The future of musical theater is in good hands with talented students like those
from USC who have put together a sensational black box production of
Sondheim/Lapine’s Sunday In The Park With George, a production which
actually surpasses last year’s outstanding Sunday/George at The Chance
Theatre in both imagination and originality. This is due in large part to
director/set designer Steve Edlund, aided by a fine cast and a star making
performance by Natalie Peyser.

Musical Theatre Repertory’s Edlund has designed a mobile white-walled set
which spans the wide Massman Theatre stage and takes shape before our
eyes as a modern day, denim clad George utters the memorable opening
lines, “White. A blank page or canvas. The challenge: bring order to the whole.
Through design. Composition. Tension. Balance. Light. And harmony.”  A large
blank screen upstage begins to fill, like a giant Etch-A-Sketch, with lines which
begin to represent Seurat’s most famous work, “Sunday Afternoon on the
Island of La Grande Jatte.”  Later on, the pencil lines become charcoal, with
shadings of gray, and eventually fill with color and light.

For the few uninitiated, Sunday In The Park With George is the story of 19th
century French painter George Seurat, his fictitious model/muse Dot, and (in
act 2) Seurat’s 20th century great-grandson also called George, and his
grandmother Marie, the elderly daughter of the first George and Dot. Its
themes are “art, emotional connection, and community.” (Wikipedia.org)

In the role of Dot, Edlund has cast Natalie Peyser, an actress/singer of great
confidence and talent who more than holds her own again recent
performances by Broadway’s Kelli O’Hara at Reprise! and the Chance’s
talented Lowe Taylor.  Peyser conveys Dot’s tenderness, and her charm. “I can
read,” she exclaims insistently, and then in the tiniest voice, “a little.”  At times,
she is nearly incandescent.  Even when Peyser is sharing the stage, you can’t
take your eyes off her.  In a fine scene with Tara Panattoni as Yvonne, Peyser is
particularly strong as she mocks Yvonne’s affectations (and Panattoni is very
good indeed as she reveals Yvonne’s insecurities). In act 2, a gray haired
Peyser returns as modern George’s 90something grandmother, Marie, her eyes
shimmering with memories, her voice quavering as she sings a heart-wrenching
“Children and Art.” Remember the name Natalie Peyser.  You’ll be hearing it
again for sure.

As both 19th century George and his modern namesake, DJ Cashmere has the
harder task, as the role(s) of George put vocal demands on even the best
tenor, and there is always the memory of Mandy Patinkin’s almost unnaturally
high and pure voice on the original cast recording.  Cashmere gives it his all,
and conveys George’s passion verging on obsession in “Finishing the Hat.”  He
is especially good in “The Day Off,” as tough Spot and saucy Fifi (two canines),
down on his hands and knees, sniffing the ground, and creating two very
different voices for the pooches.  Cashmere does some fine and credible
acting as contemporary George. One looks forward to seeing him in future
roles.

A real standout in the production is Laura Darrell in a pair of very different
characterizations. With the help of some excellent aging makeup, Darrell is
believable and touching as George’s elderly mother, reappearing in Act 2
glamorized as wealthy art maven Blair Daniels. Darrell, who sings “Beautiful” …
beautifully and with deep feeling, has a solid career ahead of her as a musical
theater character actress.

Handsome Keith Barletta is suitably oily as the lecherous Franz. In a very clever
bit, Franz, seated on the grass next to a standing Nurse slips his hand under her
floor length skirt and up her leg as he whispers seductively, “It’s too hot.” 
Sydney Blair Friedman is Franz’s wife Frieda, very funny as she and Franz strike a
pose when they discover George painting them, and later reacting to the
stench of the boatman (an appropriately surly and vulgar Jonathan Shell). 

Ben Trustman is very good as the supercilious Jules, with his handlebar
mustache and giggly wife, an equally good Tara Panattoni.  James Grosch is
excellent as Louis, the baker, whose sweet smile makes one almost forget that
he’s not the brightest bulb. Grosch returns effectively in Act 2 as modern
George’s close friend Dennis.

One of director Edlund’s original touches (or at least one I’d never seen
before) is the clear differentiation between the two Celestes. Wearing
completely dissimilar costumes, these are clearly two very distinct young
women. Celeste # 1 (Greta McAnany) is the Alpha Celeste, taking great
pleasure in bossing the sweeter, more subservient Celeste # 2 (Ashley
Strumwasser) around, even hitting her with her umbrella when #2 is a bit
insubordinate. #2 knows well enough not to let #1 sit on the grass without
cleaning the ground with her handkerchief, and when #1 is seated, she makes
sure to hold her umbrella straight above her head leaving poor #2 to sit
unprotected from the sun.  McAnany never overplays Celeste’s bossiness, and
the lovely Strumwasser would seem to be just right for future roles as Laurey in
Oklahoma and Julie in Carousel.

