Theatre Three Scores with an Exuberant 'Half Time'

There are some cultures that revere elders for the wisdom that comes with age. There are other cultures like our own that tell our elders to move over, their contributions are all behind them and they are made to feel useless. These elder statesmen have a choice to either allow themselves to get beaten down or stand up, persevere and contribute until their last breath, remembering all the while that “age doesn’t matter.”

Half Time, the musical now playing at Theatre Three in Port Jefferson, reminds us that you’re never too old to try something new, to rebound, to spread your wings and score or, in this case hip hop onto the basketball courts, alley-oop and have the time of your life!

Half Time the musical was adapted for the stage in 2015 from Gotta Dance, the 2008 documentary film, and Tribeca Film Festival Audience Award Finalist. The stage musical with book by Chad Beguelin and Bob Martin, music by Matthew Sklar, lyrics by Nell Benjamin and additional music by Marvin Hamlisch, premiered at the Bank of America Theatre in Chicago on December 13, 2015, and ran through January 17, 2016, under the title Gotta Dance.

The co-producer of the musical, Dori Berinstein, directed, wrote and produced the original documentary.

The musical went on to enjoy a limited engagement from June 12, 2018, through July 1, 2018 at the Paper Mill Playhouse in Millburn, New Jersey under the new title Half Time. The cast featured Georgia Engel as Dorothy/Dotty and Donna McKechnie as Joanne.

Half Time is the true story of senior citizens who answer an ad from the New Jersey Nets basketball team for a dance troupe. The one stipulation was that they must all be over the age of 60. At its core this was a PR stunt that included forming a hip-hop dance crew of seniors. Those who were chosen for the team were only told after they made the cut that they would be dancing to hip-hop, obviously a genre they didn’t know, couldn’t relate to and ultimately had trouble perfecting. But determination reigned supreme and this squad of seniors gave it their all despite self-doubt, stereotypes and conflicts with management for the chance to take the court at half time to prove they could bring the house down. There is an important message of persevering despite the odds and proving that age is just a number and doesn’t matter if your heart is in it.

Director Jeffrey Sanzel brings the New York premiere of Half Time to life with a stellar cast consisting of some longtime Theatre Three leading ladies: Marci Bing as Muriel, Linda May as Bea, Phyllis March as Mae, and Mary Ellen Kurtz as Estelle, with the rest of the crew consisting of actors that have appeared on the Theatre Three stage such as, Lisa Frantzen Greene as Joanne, Denise DeFlorio Lardi as Fran, Candace McCready as Dorothy/Dottie, and making her Theatre Three debut is Nicole Sislian as Camilla.

The one male member of the troupe, Jack Seabury as Ron is making his second appearance at the theater. The top-notch supporting cast consists of Cassidy Rose O’Brien as Jenny, Tina Ann Aurora at Tara, Anna Moceri as Kendra, Colleen Rebecca Britt as Alison Prager and Yashaun Harris as Anthony/Announcer. A musical is not complete without an ensemble and this one adds so much life with synchronized cheering routines.

Linda May is always a delight when she takes the stage and in this case she struts out in the opening number with the company and delivering lines like, “I’ll make the whole world pay attention again.” And you know she will! When she teams with Anna Moceri as her granddaughter Kendra, we get an amusing look at the generation gap. What is there to say about the incomparable Marci Bing? She is so comical as almost blind Muriel, but when she dances and sings she’s a powerhouse! Phyllis March makes us adore and feel sorry for Mae. We want to see her overcome challenges and come out on top.

Candance McCready is a hoot as Dorothy, the unassuming, soft-spoken kindergarten teacher, who morphs into her alter ego character, Dottie, a hip hop firecracker. Lisa Frantzen Greene’s Joanne has all the right dance moves but just as we want to hate her, she brings us in and we’re hooked. Nicole Sislian makes Camilla a sexy seductress despite her age and we applaud her for that. Jack Seabury as Ron delivers as a smooth dancer with a heart of gold.

Tina Ann Aurora is superb as the 27-year-old, washed-up dancer, Tara, who has been given the nearly impossible task of teaching these seniors hip-hop. Colleen Rebecca Britt’s upper management administrator, Alison Prager, is perfectly snooty as she weighs humanity against pressures from the top brass.

Music director, Jeffrey Hoffman, and the band preside over the festivities making all that hip hop so joyful. Josie McSwane’s choreography keeps the ensemble light, lively and fluid. Randall Parsons’ scenic design compliments all the big dance numbers while Indigo Shea’s projection design is a nice touch with a screen raised center stage depicting action onstage. We get visuals that introduce interview sequences, indications of the all-important rehearsal time remaining before the big show and the well-trafficked highways passing Kendra as she drives her Grandmother Bea to rehearsals.

Jason Allyn’s costume design defines age differences by giving pleated mini skirt uniforms to the young cheerleaders as opposed to attractive white sweatpants outfits to the seniors for performing.

Don’t miss this incredible true story of the New Jersey senior hip hop dance team that learns to deal with challenges does not mean giving up, it means — HALF TIME!

Catch this heartfelt musical, Half Time, playing now through June 22 at Theatre Three in Port Jefferson.

Theatre Three is located at 412 Main Street in Port Jefferson. Call 631-928-9100 or visit theatrethree.com for tickets and info.

Barbara Anne Kirshner is a freelance journalist and photographer whose celebrity interviews, theater reviews, features and human interest stories appear in major publications. She is author of the children’s chapter book, Madison Weatherbee The Different Dachshund, and playwright of Madison Weatherbee The Musical. Her one-act plays have been produced across Long Island. Her children’s picture book, Life According to Lexington, is due out later this year.