NEWS
“Pinkalicious” Review: Audiences of all Ages Love Everything in Pink
It was hard to tell who cheered the loudest—excited little kids in the front row benches at the Armour Street Theatre or beaming adults filling all the other seats on opening night. The house went dark save for an elegant, brightly lit stage smeared in pink where a cast of young actors from Davidson Community Players’ Connie Company vividly unraveled the story of Pinkalicious, a musical fantasy.
Cassidy Wade as Pinkalicious. (Katie Mullis photo)
The Connie Company’s version of Pinkalicious under the direction of Emily Klingman features a cast of six to sixteen-year-old youngsters, some with experience in previous youth productions, others making their debut on the Armour Street boards. All the vivacious youthful thespians obviously enjoyed themselves, singing and cavorting around everything pink to musical tunes directed by Jenny Carroll.
The backdrop of a sparkling city skyline all in pink was fantastic to behold, thanks to the creativity of Set Designer Andrea Santos. Interesting costumes, designed by Beth Killion for lead players and Ensemble dancers alike, were remarkable, with changes made for each song and dance choreographed by Sierra Key. What a group of hoofers! They even sport heart-shaped pink sunglasses to block out the sun created by Lighting Designer Jessica Zingher.
The story, obviously familiar to the youngsters on the audience benches, evolved around Pinkalicious, a capricious young teenager who loves pink
Bailey Rowles, Jack McRee, Cassidy Wade and Lia Smith (Katie Mullis photo)
cupcakes, played by Cassidy Wade. Despite warnings by her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Pinkerton, played by Jack McRee and Bailey Rowles, the stubborn youngster indulged herself with too many cakes.
During a nighttime, sparkling, wand-waving musical dream scene, Pinkalicious turned entirely pink and was taken to see Dr. Wink, portrayed by Kennedy Bishop. Lia Smith played Pinkalicious’s brother, Peter, and Rylee Vogel portrayed her best friend, Alison.
Concerned about a cure for her condition, Pinkalicious was visited by a pair of singing Birds, played by Johanna Yurina and Hadley Ashcraft, two vivacious Butterflies, portrayed by Brianna Goodman and Sam Kaplan, and a pair of dancing Bees, played by Grace Brunelle and Libby Rhea.
An Ensemble of dancing singers joined the birds and insects surrounding the pink protagonist, including Anascott Bryan, Katie Kieley, Maelle Kuzin, Miles Oddman, Ella Pizza, Penelope Tew, and JP Yurina.
The Pinkerton family: Lia Smith as Peter, Bailey Rowles as Mom, Jack McRee as Dad and Cassidy Wade as Pinkalicious (Katie Mullis photo)
Without a doubt, the show is pink, spirited, and energetic. While the doctor introduceed a touch of maturity, the Pinkerton family scenes are endearing, adding everyday reality. It was interesting to watch such nascent actors implement stagecraft magic. Best of all, it’s terrific to witness the spontaneous engagement into the scenes by young audience-goers. They are the ones who eventually will go on to keep live-theatre alive!
“Pinkaalicious” performances have been rescheduled. There will be two shows a day on May 13, 14, and 15. Visit the Players website for more information about purchasing tickets.
Connie Fisher
Connie Fisher, neé Consuelo Carmona, is a Davidson resident who grew up in Mexico City where she became a journalist and acquired a taste for the theatre. Her preference for work behind the scenes led to an interest in writing reviews—Yale Rep among her favorite troupes. Connie is the author of Doing it the Right Way, the biography of an Italian hatmaker. Her prose appears with 87 other international writers in The Widows’ Handbook. An active, founding member of Lake Norman Writers, Connie just released her latest book, "The Mongrel, Bi-cultural Adventures of a Latina-Scandinavian Youth," a memoir about her years growing up in Mexico.