Tag: theatre-2009

A Winning Production

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

Last night, we went to Cabrillo Music Theatre in Thousand Oaks to see “Guys and Dolls”. Now, it hasn’t been all that long since we last saw Guys and Dolls, having seen the Hollywood Bowl production in early August. Given that, it’s interesting to compare and contrast the two performances… and, not surprisingly, there are places where the stellar Bowl cast did better, and places where the regional Cabrillo cast did better.

As I wrote back in August, it is quite likely you are familiar with Guys and Dolls, but just in case you are not, you can find a full synopsis on Wikipedia. In a nutshell, it tells the story of Nathan Detroit, an inveterate gambling arranger, and his fiancee of 14 years, Miss Adelaide. Nathan is trying to arrange a location for a floating crap game, but needs $1,000 to secure the place. To get the money, he bets another gambler, Sky Masterson, that he will not succeed in taking the lead missionary from the Save Your Soul Mission, Sister Sarah Brown, to Havana Cuba for dinner. In the process of wooing Miss Brown, Sky gives her his marker for at least 1 dozen certified sinners for a midnight prayer meeting. To cover the craps game planning. a date is finally set for Nathan and Miss Adelaide. Sky gets Sarah to Havana, and while he is there the craps game is held… at the mission, without Sky’s knowledge. When they return, Sarah believes Havana was just a subterfuge for the game, and dumps Sky. But Sky must redeem his marker for his dignaty, so he bets the other gamblers for their souls… he wins, and as a result, they must attend the prayer meeting. Doing so forces Nathan to miss his elopement, and Adelaide dumps him… but after a great duet with Sarah, they realize they have to marry their men in order to change them. All of this is told in the mileau of Daymon Runyon’s colorful world and style. “Guys and Dolls” features a book by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows, with music and lyrics by Frank Loesser. I should note that Cabrillo did the stock stage version. The Hollywood Bowl version interpolated an additional song, “Adelaide, Adelaide”, which appears to have come from the movie.

Cabrillo’s production of G&D was excellent — they know how to put on a musical. I was particularly impressed with their Sarah Brown, Jessica Bernard, a local performer who gave a spot-on performance (and was significantly stronger than Jessica Biel). She had a strong singing voice, and acted the role spectacularly. Also strong was the other lead “doll”: Alet Tayloræ as Miss Adelaide. Taylor’s Adelaide wasn’t as nasal as the typical Adelaide (Vivian Blaine, Faith Prince, or Ellen Greene, who was very strong at the Bowl), but Taylor’s Adelaide was a comic gem. The combination of the strong singing and the incredible comedy made her perfect for the role. Also strong was Barry Pearlæ as Nathan Detroit. Pearl’s Nathan didn’t have lanky charm of Scott Bakula or the manic energy of Nathan Lane, but came across as the long-suffering arranger. He was a strong singer, a strong actor, and a strong dancer.

Alas, I regret to say that Jeff Griggsæ as Sky Masterson was weaker, mostly in comparison to Brian Stoakes Mitchell (but then again, anyone compared to BSM is weak). Griggs singing was good and charming. My real problem was with his spoken lines, as they had this odd southern drawl, making me think of Beauregard Jackson Pickett Burnside in Mame as opposed to the New York Sky of Guys and Dolls. This may have been a larger accent problem: their Harry the Horse had nary a Brooklyn accent; Lt. Branigan had an odd Irish accent that kept going in an out; and Arvide had some accent I couldn’t quite fit in. So although Griggs’ Sky was enjoyable to watch, he didn’t soar as the Bowl performance did.

Turning to the secondary characters, Nova Safo did a good job as Nicely Nicely Johnson. He wasn’t the rotund comic of Stubby Kaye or Ken Page, but he fit the role well and gave a great turn in “Sit Down, You’re Rocking the Boat”. Paul Zegler was touching as Arvide. Farley Cadena was odd as Gen. Cartwright — she came across as sexier and more playful than one would expect of that role. As for the tertiary characters, they were mostly interchangable with no particular either standouts or problems (well, I should note that I did enjoy Jennifer Foster and Jantre Haskin Christian as they missionaries — they were cute and seemed to be really enjoying their roles): Mike McLean (Benny Southstreet), Danny Blaylock (Big Jule), Jay Weber (Harry the Horse), Ronald Rezac (Lt. Brannigan), David Scales (Rusty Charlie), Jebbel Arce (Rosie), Marc Bastos (Sleepout Sam Levinsky), Paul Berry (Brandy Bottle Bates), Cory Bretsch (The Greek), Johnny Cannizzaro (Joey Biltmore/Johnny One Eye), Heather Castillo (Lulu), Andreas De Rond (Scranton Slim), Jeff Ditto (Frankie Fingers/MC), Jennifer Foster (Agatha), Jantre Haskin Christian (Martha), Kat Liz Kramer (Laverne), Alida Michal (Mimi), Sabrina Miller (Trixie), Clay Stefanki (Society Max), Erica Strong (Betty), Bobby Traversa (Calvin/Willy the Worrier), and Estevan Valdes (Liver Lips Louie).

Turning to the technical side of things… the direction of this production was quite good, but I would expect nothing less from Nick Degruccio. Roger Castellano’s choreography was strong, but was at times done in by the lighting … so, as we’re on the subject … the lighting design by Jared A. Sayeg was mixed. There were scenes were it was quite strong, such as the red lighting during the Havana scene or the use of the gobos, but it was done in by the poor follow spots. These were especially distracting during numbers such as Guys and Dolls or the Gamblers Ballet. The orchestra, under the musical direction of Darryl Archibald, was excellent, and the sound design by Jonathan Burke was easily heard throughout the theatre. Although the sets by T. Theresa Scarano were excellent as always, I was less impressed with Christine Gibson’s costumes. The gamblers in Guys and Dolls need to be colorful, not dressed in browns, blacks, and greys… and the dolls need to be more dolled up than they were. Paul Hadobas, on the other hand, did a good job with the hair and makeup design. The production stage manager was the always exceptional Lindsay Martens, assisted by Allie Roy.

