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Amy Zerner's artistic couture.
If pre-performance jitters are an indication of a winning show, what does it mean when the nerves are emanating from the audience before the curtain even rises?
It means a lot of proud mommas and poppas are going to love whatever happens on stage.
And, of course, they did.
It also means no one is going to be upset with cameras flashing and iPhones recording the action. Hey, it’s a family affair. Siblings of the performers are wondering if they really should have quit those dance lessons, or if they can start them ASAP. The bouquets of flowers their mothers are holding are not meant for them, after all, but rather for their sisters up on the stage at Guild Hall in East Hampton.
All in good fun was the overall vibe on opening night of “Our Adventures in Wonderland,” a production staged by Our Fabulous Variety Show, an East End-based troupe of nearly three dozen actors, singers and dancers from age 8 on up, with most of the group somewhere between adolescence and adulthood.
The exuberant production of mostly song and dance is based loosely on the title character from Lewis Carroll’s “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.” The loosey-goosey script only sometimes manages to make sense, but always points toward, “girl power!” The plot, such as it is, revolves around Alice and various efforts from society in the form of a pedantic White Queen (Lee Michel) to teach her pupil only what comes by rote and stamp out her imagination.
No bother, young Alice (Tori Schmitt) manages to shine and emerge years later as grown-up Alice (Kayla Angona), who will certainly be more than wife, mother, or minion. Yes, that’s a choice here.
One of the funnier bits comes when a Donald Trump-like character—Mr. Wonderland—stages a beauty pageant and asks the three contestants illogical questions and gets back answers in kind, just as they are in real life when such contestants are asked how they would, say, achieve world peace.
The staging was inventive, with characters making ample use of the center aisles to come and go. Best was when they were simply hopping around.
Piped-in music came from all over the place, including pop tunes such as Grace Slick’s “Go Ask Alice” with new lyrics, all adding to the familiarity and fun for the audience. Lighting was by Guild Hall’s excellent pro, Sebastian Paczynski, and the setup gave him room to explore normal stage illumination to disco. Ms. Michel also designed the simple, yet charming, costumes.
But let me save the highest kudos for the dancing and choreography, the centerpiece of several numbers ranging from tap and hip-hop to modern and ballet with a bit of tumbling. All were well executed and joyously infectious, enough to make me sorry I hung up my ballet slippers so long ago.
The standout number in this surfeit of riches involved techno with clever sheets of chartreuse that provided a stunning visual. But then, of course, there was the finale—a tap number with most of the dancers on stage that was visually and acoustically stunning, leaving the already primed audience in high spirits.
If this is what East Hampton’s dancehampton—where many of the dancers were from—is turning out, good job!
Two women from Hampton Bays, Anita Boyer and Kasia Klimiuk, deserve blue ribbons for being the brains and energy behind this production, their 11th since they started the shows in 2010.
All proceeds benefit a local charity, or fund future productions. This year’s beneficiary is HUGS, which works with East End school districts to develop strategies to enable young people to make healthy choices and develop the skills to be leaders in their communities.
Intermission consisted of a daffy “commercial” for the troupe’s production of its take on “A Christmas Carol,” as well as raffle for a $500 prize. Tickets were sold before the show began and right up until the drawing.
Wouldn’t you know, a man in the front row won. And he immediately donated the prize back to HUGS.
It was that kind of night.
Our Fabulous Variety Show will stage “Our Adventures in Wonderland” on Friday, September 25, and Saturday, September 26, at 7:30 p.m., and Sunday, September 27, at 2 p.m. Tickets range from $15 to $55. For more information, call (631) 534-2906, or visit ourfabulousvarietyshow.org.
on Sep 22, 2015