There were many wonderful Scene Stealing moments on DC Metro Area stages in our professional, community, children’s, and university theaters during the past theater season (August 1, 2012-August 1, 2013). Here’s our seventh set of honorees:
From Amanda Gunther:
Will Carson playing Creon in the Mobtown Players production of Medea.
Briefly encountered Carson made his presence felt. Paying homage to Brando, he manifested the character’s appearance and sound to portray the “Godfather” figure. Truly understanding how to manipulate the words of Euripides’ text in his delivery, he twisted their sound into a style that made his character astonishing. In his Scene Stealer his voice was a harsh when he offered Medea a “deal of exile that she can’t refuse.” It’s the only scene he’s in and he steals the show! It’s literally about 2 minutes long. He gives the Creon banishment speech, does The Godfather Brando gesture. and tells her – as he exhales from his cigarette – “It is an offer which you can’t refuse.” I couldn’t refuse naming him a Scene Stealer!
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From Amanda Gunther:
Brian M. Kehoe as Christopher Wren in The Vagabond Players’ The Mousetrap.
Drawing everyone’s attention with his portrayal of the pleasantly psychotic little architect, his crazy in-your-face eagerness was spastically explosive (to the point of unintentional scenic destruction) and translate into zany in the brain-y for every scene he was in. In his Scene Stealer he came zooming across the stage and pile-dives into the couch (breaking it) and then got right up into Molly’s face, and the audience went ballistic. Lingering in her personal bubble far longer than necessary really made him steal the spotlight in that scene. Flopping over furniture, sliding across the stage and all around physically invested, Kehoe was a maddening delight to watch perform.
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From Amanda Gunther:
Kathryn Kelley as Lady Bountiful in Everyman Theatre’s production of The Beaux Stratagem.
Kelley’s character was as doolally as they come, completely mental and larger than life. She stepped into this character with a batty exuberance that burble outward to anyone and everyone in a manner most befitting of a truly dotty dame. The more serious the situation got for her, the more hilarious it became. Kelley was the epitome of melodramatic comedy and stole the show every moment she set foot on the stage. In a scene stealing scene at the end of the show she came swooping in with ‘a weapon.’ She looked like a frazzled harried madwoman and the audience was bursting with laughter, especially when she spoke about her notions of swords.
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From Julia L. Exline:
James Konicek and Michael John Casey singing “Pirates with a Plan” at Peter Pan and Wendy at Imagination Stage.
Peter Pan is a literary hero loved throughout generations and depicted over and over again in various medias, including movies, television, and on the stage. The story of the boy who didn’t want to grow up is a beloved favorite among most, but in Imagination Stage’s production of Peter Pan and Wendy, the scene stealer was the villain and his sidekick!
James Konicek portrayal of the notorious Captain Hook was exceptional! The hilarious chemistry between him and his sidekick Smee (Michael John Casey) was my favorite highlight, providing a hilarious back-and-forth while addressing the young audience regularly (memorably, Hook admonishes the senseless Smee after he neglected to take advice from the audience, yelling, “When in doubt, always listen to the audience!”) Their song-and-dance number “Pirates with a Plan” was funny and upbeat, and Konicek swash-buckled across the stage like a pro. Lending a softer, quirkier edge to the vengeful pirate (one of his plots to kill Pan involved baking him a homemade cake…that just so happened to be poisoned), Konicek made the “villain” collectively likeable and received the majority of laughter from the audience with his performance. Sometimes, the bad guy is just more fun!
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From Amanda Gunther:
Bruce Randolph Nelson as Foigard in Everyman Theatre’s production of The Beaux Stratagem.
Laugh-out-loud hilarious, Nelson had a mincing walk that was unforgettable with an over-annunciated and well-overdone comical French accent. Shouting and getting highly flustered in his powdery face and stacked black wig—he was a hoot! He stole a scene at the end of Act II where he tried to marry one of the main couples and kept getting interrupted and restarted the same line over and over – but each time more intensely and more frustrated until he slammed his Bible-book shut, stuffed his nose in the air, minced off stage, waited, minced back in, and said, “No one dies of marry-ahj. Zey suffer, but zey do not die. Ha!” One of his finest lines as the cuckoo-bananas character.
LINKS
Favorite ‘Scene Stealers’ of the 2012-2013 DC Area Theater Season: Part 1.
Favorite ‘Scene Stealers’ of the 2012-2013 DC Area Theater Season: Part 2.
Favorite ‘Scene Stealers’ of the 2012-2013 DC Area Theater Season: Part 3.
Favorite ‘Scene Stealers’ of the 2012-2013 DC Area Theater Season: Part 4.
Favorite ‘Scene Stealers’ of the 2012-2013 DC Area Theater Season: Part 5.
Favorite ‘Scene Stealers’ of the 2012-2013 DC Area Theater Season: Part 6.
An Interview with Bruce Randolph Nelson on ‘The Beaux Stratagem’ at Everyman Theatre by Amanda Gunther.
https://youtu.be/glczI4oHZzI
