by John Kander, Fred Ebb & David Thompson
The Lyceum Theatre
Susan Stroman, Director
2010
Hey, Hey, Hey!
Colman Domingo, John Cullum, Forrest McClendon & company
Commencing in Chatanooga
James T. Lane, Derrick Cobey, Julius Thomas III, Joshua Henry, Sharon Washington, Josh Breckenridge, Kendrick Jones, Rodney Hicks, Jeremy Grumbs & Christian Dante White
Jail
Joshua Henry, Rodney Hicks, Derrick Cobey & company
Locked in the Box
Joshua Henry and Julius Thompson III
Make Friends with the Truth
Joshua Henry and Kendrick Jones
Chain Gang
Joshua Henry & company
Zat So
Sharon Washington, Derrick Cobey, John Cullum, Joshua Henry & Forrest McClendon
“Ms. Stroman offers some of her most effortlessly vibrant work since “The Producers,” exploiting a minimal set by Beowulf Boritt — a series of girdered prosceniums and an array of silver-painted chairs — to conjure the airy freedom of train travel, the claustrophobic terrors of prison and the raucous atmosphere of the courtrooms.” ~Charles Isherwood, The New York Times
“The production design maintains the musical's tight aesthetic. Beowulf Boritt's sets and Ken Billington's lighting insinuate just enough flash into the attractive severity to keep us mindful that we're watching a stage performance within a stage performance.” ~Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times
“Stroman, with set designer Beowulf Boritt, has used little scenery, choosing instead a collection of silver chairs that interlock to create everything from a train to a jail to a courtroom to a bus. The fact that the nine accused men construct each adds to the irony.” ~Mark Kennedy, The Associated Press
“Minimal set by Beowulf Boritt works perfectly within the concept” ~Steven Suskin, Variety
“The always clever Beowulf Boritt doesn’t have much of a budget, so he opts for a bunch of chairs and places them in intriguing positions.” ~Peter Filichia, Theatermania
"The Scottsboro Boys is enhanced brilliantly through the fluency of Beowulf Boritt's spare setting of skewed prosceniums.” ~Michael Sommers, NJ Newsroom
“Stroman seems to know exactly when pyrotechnics are required, she has also obtained fine work from her designers. Beowulf Borrit's setting, a series of ever-more precariously tipping prosceniums.” ~David Barbour, Lighting and Sound America
“The production, guided with elegant simplicity by Stroman, unfolds with rapid fluidity on a stage that scenic designer Beowulf Boritt frames with skewed proscenium arches that echo the show's off-kilter approach to the story. The other elements of his design are a dozen chairs and a few boards, which are inventively rearranged to represent a variety of locations.” ~Andy Propst, Theatermania