REVIEWS
Sleeping Beauty Wakes - Kirk Douglas
Theatre, Culver City, CA
March 31 - May 13, 2007
"...Adding to the charm, a sizable portion of the cast is deaf or hearing-impaired,
communicating with us in American Sign Language. So hearing actors
voice and sing those roles in addition to portraying others...
Director-choreographer Jeff Calhoun creates worlds we are, at
evening's end, reluctant to leave.... Most mesmerizing is Deanne Bray,
who plays the somewhat-stern clinic director and the rubber-faced Bad Fairy
richly and enchantingly. So we are late in noticing that Bray never speaks.
Her roles are voiced by Erika Amato, whose singing instrument is
astonishingly, gloriously full-bodied and whose characterizations are
crisp and witty; they are two fine actors, magnificently paired here.
--DANY MARGOLIES, Backstage West (Critic's Pick)
"Numerous characters in "Sleeping Beauty Wakes," as per Deaf West Theatre's company style, are acted and signed by one thesp while being spoken and sung by another. The melding of performances is seamless… All the Charles Perrault ingredients are here: princess's christening; uninvited Bad Fairy (a sultry, understated turn by Faye Dunaway look-alike Deanne Bray and superb singing partner Erika Amato); cursed spindle; pricked finger; hundred-year snooze… Husband-and-wife composers [Brendan] Milburn and [Valerie] Vigoda, two-thirds of the performing trio "Groovelily," apply a fine, uncluttered lyric sense to their beguiling melodies. Their specialty is character songs: Bray and Amato out-wicked "Wicked" in just two menacing numbers, "Uninvited" and "Wheel Goes Round."
--BOB VERINI, Variety
"In a production so relentlessly demanding of the highest levels of performing virtuosity and producing coordination, there can be no single star but only an entire galaxy. Alexandria Wailes plays Beauty with radiant, quicksilver perfection and seductive grace. As her royal parents, Clinton Derricks-Carroll and Christia Manztke provide the endearingly misguided love that drives the story. Performing in multiple roles, Russell Harvard brings a gangly Jimmy Stewart type of romantic charm to Beauty's suitor; Troy Kotsur brings a George Carlin sort of goofiness to his pair of amorous adventurers; and Deanne Bray is exceptionally sympathetic both as a hard-boiled sleep clinic director who keeps wanting to melt and as a bad fairy. As a pair of insomniacs, Kevin Earley is irrepressible and adorable, and Erika Amato beautiful and silvery-voiced.
--LAURENCE VITTES, Hollywood Reporter
_____________________________________________________________
Anything
Goes - Candlelight
Pavilion, Claremont, CA
September 29 - November 12, 2006
"From
the moment Erika Amato (playing the glamorous nightclub
singer Reno Sweeney) belted out her first song, I knew we
were in for a great show. Her commanding presence and angelically
bold voice gripped the audience, leaving them begging for
more, which she obliged numerous times throughout the two-hour
performance... Amato sang like she was singing to a
packed crowd at one of the top theaters on Broadway. Equally
astonishing in his performance [was] newcomer Jason Webb (playing
the charming Billy Crocker)... Amato and Webb shone
brightly and definitely stole the show..."
-- LA RUE NOVICK, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin
"The Candlelight
Pavilion's production of “Anything Goes” is really
well done. The Bollinger's do not skimp on the sets, which
are well-crafted and stylish. Nor do the people who run this
theater hire just anyone for their productions. In this current
production, directed by Douglas Austin, the role of Reno Sweeney
is played by Erika Amato, who performs her role superbly.
Her singing is exceptionally strong..."
