July 20, 2001
Section: Gulf Coasting
Page: 8G
`The King and I' a dinner theater masterpiece
Drew Sterwald
Staff
News-Press
By DREW STERWALD dsterwald@news-press.com
Charisma and chemistry are the keys to a successful production of "The King and I." Even with dazzling sets and costumes and skillful singing of the classic score, this show would have no heart without a King and an Anna creating sparks.
Aaron Lake and Gwen Walker do just that in the Naples Dinner Theatre's new production. Lake's lordly posturing is so convincing and Walker's sweet rebelliousness so enchanting that it's easy to fall in love with these two people falling in love. They manage to make the singing, dancing and acting all seem effortless, especially during "Shall We Dance."
Oh, and the costumes and sets are indeed dazzling.
Rodgers and Hammerstein's musical takes place in the Bangkok palace of the King of Siam, where an English widow, Anna, has been hired in the early 1860s to educate the ruler's dozens of children.
The show has all the crowd-pleasing elements - memorable melodies, gentle humor, romantic subplots and lots of cute, talented children. A long show at more than 2 hours, "The King and I" breezes along thanks to musical director Ben Bedenbaugh and director Michael Wainstein, and the quality of the cast is surprising in its depth.
Ray DeJohn and Tracy Ganem, for example, shimmer as the palace's forbidden lovers (she was intended as a gift for the king). Their renditions of "We Kiss in a Shadow" and "I Have Dreamed" are smooth as silk and gently convey the high emotions of young love. Ganem, who boasts an operatic upper register, also excels in "My Lord and Master" and the ballet piece "Small House of Uncle Thomas," an elaborate and hilarious interpretation of "Uncle Tom's Cabin," which her character is reading to practice her English.
That number also showcases some fine dancing by the ensemble cast to imaginative choreography by Adealani Malia.
NAPLES DAILY NEWS
Review: Strong talent takes 'King and I' well beyond rewarmed classic expectations
Tuesday, July 17, 2001
By HARRIET HOWARD HEITHAUS, hkheithaus@naplesnews.com
As Anna and the King of Siam, Gwen Walker and Aaron Lake waltzed off with the audience's hearts long before they whirled around the stage to "Shall We Dance" at Naples Dinner Theatre.
The current production of "The King and I," playing through Aug. 26, may be the most polished, most elegant production that organization has mounted to date. This hard-working Rodgers & Hammerstein standard charms anew under the direction of Artistic Director Michael Wainstein and a cast well culled for both vocal and acting prowess.
"The King and I" is loosely based on the true story of Anna Leonowens, a young British widow who takes a post as teacher to the children to the King of Siam; along the way, she becomes a sort of kitchen consultant on Western relations to the throne. The musical's book incorporates near-romance and comic observation on both Eastern and Western customs, which has not necessarily stood it in good stead with the kingdom now known as Thailand. (The Jodie Foster film based on the book was allegedly banned there because the story did not show enough respect for the king.)
The Thai might not even be amused at Naples Dinner Theatre production, because their monarch's accent has more of a Russian overtone than an Asian one. But that would be missing the effect of Lake's leonine bearing and strong voice.
This portrayal proves the part doesn't require a Yul Brynner shaved pate to pull it off. Lake beautifully projects both the frustration and the conscience beneath his requisite royal posturing, which is a hard balance to strike without sinking into the TV archetype of blustering household head.
More than his match is Walker, who is doubtlessly a formidable addition to any show she tackles. She is here from a touring company of "Jeckyll & Hyde," so her British accent is in perfect shape. So is her voice: powerful, controlled, melodic. She is perfect as the strong-willed Anna, whose semi-starched demeanor is offset by her vulnerable heart, most apparent in the musical's poignant numbers, "Hello, Young Lovers" and "Getting to Know You."
"The King and I" is a repository of talent. Valerie Lauser Stadler is Lady Thiang, the king's head wife, a spokeswoman for the family and a vocal show stopper with her rendition of "Something Wonderful." Tracy Ganem, an alumna of Broadway Palm Dinner Theatre, is a strong Tuptim, the king's star-crossed slave. One suggestion: Her opening soliloquy, "My Lord and Master," could slow down a bit to allow her to infuse the passion that shows in her duet on "I Have Dreamed" with Ray DeJohn (as Lun Tha, her lover).
