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Chess by La Jolla Stage Company  The Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union
took many forms – an arms race, a space race, a miracle on ice and, yes, even a
game of chess. This particular game of Chess features both political and
romantic rivalry as a love triangle evolves among the brash American champion
Freddie, the Soviet challenger Anatoly, and the Hungarian-born Florence who
defected to the West and is now Freddie’s “second” at the chess match.
Featuring the hit song One Night in Bangkok, Chess is the 80s musical composed by ABBA artists Benny Anderson and Bjorn Ulvaeus (Mamma Mia) with lyrics by Tim Rice (Jesus Christ Superstar, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Evita, The Lion King, Aida). They’ve combined for a catchy pop score that, even if the characters and plot are a bit thinly developed, still makes for a pretty entertaining evening of musical theatre. That theatre where the La Jolla Stage Company has moved to is the YMCA Firehouse – not the ideal venue for acoustics or comfortable seating, but it has its advantages. For one thing, they’ve maximized the space and audience view by arranging two rows in a U-shape so that the audience virtually surrounds the performers. It’s a highly unusual seating arrangement for a musical, but it heightened the feeling that you are right there, involved in the events taking place. Directors Tim Heitman and Janet Zaidman and Choreographer Joel Reich did nice work in arranging it so that all three sides of the audience had a good view of the performance at all times. That performance is well worth seeing and hearing, as La Jolla Stage Company has assembled an impressive cast led by Season Marshall as Florence, the girl in the middle of the triangle who finds herself torn between the American with lax principles and the more mature, but married, Soviet. Season’s remarkable voice nails some of the show’s greatest musical numbers including Nobody’s Side, Someone Else’s Story, and I Know Him So Well that she sings with Anatoly’s wife Svetlana (usually played by Chrissy Burns, but understudy Catherine A. Stevens stepped in the day I went with a strong performance). Anatoly is played by Patrick J. Duffy who, in real life, became engaged to Season Marshall just before rehearsals started. His conflicted soul (conflicted due to his love for Florence and Svetlana – not due to his recent engagement!) shines through in his moving rendition of Where I Wanna Be. Completing the love triangle is Christopher Miller as charismatic American Freddie Trumper who leads the ensemble in their best number which opens the second act – One Night in Bangkok. Elsewhere, Brian P. Evans is the coldly calculating Soviet manipulator Molokov, and Skyler Dennon plays the completely opposite, amusingly unabashed capitalist Walter de Courcey who loves the extra publicity that the controversial “love game” adds to the “chess game.”
Performs through May 2, 2004.
~ Cast ~
Svetlana: Chrissy Burns Ensemble/Costume Designer: Bridget Coulter Walter de Courcey: Skyler Dennon Anatoly: Patrick J. Duffy Arbiter/Ensemble: Jason Neil Eberwein Molokov: Brian P. Evans Florence: Season Marshall Ensemble/Dance Captain: Lia Metz Freddie Trumper: Christopher Miller Ensemble: Dana Morris Ensemble: Billy Stevens Ensemble/Florence and Svetlana u/s: Catherine A. Stevens Director: Jason Neil Eberwein Co-Director: Janet Zaidman Musical Director: G. Scott Lacy Sound Design: Jude Evans Stage Manager: Thomas McCreary Choreography: Joel Riech |