-- MICHAEL QUIGLEY, Yucaipa News Mirror
"[Director Douglas] Austin said he couldn't be happier
and feels blessed working with such a supportive production
company, with his friend and choreographer John Vaughan, and
multitalented actors and crew. However, casting the part of
Reno Sweeney took some searching. After an open audition and
hunting through piles of resumes, Austin found his Reno in
Erika Amato. 'We knew we needed someone with charisma
and star presence and must have a strong voice,' he said,
noting she would play a role previously filled by such respected
thespians as Patti LuPone and Ethel Merman, who originated
the part. 'From the resumes we invited back eight ladies,
but as soon as Erika walked in and started to sing
I thought, 'That's it.' "
-- DIANA SHOLLEY, San Bernardino Sun
_____________________________________________________________
Erika had the pleasure of playing stage diva "Dorothy
Brock"
in 42nd Street at the Welk Resort Theatre in
Escondido, CA.
The production ran from June 9 - August 28, 2005.
North
County Times
June 15, 2005
Welk's "42nd Street" Has Broadway
Polish
by Charlene Baldridge
...The spirit of [director/choreographer] Champion ---- wistful,
can-do and energized ---- hovers over the dynamite "42nd
Street" currently playing at Welk Resort Theatre. The
dancing, singing "kids" are super, leggy and adorable,
and they sound "swell" ---- a term frequently used
in the period piece set in the Depression era.
...Other leading
roles are played and sung so well that they are bound to satisfy
even the most experienced musical theater fan. If this were
a world-premiere musical bound for Broadway, one might even
say there are some performances worthy of a Tony Award...
...Among the
female show-stoppers is Erika Amato as the aging ingenue,
Dorothy, who carries the torch for a guy named Pat (Jesse
MacKinnon) while consorting with her sugar daddy (Ralph Johnson,
very funny fuddy-duddy), who's financing the show. Amato's
rich, low voice throbs with feeling...
-- CHARLENE BALDRIDGE, North County Times
Full review available here: NCTimes.com
********************************************
Backstage
West
June 23, 2005
REVIEWS
42nd STREET
the Welk Resort Theatre (Critic's Pick)
By Rob Stevens
The Welk Resort
Theatre...is doing a big-cast musical, albeit with a much
smaller cast than normally seen in this show. When the curtain
rises on those tapping feet—one of the most exciting
openings for a Broadway musical—instead of dozens of
hoofers, the Welk offers just an even dozen. But these talented
kids tap their hearts and soles full out, and the result is
still exhilarating.
Director-choreographer
Jon Engstrom is very familiar with this show, having started
as a featured dancer in the original Broadway production (1980).
He has since directed countless award-winning productions
of the show in the United States and Europe. He knows how
to fill a stage and how to get the most out of his dancers.
Kathryn Venverloh, Kelly Felthous, Laura Dickinson, Melissa
WolfKlain, Erinn Selkis, Annette Desrosiers, Cory Bretsch,
Brian Crum, Aaron Pomeroy, Brandon Davidson, and Travis Davidson
give their all time after time in the big production numbers...
A few characters have been compacted here to fit the cast
of 19, most notably Jamie Torcellini doing terrific triple
duty as dance captain, book writer, and chorus boy Andy Lee.
Erika Amato's
big smoky voice makes her haughty diva Dorothy Brock a standout
in such songs as "Shadow Waltz." Katie Wilson delivers
the laughs as Maggie Jones and possesses a great big belting
voice. Nicole Werner dazzles as Peggy Sawyer, the unknown
from Allentown who goes on to save the show; Jacob ben Widmar
sparkles brightly as Broadway's leading juvenile Billy Lawlor.
These two make a great romantic duo, as well as great dance
partners... Music director Justin Gray leads the four-piece
band from the pit, and the score sounds simply great.
--Rob Stevens,
Backstage West (Critic's Pick!)
Full review available
here: Backstage.com
********************************************
San
Diego Theatre Scene
"Curtain Calls"
June 23, 2005
LULLABY OF
BROADWAY
by Pat Launer
As the director tells the wannabe
star, “the two most glorious words in the English language
[are] musical theater.” “
42nd Street
” makes you believe it...
The production is simply terrific. The choreography is inventive
and unpredictable, and extremely well executed by a bevy of
serious hoofers and tappers. It’s a delight to watch
them effortlessly enliven tuneful tunes like the title song,
as well as “Lullaby of Broadway,” “Go Into
Your Dance,” “We’re in the Money,” “Shuffle
Off to Buffalo” and “You’re Getting to Be a
Habit with Me.” Great stuff. Wonderfully sung, too. The
cast of nearly two dozen is outstanding.