The last performance of “Guys and Dolls” is this evening.

Upcoming Theatre: This evening is the next episode of “Meeting of Minds” Episode #9 (Martin Luther, Plato, Voltaire, Florence Nightingale) at the Steve Allen Theatre. Halloween weekend is currently open, as is the first weekend of November. November 11th (Veterans Day) we’re at a Day Out With Thomas at Orange Empire Railway Museum. The following weekend Erin is going to the TMBG concert at UCLA, while we will attending Havdalah with Peter Yarrow at the American Jewish University. On November 22 at 2pm we return to REP East Playhouse for “M*A*S*H”, followed by the next installment of Meeting of Minds (pending ticketing). Thanksgiving weekend is currently open; however, it might be taken by a shift of our production for the following weekend (“Baby Its You” at the Pasadena Playhouse, December 5 at 8pm… which, by the way, features the actress who played Marie Antoinette), due to the fact I head out the morning after we see it for ACSAC in Hawaii. That same weekend (December 3, 4, 5) also brings “The Taming of the Shrew” at Van Nuys HS — we’ll likely be going to the Friday, December 4 performance. I fly out to Hawaii for ACSAC on 12/5 (hint: registration is now open and we have a great technical program — so come to the conference). While there, I hope to get together one night with shutterbug93 and see some local theatre. I return 12/12 (and, alas, this is why we can’t see Equus at LA Valley College the weekends of 12/3-5 and 10-12). December 20 bring “Mary Poppins” at the Ahmanson. As always, I’m looking for suggestions for good shows to see, especially if they are on Goldstar or LA Stage Tix.

Disclaimer: In light of the upcoming rules, you should know that nobody paid me anything to write this review. In fact, I receive no remuneration for any reviews I write.

Share

Theatre Updates

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

Some various updates related to theatre:

  • Woo-hoo! Hottix for “Mary Poppins” at the Ahmanson went on sale Tuesday. For those unaware, these are $20, potentially limited view orchestra seats, no service fee. You can get at most 2 per call. To get them call (213) 628-2772, option 2, during telephone hours (Telephone hours: Monday through Friday 10am to 6pm, Saturday and Sunday Noon to 6pm as well as the two hours prior to any performance at the Mark Taper Forum, Ahmanson and Kirk Douglas Theatres). We’re going 12/20 @ 1pm.
  • For the tech theatre geeks in my life: A nice article in the LA Times about how tech theatre is the place to be: well-paid, steady income.
  • It was one of the great musical failures, and it is coming back. There will be a reading of the musical “Carrie”, a 29-hour reading in the fall.
  • We all know the words: “Ommpa, Loompa, Doopity Doo”. Well, I’ve got a musical for you. Sam Mendes is looking to bring “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory” to the stage. The new musical will have a book by Scottish playwright David Greig and music and lyrics by Hairspray’s Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman. It’s aiming for a West End opening in mid-2011.
  • Going the other direction may be “Miss Saigon”, the musical about the evacuation of Vietnam and the human casualties left behind. Paula Wagner is looking to produce a screen version of “Miss Saigon”. She will produce the film with Cameron Mackintosh, who produced the West End-Broadway musical. A screenwriter is about to be hired, and financing discussions are under way with an eye toward getting the film into production next year for a 2011 release. The movie will be faithful to Claude-Michel Schonberg and Alain Boublil story.
Share

Dancing on their Grave: A Sad Remembrance of How the South Used To Be

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

This afternoon we saw our second production of the weekend, “Parade” at the Mark Taper Forum. This was our second time seeing “Parade” (the first was the Neighborhood Playhouse production in July 2008). It was also our first time in the Mark Taper Forum since their big remodel; our last show in the Taper was “13” in January 2007. So some compare and contrasts are in order.

Let’s start with the Taper itself. The Taper did a complete tear-down and remodel, and the new Taper is beautiful. I don’t think there’s a bad sightline in the house. The front abalone shell wall is still there, but the rest of the foyer looks much more modern. Supposedly the restrooms are much better, but I didn’t visit. You could see the technical improvements in the new soundboards, lighting, and the larger sets. A beautiful theatre.

Now, to the production. As I wrote last time, Parade tells the story of Leo Frank, a Brooklyn-born Jew who moved to Atlanta Georgia in 1913 to marry Lucille Selig and to be supervisor of the National Pencil Company. Leo was like many people today: bright, focused on his work, uncomfortable around other people and trusting only in himself, and just prefering to be left alone with his habits. The play opens on Confederate Memorial Day, and everyone but Leo is celebrating (Leo is asking himself why there is such a celebration for a war that was lost). Leo goes to work to work on his books. A 13 year old white girl stops by his office to collect her pay. Leo doesn’t recognize her, but upon getting her employee number, pays her for the week: $1.20. Later that day, she is found crumpled in the factory basement, dead. Leo and Newt Lee, the night watchman, are brought in as suspects. The governor tells the DA they must have a swift verdict in this case. Not being able to find any evidence for the night watchman, and thinking the hanging of a black man wins few points in George, the DA lets Newt go. That leaves him with the man who must be the culprit: Leo Frank. The DA builds a case of coached stories to convince the jury, including the testimony of Jim Conley, a janitor at the factory who was an escaped convict with violent tendancies. He presents this case, and Leo’s lawyer doesn’t refute it: he just surprises Leo by having him make a statement, and then resting his case. Leo is found Guilty, and sentenced to death That’s the end of Act I. In Act II, the focus moves from Leo to his wife Lucille, who is surprising Leo with her strength and tenacity in defending his innocence. Lucille convinces the governor to commute Leo’s sentence; he does, although it is only to a life sentence. Leo is moved to an undisclosed prison, and Leo and Lucille’s love story grows. However some people in Atlanta are incensed about this “Jew” getting off, and the mob goes to the prison, drags Leo out, and hangs him. They then go off to celebrate Confederate Memorial Day.

