Tag: theatre-2006

Elementary, My Dear Playgoer

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

Last night, we went to see Sherlock Holmes: The Final Adventure at the Pasadena Playhouse. Wow. I think the previous show was an abberation. This production was excellent!

So what was the play about? Let’s look at the evidence. We have a man in a deerstalker cap with a pipe. We have a doctor who is his best friend. You guessed it: We had a play about Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson. What other facts do we know? We have a story involving the King of Bohemia, a photo, and Irene Adler. We also have a story about Holmes’ final attempt to incarcerate Professor Moriarty, including a train trip and a visit to Reichenbach Falls. From this, the story is elementary: The plot is based on the famous Holmes story “A Scandal in Bohemia” intertwined with the story in “The Adventure of the Final Problem“. The play is based on the original 1899 play that adapted these stories by William Gillette and Arthur Conan Doyle. It was a classic evening of Holmes, well done and flawlessly performed.

The play starred Mark Capri as Sherlock Holmes; Victor Talmadge as Dr. John Hamish Watson; Laurence Ballard as Professor Moriarty; Libby West as Irene Adler; Preston Maybank as the King of Bohemia; Kenneth Merckx Jr. as James Larrabee; Erin Bennett as Madgle Larrabee, Roberto Guajardo as Sid Prince, and H. Michael Croner and Jonathan Hicks as members of the ensemble. The play was written by Steven Dietz, directed by David Ira Goldstein, and produced in conjunction with the Arizona Theatre Company (which has a production of the play running concurrently in Arizona). You can find the entire playbill (in PDF) here.

This play has restored our faith in the quality of playhouse productions. This is a good thing, because season ticket prices have gone up, from $38.50/ticket to $49.50/ticket (an increase of over 28%!). Still, the next season looks good: there will be six plays chosen from the following: Defiance (John Patrick Shanley); Cuttin Up (Charles Randolph Wright); The Constant Wife (Somerset Maugham); Baby (Book by Sybille Perason, Music and Lyrics by Maltby and Shire); Third (Windy Wasserstein); The Lady with all the Answers (David Rambo); a play from the Hothouse Play Reading Series; or Othello (William Shakespeare).

What’s next on the play calendar: Shakespeare in the Park: Hamlet at Central Park of Santa Clarita on Saturday June 17. After that is “I Do! I Do!” at the Pasadena Playhouse on July 15th (where we’ll be meeting shutterbug93) and “The Last 5 Years” at the Pasadena Playhouse on July 29th. Following that is “The Music Man” at Cabrillo Music Theatre on August 5th. shutterbug93 is trying to talk us into Johnny Guitar on June 18 at the La Mirada Theatre; we’re also watching for tickets for “Curtains” at the Ahmanson.

[Crossposted to cahwyguy and socal_theatre]

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Mistresses, Lovers, and Cooks. Oh My!

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

Last night we went to see Don’t Dress for Dinner at the Rep East Playhouse in Newhall. The show is your typical British farce about mistresses and lovers. Here’s how the Lucilla Dramatic Society summarized the plot: Set in a converted farmhouse in the French countryside, ‘Don’t Dress for Dinner” begins when when Jacqueline (no one seems to have surnames in this play!) decides to visit her mother for a few days. At this point, her husband, Bernard sees the opportunity of a cosy weekend with his new girlfriend. His bachelor pal, Robert rings up to announce his return from Hong Kong, so Bernard invites him along as his alibi, also hiring a Cordon Bleu cook to ensure they don’t go hungry. Convinced his plan is foolproof, Bernard is taking his wife’s suitcase out to the car, when the phone rings and she answers it. From then on the story moves into the surreal world of high-speed farce, with mistaken identity — two girls, both known as Suzy; clandestine relationships,. the wife has a secret lover; hasty improvisation, the cook must play the mistress and vice versa, all carried along on a stream of rapid-fire, double-meaning dialogue. One impossible situation piles on another, as the hapless Robert finds himself the target of amorous attentions from all three ladies, Bernard tries frantically to salvage at least a scrap of illicit bliss from the wreckage of his weekend, and his intended playmate, the glamorous Suzanne, ends up in the kitchen, expected to cook dinner, while Suzette, the cook, is transformed into a femme fatale!

