The current show at Mansfield Music and Arts Society Black Box Theater is
Richard Harris' "Stepping Out". The good-natured, tap-dancing comedy
chronicles several months in the life of a beginning dance class and takes
place in present day in the USA. Each of the eight students come from a
variety of backgrounds, has his or her own reason for joining. For instance,
Maxine, a confident fast-talking sales woman ( and former Mouseketeer
dancer), is there on therapist's orders, while self-sacrificing Andy
participates because it is the only thing she does for herself, effervescent
Dorothy works at the unemployment office, Rose is a sassy black gal who's
permanent has gone wrong, tough Sylvia constantly wants to go out for a
drink after rehearsal, Vera is a cleaning fanatic, Lynne is a nurse and
Geoffrey is the only man in the class. . Whatever the cause, they make a
point of coming every week to chat, relax and, if they can manage to, learn
a couple of dance steps along the way. Led by Mavis, their eternally patient
instructor, and accompanied by the acerbic pianist Mrs. Fraser, the students
(who range from hopeless to competent) strive to master the basics of dance.
But the steps and routines are just the background for the real focus of the
play which is the relationships and interactions of these ten very different
people. By their final performance, not only have the class members
developed some degree of skill, but they have also overcome the inhibitions,
awkwardness and personality conflicts that have kept them out of sync. The
show is abundant with a character driven plot and is mixed with comic and
dramatic moments. Directed by Barbara Pettis , she gives each performer a
chance to shine in their respective roles while choreography by Karen
Anderson is also excellent. She makes them all dance from their timidness at
first to their sparkling final performance which is magical. Scenic design
is by Gary Poholek who built a small stage with proscenium, painted hardwood
floors and built a spinet piano with a hidden keyboard on it. Costume design
is by Ann-Marie Lambert with red and white jackets, maroon vests and old
fashioned hats and dresses for the wise-cracking pianist, Mrs. Fraser. All
these ingredients mix together wonderfully for the
shimmering, glorious final tap dancing performance of The Mavis Turner
Tappers which leads to a standing ovation at the close of the show.
Barbara makes each character different from the other so you can readily
identify who is who. She infuses them all with high energy from start to
finish. Karen creates some fantastic dance steps for the cast and they
all execute them perfectly. The most outstanding dancer in this show is
gorgeous blonde, Stacy Kernweis as Mavis, the dance instructor. She has a
solo jazz number in Act 1 scene 4 that stops the show. Her character is very
patient with her students except in one scene where they all start to tell
her what dance steps they should do and she explodes at them. She thinks she
might be pregnant by her less than stellar boyfriend. Doreen Tighe is a hoot
as the sarcastic, Mrs. Fraser. She gets many laughs when she plays the tempo
of "I Can't Give you Anything but Love, Baby" wrong at rehearsal, and has
many funny one liners with one of them being "students come out in summer
and drop off in winter. Glenda Fraser also proclaims she is a vegetarian and
doesn't drink but appears tipsy in one scene, leading to much laughter. Her
funny costumes and hats by Ann-Marie add to the levity.
Since there are ten members of the cast I will do a brief description of
their roles. All of them do a wonderful job with their acting and dancing.
Alicia Marie Rivera, who I first directed in "Fools" when she was 14 years
old, plays Lynne, the geriatric nurse who lost a patient one day and she is
the dance captain of the troupe. Judi Cotta as Dorothy is worried about her
bicycle being stolen and shines in the scene where she tearfully explains
she didn't report Sylvia's husband to the unemployment office. Julie Cline
is Maxine who is married for the second time and has an unruly stepson who
shot out the eye of a neighbor's lion statue. Maxine brings in the hats
which at first are all wrong but obtains straw hats for the show. Atia
Gravely is excellent as the shy, demure Andy who is hiding a secret that she
has an abusive husband. She wears spectacles and appears awkward but dances
up a storm with the other girls at the performance. Her shining moment comes
when she explodes in fury at Vera for butting into other people's
lives. Glenn Fournier is Geoffrey and appears noncommittal during the
continual tiffs among the women. His wife has died from cancer and he is
trying to get over her death. Glenn gets a solo spot as the only man in the
class and he does it with finesse. Cindy McCarron plays the pretentious,
Vera who constantly tidies up the stuff on the piano, cleans the bathroom
windows and makes disparaging remarks. One of the funniest moments in the
show comes when Cindy as Vera proclaims to Sylvia, "I once was as fat as
you, when I was pregnant with my daughter." Her crass comments are
hysterical and so is the silver lame outfit she wears in one scene. Rachel
Morandi plays Sylvia who swears up a storm, proclaims she is overweight and
has two left feet. She wears sneakers at first and forgets to pay for class
a couple of times. Rachel shows off her dramatic chops when she confronts
Dorothy for ratting out her husband at work and during the comic scenes she
has perfect facial expressions for the punch lines. Judy Wahl is a hoot as
the feisty, Rose whose son didn't finish school and needs a job, obtaining
it from Maxine. She appears with a straight haired wig in the first act and
has a curly head of hair in the second. Judy's supposed clumsiness at first
gives way to talented dancing at the show. A word about the theatre includes
their expansion into the building behind them which gives them a new lobby,
class and office space. While other theatres are downsizing MMAS is
expanding. Also there is a special discount price on Thursday nights. So for
an excellent show with laughs and poignancy along the way, be sure to catch
"Stepping Out" at the Black Box Theatre in Mansfield. Tell them Tony sent
you.
STEPPING OUT ( 20 March to 5 April, 2009)
MMAS, Black Box Theater, 30 Crocker Street,
Mansfield,MA
