Encore! Off-Center’s rather staid re-staging of Al Carmines‘ and Maria Irene Fornes’ 1965 counter-culture musical, Promenade, is not your mother’s experimental theatre. But if you missed out on those days it is a chance to hear some of the period’s best music and lyrics and get a hint of what was important to those living thoughtfully in the 1960’s. If you experienced those times, created or saw its theatre, and want to live it again, this is not the production for you. Every revival I have seen of Hair did a better job of evoking the realities and sentiments of the 1960’s and its theatrical traditions. Read my full review here:
Promenade: Music by Al Carmines, Book and Lyrics by Maria Irene Fornes
Music Director and Conductor Greg Jarrett; Choreographer Hope Boykin
Cast: Mark Bedard, Becca Blackwell, Eddie Cooper, Daniel Everidge, Carmen Ruby Floyd, Marcy Harriell, James T. Lane, Bonnie Milligan, Kent Overshown, Bryonha Marie Parham, Don Darryl Rivera, Soara-Joye Ross, Steve Routman, Saundra Santiago, J.D. Webster
Scenic Designer Donyale Werle; Costume Designer Clint Ramos; Lighting Designer Mark Barton; Sound Designer Leon Rothenberg. Presented by Encores! Off-Center at New York City Center 131 W. 55th St., July 10 and 11 only. Running time: 1 hour 50 minutes.
