Luke Weber

ATI shines with story of faded star

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By John Lyle Belden

Actors Theatre of Indiana gives us a “new way to dream” in an old story, the musical “Sunset Boulevard” by Andrew Lloyd Webber with Don Black and Christopher Hampton, based on the 1950 classic noir film co-written and directed by Billy Wilder.

The movie, which the book of the musical closely follows, starred former silent film star Gloria Swanson (who, unlike her character Norma Desmond, did manage a transition to “talkies”) and William Holden, giving them, Wilder and the film Oscar nominations. It’s also notable for ending with one of the most famous lines in the history of film.

Our Norma is played splendidly by Judy Fitzgerald, joined by the return of fellow ATI co-founder Don Farrell as her butler Max. Being a film noir story, someone will die violently; struggling script writer Joe Gillis (Luke Weber) tells us what leads up to that moment.

After a couple of numbers about the high-pressure hassle of getting a movie produced and made, Joe leaves the Paramount studios – dodging husky repo men after his car – and ends up in the driveway of a large old mansion on Sunset, where he finds an aging movie star about to hold a funeral for her pet chimpanzee.

Promised ample pay, Joe agrees to edit the script Norma has written for her cinematic return (not a “comeback,” she insists). He quickly sees that she is delusional and the pages unfilmable, but he gets to stay at the mansion, so he does. Meanwhile, at Paramount, he works with his friend Artie Green’s (Calvin Bernardo) fiancé Betty Schaefer (Deborah Mae Hill) on an actually promising script for a “Girl Meets Boy” romance.

We also meet various Hollywood folks played by Scot Greenwell, Keith Potts, Megan Arrington-Marks, Brooklyn Stewart, Corey Rudell, Peter Scharbrough, and Eric Olson, who also charmingly portrays legendary director Cecil B. DeMille.

Being set in 1949-50, there are a lot of stage cigarettes. The mood is also set by black-and-white film projections of the era, designed by Joey Mervis. Director Michael Blatt has this typically larger than life musical adapt to the intimate space of The Studio Theater with the help of a flexible set design by Jay Ganz. It hints at the artificiality of Hollywood with pieces at times folding shut like they are part of a backlot studio, other times revealing the worn splendor of Norma’s home.

Musical director is Ginger Stoltz and choreographer is Carol Worcel. Fitzgerald and Weber provide appropriately big bold voices for this big musical, with Farrell’s practically operatic.

There is also a fair amount of humor, mainly directed at the foibles of the movie biz. Norma’s mental decline, meanwhile, is taken more seriously, a contrast that aids the slow-boil suspense.  And it will all lead to that iconic spoken line.

For a look at the dark side of the movie biz, where even “the Greatest Star” can become left behind, see the beautifully tragic “Sunset Boulevard,” Wednesdays through Sundays through May 10 at the Allied Solutions Center for the Performing Arts in downtown Carmel. For tickets, visit atistage.org or thecenterpresents.org.

Journey with ‘Violet’ at ATI

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By Wendy Carson

 One quick note before I dive into the review: This is the third production of the musical “Violet” we have seen over the years, the first time based on the 1997 Off-Broadway production, before it was taken to Broadway in 2014. Each local performance has not only been different, but also better than the one before. Therefore, if you have seen the show prior to this, I still strongly suggest you see it, the latest edition, at Actors Theatre of Indiana. It’s a superb production, and I adored it (and not just because my hometown is part of the show).

Written by acclaimed composer Jeanine Tesori with Brian Crawley, based on a Doris Betts short story, the plot has remained consistent: At the age of thirteen, Violet was hit in the face by a flying axe head, leaving her horribly scarred. Years later, in the 1960s, she is on her own and has finally saved up enough money for the bus fare to take her from North Carolina to Tulsa, Oklahoma, and the TV Preacher whom she knows will be able to restore her beauty. Along the way, she befriends a couple of soldiers. The three of them quickly become close, with the men reluctant to let her take the final leg of her journey as they are sure she will be sorrowfully disappointed in her Preacher’s abilities. They are both waiting for her when she returns, healed, but not as she had expected.

Sydney Howard expertly brings out the adult Violet’s hopefulness and sorrow over her predicament while Quincy Carmen as young Vi (in frequent flashbacks) shows the innocence and fortitude that made her the woman she became.

Luke Weber as Monty, the Army Private First Class fresh from Special Forces school, shows the naivete of a soldier looking forward to going to war. Maurice-Aime Green as Flick, the more seasoned Sergeant, reflects the harsh reality of the differences the mere color of his skin brings to his military career and everyday life.

Matt Branic, as Violet’s father, brings out the devotion, stoicism and love of a single parent trying to do the best for his little girl, despite that one horrific moment.

Eric Olson is sheer perfection as the Preacher who may or may not actually have the power to heal, but certainly has the ability to motivate.

While it is easy to present both the Father and the Preacher in a negative light, Branic and Olson each maintain their characters’ humanity as they play their parts in Violet’s life. This is not a story of “good” or “bad” people, but of a journey, and the life lessons learned along the way.

As the rest of the cast play many interchangeable characters throughout the show, one pair does stand out with their true diva roles: Tiffany Gilliam brings down the house as the Music Hall Singer the trio goes out to see while overnighting in Memphis. It is obvious that were she around during that era, she would indeed have been a star on that stage.

Tiffanie Bridges seems to channel the voice of the angels as her turn as Lula, the lead singer in our Preacher’s choir. While her character reminds him that she is singing not for the “show,” but for the Lord, her talent shows this to be true.

ATI co-founder Judy Fitzgerald’s roles include a friendly fellow passenger; other characters, including bus drivers, are provided by Richard Campea and Cody Stiglich.

Director Richard J. Roberts has taken eleven talented singers and actors, a phenomenal script, and a band that can bring such vivid emotion to their music, and given us a beautifully moving show. Pianist Nathan Perry is music director, with musicians Greg Gegogeine, Charles Platz, Kathy Schilling and Greg Wolf. The versatile stage by P. Bernard Killian features a map of the bus route painted across the floor, which includes Fort Smith, Arkansas (where I was born).

Performances of “Violet” run through Nov. 13 in The Studio Theatre at The Center for the Performing Arts in downtown Carmel. For tickets and information, visit atistage.org or thecenterpresents.org.