Production History:
| May 2008
Directed by Angela Astle Stage Managed by Larry Pease Featuring: Mark Armstrong, Lauren Kelston, Mike
Mihm, Kristen Vaughan "Retro Productions does a fine job of bringing small town America to life.... There are many things working in their favor. The entire cast is solid, with standout performances by Mark Armstrong as Bo and Kristen Vaughan as his alcoholic, long suffering wife Sunny. The set design by Jack and Rebecca Cunningham uses the space efficiently with a keen eye for detail, and Kathryn Squitieri's costumes evoke the era perfectly... I felt pulled into the story by the talent of the cast... Kudos to Lauren Kelston for walking such a fine line with a very difficult part." - Peter Schuyler, nytheatre.com "A lyrical chorus of three widows aids the time shifts, as does the sound design by Amy Altadonna, which includes realistic hospital noises. [Kelston] brings affecting emotional power. Armstrong conveys just the right amount of likeability and helplessness as a company man whose loyalties are shifting. Vaughan's Sunny is particularly strong as she alternates between tipsy anger and pleading wifeliness. Jim Kilkenny gives a quiet and compelling portrayal as both a minister and an OSHA investigator. Kathryn Squitieri's costumes and Heather E. Cunningham's props are evocative, down to the black square frames on Kilkenny's eyeglasses. Director Angela Astle keeps the play moving to a point of catharsis." - Gwen Orel, Backstage "Astle has a keen eye for casting, as all the actors were refreshingly powerful and astute in their portrayals. Lauren Kelston as Marlene attacks the play with strength and zest; Mark Armstrong delivered a still virtue to his character and graced all situations with momentum and honesty. High praises to Kristen Vaughan, who handled Sunny’s alcoholism with compassion, and showed us the many layers of loneliness while alongside others. Jack and Rebecca Cunningham did an exquisite job at turning the Spoon Theatre into an appropriate 70’s setting. The costumes by Kathryn Squitieri also gave this world the finished effect of a “retro production.”" - Antonio Miniňo, The Fab Marquee New York Magazine "Off-off Broadway Pick" May 19, 2008 Nominated for 5 2008 New York Innovative Theater Awards. |
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| November 2007
Directed by Ric Sechrest Featuring: Lauren Coppola, Heather E. Cunningham, Lauren
Kelston, "The Retro Company's production WHAT I DID LAST SUMMER, a play of mine last seen in New York twenty-five years ago, turned out to be first-rate: brisk, sweet and occasionally quite moving, if I say so myself." A. R. GURNEY, playwright, What I Did Last Summer Nominated for a 2008 New York Innovative Theater Award for Costume Design. |
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| February/March 2007
Directed by Ric Sechrest Set and Graphics by Jack and Rebecca Cunningham Starring: Heather E. Cunningham, Erik Potempa, and Kristen Vaughan.
"As the deeply dissatisfied estranged wife of a
Vietnam vet in Retro Productions' presentation of Emily Mann's play,
Heather E. Cunningham burst with working-class outrage and
resentment yet made you care for this lost soul without begging for
sympathy. And in an evening of three monologues, she played off the
other two actors, never showily but always eloquently. " - Marc
Miller,
"The pains of readjustment
are sharply rendered in Still Life, which might be described as
an emotional strip-tease in triplicate... Still Life lives
up to its title: three talking heads, two tables, and virtually no
action. Yet the talk is compelling... Potempa's Mark... he has
the working-class accent and the angst right... Cunningham
and Vaughan are marvels, both subtly defying expectations about
their characters' roles in Mark's life. Even in repose, and there's a
lot of it, each stays in character, forcing us to confront Cheryl's
bitterness and Nadine's complicated earth-mother makeup even when
they're not front and center. Director Ric Sechrest smartly
varies the rhythms of the characters' delivery, making them sound
spontaneous as they ponder a bleak, nearly hopeless landscape." -
Marc Miller,
"This is a superb production of the play. I have stopped going to see productions of STILL LIFE because the ones I saw (save for the ones in Europe) rarely captured the devastating power of the original. Your production got it. It was also thrilling to see it in a tiny space. You made magic in the 78th Street Theater Lab. Every aspect of the experience was first rate. Retro is clearly a company dedicated to creating impeccable work that truly matters." - EMILY MANN, playwright, Still Life |
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| March 2006 (as River Heights Productions)
Directed by Megan R. Wills
