This weekend Eastman Opera Theatre is performing Stephen Sondheim's "Assassins." Friday night's spirited performance makes it no surprise that tickets for Saturday night's production are already sold out.

"Assassins" tells the stories of nine individuals who succeeded in or attempted to assassinate a president of the United States. The musical was first presented off-Broadway in 1990. In 2004, the Broadway production won five Tony Awards. Eastman Opera's take on the show, coincidentally synching up with the outbreak of the national Occupy movement, is a surreal production.

Top marks go to Set Designer Edward Gianfrancesco and Lighting Designer Nic Minetor. The two-hour production featured not a single scene change, the massive set stretched from ceiling to floor and stage right to stage left. The ingenious use of the numbered and decorated doors with thin wooden slats allowed lighting to penetrate the sets and throw off eerie shadows, particularly of the swinging hangman's noose.

The lighting was both unnerving and garish. Ranging in tones from red-orange to grey-blue, it reflected the slightly crazed moods of the main characters. Clever use was made of red, white, and blue round bulbs that flashed for successful assassinations, blinked during state-sponsored executions, and blinded the audience in the final chorus of assassins coaxing Lee Harvey Oswald to pull the trigger.�

I'm focusing my review accolades on these two major elements because, the morning after seeing the show, I remain undecided as to whether or not I care for the Sondheim songs. I had not previously seen the show, and the only thing I could sing walking to my car was the rather macabre "Gun Song" line, "And all you have to do is move your little finger, move your little finger and you can change the world." I found that the score made it difficult to evaluate the singing abilities of the cast, particularly in sections where the volume of the pit orchestra was overwhelming.

The acting, however, was brilliant. Every member of the cast, from Joshua Rosenberg as Samuel Byck to Elza Picasso-Hobin as Sara Jane Moore, excelled at their line deliveries. In particular, Rosenberg's crazed monologue while sitting atop a child's wooden nursery plane was frightening in the way he made me almost want to hug his character as he whimpered while recalling being afraid of the dark as a child.

The cast also did a superb job with the timing and delivery of the funny bits that Sondheim sprinkled into "Assassins." The audience was treated to laughter especially from Kelsey Hayes as Lynette "Squeaky" Fromme in her own lines, and in her banter with Picasso-Hobin (Fromme and Moore being the two women who separately attempted to assassinate President Ford in 1975).�

Finally, a word about cast member Alexander James Turpin, who played both the Balladeer and Lee Harvey Oswald. As the Balladeer, Turpin projected an almost-"American Idol" level of wholesome goodness, completely appropriate to his role. Possessed of a lovely and clear singing voice, Turpin's portrayal of the Balladeer gave me someplace to anchor my hopes that reasonable minds could prevail amidst the sea of insanity.

So when Turpin then shed his Balladeer garb and emerged in the role of Oswald, I really had to do a double take. Turpin's role change somehow made Oswald sympathetic, as he tried to resist the other assassins gathering around him to seduce him to kill President Kennedy, instead of committing suicide himself. Turpin's acting and his voice held the audience - an audience of all ages, including those who could remember that day - and delivered with professionalism the part of the most recent, successful assassin.

Eastman Opera Theatre performs Stephen Sondheim's "Assassins" Saturday, November 5, 7:30 p.m. (the performance is sold out) and Sunday, November 6, at 2 p.m. at Kilbourn Hall in the Eastman School of Music, 26 Gibbs St. Tickets cost $10-$20. For more information visit esm.rochester.edu.