Fall Into the "Deathtrap" with The Rep This Month

By Mike Logothetis
Theater reviewer Mike Logothetis grew up in North Wilmington, performing in school and local theater productions. He lives in Newark, but you can find him wherever the arts are good.

The Resident Ensemble Players (REP) fully deliver in the form of Ira Levin’s 1978 Edgar Award-winning play Deathtrap – a dark thriller with a perfect blend of schemes, plot-twists, and black humor.

Ira Levin's Deathtrap playing now at The REP.
Photo courtesy of The REP.

Formerly successful playwright Sidney Bruhl (Lee E. Ernst) has had a recent string of theatrical failures; is dealing with writer’s block; and is getting short on cash. A potential change in fortune arrives in the form of a brilliant script sent by former student Clifford Anderson (Mic Matarrese). Clifford’s thriller – also titled Deathtrap – has all the makings of a Broadway hit. Sidney tells his wife, Myra (Elizabeth Heflin), that the student’s play could put him back on top if he steals it and passes it off as his own. But for that to work, Clifford would have to be out of the picture. Permanently. Myra sees the wheels in Sidney’s head turning and hopes the unthinkable hasn’t really been considered. Sindey assures Myra he is only kidding and would never truly entertain such an atrocity just to steal a script. But the play is called Deathtrap…

“I’m interested in the thievery,” says Interim Producing Artistic Director Steve Tague. “It is an old premise, but we don’t seem to get tired of it. What are we willing to do for success, or money, or fame, or admiration?”

Director Michael Gotch keeps the pacing tight and uses the wonderful set by Stephanie Hansen in ominous and oddly comforting ways. When Sidney isn’t scheming, he’s enjoying his brandy by the fire and fawning over his collectibles – various weaponry. But when his doddering evil takes hold of him, Sidney’s surroundings become his killing fields. Credit to Ernst for appearing tough to decipher when he’s being nice and when he’s sizing up his prey.

Matarese is solid playing a character who may just be too smart for his own good. His Clifford initially seems overwhelmed, but grows bolder and more driven in purpose as Act II develops.  The cast also includes REP company members Stephen Pelinski (attorney Porter Milgrim) and Kathleen Pirkl Tague (psychic Helga ten Dorp). The portrayal of ten Dorp is somewhat over-the-top, but provides humorous portents of things to come and unknown things that were. Plus, her hair – and that of Matarese – are glorious. Kudos to Denise O’Brien for her wig design.

The show is a pleasure to experience and holds up well after almost 50 years. Celebrated author Chuck Palahniuk praised Deathtrap thusly: “Everything looks so gorgeous and simple and approachable, but on the other hand, it’s so incredibly complicated and beautifully assembled.” I concur.

With over 1800 performances, Deathtrap is known as one of Broadway’s greatest successes. It was even adapted into a film starring Michael Caine and Christopher Reeve. Interim Producing Artistic Director Tague concludes: “The consequences of deception are the deliciousness of this play. It’s a wicked, outrageous romp that won’t disappoint.” 

Warning: This production includes strobe lights, gunshots, violence, and profanity. Many audience members gasped and visibly reacted to some of the surprises the plot revealed. 

Performances of Deathtrap run April 11-28 with Opening Night being April 13. Informal talkbacks with the cast take place following the evening performances on Thursday April 13 and Friday April 26. Two “prologues” occur on Saturday April 20 and Sunday April 28. Tickets prices range from $30-39 with discounts available for students, seniors, plus University of Delaware faculty and staff. Tickets can be purchased online at www.rep.udel.edu; by contacting the REP box office at (302)831-2204; or visiting in person at 110 Orchard Road Tuesdays through Fridays from 12 to 5 PM. The show runs approximately 2 hours and 20 minutes with one 15-minute intermission between acts.

The Thompson Theatre at the Roselle Center for the Arts is located on the University of Delaware’s Newark campus and is ADA-compliant. It is equipped with a hearing loop system, which works with hearing aid t-coils, cochlear implants, and in-house hearing devices. Wheelchair and other seating requests can be made prior to the performance by calling (302)831-2204 or emailing cfa-boxoffice@udel.edu.

