origin story, 2022
CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK, World Premiere, Director Joanie Schultz Scenic Design Chelsea M. Warren Costume Design Izumi Inaba Lighting Design Heather Gilbert Sound Design & Composition T.Carlis Roberts Production Photography Mikka Schaffner
OVERVIEW: This world premiere production is a joyful comedy which explores race, family and friendship in a faced paced 90 minutes. The locations follow this sequence: office, drive through window, bedroom, office, drive through window, bedroom, office, drive through window, edge of a pond in the trees. The playwright asks that every scene contain delight. Design choices include a pivoting central tower with light up trite signage, murphy bed, and cars as scooters with headlights, speakers and steering wheels. All props are designed and custom built in the bright aesthetic of wooden toys, including a copy machine, cash register, soda plus milk shake machine, and burgers with all the toppings, all underscored with realistic sound effects of sizzling burgers on the grill, authentic cash register buttons and vrooming cars. There is a remote controlled bubbler in the office water cooler which magically gurgles to punctuate moments. The final scene has a surprising transformation into the pond, with a painted backdrop unfurling with a gusto thud from the signage box above and rolling out to cover the stage floor. With the lead character being of unknown mixed race heritage, the production explores the impact of where we are from and who are our given and chosen family.
*see ADDITIONAL MATERIALS & REVIEWS/FEATURES below
ADDITIONAL MATERIALS
REVIEWS/FEATURES
Talking Broadway.com, Rick Pender: “First we meet Margaret (Amira Danan), whose specialty is photocopy maintenance, and Val (Betsy Hogg), who works in marketing–not sales, she underscores–but who hasn't had any meaningful activity for 18 months. They sip from paper cones, staring at a water cooler in a nondescript corporate building in "the present, in an American City." The bland walls behind them, grey and pale green, are emblazoned with glowing, empty banalities: "Here You Are Family," "Together We Can," and "We Are Committed to Service…Scenic designer Chelsea M. Warren's flexible set makes for quick transitions from scene to scene, complemented by Heather Gilbert's lighting design. There's a surprising quick change of locale for the final scene, which underscores the fact that the characters are on the brink of new decisions and directions.”
The Sappy Critic, Kirk Sheppard, REVIEW: Origin Story: “Director Joanie Schulz paces and stages the action so well that all sides of the theatre remain immersed in the action. I didn’t look at my watch once during the ninety-minute performance. The technical team astounds with magic effects, like well-timed water cooler bubbles, sound effects from fast food equipment, and a clever bit where a scooter doubles as a vehicle in the drive-through lane. Not only do all the elements work together seamlessly, but the tone of this piece also straddles the line of quirky without getting too weird. The vibe is consistent from scene to scene, and all the performers act as an ensemble in this way, too.”