Tucker Everlasting

 

Introduction:

    Hello everyone! Right before we have TWO shows in one week (with some great extra content), here is my review of Toms River High School South's musical, Tuck Everlasting! However, I acknowledge that this review is coming EXTREMELY late (like a week late) from when I watched the show, so my memory is slightly unreliable. However, I did take notes while watching the show, so my review will be based on those. Without further ado, let's talk about Tuck Everlasting!

Synopsis:

   Based on an American children's novel of the same name, Tuck Everlasting details the life of eleven-year-old Winnie Foster. Winnie yearns for a life of adventure beyond her house with her mother and nana. She then meets the Tuck Family, and her life is full of new experiences. However, once she learns of the Tuck's secret, she has to protect them from those who would do anything to obtain their eternal youth. As her involvement with the Tuck Family continues, Winnie eventually has to choose between returning to her life or living with the Tucks for eternity.

Review:

         I have a confession to make. After the dumpster fire that was Radium Girls (it was not that bad, I like to exaggerate), I was not expecting Tuck Everlasting to impress me. I would be supportive since I love musicals, but would I have loved it? I did not think so. Throughout that whole night, though, I remember being on an emotional rollercoaster in a good way.

    Let us start with the positives, shall we? If there is one MAJOR improvement from Radium Girls, it is the acting. God, it was fantastic. You know the acting is good if the actors and actresses get you to sympathize with them, cry because of them, and laugh at them all within one show. Does the plot have something to do with that? Why yes, but the execution makes the writing work, and the Toms River South Theatre Guild members did a fantastic job on the stage conveying their characters. You would have never thought these were the same actors and actresses performing Radium Girls back in November. They were less stiff, their energy was infectious, and overall, there was a better dynamic between the cast on stage. Overall, my favorite characters acting-wise were Winnie Foster, Angus Tuck, and Man in the Yellow Suit. These three especially stuck out with their impeccable line delivery and facial expressions. The Man in the Yellow Suit especially had me bending over in laughter whenever he came on stage, which was the whole point of his character.

    Another thing these kids killed was the set design. Tarzan had an impressive set design, the best of the three public Toms River High Schools. Radium Girls... there was not much to do, but it is no surprise that the sets here were stellar once again. My favorite set was the Tuck family's house. It looked like a home with all the furniture and decorations on the set, giving the place a homey feel. The tree branches, which looked painted, looked incredible. My only gripe is that there were these hanging curtains, and I am unsure if they were supposed to be the trees' leaves or clouds. But either way, they were honestly ugly. On the topic of set design, let's also discuss props since they are related. The props were fun, especially the boat with wheels and the frog. They were so committed to the frog someone made croaking sounds for it. Now that is commitment and hilarious. It was also extremely funny seeing a boat move across the stage because it had wheels, reminding me of Spongebob's boatmobile. And since I am discussing crew stuff here, I might as well bring up the lights. Lighting was alright, nothing too special. The purple lighting gave the show an air of mystery and calmness but did not stand out. Regardless, all of the crew stuff was good.

    And, can I say the songs in this musical were terrific? Because they were. And the actors and actresses had the voices to execute them properly. I have no clue why, but these songs were incredible. I had fun listening to all of them; there was never a dull moment. The choreography of the songs was also outstanding. I had a fun time watching them dance on stage, and the dance at the end showing what happened to Winney as she grew up was beautiful. A+ songs and choreography, for sure. 

    The plot of the musical itself was incredibly engaging. To people's surprise, I had never read Tuck Everlasting, so I entered this show blindly. This show made me want to read the book. The only weird thing I thought about the show was how they were forcing this romantic relationship between Winnie Foster, an 11-year-old girl, and Jesse Tuck, a 102-year-old stuck who looks like a 16-year-old boy. Either way, it was weird,  and I did NOT appreciate it. Maybe I misinterpreted it, but Jesse asking Winnie to "wait until she is 16" to drink the water of eternity so she could be with him and get married was offputting. Just have the two be best friends, and that is it. Regardless of that, I found the themes explored in this musical to be incredibly intriguing. No one wants to die, yet what would happen if we could live forever? That is what the plot addresses and shows the audience that living forever is not what it is all cracked up to be. It was a chilling but much-needed message, as people fear death and want to escape it when they should live life to the fullest since the next day is not always guaranteed.

    I have a lot to say about this show's positives. However, we must move on to the negatives too. But first, here is a list of my favorite quotes throughout the show:

• "You're an evil banana."
• "You TRICKED me! We CLIMBED a tree!"
• "I've got me the best man on the case, ME!"
• "YAHOO!"

    This show did not have as many funny moments as The Lightning Thief, sadly.

    But now, onto the negatives. While mic issues are typical, they still happened frequently enough that I remembered them during the show I went to. The actors and actresses of the main cast were incredible, but the ensemble felt lackluster. This especially showed in the choreography, as some were often off-timing. I was also confused with the spirits. This is likely because I did not read the show, but why were some ensemble members' roles "spirit"? That is what I want to know. Other than those questions and minor complaints, Tuck Everlasting was excellent.

Conclusion:

     Tuck Everlasting was worth the money. For just $5, I watched a charming show that pleasantly surprised me about the Toms River High School South Theatre Guild. Quite the steal if you ask me. I laughed, almost cried, and smiled from seeing Winnie Foster develop from this meek 11-year-old wishing for adventure to an old lady living life to the fullest. The musical was filled with talent, and I am ecstatic to see where they go next.