The preface to the published script describes it as "...something so evil that it infects all who touch it...” but I would say it entertains all who witness it. Call it a Murder Game…

The REP Heats Up the Stage with New Production

By Mike Logothetis
Theater reviewer Mike Logothetis grew up in North Wilmington, performing in school and local theater productions. He lives in Newark, but you can find him wherever the arts are good.

The Resident Ensemble Players (REP) deliver suspense, intrigue, and stage magic with John Ball’s In the Heat of the Night. Adapted by Matt Pelfrey from the book that inspired the 1967 Oscar-winning film, In the Heat of the Night is compelling theater with themes that often touch on modern ones.

Detective Tibbs and Officer Sam Wood driving to the scene
of the crime. Photo courtesy of The REP.

Set in the early 1960s, the piece tells the story of a white man is discovered dead in tiny Argo, Alabama. Local police arrest the only stranger in town — a black man named Virgil Tibbs (Hassan El-Amin). Little do they know that their suspect is an expert homicide detective from California. Left with no witnesses, no motives, and no clues, Detective Tibbs becomes this racially tense community’s only hope of solving the brutal murder.

El-Amin is excellent in portraying Tibbs as thoughtful and strong in a setting where the color of his skin can (and does) lead to dehumanizing actions by those around him. Tibbs is always trying to be the bigger man, upholding the honor of his person and race despite overt attacks against both. (Be prepared for onstage violence and strong language which includes racist, antisemitic, and homophobic slurs.)

Chief Gillespie (Lee E. Ernst) is a key antagonist to Tibbs. He dislikes both the situation and the race of the man who’s been tasked to help him solve the murder. But with each passing day, a modicum of respect creeps into the Chief’s interactions with Tibbs. Ernst does well as an often-flustered man who should control more than he does but is always being told otherwise. Ultimately, even after Tibbs “starting to grow” on him, Gillespie can’t bring himself to shake the man’s hand whose respect he’s earned.

While this story hits all the checkboxes for an entertaining detective story, it’s also an undeniable social commentary. Director Cameron Knight said, “We are at a moment in our country, with our art, politics, and even our interactions, where we operate in extremes: extreme rage, patriotism, protesting, etc.”

“For many, it makes any conversation of our history; our journey to this moment and how we deal with each other a delicate subject and often avoided. I believe we must be able to go towards difficult, uncomfortable conversations and at times, actions, in order to grow positively. We are fractured as a society and if we don’t begin to confront our past and the needs of our future, we are on a path towards despair.”

“This play offers a glimpse into the many levels of corruption that exist within our culture and institutions, shows the harsh and firm mindsets that are at odds, and invites us to examine who we want to be. Do we want to grow, or do we merely want to win?”

Hats off to the creative team for making the production a multimedia feast for the senses with articulating stage parts, 3-D dynamic curtains, and graphic video enhancements. Britton Mauk (Scenic Designer), Dawn Chiang (Lighting Designer), and Patrick W. Lord (Projection Designer) took the collective vision of Director Knight plus Interim Producing Artistic Director Steve Tague and did an amazing job.

Standout performers include Michael Gotch as conflicted policeman Sam Wood and Stephen Pelinski as both defiant Harvey Oberst and eerily protective Mr. Purdy. If this were a classic melodrama, we’d all boo and hiss at Mic Matarrese for his strong work as Pete — a cop and Klansman whose segregationist beliefs are pungently strong.

Performances of In the Heat of the Night run through November 19 in the Thompson Theatre at the Roselle Center for the Arts on the University of Delaware’s Newark campus. Tickets prices are $30-39 with discounts available for students, seniors, and University of Delaware faculty and staff. 

Tickets can be purchased online at rep.udel.edu; by contacting the REP box office at 302.831.2204; or visiting in person at 110 Orchard Road Tuesdays through Fridays from 12:00 to 5:00pm. The show runs approximately 2 hours and 20 minutes with one 15-minute intermission.

The Thompson Theatre in the Roselle Center for the Arts is ADA-compliant and is equipped with a hearing loop system, which works with hearing aid t-coils, cochlear implants, and in-house hearing devices. Wheelchair and other seating requests can be made prior to the performance by calling the number above or emailing cfa-boxoffice@udel.edu.

