Interview: Cassandra Marie Murphy's Sharpening Her Acting Chops in SWEENEY TODD: THE DEMON BARBER OF FLEET STREET
A Noise Within puts their unique spin on Stephen Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler’s Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street opening February 17, 2024 (with previews starting February 11th). ANW’s co-producing artistic director Julia Rodriguez-Elliott directs the cast of: Geoff Elliott, James Everts, Amber Liekhus, Joanna A. Jones, Jeremy Rabb, Cassandra Marie Murphy, Kasey Mahaffy, Josey Montana McCoy and Harrison White. Cassandra, who plays the cutting role of Mrs. Lovett, graciously took time from juggling her rehearsals with her motherly duties to answer a few of my queries.
Review: A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM at A Noise Within
Visually and acoustically, from performances to pacing, this DREAM directed by Julia Rodriguez-Elliott and Geoff Elliott is so beautifully thought out and rendered that the Noise Within brain-trust should consider filming it for posterity.
Photos: A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM Opens This Weekend At A Noise Within
A delightful, yet deeply resonant, production of ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ by William Shakespeare opens this weekend at Pasadena's A Noise Within, with co-artistic directors Julia Rodriguez-Elliott and Geoff Elliott at the helm. Check out the photos from this enormously imaginative production below.
Review: THE BOOK OF WILL at A Noise Within
Gunderson’s storytelling and her love of Shakespeare is another. It’s also icing on a most tasty cake that may not be for all palates. If you get the running gag of a character’s passion for PERICLES, this one’s for you.
A Noise Within's Daring To Love Season Closes With THE BOOK OF WILL
A Noise Within's 'Daring to Love' season fittingly closes with a love letter - to William Shakespeare and a life in the theater. Geoff Elliott and Julia Rodriguez-Elliott co-direct The Book of Will, a comically outlandish but true story of love, loss and laughter by Lauren Gunderson.
Free Reading of AN IMPROBABLE FICTION Comes to A Noise Within
A Noise Within's “Noise Now” community engagement series presents a staged reading of An Improbable Fiction. It's plague time, and Shakespeare's characters are out of sorts (and out of work). Several of our favorites Shakespearean characters reunite at the Boar's Head Tavern to celebrate life and ruminate on the state of the world.
Review: THE INHERITANCE PARTS 1 & 2 at Geffen Playhouse
THE INHERITANCE is designed to make an audience feel quite a few different kinds of emotions: sadness certainly over lives lost and squandered; seething bitterness over a country adrift; humor over the many creative ways in which smart people cope and endure; and perhaps even a strong inclination to read or stream E.M. Forster’s HOWARDS END.
Interview: With One Life to Live Tuc Watkins Makes the Most of His INHERITANCE
The Geffen Playhouse west coast premieres the Stephen Daldry production of four-time Tony Award winner The Heritance October 16, 2022 (already in previews). Mike Donahue directs the all-out cast of Bill Brochtrup, Tantoo Cardinal, Juan Castano, Jay Donnell, Israel Erron Ford, August Gray Gall, Adam Kantor, Eddie Lopez, Kasey Mahaffy, Miguel Pinzon, Avi Roque, Bradley James Tejeda and Tuc Watkins. Tuc carved out some time from his rehearsals to chat about this Matthew López production, as well as, some of his career highlights.
BWW Review: METAMORPHOSES at A Noise Within
Tales of Midas, Orpheus, Aphrodite, Lucina, Alcyone, Iris, Phaeton, and Ceyx cohese together like a perfectly simmered, aromatic stew of human passion, sex, humor, greed, whimsey, and heartbreak in a rare revival of Mary Zimmerman's multi-award winning theatrical event, METAMORPHOSIS at A Noise Within.
BWW Interview: Julia Rodriguez-Elliott METAMORPHOSizeS ANW's 30th Anniversary Season
A Noise Within’s next production Mary Zimmerman's Metamorphoses will open May 14, 2022, with previews beginning May 8th. A re-envisioning of ancient Greek myths for a modern audience, Metamorphoses is set entirely in and around an on-stage swimming pool. ANW’s co-producing artistic director Julia Rodriguez-Elliott directs a cast of ten ANW resident artists who tackle over 85 roles in six myths: Alan Blumenfeld, DeJuan Christopher, Geoff Elliott, Rafael Goldstein, Nicole Javier, Kasey Mahaffy, Sydney A. Mason, Trisha Miller, Cassandra Marie Murphy and Erika Soto. Julia took some time from her multiple duties as Metamorphoses’ director and ANW’s co-producing artistic director to discuss Metamorphoses logistics, as well as her successful working relationship with co-producing artistic director husband Geoff Elliott.
BWW Review: Languid Production of FRANKENSTEIN Will Have No One Clamoring, “It's Alive!”
The California Premiere of Nick Dear's adaptation of Frankenstein features a heartbreaking performance by Michael Manuel as a creature born innocent but ugly, taught to hate and rebel against humanity. Manuel carries the production on his hulking shoulders, which becomes crippling due to a confounding script and unusually lifeless direction from Los Angeles star director Michael Michetti.
BWW Interview: Expert Class Clown Kasey Mahaffy Transforms Seriously in FRANKENSTEIN
The California premiere of Nick Dear's adaptation of Mary Shelley's classic novel, FRANKENSTEIN, launches A Noise Within's 2019-2020 season August 11, 2019. Much in-demand director Michael Michetti helms Michael Manuel as The Creature and Kasey Mahaffy as Dr. Victor Frankenstein, presenting Shelley's tale from the atypical perspective of The Creature.
Having seen Kasey in ANW's stunning MAN OF LA MANCHA and the hysterical NOISES OFF, I jumped at the chance to interview this talented actor/performer.