Tag: reviews-2009

Writing a Relationship

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

This afternoon we went down to Hollywood to see “Setup and Punch” at the Blank Theatre Company. I wasn’t in the greatest of moods going down (more on that in my next post [LJ-Friends-Only, so join LJ]), but I was looking forward to seeing something at a new theatre. The Blank is an interesting theatre: their mainstage focuses entirely on new plays; their artistic producer is Noah Wyle; and they are theatrical West-Coast home of Michael John LaChiusa. They are also the home of the Young Playwrights Festival. I do have to say I was impressed with the quality of today’s production, and I look forward to seeing more of their work.

The name of the play, “Setup and Punch”, refers to how comedy pairs work: one serves to set up the story, and the other delivers the punch line. In this play, our comics are a theatrical ex-couple, Brian (Andrew Leeds) and Vanya (Hedy Burress). The story, which is told in a series of letters and flashbacks, is about their relationship as a music-and-lyrics writing team. This relationship started when they graduated Cornell, and continued through their successful “Fairy Tale Theatre”. They’re last project was for a revue about New York, and it was for this project that they met Jan (P. J. Griffith), the former lead of the Byronics and a sex-god in his own mind. Through these letters, as well as a few songs, we learn how Brian discovered his orientation, and how Vanya uncovered her ambition, and what happened when everything came together with Jan, thanks to a mustard seed planted by Miguel (also P. J. Griffith), a college colleague and a divinity student.

Although billed in a sense as a musical, the musical numbers (music by Berton Averre, lyrics by Rob Meurer) were not really about the characters singing their inner thoughts or advancing the story — rather, they were songs being written by the various songwriting teams. In that sense, they were more of a prop than an integrated part of the story (although the first number, about the couple on the subway, was quite humerous). The story was really about Brian, and to a lesser extent Vanya, and how they grew (and didn’t grow) over the letters. It was quite a joy to watch this growth, and to see the mustard plant grow. But of course, out in Southern California, wild mustard can be a noxious weed, so if you let it grow too much, you have trouble.

The actors in this were a joy to watch: Andrew Leeds had a nerdy playfullness to him that was just fun to watch. Hedy Burress seemed to be a playful emotional bundle, and P. J. Griffith struck me as nothing other than a young Steven Weber. Their enthusiasm combined with the excellent writing by Mark Saltzman, just made this a fun play.
[All actors are members of æ Actors Equity ]

Turning to the technical side: The Blank is a small Equity-Waiver house, so one has to be creative with sets. For “Setup and Punch”, the set by Ian P. Garrett is stacked boxes — some movable — that hint at the New York skyline. Spartan, but it works. The props by Michael O’Hara are equally simple: some laptops, a keyboard, a piano. The costumes by Michael Mullen are suitably playful — especially those for Vanya and Jan. The lighting design by R. Christopher Stokes did an effective job of lighting the space and evoking mood, and made good use of what lighting equipment they had. The sound design by Warren Davis was unnoticable, which is a good thing in a sound design (I don’t believe the actors were amplified). The production was directed by Daniel Henning, who is also the Artistic Director of the Blank Theatre Company, assisted by June Carryl. Ilona Pacek was Stage Manager, assisted by Brenda Goldstein. The production was produced by Henning, Michelle Lander, Stacy Reed, and Noah Wyle; June Carryl, Daniel C. Garcia, and Stephen Moffatt were associate producers.

“Setup and Punch” continues at the Blank Theatre Company through June 21; it is unknown if it will extend. Discount tickets may be available through LA Stage Tix and Goldstar.

Dining Notes: Grabbing a quick lunch before the show we hit Astro Burger at Melrose and Gower. Quite good, and quite fast — we’ll have to remember that the next time we go to the Blank Theatre Company or West Coast Ensemble. While at The Blank, we picked up a flyer for Lucifers Gourmet Pizza in Los Feliz. We’ll have to try them — they have Gluten-Free crusts, and quite a few interesting toppings.

Upcoming Theatre: So far, we have no theatre the weekend of June 6: I’ve been interested in “Breaking the Code” at The Production Company in North Hollywood (5/15-6/20/09), but they only seem to put up 2 tickets on LAStageTix, and they don’t have anything on Goldstar. The weekend after that is Fathers Day, and nothing is currently scheduled. June 20 @ 8pm is “The Little Foxes” at The Pasadena Playhouse. Lastly, July 11 will bring “Fat Pig” at Repertory East Playhouse. Other shows pending scheduling and ticketing include “Spamalot” at the Ahmanson (7/7-9/6/09), the “Guys and Dolls” concert at the Hollywood Bowl (7/31-8/2/09), and Liza Minelli at the Hollywood Bowl (8/28-8/29/09). Also of potential interest are: “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” at the Neighborhood Playhouse (Venue Goldstar) (7/9-7/26/09); and “The Apple Tree” at Crown City Theatre in North Hollywood (6/5-6/28/09) (LAStageTix). I’m also always looking for interesting productions on Goldstar and LA Stage Tix.

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Fiddler at a Middle School. Sounds crazy, no? But here in our village of Northridge…

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

Last night, we went to see the second performance of “Fiddler on the Roof” at Nobel Middle School. Our daughter was very involved with this program the previous two years, and we’re still generally supportive and involved with it. This production was the culmination of the third year of the drama program at Nobel Middle School.

