I make no apologies for being a big fan of Whatcom Community College’s theatre program. They consistently develop fine actors and present productions that are unlikely to be seen elsewhere. That’s a gift in itself. But WCC also offers students the opportunity to write and direct with the Second Annual Student One-Act Play Festival. This year’s assemblage offers a mélange of plays and monologues that will delight local theatre buffs.

WCC’s theatre guru Gerry Large chose seven plays from 30 submissions and selected six monologues to intersperse in the program.

It may be the Scots in me, but I sense that if there is a theme for this year’s works, it would be summed up neatly by Robbie Burns: “The best laid plans of mice and men gang aft agley.” There are role reversals, surrenders to inescapable fate, and the involvement of an infamous Irishman. One of the things that is refreshingly honest about young playwrights is that they aren’t ashamed to be obvious about who has influenced them. More about that as we proceed.

Pranks and Snakes, by Liz Doyle and Cecilee Beck will delight any parents who have been pranked by their kids and reveals a rather mature understanding of family dynamics. Ryan Oliver’s Here We Go Again is all about the inevitability of questionable relationships and Comfort Israel delivers it from the heart.

Photo credit - Christopher Key

Dakota Bradley is responsible for Words: a Tragicomedy and it owes something to Tom Stoppard. Not a bad choice of influences. The trauma of being uprooted as a child is commemorated by Nick Twietmeyer’s Four Boxes.

Narcissistic Personality Disorder is given a thorough dissection in Aubyn Honeysett’s Distractions. Amanda Molsee and Katie Dec are devastatingly accurate in their portrayals of teenagers who are as deep as a mud puddle.

America’s favorite guilty pleasure is the subject of Hamburger, another Honeysett confection. Cecilee Beck returns with A Charming Proposal, in which a socially-challenged geek manages to pull off the perfect marriage proposal in spite of himself. Kyle Musilek and Amanda Thornton are immensely…uhhh…charming in their roles.

Photo credit - Christopher Key

Rachel Strand reveals a gift for poetic language in the powerful I Am Blank, delivered beautifully by Erika Olson. Crossroads is a disturbingly contemporary drama about the consequences of war written by Brian Houston.

The art of rant is celebrated in Austin Giles’ Become to be Less, memorably performed by Mark Broyles. Another example of how young playwrights honor those who have gone before is Mind of Charles by Nicholas Cunningham. Franz Kafka would be proud.

Close Encounters…of the Turd Kind is a wildly funny look at how a female farter comes out of the closet written by Cecilee Beck. Amanda Thornton’s performance stinks and, in this case, it is a high compliment.

That aforementioned Irishman takes center stage in Sarah Miller’s Murphy’s Law. Cecilee Beck and Mark Broyles are delicious as a couple who try to thwart this universal axiom and eventually realize that surrender is occasionally the best option.

Photo credit - Christopher Key

The Second Annual One-Act Play Festival performs May 17 – 19 at WCC’s Syre Student Center. Tickets are $5 at the door and can be reserved by calling (360) 383-3532.

These immensely talented students deserve your support and will reward you with an evening of thought-provoking theatre. ‘Nuff said.

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Of all the musical treasures that grace this community, Jack Frymire has always been atop my list. The legendary impresario chose Bellingham as his retirement home and we are all the richer for it. His collaborations with the Whatcom Symphony Orchestra have included the 1995 “pocket” version of Die Fledermaus and the 2009 tribute to Oscar Hammerstein. This season, he somehow managed to top himself with today’s program, “Bellissima!” that presented some of the most stirring operatic music of all time. It was admittedly difficult to drag oneself inside on this glorious spring day, but Frymire and the WSO made it more than worthwhile.

In modern parlance, Pietro Mascagni was a one-hit wonder. Cavalleria rusticana, his first opera, was a smash hit and ushered in an artistic movement that was labeled verismo, realism. Mascagni’s subsequent works were all disappointing and he died forgotten in 1945. The WSO and guest artists gave his one hit a rousing ride that elicited loud bravos from the audience. Frymire, who also has a way with words, described it this way: “Music of desperate sweep courses like blood. Within that stream familiar themes surface and submerge like drowning swimmers, just as Turiddu and Santuzza are drowning in their own passions.” As something of a wordsmith, I know when I am in the presence of a master and have nothing to add.

