Wednesday, October 2, 2013

September Broadway Memories: Orlando Bloom, Zachary Levi, and Zachary Quinto




September was Broadway month for me. I was able to see three well-performed shows and see actors Orlando Bloom, Zachary Levi, and Zachary Quinto at the same time.
“Romeo and Juliet” (the Richard Rodgers Theater)-While it was still in previews, I was fortunate enough to get a front row seat to William Shakespeare’s timeless tragedy “Romeo and Juliet”.   This well-done revival stars Condola Rashad (Broadway’s “Stick Fly”) and Orlando Bloom (“Troy”, “Lord of the Rings”) as the central pair of the story. Orlando Bloom’s Romeo of the house of Montague is a romantic who needs an emotional boost after being turned down. Mercutio (Christian Camargo)-a scene stealer in his own right- and Benvolio (Conrad Kemp) drag him to a party being held by the Capulet family to lift his spirits. At this party, Romeo sees Juliet (Condola Rashad) and the newly acquainted pair arrange to meet again soon. Friar Laurence (Brent Carver) hears about Juliet from Romeo and intervenes to assist the two lovers in hopes the rival families could unite through this union.  Obstacles stand in the way of this goal, and signals get crossed. By the end, the image of the stage of the two families leaves an impression.   *"Romeo and Juliet" opened September 19th, 2013 and is a limited engagement that is running for 13 weeks only*
“First Date” (the Longacre Theater)-The lone musical I saw in September, it is a new show that delighted the audience. Zachary Levi (NBC series “Chuck”; Disney’s “Tangled”) is hilarious as Aaron, a man with emotional baggage set-up on a blind date by a friend. Krysta Rodriguez (Broadway’s “the Addams Family”) is charming as Casey, the woman he meets. The bar/restaurant is the scene for an amusing real-time 90 minute date where the two face their issues literally on stage as the role of friends, family, and exes appear throughout the evening. People pop-up to offer advice (“The Girl for You”), or hinder the progress of the couple (“Allison’s Theme”, “That’s Why You Love Me”). Despite these mental distractions, Casey and Aaron help each other deal with their fears in order to move past them (“Safer” “In Love With You”). By the end of the night, you will feel the way Aaron and Casey do: that you have found “Something That Will Last” in your Broadway memories.*"First Date" opened August 8th, 2013 and is not a limited engagement*
“The Glass Menagerie”- In this Tennessee Williams play, Zachary Quinto (“Star Trek” reboot; TV show “Heroes”) is entrancing as Tom Wingfield, the teller of the tale as well as a character in it. Tom guides the audience into memories he has of his mother Amanda (Cherry Jones) and his shy sister Laura (Celia Kennan-Bolger). Cherry Jones (Broadway’s “Doubt”; NBC series “Awake”) creates a portrait of a woman who reminisces about her life of attending dances and choosing a telephone company worker “who fell in love with long distance”; she wishes success and a caller for her daughter Laura and worries about her son Tom’s nightly trips to the movies. Portraying Laura, Celia Keenan-Bolger (Broadway’s “Peter and the Starcatcher”) gives a good performance as a shy girl with a slight defect and an “inferiority complex” whose preoccupation with her glass animals makes her unique. Into this journey of the mind, Tom introduces a gentleman caller (Brian J. James from SyFy channel’s “Stargate: Universe”) that comes to dinner and breaks the illusion by his presence in the apartment. Sitting in the audience at this show, I was sad to see the memory play fade back to Tom’s realization that he left behind a person whose presence haunts him. As the light disappears around him, it leaves behind a visual sure to remain with anyone who sees this show.*"The Glass Menagerie" opened September 26th, 2013 is a 17-week limited engagement*

It has been a great month to be a fan of Broadway.  I recommend visiting TKTS Booth or the theaters for tickets to experience the power of live performances.

Sources for this blog: the Playbills for “Romeo and Juliet”, “First Date”, and “The Glass Menagerie”, Playbill.com; “The Glass Menagerie” official website: http://theglassmenageriebroadway.com/  

*Photos were taken by me and are my property

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