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The Spitfire Grill
Music and Book by James Valcq
Lyrics and Book by Fred Alley
Directed by Timothy Gregory
Music Directed Valerie Maze
Produced by Provision Theater
At the Theatre Building Chicago
1225 W. Belmont Ave.
Chicago, IL
Call 773-327-5252, tickets $20 - $25
Thursdays thru Saturdays at 7:30 PM
Sundays at 2 PM
Running time is 2 hours with intermission
Through May 21, 2006
The Spitfire Grill is an up lifting folk musical
Provision Theater, under director Timothy Gregory’s leadership, has quietly assembled an impressive body of work over the last two seasons. There latest at the Theatre Building Chicago, The Spitfire Grill is a well sung little folk operetta that tells an inspiring story of redemption and the hopes and dreams of small town America.
Set in rural Wisconsin at the Spitfire Grill where Hannah Ferguson (the amazingly talented Iris Lieberman) runs the diner in a dying rural town. She hires parolee Percy Talbot (the vibrant rich voiced Tempe Thomas) to help her run the restaurant. The town busy-body, Effy (the funny Mierka Girten) tries to keep up on all the gossip while Caleb Thorpe (Jeffrey Baumgartner) Hannah’s nephew is a controlling type determined to control his crumbling extended family. His lonely wife, Shelby (the marvelous singer Susan Moniz) comes to the rescue when Hannah breaks her leg leaving Percy struggling to run the grill.
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Add Sheriff Joe (the golden voiced Jarrod Zimmerman) who is finding his place in the world as well as eying the Percy. This nicely written fable by James Valcq and Fred Alley contains a combination of haunting folksy tunes sung with rich harmonies and emotionally powerful ballads. You’d be hard pressed to find a finer sung musical. Iris Lieberman’s stellar stage presence enriched with her stirring ballads and stinging humor anchors the show. Susan Moniz, a smoothly polished song stylist delivers several wonderful songs. Tempe Thomas has that girl-next-door wholesomeness, excellent acting skills and a strong voice that makes Percy the show’s key character.
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The Spitfire Grill has a terrific book with worthy plot twists and empathetic characters. Everyone is struggling to let go of the past while they search for inspiration and personal redemption. Filled with small town angst and the wonder of living in a forested Wisconsin, The Spitfire Grill unfolds as a beautifully song show with sweet acoustical musical arrangements by Valerie Maze. The Spitfire Grill is a folksy, very human story with loads of heart and a fine book.
Highly Recommended
Tom Williams
Tom99@chicagocritic.com for comments
Talk Theatre in Chicago podcast
Date Reviewed April 23, 2006
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