#1
Posted: 5/15/06 at 11:34pm
I took my son to Bee at the Drury Lane Water Tower. He is a seasoned veteran of the theater, but I was worried about the Erection song. It went right over his head, so to speak, and he did not mention it and there were enough distractions during the number. My son was hoping to catch some of the items thrown by Chip.
I enjoyed Bee and was happy to see a packed house for a Saturday matinee. The show fit well in the space which I found to be very comfortable and intimate even though we were in the last row. My son loved it and plans on returning to do the lottery. (We won the Wicked lottery a few weeks ago.) He loved the I Love You number which is surprising considering it is the 11 O’clock number and there is no intermission.
The set, costumes, music – all well put together. My problem was that I simply did not care about a few of the characters and did not cheer for them to win. My acting and directing days are long past, but could this Bee the lack of combined experience among the cast? The cast sing, dance, and contort themselves with confidence, but as to character development, I am not so sure. This is a fairly significant production for Chicago and considering the amount of advance tickets sold, could the producers have sought out more local talent with more experience. (Here, unlike the Rent tragedy that played here recently, these kids are talented!)
Lucia Spina and Bill Larkin as the Bee moderators keep the pace of the production upbeat. As a former Bee winner, Spina’s Rona sets the tone from the beginning as to the significance of the Bee to the Putnam “community.” Larkin delivers the definitions and pronunciations with precision comic timing.
As for the kids, Eric Roediger and Derrick Trumbly reveal the insecurities and idiosyncrasies of their characters (Barfee and Coneybear) with aplomb! Brad Weinstock is perfect as Chip!
The audience spellers were very funny and hats off to the Bee staff that must do the best “put in” rehearsal around! The spellers seem to know what to expect for many of the numbers.
James Earl Jones II (Mahoney) plays many characters and is just hilarious as the counselor. His vocals in I Love You are outstanding.
I definitely recommend Bee for all and plan on seeing it many more times with the rest of the family! I am also very pleased that C H I C A G O has another H I T.
I enjoyed Bee and was happy to see a packed house for a Saturday matinee. The show fit well in the space which I found to be very comfortable and intimate even though we were in the last row. My son loved it and plans on returning to do the lottery. (We won the Wicked lottery a few weeks ago.) He loved the I Love You number which is surprising considering it is the 11 O’clock number and there is no intermission.
The set, costumes, music – all well put together. My problem was that I simply did not care about a few of the characters and did not cheer for them to win. My acting and directing days are long past, but could this Bee the lack of combined experience among the cast? The cast sing, dance, and contort themselves with confidence, but as to character development, I am not so sure. This is a fairly significant production for Chicago and considering the amount of advance tickets sold, could the producers have sought out more local talent with more experience. (Here, unlike the Rent tragedy that played here recently, these kids are talented!)
Lucia Spina and Bill Larkin as the Bee moderators keep the pace of the production upbeat. As a former Bee winner, Spina’s Rona sets the tone from the beginning as to the significance of the Bee to the Putnam “community.” Larkin delivers the definitions and pronunciations with precision comic timing.
As for the kids, Eric Roediger and Derrick Trumbly reveal the insecurities and idiosyncrasies of their characters (Barfee and Coneybear) with aplomb! Brad Weinstock is perfect as Chip!
The audience spellers were very funny and hats off to the Bee staff that must do the best “put in” rehearsal around! The spellers seem to know what to expect for many of the numbers.
James Earl Jones II (Mahoney) plays many characters and is just hilarious as the counselor. His vocals in I Love You are outstanding.
I definitely recommend Bee for all and plan on seeing it many more times with the rest of the family! I am also very pleased that C H I C A G O has another H I T.