So how did the Rep East do? Those who know farce know that it is one of the hardest genres to do (a good example is the play, later movie, Noises Off!). It requires absolute memorization of the material, and split second timing. This cast was about 80% there. There were a few points where the timing was off, there was hesitation, etc. It was still fun, and of course, I was really enjoying watching the actresses, especially Jacqueline (Susan Biesinger) and Kristen Paige (Suzette). You could tell the actors were really having fun with this one.

Don’t Dress for Dinner is an older play, written by Marc Camoletti, adapted by Robin Hawdon. It has a tremendous entertainment track record. Before playing in theaters all over the U.S., it began as Marc Camoletti’s French play “Pajamas for Six” which played for two years in Paris. Beginning in 1991, Robin Hawdon’s English adaptation kept audiences howling for six years in London. The Rep East production starred Susan Biesinger, Julie Ann Lowery, JJ Mayes, Kristen Paige, Bill Quin, and Steven “Nanook” Burkholder. It was directed by Jason Goldberg.

Next up: Sherlock Holmes: The Final Aventure at the Pasadena Playhouse next weekend. After that is Shakespeare in the Park: Hamlet, The Prince of Denmark, being done by the Rep East Playhouse the weekends of June 10 and 17 in Central Park of Santa Clarita.

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No Ho Theatre and Arts Festival

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

I just got back from the No Ho Theatre and Arts Festival in (you guessed it) North Hollywood. It was a lot less crowded then last year… in fact, seems to be getting smaller and smaller. I remember when there were 20 theatres doing shows every hour; this year, there were perhaps four theatres, with shows every two hours. Major letdown.

I did get some useful information, though. Starting in last September, the Road Theatre Company will be doing a production of Dirk, which is based on DIRK GENTYLY’S HOLISTIC DETECTIVE AGENCY by Douglas Adams. There is supposedly a page for the show at http://www.dirkusa.com/. This may be worth seeing.

I also walked by the El Portal. shutterbug93 will be pleased to know that Valley Musical Theatre was handing out flyers advertising their season, with a prominent link to their website, which Sheri designed. It does look like the San Fernando Valley Playhouse, which was also using the El Portal, has died for now.

It looks like the Madrid Theatre in Canoga Park will be doing Nunsense in early June (June 9-18). This is a possiblity.

I picked up a copy of LA Stage. Musical Theatre West has an interesting 2006-2007 seasons: Thoroughly Modern Millie (10/21-11/5/2006); The Full Monty (2/24-3/11/2007); The Musical of Musicals: The Musical (4/21-5/6/2007); and The Pirates of Penzance (presumably the NY Shakespeare Festival version) (6/16-7/1/2007). Alas, they are in Long Beach.

Lastly, the Antaeus Theatre Group is doing an interesting classics fest from 7/6 to 8/13. Plays change almost daily. Of potential interest to my taste is June Moon by George S Kaufman and Ring Lardner on 7/7 and 7/8.

So, I guess it was worthwhile after all. Now to go back and work on the garage.

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Upcoming Theatre Seasons

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

’tis the time for Theatre renewal notices to go out, so I though I would share the seasons:

Cabrillo Music Theatre, Thousand Oaks:
A Chorus Line, 10/27-11/5/06
Smokey Joes Cafe, 3/23-4/1/07
Beauty and the Beast, 7/27-8/5/07

Pasadena Playhouse, Pasadena:
Six shows from the following titles:
Defiance (John Patrick Shanley)
Cuttin’ Up (Craig Marberry)
The Constant Wife (Somerset Maugham)
Baby (Book by Sybille Pearson, M/L by Shire and Maltby)
Third (Wendy Wasserstein)
The Lady With All The Answers (David Rambo)
A New Play from the Hothouse Play Reading Series
Othello (Shakespeare)

Of the above, I would expect Defiance, Baby, and either Third or Constant Wife for sure. Lady With All The Answers is also a good bet.

