Tag: steve-allen-theatre

Sunday night we went down to the Steve Allen Theatre for the last “Meeting of Minds” at that location. As a reminder, for those unfamilar with Meeting of Minds, it was an innovative PBS program developed by Steve Allen that brought together four (three in the last season) historical figures for a round-table discussion on a variety of topics. Extensively researched, it is both entertaining and educational. These programs were only available for a short time on videotape, and have never been released on DVD. Late in 2009, the good folks at Working Stage productions—in particular, Dan Lauria, Bob Ladendorf and Diana Ljungaeus brought back Meeting of Minds as a staged reading. Their goal is to not only produce these programs in Hollywood, but to perform at colleges, high schools, universitites and other educational or cultural venues, with name actors. With respect to the Hollywood production, they have been on a regular schedule of the third Sunday every month at 7pm at the Steve Allen Theatre; however, they have lost this location as of last night’s show.

Last night’s episode was #19, and featured:

• Adam Smith (1723-1790) [Ian Buchanan]. Scottish economist and philospher who developed the foundations of classic economics in his book, The Wealth of Nations.
• Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (1869-1948) [Chacko Vadaketh]. The founder of Modern India, known for his non-violent protest methods.
• Margaret Sanger (1879-1966) [Barbara Bain]. American Birth Control activist.
• Steve Allen (1921-2000) [Jack Maxwell]. Writer of more than 50 books, composer of more than 8,500 songs, TV host (invented The Tonight Show as well as Meeting of Minds), actor, comedian, author, rationalist.

One of the first thing you may notice is that we had the same actor as different characters in back-to-back episodes: Ian Buchanan was both Oliver Cromwell and Adam Smith. It is a testiment to Mr. Buchanan’s skills that you didn’t easily realize this: he embodied each with drastically different personalities, voices, and mannerisms. His Adam Smith wasn’t a dry Scottish economist, but you clearly got the sense that this was a man who enjoyed the pub and the fruits of his earnings as well as any Scotsman could. Complementing him were the other actors: Vadaketh’s Ghandi projected a wonderful sense of inner piece and strength, whereas in Bain’s Sanger you could see the activist trying to get out, but having difficulty with the other personalities around the table. Yet again this demonstrated the quality of the actors this production draws, as well as the work of the director, Frank Megna.

Being the first episode of this pair, there was more exposition. We learned about Ghandi’s life, but didn’t have time to go deeply into what lead to his pacifist approach. Rather, we learned more of his attitude towards self restraint and self control, which he felt was more significant than birth control. Sanger, on the other hand, was strongly promoting birth control, including handing out a pamphlet enumerating the seven cases where she felt that birth control was needed: (1) the husband or wife has transmittable diseases (e.g., epilepsy, syphilis, or certain forms of insanity; (2) the wife suffers from afflictions of the lungs, heart, or kidneys if a cure is retarded by pregnancy; (3) parents have subnormal children; (4) husband, wife, or both are teenagers; (5) husband’s earnings are insufficient; (6) births should be spaced two or three years apart for the mother’s health or better care for children; and (7) newlyweds for one year. It is hard to believe those seven cases were controversial, but in her time, they were extremely incendiary. There wasn’t much exploration of Adam Smith’s philosophy, other than to note his background and the fact that he was more than an economist, but also looks into the moral and philosophical issues.

“Meeting of Minds” has been produced monthly by Bob Ladendorf and Diana Ljungaeus for Opening Minds Productions. There is no formal next episode, although an episode will be produces as part of the Secular Humanism Conference in October.

Upcoming Theatre and Dance. August 21 brings the last 81 Series production: “Side Man” at REP East. September starts with “Free Man of Color” at the Colony on September 4. The following weekend brings “The Glass Menagerie” at the Mark Taper Forum on September 11. Pending ticketing is “Leap of Faith” at the Ahmanson Theatre (September 11-October 24, Hottix on sale August 17; potential dates: 9/19, 9/26, or 10/10), and “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” at REP East (September 17-October 16; potential date 10/2). The only show currently ticketed in October is “Happy Days: The Musical” at Cabrillo Music Theatre on October 30, but I’m sure some interesting productions will pop up. They always do.

As always: live theatre is a gift and a unique experience, unlike a movie. It is vitally important in these times that you support your local arts institutions. If you can afford to go to the movies, you can afford to go to theatre. If you need help finding ways, just drop me a note and I’ll teach you some tricks. Lastly, I’ll note that nobody paid me anything to write this review, and that I purchase my own tickets to the shows. In fact, I receive no remuneration for any reviews I write.

