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Valhalla Reaches Heights Close to Heaven by Joseph Melnicoff Broadwayworld.com 9/30/2006 ©2006 The Uptown Players' Production of Valhalla provides some of the most uproarious side-splitting laughs ever scene on a stage. Every member of the company turned in a superlative performance, and the direction was outstanding as well. As King Ludwig, BJ Cleveland is sheer heaven. All Mr. Cleveland has to do is arch his hand slightly to acknowledge the royal troops or take a mincing step and the effect was comic delight. John de los Santos delivered the goods in his portrayal of James Avery as well. His delivered the comic lines with perfect timing and wringed the last laugh out of every farcical moment in Rudnick’s piece. He was also up to the task when the play reached its darker moments in the Second Act. Lisa Hassler undertook many roles but her primary part was Queen Marie, Ludwig's Mother. Her contributions transformed moments that could have been only slightly funny into downright hysterical. Actor Coy Covington easily took home this evening's versatility honors. He played five roles (one of them female!) and never ceased to amaze. Kevin Moore as Henry Lee was the epitome of Middle America self-consciousness and Kelly Grandjean scored with her portrayed of a Prom Queen who learns that there is more to life than what can be found between the pages of a High School Yearbook. Helming these proceedings is director Andi Allen. It was due to her tight direction that Valhalla produced all the general merriment discussed earlier. Directing a comedy so that it reaches maximum heights of levity is no easy task—and Miss Allen was clearly up to the challenge. In lesser hands, the play could have suffered, but Miss Allen kept a firm hand on this and allowed the work to reach the comic heights it was written to achieve. Will this production of Vahalla get you to Heaven? Maybe not right smack up to the pearly gates, but you're in for a most enjoyable ride. Comic Genius - Uptown Players entertains with all the intricacies of 'Valhalla' by Lawson Taitte, Dallas Morning News 9/30/2006 ©2006 Valhalla is about as complex as uproarious comedy gets. The six actors keep two plots going simultaneously and wring every laugh out of both of them. Mr. Cleveland begins the show portraying a small boy who will grow up to be the 19th-century Mad King Ludwig of Bavaria. He has a vision of a swan, already he's obsessed with the story of the mysterious knight Lohengrin. A bratty Texas kid, James (John de los Santos), from nearly a century later sees the same swan in the form of a glass figurine. For both people, the swan symbolizes the power of beauty to draw them into situations that the rest of the world disapproves of. Lisa Hassler plays both heroes' mothers. Kelly Grandjean plays the women in their lives. The largest of Mr. Covington's roles is Ludwig's adviser. As Henry Lee, Kevin Moore is caught between James and the girl who loves James, Sally. It's Ms. Grandjean who begins showing us there is more. As Sally, she's sublimely vain and self-absorbed. But then as the fourth of the princesses that Ludwig's mother tries to marry him off to, the humpbacked Sophie of Austria, she achieves genuine emotion, even as we are roaring with laughter. And that''s right after an impressive comic scene between Mr. Cleveland and Mr. Covington – in drag, yet. When Mr. de los Santos and Mr. Moore go off to battle, they dominate the spotlight. The soldiers finally reach Bavaria, where they encounter each of Ludwig's grandiose architectural projects just as he is building them in the other plot. Valhalla is a lot more ambitious and intricately crafted than it lets on. Fortunately, Uptown's production does both its comedy and its poignancy justice. Valhalla by John Garcia, The Column and Talkinbroadway.com Oct. 2, 2006 ©2006 Andi Allen has become one of the top female directors when it comes to comedy. It is a great injustice that she does not get the recognition she rightly deserves for her superb direction of comedy. Her staging and blocking works like a well oiled machine with Rudnick's playwriting. She has carefully crafted staging that helps the viewer grasp both stories on stage. Allen keeps the pace zooming along, while giving the dramatic scenes a good sense of organic reality. The piece would have become a little much had the entire evening become this huge, over the top piece-but instead she has wisely allowed only scenes and moments do this, keeping the rest of the characterizations grounded in firm reality. Ms. Allen directed one of the funniest comedies I have ever seen around the metroplex, SORDID LIVES; she has surpassed herself this time with VALHALLA. Design-wise, the production glimmers with impeccable sets, lighting, and costumes. Wade Giampa's scenic design is composed of decaying columns and white drapery. His painting design of the stage floor is simply marvelous. Jason Hill's lighting is a soft array of plush pinks and royal blues, with stark individual lighting for dramatic moments. As for Tommy Bourgeous's costumes, what can I say except that