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Doug Coxson, New Hamburg
Independent
Wednesday May 14, 2003
The New Hamburg Arena arena's raftered ceiling provided the
perfect canopy for the Community Players as they brought their
grandly executed version of Rodger's and Hammerstein's Oklahoma!
to town last week, rising above the 60-year-old musical's clumsy
plot to give the audience what they came for - a surprisingly
accomplished and entertaining night of community theatre.
There's no denying TCP consistently comes as close to, if not
exceeds, professional standards as a community theatre company
can get. And they didn't miss the mark this time.
Unfortunately, musicals don't get any more bizarre than Oklahoma!
Riding the musical spectrum from light-hearted romantic through
the darkest elements of death and insanity, Oklahoma! is a puzzling
concoction. But despite the weaker elements of the material,
technically and artistically TCP's production was near flawless.
The months of hard work put in by each member of the cast and
crew was evident in everything from the makeup and costumes
to the music.
Oklahoma! deserves a big space and TCP definately delivered.
Directors Brent Roth and John Cull captured the essence of the
play's rural setting with a big-sky backdrop accenting the warmly-lit
stage. Utilizing the entire width of the arena floor and enough
wood to frame a small house, the set extended from the slightly
skewed stage entrance of Aunt Eller's farm house down a lamp
lit fence row ending with a spinning windmill. There were times
when sitting in the audience required the stamina of a spectator
at a tennis match.
Some of the best musical numbers were highlighted by Karen Prior
Cashin's acrobatic choreography and the solid musical talents
of Jen Hoffman's orchestra. Sara Martin's and Rob Grundy's expressive
lead performances kept the production elevated and fun throughout
while Gary Goerée's disturbing turn as the brooding and
oppressive Jud Fry provided moments of unintentional hilarity
through an otherwise frightening descent into insanity. But
the star turn of Joanna Guistini, playing Ado Annie and giving
it her all in a standout rendition of "I Cain't Say No,"
marked the highlight of the show.
Some musicals suffer in the second act, but this cast's energy
and enthusiasm never waned. The Community Players celebrate
their 20th anniversary next year and to mark the occasion the
talented group will stage what is likely to be their most ambitious
project ever. The Biblically-inspired Children of Eden tells
the story of the creation from the Garden of Eden through the
landing of Noah's Ark and will no doubt cement TCP' reputation
as one of the best small theatre companies around.
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