SURVIVING THE ROSENTHALS, directed & choreographed by Andrea Andresakis,
introduces us to songwriter Sammy, who enters therapy to heal himself and break free of the childhood shackles, brought on by his overbearing father, that still stifle him as an adult. The musical takes a surreal twist as Sammy meets – Sammy! Adult Sam meets 10-year-old Sammy in a battle to save himself.

We spoke with Andrea Andresakis, who shared some fascinating stories of her journey in the arts.

“My Mother is a pianist. When she played Chopin or Gershwin, I would dance around the living room,” says director/choreographer, Andrea Andresakis. Living in the historic Ansonia Hotel, known for its denizens immersed in the arts, Andrea – from a young age – was equally immersed including a Rockette who taught ballet down the hall. It’s no wonder that she was on her path as early as age 5. She began at the School of American Ballet at 7; performed ballets by George Balanchine and Jerome Robbins at Lincoln Center at age 9 and then on to the High School of Performing Arts “Fame” school, where it was suggested she go to Alvin Ailey. “I did … and performed with Ailey’s third company,” she said with a great smile. “All 3 companies performed Memoria together, choreographed by Mr. Ailey at City Center,” she continued. “I also danced with the Metropolitan Opera Ballet, where [this is one of her favorite memories] she stopped the show (literally) during the Bacchanal in Samson and Delilah at the Met. Of course she was the Sugar Plum Fairy in the Nutcracker (after humble beginning as a soldier and an angel).”

With such an auspicious beginning we wanted to learn more about Ms. Andresakis’ rise.

Your credentials as a director/choreographer are quite impressive.  How was the transition to director/choreographer from dancer? 

It was an organic transition. Dance captain, choreographer, then director. Michael Haney had hired me as a performer/dance captain at the Allenberry Playhouse and we had a good rapport. The next summer they needed someone to do the musical staging for two shows that aren’t big dance shows: Secret Garden and Big River. The producer didn’t want to hire a choreographer, so they wanted someone in the cast to do it. I had choreographed solos for myself, but never anything for anyone else. Michael, I guess, saw that I could run a room from my work as dance captain and asked me to do it. He was mostly a play director, so he turned the scenes over to me the minute the music started. I had to make decisions about how the story was being told and work with the actors on their intentions, etc. It was then that I realized that I could direct. I had been a drama major at Performing Arts (I transferred from dance after Freshman year) and that background in acting, script analysis, etc. really served me. My Mom had taught me to read music, so that enabled me to communicate with music directors. My father is a trained actor and, I didn’t realize it at the time, but he had started grooming me as director from a very early age. We went to see theatre weekly and he always critiqued and, as my Mother says “re-directed” the productions. (He still does). Even when watching TV, he would point out when an actor was “indicating”. I had the privilege of working with some amazing artists. (Besides Balanchine, Robbins and Ailey, also Franco Zefferelli, Onna White, Leonard Bernstein, Jacques d’Amboise…) and those experiences have shaped my aesthetics and approach. What I wasn’t that aware of as a performer are the technical aspects of a production – what happens during production meetings, for example. So I took jobs as an Assistant Stage Manager and Assistant Director. Gary John La Rosa taught me a lot about the nuts and bolts of putting a production together – scheduling, giving notes, working with designers, running tech rehearsals, dealing with different personalities, crisis management, etc.

What obstacles have you faced in your career? 

For me, theatre is a craft that I’ve learn by apprenticing. I don’t have a “terminal degree” as they call it in academia, so that prohibits me from taking on a full time position at a university. I have been invited to direct, choreograph and teach at seven universities. I received a grant from the Stage Directors and Choreographers Foundation to direct Arms and the Man, by George Bernard Shaw at Eastern Mennonite University and my production of Spring Awakening at Whitman College garnered a Kennedy Center award. Even with that experience as a teacher combined with a lifetime in professional theatre, I wouldn’t be considered for a tenure track position without a degree.

There’s also the gender bias. Being a 5’4”, 115 lb., former ballerina, working with men twice my size in a shop where scenery is being built, for example, can sometimes be challenging. I can’t come in authoritatively as I might be able to do if I was a man. Sometimes, in the best interest of time and in order to get things accomplished, I’ve had to play little games, tiptoeing around, when I knew all the while how to solve the problem at hand. You have to put your ego aside and put the needs of the production first.