they are works of costume art. BJ Cleveland and John de los Santos both deliver prodigious performances. Cleveland channels Martin Short as the King , using his face to wring out the best possible laughs-and succeeds marvelously. As James Avery, John de los Santos swaggers around the stage ala James Dean. The actor is a nice balance to Cleveland's campiness, giving his characterization a dark layer of sexual wild abandonment and rebellion. He uses his comedic talents of delivery, timing, and phrasing with a sharp sense of organic naturalism. De los Santos also has a devastating second act arc that crests with truthfulness and does not become histrionic. Coy Covington plays an array of various characters that has the audience in the palms of his hands. The major role Covington portrays is "Pfeiffer", the secretary/assistant to the King. Covington achieves loud laughs as this man who tries to understand his monarch and his bizarre lifestyle. Kevin Moore has a hysterical sense of comedic timing & delivery in his plethora of characterizations. Lisa Hassler is marvelous as the mother to the King (Cleveland) and as James' mom (De Los Santos. Hassler has some dirty laughs in another role as a Princess who resembles Ludwig's momma-except this lady has a slight S&M fetish. Another laugh getting character under Hassler's belt is the Jewish tour guide in the second act. Ms. Grandjean had only two major characters to portray, but both were solid, indefectible, and sensational in detail, arc and organic truth. Grandjean's comedic chops rival her male co-stars and she holds her own big time with the others on stage. VALHALLA is a gleaming bauble, a splendid production with comedic brilliance-thanks to an excellent company of actors; a gorgeous palette of design elements; and a director at the top of her game. Suffice to say, VALHALLA is one of the best comedies to be presented to a metroplex audience this season. A Moving Look at Obsession and Splendor by Mark Lowry, Star-Telegram October 3, 2006 ©2006 In Paul Rudnick's comedy Valhalla, one character asserts that "inner beauty is tricky because you can't prove it." Rudnick is famous for endless parades of bons mots and double entendre. In the end, though, Valhalla has wonderfully poignant things to say about obsession, visual splendor and madness. Moore proves himself with an affecting performance. As for Cleveland, the type of actor for whom the term ham was coined, well, there might not be a more perfect role for him. It's his best performance in years. Director Andi Allen's biggest coup is managing a superlative comic trio of Lisa Hassler, Kelly Grandjean and Coy Covington through extreme costume changes in 16 roles. The final scene is anachronistic anarchy, bringing in Marie Antoinette and a Jewish tour guide leading a group through a palace inspired by the famously anti-Semitic Wagner. "Architecture as aphrodisiac," one character calls it. The same could be said of Rudnick's smartly crafted play, except you'll be laughing too much to even think about doing it. Teutons of Fun: Uptown Players romp through uber-gay Valhalla By Elaine Liner Dallas Observer October 4, 2006 ©2006 New Times In Valhalla, directed for Uptown by Andi Allen, galloping first to center stage in this madcap meander through two centuries is Mad King Ludwig II of Bavaria, played by B.J. Cleveland as if his ability to draw breath depended on every laugh. With six actors playing dozens of oddball entities jumping in and out of the parallel plot lines, Valhalla unfolds like a Wagnerian sitcom. The Uptown Players are in top form. B.J. Cleveland, as Ludwig, finally latches onto a role that requires strenuous overacting, something he's an expert at. As James, John de los Santos doesn't quite have the butch James Dean quality, but his comic timing and physical grace make up for that. Kelly Grandjean, playing five roles makes a lithe comic foil for her leading men. And in a dizzying array of character parts, Lisa Hassler, Kevin Moore and Coy Covington keep the laughs and the intricate plot lines zipping along. Throw in a twist of Greater Tuna, and it's a big comic casserole with a side of strudel. Bavarian Cream Puff: Valhalla goes proudly, profoundly over the top By Arnold Wayne Jones, The Dallas Voice October 6, 2006 ©2006 Most comedies can ultimately be categorized as either romantic, squishy stuff or brassy laughfests. Occasionally, something like Roberto Benigni's "Life Is Beautiful" bridges the gap between playful and poignant. Valhalla manages the same bit of sleight-of-hand. Silly camp shares the stage with homespun sweetness and touching emotional resonance. It is the most unexpectedly moving production in years. The actors, all veterans of comedic shtick, show themselves adept at drama. B.J. Cleveland's over-the-top Ludwig is ideally suited for his brand of Jerry Lewis-style humor. But he also conveys depth in a wonderful mad scene. This is John de los Santos' best performance to date — brazen but mature and unaffected. Lisa Hassler and Kelly Grandjean, playing all the women (except one that goes to Coy Covington, natch), and Kevin Moore are also hilarious. |