The original production was the original Jason Robert Brown and Alfred Uhry. The Taper production was the Donmar Warehouse version. This latter version made some changes in the presentation (JRB’s summary of the changes) and staging. Some aspects of the story were toned down (such as the reporter’s drunkenness, or Lucille’s pregnancy), and the cast was cut down by having characters play multiple roles. A new non-speaking role was added of a ghostly Southern bell that drifts in and out of scenes. These change the tone and focus of the piece to something darker and more focused, especially in the second act. It heightens the antisemitism of the Southerners, and the ghost provides a commentary on the old ways of the South (although that wasn’t clear). The change in tone worked. The doubling of actors, at least how it was done here, didn’t… because it was too hard, at times, to distinguish who was who in what role because the costumes were so similar. If doubling of roles is to be done, there need to be distinct character costumes, or the artiface of calling out the character’s name a few times needs to be inserted to reorient people.

Another aspect of the staging became an interesting commentary on the piece, at least to me. When they buried Mary Phagan, they opened up the floor of the stage, revealing the coffin. After they replaced those panels, the dancing continued apace. It seemed to be a commentary on the proceedings: the southerners of Atlanta dancing on Mary’s grave to lynch a man unjustly who had actually done nothing to Mary. It stuck with me the entire musical.

“Parade” is not a big theatre piece — it is too heavy for an 1200-1600 seat theatre. We last saw “Parade” in an 99-or-less seat theatre, and the intimacy made one feel like they were in the courthouse, and made the piece especially moving. The Taper is around 750 seats, making the proceedings a little less detached and the action broader and less intimate. It didn’t spoil the drama of the piece, but lessened it at little.

Luckily, the acting was pretty good. The leads were T. R. Knight as Leo Frank and Lara Pulver as Lucille Frank. Knight captured the New York nebbish nature of Leo well (I kept thinking Matthew Broderick as I heard his voice), and Pulver had Lucille down pat. Knight’s singing was a little weaker than at the Neighborhood Playhouse, but still strong. Other individual castings were less individually memorable, due to their duel castings, but all were excellent: Brad Anderson (Officer Ivey, Luther Rosser, Guard); Michael Berresse (Governor Slaton, Britt Craig, Mr. Peavy); Will Collyer (Ensemble); Charlotte d’Amboise (Mrs. Phagan, Sally Slaton); Karole Foreman (Ensemble); Davis Gaines (Old Soldier, Judge Roan, Guard); Laura Griffth (Ensemble); P. J. Griffith (Officer Starnes, Tom Watson); Curt Hansen (Young Soldier, Frankie Epps, Guard); Deidrie Henry (Minnie McNight, Angela); Christian Hoff (Hugh Dorsey); Sarah Jayne Jensen (Ensemble); Lisa Livesay (Monteen); Hayley Podschun (Iola Stover); David St. Louis (Newt Lee, Jim Conley, Riley); Rose Sezniak (Lila, Mary Phagan); Phoebe Strole (Essie); Josh Tower (Ensemble); and Robert Yacko (Ensemble).
[All actors are members of æ Actors Equity ]

Turning to the technical side: the sets and costumes (designed by Christopher Oram) were a step above the simple Neighborhood Playhouse set: there was a lower portion representing the street with tables coming on and off representing various, umm, tables. There was an upper area that served as the factory office, court, and dock. Costumes were reflective of the time and worked well. The lighting design was that of the original Donmar production by Neil Austin and was simple with ambers and purples and some harsher white lighting. I particularly like the shrinking square of light over Leo during questioning and the back mural of the Confederacy. The musical director was Tom Murray, who led the 9-piece offstage orchestra. Music and lyrics were by Jason Robert Brown, with orchestrations by David Cullen. Sound design was by Jon Weston, based on the original London sound design by Nick Lidster and Terry Jardine. Wigs and hair were by Carol F. Doran.

The beautiful movements of the show were choreographed by Rob Ashford, assisted by Chris Bailey. The production was directed by Rob Ashford, assisted by Stephen Sposito. The production stage manager was David S. Franklin (who was kind enough to invite my daughter and her technical theatre friends backstage afterwards), assisted by Michelle Blair and Susie Walsh.

“Parade” continues at the Mark Taper Forum until November 15, 2009. Tickets are available through the Center Theatre Group, and may be available through discount sources such as Goldstar or LA Stage Tix (I don’t know for sure). We had Hottix, but I don’t know if they are sold out yet.

Upcoming Theatre: Next weekend we will see two productions: “Guys and Dolls” at Cabrillo Music Theatre on Saturday October 24 @ 8pm, and “Meeting of Minds” Episode #9 (Martin Luther, Plato, Voltaire, Florence Nightingale) at the Steve Allen Theatre on Sunday October 25 @ 8pm. Halloween weekend is currently open, as is the first weekend of November. November 11th (Veterans Day) we’re at a Day Out With Thomas at Orange Empire Railway Museum. The following weekend Erin is going to the TMBG concert at UCLA, while we will attending Havdalah with Peter Yarrow at the American Jewish University. On November 22 at 2pm we return to REP East Playhouse for “M*A*S*H”, followed by the next installment of Meeting of Minds (pending ticketing). Thanksgiving weekend is currently open; however, it might be taken by a shift of our production for the following weekend (“Baby Its You” at the Pasadena Playhouse, December 5 at 8pm… which, by the way, features the actress who played Marie Antoinette), due to the fact I head out the morning after we see it for ACSAC in Hawaii. That same weekend (December 3, 4, 5) also brings “The Taming of the Shrew” at Van Nuys HS — we’ll likely be going to the Friday, December 4 performance. I fly out to Hawaii for ACSAC on 12/5 (hint: registration is now open and we have a great technical program — so come to the conference). While there, I hope to get together one night with shutterbug93 and see some local theatre. I return 12/12 (and, alas, this is why we can’t see Equus at LA Valley College the weekends of 12/3-5 and 10-12). The rest of December is currently open, but I know that sometime in December I’ll be attempting to ticket “Mary Poppins” at the Ahmanson (HotTix were supposed to go on sale 10/23, but may not as per the postscript below). As always, I’m looking for suggestions for good shows to see, especially if they are on Goldstar or LA Stage Tix.