The soloists, tenor Stephen Rumph, soprano Kimberly Giordano, baritone Charles Robert Stephens, mezzo Sarah Mattux and mezzo Heidi Vanderford were nothing short of stunning and I’ll have more to say about them later. They received rock-solid backing from the wonderful Bellingham Chamber Chorale and their artistic director Ryan Smit. Mind you, this was not excerpts from the opera, but a full concert version. The orchestra was as good as I have ever heard them and that’s saying a lot. All of this combined to give the audience an adrenaline buzz that was barely tempered by intermission.

Jules Verne took us Around the World in 80 Days. He was something of a piker since Frymire managed to do the same thing in 40 minutes. The Three Vignettes he assembled ranged from “Morning in India” to “High Noon in Seville” to “Evening in Paris” and showcased Mount Baker Theatre’s technical wizards along with the glorious music. In addition to the supertitles, there were classic works of art projected on the background to enhance our grand tour. Rather than list the arias Frymire included in his travelogue, I need to give some love to the astounding soloists who made the afternoon memorable.

The archetypal operatic tenor, for better or worse, has been somewhat defined by the rather robust Luciano Pavarotti. Today’s tenors are rather more svelte, but their voices are no less impressive. Issaquah’s Ross Hauck and Seattle’s Stephen Rumph both evince the power and control that one expects from the best tenors, but from relatively slender physical presences.

Bellingham’s own Amber Sudduth Bone is a familiar face at the WSO and her coloratura has been described as “stratospheric.” Fellow soprano Kimberly Giordano is another Northwest favorite whose performances have been hailed as “sterling” and “polished.”

Baritone Charles Robert Stephens has graced both the WSO and Bellingham Festival of Music stages. His magnificent voice will return to the Festival lineup this summer. Heidi Vanderford is a Northwest native whose career takes her around the world. Her rich mezzo is shiver-inducing.

When all of these magnificent voices combined at the finale, there was no question about a standing ovation. The only question was whether it would last so long that the audience wouldn’t get to enjoy much of the fabulous weather.

As noted in my subhead, this was the end of an era as well as the end of a season. Retiring Maestro Roger Briggs was honored by Bellingham Mayor Kelli Linville and the musicians he has led for the past 16 years. The orchestra broke into Auld Lang Syne as the audience sang along and Briggs, obviously moved, reminded everyone to stay tuned for his next act.

And speaking of next acts, the WSO has another stellar season in the works. Check it out at the WSO website.

# # #

L. Frank Baum’s The Wizard of Oz was an annual event for those of us who grew up when television was still a novelty. Families who had televisions would invite the neighbors and we would sit enthralled around a 19-inch black and white set while Dorothy and her companions battled witches and flying monkeys and Dad kept adjusting the rabbit ears when the signal went wonky. Yes, I am older than Piltdown Man. By the time I was a teenager, the charm had worn off through sheer repetition and, frankly, I had other things on my mind.

Imagine my delight when Charlie Smalls and William F. Brown re-envisioned the story and brought forth The Wiz in 1974. Despite the unwieldy subtitle, “The Super Soul Musical Wonderful Wizard of Oz”, it was a very hip interpretation with an African-American consciousness that made the classic fresh once again.

David Post, the impresario responsible for Bellingham Arts Academy for Youth, brings The Wiz to new heights by incorporating the limitless energy of his gifted students. I have never been shy about acknowledging Post’s genius, but I’m also not shy about admitting that he’s something of a maniac. Why else would he present the show with four (!) separate casts. Yes, I know, he’s dedicated to getting as many kids onstage as possible, but trying to coordinate that many distinct bits of chaos makes my brain hurt.

BAAY actors rock The Wiz opening on Friday. Photo credit - Christopher Key

Of course, he has some of the most talented teachers on the planet helping him. The infinitely patient Steve Barnes serves as masterful musical director and the infinitely energetic Lisa Markowitz does the dazzling choreography. If anyone can help bring order out of this chaos, it is BAAY graduates Brianna and Michelle Purdie who stage manage the whole thing.