I don’t believe I need to repeat the story of Fiddler on the Roof. You can easily find the synopsis on Wikipedia. It tells the story of Tevye the Milkman and his 5 daughters (the original story by Sholem Aleichem had 7 daughters), and features a book by Joseph Stein, music by Jerry Bock, and lyrics by Sheldon Harnick. This particular production was based on the Fiddler Jr. version (which provided them with most of the musical accompaniment), but had some songs restored (such as Wonder of Wonders and the first half of Tevye’s Dream). I note that the Junior version takes some of the standard version songs and turns them into recitations, particularly the second half of Tevye’s Dream and The Rumor. A number of songs were cut from the second act: Now I Have Everything and Chaveleh, and the dancing after To Life was significantly cut. The Junior version also makes the production a single act; Nobel added an intermission after Wonder of Wonders, which is a non-standard and jarring break. To the instructor’s (Fanny Araña and Jean Martellaro) credit, they did not augment the story to create additional characters, which in my eyes is a step forward for the Nobel drama program. I do hope that one day the drama program selections can be integrated in the rest of the curriculum, as plays like this provide a wonderful context to teach literature aspects as well as historical aspects in conjunction with the production, and that can serve to get the entire student body involved. This play, in particular, provides a wonderful opportunity for discussing the impact of hate crimes, the wave of immigration to American in the early 1900s from eastern Europe and its affect on society, and how traditions shape society.

The acting, for the most part, was above typical middle-school quality, and exhibited the usual mix of strong actors and students going through the paces (the latter mostly buried in the ensembles). The cast numbered 55 students, so I’m not going to list them all. However, there are a few noteworthy performances I want to highlight, starting with that of Camille Martellaro (Hodel). I’ve seen this young women’s talent grow over the years, and I am always impressed with her. She has strong acting and exceptionally strong singing skills, and was particularly touching in Matchmaker and Far From The Home I Love. Also notable was Henry Rosen (Tevye): although his singing was a bit weaker (I’m told he was having vocal trouble last night), his acting and bathos were quite strong. Kelsey Trammell had the right shrillness for Fruma Sarah, and it would have been interesting to see her sing instead of speak the song. I also liked Devon Yaffe as Motel. Also worthy of mention was Chloe Rosen (Chava), who did a nice job on Matchmaker and in her final scene with Tevye. I should also note that their “Fiddler on the Roof” (Kinsey Cohen) was an actual violinist, although she only played one short bit, and simulated the rest. Other students in lead roles were Emma Wolgast (Golde), Teal Fink (Tzeitel), Sonni Vargas (Shprintze), Emily Hart (Bielke), Elliott Aronson (Perchik), Nicole Araña-Zweig (Yente), Paul Supanish (Lazar Wolf), Mariana Mora (Grandmother Tzeitel Z”L), Nicholas Lutfi (Constable), and Drake Irvine (Fyedka).

Turning to the technical side of things. The sound setup at Nobel has improved immensely from when they restarted this program, and all of the actors could be heard clearly from the back of the auditorium. However, there was a balance problem, in that the music at times overpowered the actors. As for the lighting… sigh…. it served to clearly light the stage, making everything equally visible. The lighting could have been used to much better effect: it could have highlighted the mood, and served to better delineate Tevye’s monologues. But it just lit the stage. Our daughter did submit a lighting design (and spent a fair amount of time in the lighting cage ensuring that what equipment could work did), but for whatever reason (most likely cost and students to operate it) it wasn’t used. Nobel is starting a technical theatre program next year, so hopefully they will improve in this area and start to use lighting to better effect — and hopefully they will integrate the technical theatre with the Math-Science magnet, as sound and lighting design are wonderful opportunities to teach rudimentary physics and the corresponding supporting mathematics (have you discovered by now I’m a big believer in integrating activities into curriculums, and making everying a learning opportunity). The sets (designed by Dennis Kull, a community volunteer) were effective, and exceptionally strong for a middle school production. The backdrop, however, could have been stronger (I’m guessing this was due to lack of time and budget). Costumes were typical peasant style, although more of the male characters (some of which were played by women) should have had beards, given the traditions at the time.

There are two more performances of Fiddler: today at 2pm and at 7pm at Nobel Middle School, which is located at Tampa and Lassen in Northridge CA (for some reason, they still don’t put their address on the flyers). Donations at the door.

Upcoming Theatre: Our next production is Sunday, May 31 @ 2pm, when we see “Setup and Punch” at The Blank Theatre Company. I’m still unsure if we are seeing anything the weekend of June 6: I’ve been interested in “Breaking the Code” at The Production Company in North Hollywood (5/15-6/20/09), but they only seem to put up 2 tickets on LAStageTix, and they don’t have anything on Goldstar. June 20 @ 8pm is “The Little Foxes” at The Pasadena Playhouse. Lastly, July 11 will bring “Fat Pig” at Repertory East Playhouse. Other shows pending scheduling and ticketing include “Spamalot” at the Ahmanson (7/7-9/6/09), the “Guys and Dolls” concert at the Hollywood Bowl (7/31-8/2/09), and Liza Minelli at the Hollywood Bowl (8/28-8/29/09). Also of potential interest are: “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” at the Neighborhood Playhouse (Venue Goldstar) (7/9-7/26/09); and “The Apple Tree” at Crown City Theatre in North Hollywood (6/5-6/28/09) (LAStageTix). I’m also always looking for interesting productions on Goldstar and LA Stage Tix.

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Going Where Many Millions Have Gone Before

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

By now, you’ve come to expect theatre reviews in this space, especially when you see a graphic. But we do occasionally set aside the live theatre for the big screen. Today was one of those exceptions, when we trotted down to a local cineplex to see the new Star Trek movie, which was meant for the big screen.

I’m not going to rehash the plot for you. There are plenty of summaries of the movie, and I figure that by now you either have seen it, have had the plot spoiled, or are not bothering to read this because you’re afraid I will spoil something. Fear not, for I’m going to put my plot specific comments behind a cut. I’ll divide my comments on the experience into three areas, and you should be able to safely read the first two.

