TIED TO THE RAILROAD TRACKS OF A SILLY MELODRAMA,
OR CUTE CAN ONLY GO SO FAR
Popular during the Victorian era in England, a melodrama is a sensationally overly dramatic piece with lots of comedy, especially when the exaggerated characters (the ingénue, handsome leading man, older wiser woman, and dastardly villain) break the fourth wall and speak directly to the audience. As was the case in British Music Halls, melodramas are interspersed with songs and orchestral music, often performed on a single piano or with a honky-tonk band to bring out the exaggerated silliness of the play. Audience participation is encouraged, especially with boos and hisses each time the villain appears, while the handsome leading man often jumps onstage accompanied with a great trumpet fanfare accompanied by cheers and applause from the audience.
Jessica Kent and Sean Babcock
Such is the case with The Orphans’ Revenge, or Abandoned at Coopers Crossing, with book by Suzanne Buhrer and Gene Casey, music by Casey, Buhrer, and Jan Casey. Now returning to the Lonny Chapman Theatre 45 years after it was first produced there, the current production is directed by Stan Mazin, who understudied the role of the dastardly villain Victor Van Rooper in the original production. Musical director Andy Howe accompanies on piano.
Hisato Masuyama
Setting the tone, Hisato Masuyama as the Narrator playfully introduces the characters and informs the audience about the role they need to play, teaching them to hiss, boo, cheer and applaud. Enjoying an over-the-top, frothy melodrama such as this one will not be for everyone, especially when so many cast members of varying musical skill try to harmonize together to ear-shattering effect. Most adult actors did their roles well and can sing. Not so for many others (a lot of roles are double-cast, so who knows what The Orphans’ Revenge will play like if you go). You’re going to have to forget reality (i.e. bring the kids if you attend) to step inside this cartoon-character world in which a Dudley Do-Right gallops across the stage on a hobby horse to save the lovely ingenue from a fate worse than death; in this case, you guessed it, being tied to the railroad track with a train approaching.
Jessica Kent and Brad Kahn
The melodrama takes place in Coopers Crossing, starting in the orphanage, which happens to be the biggest and best house in the small town. It’s run by the lovely innocent ingénue Alice (Jessica Kent), assisted by elderly Uncle Ned (Brad Kahn), a cook whose latest concoction is blueberry and turnip soup given the lack of funds to buy anything else. He often shares his homegrown wisdom about life, which is not always followed by young Alice who reacts with her emotions rather than her brain. Under her care are four orphans (Jackson Bethel, Arden Shia, Scarlett Strauss, and Hannah Sun), all cold, starving, and ill. The four actors do a credible job but are often off-key, relying on their cuteness to score applause every time they perform.
Jessica Kent, Arden Shia, Hanna Sun, Scarlett Strauss, Jackson Bethel
Jack, the handsome leading man looking for love (Sean Babcock) jumps onto the stage with a trumpet fanfare each time, usually to save the day and rescue Alice from her latest hardship. The personification of that danger is the evil Victor Van Rooper (Joseph Eastburn) who holds the mortgage on the orphanage and convinces Alice the only way to save the orphans’ home is to marry him since she has no money to pay the rent. And though Alice struggles with that decision, especially since she has fallen in love with Jack at first sight, she feels caught between a rock and a hard place, knowing the only way to save the orphans from having to live on the streets in the dead of winter is to suffer through a loveless marriage to Victor. But not if Jack has anything to say about it! It’s the classic struggle between good and evil, right down to the color of their costumes.
Kristin Towers Rowles
Of course, there is a “house of ill repute” in town, run by Rose (Janet Wood) which she calls her Saloon and Dance Hall. There, a trio of performers entertain the men who stop by for drinks and other more personal entertainment. The always-stunning entertainer Kristin Towers Rowles plays Carlotta, who has her eyes set on Victor’s money, and her two sidekicks are portrayed by Melissa Strauss as Kitty and Casey Murray as Belle. To add to the Victorian flavor during scene changes, Kitty and Belle cross the stage carrying placards advertising real products from the time, describing such wonder drugs as portions to improve male performance, the health benefits of cigarettes, and elixirs made mostly of alcohol guaranteed to fix all that ails you. The upside-down humor of the day’s sales pitches were quite amusing.
Melissa Strauss
Of course, Rose teams up with Victor to get ahold of the deed to the orphanage so she can expand her adult entertainment into a larger venue. She and Victor agree to get the job done, carrying nothing about the soon-to-be-unhoused orphans or the virginal Alice. Their duet, “It’s Nice to Be Nasty” is a highlight of the show, offering real insight into just how far Rose and Victor will go to get what they want. It is worth noting here that The Saloon Girls, Carlotta, Victor, and Rose create lovely harmonies each time they take the stage together — a welcome relief.
George Bufford and Lareen Faye
Per usual, the town has a Preacher, Benjamin Cox (George Bufford), with his wife Alma (Lareen Faye) crying out “Repent! Repent!” outside the Saloon, not realizing her husband is frequently inside enjoying the underbelly of life in Coopers Crossing. Both the Preacher and Alma are supporters of Alice and the orphans for following the righteous path by always attending church on Sunday and saying their prayers at night.
Joe Eastburn and Jessica Kent
Lastly is Rob Schaumann who perches on a ladder above the doorframe entrance between outdoors and indoors, who throws “snow” on everyone who crosses the portal to indicate the freezing Winter temperatures outside, somewhere no orphan should have to live. And while played seriously, it’s really one of the funniest ongoing bits in the show.
Kristin Towers Rowles, Joe Eastburn and Janet Wood
Costumes by Shon Le Blanc are wonderfully colorful and sexy for the dance hall gals and Rose, with Snidely Whiplash touches for Victor Van Rooper. But poor Alice is stuck in a gingham tablecloth wedding dress on “The Happiest Day of Your Life” which does nothing to enhance her natural beauty. Mazin has updated the staging with a set designed by Mareli Mitchel-Shields that reveals some of the backstage action, allowing viewers to witness some of the preparations necessary to bring the play to fruition.
photos by Jackie Shearn
The Orphans’ Revenge
The Group Rep
Lonny Chapman Theatre — Main Stage
10900 Burbank Blvd. in North Hollywood
Fri & Sat at 8, Sun at 2
ends on November 10, 2024
for tickets ($35-$40), call 818.763.5990 or visit Group Rep