The Citizen, 1999-06-16, Page 23E ntertainment
Theatre review
Tony tops in ‘West Side’
THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, JUNE 16, 1999. PAGE 23.
Girl power at
By Bonnie Gropp
Citizen staff
For Stratford audiences there are
few familiar faces in the Avon The-
atre’s production of West Side
Story. But pulled together to make
their Stratford debut is as talented a
troupe of actors and dancers as you
can imagine.
And amidst this bright young
group shines Tyley Ross as Tony.
This guy doesn’t just look good,
he has a voice that makes you
weak. On the first note of Maria
you could almost hear the audience
draw a collective breath, and let it
go only when the song ended.
There was not a twitch in the the
atre, I’m sure no one wanted to let
one precious sound be lost.
I’ll never be certain whether the
tears I shed at Tony’s demise were
for the tragedy and how beautifully
the two young actors pulled you
into their story, or because I knew I
wasn’t going to be hearing Ross
sing again.
(On the evening this reviewer
saw the production, the role of
Maria was being played by Ma-
Anne Dionisio’s understudy, Tara
Macri, who held her own against
the mega-wattage of Ross.)
Ross, who was on Broadway in
Miss Saigon and who won a Dora
for his work in Tommy is a strong,
confident performer who has the
type of natural grace that makes it
all look easy. He is compelling to
watch and bewitching to hear.
It is a credit of the talent support
ing him that they are not lost.
Karen Andrew and Raymond
Rodriquez shoot sparks as the pas
sionate Anita and Bernardo. Jake
Simmons gives a solid performance
as Riff. The Jets and Sharks are
equally noteworthy, for their exe
cution of the physically demanding
dance routines.
All are helped by the fact that
this Romeo and Juliet story set in
195O’s New York has some of the
most beautiful music ever to come
out of theatre. From the romantic
ingenuousness of One Hand, One
Heart to the optimistic Tonight and
the hopeful Somewhere, the lyrics
of Stephen Sondheim and music of
Leonard Bernstein sing to you.
Even the more humorous tunes
are not delivered without a mes
sage, and while they counterbal
ance the raw emotional impact of
star-crossed love, this is no
lightweight fare. The lively,
raunchy America is fiery in its mes-
Buck & Doe
(an Caldwell &
Sarah Thomson-
Sat., June 19/99
Blyth Community Centre
9-1 $5/person
Age of majority required
Lunch provided
Music by MCL Sound
Tickets call Joe 482-7572 or
at the door ■
Ending badly
Tyley Ross as Tony tries to keep his buddy Riff (Jake
Simons) from fighting in this intense scene from the Avon
Theatre’s production of the classic West Side Story. Ross is
marvelous as the ill-fated Romeo of this 1950’s themed love
story.
sage of what is good and bad in
society.
Though Gee, Officer Krupke is
performed by the Jets with the
abandon of pups off the. chain,
there is the underlying reality that
adults, and life, aren’t always fair
to adolescents.
Directed by Kelly Robinson and
choreographed by Sergio Trujillo
West Side Story is flawless in its
production. Staging is excellent,
scenes move swiftly. The dance
scenes are exciting, full of energy
and physically demanding.
Set design by Ruari Murchison
shows simple efficiency, allowing
for swift scene changes while tak
ing the audience from the ghetto
Stuck with a spare tire
around the middle?
Leave the car at
home and walk.
Sharing a
Healthier
Fulure>
parmapacnon •
Stag- <£ Slo-e-
for
Sharon Ramsey
& John McNall
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Friday, June 18
9 p.m. to 1 a.m.
Auburn Community
Hall
Age of Majority
Tickets - 526-7653
playgrounds and fire escapes to
bedrooms and drug stores with
scarcely a pause.
Costumes.by Charlotte Dean
show the flamboyance of the Puer
to Ricans, the purity of Maria,
without taking too much from the
simplicity of the times.
I can not say that West Side Story
was perfect. There were moments
in some of the more raucous songs
when the words were lost, a partic
ular shame in America, which has
some quite funny lyrics.
So, no I can’t say it was perfect.
But my goodness it was close.
ON S3.00 THURSDAYS
Drop Into either of our offices any Thursday
with your word classified (maximum 20 words)
and pay only $3.00 (paid in advance).
That's $1.00 off regular rates
Citizen
cnpito<
KEB
TWIN CINEMA
;M| SURROUND SOUND STEREO _]■ !
LISTOWEL 291-3070
STARTS FRIDAY
CINEMA 1 7 & 9:15 P.M. pg
NOTTING
HILL
JULIA ROBERTS,
HUGH GRANT
CINEMA 2 7 & 9:15 P.M. aa
SHAKESPEARE
IN LOVE
WATCH FOR STAR WARS
COMING SOON
Blyth arena
By Janice Becker
Citizen staff
Blyth will be hopping June 26
when the tribute band, Spice Power
comes to the Blyth and District
Community Centre for an afternoon
concert.
This is the first of many endeav
ours to be undertaken, by a small
committee hoping to begin raising
funds for an amphitheatre to be
located west of the Thresher’s Park,
as part of a millennium project.
Spice Power is following up the
Spice Girls success which resulted
in 32 million albums sold world
wide.
Though Ginger Spice left the
group several months ago, Spice
Power brings back the magic of the
five.
Festival hosts
student
exhibit
Once again student artists from
I l secondary schools will have
their works on display in the lower
level of Blyth Memorial Hall. The
exhibit will be officially opened on
June 23 by John Patterson,
associate director of the Avon-
Maitland Board of Education.
A reception will welcome all
participants and their families and
friends. A Pay-What-You-Can
preview performance of That
Summer by David French will
begin at 8 p.m. after the reception.
French is the playwright who
created the Canadian classics Salt
Water Moon and Jitters.
The student art exhibit will run
concurrently with professional
shows in the Blyth Festival Art
Gallery and the theatrical season,
thus ensuring maximum exposure
of student art to the thousands of
Blyth visitors.
Atwood Lions
Bingo
every Thursday
Doors open 6:30 p.m.
Starts at 7:OO p.m.
Jackpot $500.
on 54 calls
Pot of Gold $500.
on 56 calls
Loonie Bin
From Very Posh, to Quite Gin
gerly, Scary Stuff, Such a Baby and
A Sporty Look, the group brings
their own talents to the stage.
The entertainers have experience
on stage or screen and have vocal
and dance training as well as many
other performing credentials.
Tickets for the 2 p.m. sfiow are
available at Blyth General Store,
Ernie King Music in Goderich and
Wingham, Frosty Queen in Wing
ham, Dixie Lee Chicken in Clinton,
Egmondville Country Market,
Vanastra Country Market, Kwik-K-
Market in Kincardine, from Grade
7 students al Blyth Public School
and at Walton Public School.
Buck & Doe
for
DAN McNEIL AND
JENNIFER COX
at Brussels Community
Centre
SATURDAY, JUNE 19
9 p.m. -1 a.m.
Age of majority
Lunch provided
Tickets $5.00 available at door
HucJz &
for
(Shelley) Michelle Merner
& Kelly Carter
Friday, June 18, 1999
at the Blyth Arena 9-1 a.m.
Sponsored by Mol son's
Age of Majority only
$6.00 per person
Music by DJ Lunch Provided
For tickets call
523-9720 or 482-7143
Saturday, June 19
at the Stratford
Colliseum
Music by Marcel Tshudi
8 p.m. -1 a.m.
$7 in advance
For more information call
887-6532 or 356-2602
Buck 8L Doe
for 1
Michelle
VanDeGevel
& Jason Terpstra