Do you remember the good years in Glyndon? The summers were endlessly gold! The gymnasium was a patchwork of set pieces and costumes; there were songs being sung wherever you’d go. It’s funny, but since the Pandemic, they’d gone to the other extreme— for two years they were dark and sad! And how we missed them oh so bad— but now they’re back! (YES!!) And telling— Joseph’s Dream! Those Glyndon days! Are here to stay! They’ve made it through— they’ll make your day! Eh bien, raise your berets! To those Glyndon days! Celebrating their 25th Anniversary, Sacred Heart’s Glyndon Area Players is bringing back the epic, the wondrous, the multi-colored production of Joseph & The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat! And it is bringing such joy after two long, hard years without GAP in full-blown-production mode. Directed by Homero Bayarena (and assistant director Josiah Nusbaum) with Orchestra Conduction and Musical Direction by Ben Fish with Choreography by Lori Maccia, this joyous, exuberantly bubbly, wonderous musical will have you singing, clapping and laughing; there isn’t a better show in town, or a production company more thrilled to finally be back to live theatre than the Glyndon Area Players with this production of Joseph.
Known for their spectacular sets, striking costumes, adorable quirks that make the show specifically a ‘GAP show’, and their myriad of talented performers on the stage, the Glyndon Area Players do not disappoint with this production of Joseph. Director Homero Bayarena and Technical Director Michael Parks have not only shot for the stars and landed among the heavens with their amazing production, they’ve found a way to really engineer some creative inclusion in this performance. There’s no other way to describe the enormous dueling pyramid-carriage-carts that are featured as prominent set pieces in this production than as “Disney-style Transport Cars.” (They look like something straight up out of a Disney ride.) At first, the audience is faced with these two beautifully textured pyramids, with shimmer streamers trailing off the bottom to cleverly and effectively hide their wheels. Not out of place in a show that takes place partially in ancient, biblical Egypt. But then Bayarena and Park execute the true magic of theatre; the pyramids are spun around to reveal— carriage-tier seating for “The Pyramid Chorus” which features a dozen youngsters who sing along during certain numbers of the show. But more than that, under the guidance of Sign Language Instructor Tina Wehland, these incredibly talented young performers perform singing-sign-language, using American Sign Language to sign the numbers that they are singing. It’s such a beautiful and inclusive representation for this production.
The Pyramid Chorus (Favour Ashekun, Trista German, Lauren Harvey, Claire Jabaji, Connor McIntyre, Lia Molony, Chloe Monroe, Seeley Moore, Skye Njoroge, Liza Pathi, Riley Yates, Angela Yeung) are a delightful addition to this production of Joseph. It is traditional to often have a “children’s chorus” featured in this show, often utilized in the initial framework of the story’s opening scene, brought back for “Close Every Door” and disappeared to the backstage areas, never to be seen or heard from again. But Director Homero Bayarena keeps this wonderfully talented youngsters active throughout several different numbers by featuring them in the magical spinning pyramid cars.
They are also used at the beginning to create a humbling reflection as the production gets underway; the narrator comes to her desk, opening up her mac-laptop, singing the opening tune to her screen and these children, dressed in their Sacred Heart School uniforms, are all on their various screens and devices, tuning in, just like a Zoom-lesson from the days of the pandemic. (It’s so fitting because Joseph is all about keeping the faith that the good will come, and having the hope that the bad times will end; who couldn’t use more of that after the last two years?)
Bayarena even brings the children back for a penultimate reprise with Joseph (just before the iconic Megamix) to re-sing, “Close Every Door”, which also makes a statement of defiance; the children harmonize beautifully with the actor playing Joseph and make this bold, empowering statement that no matter what (pandemic or not) they will pull through and be stronger for it. It’s an amazing and subtle way to sort of stick it to the pandemic for keeping the doors of GAP closed for two full years while also highlighting these wonderful young talented individuals. Keep your eyeballs on Chloe Monroe, who has incredibly animated facial expressions and body language and Claire Jabaji, the dancing star who gets to feature her phenomenal tango talents during “Those Canaan Days” along side Kenny Alam (who plays Judah.)
One could go on for days about the accomplishments of the pyramids and the pebbled stairway or the succinct blocking where Bayarena manages to get the stage feeling both full and not overcrowded simultaneously; it’s just that good. (And let’s not forget that enormous, light-up, head-of-Pharaoh that arrives for the second act in Egypt; that is one astonish head!) The heart of Bayarena’s work with this production comes in the enthusiastic energy witnessed throughout the entirety of the performance in every single cast member. You’ve got powerhouse belters, you’ve got excellent dancers, you’ve got adorable children, and everything in-between and Bayarena gets them all on the same high-octane, hyper-energetic page to just pound wave after wave of joy and emotion and feeling out at the audience as the show rolls along.
