As you enter the black box space at Center Stage Theater, where Out of the Box Theatre’s latest production—Stephen Sondheim’s musical “Assassins”—opened last Friday, you find yourself in an old-timey carnival environment.
A bright checkerboard floor in yellow and red, a shooting arcade booth, a raised platform where the band performs, all evoke another era, though not necessarily a happier one. Hovering above is an image of a Presidential Seal which over the course of the musical will feature the well known faces of Lincoln, Reagan, Kennedy and others. Those famous figures are somewhat incidental though, as the primary subjects of Sondheim’s musical, which he called the only perfect show he ever wrote, are assassins and would-be assassins.
“Assassins” begins with The Proprietor, played with creepy charm by Brian Hotchkin, encouraging people to step right up and take a shot at a president. Shortly thereafter we meet the Balladeer who sets an uplifting tone in the tradition of American folksongs as he proclaims that “In the USA, you can have your say, you can set your goals and seize the day.” Actor Ryan Beaghler has a warm winning tone, but the words run in ironic counterpoint to the level of delusion and desperation of the other characters. Those characters, played by many of Santa Barbara’s most skilled performers, lay out in solos, duets, and group numbers the grievances and passions which led them to their acts of violence.
The actors completely inhabit the historical figures: Brian Hoyson masterfully controls the stage and his fellow killers as John Wilkes Booth, Nik Valinsky powerfully articulates the rights of the workers as Leon Czolgosz, Rob Grayson does a perfect manic dance on the way to the scaffolding as Charless Guiteau, Will Muse is a sweet and impassioned Giuseppe Zangara, Jim Sirianni in a sad Santa suit angrily records a painful but gripping extended voice mail to Leonard Bernstein, Marisol Miller-Wave is a hilariously awkward Sara Jane Moore tagteaming with Squeaky Fromme played with believable infatuation and fanaticism by Naomi Jane Voigt, Dalton Weaver convincingly evokes Jody Foster as John Hinckley, or characters, such as Emma Goldman, played with conviction and warmth by Leesa Beck and the strong ensemble chorus with such local favorites as Deborah Bertling and CJ Smith are memorable and keep the themes and the pace moving along through the course of history.
Though I was only somewhat familiar with some of these infamous individuals, I was drawn in by the larger topics the piece addresses and their relevance to the time and country in which we live.
John Weidman, Sondheim’s collaborator who wrote the musical’s book sought to answer the question of, “Why do these dreadful events happen here, with such horrifying frequency, and in such appallingly similar fashion?” What is it about the culture of the United States that seems to offer unending promise but when those promises aren’t delivered leave people embittered, enraged and in many cases, armed? “Assassins” doesn’t fully answer these questions but does provide an opportunity to ponder the topic and I would certainly recommend the production.
Under Samantha Eve’s skilled direction, the actors bring warmth, humor and humanity to the characters, the band takes us through an homage to the history of American music with great skill and energy and the musical provides an opportunity to examine aspects of history seldom examined.
Remaining performances are at 7:30 p.m. Friday, April 17 and Saturday, April 18 and at 2 p.m. Sunday, April 19. The musical is presented at Center Stage Theatre, 751 Paseo Nuevo in downtown Santa Barbara. For more information go to www.outoftheboxtheatre.org
