Players make a more inclusive fairy tale
TBy Julianne McShane his is a “Mattress” that stays
woke.
A Park Slope theater company
is putting a 21st-century twist
on a classic fairy tale musical. “Once
Upon a Mattress,” opening at Gallery
Players on Feb. 22, offers a feminist,
queer interpretation that makes
the story accessible to all audience
members, regardless of race, gender,
sexual orientation, or neurodiversity,
according to its director.
“By having all different types of
couples on stage and having strong
women at the center of the story,
it gives the opportunity to tell this
fairy tale in a way that levels the
playing field and doesn’t privilege
one kind of love or one gender over
another,” said Barrie Gelles, who
lives in Carroll Gardens.
The musical comedy, which
debuted off-Broadway in 1959, was
already progressive for its time, telling
a version of “The Princess and
the Pea” in which a rough-and-tumble
Princess Winnifred comes to the
rescue of sensitive Prince Dauntless.
The citizens of the kingdom are forbidden
to marry until Dauntless does
— but Winnifred must first win the
approval of the prince’s overbearing
mother, Queen Aggravain, and nonverbal
father, King Sextimus.
In the original portrayal, the
king’s verbal disability makes
him a laughable figure. But in this
production, he uses modified sign
language and a photo-based communication
system frequently used
by children with autism — changes
that Gelles said were made to destigmatize
nonverbal people.
“So much of the humor is supposed
to come from him pantomiming
and gesticulating wildly, but our
king is not ridiculous in his inability
to speak — he’s simply a nonverbal
individual,” she said.
Without changing the script,
the playmakers also reformed an
element that could be problematic
in the #metoo era — Sextimus’s
relentless pursuit of women. In this
version, said Gelles, the women
COURIER L 60 IFE, FEB, 22-28, 2019 24-7
passing through the castle carry
tasty desserts, and the king chases
after the sweet dishes rather than
the women themselves.
“It was a very simple switch
without changing any text, to be
more respectful of how women are
framed within the show,” she said.
“Once Upon a Mattress”
at Gallery Players 199 14th St.
between Fourth and Fifth avenues
in Park Slope, (718) 595–0547,
www.galleryplayers.com. Feb.
22–March 17; Fri at 7:30 pm; Sat at
2 pm and 7:30 pm; Sun at 3 pm. $25
($20 seniors and kids).
By Bill Roundy They’re coming full circle!
The theater company
Smith Street Stage will
present the violent delights of
“Romeo and Juliet” for its 10thannual
Shakespeare in Carroll
Park series in June. The tale of
star-crossed lovers was also the
company’s first production in the
park, which makes it especially
appropriate for the anniversary,
the group’s founder and artistic
director announced at its Winter
Wassail gala on Feb. 9.
“Ten years ago, we came to
Carroll Park, and fell in love. Fell
in love with the people, fell in love
on stage, and fell in love with a
new community and artists we’d
never worked with before,” said
Beth Ann Hopkins. “We’re very
excited to bring one of the most
beautiful love stories of all time
back to the place where we first fell
in love with it.”
In addition to its Shakespearean
tale of woe, the company has ambitious
plans for its 10th season,
with three more shows planned
for 2019.
The company will workshop
two different shows as part of its
“Early Stages” program. First up
will be “The Artists,” a new play
inspired by the amateur actors who
stage the play-within-a-play of
“A Midsummer Night’s Dream,”
written by award-winning prop
designer Noah Mease. The group
will also workshop an original
stage version of the novel “Little
Women,” adapted by Smith Street
Stage regular Hannah Sloat.
No dates have been settled for
these shows yet, said Hopkins.
In September, the company
plans to produce an adaptation
of the tragedy “King Lear” titled
“Lear’s Shadow,” which will run at
a theater in Manhattan.
Hopkins said that, despite the
move across the river, the company
would never abandon its home
in the borough of Kings — the
Manhattan show is just an opportunity
to expand its audience.
“We’re never leaving Brooklyn!
We’ll be in Carroll Park every summer,”
she said. “It’s just the next
step for our company as we grow.”
By Bill Roundy Welcome to Brew-klyn!
