Change Happens


I’d like to answer that big question: How does TriArts — famously devoted to family fare, "Camelot," "My Fair Lady," "The King and I" — end its spirited production of "The Full Monty"?

But first — don’t worry, I’ll get to it — I’d like to say a few things about how "The Full Monty"


starts.

 

That’s with a rush of sparkly curtain blotting out Buffalo’s skyline, and a smartly muscled fellow (George Corso) who takes it off (well, not

all off, not the fullmonty) for cheerfully ululating women, playing after a day at work.

 

The women’s unemployed menfolk sulk outside as the gals drink beer, ogling this fellow, who twitches his pecs for them, alternately; and the natural order of things, which has always said men have power and can do as they like because they bring home the bucks, hits the wall.

These are hard times in Buffalo. Manufacturing has moved, probably to a different continent, and only service jobs remain. Women’s work.

The scene shifts fast to a union hall where those same guys are picking up their benefits checks.

"I want a job, I want to feel like a person," Jerry (Scott Laska) sings.

"I want to feel like the husband instead of the wife," Dave (Andy Lindberg) chimes in. And we’re maybe three minutes into the show. No ambiguities here. No subtle revelations. We get the full monty in the first five minutes. We know everything we are ever going to know about these people, right from the get-go. The rest is story, acting and, in the special case of TriArts, community pride.

Which brings us to David Bayersdorfer, a showman who also teaches social studies at Housatonic Valley Regional High School. He likes getting on stage. And he seems to like dropping his pants and shimmying around in red boxers, auditioning for the strip show, "the one-night killing" that will make life right for these guys again. The audience cheers one of its own up there. And he’s good.

Michael Britt, another familiar face, as Harold Nichols, the manager who hasn’t told his wife he lost his job six months ago, shakes it, loves it, is good at it, too.

And then there’s great, like actor Richard Waits, as Horse, who makes dancing lame a triumph. And Glenda Lauten, playing the hugely endowed Jeanette Burmeister, who, leaning into the keyboard, shows us how she played the piano, once, with all her fingers broken.

Some people were just born to be on a stage.

And that includes Laska, a professional whose rascally bumps and grinds we caught in TriArts’ "The Pajama Game" last year. It’s good to see them again.

And it’s good to see a story about ordinary people triumphing, which is what "The Full Monty" is about, triumphing over bad times, and fear, and change.

Director Robert Durkin brings out the right stuff in everybody, pros and amateurs alike, and his basketball sequence, where the guys dance, really dance, for the first time, takes us out of local pride and into awe.

As for the finish, Artistic Director Michael Berkeley says TriArts should be at least as brave as the "The Full Monty" ’s six heroes.

And it is.

 

 

"The Full Monty," the American musical by Terrence McNally with score by David Yazbek, is based on the 1997 British film. The TriArts production is directed and choreographed by Bob Durkin, with music direction by the company’s artistic director Michael Berkeley.

 

"The Full Monty" runs at the Sharon Playhouse through July 6.

For tickets and information, call 860-364-7469.

Latest News

Racecars roar in NASCAR’s return to Lime Rock Park

High-speed action made for a weekend of excitement at Lime Rock Park Friday and Saturday, June 27-28.

Photo by Simon Markow

LAKEVILLE — For the first time since 2011, Lime Rock Park hosted National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing events June 27 and 28.

It was billed as the largest event in modern track history with an estimated 20,000 fans attending.

Keep ReadingShow less
Joseph Robert Meehan

SALISBURY — Joseph Robert Meehan the 2nd,photographer, college professor and nearly 50 year resident of Salisbury, passed away peacefully at Noble Horizon on June 17, 2025. He was 83.

He was the son of Joseph Meehan the 1st and his mother, Anna Burawa of Levittown, New York, and sister Joanne, of Montgomery, New York.

Keep ReadingShow less
Florence Olive Zutter Murphy

STANFORDVILLE, New York — It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of Florence Olive Zutter Murphy, who went home to be with the Lord on June 16, 2025, at the age of 99.

She was born in Sharon, Connecticut on Nov. 20, 1925, and was a long time resident of the Dutchess County area.

Keep ReadingShow less
Chore Service hosts annual garden party fundraiser

Chore Service hosted 250 supporters at it’s annual Garden Party fundraiser.

Bob Ellwood

On Saturday, June 21, Mort Klaus, longtime Sharon resident, hosted 250 enthusiastic supporters of Northwest Corner’s beloved nonprofit, Chore Service at his stunning 175-acre property. Chore Service provides essential non-medical support to help older adults and those with disabilities maintain their independence and quality of life in their own homes.

Jane MacLaren, Executive Director, and Dolores Perotti, Board President, personally welcomed arriving attendees. The well-stocked bar and enticing hors d’oeuvres table were popular destinations as the crowd waited for the afternoon’s presentations.

Keep ReadingShow less