“Vibrant and funny, desperate and elegiac… will shatter your heart”

NYT Critic's Pick

“More of a song cycle than a traditionally structured, plot-driven musical, ‘The Beautiful Lady’ is set at the Stray Dog Café, a real-life St. Petersburg cabaret where the owner, Boris Pronin (Starr Busby), hosted such literary luminaries as Anna Akhmatova (Kate Fuglei), Osip Mandelstam (Henry Stram), Marina Tsvetaeva (Ashley Pérez Flanagan) and Alexander Blok (George Abud, from “The Band’s Visit”) in the years leading up to World War I. They’re high on ideas and ideals — and, for some of them, on each other — and dream of a political, sexual and artistic revolution.

Swados and Paul Schmidt, who translated many of those writers’ poems (large chunks of which are incorporated into the show), wrote the book, which was revised by Jocelyn Clarke and serves mostly as a thread linking the songs. And, oh, what wonders those are: vibrant and funny, desperate and elegiac, with some so lovely they will shatter your heart.”

-Elisabeth Vincentelli

“She vividly does during this hallucination on the final night of her life”

“Like Hair or Swados’s own Tony-nominated musical, Runaways, The Beautiful Lady is most interested in capturing a specific time and place (in this case, St. Petersburg’s Stray Dog Café) by introducing us to the people who frequented it: There’s Alexander Blok (George Abud), a poet who wrote 800 love poems to ‘The Beautiful Lady’ (a secret identity much-claimed by the city’s prostitutes). Sergei Yesenin (Andrew Polec) is a country-bred Casanova who married four times before age 30. Poet-essayist Osip Mandelstam (Henry Stram), the long-suffering Marina Tsvetaeva (Ashley Pérez Flanagan), and futurist Velimir Khlebnikov (Tom Nelis) are all regulars at the Stray Dog. So is Vladimir Mayakovsky (Djoré Nance), whose cheerleading of the Bolshevik Revolution doesn’t save him. It is up to the only survivor of the bunch, Anna Akhmatova (Kate Fuglei), to remember — and she vividly does during this hallucination on the final night of her life.”

-Zachary Stewart

“Lively and inviting… memorable performances”

“The opening number of this resurrected musical from the late Elizabeth Swados is so lively and inviting that it reminded me of  ‘Comedy Tonight’ in A Funny Thing Happened On The Way to the Forum…  Thanks to the score, Anne Bogart’s engaging, energetic direction, and some memorable performances, the show rewards a broader audience than might normally be drawn to ninety minutes of poets and poetry.”

-Jonathan Mandell

"An astounding performance"

"I was very impressed with Kate Fuglei, who plays Raymonde, particularly since only a few hours earlier, I had seen her give an astounding performance as Blanche in a powerful production of A Streetcar Named Desire." 

-Dianne Zuckerman

"Radiant life force"

"The character of Blanche settles beautifully into Fuglei’s thin body. During her quiet moments with Mitch, she does indeed shimmer and glow, the radiant life force piercing her pained face, 'Sometimes there’s God so quickly,' She half whispers through Mitch’s embrace before her state of grace slips away forever."

-David Pace

"Intelligence and dignity"

"The rhythms of the play, its exquisite language, are present at every turn. Kate Fuglei does not infuse her Blanche with unnecessary gestures. Fuglei, a wren-like figure with large, searching eyes, brings to Blanche intelligence and dignity. She lets you feel how the suicide of her 'dear young boy' so long ago has carried her mind to its current place of fragility."

-Nancy Melich

"Excellent... vibrant"

"Kate Fuglei is excellent as Iago’s wife, delivering her final, vituperative speech in strident, vibrant tones."

"Solid"

"Our Town is almost incomparable in its simplicity, its beauty, its truth and its scope.  The cast is a solid ensemble. Tom McGowan and Kate Fuglei are easy as the Webbs, as is Emily Bergyl, as their daughter."

"Carries the show"

"Kate Fuglei carries the one –woman show in her captivating portrayal of the troubled title character."

-Suzy Evans

"Well acted... with aplomb"

"This is an intelligently made, well-acted one-woman show about the life of a Russian Jewish immigrant who travels alone to America at the turn of the century.  Kate Fuglei plays Rachel Calof, tackling the tricky accent and songs with aplomb. She shines especially on the early numbers 'Lullabye' and 'America' which captures the frightening thrill of heading to a new life and a new continent. The evening's worth is to see an actress invest so fully and successfully in a character."

-Michael Glitz

"A tour-de-force performance"

"Actress Kate Fuglei gives a tour-de-force performance in Rachel Calof, a one- woman show with music adapted from Calof’s memoirs. Fuglei’s portrayal of Calof is completely believable, from her Yiddish accent to her stoic physicality. Her movements are spare but incredibly specific. It is clear that director Ellen S. Pressman has a keen eye for detail and it is remarkable how clearly, yet simply, we see the moments from Rachel’s life. The births of her children seem painfully graphic-yet all Fuglei does is sit on the table that, with two chairs, makes up the entire set. Ken LaZebnil’s adaptation is filled with strong images and keen details.  While not a musical per se, Rachel Calof features seven original songs with music and lyrics by Leslie Steinweiss. A lullaby in Yiddish creates the feel of the world that Rachel leaves behind (but is forever rooted in) and show us early on the continual importance of Rachel’s mother. The song 'My Life is Mud' executed by Fuglei with an almost scary intensity, shows a desperate perseverance and a new dimension to our heroine and is a highlight of the show. Not only is it excellently realized and a testament to minimalist theater, but it does put our own lives very much into perspective."

-Julie Congress

"Captivating"

"Fuglei's performance is captivating, whether detailing her first encounter with cockroaches in NY or the day to day life on the prairie. Fuglei creates the whole things with her body, movement and voice, all of which build a rich and vibrant world. Fuglei is more than up to the task presented in the music and the pieces make a tremendous addition to an already full theatrical plate."

"Physically adroit"

"Fuglei is a briskly confident actor with a no-nonsense mien. Physically adroit in portraying other characters, she has a muscular and unsentimental approach that glimpses the survivors fortitude. Fuglei also sings well, in simple and mournful tunes by composer Leslie Steinweiss."

"A compelling performance"

"In a compelling performance, Kate Fuglei plays Rachel as well as her husband Abraham, her tyrannical mother-in-law Charadh, and other characters... Fuglei captures Rachel’s indomitable spirit as well as the claustrophobia, cold, dirt, odors and vast magnificence of the prairie sky. An appreciative opening night audience rose to its feet."

-David Finkle

"Unforgettable"

"In the one-woman show, Rachel Calof, the details of the the life a North Dakota mail-order bride Rachel Calof endured as an immigrant at the end of the 19th-century and the beginning of the 20th are harrowing but difficult to turn away from.  As played by the expert Kate Fuglei, they become unforgettable."