Obviously, with four casts, there is no way I can sort out all the talented kids who make this thing sing and who deserve a mention. So you will just have to go see The Wiz at least four times in order to appreciate what Post and his fellow wizards have accomplished. Due to my schedule and BAAY’s, I had to review a pre-dress rehearsal that wasn’t really representative of what the final production will look and sound like. Not to worry. I’ve been reviewing BAAY productions for years and can guarantee that the performances you see will knock your socks off.

The Wiz goes up May 11 – 13 and May 18 – 20 at the BAAY performance space on State Street. Friday performances are at 7:00 p.m., Saturday performances at 2:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m., Sunday performances at 2:00 p.m. Tickets are $10 at the door or can be purchased online. Scroll down when you get to the link.

We’re definitely not in Kansas anymore.

# # #

There are so many reasons to see Thoroughly Modern Millie at Bellingham High School that this review could turn into a thoroughly mundane list. So I’m going to resist getting too verbose and post a lot of photos that will give you a better idea of just how astonishingly professional this production is.

What do you expect? This a Teri Grimes show and she may well be the best high school drama teacher in the nation. Is that hyperbole? I don’t think so. There are more graduates of her program at Bellingham High School working professionally than I care to count. Not to mention the BHS grads currently enrolled in top-notch collegiate theatre programs. She is truly a local treasure and anyone who has not clued into that is not a hip ‘Hamster.

Thoroughly Modern Millie started life as a 1967 movie directed by George Roy Hill and starring Julie Andrews. The stage version opened on Broadway in 2002 and collected six Tonys, including best musical. Enough history.

The always amazing Abrah Friberg (I may start referring to her as AAA) delivers a knockout performance in the title role. Her stage presence is such that I kept forgetting I was there to review and missed some photos that I shouldn’t have. Her performance alone is worth the price of admission.

Photo credit - Christopher Key

Grimes seems to have an unusually deep well of talent this year and they give Friberg a serious run for her money when it comes to sheer talent. Boldly bodacious Brad Anderson (BBB?) literally falls head-over-heels for Millie when she trips him in order to get his attention. Anderson is as solid as Rush Limbaugh’s head and his vocal skills have progressed by leaps and bounds over the last few years.

Photo credit - Christopher Key

Cravenly criminal Caitlin Hill (CCC. OK, I’ve worked alliteration to death.) is wonderfully sinister as the white slaver Mrs. Meers, proprietor of the hotel where many of the struggling career girls fall victim to her scheming. I’ve long since exhausted the superlatives to describe her singing voice, but she also manages a wonderfully hokey Chinese accent that is no mean feat.

Photo credit - Christopher Key

Candice Lundy is ditzily delightful as Miss Dorothy Brown, who becomes Millie’s best friend and nearly gets Shanghaied. Kaleb Van Rijswijck plays Millie’s boss with strait-laced authenticity and his astounding voice, both speaking and singing, will leave you gasping.

Photo credit - Christopher Key

I first noticed Molly McGuire when I cast her in the chorus of Damn Yankees last year. It’s gratifying to see her progressing to larger roles. She plays stage veteran Muzzy Van Hossmere and manages to channel both Ethel Merman and Mae West with her versatile voice.

Photo credit - Christopher Key

Two relatively minor characters deserve special notice. Aidan Glaze and Daniel Spero actually learned Chinese for their roles in Mrs. Meers’ laundry. This is so far above and beyond the call of theatrical duty that my jaw dropped.

Photo credit - Christopher Key

As is always the case in any Teri Grimes show, the supporting cast is both superb and far too numerous for me to mention. This show demands that I give some love to the techies. Wendy Setter’s sizzling choreography is also worth the price of admission all by itself. The Roaring Twenties costumes are dazzling and Genny Cohn has outdone herself yet again.

Musical Directors Steve Barnes and Linda Short insure that the singing is noteworthy throughout the large cast. Nick Stroebel conducts a pit orchestra that sounds light years beyond anything you’d expect from high school musicians. Grimes and Cohn seem to have scoured every antique shop between here and Salina, Kansas, to acquire a score of devices known as typewriters that existed in the dark ages before words were processed. Those collectors’ items, by the way, will be on sale after the show.

Thoroughly Modern Millie performs May 8 – 13 at the wonderful BHS Theatre. See the site, http://bellingham.bellinghamschools.org for precise dates and times. Tickets are $8 across the board and this is the biggest bargain since Seward swindled Alaska from the Russians.

