-wheeled sulkies to four-legged horses to trot toward the finish line, capping nearly a week’s worth of grandstand entertainment. Before that, rock fans can drool over Saliva at 7 p.m. tonight (7/7); country fans can hear John Anderson at 7 p.m. Friday; or catch draft horses, trucks and tractors pulling their weight or chuck wagons and Hell Drivers running their races over the weekend. While you’re there, don’t forget to check out all the other fun at the fair.

 Harness racing
6:30 p.m. Monday (7/11), Linn County Fair Grandstand, Central City; $7 adults, $5 ages 6 to 12, free ages 5 and under, http://thelinncountyfair.com/gs-ticket-info.html

Best bets: March 31 to April 6

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Universes: ‘Ameriville’
Friday, April 1

Using the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans as metaphor for the whole country, Universes Theatre Company is bringing “Ameriville” to another region that knows all too well the depth of destruction from raging waters. Hancher is presenting the group’s original show on the UI’s Mabie Theatre stage, which flooded in 2008. The New York-based troupe lived in New Orleans while developing “Ameriville,” striving to make the work historically and culturally accurate. The play offers a commentary on social, economic, political and racial tensions brought to light by a disastrous flood. It paints a bleak, yet hopeful picture of a nation struggling to find a way out of destruction.

Universes: ‘Ameriville’
7:30 p.m. Friday (4/1), Mabie Theatre, University of Iowa Theatre Building, Iowa City; $10 to $35, Hancher Box Office, (319) 335-1160, 1-(800) HANCHER, www.hancher.uiowa.edu or at the door; www.universesonstage.com

Old Creamery Theatre: ‘Art’
Today, March 31, through April 17

What makes an object art? Is it in the eye of the beholder or society? If debating parties can’t agree, is it worth breaking the mold of a friendship? You be the judge when “Art” launches the Old Creamery Theatre’s 2011 Studio season. You’ll be practically part of the action in the troupe’s intimate theater space in the Middle Amana School complex. Added bonus: an exhibit of works from local artists, from drawings and paintings to fiber art and sculptures.

Old Creamery Theatre: ‘Art’
Today, March 31, through April 17, Old Creamery Theatre’s Studio Stage, Middle Amana School; 7:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 3 p.m. Thursdays and Sundays; $17.50 to $27 at 1-(800) 35-AMANA or www.oldcreamery.com

Riverside Theatre: ‘The Syringa Tree’
Friday, April 1, to April 17

“The Syringa Tree,” closes out Riverside Theatre’s 30th anniversary season. The show, by South African playwright Pamela Gien, chronicles an abiding love between two families — one black, one white — and the two children who are born into their shared household. Through the eyes of various characters, the compelling tale follows the families’ destinies through four generations, from early apartheid to the present day free South Africa.

Riverside Theatre: ‘The Syringa Tree’
Friday (4/1) to April 17, Riverside Theatre, 13 N. Gilbert St., Iowa City; 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Friday, Saturday; 2 p.m. Sunday; $12 to $26 at (319) 338-7672 or www.riversidetheatre.org