A Taste of "Arsenic and Old Lace" at The REP

By Mike Logothetis
Theater reviewer Mike Logothetis grew up in North Wilmington, performing in school and local theater productions. He lives in Newark, but you can find him wherever the arts are good.

Arsenic and Old Lace playing now through November 20.
Photo courtesy of The REP.

The University of Delaware’s Resident Ensemble Players (REP) kicks off its 2022-23 season with the great American farcical black comedy, Arsenic and Old Lace by Joseph Kesselring.

This enduring play, originally staged on Broadway in 1941, continues to astound audiences with its ingenious and brilliant construction. The current production at the REP carries on the grand tradition of the show and entertains from opening curtain to curtain call.

“Some of you may have heard the pandemic radio version of the play and now you can see the real thing. It’s about two older women that relieve older gentleman of their loneliness by killing them with arsenic. You can think of it as a euthanasia comedy.”

— Steve Tague, the REP's new Interim Producing Artistic Director.

The show revolves around the odd members of the Brewster family in their stately Brooklyn home. Mortimer Brewster (Mic Matarrese) is living a happy life in the large old mansion. He has a good job as a drama critic at a prominent New York newspaper and he’s just become engaged to his neighbor Elaine Harper (Erin Partin). His spinster aunts Abby (Kathleen Pirkl Tague) and Martha (Elizabeth Heflin) dote on him and are adored by the community. They even look after and protect Mortimer’s quirky brother Teddy (Lee E. Ernst) who believes he is Teddy Roosevelt.

Mortimer’s world is turned upside down when he discovers that his dear aunts have been quietly poisoning lonely old men and burying them in the basement for years. Aside from this new revelation, long lost maniacal brother Jonathan (Stephen Pelinski) returns on the night that the aunts are planning to bury their newest victim. His somewhat unwilling partner Dr. Einstein (Michael Gotch) adds ghoulish layers to Jonathan’s mysterious past. Mortimer must rally to help his aunts, foil his brother’s nefarious plans, and protect his fiancé – all while trying to maintain his own sanity. Even the local cops (Rob Hancock and John Plumpis) become part of the action, both good and bad; albeit unwittingly. Put it this way, the plot is always swirling… As Abby Brewster says, “How delicious!”

The beautiful set design and construction is the first thing that catches the eye upon entering the theater. It is a wonder of planning and carpentry that includes fine wooden details, wallpaper, portraits, animal heads, and doors…so many doors. Kudos to Stefanie Hansen and her crew.

The actors all shine, but the menace is real when Pelinski’s Jonathan looms on stage. Matarrese does a great job of looking peaceful one minute and utterly distressed the next. His physical and mental exhaustion from the escapades he faces puts the audience on his side. 

The show is funny throughout, but the comedic highlights mostly happen in the second act with many quick and clever jokes. Aunts Abby and Martha (Heflin and Tague) always aim to please and drop some great deadpan one-liners while doing so. The old women just want what’s best for everyone they meet, even believing that serving their killer elderberry wine is a neighborly service. It is, but solely for our entertainment!

My suggestion is to plan an evening out in Newark to enjoy some great theater, but watch out for the apparent kindness of elderly female strangers.

Arsenic and Old Lace will run through November 20 at Thompson Theatre inside the Roselle Center for the Arts (CFA) on the campus of the University of Delaware. Evening shows start at 7:30 and curtain is at 2 for matinees. The performance runs approximately 2 hours and 40 minutes, with two 10-minute intermissions. 

Tickets ($35-39) can be purchased at the theatre box office or online. Please call the box office at (302) 831-2204 or e-mail cfa-boxoffice@udel.edu for information. 

For more information, visit www.rep.udel.edu.

UD's Master Players to Perform at Carnegie Hall

The content of this post originates from a press release from The University of Delaware...

University of Delaware Master Players Concert Series and Artistic Director Xiang Gao will perform “6-WIRE & Friends at Carnegie Hall” on Saturday, February 16, at 7:30 p.m. in Zankel Hall of Carnegie Hall in New York City.  Master Players celebrates its 15th year of bringing the world’s top musicians and ensembles to the University of Delaware.