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Well, Now I’m Kicking Myself

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

Drat! I wanted to see The Drowsy Chaperone when it was out in Los Angeles, but events conspired against me and I couldn’t work it into my schedule. Now it is up for a number of Tony nominations. Although, by the looks of it, the nominees for Best Musical are a weak-ish bunch (Chaperone, The Wedding Singer, The Color Purple, and Jersey Boys). It looks like both Tarzan and Lestat got a few nods (which is why they just opened), but nothing appears that significant. However, just as New York’s year seems weak, LA’s year has been very strong.

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Getting Your Hair Done Right

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

Back in June 2001, I saw the Reprise production of Hair. This production starred Sam Harris (Claude), Steven Weber (Berger), Rod Keller (Woof), Allan Louis (Hud), Jennifer Leigh Warren (Sheila), and Marissa Jaret Winokur (Joanie), with a cast of about 17 more. The show was at the Wadsworth Theatre. I want you to notice a few things about this production: (1) It was before 9/11 and the “War on Terrorism”; (2) most of the leads in the show were well over 30 years old; and (3) it was held on the campus of the Veterans Administration.

Last night, I saw Hair for a second time; this time at a proper venue (CSUN); with a proper cast (college students); and in a proper context (post 9/11). This was Hair done right. It starred a large collection of college students (30), who obviously were more than just “actors”: they were in to this musical and what does it say? (and what is that, you ask). The message of Hair is really two fold: the power of love, and the horror of war. It is a message that resonates extremely strongly today.

This production of Hair (the “Waabi Kiizis Tribe“1 — yes, they have a myspace page) starred Kevin Ellis as Berger, Chris Chase as Woof, Marcel Hill as Hud, Erik Roget as Claude, either Tillie Spencer or Bonnie Sludikoff as Jeanie, Ana Therese Lopez as Dionne, Molly Orr as Crissy, Emily Belgard as Sheila, Daniel Mahler as M. Mead, Patrick Ryan as Hubert, and Sarah Modelowitz Walsh as Ronny. Others in the tribe were Katie Ashley, Brandon Baciocco, Elliott Barker, James Bingham III, Verity Branco, Aubrey Canfield, Deverau Chumrau, Ana Galang, Pippa Greene, John Paul Jones, Stephanie Jones, Kiki Kusama, Shari Lucas, Jeff Nichols, Talia Sarah Savren, Milo Shearer, Carlie Sonenschein, Sammi Wallschlaeger, and Mary Grace Wilson. It was directed by Garry Lennon, with musical direction by Paul Taylor and Cheoeography by Christine Chrest. I’ll note that most of the cast has Myspace profiles,2 as befits this generation (and as I result, I created one too (use my LJ name), but mine just points back to LJ).

For those unfamiliar with the story, there isn’t one, or there is. Hair is a rough musical. The basic plot is the story of Claude, who just had his induction physical for the Vietnam draft, and is about to go into the Army. The first half, however, is more getting to know the tribe and their relationships; the second half (which was extremely powerful) is a hallucination about the war. Along the way there is love, some nudity (although quite tastefully done), more love, war protests, drugs, more love, Abraham Lincoln, Ulysses S. Grant, more love, some starshine, and a wild trip. For those unfamiliar with the 1960s (alas, I was the next generation), this recreates it.

So how did this cast do? Extremely, extremely well. You could see on there faces that this was more than an acting job: this had meaning and depth to them (which is something I don’t recall about the Reprise! cast). I had a really fun time watching the faces and the movement of the entire cast. It was riviting how much they were into this show. Perhaps it was the fact that this show echos what is happening today in Iraq. More on that later.

Was it a perfect show? No. This is a theatre school, and there were a few problems, mostly technical (i.e., sound). But the raw talent of this cast more than made up for that–these young actors and the talented crew behind them are going to go far. I look forward to seeing them in the future on the stages of Cabrillo, the Pasadena Playhouse, the Ahmanson and Pantages, and on Broadway.

We took our 11 year old daughter (NSS&F) to the show with us. She was worried about the nude scene, but they did it very tactfully (it occurs during the song Where Do I Go?). You really couldn’t see anything3. I think the sex portions just passed her by, but the anti-war message of the show came through loud and clear. She told us afterwards that she was extremely glad that she went; it gave her understanding of that generation.

