Hello from Cedar City! I am down in Southern Utah with some other ladies from Utah Theatre Lovers (a great group on facebook and meetup for theatre lovers from anywhere) and taking a little bit of much needed vacation (my last trip to SXSW was spoiled because I grew very sick as the trip progressed.)

Anyway, I am here to see 5 performances at the Utah Shakespeare Festival and this entry will log 3 of them. I also saw You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown at Centerpoint on Monday so I will log that as well. I hope you are enjoying some great theatre wherever you are!

YOU’RE A GOOD MAN CHARLIE BROWN- CENTERPOINT LEGACY, CENTERVILLE

You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown is a show I’ve had on my bucket list for some time and so I jumped at the chance to see it at the black box at Centerpoint Legacy. In the end, I’m glad I did because it’s a very cute show that captures the look and feel of our favorite Peanuts characters.

It’s interesting the show is not done more because it has a lot going for it. It’s based on beloved characters. It has cute songs and is appropriate for the entire family. I do think Putnam Spelling Bee came along decades later and did this same idea but made it better and much funnier (although less kid friendly.) This is perfectly cute for a family.

The standouts in the Centerpoint production are the scenic design by Brian Hahn and costumes by Rachel Lindsay. They perfectly capture the charm and whimsy of the Peanuts world. My friend told me there were lighting problems on opening night but they must have fixed those issues because it was all perfectly well lit.

My favorite song of the show is probably “My New Philosophy” and it is sung well by Anissa Roberts playing Sally. Scot D. Struble was also a very cute Snoopy the dog. You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown is probably not a show I will jump to see again but I’m glad I caught it once and would recommend it to anyone in or near Centerville. It’s a cute sweet show for the entire family. You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown is playing until August 17th and you can purchase tickets here.

THE 39 STEPS- UTAH SHAKESPEARE FESTIVAL, CEDAR CITY

Since I have become a frequent theatre patron I have noticed certain shows are more rewatchable than others. In particular I have found myself growing especially weary of comedies. If I never see A Gentleman’s Guide again it will be too soon. The Play that Goes Wrong I’m very tired of etc. So when I say this staging of The 39 Steps didn’t do much for me put that in perspective as someone who has seen it many times and the gimmick is getting a little stale.

In addition, the environment of this production was working against it as the Randall L Jones theatre is blasting out air conditioning to the point people are bundling up to watch a show there and as I was in the front row I had a burst of air right on top of me the entire time. It’s a very bad situation especially when you are paying $50 for these tickets!

If you didn’t know The 39 Steps is a farce loosely based on the classic film and novel. It has a small cast of only 4 people and they literally wear different caps and play over 140 characters by the time the play is finished. It can be quite funny particularly with the supporting characters Clown 1 and Clown 2 played by Michael Doherty and Bailey Savage respectively. My favorite bit is a political rally where clowns are old people who walk absurdly slow. That was a really good piece of comic acting.

Tom Coiner as Richard Hannay was less successful in my opinion. His choices were too big all the time making the truly humorous moments fall flat. He’s supposed to be the straight character that has all this madness happen to him but in this version he was as crazy as anyone else which made it less funny. I also did not appreciate when he heckled the audience. In particular me for wrinkling my bag to get out my water. Especially when I’m being forced to sit in this freezing theatre a little bit of grace from the actors is expected as we are all trying to do our best.

If you have never seen The 39 Steps you’ll probably enjoy this production more than I did but for the price I would pass on this show and see something else at the festival. If you do go bring your sweatshirt!

MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING- UTAH SHAKESPEARE FESTIVAL, CEDAR CITY

Yesterday I braved the Randall L Jones theater again to see one of my favorite Shakespearean plays (perhaps my absolute favorite?) Much Ado About Nothing and it was worth the cold with one of the best plays I’ve seen all year! I adored this production.

Much Ado is one of Shakespeare’s comedies and it in many ways set the blueprint for the screwball comedies and romantic comedies that would follow it. It’s very funny and the team at USF was able to keep things accessible and easy to follow with the Shakespearean language. I could tell everything happening on stage was guided by a very talented director, Brad Carroll, because it wasn’t enough just to have an action occur it had to be topped off with an extra ingredient to provide laughs. For example, when Benedick overhears the conversation about Beatrice loving him he has a pail on his foot and this pail stays on there for the entire scene making everything he does even funnier than it would otherwise be.

Speaking of Benedick, Walter Kmiec, is outstanding in the role. He is funny when he needs to be funny but also serious when the moment calls for it. It’s that calibration that makes the character so endearing and makes us as the audience root for him and Beatrice ( who was also excellent played by Melinda Parrett.) The costumes by Brenda Van der Wiel are moved up to the turn of the century Italy as opposed to the 1600s but they all suited the characters well. I know Shakespeare isn’t for everyone but this Much Ado About Nothing I can’t imagine anyone disliking. It’s a blast.

HENRY VIII- UTAH SHAKESPEARE FESTIVAL, CEDAR CITY

When I saw Henry VIII was on the docket for the festival this year I was very intrigued. It’s one of Shakespeare’s plays that is rarely done. In fact, it is only the 3rd time they have produced it in the 63 years of the festival. Now that I’ve seen it I can understand why it isn’t done that much but it was still interesting to watch and I’m glad I can check it off my theatre bucket list.

What is fascinating is I just saw the feature film Firebrand which is all about Henry but paints a very different picture of the king as a brute of a man who used and abused everyone in his life especially the women. You can read my review for Firebrand here. Of course Shakespeare being close to Henry’s reign and literally having the monarchy sponsor his Kings Players he couldn’t write a play like Firebrand. One of the actors told me it’s basically political propaganda for its day and that is a fascinating thing to watch and see how they tried to sell Henry and in what ways he’s presented as a towering noble figure.

The cast in Henry VIII is all excellent as are the costumes by Bill Black. Director Derek Charles Livingston does what he can to keep things moving along the stage and not have actors just standing in one spot too long. The dramaturg Isabel Smith Bernstein evidently did a lot to pair down the lengthy play and make it more approachable for modern audiences.

The main thrust of the story is Queen Katherine who is put on trial because she won’t agree to an annulment of her marriage to Henry. Cassandra Bissell is excellent in the role and commands the stage whenever she is speaking. Topher Embrey is Henry and has a big booming voice appropriate to a monarch. The rest of the cast is all good. It’s just, even with the changes, a little dry and uninteresting. But in truth I feel this way about most of Shakespeare’s histories. They are more interesting as a historical artpiece than an actual engrossing plot/characters. Henry V plays being the big exception. Still, I’m glad I saw Henry VIII and would recommend it for any history buffs in the area.

The Utah Shakespeare Festival is running until October 5th so there is still lots of time to see any of the 7 shows playing there. I will have 2 more to recap during my trip but I would love to hear what you think of these plays if you’ve seen them here or otherwise. Happy Shakespeare!

All of the shows logged here I paid for out of pocket. I’d love to cover as many local shows as possible but I need your help to do so. If you’d like me to review more theatre and appreciate what I do please check out the patreon here. You will find the patreon has many benefits including watch alongs with writers and actors of TV and films and more. Please take a look.