CCT with 2nd Flight Theatre Company Flight of the Lawnchair Man
By McCall Doyle • Jun 1st, 2009 • Category: ReviewsCCT with 2nd Flight Theatre Company
NVCC-Loudoun Campus, Sterling, VA
$15/$10 Seniors and Students
Through June 14th
Flight of the Lawnchair Man is the comedic new musical currently being presented at CCT with 2nd Flight Theatre Company. The direction and choreography (Randall Jones) is brisk and paints colorful images. The plot is based on the true story of a New Jersey man who finds himself without a real purpose in life. He’s 34, lives with his nagging mother, and his greatest accomplishment has been his recent promotion to Walmart snack bar manager.
Aided by his tollbooth girlfriend Gracie (Susanna Todd), Jerry Gorman (Mark W. Gray-Mendes) takes his life (or lack thereof) into his own hands, assisted by 4000 helium balloons and a lawnchair. Gray-Mendes is painfully underused…he was perfectly cast as the sensitive loser, singing with lyricism and depth, but his songs were among the shortest in the show and he spent a lot of time onstage without a whole lot to do. Write his character more songs, please! Todd is a charmer, with a strong belting voice and a perky persona. The two have the most memorable tunes in the entire production, “I Want to Fly” and “The Air is Free.”
The show was anchored by its two leads, but there were brilliant scene stealers. Ryan Khatcheressian as an egotistical pilot and Rebecca Clary his stewardess bimbette sidekick were hysterical. Khatcheressian has always been known in this area for his vocal prowess, but here he finds the humor in every last aspect of his character and takes it to a new level.
Cory Okouchi infuses his cameo as Mr. Frankel with life and over the top energy…Josh Doyle as Charles Lindbergh is thoroughly amusing, and Cathy Arnold as Amelia Earhart is a winner. And Lori Staley’s brief turn as the little French Boy is delightful.
It’s a quirky musical that doesn’t quite hit all the notes of whimsy it might have achieved. The very functional set (Kevin King) complete with wonderful projections, helps the show along. The lighting design (also Kevin King) is beautiful, with a dreamy, pastel palette. There were some issues with the orchestra/vocal balance and the microphones, but it’s difficult to maintain a balance when the orchestra is behind the performers/set/scrim. The costume design (Jacquin Pierce Allen, Michael Schaaff) was effective and fun for the most part, except for the opening ensemble costumes…there needed to be uniform crispness to attain the point of the number.
The surprise second ending (after the curtain call) was the dream child of director Jones…it may have changed the flavor from bittersweet to honey…but was nicely executed by Jen Faulconer.
Opening night was lacking a little energy, but the cast will no doubt get stronger as the run continues. The audience was very enthusiastic and the experience was enhanced by the presence of the composer and lyricist, Robert Lindsey-Nassif, who graciously held a talkback after the show.
Cast
- Jerry Gorman: Mark W. Gray-Mendes
- Gracie: Susanna Todd
- Mr. Frankel: Cory Okouchi
- Mother Gorman: Marissa Quintos
- Big Jack Preston: Ryan Khatcheressian
- Blaire: Rebecca Clary
- French Boy: Lori Staley
- Thong Dude/Movie Narrator: Jesse Baskin
- Model/Nena: Jen Faulconer
- Car-Jacked Guy/Photographer: Jeffery Miller
- Nun/Feather O’Hurlahee: Carla Okouchi
- Biker Chick/FAA Man: Renee Rabben
- Wal-Mart Employee/NASA Official: Michael Schaaff
- Closet Gay/Thuggish Bully: Stephen T Wheeler
- Madeline/Lindbergh Bimbo: Christine Young
- Young Jerry: Braedon Kulick
- Leonardo da Vinci: Kevin McCormack
- Charles Lindbergh: Josh Doyle
- Amelia Earhart: Cathy Arnold
Crew
- Producer: Leah Aspell
- Director: Randall Jones
- Assistant Director: Maribeth Jones
- Music Director: David Rohde
- Stage Manager: Colleen Stock
- Assistant Stage Manager: Laura Moody
- Technical Directors: Kevin King, Rick Wilson
- Master Carpenters: Kevin King, Rick Wilson
- Special Effects: Nick Brown, Jeff Bender
This article can be linked to as: http://www.showbizradio.net/goto/3851.
Wonderful review, thank you! Two quick notes, though: the company’s name is CCT with 2nd Flight Theatre Company, not 2nd Flight with CCT Productions or College Community Theatre with 2nd Flight Productions; and the show runs through June 14, not November 8.
(Forgot to mention, I’m the secretary for CCT/2FT)
Hi Erin, Thanks for straightening me out with the name of the group (Can you make it a little longer please?) And I fixed the wrong information I had listed. Mike
I’m glad you also liked the show. I was also there on opening night, and really enjoyed speaking with composer Robert-Lindsey-Nassif during intermission, and asking him about the show at the post-performance talk-back. What a nice experience for the cast and audience to have the composer/lyricist there on opening night. Thanks Randall Jones for arranging the discussion. I want to give kudos to the magnificent orchestra lead by recent WATCH Award Winner-for KAT’s A New Brain – musical director David Rohde. I really loved Daniel Lee and Virginia Gardner’s gorgeous trumpet and cello playing. This was one of the best orchestras I have ever heard in local community theatre. Also, the brilliant use of the special effects on the TV screen was hysterical, and added to the humor and emotion of the show. Bravo to Jeff Bender and Nick Brown for their sound design and projections. And congrats to the wonderful cast. Look for Ryan and Cathy in my upcoming Scene Stealers article on DC Theatre Scene. I left the theatre on a real high!. I urge everyone to see the show this final weekend. Don’t miss it!