# # #

Nostalgia, as the saying goes, isn’t what it used to be. In the case of Happy Days, the Musical opening this week at Claire vg Thomas Theatre in Lynden, it’s better than it used to be. Director Laura Nelson is…ummm…mature enough to remember the original television series and hip enough to realize that it depicted an idealized vision of Middle America that existed only in the soft-focus lens of the TV camera. That’s OK. Since real families never approached the perfection of TV families, we need that theatrical mythology to remind us of what we could have been had we not been so infuriatingly human.

Happy Days reminds us that our human natures tend to edit out the painful bits and for that, we should all be grateful. It also is as much fun as you’re likely to have in a vertical position. As my reviewing companion Mija so aptly put it, “Who doesn’t like sitcom?” A couple of Mija’s ballet students were in the cast and that made her evening extra special.

Nelson has done her usual stellar job of casting and those of you…ummm…mature enough to remember the TV show won’t be even slightly disappointed. Add to that the rockin’ score composed by the legendary Paul Williams and you have an evening of pure enjoyment.

Of all the memorable characters from the show, Arthur Fonzarelli, aka Fonzie, is perhaps the most enduring and endearing. The tough guy with a heart of gold and a head of grease is given a sensitive ride by WWU senior Alex Gardipe. He has the physicality of cool down cold. His on-again, off-again paramour Pinky Tuscadero is portrayed by Megan Sutton, whose lovely voice is to die for.

Pinkie and The Fonz share a romantic moment in the Claire vg Thomas Theatre production of Happy Days, the Musical. Photo credit - Christopher Key

The Cunningham family is everything we wanted our families to be. Richie is the 1950s Everyman, desperately trying to be as cool as The Fonz. Rossner Gideon, who can do geeky characters as well as anyone, serves as the narrator of the show. His parents, Howard, the hardware store owner, and Marion, the ultimate housewife, are played by Dave Duncan and Stephanie Blankers to Middle American perfection. Sidney Balfour is devastatingly charming as kid sister Joanie.

The plot of this theatrical version centers on Arnold’s, the soda fountain where the kids hang out. Some evil developers want to buy the building where Arnold has done business for many years and turn it into something called a “mall.” This brings everyone in the Milwaukee neighborhood together to preserve Arnold’s as a historical landmark.

As is often the case in musicals like this, there are far more characters than I have time or space to mention. And, as usual, I offer my apologies for not mentioning everyone. The backstage folk who make these things work should get their moment in the sun and I need to give them some love.

The multi-talented Susan Duncan choreographed the show and her work will blow you away. Not only does she take dancers with varying levels of experience and make them shine, she included a tap dance number that is nothing short of astounding. Musical Director Rick Lysen achieves miracles, especially in the choral numbers that are bulletproof. Costumers Ann Balfour and Lee Verhaaren totally grok bobby sox and poodle skirts.

Happy Days, the Musical plays May 2 – 20 at Claire vg Thomas Theatre, 655 Front Street in Lynden. Dinner theatre nights are May 2 and 3. See the site: www.clairevgtheatre.com, for precise dates and times. Reservations are highly recommended and can be made by calling the box office at (360) 354-4425.

# # #

Thought-provoking, engaging, entertaining are but a few adjectives I could use to describe Flowers for Algernon. Written by David Rogers and directed by Dennis Cattrell, it’s a story about a developmentally disabled man who has an experimental operation to improve his intellect. Algernon is a mouse who was the first to have this procedure. Algernon’s mind is stimulated by having him run a complicated maze with a reward at the end and efforts are made to have Charlie, our protagonist, do the same. As Charlie gets smarter he cares for Algernon but rejects the tests and trials laid at his feet by his doctors.

It is painful to watch developmentally disabled Charlie cruelly treated by co-workers but gut wrenching to see his own mother turn from him, banish him from her sight. There’s something wrong here and it unfolds as we learn Charlie’s parents don’t stay together and years later, at his genius peak when he visits her, his mother has some form of dementia. Charlie’s longing to learn isn’t all he hoped. In fact, he tells us, “When I was retarded I had a lot of friends. Now I have no one.” Perhaps ignorance really is bliss.

