Five Reasons to See VANYA, SONIA, MASHA, & SPIKE
VANYA, SONIA, MASHA, AND SPIKE is currently playing at the Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park. Here’s five reasons to see it:
1. It’s chock full of Chekov. Director Michael Haney has found all the references to Chekov in the piece and accentuated them; if you’re a fan of the classic playwright, then this show will tickle your funny bone in more ways than one.
2. John Feltch delivers a delightful performance. I’ve been a fan since I first saw him in PRIDE AND PREJUDICE and he is even better here as the long-suffering, sexually frustrated, and eventually rant-spewing Vanya.
3. Laughter abounds. And from multiple styles of comedy – slapstick, awkward and uncomfortable, and ironic. It’s all there and more. And if you don’t laugh at Jefferson MacDonald‘s reverse striptease, then you need to go find your now-missing sense of humor.
4. The set is spectacular. As director Haney joked in his curtain speech (Artistic Director Blake Robison is in tech week for THE MUSIC MAN at the Cincinnati Pops, in case you were wondering) even he wouldn’t mind living in this gorgeous old home.
5. The rant. The rant that Durang has written for Vanya is a thing of beauty. I could watch that again and again.
There are probably many more reasons to check out this new comedy, which runs through May 23rd, but these are the first five that come to mind. It is a stylized version of the show, much mores than the production I watched last month in Dayton. No matter if you like the choices made, you do have to admire their commitment to the direction. You oughta check it out and see what you think!
VANYA, SONIA, MASHA, AND SPIKE runs through May 23rd in the Marx Theatre at the Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park. For more information, click here.