Sunday night we went down to the Steve Allen Theatre for the penultimate “Meeting of Minds” at that location. As a reminder, for those unfamilar with Meeting of Minds, it was an innovative PBS program developed by Steve Allen that brought together four (three in the last season) historical figures for a round-table discussion on a variety of topics. Extensively researched, it is both entertaining and educational. These programs were only available for a short time on videotape, and have never been released on DVD. Late in 2009, the good folks at Working Stage productions—in particular, Dan Lauria, Bob Ladendorf and Diana Ljungaeus brought back Meeting of Minds as a staged reading. Their goal is to not only produce these programs in Hollywood, but to perform at colleges, high schools, universitites and other educational or cultural venues, with name actors. With respect to the Hollywood production, they have been on a regular schedule of the third Sunday every month at 7pm at the Steve Allen Theatre. Alas, they are losing that location after the August show; more on that later (as well as a separate post I plan to make to los_angeles)

Last night’s episode was #24 (the last episode aired on PBS), and featured:

• Oliver Cromwell (1599-1658) [Ian Buchanan]. English soldier and political leader. Overthrew the Stuart Monarcy, and reigned as the Lord Protector of England.
• Daniel O’Connell (1775-1847) [James Handy]. Irish political leader, campaigned for the Catholic Emancipation. Known as “The Liberator”.
• Catherine the Great (1729-1796) [Penny Peyser]. Empress of Russia for over 30 years, responsible for the modernization and westernization of Russia.
• Steve Allen (1921-2000) [Jack Maxwell]. Writer of more than 50 books, composer of more than 8,500 songs, TV host (invented The Tonight Show as well as Meeting of Minds), actor, comedian, author, rationalist.

As with Episode #23 back in February 2010, this was an excellent actor mix — one of the strongest. This demonstrates the quality of these particular actors, as well as the work of the director, Frank Megna. This particular episode focused heavily on the conflict between the Protestants and the Catholics over Ireland, including the punative laws imposed on the Irish by England. In other words, Cromwell and O’Connell were going for each other’s throats most of the time.

As O’Connell, Handy was typically Irish: arrogant at times, playful, proud of his heritage. He reflecting the impact of the American Revolutionaries and freethinkers, emphasizing the importance of religious freedom, while acknowledging that the church in Rome was (until relatively recently) opposed to religious freedom. He emphasized how his approach was non-violent opposition (to which Steve Allen noted the potential comparison to Ghandi). As Cromwell, Buchanan was the opposite: the stern Puritan who felt he was in the right because God directed him to do what he did. As opposed to episode #23, which explored his views on the monarchy, this episode focused more on religious tolerance. It appeared that the religious tolerance was selective: he was tolerant to the Jews, but not to the Catholics in Ireland (tolerance for Catholics appearing to be a big problem since Henry VIII). Lastly, Penny Peyser was an interesting counterpoint: she gave a spirited performance as Catherine—playful, lusty, knowledgable. This episode deemphasized the sexual escapades and focused on her relationship with Potempkin; she was shocked to learn that the villiages and improvement that Potempkin showed her were shams. She felt Cromwell as in the wrong for not revelling in his power—he should have grabbed the monarchy when it was offered to him. It was also noted that O’Connell was offered the monarchy in Belgium.

In thinking about this episode this morning, I began musing about new episodes and who might be in them. The combination that this episode triggered in my mind was: Theodor Hertzl (1860-1904), Queen Isabella I of Castile (1451-1504), King Henry VIII of England (1491-1547), and Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790). Herzl and Isabella should have interesting discussions about the Jews, Isabella and Henry should have interesting discussions about Catholicism (although they are perhaps too contemporary, and there might be a better church thinker), and Franklin would be an interesting addition to the mix due to his freethinking and more deist attitudes towards religion.

“Meeting of Minds” has been produced monthly by Bob Ladendorf and Diana Ljungaeus for Opening Minds Productions, every third Sunday of every month at 7:00pm through August at the Steve Allen Theatre in Hollywood. The specifics of the August episode (Sunday, August 15, 2010 at 7pm) have not been announced. Alas, Opening Minds loses the use of the Steve Allen Theatre after August and is currently scouting for a new location. If you are aware of a suitable location, please let me know in the comments and I’ll pass it on. The parameters are: (1) thrust stage or theatre in the round; (2) seating for at least 100; (3) ability to serve alcohol (wine); (4) availability the third Sunday of the month; and (5) affordable rental fees. The only possibility we could come up with was The Onion in North Hills.

Upcoming Theatre and Dance. Next weekend brings “Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella” at Cabrillo Music Theatre on July 24, and “The Lieutenant of Inishmore” at the Mark Taper Forum on July 25. August starts with “Young Frankenstein” at the Pantages on August 1. The next weekend brings “[title of show]” at the Celebration Theatre on August 6. August 15 brings the August “Meeting of Minds”, and August 21 “Side Man” at REP East. Looking into September, there is “Free Man of Color” at the Colony on September 4, and “Leap of Faith” at the Ahmanson Theatre (September 5-October 17, to be ticketed), and “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” at REP East (9/17-10/16). It is unknown if there will be a September “Meeting of Minds”, and if so, when and where. October will bring “Happy Days: The Musical” at Cabrillo Music Theatre, and possibly “The Glass Menagerie” at the Mark Taper Forum.

