Pleased by Peanuts
Rating: 4
You're A Good Man Charlie Brown
She&Her Productions
SheHer Productions has done a terrific job of transforming the Crane building in the West Bottoms into an inviting performance space. The theatre seats are comfortable and set on risers to create excellent sight lines and there is a cozy room off to the side of the performance space where patrons can enjoy drinks. My only qualm with the facility was that there was only one, though beautifully decorated, bathroom.
The October 18th performance of You're a Good Man Charlie Brown was extremely entertaining and provided an all around fun night of theatre. The costumes, hair and makeup brought the audience back to their childhood days of enjoying the Peanuts comic strips and cartoons; Jennifer Coville-Shweigert (co-producer) and Tracy Van Unen were especially convincing as Lucy and Sally. The set was simple, but effective and the lighting by Russell Langdon, no stranger to lighting design, was extremely impressive for such a small space. The orchestra, led by J. Preston Schell, was completely up to par; I never heard a missed note and the sound was mixed well.
As to the performers, this show was very well cast though I was least impressed with Jason Patrick Pollard as the title role and Alisha M. Garnier as Snoopy. This could be because I hold actors in such pivotal roles to a higher standard, but Pollard seemed more monotone than sad and Garnier struggled with some of the notes (always a danger when casting a female Snoopy) and downright exhausted during her choreography. In her number "Supper Time", I was concerned that she was going to pass out right in front of me! Perhaps this was just an issue in this particular performance. One must consider that actors are just as susceptible to fatigue and illness as everyone else.
Though all of the actors were entertaining (some more than others) my absolute favorite performance was given by Phillip Russell Newman as Schroeder. His voice was perfectly suited for the role and his energy topped all the rest. I actually felt like jumping up and celebrating Beethoven Day with him! Newman's brother Jeff played Linus and he also gave a spectacular performance. His number "My Blanket and Me" included an impromptu tap dance that the entire cast participated in. It was clear that there were only a few with any tap experience and the rest of the performers struggled with the basics. I commend them for taking on the choreography with no previous training and know that I could do know better myself. Watching them dance, I could identify the names of the moves, but know that I would not be able to execute them any better than the novice dancers on the stage.
Overall, I give this performance a four out of five stars and I look forward to not only seeing more shows in this venue, but hope to participate in them myself. It is clear that She&Her Productions is on their way to being a very successful theatre company and I can't wait to see it blossom. Congratulations to the cast and to director Tiffany Garrison-Schwegert on an entertaining production of You're a Good Man Charlie Brown.
read the review at KC Stage
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