ONCE ON THIS ISLAND
★★★
When: 8 p.m. Friday, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday.
Where: Redondo Beach Performing Arts Center, 1935 E. Manhattan Blvd., Redondo Beach. Free parking adjacent to the theater.
Tickets: $25-$100, plus $3 handling fee per ticket. Group, student and rush discounts available.
Length: 1 hr. 30 mins., no intermission.
Suitability: Best for mature teens and adults.
Information: 714-589-2770, ext. 1; 3dtshows.com.
ALSO
When: Feb. 24 to March 5. 7:30 p.m. Thursday, 8 p.m., Friday, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday.
Where: Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts, 12700 Center Court Drive, Cerritos. Free parking adjacent to the theater.
Tickets: $40-$85, plus handling fees per ticket. Group and student discounts available.
★★★
When: 8 p.m. Friday, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday.
Where: Redondo Beach Performing Arts Center, 1935 E. Manhattan Blvd., Redondo Beach. Free parking adjacent to the theater.
Tickets: $25-$100, plus $3 handling fee per ticket. Group, student and rush discounts available.
Length: 1 hr. 30 mins., no intermission.
Suitability: Best for mature teens and adults.
Information: 714-589-2770, ext. 1; 3dtshows.com.
ALSO
When: Feb. 24 to March 5. 7:30 p.m. Thursday, 8 p.m., Friday, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday.
Where: Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts, 12700 Center Court Drive, Cerritos. Free parking adjacent to the theater.
Tickets: $40-$85, plus handling fees per ticket. Group and student discounts available.
The visuals are gorgeous in 3–D Theatricals’ production of the infrequently produced “Once on This Island.” Costuming, lighting, choreography — everything that appeals to the eye gets a lavish treatment in this lively, charming show.
Unfortunately, at least on opening night, too many of the voices sounded off-pitch and the lyrics were too often indecipherable.
The 1990 musical, with book and lyrics by Lynn Ahrens, music by Stephen Flaherty (both of “Ragtime”), is based on the 1985 novel “My Love, My Love; or, The Peasant Girl,” by Rosa Guy.
Island setting
It’s set on a Caribbean island — director Rufus Bonds Jr. specifies Haiti — where color and light are vivid. In this production, days are sunny and earthy, nights are neon and gods are jewel-toned. Under Jean-Yves Tessier’s rich lighting, Stephen Gifford’s revolving set evokes warm sands and lush greenery, and Nephi Garcia’s costuming establishes the characters while making the audience want to leap onto the stage and join the party.
In the story, a little girl (Kayla Joy Smith), frightened by a thunderstorm, is calmed by her fellow islanders who tell her a tale to pass the time. They sing of a young girl named Ti Moune (Smith again), orphaned by a storm and found in a tree by the kindly Mama Euralie (Erika Bowman) and Tonton Julian (Keith Jefferson).
Ti Moune grows up (Leah Stewart), lovely but coveting life on the other side of the island, where richer, whiter people live a fast life. She prays to the gods in “Waiting for Life.” And as gods do in literature, they bicker and then challenge her with overly literal interpretations of her requests in “And the Gods Heard Her Prayer.”
Then the goddess of love (Daebreon Poiema) suggests love can conquer all. Relenting, the god of water (Jay Donnell) will provide the place where she will meet her true love. The mother of Earth (Dominique Kent) promises Ti Moune safe passage. The top-hatted demon of death (Edred Utomi) offers Ti Moune an escape clause from his ultimate price.
And so, Ti Moune meets Daniel (Cooper Howell) when he crashes his car on her side of the island. She nurses the unconscious lad, smitten and faithful to his care.
The ending of Ti Moune’s life has purpose and hope, but it is unhappy.
Audio issues
Unhappily here, the sound of the show is problematic. The audio system might have been awry on opening night, when lyrics for plot-establishing songs couldn’t be fully understood. Also partly to blame, too few singers enunciated as well as the better ones did.
And too many of the singers seem to have learned vocal production from popular culture rather than from formal training, so loudness takes precedence over pitch and dynamics.
But the cast fully and ebulliently commits to Yusuf Nasir’s spirited, African-inspired choreography, as Bonds’ staging seems to effortlessly breeze through this 90-minute intermissionless show.
And, happily, there’s purpose and hope for a new generation of performers. Here, congratulations to the very young children’s ensemble of Kennedy Nibbe, Mackenzie Nibbe and Inaya Reddick, each of whom, along with Smith, joyfully nails the choreography.
(The production was reviewed at Redondo Beach Performing Arts Center. It moves to Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts for the final two weekends of its run.)
Dany Margolies is a Los Angeles-based writer.
Once on This Island
Rating: 3 stars.
When: 8 p.m. Friday, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday.
Where: Redondo Beach Performing Arts Center, 1935 E. Manhattan Blvd., Redondo Beach. Free parking adjacent to the theater.
Tickets: $25-$100, plus $3 handling fee per ticket. Group, student and rush discounts available.
Length: 1 hr. 30 mins., no intermission.
Suitability: Best for mature teens and adults.
Information: 714-589-2770, ext. 1; 3dtshows.com.
ALSO
When: Feb. 24 to March 5. 7:30 p.m. Thursday, 8 p.m., Friday, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday.
Where: Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts, 12700 Center Court Drive, Cerritos. Free parking adjacent to the theater.
Tickets: $40-$85, plus handling fees per ticket. Group and student discounts available.
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