Reviews
Go, Dog. Go!
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
by Deeda Scroeder—
Willamette Week
Kids of all ages will love this colorful, clever and comic production. The live band
and over-the-top costumes set the Technicolor tone of the light-on-words show, a simple
musical adaptation of P.D. Eastman’s classic book about the wacky lives of dogs. Parents
of smaller kids, be prepared to seat your child on your lap for the whole show or bring
your own thick booster seat—while some of the sets are vertical, action that happens on
the stage itself can be difficult for wee ones to see from the pewlike seats. They won’t
want to miss a wink! DEEDA SCHROEDER. NW Neighborhood Cultural Center, 1819 NW
Everett St., 222-4480. Noon and 3 pm Saturdays-Sundays and March 25-28. Closes April
6. $10-$20. All ages.
Theater Review: "Go, Dog. Go!" barks up the right, bright tree
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
by Holly Johnson—Special to
The Oregonian
Those kids and parents who know P.D. Eastman's slightly surreal book "Go, Dog. Go!"
will understand the loopy anarchy that explodes on the stage in this colorful, vigorous
theater adaptation by playwrights Allison Gregory and Steven Dietz ("God's Country,"
"Private Eyes"). The show at the Northwest Children's Theater, suitable for youngsters
years four and up, is not about dogs as you know them. It's a specific echo of the rather
human dogs that inhabit Eastman's book: cartwheeling, rollerskating, car-driving,
acrobatic, hat-wearing, Crayola-colored canines ever on the move, panting, yipping,
and grinning as they reflect the energy of the young and perhaps also the frenetic
lives of parents.
Gregory and Dietz have wisely added no extra dialogue from the minimalist storybook,
and as directed by Sarah Jane Hardy, the highly physical action, Mary Rochon's bright
goofy costumes and a nicely understated score by Michael Koerner (borrowing from
circus music, vintage rock and roll, bebop and vaudeville), are enough to sweep us along.
John Ellingson, who played the Cat in the Hat in the company's "Seussical, the Musical"
last season, comes onstage as a human and is transformed into a dog as hound ears pop
out of his hat and a tail materializes. He's the adult figure in the play, sternly
turning out the light when all dogs should be asleep at night, and he's the wily
circus master who pushes the scenes into action. He's got most of the lines,
and -- in keeping with the book -- there aren't many.
Other lively performances come from Alina Ziak-Briones as the poodle with
the odd hats, Grover Hollway as a looming red dog and Lea Zawada as a scrappy
yellow pooch.
Of course, you don't have to know the book to have a barking good time. The
sound of toddlers laughing uproariously at Ellingson's foibles and other highly
physical scenes involving the large cast proved that "Go, Dog. Go!" passes the kid test.
CRITICS CHOICE—The Devil and Daniel Webster
Friday, February 08, 2008
Oregonian - A&E
The Devil and Daniel Webster
Wednesday, February 06, 2008
by Deeda Schroeder for
Willamette Week
Charming and sweet, while at the same time wickedly funny, this show weaves together a
tale of youthfully innocent love and guilty desperation. A lighthearted contemporary adaptation
of a 19th-century tale, the story loses a bit of its momentum in the second half when the
devil and Sen. Daniel Webster argue for a farmer’s soul, especially for younger audience members.
Sets are inspired, the young actors are energetic, and the older ones casually confident. Come
early and, from a cushioned wooden pew, soak up the sight of the lovely and lofty cross-barrel
vaulted ceiling in this beautiful old auditorium. DEEDA SCHROEDER. NW Neighborhood Cultural
Center, 1819 NW Everett St., 503-222-4480. 7 pm Fridays, 2 and 7 pm Saturdays, 2 pm Sundays.
Closes Feb. 24. $16-$20.
Theater review Well-crafted play is fun bit of history
Monday, February 04, 2008
by Holly Johnson—Special to
The Oregonian
Based on Stephen Vincent Benet's 1937 classic American short story, "The Devil and
Daniel Webster" at Northwest Children's Theater follows Benet's New England fantasy
for the most part without dumbing it down for kids.
But in keeping the piece to a family friendly 90 minutes, playwright Robert Schenkkan
has diminished much of the suspense, particularly in the crucial courtroom scene.
