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align=center><FONT face=Georgia><B style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: ">Players Guild’s ‘Memphis’ is </SPAN></B><B
style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN
style='FONT-FAMILY: ; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: arial'>wonderful
to look at, a pleasure to listen to<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN></SPAN></B></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: normal"
align=center><B style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN
style='FONT-FAMILY: ; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: arial'><FONT
face=Georgia></FONT></SPAN></B> </P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: normal"
align=center><SPAN
style='FONT-FAMILY: ; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: arial'><FONT
face=Georgia>Beth Casteel, Community Theater Critic</FONT></SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: "></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: normal"
align=center><SPAN
style='FONT-FAMILY: ; COLOR: ; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"'><FONT
face=Georgia>Cleveland Jewish News</FONT></SPAN><SPAN
style='FONT-FAMILY: ; COLOR: ; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"'></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: normal"
align=center><SPAN
style='FONT-FAMILY: ; COLOR: ; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"'><FONT
face="Times New Roman"></FONT></SPAN> </P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: normal"><FONT
face=Georgia><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: ">Set in Memphis during the early 1950s,
we meet </SPAN><SPAN
style='FONT-FAMILY: ; COLOR: ; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: arial'>smooth-talking,
white disc jockey </SPAN><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: ">Huey Calhoun (Jon Tisevich,
who also directs this production), who manages to fall in love with everything
he shouldn’t – namely, </SPAN><SPAN
style='FONT-FAMILY: ; COLOR: ; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: arial'>the
revolutionary sound of rock ‘n’ roll </SPAN><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: ">and the
talented black singer, Felicia Farrell (Joy Ellis). </SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: "><FONT face=Georgia></FONT></SPAN> </P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: normal"><FONT
face=Georgia><SPAN
style='FONT-FAMILY: ; COLOR: ; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: arial'>This
rather serious plot during a serious time in our nation’s history is given a
thin candy coating thanks to </SPAN><SPAN
style='FONT-FAMILY: ; COLOR: ; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: arial'><FONT
color=#232323>librettist-lyricist Joe DiPietro (“<SPAN
style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic">I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now
Change”</SPAN>) and composer David Bryan (co-writer of the “<SPAN
style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic">Toxic Avenger”<I> </I></SPAN>musical<I>
</I>with DiPietro), who create solid simulations and celebrations of early
</FONT></SPAN><SPAN
style='FONT-FAMILY: ; COLOR: ; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: arial'>rock,
church gospel, and R&B.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: normal"><SPAN
style='FONT-FAMILY: ; COLOR: ; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: arial'><FONT
face=Georgia></FONT></SPAN> </P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: normal"><FONT
face=Georgia><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: ">Based on the actual exploits of disc
jockey Dewey Phillips, who helped </SPAN><SPAN
style='FONT-FAMILY: ; COLOR: ; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: arial'>introduce
“race music” to white teens in the South, </SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: ">“Memphis”</SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: ; mso-bidi-font-family: arial"> earned the 2010 Tony, Drama
Desk and Outer Critics Circle Awards for Best Musical.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: ; mso-bidi-font-family: arial"><FONT
face=Georgia></FONT></SPAN> </P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: normal"><FONT
face=Georgia><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: ; mso-bidi-font-family: arial">This
production puts on display </SPAN><SPAN
style='FONT-FAMILY: ; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: arial'>an
explosive group of singers and dancers in lead, supporting and ensemble roles,
who execute </SPAN><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: ">Michael Lawrence
Akers’</SPAN><SPAN
style='FONT-FAMILY: ; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: arial'>
highly stylized period choreography to perfection.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>Under </SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: ">Tisevich’s fine direction and with the solid accompaniment
of a 9-piece orchestra under Steve Parson’s musical direction, e</SPAN><SPAN
style='FONT-FAMILY: ; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: arial'>veryone
on stage has a moment in the spotlight and holds nothing back.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: normal"><SPAN
style='FONT-FAMILY: ; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: arial'><FONT
face=Georgia></FONT></SPAN> </P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: normal"><SPAN
style='FONT-FAMILY: ; COLOR: ; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"'><FONT
face="Times New Roman"> </FONT></SPAN><I><SPAN
style='FONT-FAMILY: ; COLOR: ; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"'><FONT
face=Georgia>For more of this review, which is supported by a Cleveland State
University civic engagement grant, go to </FONT><A
title=https://www.clevelandjewishnews.com/news/culture/
style='href: "https://www.clevelandjewishnews.com/news/culture/"'><SPAN
style="COLOR: "><FONT color=#0000ff
face=Georgia>https://www.clevelandjewishnews.com/news/culture/</FONT></SPAN></A></SPAN></I></P></DIV></DIV></BODY></HTML>