[NEohioPAL] Great Review ASSASSINS at Cassidy

[Cassidy Theatre]

News Release
Cassidy Theatre
6200 Pearl Road, Parma Heights 44130
(440) 842-4600

Parma Sun Post
Thursday, October 16, 2008 
GRINDSTONE PLAYERS DELIVER POWERFUL ASSASSINS AT CASSIDY THEATRE
By Ted Larsen Correspondent

Stephen Sondheim's "Assassins," dealing as it does with the lives of murderers and would-be murderers, fairly quivers with controversy. The Berea Grindstone Players production, currently at The Cassidy Theatre in Parma Heights, does not shy from the controversy. Rather, this excellent production embraces it, encouraging the audience to think, to examine their own preconceptions and mores, and to view today's political climate through the cauterizing lens of history. 
This is a play about ideas, not about plot. Clearly, the author's intent is to push the boundaries of what we can understand or even try to understand about others. 
We meet several different assassins, each unique in their motivation, and are asked to empathize with them. Seeking to understand actions we would normally consider monstrous, we illuminate the dark corners within ourselves. 
Despite their wild differences, the assassins all share one deeply human trait: Ultimately, they, like all of us, are searching desperately to matter -- to someone, to the country, to history itself. 
"Assassins" is directed by Geoffrey Short with style and attention to the demands of this multi-faceted show. 
The performances are uniformly excellent, and the difficult music of this unusually melodic score (for Sondheim) is delivered by a cast filled with superb voices. 
In the central role of John Wilkes Booth, Michael Snider has a commanding stage presence and a powerfully expressive voice. Jacob Wadenpfuhl, playing the dual roles of Balladeer and Lee Harvey Oswald, ignites every scene he is in, and imbues Oswald with tragedy and humanity. Rob Starek, especially, delivers a searing performance as Leon Czolcosz. It is a performance of humanity, nuance, deep thought and unrelenting power. 
This examination of the darkness lurking within all of us is intriguing. What problems there are with this production lie mostly within the script. After a complicated and thought-provoking lead-in, the script ultimately fails to deliver on its heady promise, settling for a final scene that is only vaguely informed by the thoughtfulness preceding it. It feels out of place with the rest of the show. 
That having been said, this is important theater, and kudos belong to Grindstone Players for having the courage and sensitivity to schedule this challenging work. If the script isn't always perfectly realized, the production itself is. 
"Assassins" continues through Oct. 18 at Cassidy Theatre, 6200 Pearl Road, Parma Heights. (440) 842-4600. 

Tickets are available at the door.  All seats are $15.00.  Handicapped Accessible. Free Parking.  Performance times are Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 8:00p.m. There is no Sunday performance.