As always: live theatre is a gift and a unique experience, unlike a movie. It is vitally important in these times that you support your local arts institutions. If you can afford to go to the movies, you can afford to go to theatre. If you need help finding ways, just drop me a note and I’ll teach you some tricks. Lastly, I’ll note that nobody paid me anything to write this review. In fact, I receive no remuneration for any reviews I write.

A lunchtime review… Last night was our monthly sojurn to Steve Allen’s creation, Meeting of Minds at the Steve Allen Theatre. This month was Episode #10. The guests were:

• Voltaire (1694-1778) [Ray Abruzzo]. French writer, philosopher & moralist.
• Martin Luther (1483-1546) [Mark Moses]. German protestant reformer.
• Plato (429-347 B.C.) [Harold Gould]. Greek philosopher.
• Florence Nightingale (1820-1910) [Jean Smart]. British hospital reformer; founder of nursing.
• Steve Allen (1921-2000) [Jack Maxwell]. Writer, composer, TV host, actor, comedian, author, rationalist.

The focus of this episode was Martin Luther and many of his outrageous positions. I particularly remember his strong antisemitism, advocating destroying synagogues, the homes of Jews, denying them free passage over roads. He felt equally about other heritics, advocating they should be put to death. This offended all the other participants (Voltaire, Nightingale, Plato). There was also exploration of what the reformation stood for and what has lasted, and the acceptance of a broad view of the notion of God. Plato explored the philosphy of the Sophists, and noted how they used rhetoric to make absurd points. It was here that the script was updated to include references to Fox News and Glen Beck as examples of which the sophists would be proud. There was also exploration of Ms. Nighingale’s reclusiveness during the last years of her life, and of how mankind is always resistant to reformation efforts and new ideas.

As time has gone on, there appears to be more freedom being taken with the scripts in the form of minor updates. I noted previously the references to Beck and Fox, but I recall there were other updates, such as a reference to BP and the oil leak. I see more of this when Maxwell is playing Steve Allen vs. Gary Cole. In general, I find that Maxwell makes a better Allen: his personality comes off more similar and less stiff, there appears to be better innate knowledge of the material (whether that is acting I don’t know, but that’s the mark of a good actor). Speaking of the acting quality, I’ll note that this episode was a step above the first episode of this pair back in October: both Mark Moses and Harold Gould were much more energetic and lively; Abruzzo was his usual caustic self (got to love Voltaire); and I found Smart to be the perfect Nightingale—she had the right fiestiness and bite for the character. This episode was a pleasure to watch. As always, the production was directed by Frank Megna, who did an excellent job working with the actors to bring out the characters.

Last month, Dan Lauria indicated he had written a new Meeting of Minds script, featuring Congressional Medal of Honor winner Smedley Darlington Butler, Medal of Honor recipient and Civil War Doctor Mary Edwards Walker, Saint Patrick of Ireland, and Saint Joan of Arc. The reading of that script was cancelled at the last minute; alas, there were no updates given regarding its rescheduling. This could be because Lauria is involved with a new Broadway production of a play on the life of Vince Lombardi. Hopefully there will be word on that production soon.

“Meeting of Minds” is produced monthly by Bob Ladendorf and Diana Ljungaeus for Opening Minds Productions, every third Sunday of every month at 7:00pm through August at the Steve Allen Theatre in Hollywood. The specifics of the regular July episode (Sunday, July 18, 2010 at 7pm) have not been announced. Alas, Opening Minds loses the use of the Steve Allen Theatre after August and is currently scouting for a new location.

Upcoming Theatre and Dance. This is a busy, busy summer. Next Friday, June 25, brings “It’s Top Secret”, a musical that is part of the Festival of New American Musicals, at the NoHo Arts Center; the next night, June 26, brings “The Rocky Horror Show” at the Underground Theatre. As for July, the month starts with “In The Heights” at the Pantages on July 3, and the Western Corps Connection in Riverside on July 5. The next weekend (July 10 @ 8pm) is the first show of the 2010-2011 Colony season, “Grace & Glorie”. The third weekend of July brings ; “The Last Days of Judas Iscariot” at REP East on July 17 and the July “Meeting of Minds on July 18. The 4th weekend brings “Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella” at Cabrillo Music Theatre on July 24, and “The Lieutenant of Inishmore” at the Mark Taper Forum on July 25. Plus July will possibly bring some ventures out to the Hollywood Bowl. July or August should also bring “[title of show]” at the Celebration Theatre (July 16-September 5). In terms of what is ticketed and calendared, August starts with “Young Frankenstein” at the Pantages on August 1, and (hopefully) “Rent” at the Hollywood Bowl (pending ticketing) the following weekend. August 15 brings the August “Meeting of Minds”, and August 21 “Side Man” at REP East. Looking into September, there is “Free Man of Color” at the Colony on September 4, and “Leap of Faith” at the Ahmanson Theatre (September 5-October 17, to be ticketed), and “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” at REP East (9/17-10/16). It is unknown if there will be a September “Meeting of Minds”, and if so, when and where.