What is your “mission” as a director/choreographer?

It’s unfashionable to say this, but I honestly don’t have an agenda as a director. When I’m choreographing an original dance piece, yes, it’s my creation, so I’m writing the narrative. But as a director, working on a piece that’s been written, I am more of a facilitator to the author. I don’t try to put my stamp on it. If people are noticing the direction, then I’ve failed. The direction should be invisible. They should be talking about the story. My “mission” is to tell the story in such a way that keeps the audience engaged on many levels intellectually and sensorily. Everyone has a different way of experiencing an event, some more with their eyes, some more with their ears, some with their brains, others with their hearts. It’s my job to hone an authentic production that speaks to the audience on all of these levels. I also try my best to make it enjoyable for all of those involved. Back in the day, when I was a dance student, the culture was abusive. There was a lot of negative feedback coming at you. One of my ballet teachers yelled at me one day, when I was nine, to “go in the back, you look like spaghetti!” I personally don’t think that people give their best while being terrified. So I do my best to create an environment that is safe, freeing and encourages creativity.

Is there one project that stands out as a “turning point” for you? Good or bad? 

I’ve learned something from all of my productions, everyone is a turning point in some way. What first comes to mind is a production of The Pearl Diver, a Japanese fable, which was also part of the NY Theatre Festival. I answered an ad and was sent the script. After reading it I thought, “this is impossible to do on stage, especially with minimal resources”. There was a shipwreck, an underwater sequence, sea creatures, etc. I took the job (which I’m apt to do), not having the slightest idea of how to proceed. Fortunately, I found Mary Hamrick, a set designer who was working as an assistant on Broadway and who now has many impressive credits as a set designer. Mary said “there doesn’t need to be a boat. The actor will hold a wooden bowl – that will be the boat.” We kept suggesting effects, such as projections, to achieve the various underwater scenes and the like and Mary kept saying, “no, we don’t need it” and she was right. She created magic with some bamboo poles, fabric, a few wooden bowls, etc. The sea creatures’ gills were fans that they stuck into their headbands. The Dragons claws were chopsticks. To this day, people remember that production and rave about it. We’re streaming it as a fundraiser for Asian Americans Advancing Justice. Asian Americans Advancing Justice – Los Angeles – The Pearl Diver Fundraiser (networkforgood.com)

I learned a few things: 1. Just how important designers are and, when you have the right person, how to trust them; 2. The audience’s imagination is more powerful than any high tech affects you can attempt; 3. There’s beauty in simplicity; and 4. Limitations can be your friend.

Look for Part II of our series on Andrea Andresakis in DramaQueensReviews

Review of Rebecca Codas at Hugh’s Room LIVE by Evan Meena

Rebecca Codas enthralled a diverse audience at Hugh’s Room Live with her natural effervescence and boffola voice. Rocketing to notoriety as one of the top 20 on a reality series called Over the Rainbow, Codas now enthralls audiences with a voice that needs no amplification and if she keeps going on this track, she wiull need no introduction!

Her joyous stint at the cabaret club, Hugh’s Room, begins with Codas, in an elegant black shimmery blazer sharing stories of her emergence into the “Biz.” Rapid-fire chats about her weight, her time with Andrew Lloyd Webber, plus struggles, ambitions, and insecurity, pepper a belter voice that electrified the room – each time. The stereotypical schpiel-line of “every song a showstopper” was pertinent here.  

Accompanied by Madeline Smith, conductor of Waitress on Broadway, Rebecca was yes, she fabulous, and yes, her pianist (whose own humility in giving so much room for Rebecca to shine) was fabulous, but what made this show so endearing is that the only person who didn’t know how brilliant Rebecca is … is Rebecca. Self-effacing, gracious, and grateful – complete with nervous smile through stories both joyous and heartbreaking – she would thank someone, from the audience to her education, to the bottle of water she was given and then she would – without taking a preparatory breath – launch into powerful tunes covering multiple genres and styles that would leave us filled with excitement.  

Rebecca serenaded with standards like the obligatory “Cabaret” from Cabaret to a clever musical journey from Waitress (of course, considering her pianist) to Adele tunes, which segued into an hilarious tune comparing being overweight to being pregnant, which ended up sounding like a parable about how women are forced to look at themselves these days. 