Choreographer Lori Maccia has got her work cut out for her but she rises to the challenge, soaring up to meet Bayarena and Park way up there in the heavens among the stars. “One More Angel in Heaven/Hoedown” features a foot-hopping, supercharged hoedown/square dance sequence that is so much fun you can’t help but hopping around in your seat, slapping your knee, and wanting to whoop and holler as the number rolls out. Andrew Lloyd Webber has crafted Joseph as the cursed-blessing musical because there’s a number in at least seven different styles, all of which seem to feature huge dance-related challenges, but Maccia has no problem tackling them, filling the stage with movements that suit all of the people on the stage as well as the musical style for each number. You get jazz, there’s some ballet turns, there’s the aforementioned hoedown, you even get a tango thrown into “Those Canaan Days” which is tres chic and ooh-la-laa! Maccia captures the spirit of each of these numbers— particularly the wild intensity of the “Megamix”— and inspires the performers to indefatigable levels of enthusiasm and energy.
Lighting Designer Jim Shomo has finally found his calling; a show that is crying out for all the crazy spinning, moving, flashing, dancing lighting that he loves to program every chance he gets. Shomo does something pretty impressive too when it comes to showcasing the ‘coat of many colors’ during “Joseph’s Coat.” While it’s common practice to start flashing different colors in time with the lyrics, which mention a bunch of different colors (29 to be exact), Shomo does one better by actually crafting the illusion of “black” light (no, not UV-active ‘black light’) when they sing the color ‘black.’ It’s a neat trick, making it look like the stage is actually bathed in black and takes some pretty precision timing to effectively pull it off. There are other moments all throughout, particularly “Go, Go, Go, Joseph!” and “Megamix” where you get to see more of Shomo’s intense moving light extravaganza, appropriately matched to the musical tempos and styles.
Bringing their own levels of light, brilliance, shine— and the closer to the end you get the more shine and sparkler and glimmer you get— to the performance is the costumes, which are brought to you by way of Director Homero Bayarena, Elaine Bayarena, Kari O’Donnell, and Susan Zepp. There is so much dazzling glitz happening by the time everyone joins the stage for the “Megamix” you might have to shield your eyes. And outfitting over a dozen wives (Jacob’s many wives: Cheryl Degenhardt, Deanna Dovel, Jayden Frisby, Jennifer Hamilton, Gray Jabaji, Ally Kasman, Molly Kelsh, Kelly Kluka, Cassie Little, Lori Maccia, Addy Molony, Nicole Monroe, Jodi O’Connell, Amanda Polanowski, Kristan Miller Scott) in shimmering gold lamé to capture the essence of Egypt in the second half is a task on par with building the great pyramids themselves. Of course the true stunner in this production is not Elvis— I mean, uh— Pharaoh’s wardrobe (because they’ve got some sizzling sartorial selections for that Mr. Pharaoh Maaaan…) but rather the dazzling coat of many colors! Bayarena, Bayarena, O’Donnell, and Zepp pull out all the stops for that shining, shimmering, wondrous glimmering, coat, which truly lives up to its dazzling descriptors and reflects all of Jim Shomo’s radical lighting all while Joseph is wearing it.
Somehow this production ended up with more Wives than Brothers…but hey, Jacob was a popular man! And the brothers are quite the bunch, as some of the songs may indicate— you’ve got Reuben (Josiah Nusbaum), with Simeon (Hugh Carson) and Levi (Chris Monroe). There’s Napthali (Scott Molony), and Issachar (Alex Frazier), with Asher (Jonathan Deane) and Dan (Deb Carson), Zebulon (Paul Norfolk) and Gad (Glen Dryden)…what’s that— nine? Who’d we forget— oh yeah, Benjamin (Ian Jones), who gets a song sung about him but doesn’t actually get to sing the lead on the song, and Judah (Kenny Alam), who sings the song about Benjamin. The rip-roaring standouts among the brothers include zany Deb Carson, playing Gad, who during “Those Canaan Days” gives us a soprano style burst of sound (which results in some hilarious facial expressions from her as well as the other brothers on stage and is a cute nod to the fact that Mrs. Carson is playing a brother) and then of course, her husband, Hugh Carson, as Simeon, who gets to sing that number. His sweet, robust sound is powerful, and sprinkled with a lightly outrageous French accent. (Suddenly the brothers of Canaan are deeply French because someone somewhere told Andrew Lloyd Webber he was a comedian in addition to a deeply talented musical theaterist.) Carson pumps loads of gusto into this satirical number which ends up being one of the funnier numbers in the show, which is ironic since the lyrics are so very depressing!
You’ve also got assistant director Josiah Nusbaum buckin’ up his best yeehaw-dipped accent and saddling on over to that cowpoke number, “One More Angel In Heaven.” What’s brilliant about Nusbaum’s portrayal of Reuben is literally the entirety of this number. (Also please note how the other ten brothers each have a sparkling black monogram on their cowboy hats so you know who’s who!) He puts on that false saccharine charm to spin the tale of Joseph, being attacked, and killed by a goat. (Seriously? A goat!?) And in the span of a breath he flips that syrupy sweetness straight into celebration mode and is belting, bouncing, and galloping all over the stage at the top of his cheerful booming voice, leading the hoedown. It’s wild! And let’s not forget Kenny Alam, our native Guatemalan performer, who gives Judah the perfect, authentic accent for singing “The Benjamin Calypso.” If Alam’s accent wasn’t enough, he is fleet of feet, flawless while dancing with Claire Jabaji during “Those Canaan Days” and then serving up such body language, such incredibly expressive facial features all throughout his big calypso number, and literally every other number he’s in; Alam is such a treat and a really delightful addition to this cast!
