Courtesy UMass Theatre GuildThe Guild’s performance Friday night at the Fine Arts Center Concert Hall certainly pushed the envelope even more than the play’s already-suggestive content.
‘Bare,’ the story of two homosexual boys struggling to come out in their Catholic high school environment, includes male-on-male kissing and adult name-calling like ‘bitch’ and ‘whore.’
The Guild took great risks by having Kate Jones (Nadia) change on stage during ‘Quiet Night at Home,’ utilizing a penis-shaped pi’ntilde;ata during the birthday scene, and ending act one with Ivy (played by Lisa Bettencourt) bent over a table by Jason (Christian Hoots), as if being taken from behind.
Yet the suggestive aspects of the show ‘- because they were done with seriousness and kept in context with the script of ‘Bare’ ‘- were tastefully executed, if a little shocking. The Guild dealt with the difficult subject matter of the show with maturity and grace, preventing it from seeming silly or vulgar.
‘I wanted to direct this musical because I had never heard of it, meaning ‘Bare’ had the opportunity to be something completely organic and fresh,’ said Toeplitz.‘ ‘The audience will enter with little to no preconceived notions, unlike the expectations that would come if we were putting on a well-known show like ‘Phantom of the Opera,’ ‘Grease!’ or ‘Rent.”
Toeplitz was correct that the ignorance about the show worked in the Guild’s favor. The show’s d’eacute;nouement was especially powerful because it was unexpected by the attendees.
However, the cast infused their performances with emotions essential for such a sensitive topic.
The main characters of ‘Bare’ are multi-faceted, which demanded actors who were adaptable. Jones had to be sassy, jealous, a little nasty yet caring, all at different points throughout the show as Nadia, just as Bettencourt had to be snobbish, cruel, desperate and vulnerable as Ivy. Both pulled off the changes superbly, able to stay in character while morphing into a different emotion.
Michael McSweeney and Christian Hoots, as Peter and Jason, respectively, also portrayed their characters well, both speaking and singing with poignancy.
Both set and choreography were simple, which was appropriate for the show’s tone.‘
‘The show took on a bit of an abstract form,’ said Toeplitz. ‘I believe that theatre set in a less specific space allows the audience to subconsciously ‘fill in the blanks’ with what they can relate and identify with.’
This unspecific space worked well, as boxes transformed from beds to altars to confessionals throughout the show with only a slight alteration of props or placement, allowing the scenes to change without a need to slow the pace for set alterations.
Toeplitz’s choreography, which drew heavily and fittingly from positions of prayer, complemented the songs well for the most part. During Peter’s song ‘Role of a Lifetime’ the chorus’ marching about stage got faster as Peter became more emotional, and while the idea was good the jerky movements instead felt distracting.
However, Toeplitz knows when to keep things subdued and when to shake it up, as the dancing for ‘911! Emergency’ was wonderfully peppy. Michaela Kinlock and her backup dancers were able to keep it perfectly synchronized.
While the main characters were always audible, the chorus often got lost underneath the orchestra. This was especially noticeable during the scene where Peter tries to tell his mother over the phone that he’s gay, as Peter rang out clearly but none of Claire’s words came through. The problem didn’t detract from the performance overall, but it did provide some annoyance.
Despite the small issues, ‘Bare’ was well-performed and accompanied skillfully by the orchestra, conducted by Ben Rauhala.
‘ ‘To me, ‘Bare’ is about people and their struggles and the ramifications of judgment. It’s about cleaning up our messes. It’s about Catholicism. It’s about old world ideals versus contemporary society. It’s about how we all serve as walls and obstacles in each other’s mazes as we f
ight struggle towards absolution,’ said Toeplitz.
That’s a lot to cover, but Toeplitz and her cast pulled it off with aplomb.
Michelle Fredette can be reached at [email protected].
