Saturday, December 9, 2023

CTC Rocks this "Wicked Little Town" with Revival of Hedwig & the Angry Inch

By Hannah Leposa, guest blogger
Theater fan Hannah Leposa is excited to be living in Wilmington where there is a lively theatre community and high quality performances.


Hedwig and her Angry Inch band. Photo by Joe del Tufo/Moonloop Photography.
City Theater Company
's Hedwig and the Angry Inch follows Hedwig and her stage show as she tells the story of her botched sex change operation, leaving the titular Angry Inch behind. We also follow her journey from an angry woman to self acceptance and loving herself for who she is. The show is a cult classic, written by John Cameron Mitchell with music and lyrics by Stephen Trask.

Hedwig, portrayed by Diva Baby, was emotional and a little over-the-top, which is expected from the character as a drag queen headliner. Her portrayal of Hedwig's breakdown was raw and captivating and a 180 turn from the levity she brought to the opening. I did not expect to be laughing as hard as I did during this show, but Diva Baby’s delivery of the cheeky jokes in the first half of the show were impeccable. Her performance of Wig in a Box was a standout of the night as it allowed the line between actress and character to blur. The song, which started out vulnerable, ended with a silly audience sing-a-long directed by Hedwig, who had more notes for the audience than they sang.

Hedwig is joined on stage by her rock band, The Angry Inch. The musicians were part of the show, as they are in costume and on stage interacting with Hedwig and her husband/backup singer Yitzhak for the entire show. The performance was truly like a rock concert at times. CTC did provide earplugs for those whose ears are more sensitive to loud music.

Hedwig's husband Yitzhak, played by Mackenzie Brockmeyer, is the final cast member of the production. Her portrayal of the quiet Yitzhak surprised me, as I caught myself watching her on more than one occasion. She beautifully portrayed the emotions of Yitzhak and I could imagine exactly what her character was thinking without her having to say a word. Her voice shined in The Long Grift and her reveal at the end was beautifully executed.

City Theater Company is celebrating its 30th season and is reviving Hedwig for the second time, having previously staged the show in 2004 and 2005. Despite CTC having produced this show before, the interpretation of the show felt fresh. 

The wigs were beautiful — if not temperamental — but being a true performer, Diva Baby worked that into the show so beautifully that I barely realized it wasn't scripted. The costumes and makeup mirrored Hedwig's dissolution of her image of her life, starting grand, and fun and dissolving into nothing more than a holey shirt and shorts.

Set in the early 2000s, the intimate cabaret-style seating at The Delaware Contemporary made the perfect venue for this performance, making it feel more like an authentic stage show. When I first saw the set, I was apprehensive, as I usually feel screens as set pieces are not used well and they detract from what is happening on stage. That was not the case for Hedwig. The images and videos shown added so much, the show would have been great without them, but they added just enough to elevate the actors' performances. The drawings by Echo Chappelle made the already great performance of The Origin Of Love superb, and the videos used during Hedwig’s breakdown heightened the emotion and intensified Diva’s portrayal of Hedwig’s emotional state.

The remaining performances of Hedwig and The Angry Inch are December 10 at 2pm and December 13-16 at 8pm. All shows are at The Delaware Contemporary.The show runs around 90 minutes with no intermission. 

Tickets are $45 and can be purchased at tickets available now at city-theater.org.

Monday, November 6, 2023

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.

Tuesday, October 31, 2023

The DSO Invites Audiences to Dance in the Aisles for ¡Musica Bravo!

The content of this post comes from a press release from the Delaware Symphony Orchestra...

The Delaware Symphony Orchestra (DSO) continues its 118th season with a performance of ¡Musica Bravo! on Friday, November 10, 7:30pm at The Grand Opera House in Wilmington and Sunday, November 12, 2:30pm at Cape Henlopen High School in Lewes.

The DSO welcomes guest condcutor Michelle Di Russo
& guest guitarist João Luiz for its November concerts. 
The concert welcomes guest conductor Michelle Di Russo and guitarist João Luiz in a performance that features Latin- and Hispanic-inspired works. Di Russo will be the first female conductor to take the DSO podium in several decades.

“If I could pick a program that represents my absolute love for music, it would be this one,” says Di Russo. “I believe it truly showcases where my passion for music and my roots connect through classical music.”

Di Russo is certain this program will resonate with both first-time concertgoers and experienced music lovers. “This program will make you fall in love with the hypnotic, beautiful Latin and Hispanic melodies and rhythms,” she says. “I am also happy that I get to share music by Argentinian composer Alberto Ginastera. It is extremely special for me to be able to perform music from my country.”

Di Russo, who is of Argentinian/Italian descent, is known for her compelling interpretations, passionate musicality, and championing of contemporary music. She currently serves as Associate Conductor of the North Carolina Symphony in Raleigh, N.C.

Guest artist João Luiz — half of the Brasil Guitar Duo who have performed previously with the DSO — joins the Symphony on Spanish acoustic guitar to bring the sounds of Rodrigo's Concierto de Aranjuez to life. The program also includes works by Márquez, de Falla, Rimsky-Korsakov, and the aforementioned Ginastera.

The orchestra will repeat this performance in Sussex County, travelling to Cape Henlopen High School on Sunday, November 12, for a 2:30 p.m. concert.

“We're very excited to bring you this dynamic program and welcome to the stage guest conductor Michelle Di Russo,” said Chief Executive Officer, J.C. Barker. “Don't miss these concerts. You will be dancing in the aisles!"

Subscription packages and single tickets for all concerts are available. Visit DelawareSymphony.org or call 302.656.7442 for more details.