Of course, the aforementioned Jacob— father of all the sons? He’s being played by a very special guest-star at the Glyndon Area Players, Sacred Heart’s own Fr. Gerard Francik! And while Francik may not be old enough to be the wizened, ancient Jacob, they do him up just right in a long flowing beard that rivals methuselah, and he’s got such a lovely voice that when he sings you find yourself just in awe of how lovely he sounds. Of course Fr. Francik and Stan Behnken (who doubles up as the Baker during the early parts of “Go, Go, Go, Joseph”) play The Ishmaelites, who are featured for maybe 60 seconds of “Poor, Poor Joseph”, really make a splashy appearance during “Journey to Egypt.” In true GAP fashion, adding a little Easter-egg surprise, Fr. Francik and Behnken double up as some Egyptian creatures…Behnken as an asp in a basket and Fr. Francik as a camel (they’re puppeting the snake-in-the-basket and the camel and singing in nasally-affected voices for sheer comic genius!) to deliver this little number before the big break out “Potiphar” number, which features the zesty Amanda Polanowski as Mrs. Potiphar and a flamboyant portrayal of the Egyptian millionaire by Paul Norfolk (who also doubles up as brother Zebulon.)
With star-belting power, that we really get to hear pushed out to fill the auditorium during her big burst reprise of “Pharaoh’s Story” during the “Megamix”, Colleen Esposito is playing the Narrator with charm, reverence, grace, and a good handle on some of those higher soprano sounds that populate the score. It’s easy to get someone with nothing but belting power to sing the role, but Esposito brings those clean, clear soprano sounds when required. She’s also comically invested in some of the quirkier moments, like when Pharaoh starts slaying the Egyptians with those killer hips! You feel Esposito is fully present in every number (there’s rarely times when her character isn’t on the stage) and she takes exceptionally good cues from pit conductor and musical coach Ben Fish. (Mr. Fish deserves his own medal and some signet rings for all of the mastery he brings to the live orchestra pit, particularly when it comes to adjusting the pacing to match the performers on stage.) “Pharaoh’s Story” shows real light in both Colleen Esposito’s eyes and her song; “Jacob and Sons” also gives you a great sample of her vocal talent.
25 years ago when Glyndon Area Players mounted Joseph &… as their very first production, Director Homero Bayarena played the title character. And he swears when they hit the 40th anniversary he’ll be old enough to play Jacob. But for this go-round? Hey, hey, hey, now, Homero— won’t you tell our poor readers— who are you-plaaaying? Oooh yeah!? You guessed it. With his full-on, amazing Elvis impersonation skills set to stun, Homero Bayarena is playing Pharaoh. And he’s so smoking hot in the role that he’s setting off the fire alarms. Literally. (No, seriously; the fire alarms went off during the Saturday night performance of opening weekends during Pharaoh’s big number.) But in true theatrical style, did Homero Bayarena panic? Nope. He gave the audience an impromptu Elvis concert, singing “Hound Dog” (and Ben Fish picked up the orchestra straight away to give him a hint of backing music!) It was received to thunderous applause. Bayarena was channeling some serious smoldering Elvis, really knocking “Song Of The King” clear out of the house! And his antics as this over-the-top Pharaoh character were second to none in the production. A true glittering gemstone in the crown of GAP, Homero Bayarena was an asset beyond compare to the performance, particularly the night we attended!
You must go, go, go, go! To see Joe, Joe, Joe, Joe! GAP has placed Henry Cyr in the title role of this performance and Cyr is truly remarkable. With an aesthetic on point for Donny Osmond, and vocals that match and rival Osmond’s only with clear tonal quality that spins circles around Andrew Lloyd Webber’s score, Cyr is the perfect fit for the role. He’s got a little bit of comic timing working in his favor too (like that silly line of “and I don’t speak Egyptian very well” during “Poor, Poor, Joseph.”) But it’s his extraordinary voice, carrying through “Joseph’s Dreams”, “Who’s The Thief?”, “Close Every Door”, and “Any Dream Will Do” that has you falling in love with Cyr’s performance. “Any Dream Will Do” becomes the anthem song for this production when Cyr sings it and you can feel its beauty and its intention so purely. The ultimate vessel for this brilliant character and these wonderful songs, Henry Cyr is living the technicolor dream as Joseph in this production.
Strange as it seems— there’s only five performances left! You must get your tickets to hear the tale of a dreamer like you; Glyndon Area Players has returned and they are back in full force. This is the feel-good, must see musical of the summer and one of the finest productions of Joseph that I can ever recall experiencing; it is a true summer treat!
Running Time: Approximately 2 hours and 25 minutes with one intermission
Joseph & The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat plays through August 14, 2022 at the Glyndon Area Players in the Sacred Heart School Auditorium— 63 Sacred Heart Lane in Glyndon, MD. Tickets are available at the door or in advance online.
