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"Cleopatra—A Life Unparalleled"
23-Jun-2009
Written by: TheCelebrityCafe.com Staff
"Cleopatra— A Life Unparalleled" is currently rocking the Planet Connections Festivity at the Robert Moss Theater. Decked out in splendid costumes and energized by a talented cast, it's an entertaining modern musical that rarely lets up.
If one is looking for a historically accurate account of the life and times of Cleopatra as Queen of Egypt, then this rock musical is probably not for you. Cleopatra's tumultuous life has been airbrushed for purposes of this production, and the facelift is worth it. She makes for a great subject for the rock opera spectacle: a beguiling, influential queen in a world dominated by men. This is certainly not the first time that dramatic licenses have been taken in a work about Cleopatra' scandalous life. Once you get past the factual liberties taken, the musical is an engaging powerhouse. It’s all here: large doses of pageantry, valiant heroism, duplicitous villainy and jealousies galore.
Covering so much history in a two hour musical, it is sometimes hard to keep track of all the key players in the story. And there are times when the production bends a bit towards camp. Fortunately it doesn't break. The main storylines are easy to follow; the tragic elements are firmly in place. The songs propel the narrative forward with appropriate pathos.
Director Barbara Labbadia has done a very good job in keeping the production moving at a brisk pace from beginning to end. The choreography (by Dr. Kari Ann Sweeney), however, suffers occasionally from overcrowding due to the limited dimensions of the stage. Cheryl E. Kemeny (book, music and lyrics) has penned a memorable rock score complete with rousing numbers and love ballads.
The entire cast is quite young here and future productions might be better served if some older actors were included. The three talented leads are excellent, however. Melissa Labbadia shines in the title role. She evokes strength, passion and vulnerability as Cleopatra. Above all else her voice is outstanding. Her male co-leads complement her well. Josh Woodie portrays Julius Caesar with dignity and harmonizes beautifully with Labbadia. Mike Longo has a commanding presence as the heroic March Antony. Also notable are Dan Gershaw, Lisa Sumerano, Jennifer Van Buskirk and Mike Mejia. There is absolutely no shortage of beautiful voices here. Another standout is William Bailey who steals more than a few scenes as Mardian, Cleopatra's confidant.
Kemeny and B. Labbadia have done a wonderful job designing the lush costumes for the production. Kemeny also ably serves as musical director of the small orchestra for the production.
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