Asheville – Vive The Revolutionists!
I know, that was an easy opening to this article. I also know that “vive” is French for “long live,” and while I wish incredible shows could last forever, this production will close on June 4th.
That’s not a terribly long lifespan, but it is enough time for you to experience it.
Trust me, you want to experience everything this play has to offer.
Written by the most produced playwright in America, Lauren Gunderson (sharing the top honor with Lynn Nottage), The Revolutionists really is a roller coaster of a ride. Building from the opening scene and then taking us higher and lower with each pitch, successively moving more rapidly until the end.
Produced by Immediate Theatre Project, the four female actors take the stage by storm, drawing the audience in with humor and fully formed characters. Once we in the audience were hooked, they began delivering solid emotional blows to our brains, our hearts, and our very core.
But this is live theater. We want them to do this. We buy our tickets because we want them to make us think, feel, laugh, and cry. Thankfully, all of that was peppered with often unexpected hilarity.
Kirby Gibson, Glenna Grant, Lauren Kriel, and Parris Sarter’s portrayals of four real-life characters were both enchanting and enthralling. They climbed inside our heads and reminded us of the ways that society still harms women and just how far that harm can go.
These particular women, however, were not willing to be so easily divided, dismissed or destroyed. Their tools were fierce determination, sass and sarcasm, humor, and heart.
Their bold, brilliant sacrifices were devastatingly inspirational. The profound emotions they elicited from the audience were aided by the intensity of Willie Repoley’s superb direction and Jason Williams’ powerful lighting design.
In addition to all of that, you’ll want to see the gorgeous costumes and intricate paper wigs created by Sandra Wheeley McDaniel.
The revolution is happening all around us. The revolution is now… And, until June 4th, The Revolutionists is at North Carolina Stage Company.
Say Goodnight Gracie at SART
Last week I drove about 40 minutes and somehow ended up in the Palace Theater in 1924.
Although weirdly, it resembled the Southern Appalachian Repertory Theater in Mars Hill. Wherever I was, it was incredible. I finally realized my dream of seeing George Burns onstage.
I know that the SART website and playbill say that Pasquale LaCorte was playing the comedy icon, but if that’s true, his resurrection of this legend was astonishing.
His timing, physicality, mannerisms, and the addition of all those odd little things Burns did while talking—all of it. Everything was spot on.
Through the one-man show, mixed with photos, videos, and audio recordings, we were taken through the life of an artist who starred on stages, radio, television, and movies for most of his 100 years.
We were even treated to a performance with the legendary duo, with LaCorte playing Burns and a recording of Gracie Allen. Allen was Burns’ comedy partner for over 40 incredibly successful years, and were married for 38 of them.
The Tony-nominated Broadway show came from the brain of one of my favorite writers, Rupert Holmes. A household name for his radio hit Escape (The Pina Colada Song), Holmes is also an accomplished dramatist and author. I still search the streaming sites, hoping to rewatch his show, Remember WENN, so I can fall into his sharp, rapid-fire dialogue all over again.
This biographical play had all that and so much more. We were taken through Burns’ 100 years of life with the dexterity of a marionette’s puppeteer.
The humor forced me to reach for my inhaler because of too much laughter. The emotional drama made me use my skirt as a hanky when I was brought to tears.
I encourage you all to go and fall in love with Pasquale, George, and Gracie at SART.
Even if you’re too young to know who George Burns and Gracie Allen were, you’ll fall for them anyway. Just remember to bring your inhaler—and tissues.