An interesting postscript to the above: There may not be HotTix to “Mary Poppins”. According to my contact in Audience Services at CTG, Disney and Center Theatre Group are in the midst of negotiations for HotTix. Disney is not in favor of having discount tickets and CTG would like to continue the HotTix program for this show. I’m waiting for the final answer on this, but we might be up in the balcony for that one.

Disclaimer: In light of the upcoming rules, you should know that nobody paid me anything to write this review. In fact, I receive no remuneration for any reviews I write.

Share

Spelling Success

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

Last night, we went out to Los Angeles Valley College to see their production of “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. This was the second LAVC production we’ve seen (the first was Alicen), and yet again I was impressed by the quality of the production. This little community college is doing great stuff, and is a wonderful value for the production one receives. I’ll also note this was our second time seeing Putnam County: we saw it previously in 2007 in the Broadway/LA production at the Wadsworth Theatre with the original cast. This little production, I feel, equalled (if not bettered) the quality of the touring cast. That’s saying quite a bit.

Here’s the synopsis of the story from my previous review. Only the names have been changed to promote the actors 🙂 [Note that, with this being a student production, most links are to Facebooks]

For those not familiar with the show (music and lyrics by William Finn, book by Rachel Sheinkin, conceived by Rebecca Feldman), it tells the story of six mitsfits at a local Spelling Bee, and their quest to win the Bee. However, these six aren’t the only participants in the Bee: there are also four audience members drawn at random, who sink or swim on their own. In the first half of the Bee, you clearly know who will win (the cast members) and who will lose — the fun part is learning the back-stories for the competitors, and seeing the crazy introductions the writers have — both for the cast members and the audience participants. Evidently, there are different words given to audience participants each show, with extremely funny definitions (words in this show included “Bottle”, “Hybrid” (which was misspelled!), and a word so long I can’t remember it). The definitions (and the use of the words in a sentence) is hilarious (although many of last night’s guests forgot to ask for both). The second half of the show is the serious competition, with the final five contestants being winnowed down. During this part you learn more about the kids and see how they grow — and what is really inside of them. I should also note that the writers tailor the background schools of the characters to local schools, and have topical and local jokes. Translation: they do their homework.

The six contestants in the Bee are:

  1. Marcy Park (Julia May Wong), an Asian overachiever, who knows five six languages, excells in sports (and everything else), and who is driven to win the bee.
  2. Leaf Coneybear (Wes Schilling), a second-runner up who got to the competition because the kids in front of him had to attend a Bat Mitzvah. Comes from a hippie family, in this show, from Topanga Canyon (hmmm, he was from Topanga Canyon in the 2007 production as well).
  3. William Barfée (Paul Dietz), an eccentric character who spells words before saying them with his “magic foot”, who is allergic to peanuts and everything else, and who is probably like someone you knew in your high school.
  4. Olive Ostrovsky (Alyssa Carter (FB)), an isolated newcomer to the Bee, whose parents seem to be taking out their agressions through her, and so she finds the dictionary a safe place to hide.
  5. Logainne Schwartzandgrubenierre (Melanie Wahla), the product of two dads who are pushing her to succeed… however she can.
  6. Chip Tolentino (Iain Gray), last year’s winner, a fearce competitor… until other problems rise up to distract him.

Rounding this out are Rona Lisa Peretti (Cornelia Rinderknecht Eller), the mistress of ceremonies and the #1 realtor in Putnam County; Douglas Panch (Lorin Henner (FB)), the vice-principle serving as judge, and Mitch Mahoney (Antonio “Mookie” Johnson), who is doing his community service by comforting kids when they lose. Also onstage was the conductor/pianist, Patricia Hannifan.

As I said before, I think the LAVC cast was a very strong cast. I have nary a complaint about their performances, even when I compare them in my memory to the Broadway cast. In terms of strong performances, I was particularly taken with Melanie Wahla’s Logainne — she nailed the lisp as well as the character, the energy of Wes Schilling’s Leaf, and the innocence of Allyssa Carter’s Olive. I also really liked Cornelia Eller’s Rona (hell, I still have her business card), and how much she became the character. Perfect, perfect performances.

Some performances surprised me. I initially didn’t like Paul Dietz’s Barfée — it is hard to copy Dan Fogler, and Dietz did not have Fogler’s look. I also initially didn’t like how Dietz did the magic foot and facial expression. However, as the story went on, I became more impressed with him, and grew to like his spin on the role. Similarly, Julia May Wong’s Marcy initially struck me as looking a little old for the character (a complaint I also had with the Broadway cast), but she did a wonderful job on her number (“I speak six languages”) and won me over.

[I should also acknowledge the understudies, Stephanie Pressman and Carlo Maghirang. Although they didn’t go on, it was Stephanie that let me know about the show, and for this I thank her.]

Putnam County is a really fun show, and one I’m surprised doesn’t get done more at the High School level (c’mon, do you think a little song about an erection would raise such a, oh, right). The LAVC production is great fun, and quite affordable ($15 general admission, $10 students and seniors) — and even more so considering the quality that you get).