Comment Area the First: Wherein Pacific Theatres Is Taken To Task

We don’t see films that frequently. When we go, we expect certain things: a clean theatre, a clean print, and a clean experience. We really only got the first. The movie has been in release for three weeks, and we already had the occasional line in the print. More significantly, we had numerous sound drops, as one gets from the satellite system occasionally. This shouldn’t be the case in the theatre, and indicates poor equipment maintenance and monitoring. As for the overall experience, we had the projectionist playing with the focus during the previews, and (until the volume was turned too loud), we had bleed-through bass from the adjacent theatre (Dance Flick). Pacific needs to do better.

Comment Area the Second: The Theatre Experience vs. The Cinematic Experience

As we go to movies infrequently, I was much more aware of the differences between live theatre and the movies. In this, I mean much more than the fact that the live experience is different every time, whereas everyone sees the same movie. There’s much more than that.

First, there’s the volume. The cinema booms at you, and blasts your eardrums, especially with the score. The theatre is softer — more natural voice — and you thus don’t find yourself wincing (except, perhaps, for loud shows like Rent). But even more is the difference in how you watch. In theatre, you are choosing where you are watching on the stage. Stage effects can try to distract you, but you can watch that extra upstage, or focus on a particular actor. In cinema, I’ve become much more aware of the role of the cinematographer and the editor. The cinematographer (and the director) composes the shot for you to see, and permits you to watch and focus on the nuances of the face and the movement. The editor builds the pace and the mood through the cuts and the tightness of the pacing. Combine this with the loud score, and you get much more of an experience. It is extremely different than the stage, and it makes me appreciate much more the actors who are skilled in their particular area, and those that can move effortlessly between the two.

There’s also a large difference in the credits. In the theatre, you have the time to read the program. In the cinema, the names just scroll by, and you have no idea what the people are. I imagine that in the early days of movies, there were programs. Nowadays, the cast and crew are so large that you are lucky to recognize a few names and roles. Still, I respect them for all the work that goes into a production. [However, I really didn’t like the style of the Star Trek closing credits.]

Comment Area the Third: The Film Itself

Read More …

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What Theatre Geeks Are Really Like

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

Back in 2007, Amazon’s recommendation mechanism recommended the CD of a new musical called “The Green Room”, which I finally broke down and ordered in February 2008. I listened to the CD, and found the music quite nice. Shortly after that, I discovered (thanks to the author’s MySpace page) that the musical would be at the Hermosa Beach Playhouse… in May 2009. So, I kept waiting… and watching….

Last night, after a brief visit to Fiesta Hermosa (which was far too overcrowded to make it possible to even look at what limited art they had on display), and some dinner at Versailles (mmm, Cuban), we went to the Hermosa Beach Playhouse. We met up with shutterbug93 and her husband, Mark, which was a treat. Then we finally saw “The Green Room”. It was worth it.

“The Green Room” tells the story of four college students (Anna, John, Divonne, and Cliff) at the mythical St. Nordoff’s college. The action takes place in “The Green Room”, a room just offstage where actors wait, and that these four acting students have made their home in their college years (in fact, it made me think a lot of the UCLA Computer Club where I hung out). The first act chronicle’s Cliff’s first year at college: he arrives at the Green Room on the invitation of his sister Anna, and after some tripidation, gets accepted by Anna’s fellow sophmore acting students John (her boyfriend) and Divonne. Divonne and Cliff have a fling, with some predictable and not-so-predictable results. The second act appears to be when they are all seniors: Cliff is no longer nerdish and somehow seems to have caught up with the others, and the big concern is whether Anna and Cliff’s rich parents will fund Cliff’s off-Broadway show, which requires that (a) they all graduate, and (b) they all be in the show.

As this is a new musical (in fact, this is the premier production), it’s reasonable to start off looking at the above book, which was written by C. Stephen Foster and Rod Damer, with music and lyrics by Chuck Pelletier. The story is clearly in the vein of musicals about the theatre, which include “A Class Act”, “Curtains”, “Minsky’s”, “A Chorus Line”. The musical style is a mix of rock-style fast numbers and ballads, all enjoyable with interesting lyrics (although the lyrics appear to have been toned down from the CD, likely to protect the sensibility of the older-skewing Hermosa Beach audience). As the artistic director noted, it is also in the vein of the newer musicals about the theatre (such as (ugh) “High School Musical” and “Glee”). Unlike these other attempts, however, this focuses on the college years of acting development. I found that quite enjoyable, and certainly captured types I’ve seen watching my daugher as a performing arts student (although we both noted there needs to be a musical about technical theatre geeks!).

However, the book, while enjoyable for what it is, is not perfect. The problem is not that there are plot flaws or places where it drags, but the story is just too short. This musical clocks in at perhaps 1¾ hours with intermission, and at points the dialogue sections seem more designed to set up the next song than to let us learn about the characters. As such, some of the songs seem more novelty (although enjoyable) as opposed to interwoven with the plot. This is especially apparent in the second act, where we learn nothing about the intervening years, we learn nothing about how Cliff lost his nerdiness, we learn nothing of how these characters grew. We’re back from intermission… and “boom”, it is 3 years later. Gaining that additional insight could be done in some additional scenes, or perhaps a song or two, and might greatly improve Act II.

The music of the show is quite enjoyable. There has been a lot of buzz about the song “It’s All About Me”, but all of the songs from the show are very enjoyable. In addition to “It’s All About Me”, I particularly enjoyed “Nothing Can Stop My Boys” (it’s fun watching the audience react), the novelty number “Don’t Try To Part The Water”, “Good-Lookin’ Girls” and “I Wanna Go To Extreme”. The songs are energetic and playful. Do give them a try (you can listen to them through the musical’s MySpace page).

