“At its heart, this play asks us to consider who we were and who we want to be. This production holds up a mirror, inviting us to see ourselves, our pasts, our hopes and our futures. Without reflection on where we’ve been, how can we find the perseverance to move forward?”
So writes Matt Conner, director of Creative Cauldron’s new and first ever DMV production of “Snapshots: A Musical Scrapbook,” that opened last weekend and runs through March 8 at the Falls Church-based troupe’s new location near Washington and Broad.
With music and lyrics by the Academy Award-winning Stephen Schwartz, from the book by David Stern, this show grabs the audience with a wide range of tunes from Schwartz’ “Pippin,” “The Magic Show,” “Wicked,” “Children of Eden,” “Godspell,” the “Baker’s Wife,” and more. But more than the songs and the creative staging, the cast of six draws us in with an imaginative presentation of a story most all of us (if we’ve been around awhile) can relate to deeply.
It’s domestic. There’s no violence. It’s between a man and wife. But it cuts through seeming conventionalities to address the far greater complexities of the human experience of primary relationships.
Sally Imbriano as Susan, Gretchen Midgley and Susie, Jennifer Redford as Sue, Joshua Redford as Dan, Ben Ribler as Danny and Carl L. Williams as Daniel weave stories of a lifelong intimate friendship, relationship, marriage and child raising as a confluence of all that confronts the prospect of dashing them all.
In case you didn’t notice, among those six just named, there are only two characters, really. It’s Susan/Susie/Sue and Dan/Danny/Daniel.
The play takes us through all the stages of their lives together. Where will they go now that one of them has maybe hit a wall? For whatever time they may have? Or not?
I was moved by the play’s apparent “ordinariliness” because that is the sneaky channel through which it speaks deeply to the heart, to memories and especially feelings about things we did, or maybe didn’t do, in the process of our growing up and that were able to make it work, or not, with someone we truly loved. Or, perhaps best of all for audiences, to show a way it still can for all who struggle with these options.
According to the Cauldron’s website, “Snapshot is a touching and authentic look into how we fall in love and the poignant power of trusting our hearts and memories. Sue has her bags packed, her farewell note written and the resolution to leave her husband, Dan, after decades of their lives entwined. Finding herself in their dusty, suburban attic for a final goodbye to the life they led, Sue is startled when Dan arrives home early from his all-consuming job. Surrounded by a lifetime of memories and phantoms of their former selves, Sue and Dan embark on a cerebral journey to the past, rediscovering their true love that remained hidden in a lifetime of Snapshots.”
Kudos to everyone involved, to Creative Cauldron and especially its soul, the great Laura Connors Hull, for this penetrating show.
In addition to Hull and the talented and delightful cast whose bios are filled with momentous achievements, there is the Production Team of Matt Conner, Director, Elisa Rosman, Music Director, Stefan Sittig: Choreographer, Nicholas Goodman, Stage Manager; Margie Jervis, Set/Props Designer; Tessa Grippaudo, Costume Designer; Fern Middleton, Lighting DesignerProjection Designer; E. Lieu Wolhardt, Assistant Projection Designer; Jo Adereth, Assistant Stage Manager: Shana Fishman, Dance Captain/Female understudy; Odette Gutierrez del Arroyo, Male understudy; Cristian Bustillos, and Musicians: Drums, Dakota Kaylor (Guido Vit sub) Bass, Joe Lostumbo; Guitar, Ryan Roikola; Keys, Elisa Rosman
“Snapshot: A Musical Scrapbook” runs from now to March 8 with shows Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. Recommended for ages 10 and up, tickets are $40 or $50 and $25 for students.
