COMEDY

Media Reviews

• Event Name: Over the River and Through the Woods
  Article: "...vivacious, detailed staging... laugh-aloud funny."
  The Seattle Times - May 24, 2008
  By Misha Berson

  "...vivacious, detailed staging... laugh-aloud funny."
  

• Event Name: Over the River and Through the Woods
  Article: "...a volcano about to erupt laughs, tears, wisdom and Italian-American family experience." "I'm still rollicking."
  The Enterprise Newspapers - May 23, 2008
  By Dale Burrows

  "...a volcano about to erupt laughs, tears, wisdom and Italian-American family experience." "I'm still rollicking."
  

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• Event Name: Over the River and Through the Woods
  "Event Review"
  Review posted by: Nov 30, -0001
  

  What a lovely show! As most smaller houses struggle to mine what's newest and freshest, Taproot plugs on with programming aimed directly at their base. "Over The River and Through The Woods" is a... Expand

  What a lovely show! As most smaller houses struggle to mine what's newest and freshest, Taproot plugs on with programming aimed directly at their base. "Over The River and Through The Woods" is a well-crafted play by Joe DiPietro ("I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change") about family, heritage, growing up, and ultimately breaking away, an often necessary and sometimes heart-breaking step towards actualization. Taproot's current prodution finds a perfect pacing and balance for this material, which could easily ring hollow and forced in the wrong production hands. Director Scott Nolte and cast have concocted a loving, touching and funny homage to family, food and faith that manages to skirt the mundane, the overly nostalgic and other common landmines of memory plays. The cast is stellar from A to Z. Kevin Brady is appealing and delightful as the main character, Nick. Gretchen Douma, Bill Johns, Nolan Palmer and Kim Morris are AMAZING as Nick's four grandparents. All four actors nail the Italian immigrants lovingly, with dignity and panache. Charity Parenzini rounds out the cast well as the self-conscious and endearing Caitlin, a blind date the grandparents have arranged for Nick as a means to keep him on the East Coast. I was surpised to find a line formed at the theatre when I arrived at 7pm on this "PWYC" Wednesday. The house was mostly full and most folks arrived early to get the best of festival seating. The audience throughout the two act play was engaged, delighted. No tragic hipness here, no forced standing ovations, no baffled discussions afterwards. ("What did it mean?!") Just pure, unadultered good theatre that is lovingly prepared, much like the many meals we watch taking place in "Over The River and Through The Woods." Don't miss this-- it runs through June 14! Collapse