PRESS
Acclaim for DTF's 2008 Season!
Reviews of Nobody Don't Like Yogi
The Manchester Journal
By Jessica Erin Palmer
DORSET - Directed by Carl Forsman and starring Teddy Coluca as Yogi Berra, this one man tour-de-force is set at Yankee Stadium as the famous ball player gives his speech on Yogi Berra Day in 1999.
You don't have to be a fan of baseball, or even understand the game, to appreciate the sincerity of this production, as a man looks back on his career, his relationships, his victories and his shortcomings. Known for his quirky Yogi-isms, there is a simplistic and dignified way that Berra looks at his life. With phrases like "Why drudge up the past - you can't live in it" and "Things don't have to be all different to be very different," any member of the audience should be able to find a way to relate to this baseball icon.
Coluca, last seen on the DTF stage in "Dulcy" shows a tremendous range, bringing the audience on a journey of Berra's memories and emotions as he prepares for his special day. Viewers are invited to share in secret moments and private thoughts. This play is touching, funny, and stirring. Forsman and Coluca, together, pay homage to the sport and the player, honoring their importance, without being too sentimental.
Coluca shows us a Yogi who had no more than an eighth grade education, a man who carried his mother's rosary in his pocket and who very much loved his wife and family. He shows us a legendary player as a man, husband, coach and father.
Knowing his own limitations and talents, he says, "If you look funny and talk funny, you'd better not hit funny." And with baseball being "the only game where they put the errors on the board," Yogi reminds us that many players were put into the hall of fame being less than a .300 hitter.
David Barber's set, Kevin Thacker's costumes, Josh Bradford's lights, and Daniel Baker's sound all contribute to the overall success of the story. The lighting and sound design frame moments in time that range from Berra sitting at his childhood dinner table to his reminiscing in the locker room. No matter what your relationship is to Berra and baseball, no matter if you are a fan of the Yankees or the Sox, this show is nearly guaranteed to pull at your heartstrings, have you laugh out loud, and even make you swell with pride.
The entirety of the 2008 summer season of DTF is being dedicated to the memory of John Morrison, who served 29 years with the festival. John will long be remembered for the many wonderful stories he shared with us via the Dorset stage.
'Yogi' channels baseball legend
By BOB ROSE
Special to The Post-Star
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
DORSET, Vt. - The Dorset Theatre Festival has opened its second season headed by Carl Forsman, artistic director, with an engrossing production of Thomas Lysaght's one-man show, "Nobody Don't Like Yogi."
Directed by Forsman, Lawrence (Yogi) Berra is played to perfection by Teddy Coluca, who appeared hilariously at the festival last year as Henry, the suspicious butler in "Dulcy."
Coluca amazingly resembles Yogi in appearance and certainly sounds like him. In this play, Yogi is returning to Yankee Stadium after an absence of 14 years. It's the Old Timer's Game on Yogi Berra Day, July 18, 1999, and Yogi is about to make a speech which he is editing in the manager's office right off the locker room.
Yogi spends the entire show reminiscing, not just about his baseball career, but actually more about his wife, Carmen, his parents and sons -- as well as his friends and what he has learned about life over the years.
Coluca holds the audience in the palm of his hand every moment. He convulses everyone with many of Yogi's humorous twists of the English language that somehow made perfect sense. One of my favorites has always been "Nobody goes there any more. It's too crowded."
Whether you are a baseball fan or not, you can't escape admiring Coluca's performance, while he reveals Yogi as a man with a heart and soul.
Coluca's character explains and illustrates how he became one of the greatest catchers in baseball history and recalls his association with such other greats as Joe DiMaggio, Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Casey Stengel and George Steinbrenner, who broke a promise and fired him as Yankee manager. For that, Yogi's day of forgiveness is now at hand.
David Barber has designed a realistic set that adds an appropriate atmosphere without detracting from the character so perfectly impersonated by Coluca. So, you're a Reds fan? No problem. You'll still love Yogi and head for home laughing and with a warm feeling, thanks to the admirable character so well portrayed.