Tempo occasionally mars the musical. While Lake was trying to emote through his "A Puzzlement" — and kudos to him for keeping his enunciation clear and volume consistent — the accompanist raced through it faster than necessary.
Accompaniment is by far the weakest part of the production. It's hard to say whether the music is live or canned, whether it's from a synthesizer with limited range or an old-fashioned pump organ powered by a vacuum cleaner.
At least it doesn't overwhelm the talent on stage, and there's so much, it's hard to credit everyone. Michael Hussion, as Anna's son, Louis, is dealt the chore of tone-setting with his opening lines and handles it beautifully. His Siamese counterpart, Prince Chululonghorn, is played with a good blend of ferocity and childishness by Andrew Striker.
Costumers Stacy Small and Michelle Collyar have cleverly coordinated the children's costumes with the mother to whom they belong. Andrealani Malia's choreography is understated and appropriate for a piece set in an Eastern culture.
She gets a chance to sparkle, and takes it, with "The House of Uncle Thomas" ballet, a restaging of the Harriet Beecher Stowe classic, "Uncle Tom's Cabin," by the Siamese court in hopes wooing English friendship.
Even the children, down to pre-schoolers who work like troupers for their various scenes over the 2 1/2-hour show, behave like little pros. Naples Dinner Theatre has cleverly cast two different sets of children to keep any one child from the rigors of nightly performance; it would be worthwhile to announce which of the two credited casts is performing before the curtain rises.
Even Executive Chef Jon Bailey is a star performer here, adding fish marinated in coconut milk and Thai salads of glass noodles and spicy bean pods to the American fare.
The dinner theater's production of "The King and I" is a project everyone involved so obviously relished that the audience can't help but relish it, too. The fact that Sunday's performance received a standing ovation is a good indication of that synergy.
Section: Gulf Coasting
Page: 8G
`The King and I' a dinner theater masterpiece
Drew Sterwald
Staff
News-Press
By DREW STERWALD dsterwald@news-press.com
Charisma and chemistry are the keys to a successful production of "The King and I." Even with dazzling sets and costumes and skillful singing of the classic score, this show would have no heart without a King and an Anna creating sparks.
Aaron Lake and Gwen Walker do just that in the Naples Dinner Theatre's new production. Lake's lordly posturing is so convincing and Walker's sweet rebelliousness so enchanting that it's easy to fall in love with these two people falling in love. They manage to make the singing, dancing and acting all seem effortless, especially during "Shall We Dance."
Oh, and the costumes and sets are indeed dazzling.
Rodgers and Hammerstein's musical takes place in the Bangkok palace of the King of Siam, where an English widow, Anna, has been hired in the early 1860s to educate the ruler's dozens of children.
The show has all the crowd-pleasing elements - memorable melodies, gentle humor, romantic subplots and lots of cute, talented children. A long show at more than 2 hours, "The King and I" breezes along thanks to musical director Ben Bedenbaugh and director Michael Wainstein, and the quality of the cast is surprising in its depth.
Ray DeJohn and Tracy Ganem, for example, shimmer as the palace's forbidden lovers (she was intended as a gift for the king). Their renditions of "We Kiss in a Shadow" and "I Have Dreamed" are smooth as silk and gently convey the high emotions of young love. Ganem, who boasts an operatic upper register, also excels in "My Lord and Master" and the ballet piece "Small House of Uncle Thomas," an elaborate and hilarious interpretation of "Uncle Tom's Cabin," which her character is reading to practice her English.
That number also showcases some fine dancing by the ensemble cast to imaginative choreography by Adealani Malia.
NAPLES DAILY NEWS
Review: Strong talent takes 'King and I' well beyond rewarmed classic expectations
Tuesday, July 17, 2001
By HARRIET HOWARD HEITHAUS, hkheithaus@naplesnews.com
As Anna and the King of Siam, Gwen Walker and Aaron Lake waltzed off with the audience's hearts long before they whirled around the stage to "Shall We Dance" at Naples Dinner Theatre.