Rich- and full-voiced Erika Amato is excellent as the
egocentric diva du jour, the star of the Broadway musical
who falls, breaks her ankle and is incapacitated just before
the opening...
If you haven’t been to the Welk in some time, this is
the one to watch. A delicious treat from start to finish.
Toe-tapping optional, but unavoidable.
Full review available
here: sdtheatrescene.com
*********************************************
San Diego Weekly Reader
June 23, 2005
Theater Review: 42nd Street
by Jeff Smith
'Julian Marsh
is doing a SHOW!"
Broadway's backstage charmer actually began as a 1933 movie.
Forty-seven years later, Gower Champion directed and choreographed
the dancefest to the hilt and beyond -- and died on opening
night, August 25, 1980. Among other virtues, 42nd Street may
be the only American musical that can close Act One with a
bona fide show-stopper -- "We're in the Money,"
tap-danced, à la Busby Berkeley, on dimes the size
of bass drums -- followed by a bigger one: the title song.
And then open Act Two with "Lullaby of Broadway."
Now that's a hat trick!
No matter where
Harry Warren (music) and Al Dubin (lyrics) rank in the composer-teams
pantheon, which exists on some great scorecard in the sky,
these songs advocate a higher plateau. They adore their subject
with energy unleashed like few others.
...The first
test of any "42nd
Street" production comes right off the bat. The show
opens with a splashy tap-dance "Audition," and if
the chorus isn't clacking the floor as one, forget it. The
Welk Theatre passes the test, and the others as well. Director/choreographer
Jon Engstrom -- a featured dancer, and later dance captain,
in the 1980 original -- has staged the musical many times.
His expertise (you can feel a direct link to Champion) and
some fine casting make for one of the Welk's better efforts
in some time.
Young Nicole
Werner, from the MFA program at SDSU, brightens the stage
as Peggy Sawyer. Erika Amato makes Dorothy Brock a
dour diva adept at torchy laments. Andrew Husmann, who starred
last year in the Welk's Desert Song, does the impossible:
he brings nuance, even some tongue-in-cheek humor, to musical
theater's most one-note role: Julian Marsh. The strong-voiced
Husmann even turns the producer's famous Gipper speech into
a kind of music: "Sawyer. You're going out there a youngster.
But you've GOT to come back a star!"
--Jeff Smith,
San Diego Weekly Reader
____________________________________________________________________________
Here's
what the critics had to say about
Paint Your Wagon at the Geffen Playhouse:
Hollywood
Reporter
December 06, 2004
Theater
Review: Paint Your Wagon
By Ed Kaufman
With
book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner and music by Frederick
Loewe,
"Paint Your Wagon" debuted on Broadway in 1951.
And despite American
playwright David Rambo's updated version for the current production
at
the Brentwood Theatre, the show is still old-fashioned --
in the very
best sense of the word.
Lerner
and Loewe's score for "Paint Your Wagon" is one
of their best,
and certainly ranks up there alongside their scores for "My
Fair Lady,"
"Brigadoon," "Camelot" and "Gigi."
When the story seems to falter and
lag, the words and music take over and all is redeemed. The
trick is to
fill the stage with actors who can sing as well as act.
And
savvy director Gilbert Cates has done just that. Aided and
abetted
by the choreography of Kay Cole, the simple (and effective)
painted sets
of Daniel Ionazzi, the lush and lovely costumes of David Kay
Mickelsen,
"Paint Your Wagon" is awash with lots of onstage
vitality -- all of
which underscores the words and music of Lerner and Lowe.
All
is set in a makeshift gold mining camp near Sacramento and
other
places in the West in 1852 -- the midst of the California
Gold Rush.
"Paint Your Wagon" tells the story of widowed prospector
Ben Rumson (the
talented Tom Wilson), his 16-year-old hoyden of a daughter
Jennifer (the
delightful Jessica Rush) and a stage full of colorful gold
prospectors,
saloonkeepers and shady ladies in a boomtown that is created
when they
find gold.