As always: live theatre is a gift and a unique experience, unlike a movie. It is vitally important in these times that you support your local arts institutions. If you can afford to go to the movies, you can afford to go to theatre. If you need help finding ways, just drop me a note and I’ll teach you some tricks. Lastly, I’ll note that nobody paid me anything to write this review. In fact, I receive no remuneration for any reviews I write.

Last night was our monthly sojurn to Steve Allen’s creation, Meeting of Minds at the Steve Allen Theatre. This month was Episode #13. The guests were:

• St. Augustine of Hippo (354-430) [Joe Bologna]. North African theologian; wrote The City of God
• The Empress Theodora of the Byzantine Empire (c.500-48) [Hayley DuMond] Byzantine Empire empress.
• Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826) [Keith Carradine]. Statesman; U.S. President (1801-09)
• Bertrand Russell (1872-1970) [George Lazenby]. British philosopher and writer
• Steve Allen (1921-2000) [Gary Cole]. Writer, composer, TV host, actor, comedian, author, rationalist.

Given the guests, the subject (for the most part—after all, this is a freewheeling discussion) tended to focus on religion and rationality, and the rights that the state has to force religious obediance. Knowing Allen’s background, this was obviously a subject near and dear to his heart. In general, taking the side that the government should have a role in forcing religion were Augustine and Theodora (both of whom believed in forced conversions to Christianity); the opposite side was taken by Russell (of the more rationalist arguments) and Jefferson (who called for the more ethical precepts of Christianity but not the dogma). There was also delving into the history of Augstine and Theordora; more detailed background on Jefferson and Russell are in Episode #14.

The script had a number of updates from the original 1979 script. For example, when discussing how the Roman Empire was divided into two portions for governance, leading to the formation of the Byzantine Empire in the East, it was noted that there were no effective communication methods such as the Internet, Facebook, or Twitter. Later, during the religious discussion, it was pointed out that Jefferson was not the hard-and-heavy Christian the founding fathers are claimed to be (and thus making aspersions on the Tea Party movement).

As always, this is a staged reading, and the actors get the scripts perhaps a week before the show. Some actors deal with this much better than others. During this episode, I thought the best performances were given by Carradine as Jefferson (whose voice reminded me quite a bit of Will Rogers) and DuMond as Theodora. Lazenby as Russell started out slow, but warmed up as the evening went on. I wasn’t that enamored of Bologna’s performance as Augustine—he just didn’t come across as strong as I would have expected him to be. The problems with Bologna and Lazenby could have been due to their problems with getting the words out, as they (along with Gary Cole) had the most reading problems (that is, misreads from the script). Bologna and Lazenby were at their best when they were standing up arguing at each other. As always, the production was directed by Frank Megna, who did an excellent job working with the actors to bring out the characters (although, as I noted, Augustine needed a bit more “oomph”).

Unlike a lot of the other staged readings, this episode had significant costumes for all historical characters. These costumes were provided by Santra Magnusson.

Dan Lauria, who bears an uncanny resemblance to Vince Lombardi, introduced the program, commenting on how hard it is to write one of these scripts. He should know, as he has just finished the first new Meeting of Minds script in 20 years! It will be presented as a two-hour show at the Greenway Court Theatre on Fairfax Ave on Sunday, June 6 at 6pm (alas, I don’t know yet whether we can make it—K & E are going to see Merce Cunningham at 2pm at the Disney that day, and I’ll be at a niece’s birthday party in Orange County). The guests for the new episode will be: Steve Allen (host), Congressional Medal of Honor winner Smedley Darlington Butler, Medal of Honor recipient and Civil War Doctor Mary Edwards Walker, Saint Patrick of Ireland, and Saint Joan of Arc. Playing these roles are Dan Lauria, Wendie Malick, Jim Handy, Stana Katic, and either Gary Cole or Jack Maxwell as Steve Allen. Details and tickets should be available through Working Stage Productions or their Meeting of Minds page.

“Meeting of Minds” is now produced monthly by Opening Minds Productions, every third Sunday of every month at 7:00pm at the Steve Allen Theatre in Hollywood. The regular June episode (Sunday, 6/20/2010 at 7pm) will be Episode #10 (Episode #9 review), featuring Voltaire (Ray Abruzzo); Martin Luther (Mark Moses); Plato; Florence Nightingale [Sharon Lawrence]; with Steve Allen (Gary Cole) hosting.