One of the things that makes this musical come alive is the acting ensemble, all of whom appeared to be extremely talented and enjoying their roles (although in our performance, there were a few line hesitations, but nothing major). Anna was played Stephanie Burkett Gerson, who captured the reserved character well. Her boyfriend, John, was played by her real-life husband, Zane Gerson. I was particularly taken with the performance of Jessica Gisin as Divonne — she brings a lot of fun and a great voice to the role. Lastly, as Cliff, Michael J. Willett, captures the theatre-nerd reasonably well in Act I, and transforms in Act II. If this story belongs to any character, it is Cliff, for it follows his growth in college.

Turning to the technical side (and I should note: the actors seemingly thanked only the band, and not the remainder of the tech crew, which they should remember to do if they want to be heard and seen): Hermosa Beach did reasonably well with what they had. Music (under the direction of the composer, Chuck Pelletier), consisted of a four-piece offstage band (piano, drums, bass, and guitar). The musical quality was very good. There were no discernable sound problems in the sound design by Kevin Goold, although at times it appeared the sound came more from the speaker system than the actors, but that could have been a balance problem from Row B. The lighting design by Ric Zimmerman was very good (we’ve seen his work before in “Into The Woods”): he made creative use of scrollers and moving lights on a traditional theatrical stage, and seemingly eschewed the overuse of spotlights except in one comic appropriate number. Choreography was by Karl Warden, who had some interesting creative movements that didn’t come across as traditional dance. The set, designed by Christopher Beyries, consisted of the typical cluttered college campus room, with a wide variety of props by T. Theresa Scarano (who also does props, IIRC, for Cabrillo). The costumes, by Christa Armendariz, are reasonable college student clothing, although I did find Anna’s costume in Act II slightly disconcerting, as her bright blue bra was showing through the yellow top. That can, and should, be easily fixed. Surprisingly, there were no credits for stage management. The production was directed by Stephanie A. Coltrin.

“The Green Room” continues at the Hermosa Beach Playhouse through next weekend, May 31. Tickets are available through the Hermosa Beach boxoffice, and may also be available through Goldstar (that’s where we got our tickets).

Upcoming Theatre: Our next production is back at the Middle School level, when we see “Fiddler on the Roof” at Nobel Middle School on Fr 5/29. May 31 @ 2pm brings “Setup and Punch” at The Blank Theatre Company. If the Goldstar Gods are with me, the weekend of June 6 will bring “Breaking the Code” at The Production Company in North Hollywood (5/15-6/20/09) (on LAStageTix, Venue Goldstar). June 20 @ 8pm is “The Little Foxes” at The Pasadena Playhouse. Lastly, July 11 will bring “Fat Pig” at Repertory East Playhouse. Other shows pending scheduling and ticketing include “Spamalot” at the Ahmanson (7/7-9/6/09), the “Guys and Dolls” concert at the Hollywood Bowl (7/31-8/2/09), and Liza Minelli at the Hollywood Bowl (8/28-8/29/09). Also of potential interest are: “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” at the Neighborhood Playhouse (Venue Goldstar) (7/9-7/26/09); and “The Apple Tree” at Crown City Theatre in North Hollywood (6/5-6/28/09) (LAStageTix). I’m also always looking for interesting productions on Goldstar and LA Stage Tix.

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Be Careful What You Wish For

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This afternoon, we went to Hollywood to see “big: The Musical” at the West Coast Ensemble. For those unfamiliar with this musical, which is based on the Tom Hanks movie, it tells the story of 12-year old Josh Baskin. Josh is at that awkward age — too small for girls to notice him, awkwardly growing into teen-hood. One day at a carnival, Josh wishes to “be big” at the carnival Zoltar machine. The next morning… he wakes up “big”. A grown up. Of course, his mom thinks he’s a stranger and out of the house he goes. His best friend Billy packs him off to New York to find a job, while he goes to find another Zoltar machine. Josh lands at FAO Schwartz, where he meets a toy company executive who can’t figure out why his toys aren’t selling. Josh, being a kid inside, tells him… and gets hired. Now Josh is in the corporate world… and is a success by being a kid at heart. But he also has to start dealing with things he’s never dealt with before: such as the female co-worker who falls for him. Does he stay “big” for her, or does he go back to being a kid?

But that’s just the story. “big” is really a play about how kids grow up too fast, and what it is really like to be a kid inside. We all lose that kid far to quickly these days. I just heard a wonderful piece on Quirks and Quarks about the importance of play… and that’s something that is harder and harder to do in today’s world: just be playful. We see the view of the parents, whose children grow up far to fast. We see the view of the adults, all business. We also see the dilemma through two important sets of eyes: Josh’s, who must face the difficulties of adult love for the first time, and Susan, the colleague who falls for him, who learns that sometimes playfullness is the secret to love. I should note that the book for “big” is by John Weidman, based on the screenplay by Gary Ross and Anne Spielberg. Music was by David Shire, with lyrics by Richard Maltby Jr..

West Coast Ensemble is a theatre group that does great things with off-beat musicals like this. We’ve seen them work their magic on “Zanna Don’t” and “Assassins” before, and this production was no exception. Working in an extremely limited space, they created the flexibility to pull this off. As an example, one of the best known numbers in the show is the one where Josh and the president of the Toy Company dance on a gigantic floor keyboard. This theater could not afford a gigantic fancy lit keyboard–so they just painted one on the floor, and as the actors danced on the keys, the ensemble behind them sang individual notes. Their musical director (Daniel Thomas) also created a great sound with what appeared to be a single keyboard. A simple multi-level stage became everything from a schoolyard to bunk-beds in an apartment, to a working office, to a toy store… with just a few props. Credit goes to Stephen Gifford for his remarkable stage design and Lisa D. Katz for her imaginative lighting design in the limited space.

