Berkshire theater 2004

By Ralph HammannPrint Story | Email Story
The 2004 theater season was filled with many bright spots but just as many disappointments, particularly at the Williamstown Theatre Festival, which had an unusually bad anniversary season before producer Michael Ritchie headed west after presenting a season in which we were also gypped out of the usual five Main Stage plays. In as lame a celebratory season as one could imagine, matters turned even worse with the deeply regrettable resignation of associate producer Jenny Gersten who had truly been the heart of the festival for the past nine years. New artistic director Roger Rees has his work cut out for him. Fortunately, there were a few surprises that provided the necessary manna to keep one nourished through the season. Herewith are the best and the worst that I experienced in the Berkshires: Editor’s note: The following lists are based only on the plays Ralph Hammann reviewed. We note that Chris Rohmann, our other theater critic gave quite a favorable review to Barrington Stage’s “25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.” Rohmann also credited Christopher Patrick Mullen with a tour de force in “The Pavillion,” presented by the Miniature Theater of Chester. Best Productions: 1. “Heartbreak House,” Berkshire Theatre Festival; directed by Anders Cato. Seldom has humanity’s ambivalent embrace of self-extinction been portrayed on stage with such a rich mix of absurd humor and understated humanity as in this delectably acted and designed production of Shaw’s arguable masterpiece. 2. “The Cherry Orchard,” WTF, directed by Michael Greif. The biggest surprise of the season, Chekhov’s rueful farewell to a passing social order was given a newly defining production that assuredly brought the classic into the 21st century, courtesy of Paul Schmidt’s supple translation in which nothing was lost. Greif gave the former Adams Memorial Theatre and transitioning WTF its most eloquent eulogy. 3. “Blues for an Alabama Sky, BTF, directed by Timothy Douglas. This iridescent production of Pearl Cleage’s remarkable play, set during the waning of the Harlem Renaissance, celebrated the human spirit’s tenacity and introduced the area to a vital playwright and memorable ensemble of actors. 4. “Siddhartha,” BTF, directed by Eric Hill. In his adaptation of Hesse’s novel, Hill combined the inventiveness, style and passion for which he is known to give audiences a transcendent journey that enlightened as it entertained. A true original. 5. “The Miracle Worker,” BTF, directed by Gary M. English. Kate Maguire’s homegrown production beautifully re-imagined and revitalized this small cornerstone of American theater while giving a duo of young actresses a chance to shine. 6. “Design for Living,” WTF, directed by Gregory Boyd. Aided enormously by Hugh Landwehr’s stunning set designs, Boyd’s lovingly mounted production surmounted its shortcomings to bring Noël Coward’s timely play back to elegant life. Honorable Mention: 1. “All My Sons,” Oldcastle Theatre Company. 2. “They’re Playing Our Song,” The Colonial Theatre. Worst Productions: 1. “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” WTF, directed by Nicholas Martin. An odiously self-referential concept devolved into a misbegotten mess in which chaos and shifting examples of bad taste were the orders of the night. One of the worst productions ever at the WTF, it relocated Shakespeare’s magic to a plastic and plywood theme park populated by puny excuses for characters. 2. “American Revolution,” Oldcastle, directed by Eric Peterson. Jay Parini’s new play was a tract on Sartre’s “Being and Nothingness” with an emphasis on the latter. More revolting than revolutionary, it quickly became a soggy used teabag of a play. 3. “Morning, Noon & Night,” Main Street Stage, directed by Mira Hilbert. Night did not descend soon enough in this world premiere of Chris Newbound’s earth-bound prattlings. Not to be confused with the three-play omnibus of the same title. For that matter, not to be confused with drama. 4. “Sweet Charity,” Barrington Stage This dismal, empty and thoroughly forgettable musical was given a heartless and unnecessary production leavened only by its dance numbers that cribbed what they could from Bob Fosse’s excellent original choreography. 5. “The Water’s Edge,” WTF. Teetering over the edge of sanity, Theresa Rebeck’s new play was a ludicrous and awkward exercise in trying to write a contemporary version of “Agamamnon” in which Kate Burton pulled out all the stops in an unintentionally funny bathtub slaughter. The plug should have been pulled on this in the reading stage. 6. “R shomon,” WTF, directed by Ted Sperling. Michael John LaChiusa’s insubstantial musical adaptation of Ryunosuke Akutagawa’s stories and Akira Kurosawa’s film left out more than the “A” in “Rashomon.” 7. “The Misanthrope,” BTF, directed by Anders Cato. Led by David Adkins’ inept Alceste, the cast (save one) turned the music of Moliere and adapter Richard Wilbur into a sing-song monotony in this unexpected misstep at the BTF. 8. “As You Like It,” Shakespeare & Company. Not as I liked it, this overlong trial was only sporadically saved by Sarah Rafferty; otherwise the Forest of Arden was bereft of love and arboreal atmosphere. 