New York City
Beer week starts this
Saturday! The annual celebration
of suds, sponsored by the
New York City Brewers Guild,
will feature dozens of tap takeovers
and beer releases in all
five boroughs, but as usual, the
best events are happening in the
County of Kings. Here are the
events you shouldn’t miss:
Beery beginning
The New York City Beer
Week Opening Bash is the official
kick-off event for eight days
of fun in the suds. The Bash
brings together 32 breweries
from all five boroughs — 15 of
them from Brooklyn — each
pouring unlimited samples of at
least two different beers. In addition,
the organizers have invited
another 40 or so of the best
brewers from around the country
(and a few from Europe) to show
off their ales, lagers, and stouts.
A food court outside the Expo
Center will provide tasty meals
to soak up some of the booze
during each of the three-hour
tasting sessions.
Opening Bash at the Brooklyn
Expo Center (72 Noble St. at
Franklin Street in Greenpoint,
www.nycbrewed.com). Feb. 23
at 12:30 pm and 6:30 pm. $85
($115 VIP).
Sweet and sour
The Folksbier brewery in
Carroll Gardens will unveil five
varieties of its fruited sour beer
series Glow Up at this afternoon’s
party. The beer flavors
include Watermelon and Satsuma
Mandarin, Morello Cherry and
Lime, Stonefruit, and Green
Yuzu, among others.
Glow Up Party at the
Folksbier taproom (101 Luquer
St. between Clinton St. and the
BQE, www.folksbier.com). Feb.
24, 2–6 pm. Free.
Curds and whey-sted
Word is out that beer and
cheese make a gouda combination!
Three events this week will
pair rinds with rye beers. First
up is a free tasting with Matt
McCall, Coney Island’s Head
Brewer, at the Whole Foods in
Gowanus on Feb. 24.
NYC Beer Week Cheese and
Beer Tasting at the Roof at Whole
Foods Gowanus 214 Third St. at
Third Avenue in Gowanus, second
floor, (718) 907–3622, www.
wholefoodsmarket.com/stores/
brooklyn. Feb. 24 at 4 pm. Free
with RSVP .
Second, the Brooklyn
Brewery will join forces with
Murray’s Cheese for a tasting
of rare vintages and delicious
cheeses on Feb. 27.
Beer and Cheese Pairing
Class at Brooklyn Brewery (79 N.
11th St. between Berry Street and
Wythe Avenue in Williamsburg,
www.brooklynbrewery.com).
Feb. 27 at 7 pm. $30.
Finally, Grimm’s head brewer
Otto Berkes will team up with
Caroline Hesse, cheese monger
for the Crown Finish Caves, for
a guided tasting of four beers and
cheeses on Feb. 28.
Grimm Artisanal Ales 990
Metropolitan Ave. between
Catherine Street and Morgan
Avenue in Williamsburg, (718)
564–9767, www.grimmales.
com. Feb. 28 at 6:30 pm. $60.
Bubble talk
Bushwick beer bar the Well
will host two special podcast
events during Beer Week. Each
will start when the bar opens
at noon, pouring beers from
five carefully chosen breweries
from across the country. Then,
at 5 pm, the heads of those beer
Royal romp: In the new production of “Once Upon a Mattress,” opening on Feb. 22,
Luisa Boyaggi, Alyson Leigh Rosenfeld, and Gerardo Vallejo star as Queen Aggravain,
Princess Winnifred, and Prince Dauntless, respectively. Michelle Danahy
A brew man: Coney Island Brewery’s head brewer, Matt McCall, will host a
beer and cheese tasting and a party with sideshow performers during New
York City Beer Week. File photo by Trey Pentecost
Do you raise your thumbs at me, sir?:
Smith Street Stage’s development director
Michael Hanlon gave an enthusiastic
thumbs-up after the company’s new
season was announced.
Home sweet foam
WELCOME MAT
Summer of love
NYC Beer Week will start
and end in Brooklyn!
Continued on page 64
/www.grimmales
/www.nycbrewed.com
/www.folksbier.com
/
/
/www.brooklynbrewery.com
/www.galleryplayers.com
/www.galleryplayers.com
/www.nycbrewed.com)
/www.folksbier.com)
/
/www.brooklynbrewery.com)
/www.grimmales