Another great review for Normal

The Richmond Times-Dispatch has published Julinda Lewis' take on our production of Normal. She seemed to really love the show.

Don't miss out on this truly unique piece of musical theatre.

"Normal is a must-see."

"...strong voices and solid acting by veterans Ford Flannagan and Julie Fulcher"
"Remarkable."
"The production is ably supported by Mercedes Schaum's stylishly modern tiered set."
"Edgy, raw, contemporary."
-Julinda Lewis, Richmond Times-Dispatch

Ms. Lewis' full review can be found by clicking here.

Tickets for Normal are $22, $20 for seniors and $15 for students.

804.427.7548
www.stage1va.org

Rave Review for Nor'mal

Dan Sherrier, Theatre Critic for the Herald-Progress has weighed in on our current production of Nor'mal with a rave review. He calls this production "A must-see". Read further for his entire review.

'Normal' brings fresh musical style to area By DAN SHERRIER
With "Normal," Stage 1 Theatre Co. succeeds in its mission to produce plays you won't see elsewhere around Richmond. Most plays fall along a spectrum. On one end, you have entertaining diversions, just a fun time, and there's never anything wrong with that. But toward the other end is where you'd find "Normal"-an engaging experience that you feel emotionally and even physically to some extent. That said, the play is not without its entertainment value, as it also demonstrates a rather quirky sense of humor. But it is certainly an experience. "Normal" isn't your standard, old-fashioned Broadway musical. It employs a very modern style of theatre, the more innovative sort you're likely to find at an Off-Broadway venue or a college campus. Aside from some profanity, there's nothing vulgar about the production. The themes are too mature for most children, however. Plus, the show runs nearly two hours with no intermission, but in this script, that's vital to keep the audience in the world of the show and to heighten the intensity of the overall experience. So it's not one for the whole family, but it is a must-see for theatre enthusiasts who want to watch something different. The opening of "Normal" last weekend marked the musical's first performances since its 2005 New York City debut. Created by Yvonne Adrian, Cheryl Stern, Tom Kochan, and Jack Cummings III, the show depicts a seemingly normal family as it rapidly begins to fall apart. The four main characters lack control over their lives and become increasingly helpless over the course of the show. The daughter, Polly (Ali Thibodeau), suffers an eating disorder. The mother, Gayla (Julie Fulcher), distracts herself with a job and finds herself unable to control her daughter. The oblivious father, Robert (Ford Flannagan), loses all authority within the household. The son, Zachary (Dave Amadee), gets frustrated with everyone else, to little effect. It's a strong cast, capable of handling the singing, the serious matters and even some comedy. Most of the comic relief comes from an ensemble of three women (Angela Shipley, Debra Wagoner, and Terri Moore), who juggle a range of characters. The three women are skilled at establishing their colorful characters, using distinct vocal tones and body language to make their identities clear within an instant of stepping onto the stage, despite wearing nondescript white outfits in all cases. These roles provide essential support to maintain the show's momentum and to balance out the seriousness. Each actor portraying a family member has a challenging task to pull off. More of the focus is on Fulcher's and Thibodeau's characters, the mother and the daughter, though the father and son also manage to shine through as fully developed, complex characters. Thibodeau perhaps has the most difficult portrayal-succumbing to and dealing with anorexia. That can't be easy to show while attaching genuine feelings, especially for such a young actress, but she does it extraordinarily well. The show incorporates a variety of musical styles into its songs, as many contemporary musicals tend to do, finding that a lack of consistency can be a good thing in creative endeavors. This isn't like an Andrew Lloyd Webber show in which a musical tone is established early on and follows through to the end. Instead, the music fits the feeling of each distinct scene. The script does have a few quirks that are mildly grating, such as the repetition of certain phrases throughout the show. But those are made up for with some genuine cleverness, such as how the three women occasionally become, in essence, living dictionaries defining words, sometimes humorously so. The set reflects the artistic nature of the production; it appears as a contemporary art gallery, with various sketches of families hanging on the walls. It functions as a nice backdrop while retaining the ability to transform into several different locations, aided by the multiple levels built into the ground. "Normal" serves as an excellent example of how great collaboration results in the most memorable theatre. From Chase Kniffen's direction and choreography to Sandy Dacus's musical leadership, Mercedes Schaum's set design to Kenny Mullens' lighting design, Debra Wagoner's costume coordination to Wendy Vandergrift's sound design, the cast to the band-all these various components click in order to put the script's best foot forward. There are no weak links here. It's not a perfect show, but no play is. Stage 1 is to be applauded not only for giving the Richmond area a taste of something new, but also for doing so with exceptional professionalism. Above all, here's the crucial aspect everyone involved seems to get: While it's a stylized production, the feelings behind the characters' actions and words need to appear authentic consistently, and they do. "Normal" at Stage 1 runs through April 25. For ticket information and show times, call the box office at (804) 427-7548, or visit www.stage1va.org.