Other than that, it's a well-crafted show. The celebrated American abolitionist
Webster was renowned as a silver-tongued orator who could out-debate anybody.
"When he rose to speak, stars and stripes fell out of the sky, and once he spoke
against a river and made it sink into the ground," Benet tells us.
So when 1849 New Hampshire farmer Jabez Stone accidentally calls forth the
Devil (also known as Scratch) and sells his soul for a quick fix on his
disastrous life, who but the lawyer Webster should be summoned to get him out
of trouble, tell the truth (well, maybe twist it a little) and shame the Devil
during a courtroom debate. The jury is peopled by famous villains plucked from
the nether regions.
Eric James, in his 36th show with the company, makes Webster a big, strong,
confident gent with a booming voice: He's a guy that you wouldn't want to wrestle,
even if you were the supernatural. Richard Garfield nicely underplays Scratch as
a debonair senior bank president, who only reveals his true nature as the Prince
of Darkness during bouts of vicious anger.
Andi Sturtevant as Spark, the story's pixy-like narrator and ironic commentator
(and who, we learn later, is employed by Scratch), deftly adds violin accompaniment
to enhance the action. Nick Sherbo and Maya Malan-Gonzalez shape sturdy characters as
Jabez and his loving wife. And a handful of young people who play multiple roles
have particular fun as ax-murderer Lizzie Borden, Blackbeard, Al Capone and other
infamous creeps as members of Scratch's jury.
Set against the backdrop of the oncoming Civil War, just learning about Daniel
Webster provides a great history lesson for kids, even though "Devil" is a
fire-and-brimstone myth, with a few bold strokes of satire. Impressive stage effects
abound, including thunder and lightning, the steam of Hades spewing forth, streaked
clouds on the New Hampshire firmament reminiscent of escaping spirits and a glowing
red backdrop.
The show is appropriate for kids 10 and older. Pertinent to the election year? You bet.
Theater review: …delightful fairytale musical…
Monday, December 3, 2007
by Michael McGregor—Special to The Oregonian
For children and many adults, this is the season for enchantment and dreams…
At the Northwest Neighborhood Cultural Center, Northwest Children's Theater is reprising
its popular holiday production of Disney's "Beauty and the Beast." …
Few things could be more festive than the sumptuous costumes of satin and silk in
NWCT's "Beauty," or more imposing and atmospheric than a castle set that expands beyond
the stage, with huge vaulted rooms that seem to recede into the wings.
The Disney story, of course, is well-liked and well-tested, taken from the popular
animated film: A book-reading beauty named Belle spurns the hometown hunk, Gaston,
before being imprisoned by a Beast she transforms, through her love, into the prince
he was before he was cursed.
Many actors return from NWCT's successful production last year, including the wonderfully
manic James Wesley Peppers as Cogsworth, a servant slowly becoming a clock, and Isaac Lamb,
last year's Gaston, switches roles, this time playing a convincingly ominous and then
vulnerable Beast. Newcomer Alina Ziak-Briones exudes the right cheerful grit as Belle, and
Patricia Price-Yates gives a deliciously ludicrous turn as Madame de la Grande Bouche, an
opera singer becoming a wardrobe.
…
…"Beauty" has all the fantastic elements and extremes we expect in fairy tales…
Theater review 'Honk!' if you think this show is funny
Kids musical—A fine and feathery cast has audiences quacking at this ugly duckling tale
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
by Holly Johnson—Special to
The Oregonian
Hatched by composer George Stiles and lyricist Anthony Drewe, the two-hour musical is a charming,
updated version of Hans Christian Andersen's ugly duckling tale. Now it's in Portland, in an appealing
production at Northwest Children's Theatre that's directed with panache by Stephen Alexander and
features a fine feathery cast, dressed in human clothing that hints at various animals, but never
imitates them completely.
Kristi L. Foster is engaging and vocally pleasing as Ida, a portly mama duck clumping about
in orange Crocs, who gives birth to a rather large egg that finally reveals Ugly (Connor Weil),
an ungainly bespectacled young one. Ugly is shunned by the other hatchlings and preyed upon by a
hungry, sneaky cat (a very funny Larry Taylor), who in a moment of distracted passion shares a
sexy rumba with Queenie (Signe Larsen), a stately feline.