Lucas Naylor is a force to be reckoned with as Charlie, running the gamut of emotions in portraying a man who starts as a three-year-old in a man’s body, becomes a genius, and then once again is as he started out. From the beginning we are charmed, intrigued, sad, filled with compassion and certainly never bored.

Lucas Naylor leads a stellar cast in Flowers for Algernon at the Bellingham Theatre Guild. Photo credit - David Cohn

Veteran actors Robert Muzzy and David Cox as Charlie’s doctors draw us in and we are engaged immediately in their world and the story. Their obvious experience and professionalism captures us and their tight knit dialogue and action create a steady foundation for the story. It speaks to their abilities as actors that we couldn’t wait to hear what their characters were going to say next.

All of the actors gave competent and grounded performances. A couple deserving special mention are Sue Dodson as Charlie’s mother and Rachel Petersen as Mrs. Mooney. Most of the actors played multiple roles with little, but quite enough, costume and scenery changes.

Director Catrell designed an uncomplicated set and set pieces that support the action and the characters without getting in their way. This multi-layered drama is a challenge to a cast that has different levels of acting experience and Catrell has coaxed the best from them all. I can’t think of a director other than Catrell who could have met the many challenges of this play, given the actors obvious sensitive direction and guided the production so well that the audience stayed with and enjoyed a difficult many-faceted story. Well done!

Besides Dodson, Petersen, Naylor, Muzzy and Cox, also in the cast are Celeste Chute, Samantha Creed, Sean Daeley, Adam Drake, Eddie Lester, Sally Lubetich, Shylah Petersen, Leah Sauter, Lisa Yandrich and Kiley Cloud.

Flowers for Algernon plays at the Bellingham Theatre Guild April 17 – May 13. Thursday – Saturday evening performances are at 8:00 p.m.; Sunday matinees at 2:00 p.m. Tickets are $12 for adults, $10 for seniors and students, $8 for children. For reservations, call the box office at (360) 733-1811. More information: www.bellinghamtheatreguild.com.

# # #

When I was in high school, back in some previous century, the drama department was so afraid of corrupting us innocents that they censored the racier bits in Rodgers and Hammerstein musicals. It was not long before I discovered that R & H musicals didn’t have any racy bits. High schools today are not as timid and thank Dionysius for that. Challenging young actors with edgy material results in far more mature performances than anything we did in the Silurian Epoch.

Director Tracy Shaw is to be congratulated for her courage in presenting Fame: The Musical in all its gritty realism. If there is anyone out there who hasn’t seen the movie or one of the stage adaptations, Fame documents four years in the lives of a diverse group of students lucky enough to attend the New York School for the Performing Arts. PA to its friends. The school is highly selective and you have to have some serious chops to be admitted. Like any kids who have that kind of artistic talent, they are a fairly unconventional crew.

Brianna Purdie leads the way with a sizzling performance as Carmen Diaz, the driven ghetto kid who will achieve Fame or die trying. Twin sister Michelle gives an equally powerful, if more subdued performance, as the rather naïve Serena Katz. I first shared the stage with doubletrouble (their e-mail handle) when they were 12 years old and in many shows since then. Yeah, I’m prejudiced. So sue me. They earn their good reviews.

Brianna Purdie delivers a definitive performance as Carmen in the Squalicum High School production of Fame: the Musical. Photo credit - Christopher Key

Hannah Tyne, whose theatrical genes are as blue as they get, delivers a heart-wrenching performance as Ms. Sherman, the English teacher. Her efforts to connect with a dyslexic student are a testimonial to all those teachers who really care. You know who you are and I am in awe of what you do. The dyslexic student, Tyrone Jackson, is portrayed beautifully by Kevin Pendilla whose dancing skills will blow you away.

As the too-hip Joe Vegas, Colton Darden’s physicality gives vivid life to that adolescent affliction known as testosterone poisoning. I have watched Abby VonFeldt since she was in productions at Bellingham Arts Academy for Youth and it is a treat to watch her growth as an actor. She plays Mabel Washington with a Southern accent that is to die for. Another actor whose accent skills are notable is Brendan Francis, who plays music teacher Mr. Sheinkopf. There are many adult actors who can’t deliver dialects as well as these two. Kudos again to director Shaw.

