Breaky: Scrambled Eggs and Fried Potatoes

 

Baltimore Center Stage: Holes

 "Holes" is a play adapted by the author from a young adult novel.  The story is as fantastical as it is allegorical and traces the experiences of one very unlucky, possibly even curse, teenager in a parallel telling of his great great grandfather's tale and who the "curse" got placed in the first place.  Bottom line: Don't steal a pig from a Gypsy.

The adaptation is ingeniously done and made successful in conjunction with one of the most beautiful sets I've ever seen.  An arid desert full of holes one moment to a lake side community made abundant by waves of flowing water.  Add in a lighting design that perfectly connects to and transforms the sets as needed...it was magical.  Kudos to Scenic Designer Sydney Lynne who was brought in from Chicago to craft this inspiring set, and Jesse Belsky for the accompanying Lighting Design.  I've seen Jesse's work before, but always in standard, unimaginative productions where success is determined by the way you DON'T notice the lights.

The actors were a wonderful mix that in some ways mirrored the audience at today's matinee.  Clearly the word is out, because there wasn't an empty seat in the place, and this on top of the fact that it was also the annual Mount Washington Flower Sale just one block behind the theatre!  Thus the traffic and parking were a thing to be avoided--it also explains why I was able to get such a good seat so late in time...  The audience was split 50-50 between folks my age and up and young parents with children (ages 7 to 12, upper elementary).  The gentleman who sat next to me referred to me as "young man" and regaled me with stories of shows he'd seen as a young man in the theaters than no longer even exist in Charm City.  Like the time after one performance he ran into the Smothers Brothers at the bar at a nearby hotel and they spent the evening drinking and enjoying one another's company.

The parallel with the cast was a divide between established, seasoned actors, and those young men and women still in high school dreaming of their way into the business.  Among the older set were several familiar and dependable staples in the DMV actors' scene: Marcus Kyd, Emily Kester, Jonathan Del Palmer, and Susan Rome.  I've followed all of them over many productions and none more passionately than Susan who can do it all and with such gusto!  From a supporting role in "Brighton Beach Memoir" to a solo show on the life of avant garde sculptor Louise Nevelson, and most recently in a cast written, experimental production on the theme of caring at Mosaic Theatre in the District.  In truth, I first noticed her in a recurring role as assistant district attorney over a couple of seasons of "The Wire".  Here again, she chameleon-ed herself through a series of roles with the comedic timing of a truly gifted professional.

Seven roles went to the young folk as inmates in this nightmarish and farcical juvenile rehabilitation camp called "Green Lake" where there is no lake and nothing is green.  Three are students at the Baltimore School for the Arts, and another is a senior in a different Baltimore High Schools acting program.  It is so exciting to see such talent on stage in its nascent moments.  The main role is that of Stanley Yelnats IV portrayed by Zachary Corey; the aforementioned senior in the Acting Magnet Program at G. W. Carver Center for the Arts and Technology.  No matter how good everyone else is in this play--the production lives or dies on the shoulders of this young man for whom this was his professional acting debut.  I can't imagine the pressure, but I didn't have to, because he was magnificent.  He took on the role with such a natural ease that never fell into pitfalls that can plague inexperienced actors like relying on some cliche or gimmick to define a character's disposition.  Instead, he just was Stanley to the point that near the end when exhausted by his quest he collapses in despair in the desert and cries, I completely forgot that he was an actor playing a role, and instead, wanted to weep with him in empathy with his situation.   Additional shout outs go to Kimberly Dodson as Madame Zeroni and Jude Sincere as Zero.

"Holes" at Baltimore Center Stage is a triumph of story telling and a joy start to finish.

POST SCRIPT:  Prior to the beginning the company often sends out a member of the Board or behind the scenes administrator to welcome the audience and make a pitch for contributions.  The young man who got the nod today began by describing Baltimore Center Stage as "Maryland's Official Theatre Company".  I thought, "What the fuck?  By whose standards?"  Then I realized that it was certainly the result of some promise of state money to underwrite the company, and like other such agreements (The Maryland Zoo, for example) probably exacted an expectation of free performances for Public School groups to performances like this one.  I know they also have an ongoing program that teaches acting at some of the state's juvenile jails--something I think is 100% a good thing.  

Introduced to his Unit D crew members at "Camp Green Lake".

Madame Zeroni (Kimberly Dodson)

Unit D Crew: Top L-R: Stanley (Zachary Corey), X-Ray (Ephraim Neheniah), Zig Zag (Hassan Aziz) Bottom L-R: (Armpit (Joshua Reginald Allen), and Magnet (Braxton Singhanath)

The D Crew member who holds the key to the truth...  Zero (Jude Sincere)

Crew Boss, Mr. Sir (Marcus Kyd), explaining how things go down at Camp Green Lake.

The Warden (Susan Rome)

Stanley is called before the Warden for an infraction.

Stanley Yelnats IV (Zachary Corey)

From the alternate story-line: Kate (Emily Kester) and Sam the Onion seller (Jonathan Del Palmer) attempt to make their escape across Green Lake.

The boys after Zero runs away!

Zero and Stanley on the lamb together.

