Stage Write

All aboard! The Indiana Repertory Theatre's Exploring Stages program is currently producing "The Little Choo - Choo That Thinks She Can", written by James Still, the playwright-in-residence. He's reimagined the classic tale through the eyes of an imaginative brother and sister. Devan Mathias and Isaiah Moore play the enthusiastic duo. They throw themselves into the roles and embody the frustration, joy, and vulnerability of two kids.  Throughout the show Frankie Bolda provides dozens of musical embellishments to each scenes. Kazoos, tambourines, cymbals, and train whistles make up her costume and add to the fun.  As the little train attempts to climb the big hill the children in the audience find themselves cheering her on. The story, by its very nature, is repetitive, but it gives the kids a chance to grasp the idea and works well for the youth audiences it's intended for.  Grab your kiddos, nieces and nephews, or  grandkids  and visit the...

 And they’re off! The 2014 IndyFringe Festival favorite is back in a full-length format. The Great Bike Race tells the store of the second running of the Tour de France in the most hilarious way possible. It was vicious, with cyclist cheating their way to the finish line, willing to sabotage anyone who crossed their path. The show is done in a series of vignettes that introduce each of the racers separately. The staging is simple. A screen shows the landscape scrolling by as the bikers pass. Each person holds a set of handlebars to indicate their cycle. Frankie Bolda plays the 16-year-old contender Henri Cornet with a wide-eyed innocence. He wants a gentlemanly race, but his competitors are set on playing dirty. He’s an ambitious lad with dreams of Parisian girls meeting him at the finish line and Bolda shines with her earnest portrayal. The main race is between the cut-throat favorites Hippolyte Acoutrier (Paige Scott) and Maurice Garin (Ben Asaykwee). The prideful pai...

“Uneasy lies the head that wears a crown.”   So imagine you’re an actor and a director approaches you with a proposition. “How would you like to play a dozen different roles, male and female, young and old, in eight different shows? By the way, you’ll be performing these shows on the same day.” You’d question their sanity, right? Thankfully eight Indiana performers decided to embrace the challenge instead of calling the men in the white coats. The fact that this idea, born more than a year ago, became a reality is incredible.    The eight plays, listed below, have each been condensed into a single hour, a huge feat accomplished by Maria Souza. The result is a whirlwind of action; the fat is trimmed away and audience members are left with the core of each plot in a relatively easy to follow format. Catherine Cardwell, Polly Heinkel, and Thomas Cardwell each tackle the direction of a couple shows. Their styles work well together and there’s no drastic shift betw...