Some kids have theatre parents, for better or for worse. Nick Piazza is such a character. He comes into PA with impressive theatrical credits and Aidan Woods makes him totally believable. His complicated theatrical romance with Serena is consummated when the two play Romeo and Juliet.

One of the more challenging classes at PA is ballet. Courtney Blatz is frighteningly demanding as dance instructor Ms. Bell. The program credits indicate that she shares the role with Riley Wendling. Her star student is Iris Kelley, played with consummate grace by Sarah Boyd who obviously has ballet training.

Kids who attend schools like these often have to contend with parents who are superstars in some artistic endeavor. Shlomo Metzenbaum is one of those. Western Summerton is absolutely devastating as the kid who is desperately trying to emerge from the shadow of his virtuosic parents. Goody King is a tomboy who is mainly interested in getting it on as a drummer in a rock band. Brooklyn Bell-Stevenson captures the character with immense verve.

The orchestra and chorus of the Squalicum High School performance celebrate Fame. Photo credit - Christopher Key

The solid orchestra is conducted by Kay Reilly, whose praises I have sung before in one of her other roles as virtuosic percussionist for the Whatcom Symphony Orchestra. Angela Kiser, a principal dancer for Kuntz and Company, is primarily responsible for the sensational choreography that you have to see to believe.

Fame, the Musical only plays three more times: Friday, Saturday and Sunday at Squalicum High School. That’s a shame because this show is the result of an enormous amount of work on the part of all involved. They deserve a much longer run. Friday and Saturday performances are at 7:00 p.m. and the Sunday matinee is at 2:00 p.m. Tickets are $10 for adults and $7 for students at the door.

Squalicum’s theatre program may not be as prominent as some of the other high schools in the area, but they have enormous talent, not to mention courage, and deserve your support.

# # #

The determined Celie Thomas established Opera Popolare several years ago with the stated purpose of making opera more accessible to both performers and audiences. To say that she has succeeded would be damning her with faint praise. With the help of Artistic Director Rob Viens, Opera Popolare has achieved heights unprecedented for opera performance in Bellingham and if you haven’t clued in to this local treasure yet, you are missing something very special.

Tonight’s program at Fountain Community Church received a rousing standing ovation and deservedly so. It included some familiar faces along with some new talent that was even drawn from foreign countries. OK, Canada. That still counts.

Local favorite Katie Kennedy got things underway with “Riturno oh Caro” from Handel’s Rodelinda. I’ve long since worn out the thesaurus trying to find adjectives to describe her voice. Enough said. Celie Thomas then joined Kennedy for “Io t’abraccio” from the same work. I’ve run out of superlatives for her, as well. I may have to retire.

Thomas was then joined by soprano Karen Powers for “Pur ti miro, pur ti godo” from Monteverdi’s L’incoronazione di Poppea and another dynamic duo is born.

Viens has a gift for dramatic staging, amply demonstrated by “Echo Chorus” from Purcell’s The Fairy Queen. The onstage chorus was echoed by a quartet strategically placed in the church’s balcony. Stunning! Katie Kennedy returned for “The Plaint” from the same source. Kennedy’s husband Eddie Lester continued the tribute to Purcell with “Hush, Be Silent.” This was Lester’s operatic debut and he admitted after the show that he was petrified. It didn’t show and he’s been hiding his rich baritone under a bushel for far too long.

Sonia Alexis, as I have noted several times before, has a magnetic stage presence to go along with her luscious mezzo. “A Thousand Thousand” is also from The Fairy Queen and you can take it to the bank that Alexis brought it home.

If you close your eyes, you would never believe that Caitlin Hill and Serena Viens are teenagers. Their voices are far more mature than their tender years would indicate. They combined for “Ma…chi sei” from Gluck’s Paride ed Elena and magic was made. Viens remained onstage for “Lo potro!” from the same work and I have a hard time believing that this is the same little kid who used to pester me unmercifully backstage when she was much younger.

Photo credit - Christopher Key

Hill then paired with fellow soprano Daniella Smith for “Sull’aria” from Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro. Smith is yet another teenager whose voice belies her years. From Mozart, it was a natural progression to Johannes Strauss. Wendy Donaghy, whose stage presence rivals that of her colleague Sonia Alexis, then delivered “Mein Herr Marquis” from Die Fledermaus.

