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Application Pending
by Deirdre Donovan Christina Bianco impersonates 40 personas in the behind-the-scenes world of kindergarten admissions at a fictive private Manhattan school. Christina Bianco reveals the behind-the-scenes world of kindergarten admissions at a fictive private Manhattan school in Application Pending, now running at the Westside Theatre. Co-written by Greg Edwards and Andy Sandberg, this new comedy is more a cartoon than a genuine portrait of the elitist admissions process. But despite its light treatment of a serious subject, it does bring to the fore the sizable talent of Bianco who sturdily carries the show. Bianco plays all 40 characters in this play. And, say what you will, Bianco has range and versatility as an actress. Bianco has attracted worldwide attention with her diva impressions on YouTube videos, which landed her spots on “The Ellen Degeneres Show” and “The Queen Latifah Show.” And she’s no stranger to the stage. She debuted in the West End at the Menier Chocolate Factory’s acclaimed production of Forbidden Broadway. In New York, she has been seen in Newsical the Musical and Forbidden Broadway Goes to Rehab (Drama Desk Award nominee). Besides these Off Broadway stage productions, she has had stints as a cabaret artist at Feinstein’s and performed at various regional U.S. theaters. In short, Bianco already has made quite a dent in the New York theater community and beyond. And, given her attractive looks and boundless energy, her star is bound to get bigger in the future.
Happily, Application Pending allows her to do what she does best: Insinuate herself into colorful personalities and bring them to vivid dramatic life in a convincing manner. In this one-woman show, she becomes the newly-hired Admissions Assistant, who subsequently morphs into the personas of high-charging parents, some snooty colleagues in education (including the top honcho at Edgely Academy), high-profile celebrities like George Clooney and Celine Dion, and his Holiness the Pope. While the show skims the surface of what goes on at an admissions office at a private kindergarten school, it doesn’t tell all. Those familiar with the actual process know that it is arduous-- and can intimidate even the most confident parent who believes that their child may become the next Einstein, Louis Pasteur, or Bill Gates. Truth be told, a child’s IQ figures in as only one sliver of the necessary prerequisites for admittance to an elite kindergarten in Manhattan. In fact, these exclusive schools typically comb through their young candidate’s family tree, economic income bracket, social standing in the community, and more. That said, this play is buoyed up by Bianco. She is truly a gifted actress who is winning for her protean skill at donning diverse personalities. She combines sassiness with vulnerability, savoir fair with appealing naiveté. But Bianco is at her best when she reveals that compassion does exist even in the steely world of elite kindergarten admissions. In the case of a parent who doesn’t have enough money for the high-cost of Edgely’s tuition, Bianco, as admissions assistant, goes to bat for him, eventually ferreting out a scholarship to cover tuition costs for his child. No doubt this episode gives the play an authentic humanistic dimension, and elevates the piece from being a mere cartoon to something else. In keeping with the look of an Old School admissions office, Colin McGurk set has all the major props in place: There’s the large office desk topped by a business phone, other functional paraphernalia, and a few stuffed animals straight from the world of Sesame Street. An Edgely Preparatory Academy pennant hangs proudly on the wall. And Jeff Croiter’s lighting gleams with nary a shadow, ensuring that all the action remains in clear view. Bart Fasbender’s sound effects are static-free, acoustically right, and allow one to listen to each and every regional accent assumed by Bianco. While this isn’t a serious treatment of the admissions process as it now exists in the city, it can teach you the dos and don’ts for this educational milieu. So, by all means, don’t write this show off as trite or for somebody else. It does speak to pertinent educational issues today. And any parents who have youngsters below age 5, or planning to have children in the future, can benefit from dropping by this show. Directed by Andy Sandberg, Application Pending pokes good fun at the admissions process and what parents will do to secure a place for their little darlings at an elite school. But besides giving one a tongue-in-cheek look at what actually goes on there, it also can introduce you to the wunderkind Bianco. And if her performance here is any inkling of what’s ahead for her, she’s likely to surface on many a New York stage in the future. Through April 19th. 
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