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New Hamburg Independent preview p1
New Hamburg Independent preview p2
K-W Record review
New Hamburg Independent review
CKWR review
MARTIN DEGROOT - Kitchener-Waterloo Record
(Originally Published in The Record May 4, 2004)
The Community Players of New Hamburg is celebrating
20 years of community theatre with a special anniversary production
that goes back to the very beginning -- their own beginning,
back in September 1984, when the Youth Group of Trinity Lutheran
Church put on a production of Godspell -- and THE beginning:
The 2004 show, which opens at the New Hamburg Arena tomorrow,
is Children of Eden, a large-scale musical loosely based on
the first nine chapters of the Book of Genesis.
The common thread here is composer Stephen Schwartz, who wrote
the music and lyrics for both Godspell and Children of Eden
(as well as Pippin, The Baker's Wife, and the animated films
The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Pocahontas and The Prince of Egypt).
Children of Eden was initially composed as an oratorio. It became
a full-fledged musical with the collaboration of librettist
John Caird, the director of Les Miserables and Nicholas Nickleby.
The stories and characters covered in Children of Eden -- Adam
and Eve, the Garden of Eden, Cain and Abel, Noah's Ark -- may
be familiar. But the show is relatively unknown. It has never
been produced on Broadway, or made into a movie. And it has
never been performed here in our area.
Children of Eden received lukewarm reviews when it was first
performed in London in 1991. What saved it was subsequent productions
by small theatre groups all over North America which provided
Schwarz with opportunities to observe audience reactions and
refine the show in places where it needed work. Since then,
the show's reputation has spread mostly by word of mouth, to
the point where it is now one of the most frequently performed
musicals around.
The Community Players have come a long way over 20 years. The
church youth group gradually became more community-oriented,
so it was renamed the Trinity Community Players in 1989. In
2000, they moved their rehearsals from the church basement to
Centennial Hall
in Baden, at which point TCP became
The Community Players.
Over time, The Community Players productions have been steadily
growing in scale, complexity and, most important, in quality.
The group has built a region-wide reputation for consistently
delivering top-quality, polished shows -- big shows, like Oklahoma!
(2003), Fiddler on the Roof (2002), Cinderella (2001), The Music
Man (2000), and Wizard of Oz (1999). But the company remains
resolutely and unabashedly amateur in the best sense of the
word:
Everyone works as a volunteer. Anyone who wants to be involved
is welcome. Everything depends on support from the community.
A portion of the gate of each year's production is given back
to the community to support some local charity or project (this
year the proceeds will help build a new recreation and family
resource centre).
Children of Eden is the most challenging project the group has
undertaken.
The production involves 65 performers, 16 musicians, a custom-built
stage, originally designed costumes, and a multi-faceted artistic
production team. With more than 40 songs, the show is virtually
non-stop music covering a wide range of styles, including Broadway
show tunes, pop, reggae, folk and gospel.
When I dropped by the arena on Sunday evening, the cast and
crew (which includes a remarkable number of young people) were
getting ready for a full rehearsal. The stage is massive. The
set is simple. The attention will be on the performers, on the
music, and on basic, imaginative
story-telling.
A special 20th anniversary program brochure includes a photo
and profile of every member of the company, along a history
of the group told through a set of very short stories. It reads
like a summary of what community theatre is all about.
Martin DeGroot is executive director
of the Waterloo Regional Arts Council. He comments on arts and
culture Tuesdays in The Record. You can reach him by e-mail
at: mdg@golden.net.
KATE SCHWASS, Independent staff
Children have defied their parents since the beginning of
time and the children created by the Father in Eden are no
exception.
Children of Eden explores the recurring
theme of a child defying their father through the banishment of Adam
and Eve and the struggles with Cain and Abel to the ultimate
acceptance of a son's defiance in the characters of Japheth
and Noah. The Community Players' latest show, marking their
20th anniversary, was a chance for the stage group to go
back to their roots - when they were a small group practicing
in a church basement.
TCP's first production in 1984 was Godspell and
the group went back to a musical written by Stephen Schwartz
to celebrate the anniversary. The staging for Children
of Eden was
different from other TCP performances. This year Artistic Director
Brent Roth
opted for a simple set on a tiered stage complimented by
basic costumes and the orchestra visible at the back of the
stage.
The first and second acts were equally strong, with the story
changing from Adam and Eve to Noah and his family on the
Ark. The score for Children of Eden is a demanding one for
both vocalists and instumentalists. But the company was able
to handle the
continuous singing and the orchestra led by Jen Hoffman was
flawless.
The months of hard work put in by cast and crew were evident
in everything from the vocals to the make-up. The company
worked well under the direction of TCP veteran stage director
John Cull, who's rapport with the children in the show was
evident on stage. The children in this production performed
their parts with an ability well beyond their years. Young
Cain and Abel (Ethan Smith and Alexander Boshart) handled
the score well and their months of practicing paid off.
Eve (played by Sara Martin) was extraordinary, playing the
inquisitive teenager to the still-questioning aging mother.
Martin's vocal range had no trouble with the difficult score
and her
voice expressed the curiousity of a teenager, a mother's
pain at the death of a son and the realization it was her
time to join her Father once again.
But stealing the show, with her jazzy tune, Ain't It Good
, Mama Noah played by Jenn Zutt was the highlight of the
night. Zutt belts out the song with ease and her performance
certainly
gets toes tapping.
Children of Eden was
the perfect choice for TCP's anniversary show. Going back to
their roots proved
to be a successful
and entertaining choice and many supporters are already wondering
what they will be
doing next year.
Vic Folliott, CKWR
A wonderful night last night in New Hamburg
started with a beautiful meal at the Waterlot, then off to The
Community Players of New Hamburg's presentation of Children
of Eden.
And if you have a chance to see this Stephen Schwartz - written
musical, by all means do so. Celebrating their 20th year, the
quality from start to finish was just outstanding.
Special mention of performances by Lauren Guistini as Yonah and
Gerald Grundy as Noah, and a gold medal to Sara Martin; thought
she was great as Eve. And Kirk Lackenbauer as Father is really
in a class all by himself. One of the most powerful yet expressive
voices I have
ever heard.
After last night's incredible performance, the cast and crew are
back at it again this morning, bright and early, 11:00 their next
show. They have an evening performance tonight, and evening performances
as a matter of fact right through Saturday. There's also a Saturday
matinee.
A real must see and hear!
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