SO-SO SENECA: FET show falls flat Fordham Daily
When Olivia Elby gets a $2 million share in her uncle’s casino when he dies, she and her dad dream of leaving the dung heap that they manage on the edge of town. But first she must contend with the casino’s other shareholders: the wealthy Pantuso crime family, which is laundering drugs to a local Indian tribe, and the Seneca break tribe itself, which has become dangerously addicted to the toxic brew and is obsessed with singer “Jimmy Muffett.”
Each one of these story strands has potential, but writer Tom Perry and directors Perry and Jeff Sharkey do not make the most of their material only the “Jimmy Muffett” storyline concludes in a completely satisfactory way.
Perry and Sharkey do well with the technical details. The sets are simple, economizing by using stumps as chairs in the dung heap scenes. Well-placed posters and wheelbarrows are cleverly used as props.
Most of the costumes are simple, but the Elbys’ undone overalls (along break with some of the rich swag Mr. Elby buys when he thinks he has money) are well thought break out. Even the incidental music is fun- the entire audience had the “Jeffersons” theme song ringing through their head by the end of the night.
Elle Crane makes Olivia a funny country bumpkin her DEA training session is the show’s biggest laugh-getter. As her dad, James Murtagh gives his every look and gesture a humorous touch. (The fact that he has some hilarious lines about hating the dung heap helps too.)
Sam Farnum plays Pantuso as an exaggerated Italian gangster, and it works- his weird obsession with his sister (the equally amusing Morgan Conley) is a strangely humorous quirk. As the family’s taciturn bodyguard Pinto, Connor O’Brien is a droll comic foil.
When the “Muffett”-obsessed brothers are first introduced, Stephen Kipp and Nick Pappas seem to be playing simple stoner stereotypes. As their story goes on, however, they experiment with different acting muscles and different types of humor, and their soft-spoken style works to their advantage.
Jonathan O’Neill narrates the show while always a welcome presence on the Fordham stage, his character never really serves a comic purpose until the end of the play. The few thinly written segments he has before the conclusion are pretty pointless.
#FSW15 EVENT: WED
FORDHAM DAILY IN PRINT
FORDHAM DAILY STAFF Connor Ryan In defense of concert headliner, TWENTY ONE PILOTS I DIDN’T WANT THIS: Beloved Fr. Florio ordered to leave Fordham John Bonazzo FANTASTIC break FLAVA: Hip-hop dancers wow at spring showcase NOT MONKEYING AROUND: Mimes ‘Inherit’ scary and powerful
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When Olivia Elby gets a $2 million share in her uncle’s casino when he dies, she and her dad dream of leaving the dung heap that they manage on the edge of town. But first she must contend with the casino’s other shareholders: the wealthy Pantuso crime family, which is laundering drugs to a local Indian tribe, and the Seneca break tribe itself, which has become dangerously addicted to the toxic brew and is obsessed with singer “Jimmy Muffett.”
Each one of these story strands has potential, but writer Tom Perry and directors Perry and Jeff Sharkey do not make the most of their material only the “Jimmy Muffett” storyline concludes in a completely satisfactory way.
Perry and Sharkey do well with the technical details. The sets are simple, economizing by using stumps as chairs in the dung heap scenes. Well-placed posters and wheelbarrows are cleverly used as props.
Most of the costumes are simple, but the Elbys’ undone overalls (along break with some of the rich swag Mr. Elby buys when he thinks he has money) are well thought break out. Even the incidental music is fun- the entire audience had the “Jeffersons” theme song ringing through their head by the end of the night.
Elle Crane makes Olivia a funny country bumpkin her DEA training session is the show’s biggest laugh-getter. As her dad, James Murtagh gives his every look and gesture a humorous touch. (The fact that he has some hilarious lines about hating the dung heap helps too.)
Sam Farnum plays Pantuso as an exaggerated Italian gangster, and it works- his weird obsession with his sister (the equally amusing Morgan Conley) is a strangely humorous quirk. As the family’s taciturn bodyguard Pinto, Connor O’Brien is a droll comic foil.
When the “Muffett”-obsessed brothers are first introduced, Stephen Kipp and Nick Pappas seem to be playing simple stoner stereotypes. As their story goes on, however, they experiment with different acting muscles and different types of humor, and their soft-spoken style works to their advantage.
Jonathan O’Neill narrates the show while always a welcome presence on the Fordham stage, his character never really serves a comic purpose until the end of the play. The few thinly written segments he has before the conclusion are pretty pointless.
#FSW15 EVENT: WED
FORDHAM DAILY IN PRINT
FORDHAM DAILY STAFF Connor Ryan In defense of concert headliner, TWENTY ONE PILOTS I DIDN’T WANT THIS: Beloved Fr. Florio ordered to leave Fordham John Bonazzo FANTASTIC break FLAVA: Hip-hop dancers wow at spring showcase NOT MONKEYING AROUND: Mimes ‘Inherit’ scary and powerful
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.
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