Note: I accidentally misnamed the show I reviewed here. I called it Sleeping Beauty in the original review. It is actually Snow White. I guess I’m one of those who can’t tell the difference among male chauvinistic fairy tales that start with the letter “S” and involve princes awakening sleeping, beautiful women. My sincere apologies!

by Audrey Liebross

Are you looking for something cool (literally and figuratively) to do with kids or grandkids next weekend? Coachella Valley Repertory (CV Rep), through its Conservatory, has the answer — a clever, hour-long production of Snow White that all ages are likely to enjoy. I figured it was something fun to do with my granddaughter and wound up having one heckuva good time myself.

This version, with script by Greg Banks, is not a musical, although it has short snippets of vocal pieces. There is lots of lovely background instrumental music (by Victor Zupanc), and a great deal of lively action; kudos to director Howard Shangraw for his masterly choreography of the actors’ movements. The visual aspects of the production are also fabulous.

People who have read my CV Rep reviews by now know how much I admire Jimmy Cuomo’s set designs. He did his usual fantastic job with the set, but rather than the realistic designs we are used to seeing from him, this set is clearly created with a fairy tale in mind, almost like a Disneyland dark ride. The simple lines and colors are very different from the more usual Cuomo set, but the give-away that this is a Cuomo creation is that the castle is on one side of the stage, the woods are in the middle, and the dwarves’ home is on the other; Jimmy Cuomo often creates a set that has different, unconnected locations on different sides of the stage.

I have saved the best for last: There are only two actors in the entire production, John Corr and Haley Kooyman, who brilliantly play all the characters. Usually, they play people of their own gender, but by no means does this always happen. Sometimes, they exchange characters in the middle of a speech.  Yet that is hardly the most impressive of the actors’ accomplishments: The most amazing thing is that John Corr, who local theatregoers are already aware is a top-notch actor, plays all seven dwarves, frequently switching among them within a time span of a few seconds, using different voices for each and different visual cues. He accomplishes the visual changes by virtue of an elf-like knitted hat with a lo-o-o-ng, pointy top that he can switch to different positions for different dwarves. How he keeps the voices and the hat positions straight during the lightning-quick character switches is a mystery to me. And while John Corr, in my opinion, steals the show, this is not to denigrate Haley Kooyman’s performance in any way — she, too, does an excellent acting and singing job, and her movements are terrific. Her exaggerated walk to simulate hypermasculinity when she plays the prince who kisses Snow White is a hoot.

A note about Greg Banks’ script: The traditional version of the fairy tale is one of the least politically correct except for the versions of Cinderella where the wicked stepsisters chop off their toes to fit in the glass slipper. However, Greg Banks pokes fun at the idea of Prince Charming and other aspects of the traditional story. Between his clever script and the actors’ physical comedy, there are a great deal of laughs.

The only thing that disappointed me about Snow White is that there were so few people in the audience at the performance I attended. I suspect that many who would otherwise have come probably thought that this was a show for children. While it is certainly appropriate for kids, adults will enjoy it, too. I certainly hope that more publicity coupled with word of mouth will bring larger crowds to CV Rep for Snow White.

Snow White will run on Sunday, June 9, 2024 at 2:00 PM; Saturday, June 15, 2024 at 11:00 AM and 2:00 PM; and on Sunday June 16, 2024 at 2:00 PM. Suggested ticket prices are a minimum of $5.00 ($10.00 with fees) for adults and $1.00 ($6.00 with fees) for youth ages 12 and younger, but you may choose any amount you wish to pay. Simply enter the number of tickets you would like to purchase, and the amount you would like to pay for each one. All ticket income directly benefits The Conservatory at CVRep, and provides future opportunities for T.Y.A. (Theatre for Young Audiences) production. Tickets may be purchased at the CV Rep sales site, https://cvrep.my.salesforce-sites.com/ticket/#/events/a0STS000007Xko52AC

CV Rep is located at 68510 E. Palm Canyon Drive, Cathedral City, CA 92234. The box office is open Tue - Fri 10:00am - 4:00pm and 1 hour prior to performances. For ticket purchase or information, call 760-296-2966 ext. 0 or email the box office at boxoffice@cvrep.org. The Web site is www.cvrep.org . All children must be accompanied by an adult.

Photos Courtesy of CV Rep