His show unfolds like no other
Ennio Marchetto likes to move fast. In his one-man show, "Ennio!," which opens Tuesday at the Boston Center for the Arts' Wimberly Theatre, Marchetto transforms into more than 50 celebrities in little more than an hour, with the help of paper costumes and wigs that morph as he unfolds them.
"I like to call my performance a living cartoon," he says over the phone from his home in Italy. "It's a very simple idea, but there's a lot of imagination involved in it. When I first started, I was a little boring because we let them go on a bit. Now I think one or two minutes per character is plenty. I think audiences find it funniest when the same paper costume changes quickly into three or four other characters."
Marchetto does all that changing while lip-synching to pop songs. "It's important the audience recognizes the song instantly," he explains. "I do 'Fever,' by Peggy Lee, and not everyone remembers her, but they know the song."
Usually, Marchetto says, a song will give him and his collaborator, Sosthen Hennekam, the idea for a costume. "I work on the wigs and he does the costumes," he says.
The pieces can be as simple as a blond paper wig and pleated dress for Marilyn Monroe singing "I Wanna Be Loved by You" to Celine Dion in a gown that unfolds into the Titanic, complete with paper dolls on the ship's prow as Dion sings "My Heart Will Go On." Cher starts out as a mummy, with Marchetto cleverly unwrapping her. "It's a spoof on all the plastic surgery she's had," he says.
Other celebrity sendups range from Eminem and Gene Kelly to Britney Spears and Donna Summer. In addition to his quick changes, Marchetto choreographs elaborate moves for each song.
"I am my own director," he says, "so I rehearse in front of a mirror. It's very important I get the lips right for the lip-synching, but besides that I need to make sure the moves fit the costume and the song."
Although Marchetto has been performing with his paper cutouts for more than two decades, he says it still feels fresh. "We constantly add new celebrities and new songs, so that keeps it fun for me," he says. "It's always a new show." His more recent additions include Amy Winehouse singing "Rehab," with a brief appearance by Marge Simpson, and Vincent Van Gogh singing Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy."
"It took me a long time to realize that this is the art form for me," says Marchetto. "I don't want to do anything else. I cannot betray my paper."
Through June 1. Tickets: $15-$50. 617-933-8600, bostontheatrescene.com.
Party time
After the success of last summer's cabaret "A Marvelous Party," the American Repertory Theatre will reunite Remo Airaldi, Thomas Derrah, Will LeBow, and Karen MacDonald in "When It's Hot, It's Cole" at the Zero Arrow Club June 26-July 30. The show is a revue of the music of Cole Porter, including such familiar songs as "You're the Top" and "Every Time We Say Goodbye." Scott Zigler directs. Tickets: $25-$52. 617-547-8300, amrep.org. Over at the Huntington Theatre, Carrie Fisher, made famous by her performances in the "Star Wars" films, will appear in "Wishful Drinking" (Oct. 8-26), her autobiographical tale of growing up in Hollywood as the daughter of Debbie Reynolds and Eddie Fisher. Tickets currently available to subscribers only: 617-266-0800, huntingtontheatre.org.
Father figure
The Lyric Stage Company's producing artistic director, Spiro Veloudos, will star as Big Daddy in "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof," one of five plays announced as part of the Lyric's 35th anniversary season. In addition to the Tennessee Williams drama, which will be directed by Scott Edmiston, the season includes Stephen Sondheim's "Follies" with Leigh Barrett, Kathy St. George, Bobbie Steinbach, and Maryann Zschau; the New England premieres of the musical "Grey Gardens," about Jacqueline Onassis's eccentric relatives, and "The Year of Magical Thinking," by Joan Didion, based on her memoir, featuring Nancy E. Carroll; and the Boston premiere of the black comedy "Speech & Debate." Two additional productions will be announced soon. Information: 617-585-5678, lyricstage.com.
'Springer' at SpeakEasy
"Jerry Springer: The Opera," which was a hit in London, is among SpeakEasy Stage Company's offerings in a five-show season at the Boston Center for the Arts' Calderwood Pavilion. In addition to "Jerry Springer" (May 1-30), the lineup includes Conor McPherson's "The Seafarer" (Nov. 14-Dec. 13), directed by Carmel O'Reilly; the musical "The Light in the Piazza" (Jan. 16-Feb. 14); and "Blackbird," the Olivier Award-winning play by David Harrower (Feb. 20-March 21). The first show of the season will be announced soon. Information: 617-933-8600, bostontheatrescene.com.
Wellfleet season
Wellfleet Harbor Actors Theatre will produce 10 shows on its two stages this summer, with the Julie Harris Stage hosting Lynn Nottage's "Intimate Apparel" (May 21-June 14), Joe Orton's "What the Butler Saw" directed by David Wheeler and featuring Max Wright (June 19-July 12), Shakespeare on the Cape's production of Marivaux's "Triumph of Love" (June 29-Aug. 31), "The Pillowman" (July 17-Aug. 9), and the world premieres of "Fabuloso" by John Kolvenbach (Aug. 14-Sept. 6) and "The George Place" by David Johnston (Sept. 11-Oct. 4). The Harbor Stage lineup includes the world premieres of "Ride" by Eric Lane (June 4-29) and "Short Stack" by Rolin Jones (July 2-27), "The Mistakes Madeline Made" by Elizabeth Meriwether (July 30-Aug. 24), and David Mamet's "Sexual Perversity in Chicago" (Aug. 27-Sept. 21). Information: 508-349-9428, what.org.