One entry in the program, the song “All I Ask” was particularly touching as Rebecca gave us a whiff of autobiography in the rendition and while the tune offered a colossal range, her trademark belt was beautifully evident.  

After the tour-de-force “Only the Strong Survive” ending in a killer final note, she – without a breath – gives herself a B+. Seemed the crowd reaction tilted toured A+. She then ended her show with a group of singers whose own voices were stunning but as back-up to Rebecca made the finale extra joyous. Her encore was ironic. Now, a rising star in the Big Apple, her rendition of New York State of Mind brought tears.  

Cabaret performing can be a slippery slope. It’s easy to fall it camp or stereotype of the Grande Dame thus bringing the show to a superficial level. That is NOT the case with Rebecca Codas at all. Her openhearted humility coupled with an extraordinary voice makes her one to watch in the future.  

“These past 2 years have been interesting. I watched a couple of plays on zoom and realized that I did not want to direct in that form, so I decided to wait until things improved,” says Laurie Rae Waugh, one of the leading directors of the landmark American Theatre of Actors, “I am a people person and I prefer to work in person,” She concluded with a definitive aire. This did not stop her from being an actor – in October of 2021 – in an event celebrating the life of playwright James Crafford who passed in October of 2020. James Crafford Times 10 compiled ten of the profound playwright’s one-acts as a tribute to him. Shortly after that she received a play from producer James Jennings. “He had me read the play DADDY’S GIRLS which was written by Ms. Norma Mortimer. I enjoyed the script very much but realized that the play was only an hour long. I reached out to Mr. Jennings to see if there was another one-act that I could pair it with that had a similar setting. Mr. Jennings put me in contact with Ms. Mortimer who sent me another one-act and we now have an evening of one act plays by Norma Mortimer.”

These two family dramas or drama within the family, open March 2 at the ATA putting Waugh, an expert at initimate relationship plays back in the directors chair. We grabbed a few minutes with her before she started a rehearsal:

What obstacles are you expecting to face now?

First, finding actors who were willing to get back into the theater while following COVID protocols. Most importantly I wanted to keep everyone in the cast safe. Since both casts have 4 actors, I have been rehearsing them separately until we run the shows together to get a sense of just how long the evening will run. I also had to make sure that everyone was vaccinated to be a part of this production.

How are you different from pre-pandemic in terms of your theatrical style or passion or creative process?

I don’t think I am different at all. I still go in with the same passion as I would any play I am directing. The only difference here is that I am working with a new playwright. I am looking forward to hearing her thoughts after she sees the play for the first time,

Do you think this should be a Broadway play or an off-Broadway play? Why?

Yes. Each play has its own rhythm, flair, and drama. We are only doing part of the play RUN THE COURSE as the play was also written as a full length. The longer version of RUN THE COURSE has the making in itself as an off-Broadway play.

The first one act play RUN THE COURSE is a drama filled with several twists and turns along the way. What I like about the play is that I didn’t see them coming and neither will an audience. The second one act play, DADDY’S GIRLS, is also a drama with some funny and touching moments throughout. If you’re paying attention, you will see early where this one is going. If not, then enjoy the ride.

What’s next?

I am not sure. I have 3 full length plays that have been approved for production however the cast sizes range from 8 to 12 actors, with one play having all the actors on the stage at once. I am waiting to see where COVID will be later this year and whether we will get back to some kind of normal. The 3 plays are written by two members of the same family. The late Irving A. Greenfield with WHAT DO WE DO ABOUT WALTER? And MY MOTHER’S BOOKIE and his son Nathan Greenfield with Poznan, Poland: 23 May 1943.

As an artform, Spoken Word is a catch-all term that includes standup comedy and monologues, but most often refers to poetry recited out loud. Unlike the written word, the execution of the piece aloud before an audience is a crucial aspect of the spoken word form. Voicing and being seen in one’s truth, rather than simply hiding behind written text is what makes spoken word at once a vulnerable, naked- and medicinal craft. 

