Yesterday (Sunday July 23, 2023), I went off on a little adventure. Last week, Ghostlight Theatre invited me to visit them at the Thelma Sadoff Center for the Arts in Fond du Lac as they presented the musical based on Green Day’s American Idiot album. Well I wasn’t familiar with Ghostlight although I had seen them on social media and I wasn’t familiar with the Sadoff Center either…and sadly I probably hadn’t visited Fond du Lac in a decade or more. And although I was aware the American Idiot was a very successful and award winning musical, I hadn’t really taken much notice of it. So I was intrigued and once I confirmed which date worked in my schedule, off I went to Fondy!
full cast : photos provided by Ghostlight Theatre
I really want to talk about Ghostlight’s presentation of American Idiot rather than the musical’s book, so I am just going to allow their press release to fill us in on the background:
The two-time Tony Award-winning hit musical Green Day’s AMERICAN IDIOT, based on the Grammy Award-winning multi-platinum album, boldly takes the American musical where it’s never gone before. This high-octane show includes every song from Green Day’s album, AMERICAN IDIOT, as well as several songs from its follow-up release, 21ST CENTURY BREAKDOWN.
Johnny, Tunny and Will struggle to find meaning in a post-9/11 world. When the three disgruntled men flee the constraints of their hometown for the thrills of city life, their paths are quickly estranged when Tunny enters the armed forces; Will is called back home to attend to family responsibilities, and Johnny’s attention becomes divided by a love interest and a hazardous new friendship. An energy-fueled rock opera, AMERICAN IDIOT, features little dialogue and instead relies on the lyrics from Green Day’s groundbreaking album to tell the story.
But just a side note on the musical itself before we get into the fun: the quote says “features little dialogue” and I did find that a little disconcerting and didn’t always follow the story line via just the songs. Maybe if I was a little more familiar with Green Day’s catalog that might not have been an issue.
photos provided by Ghostlight Theatre
The Sadoff theater space has a beautiful proscenium arch stage with all of the classic plaster decoration common in classic theater settings. But dare say, given the number of cast members and the variety of settings, they needed additional action space. So a thrust stage was added out front with an orchestra pit smack dab in the center where the rock band worked to bring us all of the sounds of the original songs! And around the stage additional small settings gave us bedrooms, family rooms, ladders for emphasis, and a great back wall for projection of various videos that help illustrate the story.
And before I go further: the photos are from rehearsals and don’t do justice to the costuming and makeup that the performers wore during the actual presentation. I don’t have an attribution for the people involved with makeup and costuming but they deserve a lot of credit for putting us in the feel and mood of the era depicted in American Idiot. Bravo!
Editor’s Note 7/25/23: I found out this morning that the cast did their own hair and makeup…which was just amazing…and I am sure that experience added to their understanding and development of their character(s).
photos provided by Ghostlight Theatre
And a big WOW for director Christian Fleming. This would be a big cast to direct in any play, but even more complex in a non-stop musical like American Idiot. From the ensemble opener singing the title song, through any number of ensemble pieces, to duets, and solos, and small song circles, the songs seldom stop except for intermissions…or a few moments of dialogue presented as vlogs or asides by a lead character here or there…so the large stage was a necessity and put to very good use.
And the young cast didn’t miss a beat or a note. How they kept up the pace for essentially two hours (with a brief intermission) is amazing. But they did!! And these songs are NOT simple to sing and can challenge any vocalist’s range, particularly when they are trying to act and move about the stage or participate in the often complex choreography of the ensemble pieces! It was a pleasure to visit a smaller regional theater and find such talent and professionalism on stage! And this is a challenging piece…for anyone to take on…and I enjoyed it immensely.
photos provided by Ghostlight Theatre
And here is the cast list, again stolen from the theater’s press release:
Joe Gallo, Liam Ledford and Danny Slattery play Johnny, Tunny and Will. The cast also includes Lydia Rose Eiche Ross at St. Jimmy; Kendra Krouth as Heather; Betsy Katschke as Extraordinary Girl, and Eulalia Marie Carriveau as Whatsername. Ryan Bartley, Summer Feil, Jazz Leinweber, Alyson Nordstrom and Eugene Strei fill out the cast.
It will interesting to watch to see what Ghostlight Theater will offer next. They obviously have no fear about presenting difficult or challenging plays or musicals. And sometime in the future, I’d like to provide our readers with a bit more background on Ghostlight Theatre and their history!
The First Stage shows are always crazy fun and feature colorful sets and costuming and enthusiastic talented performers. And Three Little Birds is no different and this is maybe my favorite of the season…but that may be a personal bias…since I love Bob Marley’s music.
The focus of the story by Cedella Marley is a young Jamaican lad named Ziggy. And based on his limited life experience, Ziggy is nervous about the dangers he perceives to exist in the big real world outside his home…so he prefers to remain in his home and focus on the weather (one of his fears is hurricanes) and news on his TV. But his mother and friend, Nansi, eventually coax him out into Jamaica!
Cynthia Cobb and Julius Newman in Bob Marley’s THREE LITTLE BIRDS. courtesy of First Stage, 2023. Photo by Paul Ruffolo.
And unsurprisingly, Ziggy’s best friend is a bird…a very active and happy bird…Dr. Bird, incredibly brought to life on the stage by Ogunde Tremayne. What a treat to watch Dr. Bird aid Ziggy in breaking out of his fears and enter the world. And Tremayne really brings the character to life through his acting and singing and very fluid dancing. I found myself focusing on Dr. Bird rather than Ziggy whenever Tremayne came on stage.