Upcoming Theatre. Next weekend brings the Spring Dance Show (yes, nsshere is dancing) at Van Nuys HS (May 20-22). The last weekend in May brings the Bat Mitzvah of a family friend, as well as “The Wedding Singer” at Repertory East Playhouse in Newhall (May 30 @ 2pm). June starts with “Peter Pan” at Nobel Middle School (June 3-5) and the “One Acts Plays” at Van Nuys High (June 2-4) [again, nsshere is acting in the One Acts], as well as (pending ticketing) the legacy tour of Merce Cunningham at the Walt Disney Concert Hall… and who knows… perhaps the new “Meeting of Minds”! June 13 brings “South Pacific” at the Ahmanson, with the June “Meeting of Minds” on June 20. As for July, the month starts with “In The Heights” at the Pantages on July 3, and (pending ticketing) the Western Corps Connection in Riverside on July 5. The next weekend (July 10 @ 8pm) is the first show of the 2010-2011 Colony season, “Grace & Glorie”. That weekend may also bring “It’s Top Secret”, a musical that is part of the Festival of New American Musicals, running Jun 19-July 18 at the NoHo Arts Center (likely July 11). July will also bring ; “The Last Days of Judas Iscariot” at REP East on July 17 (pending ticketing); the July “Meeting of Minds on July 18, and “Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella” at Cabrillo Music Theatre on July 24. Plus July will nat bring some ventures out to the Hollywood Bowl. Lastly, looking to August, we will hopefully find “Rent” at the Hollywood Bowl (pending ticketing); “Young Frankenstein” at the Pantages, the August “Meeting of Minds”, and “Side Man” at REP East.

As always: live theatre is a gift and a unique experience, unlike a movie. It is vitally important in these times that you support your local arts institutions. If you can afford to go to the movies, you can afford to go to theatre. If you need help finding ways, just drop me a note and I’ll teach you some tricks. Lastly, I’ll note that nobody paid me anything to write this review. In fact, I receive no remuneration for any reviews I write.

Last night was our third theatre performance of the weekend: the latest installment of Steve Allen’s Meeting of Minds at the Steve Allen Theatre. This month was Episode #8, continuing the discussion from Episode #7 on November 24, 2009. Our guests were:

Frederick Douglass (1817-1895)….. Ernie Hudson
Cesare Beccaria (1738-1794)…. Joe Mantegna
Empress Tz’u-Hsi (1835-1908)…. France Nuyen
Marquis de Sade (1740-1814)…. Richard Gilliland
Steve Allen (1921-2000)…. Jack Maxwell

The script had a number of updates from the original 1979 script, which was appropriate as the topic was torture, and alas the US can no longer make the same claims of being on a higher ground. There was also references to health care and the Internet. It was a little surprising that during the discussion of civil rights, however, there wasn’t a reference made to gay rights.

This discussion was much more focused on the use of torture and capital punishment as a deterrant. It also focused on the institution of slavery, and how even today the effects of slavery linger. DeSade had a lot less to say in this episode (which meant less of the very entertaining Richard Gilliland). The primary speakers were Joe Mantegna as Beccaria and Ernie Hudson as Douglass. In fact, Hudson gave an exceptionally strong performance as Douglass, speaking passionately on the injustice of slavery, and how it is morally wrong to permit discrimination to continue and to try to correct the problem slowly and gradually. Will we be saying the same thing in the future about gay rights?

The production also highlighted how little westerners understand China (and if I recall correctly, there were some script excisions about a trip Steve Allen made to China). It explained why the Manchu Dynasty viewed Europeans as barbarians, with the assumption that only the western ways are the right way to do things. I wonder if that attitude persists in China relations today, and whether the cultural divide can be bridged.

This production corrected a number of the problems with Episode #7, and both Nuyen and Hudson could be heard clearly. I also find Maxwell a much more entertaining Allen than Gary Cole. The major problem here was technical: at points, the lights changed to focus on a particular speaker, and the change was just too abrupt. As always, the production was directed by Frank Megna, who did an excellent job working with the actors to bring out the characters.

Dan Lauria, who bears an uncanny resemblance to Vince Lombardi, introduced the program, commenting on how hard it is to write one of these scripts (as he is writing one).

“Meeting of Minds” is now produced monthly by Opening Minds Productions, every third Sunday of every month at 7:00pm at the Steve Allen Theatre in Hollywood. The specifics of the next episode were not announced.