When
Jennifer falls in love with outcast Mexican Julio (Alex Mendoza
is
first-rate) and runs off with him, Ben, the eternal wanderer,
must
decide between searching for more gold or waiting for his
daughter to
return -- and satisfying a deeper human need.
Stitching
all this together is the glorious score of Lerner and Lowe
including "Wand'rin Star," "What's Goin' on
Here?" "I Talk to the
Trees," "How Can I Wait?" "I Still See
Elisa," "There's a Coach Comin'
In," "Another Autumn" and "They Call the
Wind Maria." All sung
wonderfully well.
Outstanding
support is offered by David Jennings (as Ben's sidekick
Ulysses), Rob Kahn (as angry Bull), Steven Hack (as merchant
Salem),
Robert Alan Clink (as saloonkeeper Jake), Erika Amato
(as Madame
Cherry), and Sharon Lawrence as once actress Lily Smith.
*****************************************
Variety
Dec. 2, 2004
Paint
Your Wagon
By JOEL HIRSCHHORN
A
world premiere adaptation of Lerner and Loewe's 1951 musical
about the
California gold rush, this fresh conception by playwright
David Rambo
("God's Man in Texas") improves considerably on
Lerner's original book
and is infinitely superior to the labored, overblown 1969
film version. ...Gil Cates mines every bit of drama from the
story and elicits several portrayals that are solid gold.
...High
musical moments include "I'm on My Way," switching
to different
people and pointing up their aspirations. "There's a
Coach Comin' In"
demonstrates Frederick Loewe's flair for melodies that fasten
firmly in
the mind even without benefit of reprises...every number is
given its full rhythmic and harmonic due by Steve Orich's
seven-man band and flavorful orchestrations.
...Kay
Cole's musical choreography gives walloping impetus to
"Whoop-Ti-Ay," a spirited dance featuring the whole
company. Cole
contributes seductive moves for the town prostitutes, cleverly
illustrating what they are... Lighting and scenery by Daniel
Ionazzi are impressive, with constantly changing photos of
miners that stress the bleakness of their struggle
and their environment. These photos furnish a documentary
authenticity
that adds depth to the more lighthearted antics enacted onstage.
By
inserting such realistic historical touches and sprinkling
the tale with
humorous contemporary asides, Cates and Rambo have rescued
the show from
obscurity and given it a lilting new lease on life.
***********************************
Backstage
West:
December
08, 2004
Review:
Paint Your Wagon
By Les Spindle
There
are great expectations when a seldom-revived Broadway musical
from the golden age gets a major facelift. This 1951 Gold
Rush tuner boasts a lovely score from Frederick Loewe (music)
and Alan Jay Lerner (lyrics), yet the property is seldom revived,
due to Lerner's problematic book. Director Gil Cates and adapter
David Rambo attempt to buck the odds by fashioning an intimately
staged revival that fulfills the promise of the original concept.
There's much to admire in this handsome and tuneful production...
The
singing and orchestrations are boffo under Steve Orich's music
direction, and Kay Cole stages the few remaining dance segments
with zest. Spirited performances add to the pleasures. As
the burly miner Ben, Tom Wilson gives a warmhearted portrayal,
and his crooning of such ballads as "I Still See Elisa"
is resplendent. Sharon Lawrence in the newly penned role of
his boisterous new bride, a stage diva, is delightful. As
Jennifer, Jessica Rush has the requisite pluckiness, and her
segue to a more refined lady—a Lerner/Loewe tradition:
Remember My Fair Lady and Gigi—is credible
and captivating. Alex Mendoza, as the ambitious Mexican prospector
Julio, is a charming leading man. The ensemble is exemplary,
the choral numbers particularly vibrant. Cates elicits a breathtaking
visual style, courtesy of Daniel Ionazzi's wonderfully textured
scenic and lighting elements, highlighted by magnificent projected
images, and Donald Kay Mickelsen's colorful costumes. Those
with a pioneer spirit will concur that this promising revisionist
effort can still be shaped into a Broadway bonanza!
