Word: amblad
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...thoroughly annoying and amusing; more effective as a comedian than a singer. He's at his best when he seems to let himself go--as, for instance, when he cuts into a gleeful dance of selfish celebration during "Here's a Howdy-Do." And Erik E. Amblad '98, when he enters in Act II, is unstintingly and unnervingly unflappable as the cheerful, well-intentioned and despotic Mikado of Japan...
...cast itself is chock-full of dynamic players. Amblad and O'Toole, as Petruchio/the Lord-ette and Hortensio/the first Hunter-ette, respectively, show great versatility as actors in their shift from effeminate pranksters to clever, sophisticated noblemen. Jesse Hawkes's cane-waving, unexpectedly spry Gremio stands out as one of the show's best comic touches, as do the hilarious antics of Grumio (Doug Miller) and Biondello (Andrew Mandel '00, a Crimson editor). Even Tranio, played by Adam Green '99, though not as facially expressive as the rest of the cast, has good comic timing and blends in well with...
What does shine through, however, is the actors' energy and the fast-paced humor racing through the show, even if it is mainly slapstick. The production is worth seeing for the prologue alone--Erik Amblad '99 and Chuck O'Toole '97 in particular draw screams of laughter from the audience with their girlish giggles. Everyone's costumes are a hoot, from the prologue's two-sizes-too-small jogging suits to the servants' funky get-ups. Again, once the actual story begins, some of the more original artistic concepts are sacrificed in favor of both Shakespearean traditions and basic silliness...
Everything starts when Goose (Eric Amblad) runs into his best friend Tom-Tom (Michael Lopez-Saenz). The two cuss at each other, gleefully plan to use their new guns on someone, and discuss how Goose thinks he's a frog and Tom-Tom fears he's haunted by witches. They also joke about kidnapping Bingo's sister so Goose can have sex with her. Enter Loraine (Jordanna Brodsky), Tom-Tom's petite and insane lover who has both men so wrapped around her fingers that they let her put pins into their voodoo dolls' arms to prove their manliness...
Goose and Tom-Tom are by far the most realistic characters in the show. Goose is played with the same enthusiastic and endearing stupidity--but none of the goofy "Hee-Haw" type humor--that Amblad brought to last spring's "As You Like It." Lopez-Saenz gives an equally powerful performance as the darker, more haunted Tom-Tom. The camaraderie between the two actors, though bumbling and vulgarity-drenched, is excellent and rarely found in Harvard theater...