Upcoming Theatre. As for us, what’s upcoming on the theatre calendar? Next weekend takes me to “12 Angry Men” on April 24 (the rest of the family sees it on May 2). May looks to be equally busy, with “Little Shop of Horrors at Cabrillo Music Theatre (May 1), and “12 Angry Men” for Karen and Erin on May 2 @ 2pm (while I get ready for a Games Night at Temple that I’m running). The weekend of May 8 sees Karen and me at the So Cal Ren Faire on Saturday. The weekend of May 15 sees the CDF Conference for Karen and Erin, followed by “The 39 Steps” at the Ahmanson at 8pm. The next weekend takes Erin to the Ren Faire, while we see the May installment of “Meeting of Minds” at the Steve Allen Theatre (May 16). The fourth weekend in May brings the Spring Dance Show at Van Nuys HS (May 20-22). The last weekend in May brings the Bat Mitzvah of a family friend, as well as “The Wedding Singer” at Repertory East Playhouse in Newhall (May 30 @ 2pm). June so far is mostly open, although I’m expecting that we’ll see “South Pacific” at the Ahmanson some weekend that month, and potentially the June “Meeting of Minds”. As for July, the month starts with “In The Heights” at the Pantages on July 3. The next weekend I’m holding upon for the first show of the 2010-2011 Colony season, “Grace & Glorie” (likely July 10). That weekend may also bring “It’s Top Secret”, a musical that is part of the Festival of New American Musicals, running Jun 19-July 18 at the NoHo Arts Center (likely July 11). July will also bring ; “The Last Days of Judas Iscariot” at REP East on July 17 (pending ticketing); a possible July “Meeting of Minds, and “Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella” at Cabrillo Music Theatre on July 31 24 (likely moved due to a birthday party).

As always: live theatre is a gift and a unique experience, unlike a movie. It is vitally important in these times that you support your local arts institutions. If you can afford to go to the movies, you can afford to go to theatre. If you need help finding ways, just drop me a note and I’ll teach you some tricks. Lastly, I’ll note that nobody paid me anything to write this review. In fact, I receive no remuneration for any reviews I write.

Rounding out our busy theatre weekend was the February production of “Meeting of Minds” (MoM). I thought I would take a few minutes at lunch to write up my review. As a reminder, for those unfamilar with MoM, it was an innovative PBS program developed by Steve Allen that brought together four (three in the last season) historical figures for a round-table discussion on a variety of topics. Extensively researched, it is both entertaining and educational. These programs were only available for a short time on videotape, and have never been released on DVD. Late last year, the good folks at Working Stage productions—in particular, Dan Lauria, Bob Ladendorf and Diana Ljungaeus brought back MoM as a staged reading. Their goal is to not only produce these programs in Hollywood, but to perform at colleges, high schools, universitites and other educational or cultural venues, with name actors. With respect to the Hollywood production, they are now a regular schedule of the third Sunday every month at 7pm at the Steve Allen Theatre.

Last night’s episode was #23 (the penultimate episode aired on PBS), and featured Gary Cole as Steve Allen, Ian Buchanan as Oliver Cromwell, James Handy as Daniel O’Connell, and Penny Peyser as Catherine the Great. Yet again, this was an excellent actor mix — one of the strongest.

Let’s look at each of them. The most remarkable was Penny Peyser, who was a last minute substitute for Jean Smart (who had a death in the family). With only five days to look at the script, Peyser gave a spirited performance as Catherine—playful, lusty, knowledgable. You could see why men were attracted to her (and yes, they did mention the horse–which she said wasn’t true). As O’Connell, Handy was typically Irish: arrogant at times, playful, proud of his heritage. As Cromwell, Buchanan was the opposite: the stern Puritan who felt he was in the right because God gave him victories, and that what he did was ordained. He had no quarter for the monarchy or those who supported the monarchy. Gary Cole was his typical self: Allen wrote these pieces with his moderator role as everyman, asking the knowingly stupid questions or making the knowingly stupid remark to promote dialogue. As an example, Cromwell was played on to “God Save The Queen”. This was done obstensibly as the British National Anthem, but was more to immediately bring out Cromwell’s stubborness and hatred of all things connected to the monarchy. As I recall from the scripts, the second half of this episode is quite interesting.

[ETA 2/23/10: Today I had a discussion with one of the producers about extending season tickets, and I pointed her to these reviews. She reminded me I totally forgot to mention the director, Frank Megna. She’s right, of course. Partially that is because I was writing the review quickly at work, and partially that is because the directing was transparent (in other words, I wasn’t consciously aware of the direction, which if you think about it, is a good thing… directing is like sound engineering: it works best when you don’t even realize what it is doing). I decided to add this addendum to remind me for the next show.]

One other note: Last night, Dan Lauria provided a report on the larger mission related to MoM. He indicated they have already had one production at UC Riverside, in a room of 400, and were sold out quickly. The administration indicated they could have done multiple nights. They have a new brochure out on the program with contact information, so if you ware interested in learning about MoM and scheduling a production, contact Diana or Bob via info (at) workingstage.com. If you want phone numbers, drop me a note.