Of course, no production would be complete with out the actors, and this production had an excellent set of them. Leading the cast as the adult Josh Baskin was Will Collyeræ, who captured the kid inside of him, as well as being a great singer and dancer. His adult love interest, Susan Lawrence, was played by Darrin Revitzæ, and equally great singer and dancer. Both were just having fun with the roles, which is a joy to see. Others in the cast who particularly impressed me were: Johanna Kent (Mrs. Kopecki/Panhandler/Salesperson/Miss Watson/Diane), who we saw first in Assassins as Sara Jane Moore, and must be one of the most expressive actresses around; Alex Scolari (Cynthia Benson/Goth Girl/Kid/Intern), who we saw in 13 and was just mesmerizing, and LJ Benet as the young Josh Baskin, who in his second act solo number demonstrated a remarkable voice. Also worthy of note were Lisa Picotteæ as Mrs. Baskin and Larry Lederman as Mr. MacMillan (head of the toy company). Rounding out the cast were Ashley Marie Arnold (Tiffany/Kid), Sterling Beaumonæ (Billy Kopecki), Joseph Castanon (Brandon/Kid), Coby Getzug (Derek/Gang Dude/Kid/Intern), Frank Romeoæ (Mr. Kopecki/Arcade Guy/Salesperson/Birnbaum/Nick), Jake Wesley Stewart (Mr. Baskin/Drag Queen/Salesperson/Barret/Tom), Sara J. Stuckey (Mom/Homeless Lady/Salesperson/Receptionist/Abigail), Kaylie Swanson (Debbie/Kid), and Stephen Vendette (Dad/Stoner Musician/Paul Seymour).
[æ denotes members of æ Actors Equity ]

I’ve already spoken about the excellent technical side of this production. Completing the backstage element were Sharon McGunigle with an excellent costume design (although I’m unsure whether cell-phones were that prevalent during that period), and Cricket S. Myers for Sound Design. The production was directed by Richard Israel assisted by Suzanne Doss. Choreography, which was remarkable given the limited space, was by Christine Lakin, assisted by Corrie English. The stage manager was Amy E. Stoddardæ, who was gracious to take nsshere backstage to discuss working in technical theatre. The producer was Ben Campbell. West Coast Ensemble is under the artistic direction of Les Hanson and Richard Israel.

I should note that if you are familiar with “big” from the cast album: some of the songs appear to be changed. In particular, I noticed a new song for Josh’s mom (“Say Good Morning to Mom”) in the opening, and I think one or two others were changed. However, a number of my favorites are still there, including “Fun”, “Stars”, “Cross the Line”, and “Coffee Black”. Some of the song changes are explained in the Wikipedia page.

“big” continues at West Coast Ensemble through June 28. Tickets are available through West Coast Ensemble, and Tix.Com; discount tickets are available through LAStageTix and Goldstar events. The show is well-worth going to, but note that parking in the neighborhood can be difficult, and the seats in the theatre are very narrow.

Upcoming Theatre: Our next production is “The Green Room at Hermosa Beach Playhouse on May 24 @ 7:00pm. The end of May (May 28, 29, 30) brings “Fiddler on the Roof” at Nobel Middle School: we’re planning on going on Fr 5/29. May 31 @ 2pm brings “Setup and Punch” at The Blank Theatre Company. June 20 @ 8pm is “The Little Foxes” at The Pasadena Playhouse. Lastly, July 11 will bring “Fat Pig” at Repertory East Playhouse. Based on the reviews, we’ve decided to take a pass on “Marry Me a Little/The Last 5 Years” at East/West Players. Other shows pending scheduling and ticketing include “Spamalot” at the Ahmanson (7/7-9/6/09), the “Guys and Dolls” concert at the Hollywood Bowl (7/31-8/2/09), and Liza Minelli at the Hollywood Bowl (8/28-8/29/09). Also of potential interest are: “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” at the Neighborhood Playhouse (Venue Goldstar) (7/9-7/26/09); “Breaking the Code” at The Production Company in North Hollywood (5/15-6/20/09) (on LAStageTix, Venue Goldstar) (with “Equus” over the summer); and “The Apple Tree” at Crown City Theatre in North Hollywood (6/5-6/28/09) (LAStageTix). I’m also always looking for interesting productions on Goldstar and LA Stage Tix.

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Gotta Dance!

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

Last night, we went to the annual Van Nuys High School Student and Faculty Dance Production. It was spectacular.

Let me start out by noting that Van Nuys is a Performing Arts magnet within the larger high school (the other magnets in the school are Math/Science and Medical). But their theatrical program has been hampered by a poor teacher and weak productions. Thus, the dramatic skills of these young adults doesn’t come across as well as it could on the stage. The theatrical production attempts to showcase more broad comedic skills (farce in the winter, musical in the summer). The dance production, on the other hand, contained more professional quality dramatic expression and quality acting than I have seen in ages. This is a tribute to their instructor and his professionalism.

The program consisted of three acts: the first (shall we call it “Act 0”) was a “senior spotlight”, which gave each of the graduating seniors a chance to present an individual performance. Almost all of these were uniformely excellent; the ones that weren’t fell into the “pretty damn good” category. Performances of particular note were “Hurt”, performed and choreographed by Christine Dominguez; “Liberian Girl” performed by Joseph Gurrola and Quinn Harris, choreographed by Quinn Harris; “Bold As Love”, performed and choreographed by Adela Pineda; “John Wayne Gacy, Jr.”, performed and choreographed by Mikel Bossette; and “Just Testing”, performed and choreographed by Kian Khiahan. Of these, I’d like to highlight three particular performers: Joseph Gurrola showed remarkable form and finesse and strength in his movements, and was just a remarkable dancer; Mikel Bossette has demonstrated herself to be a triple threat — she can act, she can sing, and boy can she dance — and I hope she goes far in the theatrical world; and Kian Khiahan, who had a remarkably improvised technopop routine that was just mesmerizing in its movement. All seniors in this program will go far.