James Wesley Peppers, with his malleable face and expressive eyebrows, offers a strong yet
goofy presence as Ugly's wayward dad, Drake; Peppers is even more interesting as Greylag, a
goose in leather bomber jacket and vintage officer's hat who's an admiral in a flying squad.
Other fine young actors in multiple roles are Lea Zawanda, Justin Moyer, Steve Rathje and
Claire Martin.
What's also impressive about the show is the variety of music, much better tunes than
those of some of contemporary musical theater's schmaltzy blockbusters. Elizabeth Esch Brown
deserves applause for her choreography. The charming set and imaginative costumes are by
Roger Monroe and Ashley Wase, respectively. The show, accompanied by a live onstage band,
suits kids ages 4 and up.
Continues 7 p.m. Fridays-Saturdays, 2 p.m. Saturdays-Sundays through Oct. 28.
Northwest Neighborhood Cultural Center, 1819 N.W. Everett St. $20 adults, $16 youths
14 and younger. 503-222-4480 or www.nwcts.org.
Honk! The Ugly Duckling Musical
Wednesday, October 21, 2007
by Stephen Marc Beaudoin—
Willamette Week
[NEW REVIEW] Surely there is a great musical comedy that some Portland company can mount to showcase the
shining vocal and comic talents of our very own James Wesley Peppers. Honk!, which he handily walks
away with at Northwest Children's Theater, is not that show. Winningly committed to every winking line of
dialogue and each sappy song in the duo role of Duckling daddy Drake and chief goose Greylag, Peppers adds
needed heat to an otherwise lukewarm new English musical adaptation by George Stiles and Anthony Drewe—
stretched here to two and a half kiddie attention-span-testing hours—of the Hans Christian Andersen fable
(Stephen Alexander, stage and music director). Promising work from young Connor Weil as Ugly, stage vet
Kristi L. Foster as a warm-voiced Ida, and pint-sized Lea Zawada in several small roles.
STEPHEN MARC BEAUDOIN. Northwest Children's Theater and School, 1819 NW Everett St., 222-4480. 7 pm Fridays,
2 and 7 pm Saturdays, 2 pm Sundays. Closes Oct. 28. $16-$20.
Theater review: We're shipwrecked, Daddy; how very jolly!
Child's play—Swiss Family Robinson is an amusing romp, despite the scary premise
Wednesday, May 09, 2007
by Richard Wattenberg—The Oregonian
A dreadful storm, a shipwreck, a family stranded on a deserted Pacific Island.
Sounds like Johann Wyss' 1812 novel Swiss Family Robinson. But Northwest Children's
Theater's fun-filled new version of the Robinson family's adventures, liberally adapted from the
original by Milo Mowery and Jeff Sanders, gives the tale a thoroughly modern spin.
The marooned family in this new telling is motherless: It consists of a widower father
(played with persuasive earnestness by Harold Phillips) and his four sons. Making themselves
at home while waiting to be rescued from this forsaken tropical isle, these resourceful males
build themselves a multileveled, surprisingly intricate treehouse (cleverly conceived and
engineered by set designer and technical director Paul Brown).
All is well until a boatload of pirates arrives. Unlike the threatening marauders who appeared
in the 1960 Walt Disney movie version of the novel, this crew is female, except for one boy and the
humorously two-faced Maybelle (John Ellingson). Led by the seemingly incorrigible Captain Payne
(portrayed with cheerful panache by Buffie Rogers), this merry band of ne'er-do-wells is made up
of bloodthirsty cutthroats—but only in the most playful cartoonish fashion.
After an amusingly choreographed battle—a high point of the production, filled with swashbuckling
and farcical antics—the boisterous female plunderers overcome the Robinsons and take over what Captain
Payne scoffingly refers to as the boys' "clubhouse."
These lady buccaneers may be as rough and ready as any guys, holding their own in this comically
staged war between the sexes. Nevertheless, they join forces with their male prisoners when all are
threatened by the new tempests. Constantly dodging narrow gender assumptions, this version of the
Swiss Family Robinson saga ultimately communicates a spirit of inclusion and cooperation.