“Meeting of Minds” is now produced approximately monthly by Opening Minds Productions. Meeting of Minds is the third Sunday of every month at 7:00pm at the Steve Allen Theatre in Hollywood. The next episode (March 21 @ 7pm) will be Episode #4, featuring President U.S. Grant (Dan Lauria), Dr. Karl Marx (Ed Asner), Queen Marie Antoinette (Meeghan Holaway), and Sir Thomas More (Bruce Davison), with Steve Allen (Gary Cole) as the moderator.

Upcoming Theatre. As for us, what’s upcoming on the theatre calendar? Next weekend is open, and may remain that way as we’re seeing our congregation’s Purim Schpeil on Sunday evening. March starts with “The Story of My Life” at the Havok Theatre on March 6 @ 8pm (where we’ll be joined by shutterbug93). March 13 brings “Celebrate Dance 2010” at the Alex Theatre in Glendale; followed the next day by “On Golden Pond” at REP East. March 21 will be another installment of “Meeting of Minds” — this will be the second episode with Karl Marx (Ed Asner), Sir Thomas More (Bruce Davison), Queen Marie Antoinette (Meeghan Holaway), and President US Grant (Dan Lauria). April brings more of potential interest, most currently pending ticketing, including “Jacques Brel is Alive and Living in Paris” at the Colony Theatre (likely April 10 or April 16), “Damn Yankees” at Van Nuys HS (April 15-17), the April installment of “Meeting of Minds” at the Steve Allen Theatre on April 18, “12 Angry Men” at REP East (likely April 24), and the So Cal Ren Faire (either April 25 or May 16). May looks to be equally busy, with “Little Shop of Horrors at Cabrillo Music Theatre (May 1), “See What I Wanna See” at the Blank (likely May 9), “The 39 Steps” at the Ahmanson (likely May 15), the May installment of “Meeting of Minds” at the Steve Allen Theatre (May 16), the Spring Dance Show at Van Nuys HS (May 20-22), and “The Wedding Singer” at Repertory East Playhouse in Newhall (likely May 30).

As always: live theatre is a gift and a unique experience, unlike a movie. It is vitally important in these times that you support your local arts institutions. If you can afford to go to the movies, you can afford to go to theatre. If you need help finding ways, just drop me a note and I’ll teach you some tricks. Lastly, I’ll note that nobody paid me anything to write this review. In fact, I receive no remuneration for any reviews I write.

Last night was our first theatre for 2010, so I’m taking a few minutes at lunch to write up some observations on it. The show was the first production of “Meeting of Minds” for 2010 — the show is now on a regular schedule of the third Sunday every month at 7pm at the Steve Allen Theatre. This production was Episode #2, the 2^nd episode with President Theodore Roosevelt, Queen Cleopatra, Fr. Thomas Aquinas, and Thomas Paine.

This episode was an excellent production. Three of the actors were the same as in Episode #1 — Steven Culp as Thomas Paine, Bill Smitrovich as Pres. T. Roosevelt, and Joe Spano as Thomas Aquinas. New for this episode were Jack Maxwell as Steve Allen and Stana Katic as Queen Cleopatria. This was an excellent mix of actors — one of the best so far in the series.

Let’s look at each of them. Maxwell, as opposed to Gary Cole (who normally plays Steve Allen) knew his lines much better and had fewers misreads (this is a staged reading) — in fact, he did his entire introductory monologue off-book, which was impressive. Allen’s role is to play everyman: to ask the stupid questions to prompt the guests to respond. He does this well. Culp, who was fighting in obvious cold, was magnificant as Paine. Even with the cold, Paine’s passion for the rights of the common man and distaste for the implicit power of the monarchy came through. He was delightful to watch. Also delightful to watch was Katic as Cleopatra. This wasn’t just for her beauty (she is a beautiful woman), but for the intellect and fire and playfullness that she brought to the reading. She was demonstrably an intelligent queen, not the bubblehead of Antoinette. You could see why she was loved by men as powerful as Caeser and Anthony. Smitrovich had a few more line hesitations this time, but still had the forceful “Teddy Roosevelt” personality as before. Lastly, Spano was reserved as always as Aquinas, who comes across as the quiet, scholarly type as opposed to the powerful characters across the time. Aquinas had the smallest role in this episode; I seem to recall he had a bit more time in Episode #1.

“Meeting of Minds” is now produced approximately monthly by Opening Minds Productions. Meeting of Minds is the third Sunday of every month at 7:00pm at the Steve Allen Theatre in Hollywood. The next episode will featre Jean Smart as Catherine The Great (meaning the other guests are Daniel O’Connell and Oliver Cromwell). As always, the production was directed by Frank Megna.

Dining Notes: For dinner before the show, we hit Cafe Columbia in Burbank as opposed to the usual Fred 62. Wonderful food — we’ll be back there to try more of the excellent menu.

Upcoming Theatre: I’m still working on the 2010 theatre schedule — you can see my planning in this entry.

