Lyric Stage of Boston Presents "Buyer & Cellar" by Jonathan Tolins - Featuring Phil Tayler - A MUST SEE!

"Buyer & Cellar" by Jonathan Tolins was a huge Off-Broadway hit last season.  When Lyric Stage Company of Boston Producing Artistic Director Spiro Veloudos saw the piece in NYC, his first thought was that Lyric should go after the rights to produce the play, and that Phil Tayler should recreate the role of Alex More.  As is usually the case when Mr. Veloudos makes theatrical judgments, he was right on target.  The play is a total delight, and Mr. Tayler's performance in this one-man comedy is the finest work he has produced in a career that is already rich with memorable performances.

This play, which runs 90 minutes without Intermission, is a fascinating and hilarious admixture of truth and fiction.

Fact: Barbra Streisand has built in the basement of her Malibu home a mall in which she stores many of the thousands of costumes, antiques, knick knacks and tchotchkes she has acquired over the years of her reign as diva.

Fact: Playwright Jonathan Tolins once had a personal encounter with Ms. Streisand at a play they were both attending.  She offered him half of her Kit Kat bar.

Fiction: From that encounter, Tolins began to fantasize about what it might be like to be a lone employee in Barbra's cellar, on call to respond to her every whim.  This play is the result of those ruminations.

Phil Tayler as Alex More
"Buyer & Cellar"
Lyric Stage of Boston
Through January 3, 2016
Photo by Mark S. Howard

The play is brilliantly written, prompting from me spontaneous belly laughs at some of the outrageous lines.  Mr. Tolins has a sardonic rapier wit and is a keen observer of culture, the human condition and the potential absurdities of life.  He has written this play so that a lone actor plays multiple roles. Alex More is the main character, an out of work actor who is offered a chance to work in Ms. Streisand's basement.  As he recounts his experiences, he also portrays Ms. Streisand, as well as the woman who is Ms. Streisand's personal assistant, who supervises Alex.  We also meet Barry, Alex's boyfriend, a flamboyant under-employed screen writer who both loves the fact that Alex has access to personal encounters with Barbra, but is also insanely jealous of Alex's good fortune. Finally, we have a brief encounter with Barbra's current husband, James Brolin.

Phil Tayler as James Brolin
"Buyer & Cellar"
Lyric Stage of Boston
Through January 3, 2016
Photo by Mark S. Howard

This brilliant script needs a very versatile actor to execute the concept and deliver the lines in a variety of vocal styles and physical manifestations, without resorting to cartoonish caricature.  The talented Mr. Tayler pulls off this high-wire act with aplomb and panache.  It is a marathon challenge for an actor - to keep the audience engaged non-stop for 90 minutes without respite or without benefit of other actors to play off of.  When I was not laughing uproariously, I was sitting on the edge of my seat eager to see and hear what outrageous comment might come next.  Mr. Tolins has filled the actor's quiver with dozens of zingers that poke fun at the world of divas, Hollywood moguls, politicians, complex relationships and dysfunctional human beings full of insecurities.  Mr. Tayler launches Tolins' arrows with flawless precision, hitting a bullseye with each one.

There is a scene in which Alex confronts Ms. Streisand with using him solely for the purpose of figuring out what color throw pillows she should use for her Family Room sofa.  Mr. Tayler plays both sides of the argument.  Lighting cues designed by Chris Brusberg precisely coordinate with changes in character, so we are never left to wonder who is speaking.  Matching these changes in lighting a changes by Mr. Tayler in posture, gesticulation, vocal inflection to match precisely each character.  He makes particularly goof use of his hands and fingers to differentiate among characters. Scenic Designer Anthony R. Phelps has created a simple but elegant set that gives Mr. Tayler the latitude to perform his magic. Sound Designer David Remedios pipes in appropriately themed Streisand songs to set the right mood,  Costumes are by Rafael Jaen. Director Courtney O'Connor has managed to coax out of Mr. Tayler a praiseworthy performance that is an end-of-the-season MUST SEE.  Audience members were quick to leap to their feet in approbation of the incredible performance they had just witnessed.

In the past few days, I was blessed with seeing two different plays that I would have to categorize as near perfect evenings at the theater.  The first was "Hamilton" (review to follow).  The second was "Buyer & Cellar"!  So, to my upscale friends in Weston, Wellesley, Winchester and environs, I say take a break from doing inventory in your well-stocked wine cellar and buy some tickets to see "Buyer & Seller" before it is too late.  To my friends at the other end of socio-economic scale, come up for air and leave your basement apartment in Allston or Brighton or Everett and head to Back Bay to the Lyric and take in a performance of "Buyer & Cellar."  You won't have a chance to see "Hamilton" for a while, so ring out 2015 or ring in 2016 with one of the funniest plays and finest individual performances of the year!

Enjoy!

