{"id":5546,"date":"2013-04-04T19:24:34","date_gmt":"2013-04-05T02:24:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/forallevents.com\/reviews\/?p=5546"},"modified":"2013-10-16T12:02:07","modified_gmt":"2013-10-16T19:02:07","slug":"a-beautiful-piece-of-theater-at-hillbarn","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forallevents.com\/reviews\/a-beautiful-piece-of-theater-at-hillbarn\/","title":{"rendered":"A BEAUTIFUL PIECE OF THEATER AT HILLBARN"},"content":{"rendered":"

Lynn Ruth [rating:5] (5\/5 stars)<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n

HILLBARN THEATRE PRESENTS\u2026..<\/p>\n

JOHN & JEN
\nMusic by Andrew Lippa; Lyrics Tom Greenwald
\nDirected by Jay Manley
\nStarring Alicia Teeter and William Giammona<\/p>\n

Our brothers and sisters are there with us
\nFrom the dawn of our personal stories
\nTo the inevitable dusk.
\nSusan Scarf Merrell<\/p>\n

Cast aside your preconceived notions about what a musical is before you come to this beautifully staged and artistically produced play.\u00a0 Jay Manley has taken a weak text and poorly developed plot and transformed it into a theatrical work of art. jon & jen<\/strong> is the musical story of a sister and brother who protect and love each other, yet are foiled by their own inadequacies.\u00a0 Jen is the older sister determined to protect her baby brother from their dysfunctional parents.\u00a0 Sadly, because she is only a child, she cannot keep him from absorbing their irrational behavior and warped values.\u00a0 She can only give her brother her unconditional love and support.\u00a0 John, determined to defy his sister and get his father\u2019s approval enlists in the army and is killed.\u00a0 When Jen marries, she names her baby after her lost brother and when her own marriage falls apart, she smothers her son with love and protection just as she did her brother.<\/p>\n

It is very difficult to create believable characters when the only vehicle is song.\u00a0 Andrew Lippa\u2019s music and Tom Greenwald\u2019s lyrics are lovely and deep but alone they cannot draw the depth of character we need to fully understand and relate to this poignant story.<\/p>\n

Alicia Teeter is perfectly cast in her role as Jen.\u00a0 She manages to touch our hearts with every note she sings and with every nuance of expression. She is a fine actress to the core.\u00a0 \u00a0Andrew Lippa has a much more challenging job.\u00a0 He must portray a baby and grow up into a man in both acts.\u00a0 He carries it off very well\u2026but the audience must take a leap of faith to believe in the validity of his character.<\/p>\n

And that is where Jay Manley\u2019s genius shines through.\u00a0 By choreographing the movements of these two fine performers and creating costume changes that tell as much of the story as the libretto itself, he carries the story through to its lovely resolution when the two stars sing the unforgettable Every Goodbye Is Hello. <\/em>\u00a0Robert Broadfoot has outdone himself in designing the set\u2026it is simple and yet perfect for action that spans 42 years. He has created four different levels to indicate the many changes of time and place on the spacious open stage at Hillbarn.<\/p>\n

\u201cUltimately this musical play is about familial love, loss, grief, forgiveness of others and self, and most important, moving on \u2013 learning how to let go and forge a way forward,\u201d says Manley.\u00a0 \u201cWho has not been touched by these universal tests?\u201d<\/p>\n

This is not a play for everyone.\u00a0 It is deep and disturbing and will touch your heart, if you let it.\u00a0 Kudos to Hillbarn for including it in their season.\u00a0 jon and jen<\/strong> is a theatrical masterpiece.<\/p>\n

IF YOU GO:<\/p>\n

JON & JEN CONTINUES THROUGH APRIL 7, 2013<\/p>\n

Ticket Flash Sale! $28 tickets to any remaining shows of “john & jen” Enter promo code “HBFLASH” when buying online and instantly save. MORE INFORMATION AT hillbarntheatre<\/strong><\/cite>.org or 650 349 6411<\/cite><\/p>\n

HILLBARN THEATRE is located at 1285 Hillsdale Blvd. in Foster City. <\/cite><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Lynn Ruth [rating:5] (5\/5 stars) HILLBARN THEATRE PRESENTS\u2026.. JOHN & JEN Music by Andrew Lippa; Lyrics Tom Greenwald Directed by Jay Manley Starring Alicia Teeter and William Giammona Our brothers…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"yasr_overall_rating":0,"yasr_post_is_review":"","yasr_auto_insert_disabled":"","yasr_review_type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[837],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-5546","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-joe-cillo"},"yasr_visitor_votes":{"stars_attributes":{"read_only":true,"span_bottom":"