____________________________________________________________________________
Erika played the aristocratic "Hippolyte"
in Moliere's The Bungler at West
Coast Ensemble.
The production ran from May 28th through July 25th, 2004.
Some
representative reviews:
Theater
Pick of the Week - The Bungler
“In
all the world was there ever a brain so dim?” asks Mascarille
(Steven Einspahr), the conniving valet in Molière’s
The Bungler, about his employer, the earnest Lélie
(Joey Borgogna). Because Lélie pines for the lovely
Gypsy Célie (C.B. Spencer), but cannot afford to buy
her from her master, Trufaldin (Larry Lederman), Mascarille
invents all sorts of schemes to obtain her on Lélie’s
behalf, including robbing his friends, having rival suitors
arrested and falsely reporting the death of Lélie’s
father, Pandolfe (Pablo Marz). Lélie, however, fouls
every plot. If it sounds simplistic, it is: The Bungler —
L’Étourdi — is by a long shot Molière’s
thinnest play. Not that it matters here. Under Jules Aaron’s
crisply choreographed and imaginative direction, this company
makes you believe the playwright wrote the script just to
let actors practice their comic timing without distraction
from his typical lessons about conscience and tolerance. It’s
a gift this cast deserves: Spencer’s Célie is
sweet but never cloying; her adversary, Hippolyte (Erika
Amato), is biting but not shrewish; and the standard effete
old men, Anselme (Dan Alemshah), Lederman’s Trufaldin
and Marz’s Pandolfe, are the kind of perfectly tuned
caricatures of the pre-Revolutionary French elite that would
thrill the playwright himself. Borgogna’s unaffected
credulousness makes you understand that Lélie’s
bungling was not, to Molière, a fault: In a culture
rife with deception, Lélie is too good to game his
friends. Best of all is Einspahr, who sweats his urbane way
through a hilariously physical performance and yet never mangles
a syllable of genius translator-poet Richard Wilbur’s
verse. It’s an absolute delight from start to finish,
performed by a cast that works together as harmoniously as
an orchestra: In true ensemble fashion, no actor ever completely
leaves the stage. West Coast Ensemble, 522 N. La Brea Ave.,
Hlywd.; Fri.-Sat., 8 p.m.; Sun., 3 p.m.; thru July 25. (323)
525-0022.
--Judith
Lewis, LA Weekly
***********************************
Now
in its twenty-second year, an artistic gem of a theater, the
West Coast Ensemble, consistently produces small but vibrantly
genuine productions of the best quality. Their latest effort
is no exception. Set in Messina, Italy of 1740, this version
of "The Bungler" is an excellently appropriate translation
from Moliere by Richard Wilbur.
The
play revolves around Mascarille (wonderfully charismatic Steven
Einspahr), the rascally clever servant to Lelie (portrayed
with wide-eyed youthfulness by Joey Borgogna)...
...Along
the way we are entertained by the delightful cast, including
the likeable and effervescent Dan Alemshah as the foppish
Anselme, beautifully charming CB Spencer as Celie, the inspired
comedic performance of Erika Amato as the desperately
lonely Hippolyte and a solid performance by Alex Kaufman as
the dashing young Leandre, in what otherwise might have been
a throwaway role. (In case you were worried, Hippolyte does
end up with a true love of her own, Leandre.) Character actors
Larry Lederman, Pablo Marz, Matt J. Popham and Gil Bernardi
round out the ensemble quite nicely. From beginning to end,
the acting is engaging, the direction impressively clever
and the entertainment boundless. Everyone involved obviously
enjoys doing the play…
Scenic
Designer Tom Buderwitz and Costume Designer Shon LeBlanc do
their usual magnificently professional work, creating a simple,
versatile revolving set and beautiful period costumes. The
whole spirit of the show is profoundly sincere and light-hearted,
while maintaining an acute standard of refreshing professionalism.
A guaranteed crowd pleaser, this production is highly recommended.
