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<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" align=center><B
style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><FONT size=3>Con-Con’s
‘MilkMilkLemonade’ hits and misses with abandon<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns =
"urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /><o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></B></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><o:p><FONT
size=3> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"
class=MsoNormal align=center><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'">Bob
Abelman<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; 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: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'">News-Herald,
<?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags"
/><st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Chagrin</st1:PlaceName>
<st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Valley</st1:PlaceType></st1:place> Times, Solon Times,
Geauga Times Courier<o:p></o:p></SPAN></I></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"
class=MsoNormal align=center><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'">Member,
International Association of Theatre Critics <o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"
class=MsoNormal align=center><I style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></I></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"
class=MsoNormal align=center><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'">This
review will appear in the <I style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">News-Herald</I>
</SPAN><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">on
8/24/12<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"
class=MsoNormal align=center><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; BACKGROUND: white"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'">True
to its purpose—to offer th</SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">eater that “expands
the imagination and extends the conventional boundaries of language, structure,
space, and performance”--</SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'">Convergence-Continuum
is staging a highly entertaining, thought-provoking play about being true to
one’s purpose.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; BACKGROUND: white"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN>Joshua Conkel's “<SPAN
style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic">MilkMilkLemonade,” which first appeared
</SPAN>off-off Broadway in 2009, tells the tale of an 11-year old boy named
Emory who lives on a poultry farm with his Bible-thumping, cancer-ridden
grandmother.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>Emory thinks of
himself as being more of a girl than a boy and, ostracized by his classmates,
spends most of his time with a giant talking chicken, a Barbie doll, and an
abusive neighbor named Elliot whose rough-housing masks his homosexual leanings
and self-loathing.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>All are
portrayed by adults.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; BACKGROUND: white"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; BACKGROUND: white"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN>The innocent, effeminate Emory simply wants to be true to his nature
while those around him deny their own. <SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>He is content choreographing elaborate
ribbon dances, dreaming about performing show tunes on a TV talent contest, and
wishing he was a girl in body as well as in spirit.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>Emory’s Nanna could not be less
Christian or nurturing as she strives to keep him on the straight and
narrow.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>Linda the chicken seeks
asylum from being turned into McNuggets.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN>Elliot denies the good within him by stealing Emory’s innocence between
bouts of pyromania.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN><o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; BACKGROUND: white"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; BACKGROUND: white"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN>Like the children’s rhyme referenced in the play’s title, whose lilting
melody gives way to a <SPAN style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic">sophomoric
laundry list of base bodily functions</SPAN>, Conkel’s “<SPAN
style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic">MilkMilkLemonade” </SPAN>is told with a
children's storybook aesthetic while exploring much darker themes.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN><o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; BACKGROUND: white"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; BACKGROUND: white"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN>Because this outrageous play is jam-packed with clever one-liners and
assorted bits of absurdity—including the chicken doing stand-up comedy ala
</SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN>Andrew Dice Clay</SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN> </SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN>and the doll lip-syncing to the 1970’s self-discovery anthem
</SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: #333333; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'">"I've
Never Been to Me"—this Con-Con production merrily bypasses </SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN>“<SPAN style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic">MilkMilkLemonade’s”
</SPAN></SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: #333333; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'">deeper
meaning and lapses into broad comedy.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; BACKGROUND: white"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: #333333; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; BACKGROUND: white"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: #333333; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'">By
accentuating all that is funny, and there is plenty that is funny, director Cory
Moiner provides a very entertaining evening that loses touch with what is meant
to be thought-provoking.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>His
primary vehicle for doing this is Zac Hudak, whose portrayal of Emory is as free
range as the poultry on his farm.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN>Possessing Pee-wee Hermanesque man-child charm, quirky physicality and
mischievous undercurrent, Hudak turns dark comedy into sight gags and the play’s
underlying poignancy into unabashed playfulness. <o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; BACKGROUND: white"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: #333333; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; BACKGROUND: white"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: #333333; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'">His
wonderful fellow actors—including Sarah Kunckik as Linda the Chicken, Marcia
Mandell as Nanna, Brian Devers as Elliot, and the hilarious Lisa Wiley as the
terrified narrator, Elliot’s reabsorbed fetal twin, and other odd
characters—follow suit.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>So, too,
does Clyde Simon’s sound and set design, resulting in a campy, fun romp void of
texture.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN><o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; BACKGROUND: white"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: #333333; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; BACKGROUND: white"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: #333333; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'">In
spite of itself, there are moments in this production when the playwright’s
sober intentions seep through. <SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>The
best example is when </SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: #363636; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Emory
and Elliot play house.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>Things turn
intriguingly revealing when Elliot, as husband, sucks on a Colt 45 malt liquor
and, in a world-weary voice beyond his years, complains about his day.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>Emory, as wife, wistfully watches the
bug zapper on the front porch and says, “Funny how I always root for the
moths.”</SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; BACKGROUND: white"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: #363636; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p></o:p></SPAN> </P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; BACKGROUND: white"><FONT size=3><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: #363636">Like moths drawn to
the flame, neither Emory nor anyone else in this play can overcome their destiny
or true purpose. This is true even in a production that has turned
</SPAN><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN>Conkel's</SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: #363636"> play into something
it is not. <o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Verdana','sans-serif'; COLOR: #333333; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><BR></SPAN><I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN>The 80-minute one-act “<SPAN
style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic">MilkMilkLemonade” </SPAN></SPAN></I><I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">continues through
September 8 at the Liminis Theatre in historic Tremont.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>For tickets, which range from $10 to
$15, call 216-687-0074 or visit <B><A href=""><SPAN
style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal"><FONT
color=#0095a1>www.convergence-continuum.org</FONT></SPAN></A>.<o:p></o:p></B></SPAN></I></P></FONT></DIV></BODY></HTML>