Turning to the technical side: The production was directed by Cathy Susan Pyles, with musical direction by Patricia Hannifan. Marjorie Vander Hoff served as choreographer, and made effective use of the thrust stage that LAVC utilizes. The scenic design was by the director, Cathy Pyles, and was simple and effective — the scenic design is one of the strengths of this show in that it doesn’t require a lot. Costumes were by Judy Ashton, who captured the original look well. The lighting design was by Pettifogger and used the conventionals and scrollers much better than in their previous production, although one lighting cue was a bit fast. The lighting design assistant was Cullen Pinney. Sound design was by Matthew Strunim. Danielle DeMasters served as stage manager, assisted by Timothy Miller and Nicole Ruiz. The house manager was Janette Jara.

“The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee” continues at LAVC until October 24, with performance October 15-17 and 22-24 at 8 p.m. (plus a 2 p.m. matinee on October 17) in the Horseshoe Theater. Tickets are $15 for general admission, and $10 for students and seniors. For more information, contact (818) 947-2790 or cathysp@sbcglobal.net. The Horseshoe Theatre is at 5800 Fulton Ave, Valley Glen, CA 91401.

Upcoming Theatre: Our next scheduled theatre is Sunday October 18, when we’re seeing the Donmar workshop version of “Parade” at the Mark Taper Forum. The next weekend will see two productions: “Guys and Dolls” at Cabrillo Music Theatre on Saturday October 24 @ 8pm, and “Meeting of Minds” Episode #9 (Martin Luther, Plato, Voltaire, Florence Nightingale) at the Steve Allen Theatre on Sunday October 25 @ 8pm. Halloween weekend is currently open, as is the first weekend of November. November 11th (Veterans Day) we’re at a Day Out With Thomas at Orange Empire Railway Museum. The following weekend Erin is going to the TMBG concert at UCLA, while we will attending Havdalah with Peter Yarrow at the American Jewish University. On November 22 at 2pm we return to REP East Playhouse for “M*A*S*H”, followed by the next installment of Meeting of Minds (pending ticketing). Thanksgiving weekend is currently open; however, it might be taken by a shift of our production for the following weekend (“Baby Its You” at the Pasadena Playhouse, December 5 at 8pm… which, by the way, features the actress who played Marie Antoinette), due to the fact I head out the morning after we see it for ACSAC in Hawaii. That same weekend (December 3, 4, 5) also brings “The Taming of the Shrew” at Van Nuys HS — we’ll likely be going to the Friday, December 4 performance. I fly out to Hawaii for ACSAC on 12/5 (hint: registration is now open and we have a great technical program — so come to the conference). While there, I hope to get together one night with shutterbug93 and see some local theatre. I return 12/12 (and, alas, this is why we can’t see Equus at LA Valley College the weekends of 12/3-5 and 10-12). The rest of December is currently open, but I know that sometime in December I’ll be attempting to ticket “Mary Poppins” at the Ahmanson (HotTix were supposed to go on sale 10/23, but may not as per the postscript below). As always, I’m looking for suggestions for good shows to see, especially if they are on Goldstar or LA Stage Tix.

An interesting postscript to the above: There may not be HotTix to “Mary Poppins”. According to my contact in Audience Services at CTG, Disney and Center Theatre Group are in the midst of negotiations for HotTix. Disney is not in favor of having discount tickets and CTG would like to continue the HotTix program for this show. I’m waiting for the final answer on this, but we might be up in the balcony for that one.

Disclaimer: In light of the upcoming rules, you should know that nobody paid me anything to write this review. In fact, I receive no remuneration for any reviews I write.

Share

Back To School Chum

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

Last night was “Back to School” night at Van Nuys, so in that spirit, some chum organized around my daughter’s schedule:

  • Period 1: Honors Biology. CNN has an interesting article about how hydrogen sulfide gas is being used to put mice into suspended animation.
  • Period 2: Honors English. The LA STage Tix listing I received today alerted me to the fact that the Lyric Theatre in Hollywood (where we saw “Into the Woods” last year) will be doing Antigone from 11/13 to 12/6. LA Stage Tix tickets (half-price) are $3.75 to $7.50. If you prefer Shakespeare, the Ark Theatre at the Hayworth is doing “Much Ado About Nuthin”, an “Appalachian” spin on Shakespeare’s crowd-pleasing comedy, from 10/1 to 11/21. LA Stage Tix tickets (half-price) are $5 to $11. ETA: P.S.: I seem to be missing some of my Moonlighting DVDs, in particular the Season 3 DVD with “Atomic Shakespeare”. Did I loan it to anyone reading this?
  • Period 3: Dance. There’s an interesting dance going on between Microsoft and Family Guy. Specifically, M$ is teaming with “Family Guy” creator Seth MacFarlane to sponsor a variety show to air on the Fox network on Nov. 8 that will run without commercials, and instead promises to feature “unique Windows 7-branded programming that blends seamlessly with show content.” The working title is “Family Guy Presents: Seth & Alex’s Almost Live Comedy Show”
  • Period 4: AP World History. This period allows me to plug the upcoming Meeting of Minds on Sun 10/25 at 7pm. This episode features Gary Cole (Steve Allen), Mark Moses (Martin Luther), Ray Abruzzo (Voltaire), Harold Gould (Plato), and Sharon Lawrence (Florence Nightingale). The page now also indicates that the November episode will be 11/22, which should be an interesting day, as we have “M*A*S*H” at 2pm in Saugus, with a talk-back afterwards.
  • Period 5: AP Statistics. It is amazing what statistics tell you. For example, did you know that women deal with life changes by buying new cars. An August 2009 survey of 500 U.S. women ages 18 and older asked, “Of the following life events, which is the most likely to prompt you to purchase a car?” with the following options to choose from: new job, retirement, pregnancy, divorce, an empty nest and children becoming drivers. 60% of the women surveyed indicated that career changes, including a new job (37%) and retirement (23%) would most likely to prompt them to buy a car. Women ages 18 to 34 had a close tie between pregnancy (41%) and getting a new job (44%) as motivations for car buying. 11% of all women cited a new child driver as an impetus.
  • Period 6: Technical Theatre. One of the things I noticed recently on our street is that the street lights had changed to LED lighting. So, I did a search and found some information on the project. In September 2009, LA approved retrofitting 140,000 of its high pressure sodium street lights with LED light fixtures, and BetaLED, a division of Racine-based Ruud Lighting Inc., is one of two companies that will supply the new fixtures. By switching to LED street lights, Los Angeles is expected to save about $10 million in energy costs and maintenance per year. The statistics about lighting are interesting. An article on the East Hollywood Street Lighting Yard notes that Street Lights workers repair or replace about 75 light poles each month that are damaged or destroyed by motorists in auto collisions. There are approximately 400 different street light fixtures used on the 5000 miles of LA streets that the Street Lighting maintains. They store approximately 200 of those fixtures at the East Hollywood service yard.
  • Period “7”: More Technical Theatre. Tonight we’re going to Valley College, near the high school, to see the 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. They did a good job with “Alicen”, so it should be interesting to see what they do with Spelling Bee.
Share

