"Tony and Tina's Wedding"
For many of us, going to weddings is such a chore that it is hard to believe that anyone would pay money to attend one. But about two hundred people a night did from last Tuesday through Sunday, for the nuptials of Valentina Vitale (Denise Fennell) and Anthony Nunzio, Jr. (Scott Bielecky) in "Tony and Tina's Wedding". And it is doubtful that anyone regrets being a guest at their rowdy union.
This show, held in the State Theatre’s upstairs ballroom, was as much like an actual wedding and reception as possible. Instead of being greeted with a play program (they were handed out as people left), guests were directed to assigned tables. The three-hour event included an Italian buffet (although the ziti was made without prosciutto, as the bride brayed to attending guests), a champagne toast, and, of course, wedding cake.
The bride and groom came from families that were so Italian, they made the Sopranos look like they were from Mississippi. It was no surprise that the bride's cousin, Sister Terri (Katya Fitzpatrick), was about to take final vows to become a nun.
Sister Terri opened the proceedings with a choir practice sing-along of the Doobie Brothers's "Jesus is Just Alright with Me". Each guest sang from xeroxed lyric sheets, taking care not to intrude on Sister’s solo part.
The wedding went fairly smoothly, despite an obviously pregnant maid of honor (Denise Galasso), interruptions by the photographer, and the appearance of Michael Just (Thomas Kimpland, Jr.), the bride's unstable former beau who was newly back from rehab.
Caterer Vinnie Black (Kevin Alexander) presented the food in grandiose style: the buffet tables were ceremoniously rolled out to the tune of “Thus Spake Zarathustra” (Elvis’s opening theme for his Vegas shows). Servers performed the not-ready-for-prime-time ballet “Dance of the Waiters”. Black spared no expense, although he was later seen going from table to table, pouring leftover champagne back into bottles using an oil-change funnel.
The wedding party took full advantage of the bar after dinner, producing the incongruous sight of the bride staggering from table to table holding a bottle of Bud. It did make for some lively dancing, as wedding party members dragged guests onto the crowded dance floor, however.
Among the many highlights were “Tina and the Slithering Wildcats” recreating their dance act first performed at Allentown’s Stonewall Bar, and Madeline Monroe (Denise Crawn) leading a conga line through the crowd in her short skin-tight gold lame dress. Vegas-smooth DJ Donny Dulce (Tony Lauria) also provided some solid vocals to his karaoke tapes.
During this show, you had to watch out of the corner of your eye as well as look straight ahead at the stage/dance floor. Couples, both gay and straight, disappeared and then re-emerged somewhat disheveled. A trip to the bathroom might enable you to see a food fight, or catch Father Mark (Jim Long) passing more and more under the influence of the grape as the evening progressed. And many characters visited your table for small talk and catty gossip throughout the evening.
Only four actors were members of the show’s touring company, but the local actors shone in their parts. I am still not convinced that Merry LaRue (bride’s crude mother), Lois B. Miller (groom’s tottering grandmother) or Donna Marsala and Danielle Miller (oversexed bridesmaids) are not one hundred per cent Italian.
And if I did not know that John Trembler (groom’s father) was the Managing Director of the State Theatre, I would be certain that he was an obnoxious drunk (now I’m just not sure).
It was a long, noisy, raucous evening, marred slightly by significant overcrowding at some tables, but after all, everyone was “famiglia”. It is well worth experiencing if this sold-out show returns to the Valley. After all, you don’t have to bring a gift to this wedding. You are giving yourself one by going to see it.
--Dave Howell, 2/03
(This article first appeared in The Morning Call newspaper.)
This show, held in the State Theatre’s upstairs ballroom, was as much like an actual wedding and reception as possible. Instead of being greeted with a play program (they were handed out as people left), guests were directed to assigned tables. The three-hour event included an Italian buffet (although the ziti was made without prosciutto, as the bride brayed to attending guests), a champagne toast, and, of course, wedding cake.
The bride and groom came from families that were so Italian, they made the Sopranos look like they were from Mississippi. It was no surprise that the bride's cousin, Sister Terri (Katya Fitzpatrick), was about to take final vows to become a nun.
Sister Terri opened the proceedings with a choir practice sing-along of the Doobie Brothers's "Jesus is Just Alright with Me". Each guest sang from xeroxed lyric sheets, taking care not to intrude on Sister’s solo part.
The wedding went fairly smoothly, despite an obviously pregnant maid of honor (Denise Galasso), interruptions by the photographer, and the appearance of Michael Just (Thomas Kimpland, Jr.), the bride's unstable former beau who was newly back from rehab.
Caterer Vinnie Black (Kevin Alexander) presented the food in grandiose style: the buffet tables were ceremoniously rolled out to the tune of “Thus Spake Zarathustra” (Elvis’s opening theme for his Vegas shows). Servers performed the not-ready-for-prime-time ballet “Dance of the Waiters”. Black spared no expense, although he was later seen going from table to table, pouring leftover champagne back into bottles using an oil-change funnel.
The wedding party took full advantage of the bar after dinner, producing the incongruous sight of the bride staggering from table to table holding a bottle of Bud. It did make for some lively dancing, as wedding party members dragged guests onto the crowded dance floor, however.
Among the many highlights were “Tina and the Slithering Wildcats” recreating their dance act first performed at Allentown’s Stonewall Bar, and Madeline Monroe (Denise Crawn) leading a conga line through the crowd in her short skin-tight gold lame dress. Vegas-smooth DJ Donny Dulce (Tony Lauria) also provided some solid vocals to his karaoke tapes.
During this show, you had to watch out of the corner of your eye as well as look straight ahead at the stage/dance floor. Couples, both gay and straight, disappeared and then re-emerged somewhat disheveled. A trip to the bathroom might enable you to see a food fight, or catch Father Mark (Jim Long) passing more and more under the influence of the grape as the evening progressed. And many characters visited your table for small talk and catty gossip throughout the evening.
Only four actors were members of the show’s touring company, but the local actors shone in their parts. I am still not convinced that Merry LaRue (bride’s crude mother), Lois B. Miller (groom’s tottering grandmother) or Donna Marsala and Danielle Miller (oversexed bridesmaids) are not one hundred per cent Italian.
And if I did not know that John Trembler (groom’s father) was the Managing Director of the State Theatre, I would be certain that he was an obnoxious drunk (now I’m just not sure).
It was a long, noisy, raucous evening, marred slightly by significant overcrowding at some tables, but after all, everyone was “famiglia”. It is well worth experiencing if this sold-out show returns to the Valley. After all, you don’t have to bring a gift to this wedding. You are giving yourself one by going to see it.
--Dave Howell, 2/03
(This article first appeared in The Morning Call newspaper.)