9. “Cabaret & Main,” WTF. Squandering one of its four time slots (down from five) on this hit and often miss show, the WTF began its anniversary season on a sour note with a bloated talent show masquerading as a cabaret. Best Performances: 1. Ritchie Coster, “The Cherry Orchard,” WTF. 2. Sara Drew, Heartbreak House, BTF. 3. Marin Hinkle, “Heartbreak House. 4. Sarah Rafferty, “As You Like It,” Shakespeare & Company. 5. Francesca Faridany, “Skylight,” The Miniature Theatre of Chester. 6. Darryl Theirse, “Blues for an Alabama Sky,” BTF. 7. Bill Irwin, “Cabaret & Main, WTF. 8. Charlotte d’Amboise, “Cabaret & Main,” WTF, and Cherise Booth, “Blues for an Alabama Sky,” along with Linda Emond, Michelle Williams, Reed Birney and Jessica Chastain, all in “The Cherry Orchard;” Tabitha McKown and Justina Trova, “The Miracle Worker,” BTF; Audra McDonald, “R Shomon,” WTF; Sophia Garder, “An American Revolution,” Oldcastle; David Schramm, “Heartbreak House,” BTF; Rachel Leslie, “Blues for an Alabama Sky; Amanda Watkins and Chip Zien, “They’re Playing Our Song,” Colonial Theatre; Karen MacDonald, “The Misanthrope,” BTF; Arnie Burton and Kelly McAndrew, “Eugene’s Home,” BTF; Dalane Mason, Rachael Bell and Colby Chambers, “Floyd Collins,” BTF; Meredith McCasland, “I Ought to be in Pictures,” Oldcastle; Susannah Millonzi, “As You Like It;” Gretchen Cleevely, “The Water’s Edge,” WTF; Andrew Michael Neiman, “Siddhartha,” BTF; Haviland Morris and John Rothman, “Rodney’s Wife,” WTF; Michael Milligan and Tony Molina, “The Comedy of Errors,” Shakespeare & Co.) Worst Performances: 1. Kristine Nielsen, “Design for Living,” WTF. 2. Terence Rigby, “Skylight,” The Miniature Theatre of Chester 3. Kate Burton, “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” WTF. 4. John Bedford Lloyd, “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.” 5. Christopher Fitzgerald, “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.” 6. Jonathan Epstein, “As You Like It,” Shakespeare and Company. 7. Andrea Martin, “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” WTF. 8. George Hannah, “The Comedy of Errors,” Shakespeare & Co.) 9. Alix Korey, “Cabaret & Main, WTF. Best Design/Production Values 1. Hugh Landwehr, sets, “Design for Living, WTF. 2. Jeff Cowie, sets, “Heartbreak House,” BTF. 3.Allen Moyer, sets, “The Cherry Orchard, WTF, along with Tony Cisek, set, “Blue for an Alabama Sky, BTF; Rui Rita, lighting, “Design for Living;” Beowulf Boritt, set, “The Miracle Worker,” BTF; Candice Donnelly, costumes, “Design for Living,’ WTF; Dan Kotowitz, lighting, “The Miracle Worker;” Scott Killian, music, “The Miracle Worker;” Richard Howe, set, “All My Sons,” Oldcastle; Mimi Lien, set, “Floyd Collins,” BTF; Marija Djorjevic, costumes, “Floyd Collins;” Lap-Chi Chu, lighting, “As You Like It,” Shakespeare & Company; Thomas Lynch, set, “The Water’s Edge, WTF; Olivera Gajic, costumes, “Heartbreak House; Ann G. Wrightson, lighting, “Heartbreak House; Kris Stone, set, “The Comedy of Errors;” Carl Sprague, set, “The Misanthrope,” BTF; Scott Killian, music, “The Misanthrope.” Worst Design/Production Values: Alexander Dodge, sets, “A Midsummer Night’s Dream, WTF; Michael Krass, costumes, “A Midsummer Night’s Dream;” Michael Anania, all but three set pieces, “Sweet Charity,” Barrington Stage; Kenneth Mooney, set, “I Ought to be in Pictures,” Oldcastle. Ralph Hammann is the Advocate’s chief theater critic.
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Lanesborough Fifth-Graders Win Snowplow Name Contest

LANESBOROUGH, Mass. — One of the snowplows for Highway District 1 has a new name: "The Blizzard Boss."
 
The name comes from teacher Gina Wagner's fifth-grade class at Lanesborough Elementary School. 
 
The state Department of Transportation announced the winners of the fourth annual "Name A Snowplow" contest on Monday. 
 
The department received entries from public elementary and middle school classrooms across the commonwealth to name the 12 MassDOT snowplows that will be in service during the 2025/2026 winter season. 
 
The purpose of the contest is to celebrate the snow and ice season and to recognize the hard work and dedication shown by public works employees and contractors during winter operations. 
 
"Thank you to all of the students who participated. Your creativity allows us to highlight to all, the importance of the work performed by our workforce," said  interim MassDOT Secretary Phil Eng.  
 
"Our workforce takes pride as they clear snow and ice, keeping our roads safe during adverse weather events for all that need to travel. ?To our contest winners and participants, know that you have added some fun to the serious take of operating plows. ?I'm proud of the skill and dedication from our crews and thank the public of the shared responsibility to slow down, give plows space and put safety first every time there is a winter weather event."
 
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