Director Sarah Jane Hardy skillfully paces the action, moving it at a clip that will captivate even
the most restless youngsters. Her crew of hale and hardy actors, including a couple of NWCT student interns,
never flags in its enthusiasm. The colorful onstage excitement is wonderfully supported by Rodolfo Ortega's
rig-roaring musical score.
The play is intended for audiences ages 6 and older.
Theater review: Star-crossed in a forthright production
Teen actors lend the Northwest Children's Theater's "Romeo and Juliet" fresh perspective
Monday, April 02, 2007
by Holly Johnson - The Oregonian
Warring families, teen lovers caught in crossfire, hot-blooded youths, kindly robust nurses,
helpful friars, hooded apothecaries.
All the regular suspects in Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet" are more or less familiar to us,
as is the tragic story of star-crossed lovers who seem to know from the beginning that things
aren't going to work out too well with their relationship: After all, their tribes have been
enemies for ages.
Yet even though we know the outcome by heart, the tale never seems to wear thin. It refreshes
itself with each version, because the Bard's language buoys the ideas and feelings so effortlessly.
The Northwest Children's Theater has taken a chance in producing this complex story and yet, who
better? The kids enrolled in the company's school are the perfect age for the central roles, and there
are enough seasoned adult actors who have been working with the company for years to handle the older parts.
It's a good mix, and director Sarah Jane Hardy has kept the production simple and straightforward. Her
Verona is a dapple-lit series of fragmented, curvy Italianate structures fashioned by set designer
Roger Monroe, and they are reminiscent of the actual ruins in central Verona.
Costumes by Mary Rochon are more than standard-issue Shakespeare -- elegant yet simple, with the
sparkle of an odd jewel here and there. The Medici's lush Italy is suggested with minimal touches.
And while everything moves quickly, all the details are in place.
The haunting vulnerability in this piece lies in the fact that falling truly, instantly in love
is not a joyful thing. It's a jolt, a thunderbolt, a glorious burden rife with the promise of pain.
Maya Malan-Gonzalez as Juliet understands this, as does Ryan Stathos, who creates a fully believable Romeo.
Both have the appearance of children, barely developed yet suddenly wise to love and its depth. Malan-Gonzalez
sometimes runs her words together a bit too rapidly, but she is a likable Juliet, obedient child one minute
and ardent lover the next. Her transformation is palpable.
The rest of the cast is uneven. Melody Bridges provides fine comic relief as the nurse, and Deirdre Atkinson
is a beautiful, iron-willed Lady Capulet, looking a bit like Annette Benning in her sumptuous attire. Paul Susi
creates an edgy, intelligent Tybalt, and Darius Pierce's Mercutio, who's in love with language, is a bright
swath of energy. On opening night, Dan Ruiz Salvatura was often hard to hear as Friar Lawrence, particularly i
n his final speech. Nick Sherbo's Benvolio was a strong presence, as was Marc Friedman as Escalus, prince of
Verona, who gets the last word.
Music does much to enhance the play's emotions. Sound designer Rodolfo Ortega has composed some of his
best work, creating grand Renaissance-style marches at the opening and gradually adding more modern filmic
segments to augment the action. It's subdued underscoring, neatly integral to the whole package.
Theater review 'Junie B. Jones' has fun monkeying around
Musical - Metaphors that are misunderstood by kids meld with a message of sharing
Wednesday, February 07, 2007
by Holly Johnson - The Oregonian
Welcome to the confused and colorful world of Junie B. Jones, a kindergartner with attitude
and agenda galore
In "Junie B. Jones and a Little Monkey Business," a charming musical for kids 4 and up based
on the popular book by Barbara Park, the precocious loudmouth Junie B. hears her grandmother
call her new baby brother "the cutest little monkey I've ever seen."
Junie takes the phrase literally and ends up accepting all kinds of bribes from schoolmates
who want to be the first to take a peek at her simian sibling.
While the main message is that kids who don't understand metaphors and adult expressions
tend to take things literally, we also learn that working together and sharing make life more fun.
Northwest Children's Theater's production is marred by sound problems -- it's hard to know what
the young actors are singing or saying now and again -- but the cast delves into the script and songs
with gusto. Eight-year-old Caroline Haroldson, her strawberry blond hair neatly bobbed, is a loud,
irascible Junie B., who gets into everybody's business while trying to solve her own problems.
