what: rose and the rime by nathan allen, chris mathews, and jake minton
where: the chopin theatre in the east village
accompaniment: nada! solo theatre date for moi.
drinkability: adorable bar on the bottom floor of the building when you walk in. i enjoyed a $6 glass of merlot.
show length: 90 minutes, no intermission.
out of four: four/four
i know, i know. three shows in and i'm already giving a four out of four? but guess what...this show straight deserves it.
my schedule unexpectedly opened up on saturday night so i hopped over to my trusty hottix.org to see what they were discounting. i was immediately excited to see a house theatre show on there- having no knowledge of what this particular show was about- only knowing that house shows are incredibly well done, usually difficult to get into, and incredibly expensive for the every day 20-something. they were offering $7 tickets so i jumped over to their facebook page, viewed this gorgeous trailer for the show and immediately purchased.
this was my first visit to the chopin theatre and boy is it gorgeous. they have two spaces - i also considered going to see the tennessee williams project by the hypocrites there last night as well- sorry guys, maybe next time! as i previously mentioned i grabbed my glass of merlot and walked into the theatre...where it was already a hustle and bustle of audience members, cast members and snow. "snow" (small paper squares) fell from the ceiling continuously throughout most of the show. i started picking it off of me at first but then just reserved myself to guarding my wine so i wouldn't have to pick out any pieces of paper soaked with merlot, because, well, no one wants to do that.
i knew so little about this show that i didn't even realize they hadn't officially opened yet. they had a sold out house at PREVIEW. incredible. the programs are gorgeous tri-folds that every company wishes they could afford. oh- and did i mention all programs came equipped with a small chocolate coin?! i've never been so smitten with a program.
once the show got underway i was totally lost in it. in this modern day and age with our short attention spans and urge to open up those screens to our faces- i often find my mind wandering and shifting quite easily- even when i'm enjoying myself. these 90 minutes flew by seamlessly and effectively. the story centers on rose (played wonderfully by paige collins) who lives in a snow-ridden town of radio falls. she lives with her uncle roger (played by michael e. smith) who took her under his wing after an evil witch stole a magic coin from the town, stealing their sunlight, warmth, and general happiness. as roger puts it- "they get by".
rose goes out on an adventure through the dangerous, cold, dark woods in search of the witch and ultimately the coin to bring back to her family and town so they can live in happiness and prosperity. the story unfolds as a tale of bravery, love, greed, and what it means to be a community.
the story is told with an incredible simplicity in regards to set. the 'snow' is used consistently to show movement, speed, and the arrival of a furry friend that you'll undoubtedly fall in love with. the ensemble show incredible talent- some acrobatic, others musical, all in strength and talent. and a beautiful icing to the cake are the costumes (designed by melissa torchia), especially the dress of the witch and later rose who both get to fly across the stage in gorgeous, flowing fabrics.
i haven't found myself smiling through a show for so much of it as i did during ROSE AND THE RIME. the only negative thing i could think of is how much it made me dread going out into our own snowland these days. anyone want to volunteer to track down the witch that undoubtedly is responsible for all this snow and polar vortex mess?
rose & the rime officially opens today, sunday january 26th and runs through march 9th. tickets range from $20-$40 for the regular run, but hint hint, check out that trusty hottix before you purchase! enjoy, theatre lovers!
__________________
upcoming january shows:
sunday january 26th, 2pm: promethean ensemble's the lark
join me, will you?