A General, a Queen, a Theologian, and a Revolutionary Walk Into a Room….

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

I’ve written in the past of my admiration for the Steve Allen series “Meeting of Minds”, where four historical people are brought together for a roundtable discussion. Working Stage Productions has brought back the series as an ongoing series of staged readings. Last night was their third production, episode #3, featuring a discussion between President U.S. Grant (Dan Lauria), Dr. Karl Marx (Ed Asner), Queen Marie Antoinette (Meeghan Holaway), Sir Thomas More (Bruce Davison), and moderated by Steve Allen (Gary Cole). As usual, it was thought provoking and excellent.

Steve Allen wrote these scripts in the 1960s, and they were first produced for television in the 1970s. Thus, they contain some very slightly dated dialogue that is more emphasized in this particular episode than others, such as the references to Henry Kissinger as Secretary of State or the intense hatred for Karl Marx (which was very much a product of the Cold War). Still, this episode does have some topics that resonate today, such as the attempts by the United States to intervene in the affairs of other countries in order to promote democracy. This is highlighted when Karl Marx points out that it is difficult to argue for democracy when the problems of world hunger and world poverty are not being solved. Could this apply to the situation in the Middle East? Could the reason that the US is not embraced be that the US values haven’t improved the quality of life? These discussions make you (at least) think about the issue, and how we can work better to make the world a better place.

Still, the main focus of this episode is not Karl Marx — in this episode, he serves more as historian and adjunct moderator than civil agitator. His story, as well as that of Sir Thomas, comes out in Episode #4. This episode focuses more on the lives of U.S. Grant and especially Marie Antoinette and the philosphy behind the French Revolution. As such, the theme is more the disconnect of the nobility, how rulers can distance themselves from the rules, and ultimately, how civil wars are savage. It also emphasizes how the danger can come from either side: Antoinette was beheaded by the left-wing, and More by the right-wing.

In terms of acting and theatricality, this was a staged reading. Scripts were on stage, costumes and makeup were simple and suggestive (Grant’s uniform, Antoinette’s dress and hair). There were the occasional line hesitations (mostly from Gary Cole). Still, some superb theatricality shone through. I was particularly taken by Ed Asner, who conveyed Marx’s disgust with a number of the responses with simple facial gestures and movements, going above and beyond the script to establish the character. Meeghan Holaway also did an excellent job with Antoinette, especially in the scenes where she talked about her imprisonment and the revolution — she gave a good sense of non-chalance about the pesentry, and was truly moved to tears when talking about the life and death of King Louis. She also had a lovely French accent (unlike Asner, who didn’t attempt a Prussian accent, or Davison, who didn’t have an English accent). It was a bit disconcerting when she took off her wig (something that doesn’t happen in the original), but I guess it was wobbling and she thought it better to take it off and retain control. As Grant, Lauria provided some excellent gruff and bravado (as one would expect), but also conveyed his tender side well. Great performances.

Technically, the show was simple. A table, some chairs, some water on the table. The production was directed by Frank Megna; no other technical credits were provided in the program. Lighting was simple, and the program was recorded. I do have one technical comment. At the first episode we saw, a representative from Working Stage got up and introduced the program, indicated what they were trying to do with the revival, and (of course) requested that beeping devices be disabled. That wasn’t done at this performance, and I missed it. I think that bringing back this introduction would be a good thing for the series overall (and, of course, would goad those that forgot to silence their cells).

Another minor complaint, which I’m sure is due to scheduling, but never explained: For seasons 1, 2, and 3, there were two episodes with each set of four. We see the first, but never the second. It might be better to do these productions as a two-act show with each episode being an act, as opposed to the seeming approach of eventually doing the second episode. That, at least, would provide more even coverage to the four historical characters.

According to the program, the next episode in “Meeting of Minds” will be episode #9, featuring Martin Luther (Mark Moses), Plato (Harold Gould), Voltaire (Ray Abruzzo), Florence Nightengale, and Steve Allen (Gary Cole). It will be Sunday, October 25 at 7pm, presumably at the Steve Allen Theatre. The ticket page is not yet up.

