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For actors, it’s important to read the room. After all, finding and moving with the rhythm and spirit of the audience in the moment is part of the sacred magic of helping people move through the story and feeling what the characters feel. Every year, with Broadway Our Way, the annual fundraiser for Uptown Players, the task is even bigger — to read the community with an original show woven around Broadway songs sung by same-sex couples. The concept, by itself, is a simple but profound reminder that love is love, that it belongs to everyone and everyone deserves to be seen and see themselves as heroes of their stories.
But with actor, director and writer B.J. Cleveland at the helm of this year’s joyful and funny Fractured Fairy Tales, the show at the Kalita Humphreys Theater that ends with a final performance Sunday, the show is all that and more. He takes us into a fairy tale-like world in a fresh way that reflects the fear we might have of looking for and claiming love in a time where threats and fears cackle around every corner.
The premise seems simple enough. The prince (Clayton Younkin who delivers a moving “First Time in Forever” from Frozen) is giving a ball in the land of Up. Everyone is looking for the key to something, but they’re not sure what. Most are searching for love or mischief, as they dance and sing their way from numbers familiar (Laura Lites as a very funny Rapunzel singing “Hair” (from Hair) with a spirited Kylie Stewart, Stephanie Felton and Ally Van Deuren as fellow fairy tale iconsto songs that were new to me (Peter DiCesare in a transcendent “Candle on the Water” from Peter’s Dragon).
Under the musical direction of Kelley Poché Rodriguez (who celebrates a birthday today, happy birthday Kelley!) and Adam C. Wright (who also did the lovely musical arrangements) the 22-person casts shines as they dance their way through Alli Betsill’s brilliant choreography for 28 glorious numbers, PLUS selections from the upcoming season which includes Urinetown and Together, a co-production with Bruce Wood Dance Dallas.
Shout-outs to the full company, who go by their first names in the program, which also includes Felton’s wild Goldilocks who sweetly terrorizes three scared bears (Quintin Jones, Jr., Carlos Strudwick and Tim Brawner) with “Never Ever Getting Rid of Me” (from Waitress). Erin Bowman’s elegant Cinderella gives a sly wink with “Everybody Ought to Have a Maid” (from A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum) with the the terrifically sinister Arya J Valley as the Stepmother and crazy funny sisters Sophie DeYoung and Gena Loe, who don’t recognize Cinderella in her ballgown.
David Lugo pours on romantic longing in “How ‘Bout a Dance"?’ (from Bonnie and Clyde), while Micah Green and Lee Walter slay as evil queens in “I Want the Good Times Back” (from The Littler Mermaid). Geoff Lutz, Strudwick, Jones and Brawner put the howl in “I Never Met a Wolf Who Didn’t Like to Howl” (from Smash). Seth Paden delivers a marvelously mad Mad Hatter in “Mad Hatter” (from Wonderland). Linda Leonard, Brett Warner, Elizabeth Kensek, Valley, Stewart, Lites bring vulnerablity and longing to another lesser known song, “Lost in the Wilderness” (from Children of Eden) by the very well-known Wicked composer Stephen Schwartz.
And then there’s Cleveland, whose “bashful” dwarf from the Snow White story was clearly born to sing a very loud “Shy” (from Once Upon a Mattress).
Michael B. Moore’s stunning hair and make-up design complements Suzi Cranford’s clever costume design (with a powerful twist at the end). Dennis Canright’s set and Kyle Harris’ lighting design immerses us into the world of the dappled forest. Brian Christensen’s sound design is impeccable. The orchestra with Sam Walker on guitar, Sal Bollinger on bass, Chad Ostermiller on reeds and Michael Ptacin on drums is spot-on.
The bountiful talent, all of whom have donated their work to the fundraiser, reflects another thing I love about this company. Uptown Players has made a vital mark in Dallas as a company on a proud mission to amplify LGBTQ+ experiences, providing a place where everyone can be seen, respected, honored, and heard. At the same time, you will have no idea who in the cast is a member of the LGBTQ+ community and who is an ally because, guess what? They are ACTORS and their gift is portraying all people with dignity and love. In a world where people try to segregate and create caste systems, everyone here is welcome on the stage, backstage and in the seats. It is truly a microcosm of how the world should be.
In a world where we may feel hopeless and helpless, they also remind us that we can all make a difference. All donations are welcome. Money helps, of course, but they are also grateful for the talent donating their talent, for the people who volunteer to be ushers, for the community donating items for the auctions which raises money that keeps this important theater going.
I had the privilege of donating a copy of my picture book, Rainbow Allies, to the auction. It is truly a tiny donation, a drop in the ocean of the amazing things you will find on the tables in the lobby, but Uptown co-founders and co-producers Craig Lynch and Jeff Rane made me feel wonderful about giving this book from my heart, a true about a kids that rally to show their neighbors, who had been bullied, that they are loved. It’s another reminder that stories of love are welcome and met with love at Uptown Players.
One last performance at 2 p.m. It will soothe your soul and leave you with hope. Do your heart a favor and don’t miss it. Broadway Our Way: Fractured Fairy Tales at the Kalita Humprheys Theater, 3636 Turtle Creek Blvd., Dallas. 214-219-2718. uptownplayers.org
Photos by Mike Morgan for Uptown Players.