Ogunde Tremayne and Reece Davis in Bob Marley’s THREE LITTLE BIRDS. courtesy of First Stage, 2023. Photo by Paul Ruffolo.
But despite the reassurances of Ziggy’s mother, Nansi, and Dr. Bird, there is one danger in Jamaica. A Duppy (a spirit from Jamaican folklore) who preys on young people to steal their hair to add to their own wig…believing that they needed new hair to maintain their strength and vigor. An activity that Duppy has been doing for centuries…and as everyone in the play states any number of times…Ziggy has beautiful perfect hair. And Duppy is stalking him but most frequently is frightened away by all of the activity that accompanies Ziggy and his friends. And Duppy is played by James Carrington, who gets just precisely right, the sly nature of Duppy and the humor written into the script around the Duppy and has just the right of sense of threat when he finally catches Ziggy lost and unaware. Another outstanding performance.
James Carrington in Bob Marley’s THREE LITTLE BIRDS. courtesy of First Stage, 2023. Photo by Paul Ruffolo.
But Ziggy and Nansi defeat the Duppy through a clue from Ziggy’s mother and Ziggy’s twist on a trick that Nansi played on him earlier. It is a proper and rewarding comeuppance for Duppy and provides a liberation for Ziggy from his earlier dilemma and malaise.
And of course the story is supported and reinforced throughout by the delightful music of Bob Marley…as the cast sings and dances between the various story vignettes. One of the off stage heroes here is choreographer Sonya Thompson whose dance pieces bring the characters to the fore and move the story along…the choreography just adds to the joy in the music.
And a shout out to Costume Designer Kenann Quander who gave us the feel of Jamaica and colors and textures to please the eye…particularly for the three birds from the title and Duppy! And Director Samantha D. Montgomery utilized the thrust stage of the Todd Wehr Theater to maximum effect, moving the actors and set to the best advantage for her story and the engagement of the audience.
Ogunde Tremayne (front) and Maya O’Day-Biddle and Amirah Muhammad in Bob Marley’s THREE LITTLE BIRDS. courtesy of First Stage, 2023. Photo by Paul Ruffolo.
As always, First Stage features two casts to provide ample opportunities for their young acting corps. For Three Little Birds, the Jamaican Owls cast includes Reece Davis as Ziggy, Amirah Muhammad as Nansi, and Maya O’Day-Biddle as Tacoomah and the Jamaican Becard cast includes Julius Newman as Ziggy, Amira Harris as Nansi, and Zoe Chambers as Tacoomah. If you want to see who is on stage at any particular performance check the links below.
Bob Marley’s Three Little Birds continues at the Marcus Center’s Todd Wehr Theater through May 21, 2023. Details and ticket info here: This show is recommended for families with children 3 and older…and has a run time about of 70 minutes that includes a short intermission.
Amira Harris (front) and Julius Newman, Cynthia Cobb, and Zoe Chambers in Bob Marley’s THREE LITTLE BIRDS. courtesy of First Stage, 2023. Photo by Paul Ruffolo.
I am feeling like a bit of a Stackner Cabaret ‘tween at the moment…too young to have appreciated Dean Martin (Dino just closed at the Stackner : see my response here) and too old to have been a fan of Whitney Houston. But I am being a little melodramatic here because I should admit that Beehive was in my wheelhouse (see my response here).
But yes, I didn’t really know what to expect from The Greatest Love for Whitney other than I was about to experience some incredible performers in outstanding performances…the high bar that The Milwaukee Repertory Theater’s Stackner Cabaret has set for itself. But everyone else knew why they were there and from the shout outs and sing-a-longs and applause, this show met with their expectations for a Whitney Houston experience!
And obviously Rep Artistic Director Mark Clements is a huge Whitney fan. And he has created an elegant and moving tribute to Whitney. The Stackner stage is just filled with star presence in actors Alina Cherone and Alesia Miller and the Rep’s own Musical Director Dan Kazemi as accompanist.
Alesia Miller and Alina Cherone, photo by Michael Brosilow and courtesy of The Milwaukee Repertory Theater.
Cherone and Miller have the perfect voices to showcase Whitney’s catalog of songs. And they trade off one after another taking the lead role…or double up when the song calls for extra emphasis…or bring up the harmonies when needed! Not a wrong note here. And in between the songs they present some background from Whitney’s career. And they also provide us with how Whitney provided them with a role model that helped bring them to the Stackner stage.
Alina Miller; photo by Michael Brosilow and courtesy of The Milwaukee Repertory Theater.
And Kazemi accompanies them on piano and keeps the orchestral backing tracks rolling right along. It was great to see him in the footlights on stage rather than just a photo in the program this time!
And I almost forgot…and how could I? Alesia Miller is a Milwaukee native and brings some local color to the stories she tells about growing up and pursuing the stage and music!
Alesia Miller; photo by Michael Brosilow and courtesy of The Milwaukee Repertory Theater.
And just an elegant and simple cabaret stage…stools…piano…microphones…drape rear curtain…and a neon Whitney signature sign. A completely supportive environment…nothing to distract from the actors or the music.
The Greatest Love for Whitney continues at the Rep’s Stackner Cabaret through May 28, 2023…additional information here. The link includes access to the trailer and rehearsal videos.
And when you go, you may see Charlotte Odusanya as one of the actors…she wasn’t on stage the night that I attended the play. I imagine that she has her own Whitney story to tell as well!
Charlotte Odusanya; photo by Michael Brosilow and courtesy of The Milwaukee Repertory Theater.