Sneak peak at Normal...

nor'mal

a new musical of hope and survival

April 3 - 25, 2009

www.stage1va.org
804.427.7548

"Anyone interested in witnessing the unique dramatic power that can be achieved through musical theatre --should get themselves to Normal." -Broadwayworld.com




Julie Fulcher as Gayla and Ford Flannagan as Robert


Julie Fulcher as Gayla and Ford Flannagan as Robert


Ford Flannagan as Robert


Dave Amadee as Zachary and Ali Thibodeau as Polly


Julie Fulcher as Gayla and Debra Wagoner as Robert


Julie Fulcher as Gayla


(L-R) Julie Fulcher as Gayla and Ali Thibodeau as Polly


Julie Fulcher as Gayla


Ali Thibodeau as Polly


(L-R) Debra Wagoner, Ali Thibodeau, Angela Shipley, Julie Fulcher,
Terri Moore, Ford Flannagan, and Dave Amadee

www.stage1va.org
804.427.7548

Deadline Tonight: Be a Normal Producing Partner

Rehearsals for Nor'mal are now underway and the powerhouse cast we've assembled is more excited than ever.

We're thrilled about bringing this unique and artistically satisfying new musical to Richmond. Your help is what we need now.

Join us by making a donation of $25 or more by midnight
tonight to be a Nor'mal Producing Partner.

When Nor'mal begins performances on April 3, with an Official Opening on Saturday, April 4, we will proudly display a list of our Nor'mal Producing Partners in our theatre lobby.
I ask you to be a part of that special group.

Thanks for your support.







Chase Kniffen
Artistic Director

All done...

Ah well. Nothing lasts forever. I don’t know who said that, but it sounds pretty good, so hey! Yeah, the show’s over. It really stinks, but we had a good run, and we have to make way for Stage 1’s next show, Normal, and I’m really excited to go see it when it comes out.

So, I hope you all enjoyed the show, and I don’t know if any of you remember, but I promised a blog about the Secrets of the Back Stage Life, so here is a pretty short story of my favorite rehearsal ever!

One day during rehearsal, back when we didn’t have a complete deck behind the stage, Chase was demonstrating to us how to “correctly” go through the panels at the back at the stage. Well, he took Mackenzie and told her to go through the middle panel. It so happened that the middle panel was the one with no deck behind it, so naturally, Mackenzie fell with a smack! I have to tell you, it was really funny.

But...I’m not done. Later that day, Chase went through one of the panels, and smacked Cooper, and naturally he went flying, then Chase went through the middle panel, and naturally fell with a smack!

Pretty cool story huh?

Ok, so I bid you all good day.

Until next time...Well, I'm not sure there will be a next time...The shows is over, I guess.

Eric Pastore

Hello Everybody

NOTE: This was posted late. Eric was very upset this wasn't posted when he sent it to us, but its been a busy week. Be sure to check out Children's Letters to God, which opens this weekend. On Friday night, we have a "Pay-what-you-will" performance. Just show up on Friday, and pay whatever you want and see a great show!

FROM ERIC:

Well, it’s been a pretty eventful week (as always) at Stage 1, and the cast is cranking out new tricks left and right. So, to start it off, we got a new part of the set, which are these panels that serve as the background. Plus, us kids get to go through them to enter onto the stage. Pretty cool huh?
So yeah, all of us are really excited for Tech Week (which starts this Thursday by the way), and everybody is psyched about getting the lights and stuff. Speaking of stuff, here’s something pretty cool. Instead of going for a really complicated set, we just have the panels in the back, and then there are going to be a couple of projectors that will project the background onto the panels. This is where I go “Oh YEAH!”
Now, on Tuesday, a tragic thing happened to the cast of CLTG. I, the beloved Eric Pastore (that’s me), lost his voice! Isn’t it sad? Good thing though is that I didn’t lose it the night before Opening. That would have been bad.
So, in the end, we got a lot accomplished this week (as usual), and we are ready to kick those Techie’s butts through the ceiling (just kidding)!