She's often helped by Grandpa Miller (Don Stewart Burns), who takes it for granted when Junie gets
excited about fixing the toilet with him on a Saturday afternoon.
Junie's best friends are Princess Lucille (Hannah Copelan), a young gold digger who has one of
the cleverest numbers in the show, and That Grace (played on Saturday night by Qian Wyndham), who sings
about the joys of her high-top athletic shoes with verve and conviction. The songs are clever, nonsappy
and sprightly.
The show reveals the work of some kids who have been studied acting at the theater's school for a
while, and it's first-class. The show was adapted by Joan Cushing, with orchestrations by Deborah Wicks
La Puma. Diane Englert directs. The play runs about 90 minutes, not counting a 15-minute intermission.
The sprawling, colorful set is by John Anderberg.
Continues 7 p.m. Fridays, 2 and 7 p.m. Saturdays, and 2 p.m. Sundays through Feb. 25.
Northwest Neighborhood Cultural Center, 1819 N.W. Everett St.; $16-$20 adults, 503-222-4480 or www.nwcts.org.
Theater review: Songs make kids' show more 'Beauty' than 'Beast'
Some wonderful musical performances more than make up for slow pacing and a bedraggled Beast
Monday, December 04, 2006
by Holly Johnson - The Oregonian
"Disney's Beauty and the Beast," the stage musical based on the Academy Award-winning film, offers
kids 4 and up something special: a chance to delve into a magical French fable about love and redemption.
The story's themes of hope and transformation are never buried: What we see isn't always what we get,
and appearances don't always reveal what's inside. It's a great lesson for youngsters and a gentle
reminder for adults.
The pacing's a little slow at Northwest Children's Theater, where "Beauty" opened Friday, and the
show leans a little too heavily on some sugary Broadway-style ballads by composer Alan Menken and
lyricists Howard Ashman and Tim Rice.
But consistently fine musical performances from the leading actors buoy this production nicely.
Beauty, named Belle in this version, is an antisocial oddity in her French village, reading books
and supporting her inventor father (Rhodd Caldwell), whom everyone else calls eccentric. Marissa Ryder
is a svelte, sparkling Belle, and her duet, "No Matter What," with Caldwell exudes charm. He disappears
too soon into the woods, where he comes upon the Beast's castle and sets the story in motion.
Isaac Lamb struts and brags shamelessly as the muscle man Gaston, who's set on marrying Belle. He's
the main comic relief, but there's an undertone of self-centeredness and bigotry that makes him dangerous
even as he's kicking up his heels in such numbers as "Gaston," in which he sings his own praises. The dance
numbers featuring Lamb as the town's self-appointed leader nearly cause sparks to fly on stage.
The Beast, as portrayed by Ben Van Diepen, looks more like a bedraggled, bad-tempered hippie with bad
makeup than a stormy, scary mythical creature. But Van Diepen has a strong voice that overrides the externals.
Corey Brunish steals the show as Lumiere, a talking candlestick who is one of the Beast's household
creatures, hovering uncomfortably between the human world and a subservient state as a household object.
He and his comrades know they'll be set free from the spell when the Beast can love and be loved,
so they give him speed lessons in charm.
Sherilyn Lawson is wonderful as Babette, the hip-swirling feather duster. Kristi Foster, who does a
bang-up job of delivering the title song, is an amiable Mrs. Potts, and James Pepper is a walking sight
gag as Cogsworth the clock. And as Madame de la Grande Bouche, a chest of drawers who was once an opera
star, Katrina Froelich embodies comic grandeur ("I'll wear lipstick and rouge, and I won't be so huge,"
she warbles, looking forward to her release from life as a bureau).
Sharon V. Miller neatly choreographs the rousing show tune "Be My Guest." Kirk Mouser directs.
Continues: 7 p.m. Fridays, 2 and 7 p.m. Saturdays, 2 p.m. Sundays through Dec. 31,
plus holiday-week matinees 2 p.m. Tuesdays-Thursdays, Dec. 19-28
Northwest Children’s Theatre and School,
1819 N.W. Everett St., 503-222-4480, www.nwcts.org, $18 youth, $22 adult; recommended for ages 4 and up
Cold-blooded Critters Tell a Warm Tale
Friday, February 17, 2006
by Suzie Ridgway (from the Portland Tribune)
The musical entertains children and adults, while the characters and music communicate the message
of Frog and Toad: Honor true friendship despite individual personality differences.
