| Winning Liberty Land - PPT | | Print | |
| Written by Mike Diana | |
| Friday, 23 June 2006 | |
 It is rare opportunity for a reviewer outside a major city to witness the birth, or in the case of Playwright’s Premiere Theatre’s Winning Liberty Land, re-birth of an original play.I was really pumped being assigned to review the newly written play and ready to attend to it with all my attention. I tuned myself for every nuance and profound turn of phrase. And even spent time performing aural sensitivity exercises in preparation for the work at hand.
You see, hometown reviewers normally waste time considering the book or score of a musical instead of concentrating on performance and production values. No one cares that it isn’t the playwright’s best work or that a couple of songs should have been cut during tryouts in Schenectady…in 1977. Not this time, buddy! This one was fresh out of the box and I had the whole shootin’ match to write about.
No reply. I shall continue as assigned. The plot revolves around a $100 million dollar prize to be awarded the location selected for Liberty Land, a mega theme park celebrating America’s 400th anniversary. Along with cities like New York, Boston and Philadelphia we find that Jamestown, Williamsburg and Yorktown are also in the running. At lights up we are introduced to the Chairman of the HCAC (Historical Citizens’ Action Committee), played by Ed Whitacre, and find ourselves willing or unwilling participants in an all out blitz to convince the visiting (and never seen) Vice President of Park Locations for American Theme Parks International (voiced by Stephen Seals) the historic triangle is the place to plant the park and fork over the big bucks! Arms up everyone. Over the crest we go. A totally gonzo individual inexplicably champions each of the towns. I want to know how they were picked. It piqued my interest and made me want to see the ones that were rejected ala American Idol. Up first is super-perky Jamestown Historic High cheerleader Candy Conroy (Kris Roberts) whose twisted football allegory for the rescue of Captain John Smith by Pocahontas goes up in flames when the Vice President questions the authenticity of the story and delivers the coup de grace by citing the areas numerous swamps and mosquitoes. Candy, though sweet, is licked. Williamsburg is touted by Mrs. Eleanor Atkinson Sneed, (Erin McGrann) President of the Legitimate First Cousins of the Daughters of the American Revolution. A mistress of malapropism she vigorously promotes Thomas Jefferson as the town’s major draw only to be quashed by the Veep’s claim that the merchandising isn’t there and a noticeable lack of “pizzazz.” Down but not out she shouts that his comment is “totally incontinent.” Good lord. I nearly lost my lunch on that inverted loop! Finally Mike Reimers (Michael Gamache) leads a last ditch effort to win the $100 million for Yorktown and, in so doing, procure an updated sewer treatment system for his hometown. He makes spectacle of the glorious victory of General Washington (portrayed by Candy sporting a massive, out of control, papier-mâché head) and a fey General Rochambeau over Cornwallis’ army at Yorktown. There are fireworks, a madcap colonial rock n’ roll number and a cannon blast that win the day. Back in the station at last! Oy. Where’s the bromoseltzer. As you might guess all of the vignettes were presented through song and dance.
The ensemble of performers attacked the material with equal gusto. Messieurs Whitacre and Gamache worked themselves into a lather as they kept up the frenetic pacing from song to vignette to song and back. Such is the nature of farce…vaudeville…burlesque…Busch! They left it all on the stage. No I mean it. Call out the mop brigade. They were sweating buckets. Miss Roberts gave the spirited Candy a ditzy, valley girl spin that was a tad quirky for Jamestown. Didn’t that go “out” with Moon Unit Zappa some time in the late 80’s? It would be tough to get that upper Virginia Peninsula, nasal, southern twang to sound funny. What the heck? Tourists won’t know the difference. Let us not forget Mr. Seals whose vocalization of the Vice President was performed from off stage, which is the reason he looked fresh as a daisy when he made his curtain call. I must admit when he bowed with a microphone in his hand it took me a minute to figure out who he was. I assumed a stagehand had one hell of a union contract. Robert Ruffin’s Eleanor Atkinson Sneed was the character most fully realized in Winning Liberty Land and Erin McGrann’s portrayal of the smug, malapropism-spewing diva was memorable. She played her as having the appropriate poise throughout the mania as befitted the President of the Legitimate First Cousins and the moxie to strip off the business suit revealing red spangled shorts accessorized with glittery star garters when the chips were down. For resident theatergoers I would have a difficult time recommending PPT’s current offering (another writers code word when you don’t quite know what to call something). But as a respite from the heat and humidity of a vacation jaunt from the Governors Palace to the shops of Merchant Square a family might actually enjoy the frenetic paced fractured history lesson, the over the top antics and rampant potty humor found on stage in Winning Liberty Land. By the way, the theater is air conditioned too. I need to call my agent. I don’t do amusement parks. The opinions stated in Mr. Diana’s reviews are his own and in no way reflect those of any other person, organization or affiliation. Mike Diana has over 14 years experience as an entertainment writer and music columnist. Mr. Diana is a member of the Board of Directors of PCT. |
better suited for a theme park than the stage of Colonial Williamsburg’s Kimball Theatre 
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Mr Diana, I can't make heads or tails of your review, but there is a bright side. Have you ever thought of writing a gossip column about local theatre? You're hilarious!--Jon A Peabody nomination can't be far off! |