Photo credit - Christopher Key

I’ve not had the pleasure of hearing Jami Templeton before. She has impressive operatic and television credits and simply blew the house down with “Pace, pace, mio dio” from Verdi’s La Forza del destino.

Photo credit - Christopher Key

Mark Power is also a newcomer to my radar screen. He is a player on the Seattle music scene in a number of varied genres. His powerful tenor is to die for and his interpretation of “Ingermisco” from Verdi’s Requiem made my hair stand on end.

Photo credit - Christopher Key

Annette Richardson, a familiar name to Whatcom County audiences performed “Signore Ascolta” from Puccini’s Turandot with endearing charm.

The magnificent Templeton then returned for “Un bel di,” the iconic aria from Puccini’s Madame Butterfly and there wasn’t a dry eye in the house.

Maria Cristina Fantini is that foreign import I mentioned earlier. She’s another musician who refuses to be categorized since she fronts the Canadian operatic bluegrass trio Fantini, Wood and Wells. Her operatic chops were front and center as she performed “Donde liete” from Puccini’s La Boheme.

Photo credit - Christopher Key

Mark Power’s thrilling tenor was showcased for a second time as he delivered “Che Galida Manina from the same Puccini work. The charismatic Fantini returned for “Mi Chiamano Mimi”, also from the Bohemian canon.

As if those two weren’t enough to blow your mind individually, they then teamed up to deliver “O Soave Fanciulla” as they strolled out arm-in-arm into the backstage space, their voices perfectly fading into the distance.

It’s impossible to describe the importance of accompanists Katie O’Rourke on piano and Mary Mahoney on violin. They supported the singers in rock-solid style without diverting the focus onto their own superb musicianship. Bravo!

If you think that I am carrying on way too long, it is because this was a singular performance and you won’t get to see and hear it except in my poor description. Opera Popolare only presents one performance and if you missed it, you better start paying attention to the arts calendar.

Don’t make me come over there and spank you.

# # #

You don’t have to be a Roman Catholic to have a sinfully good time at ‘Til Death Do Us Part: Late Nite Catechism 3, but it helps. Personally, I’m a renegade Episcopalian. “Sister” claims that those are just “Catholics with money.” Those of us who didn’t go to parochial school generally knew someone who did and heard the horror stories about sadistic nuns with metal-edged rulers. The rulers may have been banned a while back, but “Sister’s” humor can still raise a welt on your knuckles.

“Sister” is Nonie Newton-Breen, who has been terrorizing audiences for 11 years with the Late Nite Catechism series. She grew up in a large Roman Catholic family in Chicago and obviously knows her subject. A graduate of the famed Second City Theatre, Newton-Breen is as dynamic a performer as you will ever see. I make some pretensions to The Craft and I have always been in awe of actors who can hold an audience spellbound for two hours with no one else onstage. Newton-Breen not only does that, but has the…uhhh…courage to interact with an unpredictable audience. All audiences are unpredictable, trust me.

The last time I laughed so hard and so long, I shook loose a kidney stone. Just penance, no doubt, for my skeptical nature. So far, no stones. That’s probably because I put a couple of bucks in the basket for retired nuns on the way out. The RC church opted out of Social Security and that’s one thing “Sister” makes no jokes about.

Be aware that if you go to this show, you’d best behave with immaculate decorum. The sharp-eyed “Sister” will nail you to the cross if she catches you so much as smirking in class. Poor Jeff Margolis got caught holding hands with his wife and may never recover. I, on the other hand, knew the answer to “Sister’s” question about the process of changing bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ. I was rewarded with a Starbucks napkin that had a coffee stain resembling the Blessed Virgin. Neener. If you don’t know the answer to that question, you must see this show so that you will learn. If you do know the answer to that question, you must see this show because you will get even the most obscure Catholic jokes.

Playwright Maripat Donovan originated the role of “Sister” and her script is a work of genius. It manages to make fun of Catholicism without crossing the fine line that separates humor from cruelty. “Sister’s” barbs may be sharp, but there is no poison on the tips. Once, when someone in the audience had the audacity to use the word s-e-x, she claimed to have thrown up a little in her mouth and had to rinse it out with a hit of brandy. Christian Brothers, of course.

