Blood Brothers Now Closed

A multi-ethnic cast highlights stinging themes of class and poverty when Whitefire artistic director Bryan Rasmussen directs Blood Brothers, the Olivier Award-winning, Tony-nominated musical drama by Willy Russell (Educating Rita, Shirley Valentine). An emotionally intense and sometimes gritty drama with a haunting folk/rock score, Blood Brothers examines the impact of social class on the lives of a single mother and her twin sons who are separated at birth. "I first saw Blood Brothers in London in 1983 and was just blown away," says Rasmussen. "The audience was in tears and gave it a standing ovation - and if you see it in London today, it's still like that. I've been trying to figure out how to do this play for over 25 years. It recently struck me that a multi-ethnic cast would make this very British play about social hierarchy resonate for American audiences. For us, race represents socioeconomic class. In England, Blood Brothers has become a phenomenon of sorts, one of the world's longest-running musicals with a loyal repeat audience - even a cult following: "The audience rose to its feet with near-religious rapture," noted The Mail on Sunday. "A masterpiece - if you haven't seen it, go. If you have, go again," wrote the Sunday Telegraph. The cast at the Whitefire is headed by Pamela Taylor as Mrs. Johnson, a current member of L.A.'s Attic Theatre who recently transplanted from Seattle where she performed in theater and was a regular on the web/TV series 35th Street Mission. Judy Norton, best known as Mary Ellen on the Emmy Award-winning TV series, The Waltons, but also an actress with extensive stage experience who has been co-artistic director of two different Canadian theaters, plays Mrs. Lyons. Mickey is played by Eduardo Enrikez, recently seen by L.A. audiences in the title role in Bat Boy the Musical at the Hudson Mainstage as well as in Schoolhouse Rock Live at the Greenway Court and Is This Anyway to Start a Marriage at the Whitefire. Ryan Nealy, a newcomer to Los Angeles who has performed regionally at the Kennedy Center, Signature Theatre, Round House and Studio Theatres in Washington, D.C., and at the Papermill Playhouse in New Jersey, stars as Eddie. Also in the cast are Debra Arnott, Jess Busterna, Gil Darnell, Mueen Jahan, Nicholas Mongiardo-Cooper and Sita Young. Musical Director is Carson Schutze (the Los Angeles premieres of Tales of Tinseltown at Actor's Co-op and Dreamstuff at the Hayworth Theatre, and Associate Musical Director of the world premiere Sleeping Beauty Wakes for CTG), and Brian Paul Mendoza choreographs. Bryan Rasmussen is an award-winning actor as well as a director, producer, teacher, coach and the artistic director of the Whitefire Theatre. He has produced over 150 shows, including over 50 world premieres, directed a multitude of solo shows, and was the founder of the Itchey Foot Cabaret in Downtown Los Angeles. Most recently, he directed the world premiere solo musical Down the Rabbit Hole with pop star Erin Jividen; the 50th Anniversary production of Harold Pinter's The Dumb Waiter (in which he also performed); the world premiere eco-musical Season of Change; the new solo show Mark Twain in the 21st Century; and the musical-comedy romp Is this Any Way to Start a Marriage. Upcoming projects include the annual holiday hit Winter Tales, followed by The Glass Menagerie in the spring. Blood Brothers is presented by Laura Coker in association with the Whitefire Theatre. Eduardo Enrikez produces. Set design is by Victoria Profitt; Lighting Design is by Derrick McDaniel; Sound Design is by Joseph "Sloe" Slawinski; and costume design is by Susanne Klein.

Reviews: stagescenela.com Recommended BLOOD BROTHERS Blood Brothers is blessed with tremendous performances by its three leading actors. As Mrs. Johnston, who gives away one of her twins, Pamela Taylor proves herself an actress of power and a singer with a voice to break hearts. Eduardo Enrikez does absolutely sensational work as street urchin Mickey, and Ryan Nealy is equally wonderful as Eddie, his prim-and-proper rich kid twin brother. Darkly handsome Gil Darnell is a seductively sinister narrator. Musical director Carson Schutze leads a fine three-piece band. Even Americanized, Willy Russell’s story remains a powerful one. Under Bryan Rasmussen’s direction, Taylor, Enrikez, and Nealy perform with undeniable heart, soul, and voice, and whenever they are center stage, Blood Brothers can’t help but soar. Grigwaretalkstheatre.com CRITIC'S PICK Blood Brothers book, music and lyrics by Willy Russell Directed by Bryan Rasmussen Whitefire Theatre through November 23 Playwright Willy Russell, like most bold and sensitive writers, envisions something better for his brood of protagonists. Life for many of them, in Britain's lower middle class, is stifling: it depletes the mind as well as the pursestrings. Rita in Educating Rita seeks enlightenment; Shirley in Shirley Valentine wants real appreciation as a woman; Mickey's impoverished mother in Blood Brothers unconsciously wishes that the son she gave away reluctantly at birth will reap the benefits of his new privileged family. As most major changes incur imperfections, there is a price to be paid, and sometimes that price is human life itself. Bryan Rasmussen's current production of Blood Brothers, which has been his dream child since he first saw the musical on the West End in 1983, is potently unforgettable. Within the small space of the Whitefire Theatre and with the aid of an outstanding cast, Russell's obsession with the effects of socio-economic struggle reverberates with the utmost clarity. The winning ensemble is headed by Pamela Taylor as Mrs. Johnstone. Underprivileged and heartbroken, Johnstone is embued by Taylor with the tiniest grain of hope that shines brightly even at the end. Her performance both in word and song is a stunner. Eduardo Enrikez, an immensely talented actor, paints his Mickey with a wired energy and anguish that starts at age 7 and festers on into his all too brief manhood. Ryan Nealy as Eddie and Sita Young as Linda make the sweetest of star-crossed lovers - we want them to be together, knowing all the while that it is out of the question. Judy Norton lends an edgy sensitivity to an otherwise icy, unbending Mrs. Lyons, and Gil Darnell takes the difficult role of the Narrator, a shadow on the wall and transforms him into an attractively imposing figure of authority. Nicolas Mongiardo-Cooper is a scene stealer as the devilish brother Sammy, and the rest: Mueen Jahan, Debra Arnott and Jess Busterna ably portray a number of parts, under Rasmussen's resourceful hand. "Marilyn Monroe" that opens and "Tell Me It's Not True" that closes the play are haunting musical reminders that the action, as real as it seems, may very well be, like life itself, just an illusion. Praise also to Victoria Profitt for her excellently practical set depiction of the two social worlds. Hardly your typical musical, Blood Brothers is real drama with music and stays with you long after the curtain comes down, especially via this heartfelt rendering. 5 out of 5 stars