As Usual,

Eric Pastore

We Have a Set?!

Let the record show that Chase Kniffen, our awesome director, took one day off of rehearsal and they FINISHED THE SET! Now of course it isn’t completely done There’s a lot painting to be done and walls and rotating panels to install, but we have all of the platforming!! Although the set isn’t technically finished yet, this event was way ABOVE our expectations. HA HA! Sorry, inside joke.

This set is so amazing. I can’t wait to actually perform on it, although it will take some getting used to. That angle is actually really steep when you are trying to dance on it, or run to the very edge of the stage without falling off and without looking at the ground. Oh, I’m sorry, did some of you feel left out of our inside joke?

Well I’ll tell you, although it probably won’t seem all that funny to you. Well, at the beginning of rehearsal chase told us that we would be working with a set that had a very subtle incline but over distance would become about 18 inches high. Well, to get 18 inches in a steady incline of about 7 feet, it can’t be all that subtle, so when we got the set, the incline was surprisingly extreme, and made most of us brake down in fits of mass hysteria and terror. WE WOULD HAVE TO DANCE ON THAT?!!! Anyway, as rehearsal went on, it was actually not all that hard, so case closed.

Now, I know you have loved listening to me babble, but all that talk never really explained the “inside joke”, and you know what? I like it that way, so you will just have to wait until I release my article on “The Wonderful Secrets of the Back Stage Life” after the show has already started. So HA!

Until next time,

Eric Pastore

An eventful week...

What an eventful week. Along with making great progress in the show, Chase just happened to decide to take us to a playground for a photo shoot on the COLDEST DAY OF THE YEAR! Jimmy, I envy you. You didn’t have to come with us. LUCKY!

So, at this cooooooooooooolllllllllllllllldddddddddd playground, we had to take off all of our coats except one long-sleeved shirt and then stand in one place leaning against these really cold metal poles and try to look happy while we get pictures taken of us. Luckily, we ended up with some good shots, but take a look at the picture of me to the left. I am FREEEEEEEEEEZING. Thanks guys...HAHA - Just kidding!

We spent this weekend not rehearsing on stage. The set is in full swing, so we got kicked out of the theatre into a studio for rehearsal – That was cool thought. Sunday was a long day and we made it through the entire first act, which was fun. After we ran the act, Chase referred to the first act as a healthy baby that would need to be nurtured…We all thought that was kind of strange reference, but OK…

To wrap this segment of CLTG weekly, we made a lot of progress, even though we got really cold, and I will see you next week (or maybe earlier) with my next update.


--Eric

Ahhhhhhhh...

Ahhhhhhhhhhh, the sweet smell of a brand new show, being rehearsed in a brand new theatre. I would like to introduce myself. My name is Eric Pastore, I play Theo in the new show Children’s Letters to God, and for the next couple of weeks I will take you on a journey through our rehearsals from a KID’s perspective.

This first week of rehearsals has turned out surprisingly eventful. Let’s see, we sang some songs, blocked some steps, and oh... Cooper Timberline (Kicker) went through the solemn ritual of the Milkshake Dance! It was a sight to see. Also one of the many Wonders of the World of Children’s Letters to God was Mackenzie’s (Joanne) playground she drew for the show.

Now, I’m going to tell you a secret. SHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH. Almost all of the harmonies in this show are Sean’s (Brett). But don’t tell anybody, it’s a secret.

Now, please join me in a moment of silence, as we commend Lily (Iris), who got through an entire week of rehearsals with a sinus infection that nearly made her go INSANE!!!!!!! Ha ha, just kidding, she didn’t go insane, but she did get through the week with headaches and stomach aches left and right. BRAVO!

So, as my first blog for Children’s Letters to God, I would like to say that I am really excited about the show, and I will keep you up to date on what’s what.

--Eric

CHILDREN'S LETTER'S TO GOD guest blogger

Over the next few weeks, we thought it would be fun to actually have one of the stars of CHILDREN'S LETTERS TO GOD guest blog here on our site. Eric Pastore, who has appeared locally in MAME at Barksdale, A CHRISTMAS STORY at Theatre IV, and countless other productions will be keeping us in the loop throughout the rehearsal process of the show. We hope you will check in regularly to find out how things are going from this talented youngster's point of view!