The performance will be led by 6-WIRE (Xiang Gao, violin/director; Cathy Yang, erhu & Matthew Brower, piano), the Master Players Ensemble-in-Residence. 6-WIRE is inspired by the historical connection between the erhu, the Chinese 2-stringed violin, and the 4-stringed violin — both essential instruments in the East and West.  The ensemble mixes traditional romanticism and virtuosity with new chamber music.

6-WIRE ensemble. Photo courtesy of the artist. 

Founded and directed by Chinese-American violinist Xiang Gao, an award-winning concert presenter, composer and producer, 6-WIRE’s performances redefine traditional chamber music, delighting cross-generational audiences with forward-looking compositions and cutting-edge audio and video technology.  

The New York premiere of Clearwater Rhapsody for 6-WIRE and cello by MacArthur Genius Grant awardee Bright Sheng features the world-renowned composer at the piano. The concert will also feature the New York debut of compositions and arrangements by Xiang Gao. A composition titled 6th Sense for 6-WIRE and cello will feature UD faculty cellist Lawrence Stomberg in memory of the victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in 2012.

Members of the UD Symphony Orchestra, under the leadership of UD Director of Orchestral Activities James Allen Anderson, open the program with the World Premiere of the 6-WIRE arrangement of Bach’s concerto for violin and oboe. 

In this performance, which includes guest harpsichordist Tracy Richardson, the erhu replaces the oboe part to bring a new sound to the masterpiece. Renowned Chinese violin-maker Yunkai Jiang created a violin-erhu hybrid cello called Gupinghu, and Master Players guest cellist Gabriel Cabezas will perform on the Gupinghu for the instrument’s New York debut.

Two World Premiere works on the program include Ealasaid, for 6-WIRE and UD Chorale, led by Paul D. Head, composed by Jennifer Margaret Barker and Meridian Flux by composer Mark Hagerty.

"&" -- The 2017 University of Delaware MFA Graduate Thesis Exhibition

By Amy Henderson
Amy Henderson is a local artist and owner of Rebel Cow Marketing, LLC. 

Untitled, 2017 by Molly Walker. Photo by Morgan Hamilton.

Each year, the University of Delaware graduates 10 students from their esteemed Master of Fine Arts program, and The Delaware Contemporary is currently showing their thesis work.  I was fortunate enough to enjoy a guided tour of this exciting exhibition by Morgan Hamilton, Curatorial Fellow at The Delaware Contemporary.

Untitled, 2017 by Molly Walker. Photo by Morgan Hamilton.

Encompassing both Dupont Galleries, this large collection of works immediately engages the senses.  From a special projection room featuring a digital video by Eddy Rhenals-Narvaez to Abby Daleki's fabric sculpture with accompanying sound, this impressive show offers painting, sculpture, video, and even a water feature.  There is something for everyone, including a wall-sized video exhibit of the north pole of Saturn juxtaposed with scenes from Earth (created by Juan Pablo Cardenas).  Don't miss this experience!  Congratulations, Class of 2017!

The exhibition runs May 5 through June 11, 2017 at The Delaware Contemporary, 200 S. Madison Street in Wilmington.  Admission is free.  Suggested donations are: $10 for adults and $5 for children under 18. 

See www.decontemporary.org.

Excellent "Noises" from University of Delaware’s REP!

By Delaware Arts Info blogger Charles "Ebbie" Alfree III

Photo from Resident Ensemble Players

How the hell do they do it??? I’m referring to the cast of Noises Off presented by the University of Delaware’s Resident Ensemble Players. Guest Artistic Director, Gregory Boyd, directs the hardest working cast currently in Delaware! It takes a great director to guide a cast through the intricate blocking of this hysterical play, and Mr. Boyd accomplished his task.

Michael Frayn’s slapstick comedy tells the story of a third-rate acting troupe as they attempt to produce a British sex farce, Nothing On, while beginning and ending affairs, drinking, and competing for the director’s attention. What ensues is hilarity beyond belief.

