A Tale of Two Cities at HCT

If I had to pick a favorite Charles Dickens novel it would definitely be A Tale of Two Cities and I count HCT's 2011 production of this classic tale as one of their best. HCT is producing this stirring musical again and I had the chance to see it last night. I loved it so much and I was absolutely thrilled to see Kyle Olsen, my favorite actor from the earlier production, reprise his role as Sydney Carton. Lucie Manette (Brittany Andam), a young woman in London who believes that she is an orphan, learns that her father Dr. Alexander Manette (David Weeks) is still alive after having been wrongfully imprisoned in the Bastille by the Marquise St. Evremonde (Josh Egbert). She travels to Paris to bring him home to London and meets Charles Darnay (Ren Cottam), the nephew of Evremonde who has renounced his ties to the aristocracy, on the journey and they fall in love. Darnay is wrongfully accused of treason upon arrival in London but the dissolute lawyer Sydney Carton (Olsen) clears his name. Carton is also secretly in love with Lucie, but when she marries Darnay, he remains a friend of the family and becomes attached to her daughter Lucie (Leilani Walker). In Paris, Evremonde is responsible for the death of a child when his carriage runs him over in front of the Defarge's wine shop. Madame Defarge (Adrien Swenson), who has a grudge against Evremonde, encourages the boy's father, Gaspard (Alix DeBirk), to murder him which ultimately leads to revolution. Darnay feels that he must return to Paris to rescue Evremonde's household but he is immediately arrested as an aristocrat, denounced by Madame Defarge who wants to wipe out all descendants of Evremonde, and sentenced to the guillotine. This prompts Carton to make the ultimate sacrifice to save Darnay and show his love for Lucie and her daughter. The story is a bit convoluted (it is Charles Dickens, after all) but I was really impressed with the clever use of projections to denote the various locations in London and Paris and this really helped me follow the action. This show is also very complicated technically with set pieces coming up from the pit, down from the rafters, and in from the wings during every scene and these transitions happen seamlessly. One of the things I liked best about the 2011 production was the set featuring cobblestone paths and a large wooden guillotine. The set for this show is very different, with large glass panels and metal grates in the floor that are illuminated with red and blue lights, but no less dramatic. All of the performances are wonderful and I especially loved Swenson's version of "Out of Sight, Out of Mind," Andam's version of "Without a Word," and her version of "Now at Last" with Cottam. However, I was absolutely captivated by Olsen's portrayal of Carton. He brought me to tears during his emotional rendition of "If Dreams Came True" and then once again as he walks up the steps to the guillotine in the final scene. I really loved this incredibly moving show and I highly recommend it. It runs on the Young Living Stage through March 20 but tickets are very limited (go here) so act quickly!

Note:  Don't miss HCT's hilarious production of The Play That Goes Wrong on the Jewel Box Stage (go here for tickets).