Act I consisted of 12 pieces. Not all of them stick in my mind, although I enjoyed all of them during the performances. The ones that I particular remember were “Holding Out for a Hero”, dones by the entire VNHS Jazz Dance Team, choreographed by Mike Nakauchi; “While My Guitar Gently Weeps”, performed and choreographed by Diana Flores; and “And So It Is”, the faculty performance, performed and choreographed by Mike Nakauchi. The fact that I did not list a performance here doesn’t mean it wasn’t excellent — rather, it means that the morning after the production I can’t match the names of the pieces to the performances.

Act II also consisted of 12 performances. Again, ones that I particularly remember were “The Calling”, choreographed by Mikel Bossette and performed by Mikel Bossette, Stephanie Hoston, April Machado, and Julia Rachilewski; “For You”, and extremely touching and powerful piece performed and choreographed by Joseph Gurrola; “Expression of the Subconscious”, performed and choreographed by Quinn Harris, “Shikdum-A Night in Bollywood”, performed and choreographed by Fariba Toha, and “Burn”, choreographed by Mike Nakauchi and performed by the Jazz Dance Team (although I found the music, by Nine Inch Nails, a bit loud on that one). However, as I noted before, just because I didn’t list a performance doesn’t mean it was poor — it means my memory is bad.

The VNHS dancers consisted of the following young adults (* indicates seniors): Beginner Dance: Nora Adamian*, Omary Aguilar, Arielle Bell, Lara Bersabal, Sheila Carlos, Jennifer Casas, Layla Chatthoranongsak, Annie Chareonsin*, Catherine Corea, Dani DeMond, Melissa Gestopa, Sydney Green, Diana Grigoryan, Lubaba Khan, Ariel Kostrzewski, Glessy Magaling, Ariana Martinez, Mayra Martinez, Trammy Nguyen, Eddie Perdomo, Juliene Picart, Jackee Rico, Christina Soldano, Katie Swanson. Intermediate/Advanced Dance: Kimberly Alegria*, BGreanna Burnette, Jessica Castañeda, Heidy Contreras, Ma Christina De La Rosa*, Chiza Eze, Annie Gaspar, John Geronnilla*, Tim Glick*, Melissa Larios, Marooshka Noronha*, Deeanna Padilla, Yadira Pulido, Justine Daphne Regala*, Sarah Smith, Paulo Tadle. Hip Hop Dance Team: Kimberly Alegria*, Jessica Casteneda, Joseph Cayanan, Layla Chatthoranongsak, Natalie Chavez, Stephenie DeCastro* (co-captain), Christina De La Rosa*, Charmaine Ramos* (co-captain), Justine Regala*, Paulo Dadle, Mary-Jannie Taylor. Jazz Dance Team: Christine Dominguez* (captain), Diana Flores*, Hasmik Fndryan, Romina Karla Gonzalez, Mireya Gonzalez*, Joseph Gurrola*, Jamie Quinn Harris*, Marissa Perplies, Gloria Roca, Zoe Shiovitz* (co-captain), Mary-Jannie Taylor, Maya Wright.

The performances were enhanced and amplified by the remarkable design work of the VNHS Technical Theatre Crew, led by Marque Coy (faculty). Moving lights were designed and operated by Josh Price and Cody Banks. Conventional lights were designed and operated by Shaunna Lucas and Erin Faigin. Spotlights were operated by Leslie Montano and Patty Ponce. Sound was by Emily Tugwell and Christopher Chesler. Some particular items in this area I remember were the incredibly beautiful background lights; the strong use of silhouettes for dancers; some of the moving light effects; and how in some numbers the sound seemed to move around the stage.

You can see a YouTube of the bows here, and it has links to some of the other specific performances.

Upcoming Theatre: This afternoon our theatre continues with “big” at West Coast Ensemble, to be followed by “The Green Room at Hermosa Beach Playhouse on May 24 @ 7:00pm. The end of May (May 28, 29, 30) brings “Fiddler on the Roof” at Nobel Middle School. June 20 @ 8pm is “The Little Foxes” at The Pasadena Playhouse. Lastly, July 11 will bring “Fat Pig” at Repertory East Playhouse. Based on the reviews, we’ve decided to take a pass on “Marry Me a Little/The Last 5 Years” at East/West Players. Other shows pending scheduling and ticketing include “Spamalot” at the Ahmanson (7/7-9/6/09), the “Guys and Dolls” concert at the Hollywood Bowl (7/31-8/2/09), and Liza Minelli at the Hollywood Bowl (8/28-8/29/09). Also of potential interest are: “Setup and Punch” at The Blank Theatre Company (LAStageTix) (5/14-6/21/09); “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” at the Neighborhood Playhouse (Venue Goldstar) (7/9-7/26/09); “Breaking the Code” at The Production Company in North Hollywood (5/15-6/20/09) (on LAStageTix, Venue Goldstar) (with “Equus” over the summer); and “The Apple Tree” at Crown City Theatre in North Hollywood (6/5-6/28/09) (LAStageTix). I’m also always looking for interesting productions on Goldstar and LA Stage Tix.

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Artists Are Only Respected When They Are Dead

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

In the classic American story “The Adventures of Tom Sawyer”, the title character attends his own funeral, just to hear the good things people are saying about him. Death has that interesting effect: we tend to focus about the good of the person. This is especially true in the art world: when an artist dies, no matter his quality, the value of his artworks often go up in value. So, suppose you have a penniless artist and his friends, who owe a lot of money, and they have just come to this realization. What do they do?