Upcoming Theatre: Our next scheduled theatre is Sunday October 18, when we’re seeing the Donmar workshop version of “Parade” at the Mark Taper Forum. The next weekend will see two productions: “Guys and Dolls” at Cabrillo Music Theatre on Saturday October 24 @ 8pm, and (pending ticketing) “Meeting of Minds” Episode #9 (Martin Luther, Plato, Voltaire, Florence Nightengale) at the Steve Allen Theatre on Sunday October 25 @ 8pm. Halloween weekend is currently open. The following weekend is currently blocked off for “A Day Out With Thomas” at Orange Empire Railway Museum (although we may do it Veterans Day instead). The following weekend Erin is going to the TMBG concert at UCLA, while we will attending Havdalah with Peter Yarrow at the American Jewish University. On November 22 at 2pm we return to REP East Playhouse for “M*A*S*H”. Thanksgiving weekend is currently open; however, it might be taken by a shift of our production for the following weekend (“Baby Its You” at the Pasadena Playhouse, December 5 at 8pm… which, by the way, features the actress who played Marie Antoinette), due to the fact I head out the morning after we see it for ACSAC in Hawaii. That same weekend (December 3, 4, 5) also brings “The Taming of the Shrew” at Van Nuys HS — we’ll likely be going to the Friday, December 4 performance. The rest of December is currently open, but I know that sometime in December I’ll be attempting to ticket “Mary Poppins” at the Ahmanson (HotTix were supposed to go on sale 10/23, but may not as per the postscript below). As always, I’m looking for suggestions for good shows to see, especially if they are on Goldstar or LA Stage Tix.

An interesting postscript to the above: There may not be HotTix to “Mary Poppins”. According to my contact in Audience Services at CTG, Disney and Center Theatre Group are in the midst of negotiations for HotTix. Disney is not in favor of having discount tickets and CTG would like to continue the HotTix program for this show. I’m waiting for the final answer on this, but we might be up in the balcony for that one.

Disclaimer: In light of the upcoming rules, you should know that nobody paid me anything to write this review. In fact, I receive no remuneration for any reviews I write.

Share

“As you value your life or your reason keep away from the moor”

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

Although it may not be safe to cross the moor at night, it certainly is safe to cross the hills ringing the San Fernando Valley, and to venture north to Saugus to see “Hound of the Baskervilles” at the Reperatory East Playhouse. That’s what we did last night, and we certainly weren’t disappointed. You might even say it was “Elementary”.

“The Hound of the Baskervilles” is a classic Sherlock Holmes mystery, first published in 1901 in The Strand magazine. It was written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle right after “The Final Adventure”, which we saw dramatized at The Pasadena Playhouse in June 2006. It was adapted for the stage by F. Andrew Leslie. The story deals with the curse of the Baskerville family and the fiendish killer-hound that stalks its members. As the action begins Sir Charles Baskerville has died under mysterious circumstances, and his nephew and heir, the young Sir Henry, has been threatened even before his arrival at Baskerville Hall. A friend of the family and former colleague of Dr. Watson, Lady Agatha Mortimer, enlists the aid of Sherlock Holmes to protect Sir Henry from the supernatural hound and find the real killer. This leads to a series of events that build steadily in menace and suspense involving the staff of Bakerville Hall (Mr. and Mrs. Barrymore, Perkins) and the families living in and around the Moor (Kathy and Jack Stapleton, Laura Lyons). Hard pressed to protect his charge, and to fathom the strange mishaps which beset him, Dr. Watson is much relieved when Holmes himself appears to trap the diabolical killer who stalks Sir Henry and to unravel the fascinating mystery which accounts for his evil actions.

We always enjoy going to REP East productions. The primary reason is that they do such an excellent job, especially given the fact that they are an 81 seat black box theatre, off the main beaten theatre path, and do not charge an outrageous price for their tickets. That was certainly the case at this production. In fact, I was hard pressed to think of a single flaw in this production (the only ones that come to mind are perhaps one line hesitation, and I wasn’t crazy about the style of a character’s shoes… and if that’s the best this professional problem finder can find, they did damn good). I’m not even sure the great Sherlock Holmes himself would have found major problems in this product. I think this is because of the second reason we go to the REP: they care. They care about their audiences (and they REP people are like family), they care about their actors (selecting, training, and rehearsing them well), and they care about the material (selecting good material and ensuring it is presented it right). This theatre is a hidden gem; well worth the drive to Santa Clarita.

As noted above, the cast of this product was excellent. The lead investigators were the very precise Michael Levine as Sherlock Holmes as Kyle Kulishæ as the very rotund Dr. Watson. Both captured the nature of these well-known characters well: the precision of Holmes, the familiarity and warmth of Watson. Todd Larsenæ was Sir Henry Baskerville, and did a great job of capturing the youth and naivete of the man, as well as fear as the hound got closer. Sir Henry’s love interest, Kathy Stapleton (Amber Van Loon) — a REP regular — captured the relaxed youth and beauty of the character well, with some wonderful flashes of anger when dealing with her brother, Jack Stapleton (Jaimie Callahanæ). The remaining moor residents that we met (as opposed to mere mentions) were Lady Agatha Mortimer (Alysan Marie Aachen) and Laura Lyons (Carolyn Morseæ), both of whom were great. Lastly, the staff of Baskerville Hall (Donna Marie Sergi (Perkins), Janice Christensen (Mrs. Barrymore), and Brent Christensen (Barrymore)) did an excellent job of supporting the action, in particular Mr. Christensen apparent menace as Mr. Barrymore. Reviewing the program, I note he teaches drama at Hart HS in Newhall — his students must be very lucky. Wouldn’t it be great if he were at Van Nuys?

The set of the show, which was an elegant drawing room at Baskerville Hall, was well designed by Jeff Hyde. The costumes by Lynn McQuown were good, although Holmes wasn’t in his traditional Deerstalker cap. The lighting by Tim Christianson was excellent as usual, and the sound by Steven “Nanook” Burkholder was appropriately menacing. These are all REP regulars, and they are a key part for the technical excellence of this place. The production was directed by Joe Miele, and Johnny Schwinn served as Stage Manager.

