Running concurrent to In Tandem’s production of Tom Jones and Harvey Schmidt’s global sensation The Fantasticks, is Windfall Theatre’s offering of the pair’s little-known gem, Celebration. While there’s a stylistic through line between the two, theatergoers attending Celebration are in for a symbolist exploration of the battle between summer and winter, youth and age, innocence and avarice, hope and despair, and a host of other classic dichotomies. Written in 1969, the piece is replete with the earnestness, optimism and, yes, sometimes naiveté of its cultural moment. Our hero Orphan hails from a commune called The Garden and competes for the love a fallen Angel with Mr. Rich. The clarity of symbols makes the piece easy to track, but not ideologically simple. The humor is nimble, the characters are real and the message—to celebrate where you can in a world ruled by cycles—still significant.
A fine ensemble of performers delivers this modern fable under Carol Zippel’s direction. Josh Perkins as Orphan has honed his innocent, wide-eyed characterization to a T and delivers beautiful vocal work. Alicia Rice’s Angel is a convincing heroine, torn between career ambition and young love. Shayne Steliga as Potemkin—a challenging blend of hero’s foil, maverick catalyst and meta narrator—is every inch the part, and his resonant baritone is especially impressive. The masterful triple-threat David Flores steals the show as Mr. Rich, perfecting the role of comic villain and leaving the audience in stitches during numbers such as “Where Did It Go”—a lament to his lost libido.
Testament to the ensemble style of theatre coming to birth during this show’s creation, Celebration likewise features fascinating group movement and vocal work. Especially striking are masked numbers “Survive” and “Not My Problem” in which the ensemble becomes an amorphous, hostile crowd, and “Under the Tree” in which they embody a seemingly sentient tangle of brush. Intertwined with the more abstracted movement sequences are many playful nods to the musical dance styles of the time. The ensemble’s vocal work alongside impeccable musicians Paula Foley Tillen and Charles Herenbruck is likewise impressive.
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Production elements similarly support the offering’s appeal and nostalgia. Erick Ledesma designed the otherworldly ensemble masks and furnished a gorgeous rotating triptych set piece with mandala and butterfly designs framing the “Big City” setting. Liz Shipe’s charmingly period-appropriate costumes take us directly to the place and time as soon as Corrie Tritz’s evocative lighting plot begins.
Through May 19 at Village Church Arts, 130 W. Juneau Ave. For tickets, call 414-332-3963 or visit windfalltheatre.com.