The answer is simple: The artist must die. But before you think this is some murder plot, think again. The artist just comes back as his long-lost twin sister. Add to this a classic melodramatic villian (think “Musical of Musical” — “I must have the rent!”), an engenue in love with the artist, the villian in love with the engenue, and a second engenue in love with the artist’s best friend… who thought up the plot. Add to this a man dresses up as a woman, some limberger cheese, and lots of doors, and you have the making of a farce. A very good farce.

I mention this because last night we went to see this farce. The play is called “Is He Dead?”, and was written by an author you might have heard of: Mark Twain. Almost a hundred years ago, he wrote this play, but no one knew about it until it was rediscovered a few years ago and mounted on Broadway to great critical reviews. It is currently having its Los Angeles premier at the International City Theatre in Long Beach.

“Is He Dead?” tells the story of the French artist Jean-Francois Millet (Perry Ojedaæ), who owes a significant amount of money to Bastien Andre (Steve Marvelæ). Also owing Andre money is Papa Leroux (Jerry Hoffmanæ), father to the sweetheart of Millet, Marie Leroux (Suzanne Petrela). Neither can pay Andre; in particular, Millet can’t pay because his paintings aren’t selling. Millet’s pupils: Agamemnon “Chicago” Buckner (Brian Stanton), Hans “Dutchy” Von Bismark (Chip Bent), and Phelim O’Shaughnessy (Blake Silver)) come up with an idea: Millet’s paintings will be worth more if Millet is dead. So they invent an unmentionalable disease for Millet to contract and quickly die from, as well as a sister, the widow Daisy Tillou, who is Millet’s identical twin sister. Now, add to this mix Leroux’s other daughter, Cecile Leroux (Jules Hartley), who is in love with “Chicago”, and the two widowed landlady’s of Millet (Madame Bathilde (Terra Shelman) and Madame Caron (Jeanine Anderson)). Stir the mix with a number of love triangles (both Andre and Millet love Marie; both Papa Leroux and Andre love the Widow Tillou). Add misunderstandings and jelousy (Cecile thinks Daisy loves Chicago). Season with dialects and great comic timing, as well as a great supporting performance by Joe Friaæ as a British art patron (Basil Thorpe), a French detective (Claude Riviere), a servant (Charlie), and the King of France… and you have a very funny farce.

Farce is very different than situational comedy. Situational comedy are plays such as “The Odd Couple” (Neal Simon), where the comedy come from the people and their relationships, not just sillyness. Farce is almost sillyness for sillyness’ sake — think “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum” or “Noises Off”. There’s timing and doors slamming; there’s misunderstandings and overreactions; there’s dialects and cross-dressing (men as women, women as men). Everything is played for the laugh. Farce also requires spot-on timing. I do have to say that this company was excellent. Ojeda, as Jean-Francois/Daisy, milked the cross-dressing and the kissing for as much as he could get out of it. Marvel played the evil villian well, and Stanton was an excellent schemer. The reactions and timing of the whole cast was just remarkable.

Turning to the technical side: ICT is a thrust stage, almost 3/4 round like the Mark Taper Forum. They had about 1/3 of their seats blocked off. The sets were mostly backdrops: in the first act, they portrayed Millet’s studio; in the second act, the opulant quarters of the Widow Tillou. The sets were designed by Stephen Gifford. The lighting was unnoticable (a good thing): there were no spots or lighting tricks, just overall lighting that established the time of day and mood. The lighting was designed by Bill Georges, assisted by Sean Conlin. The costumes (by Kim DeShazo) and wigs/hair (by Anthony Gagliardi) established the time period well and were quite creative. Props were designed by Patty and Gordon Briles, and included a significant number of reproductions of Millet’s works. Stage management was by Pat Loebæ, assisted by Terri Robertsæ.
[æ denotes members of æ Actors Equity ]

As I noted above, the story was by Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens). The manuscript was found by Shelly Fisher Fishkin, who had it adapted for the stage by David Ives. The original production was in 2007 in New York. The readaptation for Long Beach was under the direction of Shashin Desai.

“Is He Dead?” continues at ICT through May 24, 2009. Only Thursday and Friday performances are up on Goldstar. For other performance, contact the box office at (562) 436-4610 or visit the ICT Website.

Upcoming Theatre: Next Friday or Saturday (5/16) at 7:00pm, we’re likely going to the student dance production at Van Nuys HS, for which nsshere will be doing some of the lighting design. Sunday May 17 will be “big” at West Coast Ensemble, to be followed (hopefully) by “The Green Room at Hermosa Beach Playhouse on May 24 @ 7:00pm (pending ticketing). The end of May (May 28, 29, 30) brings “Fiddler on the Roof” at Nobel Middle School, where nsshere is doing the lighting design. June 6 we might go to the last weekend of “Marry Me a Little/The Last 5 Years” at East/West Players. , June 20 @ 8pm is “The Little Foxes” at The Pasadena Playhouse. Lastly, July 11 will bring “Fat Pig” at Repertory East Playhouse. Other shows pending scheduling and ticketing include “Spamalot” at the Ahmanson, Liza Minelli at the Hollywood Bowl, and the “Guys and Dolls” concert at the Hollywood Bowl. I’m also always looking for interesting productions on Goldstar and LA Stage Tix.

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O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

Last night (sort of a the last minute), we went over the the Horseshoe Theatre at LA Valley College to see the Theatre Arts Department’s production of Alicen. We had been alerted to the production through divasteph on Facebook (production page), and had been debating going, but it wasn’t until yesterday that we knew for sure nsshere’s schedule.