It’s a thin story, but it’s the characters, witty lines and most of all, the comic timing that make this three-act play a must see! The timing is everything in the production; one mistake can throw off the entire play and cause a catastrophe. However, this cast of true professionals—Deena Burke, Michael Gotch, Elizabeth Heflin, Mic Matarrese, Carine Montbertrand, Stephen Pelinski, Kathleen Pirkl Tague, Steve Tague and John Tyson—never drops the ball. Watching Noises Off is like watching a master class in comedy-theater.  The cast seamlessly plays two characters in this play within a play, as well as uses multiple props and continuously enters and exits through numerous doors that make up the multipurpose set.

One side of Neil Patel’s set is an English country home – the setting for Nothing On -and the other side is the backstage of the fictitious play, allowing the audience to see the front and backstage antics all at once.  The set is as impeccable as the actors. It gives the audience a view that most don’t see or experience, seeing a play from backstage.

Anyone who loves theater should not miss Noises Off, even if slapstick is “not your cup of tea.” Any true theater lover will appreciate the work that goes into this play. 

Now, I’m ready for a plate of sardines; go see the play and you’ll understand why.

See www.rep.udel.edu. 

The Emperor’s new photographs

Had you found the photographs currently on exhibit at the Old College Gallery in a shoebox at your house, you may have tossed them out.

But if you noticed the photos were of Farah Diba, Empress Consort of Iran and Marella Agnelli, you might have kept a few after all. And then you would have puzzled about those faces you did not recognize.

Curator Stephen Petersen spent three entire days examining contact sheets to identify some of the people in the Warhol photographs given to the University of Delaware by the Warhol Legacy Program (run by the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts). His dedication paid off – he identified 40 out of 50 famous (and not-so) visages after his exhausting hours of staring at contact sheets. (I did, however, recognize Christopher O’Riley – a past a soloist with the Delaware Symphony Orchestra.)

Mr. Petersen was ebullient in his gallery talk at Old College on February 17. His knowledge of Warhol and the collection imbued his note-free speech with zest, and his background in photography made him perfect for the job. He has an MFA in photography, but his attention for detail meant that he had researched every aspect of each camera – down to details like the use of the “magic cube” flash bulb, the mention of which had some members of the audience nodding as they remembered using them. His excitement was contagious and made the visit to the gallery a much deeper experience.

Mr. Petersen displayed cameras exactly like the ones Warhol had used for his photographs and he talked to the crowd about how the cameras were innovative at the time -- intended to be the perfect family portrait machine. He spoke about the irony of using a twenty-dollar Polaroid Bigshot to prepare portraits of the glitterati and nobility willing to pay him a $25,000 commission for his work. He also spoke of Warhol’s life and work: Warhol reveled in the underground of the New York art world until he was shot and seriously wounded. He then tried to slow down and live life a bit (but not too much) more staidly.

Petersen arranged the photographs in chronological order so that you can see the polaroids and move on to the black and white gelatin silver prints which have more experimentation and spark to them. You also see models of the ‘point and shoot’ cameras which Warhol used: a Minox with synchronized flash, a Chinon autofocus and an Olympus QuickFlash.

Thanks to Stephen Petersen, the Old College Gallery exhibit will give you an insight into the private Andy Warhol – so different from the one we conjure up when contemplating Brillo boxes, Campbell’s soup cans and blocky silkscreen images of Marilyn Monroe.

http://www.udel.edu/museums/exhibitions/2011/warhol.html

REP theater at UD

University of Delaware’s Resident Ensemble Players ended their season with a pitch-perfect rendition of Noel Coward’s comedy “Hay Fever.”

Guest director John Going played up the signature wit with theatrical affectations and period politesse for delicious sight gags. The cast, costumes and country-house set were all spot-on in the sumptuous new Thompson Theater.

Artistic director Sanford Robbins offered a teaser for this autumn. The opener will be “I Am My Own Wife” by playwright Doug Wright. This daring World War II survival story swept the 2004 Tony, Pulitzer Prize and just about every other drama award after its Broadway debut.

It’s a one-man tour de force of 30-some characters to be performed by REP member Michael Gotch. The stretch exemplifies UD’s Professional Theatre Training Program in action. Gotch played the beamish boy in “Hay Fever.”