The word medicine has its roots in “to take appropriate measures.” During times of uncertainty, a global pandemic, isolation, economic instability and environmental crisis, cultivating an immunity and a healthy response to the stress, worry and fear that inevitably come creeping in is crucial. The impacts of sustained stress are visible, rampant and growing in our rapid- paced context. Poet and humanitarian, Lisa Shalom uses the spoken word artform to slow down and generate health and wellbeing- for herself, through her own work and performances. She also shares her tools with participants in the program she founded called, “Spoken Wordicine; Your Words are a Powerful Medicine.”  

Taking the time to dive in and really examine what we might be carrying and turning our stories into art expressed in a safe container is a process that allows Shalom to perform heart surgery – not with a scalpel – but through truth-telling with compassion. Her work bridges the heart with the mind to create a deeper understanding of the internal landscape and it also connects one human to another. “When people are really in touch with themselves, they are less likely to harm themselves, others or the planet, and they are more inspired to breathe life into their bodies and surroundings.” Shalom visits educational organizations, corporate offices, conferences and seminars, offering Spoken Wordicine to diverse demographics, all similar at the core. 

Using her “procedure,” Lisa Shalom creates avenues of safe vulnerability for those who could use a tune up on the insides, which actually turns out to be- everyone. She deftly creates an intentional platform where folks can air thoughts and buried secrets, creating personal catharsis while inspiring others with their words. Over her years of teaching, Shalom has collected stories of those whose worlds have been changed through her powerful technique. 

She shares the story of a girl who had gone voluntarily mute due to severe alcoholism at home. By the time the girl encountered Lisa in a Spoken Wordicine workshop, she had been silent for weeks. “I was instructed never to address this girl directly so as not to put her on the spot,” she says, recounting the experience. While the girl still did not speak, it was obvious to Lisa that she was observing- and absorbing- everything going on in the workshop. During the sixth session, her fellow participants shared their pieces on various subjects that tend to arise in this work. They rapped about everything from saying final goodbyes to their grandparents, addiction, immigration, and facing bullying and harassment for being somehow “other than”. As is the case during most performance shares near the end of the workshop, the room filled with tears, laughter and a deeper understanding of each other. Lisa discreetly asked the young girl who had been silently watching the proceedings if she would like to take the chance to get up and say something. “She got up and artfully roared her truth like I have not seen a student in a classroom or a seasoned professional at a nightclub do- before or since. I get chills whenever I think about her. The air changed to the degree that she was willing to let the rawness of her truth lay itself bare, and so did her relationship to her sense of her own power.” 

The young girl, no longer mute, continues to write and she sends Shalom her poetry until today. 

“One boy had Crohn’s Disease and he presented a piece on how badly it hurt him to be made fun of for the odors he sometimes produced,” Lisa added about another student. “He disclosed that he had a colostomy bag, (a plastic bag that collects fecal matter outside his body,) that nobody knew was there. His poetry was a glimpse into his late-night hospital visits, physical pain and his desire to be like everyone else.” The students who made fun of him became his biggest supporters overnight. All it took was sharing his story. “The courageous authenticity, or “vulnerabravery” we must summon in order to share our stories is the real work of this process. It can be terrifying to lean in, but relief, freedom and magic lie just on the other side of the comfort zone.”

Shalom shared the story of a young girl with a hearing disorder who revealed that she smiled and nodded so often not because she was stupid, but because she couldn’t hear what was being said. Another young girl shared how her family’s home and car had been spray-painted with religious slurs. Another girl spoke of how she felt too white to fit in with the black kids and too black to fit in with the white kids. One boy used his poetry to come out as gay. When Shalom works with adults, it often results in very similar shares, only with stories that may have been buried for longer. “When we don’t own our stories, they can end up owning us,” says Shalom.

“Many participants speak on being targeted for their race, sexual orientation, weight, body type, skin tone, religion, heritage, or mother tongue. They unmask health issues, loneliness or whatever is really going on beneath the surface. On occasion, intimation of suicide or abuse come up, and the teachers and I take measures to provide support and counseling resources and we also take the time to offer love, attention and human connection to the kids,” says Lisa.

Spoken Wordicine is a method of personal or individual healing within community using art as the medium. Its potential for generating health is as great as its potential for preventing crises.