Children sit with rapt attention as the lights go down and the red velvet curtain goes up. The
story follows Frog and Toad as they journey through four seasons of friendship and discovery. The
play, written by Willie Reale, is based on characters from books written and illustrated by Arnold
Lobel.
Larger-than-life daisies and grass set the stage while four musicians sit high above, playing
lively, upbeat tunes with a drum kit, two keyboards, an upright bass and an occasional guitar.
The play begins in spring, as the animals awake from their winter hibernation. Frog (Leif Norby)
is an early riser with a sunny disposition. Toad (John Monteverde) doesn’t want to get out of bed.
The two, dressed mostly in vintage suits, begin the year by planting a garden, swimming and baking
cookies together. They get support throughout their story from birds, a mouse, a lizard, a turtle,
a snail and some fuzzy moles, all wearing inventive, 1940s-inspired costumes.
The Lizard (Bryan Hunt), as well as the two boys that are part of the gaggle of twittering birds
(Justin Moyer, Thomas S. Matthews), wear zoot suits and fedoras, while the girl birds (Molly Blodgett,
Mary Lucarelli) are all dolled up in blue, tailored dress suits and hats with giant plumes. Mouse
(Cameron Peart) flits about in a ruffled, frilly dress, Turtle (Lucas Welch) wears old-time safari
gear, and Snail (Ben Wynant) chugs along in a mauve bandleader jacket, with matching cap and argyle
socks.
Hilarious songs, including “Getta Loada Toad” and “Cookies” keep the audience roaring with laughter
and hungry for cookies (which are available two for $1 at the concession stand during intermission).
Post-intermission, the play moves into summer. The effects that accompany Frog and Toad’s kite-flying
adventure marvel the audience.
Fall brings leaf raking and Frog’s dark tale of his not-too-scary encounter with the Large and Terrible Frog.
Finally, winter sets in, bringing silly sledding adventures with helpful moles. Christmastime, with “Merry
Almost Christmas,” signals the end of the show and sets the stage for the company finale: “A Year With
Frog and Toad,” seeing the two friends coming full circle, settling in for their long winter’s nap.
7 p.m. FRIDAY, 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. SATURDAY, 2 p.m. SUNDAY, through Feb. 26, Northwest Children’s Theatre and School,
1819 N.W. Everett St., 503-222-4480, www.nwcts.org, $14 ages 14 and under, $18 adult; recommended for ages 4 and up
A more complex ‘Peter Pan’
Tuesday, December 06, 2005
HOLLY JOHNSON - The Oregonian
Northwest Children’s Theater pulls Peter Pan onto the boards periodically, and its glowing version of
J. M. Barrie's masterpiece is a colorful, well-costumed cavalcade of pirates, mermaids, fairies and children.
This version, intelligently adapted for the stage by Royal Shakespeare Company luminaries John Caird and Trevor Nunn,
is more complex and truer to Barrie’s original play than the simplistic, self-important musical version. But there
are songs and atmospheric music aplenty at the children’s theater, with an appealing original score by Portland
composer Mike Van Liew.
Brendan Robinson, 15, is part faun and part Jim Carrey as an ungainly, cheeky and delightful Peter. Company newcomer
Paul Angelo embodies mincing, preening Captain Hook with great success, and the entire 30-member cast is in fine form.
The show is greatly enhanced by David Delamare’s visual designs, including illustrated nursery panels evocative of
an early 20th-century England and Neverland sets that pique the imagination. Jeff Forbes’ lighting, which washes across
all of this, makes everything look even richer. Superb costumes are by DeeDee Remington. John Monteverde directs.
Continues 7 p.m. Fridays-Saturdays, and 2 p.m. Saturdays-Sundays through Dec. 31, with added 2 p.m. holiday matinees
Dec. 20-23 and Dec. 27-30. Northwest Neighborhood Cultural Center, 1819 N.W. Everett St.; $16-$20, 503-222-4480 or
www.nwcts.org.
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