Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.
Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/517362
6 UCW MAY 27- JUNE 2, 2015 WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM The lives we live as adults after college has its ups and downs. We take a look at life outside of the apartment on Avenue Q at the Cape Fear Regional Theatre with its final show of the season. Directed by Nick Minas, the musical is complete with the actors manipulating hand-held puppets that liken the faces and fur of Sesame Street residents. However, keep the kids at home — this is an adult themed show. With that being said, let's take a trip down to Avenue Q for some large laughs and grown-up fun. The show takes place in a run-down neighborhood in New York known as Avenue Q. We see the characters come on stage as puppets who tell their stories with the helping- hands of their actors. Ally Ivey plays Kate Monster, a monster puppet who is working as a kindergarten teacher's assistant. She teaches "students of fur" and is very sweet and likeable. Princeton, played by Tom Littman, is a recent college grad who finds an apartment for rent on Avenue Q and is ready to start his life in a new place, with a new job and his BA in English. The apartment superintendent, played by Lormarev C. Jones, is named, of all people, Gary Coleman — yes, the child-star Gary Coleman. As the story progresses, we see the other residents on the block: Brian, played by J. Preddie Predmore, Christmas Eve, played by Rebecca Larkin, Rod, also played by Littman, Nicky and Trekkie, both played by Chaz Pofahl and Lucy and Mrs. T played by Taylor Kraft. All of the characters are puppets being operated by the actors with the exception of Brian, Christmas Eve and Gary Coleman. The story is one in which I think we can all find some meaning and relevance. Life as adults is not easy, or should I say, as predictable as we would like it to be. Themes such as tolerance of other people's race and lifestyles can make for interesting experiences and this show is just the vehicle to allow us to sit in the dark and realize that the actors and puppets are allowing the audience to laugh at subject-matter that needs such a great show to give us that permission. There are so many great jokes and clever situations that ring with hilarity. Actors who can sing, act and dance are known in the theatre-world as triple-threats. The highest compliment that can be given to actors who operate the puppets in this show is that they are all a quadruple-threat. They sing, act, dance and are puppet- masters. Even though Predmore and Larkin did not use puppets to portray their characters, they made up for it by shining and charging the stage with their major triple-threat-talent. Predmore gave the audience the perfect version of everybody's favorite frat-boy who is still going strong and Larkin pulled consistent laughter with her hilarious accent as a Japanese-American woman who is struggling to find clients as a therapist. Ivey demonstrates great finesse and control with her puppet, Kate. She is able to make Kate so likeable and gentle and the reason we see and feel this is because of Ivey's undeniable talent of living through her puppet. Her face uses the emotion that she portrays through the puppet with subtlety, yet it's just powerful enough to keep our eyes on Kate. Ivey gave the audience a beautiful gift with her vocals in the song "There's A Fine, Fine Line." This was the only moment where I could not take my eyes off of Ivey's face. She pulled the audiences' heart with her emotional rendition. Littman hit every ball out of the park with his on-point puppet skills. There were so many moments of awe in his ability to not only match his puppet's movements with exacting perfection to his own mouth, but the physical stamina and impressive dance-moves that he incorporated into his puppet's personality was astounding. Bringing both puppets he operated to life with such clarity made me giggle at the curtain-bow because it was the first time that I really saw his face. I only knew the actor as his puppets throughout the show. Pofahl had powerhouse-status with his puppet-perfect voice and dizzying number of puppets. I appreciated Jones portrayal of Gary Coleman. It would have been so easy to make this character a tragic over-the-top caricature and Jones would not allow that. Instead, she played Coleman effortlessly as lovable and witty. I will just say that Lucy, played by Kraft, left the audience in stitches. To know Lucy is to love Lucy. Kraft had the audience rolling at her sheer puppet antics and cataclysmic portrayal of such a special character. Get down to the CFRT to see the rousingly good- times outside of the apartment on Avenue Q. The adult humor will mean that a baby sitter is in order for your young ones, but it is the ultimate date-night for adults. The humor and antics are top-notch and you will get to lean forward in laughter with the rest of the grown-ups. There Is So Much Life Outside the Apartment on Avenue Q by NICKI HART NICKI HART, Theatre Critic. COMMENTS? Editor@upandcomin- gweekly.com. 910.484.6200. Hours: 9am-6pm Mon-Fri 3006 Bragg Blvd. 910.323.1791 www.thetrophyhouseinc.com A Salute to the Military Heroes in our Family.