As to the anti-war message. The CSUN Theatre and Art Departments made the relevance to today clear. In the lobby were displays of various current incidents, including the Iraqi war, immigration issues, terrorism issues. Little dioramas that depicted scenes of topical relevance. Made with Peeps. Yup. Bunnies, Rabbits, Chicks. Additionally, during the hallucination sequence, not only were Vietnamese being killed by the soldiers, but Iraqis, Buddhist Monks, Koreans, Japanese, Germans, and Native Americans as well.

Tonight (5/14) is the last night of the show; if you can get tickets, go see it. It was great.

What’s next on the theatre calendar? Don’t Dress for Dinner at the Rep East Playhouse in Newhall at the end of the month, and Sherlock Holmes: The Final Adventure at the Pasadena Playhouse in early June. Rep East will also be doing Shakespeare in the Park: Hamlet in June. I’m still keeping my eyes open for tickets to Curtains at the Ahmanson; I’ll grab them as soon as I see them on Goldstar.

[Crossposted to cahwyguy and socal_theatre]

1 According to the tribe, Waabi Kiizis is Algonquin for “See the Sun” or “See Sun.” This name was chosen because it not only exemplifies Cal State University Northridge (“C”SUN), but it embodies the desire to “Let The Sun Shine IN!”
2 I attempted to traceback all the MySpace profiles for the cast. If I missed one, or got one wrong, please let me know and I’ll fix it.
3 Which in some ways is too bad, because the cast was extremely attractive :-).

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More Review Quote Fun

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

From Talking Broadway’s Review of Tarzan:

Don’t believe anyone who tells you there’s no entertainment value in Tarzan. While Disney’s stage adaptation of its 1999 animated film, which just opened at the Richard Rodgers, might at first seem a theatrical black hole, there are in fact numerous joys for the intrepid theatregoer. And, believe it or not, they’re found in David Henry Hwang’s libretto. Where else could ammunition for mockery be proffered so readily, practically on a silver platter? Yes, we can thank Hwang for the hours and hours of fun to be derived from Tarzan’s book. But for the fact that hardly any of it is intentional, and that this bloated behemoth is one of the most deadening shows to arrive on Broadway since the last Hwang-Disney collaboration of Elton John and Tim Rice’s Aida in 2000, we must blame Hwang and director Bob Crowley.

Of course, as the apes and humans are all singing Phil Collins songs, magic was probably always a long shot. Collins, a soft-rock sensation of the 1980s whose career has somehow not waned as his contemporaries’ have, has retained his songs for the film (including the syrupy, inexplicably Oscar-winning “You’ll Be In My Heart”) and penned new ones every bit as forgettable. His lyrics are better than those Bernie Taupin gave this season’s other pop-schlock score, Lestat, but are too droning, repetitive, and nonspecific to be even decent theatre music.

But if you must pity someone, make it Gambatese. An adept singer and game young actress constantly misused by Broadway (she last starred in All Shook Up), she gets the show’s only intentionally funny line (comparing ape-speak to the Romance languages), but is otherwise saddled with nonstop thankless tasks as the story’s token Sierra Club representative. How can you help but feel for someone whose introductory number requires her to marvel at Africa’s native flora and fauna (which resemble an LSD-fueled Little Shop of Horrors) while rattling off their scientific names in all their incomprehensible glory? The rest of the lyrics and dialogue could just as well be in Latin, too, for all the difference it would make. But then you’d likely miss timeless lines like Gregory’s “Should I be punished for my intelligence?”

Sounds like a wonderful Broadway season. And the Tony nominations come out on Tuesday.

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More Lestat

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

From Talking Broadway: “Lestat is a walloping reminder that life is far too short to sit through illiterate garbage passing itself off as Art at sky-high ticket prices.”

On Elton John’s music: While rotten theatre music, never soaring or evoking time, place, or character, as flavorless pop from the King of Flavorless Pop, and as sung by fine singers like Sarich, Stanek, Fischer, they’re easy on the ear.

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