Review: 'Murder at the Cafe Noir'
Nothing is black and white at Cafe Noir
By Donald V. Calamia
"Everyone has secrets at Cafe Noir," Rick Archer, the straight-faced, pin-striped private detective, tells the audience during the opening moments of the interactive murder mystery, "Murder at the Cafe Noir." And all of them want its proprietor, Andre Gauvreau, dead.
Or should I say, its LATE proprietor, since the newspaper on every table inside the banquet room at Miles World Italian Restaurant in Fraser is topped by the latest edition of The Grenadine Islets Inquirer that announces Gauvreau's demise the night before.
So who shot Gauvreau – and why? It doesn't take Archer (played by Darryl Maharidge) long to narrow his list of subjects.
The late Mr. Gauvreau, the detective quickly discovers, was deeply involved in all aspects of the tropical island's illegal trades, and pretty much everyone had a reason to kill him: He recently jilted his longtime companion, Madam Toureau (Bonnie Champagne); he was blackmailing the rich, conservative father of Sheila Wonderly (Jen Davis); he was the only person on the island who knew the real identity of the intensely secretive Anthony Cairo (Michael J. Lane); he screwed attorney Simon Gutterman (Jim McCool) out of a lucrative casino deal; and he was blamed by local voodoo priestess Marie Larue (Katherine Leigh Schwartz) for the deaths of her family.
So pretty much everyone at Cafe Noir had the motive. Except for knife-wielding and insanely jealous Thursby (Rob Chrenko), that is, but he's removed from consideration rather quickly. (Can you guess how?) Who, then, had the proximity to pull the trigger?
The answer, I can safely say, is maintained until the very end. What's NOT a secret, however, is why StarBrite Theatrical Productions has been so successful at carving out a niche for itself in this ever-competitive – and seemingly shrinking – marketplace.
By serving a good meal with light-hearted entertainment, StarBrite provides a fun night out at a fair price. "Murder at Cafe Noir" ain't Shakespeare – but it's not meant to be. Instead, it's a goofy, tongue-in-cheek spoof of the film noir genre that's loaded with genuine laughs, a few well-deserved groans and a team of performers having a ball with the material they've been given.
Especially notable is Davis, who plays Sheila with a perfect blend of rich arrogance and carefree indifference. And Chrenko has fun creating three separate characters that everyone notices all look somewhat alike.
But just one warning: Don't believe a THING any of the characters tell you while mingling with the audience during intermission. With a somewhat intimidating sincerity, Cairo had me thoroughly convinced who the murderer was – and he was wrong. But maybe I was just blinded by his rippling muscles and intense gaze.
"Murder at Cafe Noir" is staged every Friday and Saturday by StarBright Presents Dinner Theater at Miles World Italian Restaurant, 17689 Masonic, Fraser, through May 20. Tickets: $44.95, includes three-course dinner and show. For information: 586-415-4500 or http://www.starbriteprod.com.
The Bottom Line: It's fun, it's goofy and it's their best effort yet!
Review: 'Yemaya's Belly'
Cold Coke and dominos: A Caribbean coming-of-age tale
By John Quinn
Santeria, I'm told, is the Latin American/Afro-Cuban religion that blends the spirituality of Africa with European Christianity. Yemaya, to Santeria's adherents, is the Mother-Goddess personification of the sea. From Yemaya's womb we rise; our dreams float on her belly.
It's a fitting central theme of Quiara Alegria Hudes' play, "Yemaya's Belly," currently at Detroit Repertory Theatre. In a dirt-poor farming village high in the mountains of an island that might be Cuba, 12-year-old Jesus dreams of bigger things. He cons his uncle, Jelin, into a game of dominoes, winning a trip down the mountain to the big city. It's his first step out of his narrow world and into the journey towards manhood. Bitter circumstance causes him to assume a new name – "Mulo." Eventually, he'll leave his old world behind forever, as his boundless enthusiasm drives him to make the sea voyage to America.
"Yemaya's Belly" calls on its audience for easy and frequent suspensions of disbelief. Most obviously, actor David Zayas is no child, but carries off both shyness and bravado that makes the character so likeable. The set is stark – merely a scrim wrapped three-quarters around the large stage, a cart, a counter, a shrine that doubles as a boat. Last but not least, we've got embodiments of deity, fair amounts of allegory and a dream sequence. This is not a show at which you can be merrily text messaging friends; you're gonna miss the point.
Oddly enough for a play where "journey" is a theme, the question will arise: Does this show actually "go" anywhere? Well, no. While the show is sharply focused on Mulo's increasing awareness of the great unknown beyond his experience, there is no real resolution – the journey is, quite literally, more important than the arrival.
The Detroit Rep's Production Manager, Harry Wetzel, serves both as stage director and set designer. His cast is uniformly attractive in their roles, notably Cornell Markham as Tico, the peddler, who is a substitute father-figure for young Jesus. I'll bet dollars to donuts, though, that "Yemaya," played by sultry Yolanda Jack, and "Maya," played by an engaging Jaqui Colston, were originally played by one actress. Oh, the symbolism implied in that idea! Not that it's important to one's enjoyment of the play, but if you're not text messaging during the second act, you, too, might notice things like this.
"Yemaya's Belly" runs Thu.-Sun. at the Detroit Repertory Theatre, 13103 Woodrow Wilson, Detroit, through May 21. Tickets: $17-$20. For information: 313-868-1347 or http://www.detroitreptheatre.com.
The Bottom Line: A multicultural rendition of an oft' told tale, "Yamaya's Belly" is suitable entertainment from one of Detroit's cultural treasures.