Since title of the show is ‘Til Death Do Us Part, the Sacrament of Marriage engenders much of the hilarity. The second part of the show is devoted to a delightful take-off called “The Compatibility Game.” Two couples who are foolish enough to admit that they are married are dragged onstage to compete with each other in compatibility. The questions require the couples to respond to some hysterically funny A or B choices. My favorite involved which is the lesser of two evils: backing your car into a row of Hell’s Angels’ motorcycles or talking back to a nun. At least one of the participants got it wrong, as improbable as that may seem.

Photo credit - Entertainment Events, Inc.

There are many reasons to see this show, not the least of which is the chance to watch an extraordinarily gifted actor put on a master class. The fact that you are guaranteed to bust a gut laughing at “Sister’s” antics is another. Anointing to the Sick is the other Sacrament featured in this show and the laughter will either heal you or kill you. Not a bad way to go.

‘Til Death Do Us Part plays through May 13 in the Walton Theatre at Mount Baker Theatre. See the site, www.mountbakertheatre.com for precise dates and times and to order tickets, or call the box office at (360) 734-6080.

Miss this show and there will be Hell to pay.

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If there’s anything more exciting than the opening night of a new show, it would have to be the opening night of a new show from a new theatre group. Add in the fact that it’s written and directed by a local favorite and you can ramp it up another notch. Then top it off with an astonishingly polished performance and you’re in Goose Bump City.

This should come as no surprise to anyone familiar with the accomplishments of the multi-talented Carolyn McCarthy. Playwright, actor, director, musician and now theatrical impresario, she lights up the local stage like no one else.

Her new group, Little Bird Theater, opens its fledgling performance, February September this week and even the most jaded Bellingham theatregoers will be seriously impressed.

Let’s start with the script. McCarthy offers us a very contemporary look at motherhood as she is currently practiced. The so-called nuclear family has undergone some serious fission involving, among other things, single mothers who consciously choose that role. Given the current state of what passes for male role models in this society, it’s an increasingly logical choice. The initial discussion of nature vs. nurture provides an ingenious exposition of which Thomas Galton would approve.

As director, McCarthy then doubles-down with a bulletproof cast, some of whom I have not had the pleasure of reviewing before. Kari Severns leads the way with an emotionally demanding role as the single mother whose biological alarm clock has just gone off. Her expressive face and understanding of pregnant mother physicality is pitch-perfect.

Kari Severns and Carolyn McCarthy star as battling sisters in February September, the initial offering from Little Bird Theater. Photo credit - Christopher Key

McCarthy plays her control-junkie older sister with an authenticity that is both frightening and riveting. Any contemporary family should include a gay older brother, portrayed with great sensitivity by Tido Ostergaard. When he abandons the role of his sister’s protector to pursue his own happiness, Ostergaard totally delivers the pain of that choice.

His paramour is played by Kristien Ruggiero-Upton with great good humor. Christopher Coombs is the submissive partner to McCarthy’s dominant character and brings a suppressed energy to the part that perfectly emphasizes the role reversals in the post-modern family.

Ben Eisner enters the scene as Severn’s new boyfriend who is torn between his attraction for her and his reluctance to be cast in the role as father of a child he had no role in conceiving. His portrayal of that difficult choice is Hamletian, if I may coin a word.

The cast of February September delivers an ensemble performance. Photo credit - Christopher Key

McCarthy the playwright is hip enough to understand that the high drama must be tempered with humor. There are laugh lines that will make your ribs hurt and when tragedy strikes, the contrast is overwhelming.

The venue for this entrancing production is a storefront space in the old Bellingham Hardware building on Holly Street. As my companion for the evening said, “Having the actors perform just a couple of feet away rather being up on stage, I felt as if I’m peeking into someone’s living room, rather than merely watching a play.”

Mija also captured the ensemble nature of the performance: “The interactions among all six characters were so in sync and effortless without missing a beat.” That’s why I love having another perspective when I review a performance.

February September plays April 12 – 14, 19 – 21 and 26 – 28. Tickets are $15 for adults and $10 for students and seniors. Purchase them at the Bellingham Food Co-op or at the door.

If there’s any justice in the theatrical world, this production will sell out beginning to end. You heard it here first.

For more information: www.littlebirdtheater.com.

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