<html><head></head><body><div class="ydpf4720f96yahoo-style-wrap" style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><span><p class="ydpeec179b6MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center"><b>Elaborated Lives</b></p>
<p class="ydpeec179b6MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center">By Tom Wachunas</p>
<p class="ydpeec179b6MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center"> </p>
<p class="ydpeec179b6MsoNormal"><b>…Too many choices
tear us apart / I don't want to live like that / Too many choices tear us apart
/ I don't want to love like that / I just want to touch your heart / May this
confession be the start</b></p>
<p class="ydpeec179b6MsoNormal">- lyrics from “Elaborate Lives” by Tim Rice, from <i>AIDA</i></p>
<p class="ydpeec179b6MsoNormal"><span> </span><span> </span>In the beginning of the Players Guild
production of <i>Aida</i>, the Tony Award-winning
musical by Elton John and Tim Rice, several people are strolling about the
beautiful set designed by Joshua Erichsen in a convincing evocation of visiting
an ancient Egypt exhibit in a museum. Emerging from a display niche, a statue
of Amneris (Sarah Marie Young), daughter of a Pharoah, comes to life and
intones the song, “Every Story is a Love Story.” It’s a richly sung summary of
what will soon unfold, wherein we hear the solemn reminder, “…This is the story
of a love that flourished in a time of hate.”</p>
<p class="ydpeec179b6MsoNormal"><span> </span>In this highly
moving chronicle of forbidden love, divided loyalties, and treachery in an era
of tyranny and war, we meet Aida (Joy Ellis), a Nubian princess stolen from her
country and enslaved in Egypt. There she struggles mightily to reconcile her
growing love for Radames (Brandon Michael) – a imposing Egyptian soldier
already betrothed (for nine years!) to Amneris – with the pressing burden of
remaining a faithful leader to her own beleaguered people. <span> </span></p>
<p class="ydpeec179b6MsoNormal"><span> </span>As he has done for
so many past productions, director Jonathan Tisevich has assembled a wondrously
gifted group of performers. Amid the ethereal lighting designed by Scott
Sutton, the sonic magic from the live, 11-piece orchestra conducted by Steve
Parsons, and further energized by Michael Lawrence Akers’ exotic, often sensual
choreography, this 27-member cast effectively morphs the smallness of the
Guild’s arena theater into a place of epic dimensionality.</p>
<p class="ydpeec179b6MsoNormal"><span> </span><span> </span>Tisevich has always been a thoughtful minister
to his performers’ agency for articulating emotional and psychological
authenticity in their characters. And nowhere does that agency have more depth than
in the portrayals of Aida, Radames, and Amneris. </p>
<p class="ydpeec179b6MsoNormal"><span> </span>In expressing,
indeed exclaiming, all of Aida’s tortured heart and crisis of conscience, Joy
Ellis is a thoroughly riveting presence. Her singing is a mesmerizing force in
itself – plaintive and wounded when she sings the bitterly ironic “Easy as Life”;
alternately fierce, plaintive, and tender elsewhere. Among of the evening’s
most touching and powerful passages are her duets with Radames, such as
“Enchantment Passing Through,” and the soaring “Elaborate Lives.” <span> </span><span> </span></p>
<p class="ydpeec179b6MsoNormal"><span> </span>It’s fascinating to
watch Brandon Michael, a wholly compelling singer in his own right, as he
navigates the changing tides in the heart of Ramades. The conquering soldier is
conquered by Aida’s nobility and courage. He falls inexorably in love with a
slave, though not without a price. <span> </span></p>
<p class="ydpeec179b6MsoNormal"><span> </span>Speaking of
changing hearts, an equally fascinating catharsis transpires as you watch Sarah
Marie Young’s stunning portrayal of Amneris. Through half <span> </span>of the story she’s a feckless, self-possessed,
swaggering imp with an inflated sense of entitlement. In the hilarious “My
Strongest Suit,” she and her women-in-waiting strut about the palace like so
many fashionistas sporting ridiculously bizarre outfits and headwear (marvelous
costumes by Stephen Ostertag). But as Ramades grows more distant and cold, the
reality of her plight becomes all too clear. Now humbled and resolute, she pours
out her woundedness, her surrender, in one of the show’s most heartrending
songs, “I Know the Truth.”</p>
<p class="ydpeec179b6MsoNormal"><span> </span>The evening flows
fairly consistently with other memorable characters and interludes. David
Everett plays Zoser, the stern and sinister father of Ramades, and who is
slowly poisoning the Pharoah (Corey Paulus). Jeremy Clarke plays Mereb, a
clever and tender-hearted Nubian servant who knows his way around the royal
bureaucracy. He sings with palpable urgency in “How I Know You.” Aida pleaded
with him to not reveal her true identity to the rest of the Nubians, but
doesn’t keep her secret for very long. Destiny was calling. </p>
<p class="ydpeec179b6MsoNormal"><span> </span>An electrifying
choral high point comes at the end of Act I with “The Gods Love Nubia” – a
thunderous cry for release from suffering, sung by Aida, her friend Nehebka
(played by Sunayna Smith), and the Nubian captives. That anthemic single
moment, replete with gravitas and grace, with its stratospheric harmonies
gripping and soulful, embodied the entire spirit of this production. Call it a
prayer of longing, love, and hope, and hauntingly relevant to our own time and
circumstances. <span> </span><span> </span></p>
<p class="ydpeec179b6MsoNormal"><i>AIDA, </i>in the Canton
Players Guild W.G. Fry Theater, 1001 Market Ave., N. Canton, Ohio /<span> </span>THROUGH NOVEMBER 18, 2018 / Shows Friday and
Saturday at 8 p.m., Sunday 2 p.m. / additional performance at 8 p.m. on Nov. 18
/Single tickets $32, 17 an younger $25, Seniors $29 / <a href="http://www.playersguidtheatre.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">www.playersguidtheatre.com</a> / Box
Office at 330.453.7617<i></i></p></span><br></div></body></html>