O...M...G. Playcrafters’ Barn Theatre has struck showbiz GOLD with its current production of Marry Me a Little, directed by Jake Ladd. Ladd, born and raised in California, has a professional résumé in stage, film and television as long as the Mississippi and that he made the decision to retire to the Quad Cities is nothing short of a theatrical miracle.
Per Ladd’s program notes Marry Me was conceived and developed by Craig Lucas and Norman Rene after Lucas was approached by a New York theatre group to put together a musical revue. Lucas recalled an earlier conversation he had with the incomparable Stephen Sondheim in which Sondheim related that he had several unperformed so-called “orphan songs.” With Sondheim’s permission those songs became Marry Me a Little and it is amazing how pulling together songs from different places can be strung together to create a story with no actual plot.
This is a truly unique production in that it has NO dialogue and I’ll again pirate Ladd’s program notes to describe it. It’s “the story of ‘the boy’ and ‘the girl,’ two New York singles living alone in their one-room apartments as upstairs and downstairs neighbors. Through the use of those ‘orphan songs’ the characters reveal ‘their hopes, dreams, fantasies and passions, all in the course of one Saturday night alone...[and] a unique stage convention is employed in which the two apartments have been merged into one playing space...inhabited by [the] actors whose characters never meet and do not directly interact except as they may appear within a fantasy as a counterpoint or companion.” That merging of the apartments is accomplished through clever and subtle suggestion. The bed has a counterpane that is split down the middle. One side suggests masculine taste while the other is definitely feminine and the actors pretty much stick to their respective sides. There are also different side tables and lamps and, demonstrating Ladd’s attention to detail, when each actor enters the apartment, care is taken to change the number on the door.
Not to be ignored is Giovanni Macias’ lighting behind the upstage scrim. It subtlety undulates a rainbow that enhances without distracting from the action.
Now, on to the actors: Thayne Lamb as the boy and Sydney Crumbleholme as the girl are on stage through the entire performance, singing their hearts out to Sondheim’s unique lyrical style. Not only do they have phenomenal vocal chops, their acting through the prism of song results in an “every-man” aesthetic that touches both heart and soul. It’s pure theatre magic. I have seen Lamb in multiple and diverse roles in multiple venues and he continues to excel and up his game in every production he’s in and I certainly look forward to seeing more of Crumbleholme who delivers a beautiful and nuanced performance.
Despite these accolades there was one enormous tragedy on opening night – a very sparse audience. I know from observation that the Quad Cities loves musicals. Friends, you do not want to miss this show...it is spectacular. In fact, I plan to attend again next weekend.
Marry Me a Little continues at Playcrafters Barn Theatre, 4950 35th Avenue in Moline, Friday and Saturday, May 30 and 31 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, June 1 at 3:00 p.m.
I’m Chris Hicks…break a leg.