ASSASSINS: aside from that Mrs. Lincoln how did you enjoy the play?

How often do you get to see a lunar Eclipse? They happen every 18 months or so, right? And don't you say to yourself, "I really need to go outside and look at the moon this time." As the weather man is giving the times for the best view. And of course you don't. The last one I saw was in 1993. And about every 18 months or so someone says, "Hey there is this really great show at blah. You rarely get to see this sort of work, you need to check it out." Do you? Well…

"Hey, there's this really great show at…"

I had the good fortune to get a sneak peak at Lowbrow Productions' ASSASSINS Thursday night and I have to tell you that Lowbrow and Director/cameo performer Brian Noffke have assembled a strapping cast with acting chops and vocal ability to rival any company in this town. And folks, this is NOT a Christmas show. Imagine that?!? Though I will say one character does wear a Santa suit through most of the play and in it Tristan Ross appears at times to be the love child of Jackie Gleason and Lewis Black as Sam Byck. You remember, the guy that wanted to fly an airplane into the Whitehouse to kill Nixon? (A far more potent proposition post 9/11.)

That in a musical? Let me explain. Stephen Sondheim (Sweeney Todd) and John Weidman (Sesame Street) discovered a play by Charles Gilbert Jr. about presidential assassins. Just screams "Musical!' doesn't it? But, lo it did make a marvelous one. You actually find yourself understanding why these troubled minds would to the things they did. With a very "black' sense of story telling style the tales of the great hits and misses of the giant shooting match that is the presidency unfold in a very nontraditional use of the Hedback theatre.

To single out individual performances and say they were "good" is doing a disservice to one of the strongest ensemble shows I have seen in ages. But alas a the "service I must dis" Eric Karwisch as the leader of the pack, John Wilkes Booth is pious and sardonic at eh same time. An Indy theatre staple but the is the best work I have seen Karwicsh do vocally he is spot on. No stranger to Sondheim himself as he directed SWEENEY TODD for the now defunct Scottish Rite last year. The rest of the cast makes up the lesser known shootists of Commanders in Chiefs. Charles J.Guiteau played with zeal and sparkling humor by Scot Greenwell killed James Garfield. Collin Poynter as one of the few non-murderous cast members vocally soars as The Balladeer, a storyteller that comments and occasionally participates as we go in and out of the experiences of the ASSASSINS. New comer (from as far as I can tell) Roncalli High School teacher Trevor Fanning, is Guiseppe Zangara who attempted to kill FDR in Miami and only succeded in slaying Anton Cermak the mayor of Chicago adds yet more vocal strength and desperation to this freaky faction. I could list them all, Bobbi Bates (who could melt me singing a Taco Bell menu) is Lynette "Squeaky" Fromme the former Manson gal turned failed Gerry Ford killer. There is not a weak link in the cast from brooding Michael Davis' Czolgosz (pronounced chol-gosh) to Marc Szewczyk's Oswald a treat worth waiting for. There is a supporting ensemble of folk that are not killers that could easily have filled the other roles. Not a weak link in the show.

As a composer Sondheim writes difficult music and it challenges the singer. Traditionally he does not cast the voice he casts the actor right for the part and the voice follows. Here that holds true as well. I feel he would be pleased with all the vocal performances I heard Thursday night. There are lots of difficult harmonies and rhythmic challenges. And kudos are due to Brenna Campbell for her work as vocal director, her work obviously shows here. However, I do hope the orchestra can step up to the plate in the same fashion that the onstage talent has. There were several moments throughout the evening that the onstage wonderful work was affected by obvious lack of rehearsal on their part. This very difficult complex music has to have the accurate support of the orchestra. And then to top it off to hear conversation bleed into the performance space from the "pit" during a final dress… tsk tsk guys. I guess the old joke about There is a reason they put musicians in a pit holds true here.

The set and lights, designed my director-founding company member-chief-cook-and bottle washer Nofkee are effective and industrial. There is far more production value than expected for what was originally billed as a showcase. This is a full-blown production. With costumes by Patricia Schiro-Long there are many scenes that are eye-catching with the tossed salad of periods represented, very impressive execution on such a small budget.

This is a new company created by Nick Carpenter, Doug Johnson, Brian Nofkee, and Lisa Paff. It is not only prudent but it is our responsibility as members of this community to support young companies like this one when they do good work. So, they can continue to do good work. In speaking with Carpenter they are not limiting themselves to just theatre production/promotion they are looking for artists, bands, and are considering a project that they can take to little leagues to help them fund raise. These guys give back to the community. How about giving 2 hours to them? This is an eclipse you don't want to miss. I don't it will around again in 18 months.