Run and Tell That: Once On This Island (2017 Broadway Revival)

Note: Okay so I once again repeat that I'm terrible at organizing my thoughts and editing my reviews. Also, I had not originally planned to do a review for this show, but I changed my mind and so I'm doing most of this from memory because I didn't take notes during the show like I normally do. (I saw this show June 9th, AKA the day before the Tony Awards.) Therefore, this review isn't the greatest.

"I have to give props to set designer Dane Laffrey for his absolutely wonderful set design that fills the entire theatre and really makes you feel like you are on the island."

The reason for my visit to the island was because of a college event. I go to Ithaca College and one of its alumni is a producer for the show. So that's my intro for this review. Okay, so overall I really enjoyed this show. I did have a few problems with the book (written by Lynn Ahrens) here and there mainly as to why Ti Moune fell in love with Daniel so fast and why she was willing to give her life for a guy who hadn't said anything to her. I mean I get it he is cute and all, but that boy could have been Zac Efron for all I care, but if Papa Ge came to me and said "This boy is mine! I am his dying breath." the only response I will give is "Do you want some cheesecake too?" I am not dying for a boy who decided to drive super fast in the rain (Side Note: Did Daniel get his drivers license in New Jersey?) Besides that one plot point and a few other things which I won't get into I think this was a very solid show with gorgeous music by Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty. I think that Michael

Arden directed a brilliant production (Side Note: What was the point of having live goats and chickens? They only appeared in the pre-show and then were never seen again. Were they really needed?) and he should have won the Tony for Best Direction, although I'm happy for The Band's Visit. I think that what Arden and his design team did with the space given was absolutely gorgeous and I think this intimate space helped. However, this space also had its drawbacks... I had one minor problem which took place during the ball and that was the spacing of the scene. It felt very cramped because of everything that was on stage from the chairs and tables to the candelabras and also the fact that the women wore these huge, gorgeous dresses designed by Clint Ramos (Who I'll talk about later) when they were all on stage it made the space look so small and it made some of the crossing and staging seem odd. The most massive problem I had

Kenita R. Miller

was with the sound of this production. This production created its gorgeous music by using found instruments, created by John Bertles and Bash the Trash, along with the casts voices (And a tiny band) and these gorgeous arrangements were done by AnnMarie Milazzo and Michael Starobin. However, the problem was that because of this space and it being in the round the sound had no place to go like it does in a proscenium-style theatre. The sound would just bounce off the walls and echo and this became a massive problem when you had people singing/talking over one another and they would be saying different things and it just came across as garbled noise. Anyway, before I start talking about the different design areas of the show I want to give a huge shoutout to the massively Tony snubbed Camille A. Brown (I still think Carousel should have won, but she definitely should have been nominated) who came up with absolutely genius choreography that blended so well with Arden's direction that you don't know where one started and the other ended. I was specifically impressed by her choreography for "Ti Moune's Dance." Anyway,

The Cast

onto the designs first and foremost I have to give props to set designer Dane Laffrey for his absolutely wonderful set design that fills the entire theatre and really makes you feel like you are on the island. My favorite part about this set is that everything that is on stage is used by a cast member at one point or another. In fact, this brings us to Clint Ramos and his utterly brilliant costume designs from found objects (My particular favorite being Asaka wearing a sports jersey and a tablecloth to make a fabulous dress.) Ramos is an absolute genius and I just can't think of words to describe his genius. As much as I love Catherine Zuber and how she designs some gorgeous period clothes the Tony for Best Costume Design should have gone to Ramos. Finally, we have the fabulous lighting design by Jules Fisher and Peggy Eisenhauer who are just brilliant as always and create the most stunning images with their lighting. Onto the main event the actors/actresses! First, we have the role of Little Ti Moune portrayed by the adorable Mia Williamson who was really good. Williamson has chops and is a good actress for someone so young. I can't say much else because she was pretty much mute most of the show. Next, we have Andrea Deveraux, who I really thought was gonna be portrayed as a b*tch, but I was shocked when Alysha Deslorieux went on a different route. Deslorieux showed that

