What can I say?  It was wonderful!  I knew the music would be outstanding and I had read that the set was interesting, but the excellent dancing was a pleasant surprise. We’d been told it was loud and had come prepared with ear plugs, but it was actually just right.  Loud, but not too loud and not at all painful.  The best thing was that the lyrics were understandable.

I really loved the staging, with the three levels and the water below – the water a surprise. Ah, but the choreography and the dancing - so artistic and yet gymnastic;

beautifully executed pirouettes followed by krumping. It was fresh, fun, and energizing.

I’m ready to go back!  There are a couple of songs and a few scenes I would love to see again. While waiting for the show to start, I indulged in a bit of nostalgic reminiscence. During my teen years, I was a student at the Teen Theater for five years.  Those are some of the best memories I have of my youth.  My family had tickets to opening night to see Of Time and the River (a choice for opening I will always consider to be very strange). The great Charles Laughton was there, sitting on the right side in an aisle seat.  I was all of eleven, and I approached him that night for the first, and, as it turns out, last time in my life to ask for an autograph.  He very graciously replied, in his deep and sonorous voice with his lovely British accent, “I’m sorry, my dear, but I must decline.”  I was so happy to have been spoken to by the great man that I didn’t even miss getting an autograph.

But it looks so different inside now. It was all gold then - gold walls, gold seats, gold carpets. Actually, all that gold was a little monotonous; I like the forest green walls and red seats they have now better. I have really positive feelings about the direction the TheaterCenter is going.  Based on what I saw today, I think the new director is a definite keeper, and I look forward to seeing more of his work.