I just read this bit in Jim Edwards' Beacon News review of Black Coffee at Riverfront Playhouse, referring to Thommas Dickens' performance as Hercule Poirot:
<font size="2" face="Times, Verdana, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif">AAARRRRGGGGHHHHHH!!!!!Talking softer would force the audience to listen more attentively.
Just what we fuckin' need. A reviewer advising an actor to not project as much.
Even in a small theatre, people in the last row need to hear every word without straining.
I've been directing for twenty years and the ONLY actor I've ever had to pull back on volume is Steve Schroeder. Which is better than having to drag volume out of people.
Curse you, Jim Edwards!! Curse you!!!
(Well, not too much... it's not that big a deal...)
I saw the show last night. Riverfront doesn't seem to be having the attendance problem shared by most of the rest of us... the house was packed.
I'm not that big a fan of English drawing room mysteries; I went because I'm currently in a show with one of their cast members and wanted to see her work. But Gary Puckett did a great job with the show and they had a very impressive set for such a little stage. It was a very enjoyable show.
The cast was good. Standouts were Jackson Schultz, who was getting some very solid laughs as Poirot's bumbling assistant; Caitlin Borek as a flapper more interested in sex with bumbling assistants than in the murder at hand; Thommas Dickens as Poirot, who by the end of the show was getting spontaneous applause on several lines; Mike Barr as the typical phlegmatic English butler was getting laughs by saying "Yes, sir"; Marie Clawson as a Dark and Mysterious Beauty; Steve Rasmussen as Inspector Japp (counterpart to Inspector Lestrade in the Sherlock Holmes stories); and Robert Becker as the dastardly murderer (show's over -- spoilers be damned.)
Having been at opening night of "Black Coffee" the same night that Jim Edwards was there, I have to say when I read his review I wondered if we had seen the same show! Then I read Jill Orr's review and realized that yes I had been at the same theater.
Having performed in or attended most Riverfront productions over the last year I am consistently impressed by the quality and detail of the sets. They certainly manage to pull off great sets in a small space. A great example was last year's production of "Dracula" - great set and wonderful special effects.
The Riverfront is developing quite group of loyal followers. If you've never had a Riverfront experience, I highly recommend a visit.
Posting Permissions
Bookmarks