Over the weekend I went to see a friend of mine in La Cage Aux Folles as put on by the Oak Lawn Park District. As is always the case there is some good, some bad, and some ugly aspects in community theatre… and since I am the blunt type… well I’ll work with what I can.

In fact… there is one weekend left for this rarely done production and in all honesty there is one aspect of the production that is more than worth the price of admission: Brad Kisner as Albin/Zaza.

The show – to me – seems to revolve around the character of Albin/Zaza and his relationship between his partner Georges and “son” Jean-Michel. Which would make sense that whomever is lucky (or unlucky) enough to capture this part would have been more than just “damn good” to make the production worthwhile and Brad Kisner does in spades.

Not only was he believable as Albin/Zaza but he seemed to just breath the character within every moment. Seriously if Brad were to do a “one man show” being that Albin/Zaza character I would be more than happy to pay the price of admission ($21) to see it.

However the chemistry between Brad and Paul Nirchi (who plays Albin’s partner Georges) seemed off at times. Once in a while I simply didn’t believe the chemistry between the pair, but then again I felt that Brad brought out the best of Paul (much like how Albin brings out the best of Georges) so it seemed like art imitating life.

Paul, I felt, did a good job as Georges, but unlike Brad (where I believed everything coming out of him) I felt that Paul did not reach that level of “believe-ability” if that make sense.

The final third of this familial trifecta is Georges biological son: Jean-Michel as portrayed by Graig Mason, he had the right kind of energy and enthusiasm for a young man in this mid-twenties and his chemistry with both parental figures (Albin and Georges) was realistic and palpable.

Take that a step further and Graig’s interaction with his love interest: Anne as portrayed by Jenn Rooney was extremely fun and realistic to watch. Made for a nice counterpoint to that of Georges/Albin.
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