Isaac Cole Powell and Quentin Earl Darrington

Andrea didn't want to hurt Ti Moune, but she also wanted it to be clear that Daniel is hers. My two favorite characters were Tonton Julian and Mama Euralie portrayed by the fabulous Phillip Boykin and the wonderful Kenita R. Miller who have the most gorgeous chemistry I have ever seen. They were absolutely hilarious with their comedic moments during "One Small Girl" and they delivered heartfelt renditions of "Ti Moune" and "A Part of Us." This brings us to the mystical gods of Once On This Island who manipulate the entire story of this show. First, we have Tamyra Grey as Papa Ge "the sly demon of death" who delivered a vocally outstanding, albeit not necessarily terrifying performance. Following Papa Ge is her foil Erzulie portrayed by the vocally mesmerizing Lea Salonga. I went in not expecting much from Salonga considering the past performances I have seen from her, but I was thoroughly surprised. (I'm going to try and say this next part in the least b*tchy way, but here goes...) I think the reason for is because the role of Erzulie doesn't require these heart-wrenching ballads (I.E. Kim and Fantine) she simply has to use her gorgeous voice to sing a simple, yet touching rendition of "The Human Heart." She had some brilliant little moments at the beginning such as talking to a little girl in the audience and when the storytellers were choosing who would play the

Norm Lewis, Lea Salonga, Alex Newell,
Hailey Kilgore and Tamyra Gray

gods and when they came to Erzulie everyone looked at Lea and she gave a response of "Oh no... Come on... Please choose someone else." However, my favorite part of her performance though has to deal with an interview she had on Show People. In this interview, she says how Erzulie and Agwe are married and they had many little shared moments in the show that showed this relationship. Speaking of Agwe we have the fabulous Quentin Earl Darrington whose silky smooth voice was practically serenading the audience as he crooned out "Rain." (I mean they seriously need to cast Jesse L. Martin in this role.) The final god featured in this story is Asaka "Mother of the Earth" played by understudy Aurelia Williams who while having a powerful voice did not seem to be in sync with the rest of the production. She was also off beat with her main number "Mama Will Provide." My least favorite performance has to go to Isaac Cole Powell in the role of Daniel Beauxhomme whose acting choices only lived up to his character's last name, French for "beautiful man." I was actually rather bored with his performance.

Hailey Kilgore

Powell has a beautiful voice, but I found his acting quite bland and cardboardish. I couldn't really feel anything for this character. Was I supposed to hate him because he broke Ti Moune's heart or should I have felt sorry for him because he has to live up to societal expectations? I didn't know how to feel about his character because Powell didn't give me much to the role. His acting choices seemed strange and as I previously stated it came out as cardboardish. Last, but certainly not least we have newcomer and leading lady Hailey Kilgore who delivers a heart-pounding marathon of a performance as Ti Moune. Kilgore delivers a knockout performance that starts with her high belting solo "Waiting for Life" at and ends with a heartbreaking "Forever Yours (Reprise)." However, the only thing that confused me about her performance was the fact that she had an accent (I believe it was Haitian, but correct me if I'm wrong) and yet no one else had an accent... I felt that the accent hurt her performance because it made it a little hard to understand what she was saying at times. I also wish that she added a bit more dynamics in her big solo "Waiting For Life" because it is a beautiful song and while Kilgore has a gorgeous voice you get more of the "I'm so excited, but a little bit nervous" feeling with dynamics instead of it being belted the entire song. Anyway, besides that Kilgore delivered a stunning performance and I picture many great things from her in the future (Nettie in The Color Purple or Dorothy in The Wiz #CastingGoals) and this won't be the last of her I guarantee. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed my time on the island and I am planning on going back because Cicily Daniels (AKA OG black Ursula from The Little Mermaid) joined the cast as understudy Mama Eueralie and Asaka and I have to see her because she is fantastic!

"So I hope that you will tell this tale tomorrow. It will help your heart remember and relive. It will help you feel the anger and the sorrow and forgive."