The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical

 

Introduction:

    Hello everyone! I am officially back with ANOTHER show review. That's right, ladies and gents; it is officially theatre season ONCE AGAIN. First up is the show The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical from Toms River High School North's Nautical Stars Theater Company! We are in for quite an interesting review. This musical is based on Rick Riordan's first book in the Percy Jackson series, The Lightning Thief. Before this review continues any further, I have a confession: Growing up, I attempted to read the Percy Jackson series, and it never worked out, so I never really liked the books. Gasp, I know I, know, I sinned for not loving this beloved book series. So, I have to give a warning; going into this show, I was already biased against it due to my feelings toward its source material. But, I am going to be objective for this review.

Synopsis:

           Percy Jackson thought he was an average kid. Turns out he is not, as he is the half-blood son of a Greek god. As a result, this causes Percy to have newly-discovered powers he can't control, a destiny he never wanted, and mythological monsters trying to capture him. Things get even worse for him when Zeus's master lightning bolt is stolen, and Percy is now the crime's prime suspect. Now, he has to find and return the bolt to prove he is innocent and prevent a war from breaking between the gods. To do this, he has to not only catch the thief but also travel to the underworld and back, solve the riddle of the Oracle, and come to terms with his absent father. Not to mention, a close friend allegedly betrays him in the process.

Review:

  To be honest, I thought this was going to be another Tarzan. I was, however, pleasantly wrong. Even though the source material is subjectively bad, I had a fun time watching this show. It was an extremely entertaining show to watch. Not to mention, incredibly well put together. 

    Let's first touch on the positives. After all, we love keeping things light and upbeat. The lighting? INCREDIBLE. It was so fun with all the blinking lights representing lightning striking. The lighting crew also emphasized the main characters at the correct times. The blue light was also used to convey the feel of the ocean, which was honestly great thinking. Overall, 10/10 lighting. The props were also fun! I still remember one of the swords used for a fight scene being a lightsaber, and that is honestly iconic. Not to mention, the Taco Bell bell went off as the elevator ding in one of the scenes, and it was so funny I started cracking up. You can tell the kids were having fun on stage based on the props and effects they had. Also, a smokescreen was used, adding an air of mystery that was very much needed. The acting was also spot-on. Now to be fair, I sat in the back as an usher, so I could not see the facial expressions too well. But, based on the emotions the actors conveyed through their voices, it was breathtaking how well everyone embodied their characters. I thought Percy, Hades, Grover, Annabeth, and Mr. D. all especially played their roles well. And do not even get me started on the SINGING. The singing was beautiful, oh my god, especially Percy's voice, and honestly, it made the songs 10x better.

    Speaking of the songs, they were BANGER after BANGER after BANGER. Who knew rock songs would fit so well for this show; I certainly did not. But then again, Percy is a moody, angsty teenager, so in a way, it honestly fits. My favorite song was "Another Terrible Day," where Mr. D (D for Dionysus) goes on and on about how terrible being a camp counselor at Camp Half-Blood is. The actor portraying him did a fantastic job embodying how tired he was. Now that I think about it, there were not many songs in this musical, at least compared to Tuck Everlasting. (That's a spoiler for another review!)

    One last thing to note was the themes explored in this show because, wow, I was not expecting it. Then again, that is because I did not know ANYTHING about what happened in the books due to my poor impression of it. The representation in this show is crazy, maybe not in terms of racial diversity, but in terms of showing what it is like living with non-communicable diseases like ADHD and dyslexia. That is right, folks; there is a character with ADHD and dyslexia in the story. Can you take a wild guess on who it is? If you said Percy, you are correct! It is refreshing to know that a main character is challenged with those kinds of conditions since there are many main characters who end up being a Mary Sue. In addition, the show already has a theme of parental neglect in the performance, which is honestly crazy but incredible that it was being developed so early on. 

    Before I discuss the negatives, I would like to quote some of my favorite quotes from the show:

• "The gods are real... like the Greek gods"
• "Daddy doesn't love me and mommy is a god"
• "The only thing I seem destined for is detention"
• "Wait, did you just say half-blood, half-god?" "Yes and I half care"
• "Turns out he's not just a deadbeat, he's a deadbeat GOD"
• "I met the guy once and once was enough"

     As you can tell, I had a fun time watching this show. The jokes were funny, what can I say?

    And before I officially move on, we have to talk about fashion for a second. Like the Bratz dolls, I, too, have a "passion for fashion." To keep things short and sweet, they were amazing and fit the early 2010s vibes The Lightning Thief encapsulates.

    Now onto the negatives. I am going to be honest; there is not much to say. The dancing was unsynchronized at certain times, nothing too bothersome. However, what was highly annoying was the constant mic issues occurring throughout the show. The mic kept cutting in and out throughout most of the show. While mic issues are usual, they should not happen frequently or noticeably. Other than that, though, the show was fantastic.

Conclusion:

    The Lightning Thief was a fantastic show. Because I hated (and still hate) the source material, it was a miracle I loved the musical. This was an AMAZING start to the 2023 spring edition of Toms River Theatre Extravaganza. Before I end this, shout out to the concession stand workers; they were terrific and had better service than the people at Donovan.