Brad Wergley is funny (so cute and yet so dim) as the “human” soldier, his
bosom buddy comrade in arms represented by a blurred charcoal drawing on
a human-sized cutout.  Kelly Combs does very well as bratty Louise, and as
modern George’s ex-wife Elaine.

Comic relief is provided in the characters of Mr. and Mrs., American tourists
(presumably from George W. Bush country or thereabouts), wonderfully
portrayed by Sean Kranz and Ashley Wright. Wright has the good luck to get
to play three roles, all of them with flair. In addition, she’s the Irish nurse and in
Act 2 reappears as the gregarious Harriet Pawling.

Director Edlund shows special skill in maneuvering his 15-actor cast around the
stage, and especially in group scenes like the end of act 1 mayhem which
George stops with a shouted “Order!”, leading to a moving rendition of
Sondheim’s exquisite “Sunday” with “Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La
Grande Jatte” filling the stage from left to right as the actors strike the
painting’s inhabitant’s distinctive poses.

One of the stumbling blocks productions of Sunday In The Park With George
face is the sometimes awkward transition from act 1’s 1887 setting and the
more contemporary act 2’s 1984 time frame. Edlund’s set helps greatly in
making this transition, as it transforms effortlessly from park to art gallery.  The
same upstage screen which held Seurat’s “Grande Jatte” painting now
projects a lightning fast montage of famous paintings, spanning every year
between 1887 and 1984 in machine-gun rapid succession. Yet another of
Edlund’s innovative ideas. The Chromolume presentation is very effectively
executed with a giant hollow Plexiglas crystal center stage, housing a half
dozen or so colored rotating spotlights, while a laser light show takes place
above the set, accompanied by electronica music.

Speaking of music, the very talented musical director Billy Thompson
(composer of Invasion The Musical, costar of Twist, and USC grad) makes
beautiful music at the piano, aided by Alexander Gerogakis on keyboard 2. 
Rarely has a single piano sounded so “big” and flawless.

Nick Handley’s lighting design is very effective, notably in a scene where Dot
sits at her desk powdering herself, bathed in a celestial white light, George’s
portrait of her in this same pose propped against the wall behind her. In the
background a nearly crazed George stands behind a transparent scrim on
which he adds dots of color to his signature painting, all the while singing “Dot
Dot sitting, Dot Dot waiting, Dot Dot getting fat fat fat…” Excellent lighting
aiding in creating a powerful scene.

Costumes are at a highly professional level, with credit due to Peyser for the
first act’s intricately designed and beautifully executed 19th century fashions,
including a hand-made bustle for Dot and the most god-awful feathered hat
you’ve ever seen for Mrs., the obnoxious American tourist. Sara Fox designed
act 2’s 80s fashions, which are perfect recreations of the big-shouldered look of
20 years ago.  The women all have absolutely spot-on 80s hair as well.

Jesse Laks contributed the excellent sound and projection design, Griffin Behm
was laser designer, Joe Sofranko choreographed the fights, and Paul Backer
was vocal/dialect coach. Others involved behind the scenes included Melissa
Trupp, Kim Parch, Kaitlyn Lee, Kate Thomas, Liza Burnes, Brittany Perham-
MacWhorter, Sarah Morris, Carmen Smith, Jordan Schames, Sarah Steinman,
Catherine Jeffrey, Brent Lomas, and Lili Fuller.

Seeing a student production always requires some additional suspension of
disbelief, with young actors (in this case averaging around 20 years old) often
playing roles which, once they enter the world of professional theater, they
won’t get the chance to perform again for another 20 or 30 years.  But it’s also
exciting as an audience member to see glimpses into the kinds of roles the
future holds for these performers.

This USC student production of Sunday In The Park With George competes
quite favorably with many of the finest 99-seat theater productions I’ve seen
over the past several years. If you have the time this weekend, do yourself a
favor and catch this “Sunday” before Monday rolls around and it is no more.

Performs at the Massman Theatre (at USC), Located at 1029 Childs Way, Los
Angeles 90089
5 PERFORMANCES ONLY: Thursday, January 24th at 8pm, Friday, January
25th at 8pm, Saturday, January 26th at 2pm and 8pm, Sunday, January
27th at 2pm
Tickets available at the door or by emailing
uscmtr@gmail.com. 
For more information, visit uscmtr.weebly.com

--Steven Stanley
   January 24, 2008