{"id":950,"date":"2016-02-23T09:56:31","date_gmt":"2016-02-23T14:56:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/floridanewsline.com\/Clone2\/?p=950"},"modified":"2016-02-23T09:57:10","modified_gmt":"2016-02-23T14:57:10","slug":"considerable-fun-at-the-alhambras-big-river","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/floridanewsline.com\/Clone2\/creekline-st-johns\/considerable-fun-at-the-alhambras-big-river\/","title":{"rendered":"Considerable fun at the Alhambra\u2019s \u201cBig River\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Martie Thompson
\neditor@floridanewsline.com<\/span><\/p>\n

Jim foretold that Huckleberry Finn\u2019s life would contain \u201cconsiderable trouble and considerable joy,\u201d but the telling of their tale provides considerable fun for audiences at the Alhambra Dinner Theatre\u2019s production of the Tony Award-winning \u201cBig River,\u201d based on Mark Twain\u2019s novel, \u201cThe Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dinner is a three course meal, offered by Chef DeJuan Roy in the style complementing the time period of the show. Start the meal with chicken gumbo and dirty rice and then take your pick from fried catfish with cheese grits or maple glazed chicken with black eyed peas. Stop counting the calories long enough to enjoy Mississippi Mud Pie for dessert. A specially designed drink menu includes an adult beverage called Muddy Waters, a reference to the mighty Mississippi River.<\/p>\n

After the dinner, Mark Twain, portrayed by Erik DeCicco, comes out to introduce the play. Further narration is performed throughout the production by Huck Finn himself, just like in Twain\u2019s novel.<\/p>\n

Cameron Bartell portrays Huck Finn with just the right amount of wide-eyed wonder and false bravado. True to Twain\u2019s novel, he boards a raft with escaped slave Jim, portrayed by James Webb, and the two bond over many shared experiences on the Mississippi River traveling north.<\/p>\n

Webb\u2019s rich vibrato is an auditory delight, especially on songs like \u201cMuddy Water\u201d and \u201cRiver in the Rain.\u201d The highlight of the show is the duet in the second act between Jim and Huck. Webb\u2019s deep voice and Bartell\u2019s dulcet tone harmonize well on \u201cWorlds Apart,\u201d where the characters learn that they have more in common than they think.<\/p>\n

Also noteworthy is the impish performance by Benjamin Smith as Tom Sawyer, who pretty much steals each scene he is in with his mastery of physical comedy. Choreographer James Kinney, an alumnus from the Alhambra who has found much success on Broadway, keeps everything moving at a breathtaking pace \u2014 particularly group numbers like \u201cThe Boys,\u201d featuring Tom and Huck.<\/p>\n

Comic relief is provided by Larry Daggett and Erik DeCicco as the Duke and the King. \u201cThe Royal Nonesuch\u201d is a rollicking and somewhat off-color interlude.<\/p>\n

There aren\u2019t many female roles in this production, but Jamilia Wells as Alice\u2019s Daughter and Olivia Chernyshev as Mary Jane make the most of their solos in \u201cHow Blest We Are\u201d and \u201cYou Oughta Be Here with Me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBig River\u201d will be performed through March 20. Visit<\/span><\/i> www.alhambrajax.com<\/span><\/i><\/a> to reserve tickets.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Photos courtesy Alhambra Dinner Theatre.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\"IMG_0517\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The cast of “Big River”<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Martie Thompson editor@floridanewsline.com Jim foretold that Huckleberry Finn\u2019s life would contain \u201cconsiderable trouble and considerable joy,\u201d but the telling of their tale provides considerable fun for audiences at the Alhambra Dinner Theatre\u2019s production of the Tony Award-winning \u201cBig River,\u201d based on Mark Twain\u2019s novel, \u201cThe Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":951,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,5,4],"tags":[21],"class_list":{"0":"post-950","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-creekline-st-johns","8":"category-mandarin","9":"category-ponte-vedra","10":"tag-alhambra"},"yoast_head":"\nConsiderable fun at the Alhambra\u2019s \u201cBig River\u201d - Florida NewsLine<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"CreekLine, Mandarin NewsLine, Ponte Vedra NewsLineBy Martie Thompson editor@floridanewsline.com Jim foretold that Huckleberry Finn\u2019s life would contain \u201cconsiderable trouble and considerable joy,\u201d but the\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/floridanewsline.com\/Clone2\/creekline-st-johns\/considerable-fun-at-the-alhambras-big-river\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Considerable fun at the Alhambra\u2019s \u201cBig River\u201d - 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