As I wrote yesterday, we saw two productions on Sunday. The first was “M*A*S*H” at Repertory East Playhouse. The second, which is the subject of this review, was the latest installment of Steve Allen’s Meeting of Minds at the Steve Allen Theatre. This month we had Episode #7, and our guests were:

Frederick Douglass (1817-1895)….. Ernie Hudson
Cesare Beccaria (1738-1794)…. Joe Mantegna
Empress Tz’u-Hsi (1835-1908)…. France Nuyen
Marquis de Sade (1740-1814)…. Richard Gilliland
Steve Allen (1921-2000)…. Gary Cole

The script was updated slightly from the original 1979 script, including references to the health care debate and President Obama. The person who was given credit for suggesting the Marquis de Sade was changed from Claire Boothe Luce to Rush Limbaugh. Even without updating, some interchanges were truly applicable today:

STEVE: Why do you think, Signor Beccaria, that progress in this area has been so painfully slow?
DOUGLASS: Progress, my friend, is always slow.
BECCARIA: Yes. It seems to me that the intellectual enlightenment of a nation is usually about a century in advance of its actual practice.
DOUGLASS: Again and again through history we see precisely this same process. The brighter, more civilized individuals in a culture begin to perceive that something is wrong, about a specific custom. They very tentatively, carefully–even fearfully–begin to question that custom.
BECCARIA: (He nods) Perhaps–as I did–they publish their writings anonymously, out of fear of vicious reprisal. A quite justified fear, may I add.
     Then, at a second stage, one man’s modest gesture encourages another, so that gradually there emerges a body of opinion–at least among certain intellectuals, scholars, and reformers–that more outspokenly criticizes the prevailing custom, whatever it might be, whether we are talking about slavery, burning people alive, or whatever.
DOUGLASS: But generally at this stage a backlash takes place. A great conservative groundswell attacks the reformers, questioning not only their arguments but their intelligence, even their loyalty.
     If their arguments prove difficult to assail, then they personally are attacked, sometimes even physically.
STEVE: But many people ask: why not? Such disturbers of the peace–they argue–deserve to be punished!
DOUGLASS: It is not the peace they disturb, Mr. Allen; it is the status quo. But this reactionary backlash in turn stimulates its own opposition–generally because of its unfairness and cruelty–and this, in turn, encourages a still small but now growing number of people who perceive that their society does indeed need to be additionally civilized. And so this slow, glacial process occurs–sometimes speeded by revolution, sometimes not.
     That is why necessary progress is usually made so painfully slowly.

Now, this discussion was relating to the stopping of torture for minor crimes, but applies equally well to health care or the gay marriage debate. It is why these program as so timeless: the thoughts and philosophies are as timeless today as when conceived by the speakers, or when written as a script by Steve Allen.

The Episode #7 discussion was a bit more focused than most, exploring the history of the speakers as well as the notions of torture and its appropriateness, and how free man should be to inflict pain and cruelty on other man. Is it something, as deSade argued, that should be freely permitted with consent, or is it something that goes against general moral law, as Beccaria argued? It is right to kill or torture because you disagree with someone or see them as barbaric, as the Empress believed? Is it right to subjugate and exploit people for financial gain, as was done with slaves, and as the western societies tried to do in China? This was the topic of discussion.

Viewing the production as theatre, there were strengths and weaknesses. As usual, Gary Cole was obviously reading the script cold, as he had a lot of line stumbles. France Nuyen conveyed her character well, but spoke a bit softly, requiring the sound engineer to have to raise her amplification noticably. Erine Hudson was a forceful but calm Douglass, improving as the episode went on. Richard Gilliland gave a stunning and playful performance as de Sade, and was quite entertaining to watch (especially in his interplay with Joe Mantegna as Beccaria). As always, the production was directed by Frank Megna.

Dan Lauria, who bears an uncanny resemblance to President U.S. Grant, introduced the program, and reminded attendees of the goal of bringing this program to college campuses. He noted the well-known Hollywood actors who have already participated in the program (such as Ed Asner as Karl Marx), and the ones who will be in upcoming episodes, such as Keith Carradine as Pres. Thos. Jefferson or Lou Diamond Phillips as Emiliano Zapata. It was nice to see Mr. Lauria back doing the introductions.

“Meeting of Minds” is now produced approximately monthly by Opening Minds Productions. They will be starting a regular schedule in 2010: Meeting of Minds will be the third Sunday of every month at 7:00pm at the Steve Allen Theatre in Hollywood, starting January 17, 2010.

Upcoming Theatre: Thanksgiving weekend sees us back at the Pasadena Playhouse for “Baby Its You” on November 28. The next week brings us to Van Nuys HS for “The Taming of the Shrew” (12/3, 12/4, and 12/5; 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).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 brings “Mary Poppins” at the Ahmanson. We’ll be going to the movies on Christmas Day (as well as having Chinese food), and the likely movie is “Nine – The Musical”. 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.