Alicen is a new play based off of the two main Alice stories (Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass, as well as other Alice-related writings of Charles Dodgson). The new adaptation was developed by Christopher Coddington (who also directed the production), and is relatively faithful to the books (the first act being “Wonderland”, the second act being “Looking Glass”). As this was a reasonably faithful adaptation, I won’t retell the stories, other than to note that most of the well-known incidents are included, but contrariwise, some of them have been left out. This faithfullness led to an extremely long play (clocking in at 3 hours, with each act approximately 90 minutes). I’ll note that this is one of the first productions of this adaptation, and thus is in some sense a workshop: thus I’ll suggest that the play could use with some trimming and tightening for the audience does feel the length of the production.

Although I refer to Alicen as a play, it is in reality a musical, with music by Matt Sheridan and Eric Killian (perhaps better known as “The Modlins”), with additional music and arrangements by Shane Richardson, Stephanie Pressman, Richard Rossi, and Crystal Castillo. The songs are mostly adaptations of the poems in the stories, and run the range from folk to rap (the rap version of “The Walrus and the Carpenter” is particularly amusing). I also enjoyed the musicalization of “Jabberwocky”. Within the show, the “band” consists primarily of Stephanie Pressman and Shane Richardson (both of whom sing and play guitar), as well as some other cast members who also play guitar and sing. I found the music very entertaining, especially some of the duets where the voices blended quite beautifully. I’ve heard rumors of a recording of the score — if that pans out, it would be a wonderful preservation of the delightful tunes.

The acting ensemble was quite talented, and speaks well of the theatre arts program at LAVC. In the lead, playing the Wonderland Alice (there was also a young-Alice and an adult-Alice) was Crystal Castillo. Ms. Castillo was remarkable in the role, showing strong singing and dancing abilities as well as good acting abilities. Another remarkable cast member was Richard Rossi [] as Charles Dodgson/White Knight. I found him enjoyable as Dodgson, but even more enjoyable as the White Knight, where he was having fun with the role and seemingly ad-libbing (which I later learned was scripted, making him even stronger in my book). Also enjoyable were Timothy Miller [] (Lewis Carroll; Dormouse; Red King) and Marina Gywnn [] (Alice Liddell).

Others in the large ensemble (more) — which was quite talented — were: Norma Arroyo [] (Edith Liddell), Simon Benjamin (Baby/Pig; Gardener 5; Ensemble), Bethany Bodin [] (Tiger Lily; Ensemble)), Adam Cloud [] (Fish Footman; Red Knight; Ensemble), Shawn Conklin (Caryl Hargreaves; Knave of Hearts), Nick DeNicola [] (Robinson Duckworth; King of Hearts), Courtnie Di Piazza [] (Red Queen; Miss Prickett), Julio Dominguez (Tweedledum; Ensemble), Nina Donato (Duchess), Cloey Eo (Frog Footman; Gardener 7; Ensemble), Leslie Holland (Ensemble), Azmyth Kaminski (Caterpiller), Katherine Ko [] (Lorina Liddell), Sherrie Lewandowski [] (Queen of Hearts), Alvyn Lopez (Gardener 2; Ensemble), Carlo Maghirang [] (Mad Hatter), Angela Manetti (Fawn; Ensemble), Lyle Middleton (Executioner; White King), Addison Randall [] (Humpty Dumpty), Shandar Robinson (Cook; Rose; Ensemble), Colleen Shelley (White Queen), Johnathan Solarte (Cheshire Cat), Theresa Strand [] (March Hare), and Andrew Wolf [] (White Rabbit).

Turning to the technical side: The Horseshoe Theatre at LAVC is a small facility, sitting the audience in a few rows around 3 sides of the stage. No amplification is necessary. Lighting, however, is. The lighting design was by P. T. Fogger, and had both strong and weak points. The strong point was the use of four spots such that they weren’t noticable. The weak point were the scollers, which were left on when the colors were changed, creating this districting color cavalcade when not-adjacent color changes occurred. The lighting board operators were Cullen Pinney and Stacey Cortez, with Jason Alexander, Danie Danebrock, Jason Henderson, and Matthew Miller as spot operators. The costumes, by Judy Ashton, where quite clever in their use of available resources (which, being a community college production, were limited). The set, designed by Cathy Susan Pyles [], was minimalistic, consisting of some steel frameworks and various props. Danielle DeMasters served as stage manager, assisted by Stacey Cortez [] and Nicole Ruiz [].

Being a musical, there was a fair amount of dance and movement, which was quite good and varied. The dance ranged from ballet-like moves, to ensemble pieces, to rap style movements. The choreography was by Ashleigh Lonning, assisted by Crystal Castillo.

Alicen has 3 more performances: May 7, 8, and 9 at 8:00pm at LAVC. Call 818 947-2790 for reservations. Ticket prices are $15 for general admission, $10 for seniors/students. ETA: You can see a video sample of the show here.

Lastly, I should note that this is the first production we’ve heard of at LAVC: it would be nice if they had a mailing list so we could learn of future productions (hint, hint).

One last little note on the production: It reminded me of my copy of the book “The Annotated Alice”, which was given to me by my brother before he died, and which I still have. A nice memory to have return.

Upcoming Theatre: Next Saturday, we’re going down to Long Beach to see “Is He Dead? at ICT Long Beach. May 17 will be “big” at West Coast Ensemble, to be followed by “The Green Room at Hermosa Beach Playhouse on May 24 (pending ticketing). The end of May (May 28, 29, 30) brings “Fiddler on the Roof” at Nobel Middle School, where nsshere is doing the lighting design. On June 6 @ 8pm we’re scheduled for “I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change” at Repertory East Playhouse, but since we saw that when they did it two years ago, we’re planning to switch to “Fat Pig” in their “81 series” on July 11. As this opens up June 6, we might go to the last weekend of “Marry Me a Little/The Last 5 Years” at East/West Players. Lastly, June 20 @ 8pm is “The Little Foxes” at The Pasadena Playhouse.

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