 It’s Miller time, which for Leah Miller means family reunion
time. Not her favorite time of the year. So when she sees another Miller Family
Reunion celebrating nearby, she decides to give them a whirl, during which she
learns Everything About a Family (Almost), TADA! Youth Theater’s latest
in their “Everything…Almost” original series of musicals, this one exploring
everything from embarrassing parents to hand-me-downs to puberty, genetics,
siblings, pets, loss, and love through more than a dozen new songs written by
more than a dozen songwriters and lyricists, including some right from the
cast. That cast consists of TADA’s talented and uniquely trained resident youth
ensemble, an ensemble ranging in age from 10 – 17. Some of the highlights
include:
Why Are My Parents So Embarrassing by Miriam Daly,
with much of the cast agonizing over going to the movie with parents, parents
trying to use the hip new lingo, or the worst – visiting them at school! All
done to Joanna Greer’s hilarious choreography.
My Teeth by Naomi Lee and Kieman Schmitt, with
ten-year-old KyLee Savage giving a hilarious lecture on the disastrous
genetic effect family trees can have when bad teeth run in the family. On the
bright side, she knows she’ll never be lonely with all those dentist friends.
Casey Wenger-Schulman leads the group through a Hand
Me Downs fashion show featuring music by Joy Son and lyrics by Kirsten
Guenther.
Alex Getlin lends her lovely vocals and wistful
longing to The Big Lagoon by Simon Gray and Lindsay Joelle, wherein the
death of a pet goldfish helps a girl come to terms with the passing of her
grandmother.
Gabriella Gross is a host throughout as Mackenzie, a
gaggingly but hilariously spirited family reunion organizer who relishes being
compared to her mother and grandmother, and who leads the big All Kinds of
Families number by John Kroner nad Gary Gardner.
John Moriarty and Merce Jessor look for A
Name for Myself as “juniors” written by Gary Bagley.
The cast and choreographer have explosions of fun with Robby
Stamper and Arianna Rose’s Change Is Strange dealing with the bizarre
onset of puberty.
Terrific young talent, ten-year-old Martine Bowman,
comes to understand that her wicked stepmother isn’t so wicked after all in
Douglas Cohen and Tom Toce’s beautiful ballad Amy.
Christina Franklin and Jonathan Bach are
squabbling siblings in Steve Sweeting and Phoebe Kreutz’s amusing and
well-performed Mom Likes Me Better.
Yes, Emma’s Gone! With great voice and timing, Alec
Cohen is the little brother who is thrilled that older sister is moving out
to college, no longer having to share bathrooms and computers, but starting to
miss her the more he thinks about it in this number by Drew Fornarola and
Callie LeFevre.
And if you’re not yet enjoying this family reunion, there’s
always the disco version of Jim Colleran’s Miller Madness complete with
disco ball and great, fun choreography.
In the end, Leah (Mary Claire Miskell) might be
rethinking her escape with her inspiring Going Home written by Deirdre
Broderick. And to sum it all up nicely? Jim Colleran’s That’s a Family. A new show the whole family can enjoy.
Performed April 17 -
May 17, 2009
Rob Hopper
National Youth Theatre
~ Cast ~
Mackenzie: Gabriella Gross
Leah: Mary Claire Miskell
Michael: Tristan Hickey
Angela: Maya Park
Dylan: Adam Mandala
Tom: Javier Cardenas
Steffi: KyLee Savage
DJ: Megan Nicholson MacRae
Cameron: Casey Wenger-Schulman
Alyssa: Alex Getlin
Edward Jr.: John Moriarty
Tyler: Merce Jessor
Carla: Martine Bowman
Zoey: Christina Franklin
Jake: Jonathan Bach
Will: Alec Cohen
Hannah: Jennifer Wais
Sophie: Taylor Jones
Tim: Gregory Kirsopp
Frankie: Amiri Taylor
Nancy: Simone Singletary
Samantha: Victoria Cotton
Tammy: Kristin Callahan
Lindsay: Miriam Claire Jones
Director: Janine Nina Trevens
Choreographer: Joanna Greer
Musical Director: Jim Colleran
Set Designer: Joseph Gourley
Costume Designer: Cheryl McCarron
Lighting Designer: Kirk Bookman
Production Stage Manager: Kris Valentine
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