There is a perennial paradox one finds in teens in particular. Today’s teens carry a sizable amount of burden for their tender years, yet they are lacking sufficient life experience to address the slings and arrows they face. Educational systems at once demand teens to comply like adults in terms of dates and procedures, but do not often supply the knowledge or proper breathing room to first get a handle on their life situations. Lisa’s message is clear: “If poetry can become an outlet for naming the situation and letting off steam before drugs, alcohol, sex or video games become the go-to addiction, I consider my work productive preventative medicine!”

Lisa enjoys receiving poetry from former students who kept writing after their time with her has ended. “I love hearing from teachers who are incredulous that the “outcasts” or kids on the fringes who trust the process end up earning respect, developing confidence, and finding their place in the community. Maya Angelou says that there is no agony greater than the burden of an untold story. We use Spoken Wordicine as a means to lighten the load and claim our power.”

While each workshop is designed to be a safe space for all, Lisa offers a precaution. “When I teach Spoken Wordicine in high schools, I ask the kids to check-in with themselves before bringing their most vulnerable stories to the table. School can be a brutal environment and while they may wish to write poetry pieces about their deepest trauma to help them to process it, I ask them only to share aloud what they feel they could withstand having thrown back at them as a worst-case scenario.” Despite the word of warning, she finds that, “teens are thirsty for a platform to vent their innermost. Since I do encourage them to take a step out of their comfort zone, they often choose to bring their most profound challenges to the table despite the potential risk involved given the setting. And when they do, it’s because they are ready for mountains to move.” 

Lisa maintains that the oral tradition is the original Wordicine. Storytelling around a campfire is one of the foundations of how we generate connection and empathy. It is the sharing of stories that builds personal confidence, appreciation and acceptance, of others and ourselves. “It should come as no surprise that walking a mile in someone’s shoes often amounts to loving them. So, it’s a natural byproduct of the Spoken Wordicine process that group dynamics should improve and that bonding and healing should occur,” she says definitively. 

In watching Lisa Shalom perform live or online, we come to see how Lisa’s students are inspired to share of themselves. It’s clear that Shalom is able to provide the material she teaches as a result of a personal investment in her own Spoken Wordicine process.

Find out more about Lisa Shalom and her Spoken Wordicine Methodology and check out her work on www.shalomtoyou.com. Reach Lisa for bookings on shalom.home@yahoo.ca or on her socials: FB- www.facebook.com/lisababashalom or IG- @shalomlisa

Ella y Yo

Written by, directed by and starring Gilda Mercado

Review by Jen Bush

Gilda Mercado is a globe trotting Mexican renaissance woman with international acting credentials. In Ella y Yo, her eyes will bore into your soul as she dissects her own soul.

Ella y Yo is a wildly provocative solo piece that is not for the faint of heart or the fragile of emotions. You will be captivated and disturbed. You will want to look away at times. Don’t look away because the message embedded in the piece is vital. In society before a hello can leave our lips, we are judged, scrutinized and pigeonholed in an instant. The main character in Ella y Yo grapples with that and much more through themes of insecurity, vulnerability, self-examination, and ultimately self-acceptance.

The piece begins with a television at the top of a staircase. It turns on and we see a beautiful woman dressed like the acclaimed artist Frida Kahlo. It’s shot in black and white and is eerily atmospheric as sultry smoke escapes from the woman’s mouth in slow motion. It doesn’t stay beautiful for long so hold on tight and prepare for a disorienting theme park ride through the brain of a mentally anguished woman. Through beautiful, jarring, and surreal visuals, text, graceful dance, disjointed movements and music, we have a front row seat to schizophrenia. The film technique was reminiscent of German expressionism. The character speaks in English as well as Spanish with subtitles. As the main character smokes, moves and dances she questions her sanity, talks about how women are viewed and wonders about her self-worth. In fact, one of the most resonating lines in the piece was, “My self-worth depends on others.” That will stop you in your tracks and make you think long and hard about how you perceive your self-worth.

Not all art is pretty and wrapped up in a cute little bow. The viewer is at the mercy of the creator as the recipient of the message that the artist wishes to convey. In 9 minutes you’ll squirm, you’ll smile, you’ll empathize and sympathize, you’ll relate and your thoughts will be provoked to the outer limits. Ms. Mercado did a tremendous job of helming and executing every aspect of this performance. Ella y Yo may have a particular appeal for women and anybody struggling with self-acceptance. You’ll be thrown off your axis and challenged to think about uncomfortable subject matter. This piece of art did its job.