“The Hound of the Baskervilles” continues at REP East until October 17th; tickets are available through the REP Online Box Office or call (661) 288-0000. The final show of the 2009 season will be “M*A*S*H”, running November 13th through December 12th. Earlier this week, the REP announced their 2010 (MMX) season, and it looks to be spectacular. No dates yet, but the productions are: “Lost in Yonkers” (Neil Simon); “On Golden Pond” (Ernest Thmpson); “12 Angry Men” (Reginald Rose); “The Wedding Singer” (book by Ehad Beguelin and Tim Herlity, music by Matthew Sklar, lyrics by Ehad Beguelin), “The Last Days of Judas Iscariot” (Stephen Adly Guirgis); “Sideman” (Warren Leight); “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” (Robert Louis Stevenson, adapted by Jeffrey Flatcher), and “Amadeus” (Peter Shaffer). These are all excellent selections (and O promised that Wedding Singer will happen this year), and I’m looking forward to the entire season. I’ll also note that this is sort-of a scoop: they don’t have the 2010 season listed yet on their website, so you read it here first.

Upcoming Theatre: As for us, our next show is this Monday, October 5, when we go out to the Steve Allen Theatre for the next installment of “Steve Allen’s Meeting of Minds” (Episode 3: Marie Antoinette, Karl Marx, U.S. Grant, and Thomas More) at the Steve Allen Theatre (ticket info). We’re still debating whether to go see Groovelily doing a concert version of “Sleeping Beauty Wakes” at the Largo on October 7th at 9pm — we want to see the show, but it starts very late and I work the next day. No theatre is currently scheduled for the weekend of October 10, but I’m open to suggestions. Sunday October 18 we’re seeing the Donmar workshop version of “Parade” at the Mark Taper Forum, and the month of October closes with “Guys and Dolls” at Cabrillo Music Theatre. Halloween weekend is currently open. The following weekend is currently blocked off for “A Day Out With Thomas” at Orange Empire Railway Museum (although we may do it Veterans Day instead). The following weekend Erin is going to the TMBG concert at UCLA, while we will attending Havdalah with Peter Yarrow at the American Jewish University. On November 22 at 2pm we return to REP East Playhouse for “M*A*S*H”. Thanksgiving weekend is currently open; however, it might be taken by a shift of our production for the following weekend(“Baby Its You” at the Pasadena Playhouse, December 5 at 8pm), due to the fact I head out the morning after we see it for ACSAC in Hawaii. That same weekend (December 3, 4, 5) also brings “The Taming of the Shrew” at Van Nuys HS — we’ll likely be going to the Friday, December 4 performance. The rest of December is currently open, but I know that sometime in December I’ll be attempting to ticket “Mary Poppins” at the Ahmanson. There will also likely be additional episodes of “Meeting of Minds”. As always, I’m looking for suggestions for good shows to see, especially if they are on Goldstar or LA Stage Tix.

Share

Lunchtime Theatre Musings: Pasadena Playhouse Financial Woes

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

We have been Pasadena Playhouse subscribers since the 1987-1988 season, when we received a season subscription to the playhouse as a KCRW subscriber premium. This was when they were still renovating their mainstage, and productions were up in the Balcony Theatre (our first production was “Down an Alley Filled with Cats”; I also remember “Death of a Buick” up there). It was the season after the successful musical “Mail”, and shortly after the reopening of the Playhouse after a long period of decline. We’ve been with the Playhouse during the Susan Dietz and Lars Hansen era, during the abortive attempt to establish a regional circuit with Santa Maria and Santa Barbara. We’ve been there through Paul Lazarus, and during the current (seemingly successful) era with Sheldon Epps as artistic director.

I mention this because of an article I uncovered during today’s lunchtime reading. The LA Culture Monster blog (lat_cultrmnstr) “Monster Mash” alerted me to an article in the Pasadena Star-News about the Pasadena Playhouse’s financial woes. Evidently, their new managing director, Stephen Eich (who just came over from the Geffen), discovered bank debts of $1.5M carried over from the early 1990s (i.e., the aforementioned Dietz/Hansen/Lazarus era), including year-old accounts payable to vendors of between $600K and $700K. He is attempting to “right the ship” (so to speak): paring staff, increasing fund raising, and attempting to better communicate the importance of the institution. The article noted that the playhouse has 7,500 subscribers, and ticket sales account for 45% of the $7 million budget, with the remainder coming from contributions, concessions and rentals. The article also noted that donations and pledges from the 31-member board have brought in $550,000 in the past month. The funds will go to vendor debt reduction, as well as a survival plan to see the playhouse through the end of the year.

I’ll note that when the boom was still going on, the Playhouse had some ambitious plans, including creating a multi-theatre complex encompassing the former J.H. Biggar property.

There are a few interesting observations here. First, none of the depth of this financial problem has been communicated to subscribers. This is the first I heard of it. This isn’t a good way to treat your subscribers, especially as ticket prices at the Playhouse have been dramatically rising in price over the last five years. In fact, I was hearing grumbling from some long time subscribers sitting near us about the increase in price when we attended Saturday night. Another factor in the problems might be the programming instability. Productions are being announced, and then cancelled and replaced (again, with little notice to subscribers). This hinders the ability to market the season and draw in subscribers, and donations. For example, in June they promised a seven-show season, and then cancelled down to six shows, with little clear communication about the funds they collected for the seventh-show.

We have renewed for next year already (the announcements went out in June), but having read this article, I’m going to be keeping a closer eye on the Playhouse and its stability. The institution does good artistically; I’m hoping the new executive director can bring some stability.

ETA: More info from the LA Times.

Share