Summer of ‘42
Summer of ‘42
Music and Lyrics by David Kirshenbaum, Book by Hunter Foster
Based on the Novel and Screenplay by Herman Raucher
Directed by Meredith McDonough
ROUNDHOUSE THEATRE
(Dave McClellan as Benjie; Michael Vitaly Sazonov as Oscy; Ryan Nealy as Hermie)
“On the island for the summer, Hermie and friends seek out pleasure, which for…wolf-in-training Oscy means girls, girls, girls…the live-wire Sazonov brings an infectious, feral kind of joy-of-the-hunt to Oscy … Still, it’s Sazonov and his rendering of Hermie’s cruder pal who most effectively bottles the spirit of the more resonant evening this might have been. In the vital life-force he represents, we can feel the warmth of a more incandescent summer.”
– Peter Marks, Washington Post, June 2007
(Nancy Snow Carr as Dorothy; Ryan Nealy as Hermie; Michael Vitaly Sazonov as Oscy)
“While Hermie grapples with his supposedly finer feelings for Dorothy,
the late-blooming Benjie is just plain terrified of girls, and
panting pal Oscy (the excellent Michael Vitaly Sazonov) just wants to score.”
– Jayne Blanchard, Washington Times, June 2007
(Jennifer Timberlake as Miriam; Michael Vitaly Sazonov as Oscy)
“His frantic wooing of the curvaceous Miriam is one of the
musical’s sweetly sex-crazed high points…”
-Jayne Blanchard, Washington Times, June 2007
(Michael Vitaly Sazonov as Oscy; Dave McClellan as Benjie; Ryan Nealy as Hermie)
“…as is the crowing number “Unfinished Business,” where Oscy becomes a 1940s version of Dr. Ruth and coaches his friends on the 10 steps to intercourse using an illustrated college textbook…The sight of three budding studs in patterned shorty pajamas strikes the right mood of innocence and pimpled yearning…”
– Jayne Blanchard, Washington Times, June 2007
(Ryan Nealy as Hermie; Kate Wolf as Aggie; Michael Vitaly Sazonov as Oscy; Jennifer Timberlake as Miriam)
“However, as Hermie’s sexually charged friend, Sazonov steals his scenes
as a young cad, infusing life into the story…”
– Tim Plant, Metro Weekly, June 2007
(Dave McClellan as Benjie; Michael Vitaly Sazonov as Oscy; Ryan Nealy as Hermie)
“Michael Vitaly Sazonov is a great foil as his single-minded buddy Oscy.”
-Leslie Milk, Washingtonian.com, June 2007
All photos by Stan Barouh