The treasure is found and the gig's up!  All that has been wrong for over 100 years, will be made right.

My Little Garden Zoo 2026: First Report

 With an oddly cool spring that started with several very hot days, the flowering trees all got a kick start and the air was filled with pollen, then petals, then seed pods!  All of which falls on my planters and requires constant cleaning when decked out as a small figure zoo.  Some years I brave it; this year, not so much.  Tack on to that three weekends in a row with damp weather and highs in 50's and overcast low 60's and it's not been a difficult decision.  Of course, I still like to spend some time on the deck and have moved many tolerant plants outside.  In the process, I have also established a few habitats for this year's iteration of my LGZoo.  

GRAY WOLVES

Canus lupus 

[Conservation Status: LEAST CONCERNED]

COMMON WOMBAT

Vombatus ursinus 

[Conservation Status: LEAST CONCERNED]

GALAPAGOS ISLAND GIANT TORTOISE

Chelonoidis niger 

[Conservation Status: ENDANGERED]

EASTERN GREY KANGAROO

Macropus giganteus 

[Conservation Status: LEAST CONCERNED]

AMERICAN BISON

Bison bison 

[Conservation Status: NEAR THREATENED]

NORTH AMERICAN BLACK BEAR

Ursus americanus

[Conservation Status: LEAST CONCERNED]

North American Moose

Alces alces 

[Conservation Status: LEAST CONCERNED]

CLOUDED LEOPARD

Neofelis nebulosa 

[Conservation Status: VULNERABLE]

CHEETAH

Acinonyx jubatus 

[Conservation Status: VULNERABLE]

Prologue Theatre: A Mirror

The Program was for the fake wedding complete
with a guest gift bag!

There is a lot of new theatre out there, and honestly, I tend to give most of it somewhere between a B- and C-.  It's derivative.  It's cliche.  It's formulaic.  It's idiosyncratic to the point that its message is irrelevant.  The characters are flat.  So you sit through a story and when it's over there's not that much left to ponder, except perhaps why did I pay to give up two hours experiencing this.  It's a little bit like fishing.  Sometimes you catch a really great fish, but often you don't and still you can appreciate all the incidentals, right?  There's the river, the fresh air, your friend/s, the warm sun, the cool breeze, etc.  So even if a play's plot is not so great, you can appreciate the sets, costumes, props, light & sound, the actors who bring their A-games even to C- scripts.  So that's why I rarely find myself regretting going to the theatre.

And then there are those other times.  The time you bring in the most magnificent Rainbow Trout the Au Sable River has ever given up, and your dad is so proud of you, and later the old girl as fresh as new mown grass roasts over an open fire and flakes off the bone like manna from Heaven.  "A Mirror" by Sam Holcroft is like that trout.  Premiered in London in 2023, it's a relatively new work that is both sharp in its intentions, but soft enough to allow for some atypical character development.  

Prologue Theatre has been around now for about 10 years.  It is the lovechild of Jason Tamborini, who directed this production.  The intention of Prologue is to create interactive post-production experiences in which ideas can be discussed.  To this end, every show comes with an online forum.  "A Mirror" tells the story of a playwright trapped in a totalitarian society who is forced to stage his plays in clandestine ways.  So you enter the "theatre" which is decked out like a church chapel (and which is literally staged in modestly sized storage space on the backside of a CVS drugstore anchored mini-strip mall of just three business.  Parking is in the rear as is the entrance.  It is the most intimate of theatre spaces, perhaps in all of the DMV.  Previously they have found room in the schedule of the Atlas Performing Arts Center in DC, and the very first production I ever saw with in the recital space of a converted circa 1930's movie theatre on Georgia Avenue, NW!  And that's when I knew it was love at first sight!

While this little company might seem inconsequential in the big sea that is the DMV theatre scene--it always manages to punch above its weight.  And nothing proves this more than the fact the Maboud Ebrahimzadeh held the leading role of Celik.  Maboud is one of the most amazing actors I have ever seen, and I've seen him in over a dozen shows.  To experience his talent in such a small and close-up space is a gift I would have paid for under any circumstances.  And he's so good, that I cannot help but believe his performance raise the other's work around him.  And I don't mean to be undermining the role of Jason Tamborini as director.  There's just something magical that can happen when the chemistry is right.  And to that end the rest of the primary cast: Jordan Brown, Lily Burka and Shaan Sharma were pitch perfect.  Here's the ticker--this was a two and half hour production that never lost my attention, if at times pushed the boundaries of my apprehension as I aloud the ideas to sink in and join an internal dialogue around the issues of censorship, honesty, courage and survival.  

On stage through May 18th.  Honestly, go.  This is the sort of opportunity that doesn't come along very often.

My Favorite LEGO sets: The Postcard Series

 While I think some of them could have been more thoughtfully designed (I'm looking at you, Australia), on the whole they are a clever and fun series of sets, that are also affordable by LEGO standards.

CHINA

AUSTRALIA

GERMANY

UNITED STATES

FRANCE

ITALY

JAPAN

UNITED KINGDOM

Dinner: Tuna Melt and Salad tossed with a French Vinaigrette

 

Hawkweed! Glorious Springtime Guest!