Sets, Costumes and Properties by Viviane Galloway Starring: Elizabeth Burke, Heather E. Cunningham, David DiLoretto, Matilda Downey, Jim Kilkenny, India McDonald, and Kristen Vaughan. "This meticulously presented, charming, emotionally affecting play by Doris Baizley is based on a mid-1950s competition to find the best housewife in California... River Heights Productions, a small, fairly new company whose work I did not previously know, does a very impressive job turning the script into theatre. Director Megan R. Wills allows her actors to create characters with great style and flair but without indulging their excesses... Dave DiLoreto and Jim Kilkenny, as men who happen to be involved in the contest, are just right... Viviane Galloway's set is pretty: a series of ovens and stoves carefully and lovingly prepared, like the production itself. " - Michael Lazan, Backstage "Kristen Vaughan, Matilda Downey, and India Myone McDonald, are terrific as the other contestants, as they manage to portray both their doll-like exteriors as well as their own private struggles... Mrs. California is a valiant effort with a lot of heart, and River Heights Productions should be praised for being the first company to bring this marvelous play to New York City. The play is remarkably adept at showing how women have been fighting to be treated as individuals for generations, and how “femininity” (and perhaps “feminism”) is an ever-changing concept. It also highlights a very important message—that behind every great woman is another great woman who is her friend." - Josephine Cashman, www.nytheatre.com (NYTheatre gave us a star! Starred shows are considered to be noteworthy or of special interest by NYTE's editor.) "The play is strongest when we catch a glimpse of the complex personalities that lie beneath the judge-charming caricatures these women have created for themselves. Cunningham believably fleshes out Dot's seemingly mindless character through the slow revealing of hidden facets you wouldn't have guessed she possessed. A climactic speech about her "proudest moment" is stirring and strong, especially in the stunned moment when she trembles with the realization that her mother, aunts, and grandmother fought for equality, and here she stands, a competent woman who saved hundreds of soldiers' lives, struggling to earn respect by ironing a shirt. Within her lies a fiery, determined spirit that has been too easily and thoroughly suppressed." - Adrienne Cea, www.offoffonline.com [Pick of the Week, March 24th, 2006] "Retro’s production of Mrs. California was a real treat for me. The high-spirited team of actors, inventive use of the space, and attention to every detail brought the play to life in so many surprising ways, I forgot I’d written it and just sat back and enjoyed it. Retro’s skillful dedication to work by women playwrights makes me proud to be one." - DORIS BAIZLEY, playwright, Mrs. California |
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| March 2005 (as River Heights Productions)
Directed by Felicia Lipchik Starring: Elizabeth Burke, Blaine Cook, Heather E. Cunningham, and Kimberly Greene. "Catholic School Girls invites you to join the growing pains of four girls attending Grade School in the 1960s... The play has great insight into the tumultuous and confusing times that were the 1960s told through the eyes of the young girls... There's Colleen, an outspoken troublemaker, played with a vibrant energy by Elizabeth Burke. Ms. Burke brings a smooth banter and likeability to a character that could easily turn bratty... Heather E. Cunningham was a knock out as the timid misfit Maria Theresa Russo. Maria struggles with being one in a houseful of siblings, picked on by the nuns and her classmates and it all comes to a quiet and touching boiling point in a stirring monologue. Heather's quiet performance is not easily forgotten... [Blaine M. Cook] ... as the feeble minded Sister Mary Agnes that was too sweet to rap on retirement's door. This character had all sorts of delightful tics and physical jokes that showed Ms. Cook's natural talents... Probably the most fascinating and true to life character is Elizabeth McHugh played by Kimberly Greene... Kimberly's performance was tender and heartbreaking. Her poignant monologue as a 12 year old ending her relationship with God is easily the best moment of the play... Watching this play brought alive stories my mother had told me about attending Catholic School, and indeed how these experiences formed the generation that came before me. If this was RHP's goal, they certainly obtained it." - Akia Squitieri, Theatrescene.net "I was ecstatic when I saw the production of Catholic School Girls by Retro Productions. I don't usually attend productions of the play - however I was intrigued from the moment I saw the alluring, sexy poster. This innovative crew knows how to market and produce! In the middle of 42nd street all the angst and grace of 60's Catholic School Girls were on display via this intelligent, talented company of young actors. A play, I thought I knew so well was full of moments of delightful surprise." - CASEY KURTTI, playwright, Catholic School Girls |
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Performances
to Remember, 2007 