The current production of "The King and I," playing through Aug. 26, may be the most polished, most elegant production that organization has mounted to date. This hard-working Rodgers & Hammerstein standard charms anew under the direction of Artistic Director Michael Wainstein and a cast well culled for both vocal and acting prowess.
"The King and I" is loosely based on the true story of Anna Leonowens, a young British widow who takes a post as teacher to the children to the King of Siam; along the way, she becomes a sort of kitchen consultant on Western relations to the throne. The musical's book incorporates near-romance and comic observation on both Eastern and Western customs, which has not necessarily stood it in good stead with the kingdom now known as Thailand. (The Jodie Foster film based on the book was allegedly banned there because the story did not show enough respect for the king.)
The Thai might not even be amused at Naples Dinner Theatre production, because their monarch's accent has more of a Russian overtone than an Asian one. But that would be missing the effect of Lake's leonine bearing and strong voice.
This portrayal proves the part doesn't require a Yul Brynner shaved pate to pull it off. Lake beautifully projects both the frustration and the conscience beneath his requisite royal posturing, which is a hard balance to strike without sinking into the TV archetype of blustering household head.
More than his match is Walker, who is doubtlessly a formidable addition to any show she tackles. She is here from a touring company of "Jeckyll & Hyde," so her British accent is in perfect shape. So is her voice: powerful, controlled, melodic. She is perfect as the strong-willed Anna, whose semi-starched demeanor is offset by her vulnerable heart, most apparent in the musical's poignant numbers, "Hello, Young Lovers" and "Getting to Know You."
"The King and I" is a repository of talent. Valerie Lauser Stadler is Lady Thiang, the king's head wife, a spokeswoman for the family and a vocal show stopper with her rendition of "Something Wonderful." Tracy Ganem, an alumna of Broadway Palm Dinner Theatre, is a strong Tuptim, the king's star-crossed slave. One suggestion: Her opening soliloquy, "My Lord and Master," could slow down a bit to allow her to infuse the passion that shows in her duet on "I Have Dreamed" with Ray DeJohn (as Lun Tha, her lover).
Tempo occasionally mars the musical. While Lake was trying to emote through his "A Puzzlement" — and kudos to him for keeping his enunciation clear and volume consistent — the accompanist raced through it faster than necessary.
Accompaniment is by far the weakest part of the production. It's hard to say whether the music is live or canned, whether it's from a synthesizer with limited range or an old-fashioned pump organ powered by a vacuum cleaner.
At least it doesn't overwhelm the talent on stage, and there's so much, it's hard to credit everyone. Michael Hussion, as Anna's son, Louis, is dealt the chore of tone-setting with his opening lines and handles it beautifully. His Siamese counterpart, Prince Chululonghorn, is played with a good blend of ferocity and childishness by Andrew Striker.
Costumers Stacy Small and Michelle Collyar have cleverly coordinated the children's costumes with the mother to whom they belong. Andrealani Malia's choreography is understated and appropriate for a piece set in an Eastern culture.
She gets a chance to sparkle, and takes it, with "The House of Uncle Thomas" ballet, a restaging of the Harriet Beecher Stowe classic, "Uncle Tom's Cabin," by the Siamese court in hopes wooing English friendship.
Even the children, down to pre-schoolers who work like troupers for their various scenes over the 2 1/2-hour show, behave like little pros. Naples Dinner Theatre has cleverly cast two different sets of children to keep any one child from the rigors of nightly performance; it would be worthwhile to announce which of the two credited casts is performing before the curtain rises.
Even Executive Chef Jon Bailey is a star performer here, adding fish marinated in coconut milk and Thai salads of glass noodles and spicy bean pods to the American fare.
The dinner theater's production of "The King and I" is a project everyone involved so obviously relished that the audience can't help but relish it, too. The fact that Sunday's performance received a standing ovation is a good indication of that synergy.