Staff WriterOliver Samuels and the supporting cast of Glen Campbell, Camille Davis, Courtney Wilson, Sharee McDonald-Russell and the Jambiz crew will bring lots of fireworks to the stage, just in time for the July 4th holiday, when they make their annual trip to South and Central Florida in Patrick Brown’s hilarious play Sheep in Wolf’s Clothing.
Three performances are scheduled, Saturday, June 27, 8:00 p.m., at Wekiva High School in Orlando, Saturday, July 4, 8:00 p.m., at North Miami Beach Performing Arts Center and Sunday, July 5, 7:00 p.m., at the Coral Springs Center for the Arts.
Samuels stars as Amos Brown, a successful businessman who runs a construction company and lives in the posh Beverly Hills community with his kind-hearted wife, Carla (Sharee McDonald-Russell), college-educated daughter, Pat (Camille Davis) and greedy, unemployed brother-in-law, Bert (Glen Campbell).
Carla has always wanted to adopt and care for one of the youngsters she encounters daily while carrying out her job as a social worker. But Amos is not into the whole “adaptation” thing. So when Carla goes ahead and takes in a 21-year-old former gangster named CP (Courtney Wilson), sparks fly and before long the “hignarant” Amos and the angst-ridden CP square off, with Pat and her mother feverishly trying to restore calm and get everyone to live happily together.
But is CP just a music lover and softie at heart, using a tough exterior to mask his vulnerabilities? In his script, Brown tries to provide answers exploring the culture clash between the ‘uptown’ and ‘downtown’ realities.
Samuels’ comedic performance is strong and whenever he is onstage – and opens his mouth – the audience is left in stitches. He gets satisfactory support from Davis, who can be viewed as the moral centre of the play. Campbell, McDonald-Russell and Wilson all have a few scene-stealing moments each. The set design is creatively done and comes alive under the good lighting techniques utilized.
jamarch
