Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike
Performed: May 5- 8, 2016
Written by Christopher Durang. Directed by Blake White.
Featuring Megan Bowers, Christopher Joel Onken, Jim Stark, Peggy Trecker White, Kendra Williams and Jenny Zmarzly.
Scenic Design by Shannon Robert, Lighting Design by Tony Penna, Sound Design by Christopher Wilson and Costume Design by Nora Leahy.
Photos courtesy of thefrenchguyphotography.
Press for Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike
Review: ‘Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike’ makes Lean Ensemble theater company one to watch
The Island Packet May 2016
So much works in Lean Ensemble’s latest production — “Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike” — that it’s hard to single out any one particular element over another.
The Christopher Durang play, about sibling rivalry, change and a sense of being disconnected, opened Thursday night at the Hilton Head Preparatory School Main Street Theatre on Hilton Head.
But two scenes in particular stand out.
The first, only in order of appearance, is when the perpetually self-pitying Sonia, played by the amazing Jenny Zmarzly, takes the proverbial leap of faith and finally agrees to something.
I won’t spoil what that something is here, but suffice it to say it’s a charming if not nearly tear-producing scene in which a woman finally takes action on her own behalf after a lifetime of inaction.
The second scene, involving the loveable but ever-adrift Vanya, played brilliantly by the equally amazing Jim Stark, is a breathtaking monologue on everything from a loss of innocence to alienation through technology.
In the hands of lesser talents, these and other scenes could have played as precious or overly-wrought in tone. But both Zmarzly and Stark deliver them in such nuanced ways that audience members were spellbound.
Lean Ensemble Presents "Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike"
Hilton Head Monthly April 2016
Spend a madcap weekend in Bucks County farmhouse with a trio of siblings that could be straight out of Checkhov... except the playwright Christopher Durang has shredded, chopped and pureed them into a rollicking comedy about a dysfunctional family.
Lean Ensemble Theater's production of the Tony and Drama Desk Award-winning "Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike" features ensemble members Jim Stark, Peggy Trecker White and Jenny Zmarzly along with Megan Bowers, Christopher Joel Onken, and Kendra Williams, who will make their Lowcountry debuts. The uproarious comedy is directed by Blake White.
Hilton Head theater company takes on “Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike”
The Island Packet April 2016
Sibling rivalry, familial responsibilities and even technological overkill are at the center of a new Lean Ensemble production coming up this week on Hilton Head Island.
The theater company will close out its first full season with the Tony award-winning comedy “Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike” by the American playwright Christopher Durang.