If you want become a Los Angeles theater subscriber, this
is absolutely the theater to join.
--Kate
West, bluntreview.com
____________________________________________________________________________
Erika
also played
"Fay Templeton" in Fullerton Civic Light Opera's
hugely successful production of George M!, directed
by Rob Barron.
The production ran from Feb. 19 through Mar. 7, 2004.
Some representative
reviews:
"…a
collage of vintage Cohan songs from the 1930s and '40s-exuberant
paeans to showbiz pizzazz and national pride that have become
beloved American standards. …Fullerton Civic Light Opera's
mounting of this rarely revived property shapes up as a crowd
pleaser.
…there
are some fine song-and-dance efforts, most notably from the
production's director, Rob Barron, as George's father; Cynthia
Ferrer as George's mother; and Mara Davi as his sister. Erika
Amato makes the most of her amusing role as a haughty
prima donna, and Tracy Warren lends some welcome warmth to
the shallow text as George's supportive second wife.
…When
the cast members sang "I Want to Hear a Yankee Doodle
Tune," the thunderous applause confirmed the crowd's
wholehearted agreement."
--Les
Spindle, Backstage West
"Glossy…colorful…grandly entertaining!
…Under
Rob Barron's direction, the show has everything it needs,
and then some. Barron himself portrays Cohan patriarch Jerry,
but he obviously invested his energies into making every scene
crackle with the excitement felt by the headliners of musical
theater - both vaudeville and Broadway - of the late 19th
and early 20th centuries…
Barron
has gotten veteran triple-threat Randy Rogel in the title
role and, from a musical standpoint, he can't be topped. A
veteran of the Plummer Auditorium stage, Rogel's a sensational
hoofer who can sing, clown and act up a storm. He's got the
energy of Gene Kelly, the good cheer of Donald O'Connor and
the natural charm of Dudley Moore. As the focus of the story
(and nearly every musical number), he's an unforgettable presence.
…Rogel
is surrounded by many talented women: Mara Davi as devoted
sister Josie; Cynthia Ferrer as loving mom Nellie; Leslie
Trayer-Harvey, reminiscent of Angela Lansbury as Cohan's first
wife, Ethel; Tracy Warren, beaming with Irish-American warmth
as Cohan's second wife, Agnes; and Erika Amato, using
florid speech and overblown mannerisms for comic relief as
temperamental Broadway diva Fay Templeton. And while it may
not score points for accuracy, "George M!" is ultimately
as triumphant as Cohan was in life.
--Eric
Marchese, Orange County Regsiter
____________________________________________________________________________
Erika
had another starring role playing "Wallis Simpson"
in the world premiere of Madly In Love,
a guest production at the Odyssey Theatre directed
by David Galligan.
The production ran from Oct. 16 through Nov. 23, 2003.
Here's
what the critics said:
"Amy
Fritsche as Juliet, Mark W. Smith as Lancelot, and Erika
Amato as Mrs. Simpson bring wonderful life to their roles..."
"The
majority of the performances are winning and beautifully voiced,
and David Galligan's direction is a visual delectation bursting
with a droll sense of humor... worthwhile entertainment."
--Travis
Michael Holder, Backstage West
"Walters
and Amato both bring style and charm to the endeavor,
not to mention lovely voices. Hall and Smith are similarly
fine..."
--Terry
Morgan, LA Weekly
"Of
this motley crew only the Windsors ring true. Modeled on real
characters, as opposed to fictional ones, Erika Amato
and Bubba Dean Rambo bring flesh and blood to these world-weary
spirits. As Wallis Simpson, Amato does a manic Charleston
and bemoans the fact that she "gave up freedom and youth"
for "a present to grow stale in." As her impeccably
tailored consort, Rambo waits for "something to happen."
In the meantime, they dance, very well indeed…"
"The players sing and dance with verve and talent. The
gorgeous Guinevere has an exceptionally beautiful voice. The
smirking Duchess of Windsor (Amato) is especially adroit,
and her befuddled Duke is a likeable and believable partner…"
--
Cynthia Citron, Beverly Hills Outlook
