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<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal
align=center><B style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'"><FONT
size=3>CVLT’s ‘A Steady Rain’ more drizzle than dramatic deluge <?xml:namespace
prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office"
/><o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></B></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal
align=center><B style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'"><o:p><FONT
size=3> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></B></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal
align=center><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d"><FONT size=3>Bob
Abelman<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal
align=center><I style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d"><FONT
size=3>News-Herald, Chagrin Valley Times, Solon
Times,<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></I></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal
align=center><I style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d"><FONT size=3>The
Morning Journal, Geauga Times Courier<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></I></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal
align=center><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d"><FONT size=3>Member,
American Theatre Critics Association <o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal
align=center><I style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><o:p><FONT
size=3> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></I></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal
align=center><FONT size=3><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d">This review appeared
in the <I style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">News Herald </I></SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">on 7/6/12</SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal
align=center><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'"><o:p><FONT
size=3> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal
align=center><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'"><o:p><FONT
size=3> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><FONT size=3><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'">Keith
Huff’s “</SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'">A
Steady Rain," currently playing at the Chagrin Valley Little Theatre, is an
intriguing little two-hander about </SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'">life-long
friends who are partners and polar opposites on a police force that has
repeatedly passed them over for promotion.</SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'"><o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'"><o:p><FONT
size=3> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'"><FONT
size=3>Though the play harnesses the guttural vernacular of Chicago street cops
and employs urban unrest and human frailty as its backdrop, it <SPAN
style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold">is a surprisingly poetic
work.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'"><o:p><FONT
size=3> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><FONT size=3><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'">The
play f</SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'">eatures
two guys on a bare stage taking turns delivering poignant, highly romanticized
monologues that flashback on their troubled and intersecting lives.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN></SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: black; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN>Their exchanges are rhythmic to the point of being lyrical, as if these
cops just </SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'">stepped
out of a film noire detective movie</SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: black; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN>.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN></SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'">The
narrative </SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: black; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN>contains so much </SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: black; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN>descriptive detail that </SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'">the
</SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: black; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN>audience is whisked away to dark alleyways </SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'">and
an entire ensemble of unseen secondary characters is conjured and given form
through words alone</SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: black; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN>. <o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: black; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN><o:p><FONT size=3> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: black; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN><FONT size=3>“A Steady Rain” has all the ingredients for an intimate and
entertaining drama.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>All theaters
need do is find two powerful actors to give it voice, an imaginative director to
give them guidance and two straight-back chairs as the only set pieces.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>Add water and stir.
<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: black; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN><o:p><FONT size=3> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: black; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN><FONT size=3>The CVLT production provides only the chairs.
<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: black; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN><o:p><FONT size=3> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><FONT size=3><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: black; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN>Christopher Crimaldi plays the rogue cop, Denny, who is the alpha male
in this partnership.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>Denny
justifies </SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: black; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN>his bad behavior and distorted code of ethics as the best way to protect
and provide for his wife and child.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN></SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'">He
is as volatile, bullying and racist as he is devoted, and wears his deficiencies
and dysfunction as boldly as his shield.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN><o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'"><o:p><FONT
size=3> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'"><FONT
size=3>At least on paper.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>Not much
of this translates to the stage on opening night due to Crimaldi’s insecurities
with his volumes of dialogue.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN>Preoccupied with just getting the words out, he speaks his lines rather
than acts them.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>As a result,
Denny’s combustibility, con-artist charm and blind self-assuredness are
neutralized.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN><o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'"><o:p><FONT
size=3> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'"><FONT
size=3>In a play that offers just two guys on a stage, this performance has an
unfortunate cascading effect on the rest of the production.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>The momentum built into this play, for
instance, slows to a crawl with each hesitation and miscue.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>Denny’s connection with his partner
Joey, which is the glue that holds this play together, is also a casualty and
comes across as tenuous at best.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN><o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'"><o:p><FONT
size=3> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'"><FONT
size=3>Joey has grown accustomed to being dominated, protected and held back by
his partner and turns a blind eye to Denny’s shortcomings as a friend, husband
and father.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>He is a brooding,
vulnerable and lonely recovering alcoholic, and is played with great tenderness
by Tim Walsh.<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'"><FONT
size=3><SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN><o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'"><FONT
size=3>Neither Crimaldi nor Walsh’s performances are aided by director Kate
Tonti’s decision to keep the production values to an absolute minimum.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>No sound of a steady rain in the
background is utilized to create a sense of foreboding.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>No lighting effects or shadow-play serve
to accentuate the characters’ isolation or indicate shifts in their
relationship.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>No subtle touches of
scenic design allude to time, place or temperament.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN><o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'"><o:p><FONT
size=3> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'"><FONT
size=3>Leaving it all up to the actors is a bold choice that may prove effective
once they master the material and trust the words and each other.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>On the opening night of “A Steady Rain,”
however, the waters were tested and found to be too
shallow.<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: black"><o:p><FONT
size=3> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><FONT size=3><I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">“A Steady Rain<SPAN
style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic">” c</SPAN>ontinues through July 14
<STRONG><I style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold">at the Chagrin Valley
Little Theatre’s River Street Playhouse, </SPAN></I></STRONG><SPAN
style="COLOR: black">40 River Street, Chagrin Falls</SPAN><STRONG><I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold">.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>For tickets, which are
</SPAN></I></STRONG>$10, call 440-247-8955 or visit <B
style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><A href=""><FONT
color=#0000ff>www.cvlt.org</FONT></A></B>.</SPAN></I><I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN><o:p></o:p></SPAN></I></FONT></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></I></P></FONT></DIV></BODY></HTML>