Al

Lyric Stage Website

"A Christmas Carol" at North Shore Music Theatre - This 25th Anniversary Production Is The Best Ever! Through December 23rd

Treat yourself to an early Christmas present and head to North Shore Music Theatre.  If you know me at all, you know that I am a huge fan of anything written by Charles Dickens.  His classic story, "A Christmas Carol," has enchanted me since I was a boy.  Over the decades that I have trod the earth, I have seen many adaptations and presentations of this tale dramatized on stage and screen.  I have never seen any better presentation of this story than the one presently on stage at NSMT. Everything about this production makes it worthy of investing your entertainment dollar.  It is visually stunning, theatrically mesmerizing, emotionally gripping, and spiritual uplifting, Under the inspired direction of Artistic Director Kevin P. Hill, all of the elements - staging, choreography, lighting, sound, music, acting, singing, flying, pyrotechnics - all coalesce into a pleasing whole that had me vacillating among a Christmas punch bowl of emotions - joy, wonder, amazement, sympathy, empathy, pity, hope and finally - deep satisfaction.  And isn't that the essence of the Christmas experience?

• David Coffee has inhabited the role of Ebenezer Scrooge lo these many seasons (22 to be exact), and there is no one better in portraying the dizzying arc of Scrooge's journey through time and turmoil. Mr. Coffee brews an even more satisfying cup of Christmas cheer with each new annual production of this play.  His facial expressions and grunting of "Humbug!" are along worth the price of admission. But he also has a wondrous supporting cast backing him up.
• Andrew Tighe is the young and erstwhile romantic Ebenezer, in love with life and with Belle (Lenni Alexandra Kmiec).  Their chemistry is palpable, and it is heart-rending to watch Belle's heart break as Ebenezer's heart hardens, and she is replaced in his affections by gold and his relentless pursuit of lucre.

• In adapting this novella to the stage, writer Jon Kimbell has deftly employed the role of the Narrator to create a context and explication for much of the action.  Tommy Labanaris is perfect in this role.  In a wonderful plot twist in the final moments of the show, we learn why the Narrator has been leaning upon a cane throughout the proceedings.  It is a nice touch.

• The Cratchit Family - This struggling little family is at the emotional heart of this narrative, and as portrayed by these gifted actors, we feel their affection and concern for one another. Russell Garrett is Bob Cratchit, pater familias and also beleaguered clerk to Ebenezer Scrooge.  Leigh Barrett is a warm mother and very opinionated in her resentment of the parsimonious Mr. Scrooge.  Ms. Barrett also doubles as the Ghost of Christmas Past, in which role she is also marvelous. Jillian Furber is Martha Cratchit, Cameron Perrin is Peter Cratchit, Haven Pereira is Belinda Cratchit and Jake Ryan Flynn is the universally beloved Tiny Tim.

Scrooge Observes The Cratchit Family At Table
"A Christmas Carol"
North Shore Music Theatre
Through December 23rd

•  The Spirits - In addition to the versatile Ms. Barrett as The Ghost of Christmas Past, Peter S. Adams presents an imposing figure as The Ghost of Christmas Present. berobed and bedecked in traditional holiday colors.  The aforementioned Andrew Tighe doubles as the Ghost Of Christmas Yet To Come, and is a haunting spectre. He is accompanied by Ignorance (Joshua Gillespie) and Want (Jay Turner). The writer has cleverly created two sprites called The Pearlies who energetically tumble and dance and generally cavort around the stage. Their presence indicates to the audience that we are about to experience the appearance of a spirit from another realm.  The first such visit is that of the Ghost of Jacob Marley (Freddie Kimmel) as he flies in (flying effects by ZFX, Inc.) to warn Scrooge that it is not too late to stop forging the kinds of ponderous chains that envelop the spectral former business partner and fellow miser.  The Pearlies are played by the enormously talented Nathaniel Brage and Brad Trump.  Their presence in each scene serves as a sort of theatrical amuse-bouche for the audience, preparing our palates for the more substantial ghostly offerings to come on the bill of fare.

Freddie Kimmel as Marley

"A Christmas Carol"

North Shore Music Theatre

Through December 23rd

• The Scrooge Family - In addition to those already mentioned above, Scrooge's extended family includes Giacomo Favazza as the boy Ebenezer, Bronson Norris Murphy as the irrepressible and ever joyful nephew Fred, Lianne Gennaco as Fred's bride, Meg and Scarlett Keene-Connole as Ebenezer's sister Fan.

• The Fezziwigs - J.T. Turner as Mr. Fezziwig and Cheryl McMahon as Mrs. Fezziwig anchor the luminous memories of the young clerk Ebenezer being treated with great affection by his first employer.  This joyous couple knew how to throw a party!
• Revelers, Townsfolk and Others - Robert Conte as Old Joe, Jake Bassinger and Ian Castracane as London boys, Tim McShea as Dick Wilkins, and Eva Rae Costanza, Lorin Zackular, Meghan Ahern as residents of London.

Adding to the overall effect are spectacular pyrotechnics by Atlas Fireworks, superb Lighting by Jack Mehler, Sound by Leon Rothenberg, Costumes by Paula Peasley-Ninestein, Hair and Wigs by Gerard Kelly and Scenic Design by Howard C. Jones.  On the music front, original music was composed and arranged by Alby Potts and James Woodland.  Music Director Milton Granger leads a multi-talented group of musicians and singers who perform in every corner of the theatre.

Tickets to this production are always in great demand, so do not delay, and do not disappoint by waiting too long.  You will have a Dickens of a time explaining to your family why you did not bring them to this year's production of NSMT's timeless "A Christmas Carol."

God bless us, everyone!

Enjoy!

Al

NSMT Website