Tag: theatre-2017

Finding the Child Within | “Finding Neverland” @ Pantages

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Finding Neverland (Hollywood Pantages)From where does inspiration arise? What gives the author the impetus to write a story, particularly an imaginative story? These are the questions that underlie the musical Finding Neverland (FB), currently at the Hollywood Pantages (FB) through March 12. The original production opened on Broadway in March 2015, closing in August 2016 after 565 performances — a respectable run. I discovered the production through the cast album, which I found enjoyable. The musical, with book by James Graham, and music and lyrics by Gary Barlow (FB) and Eliot Kennedy,  was based on the 2004 Miramax movie of the same name by David Magee and the play The Man Who Was Peter Pan by Allan Knee.

It is clear that the story of this boy that would never grow up, and his creation by J. M. Barrie, has fascinated people for generations (especially as the original story has gone in and out of copyright protection). It has spawned both prequel (Pan (2015)) and sequel (Hook (1991)) movies, as well as various reinterpretations and origin stories for the stage (Peter and the Starcatcher, Peter Pan: The Boy Who Hated Mothers), the latter being based on Barrie’s novel Peter and Wendy.

The version of the story on the stage at the Pantages, as in the movie, is a fictionalized version of the real story. There are a number of elements in common, but there is rearrangement of both the relationships and the timeline. One wonders if the fascination with the story is because society inherently distrusts any relationship of an adult man with boys not his own. I’d hazard a guess that this is a preoccupation of the modern era; it may have been more common and innocent in the past. In any case, that intimation of creepy relationships that I raised in some biographical descriptions of Barrie are not present in this musical; rather, it expands on the notion of Neverland coming from a rediscovery of the author’s imagination.

Before I go further into giving my thoughts on the piece, perhaps a plot summary is in order. Here’s the summary from Musical Heaven:

After a less than successful opening of his latest play Little Mary, J. M. Barrie meets widowed Sylvia and her sons in Kensington Gardens and they all soon develop a strong bond. J. M. Barrie proves to be a great friend and father figure to the boys, and his antics with the children quickly begin to inspire him to write a play about boys who never wish to grow up, with youngest son Peter provides particular inspiration. Soon, people begin to question his relationship with Sylvia, although it remains fiercely platonic. His wife Mary divorces him and Sylvia’s mother starts to object at the amount of time Barrie spends with the family. Sylvia becomes increasingly weak after an illness, but Barrie continues to play with the boys, taking the adventures they experience and turning them into Peter Pan. Presenting his idea to Producer Charles Frohman, Frohman reluctantly agrees to put on the play, despite believing that it will not appeal to his upper-class theatregoers. Barrie takes it on himself to disperse children from a local orphanage throughout the audience, which causes the surrounding adults to delight in the play. Proving a huge success, Peter Llewelyn Davies arrives to watch the show and realizes that it is about him and his brothers; George, Michael and Jack. Too ill to attend the theatre, Barrie puts on a production for Sylvia in her home, gathering the actors, props and musicians in her house. At the end, Peter Pan points to the doors to signify that she should go to Neverland. She takes the hand of her boys and walks into Neverland, implying her death. At Sylvia’s funeral, Barrie discovers that her will reads that he should take care of the Llewelyn Davies boys, which he is overjoyed at. Barrie and Peter form a bond unlike any other.

Reviews of the show that I read before seeing it criticized this plot, arguing that it had no antagonist. One gets the feeling that they were looking for a conventional theatrical structure: protagonists, antagonists, charm songs, 11 o’clock numbers, “I want” songs, and so forth. That’s not here. If there was any antagonist, it might have been Barrie against itself; however, more than anything, I think this was just an attempt to tell a story. Stories do not always have good guys and bad guys — sometimes they just are. This is especially true in an origin story about something well known. One knows the ending in advance — the question is how they got there.

Where I believe the critics did have a valid complaint is the music. The reviews I read called it pedestrian. I wouldn’t go that far. This is the first score from a team that had previously done pop music. The pop music can successfully develop musicals given the right coaching, guidance, and skill. Good examples of this Sir Elton John, Cyndi Lauper, and Sara Bareilles. But they can also go bad, as demonstrated by Paul Simon and Sting, both of whom had musicals that underwhelmed. The problem with much of the score in this show is that is sounded like pop music; they moved the story along but something was missing. This didn’t make them bad, mind you. They were more…. calculated for the pop ear, if I had to say anything. I think this is best exemplified by the fact that there is a companion album to the cast album that presents pop music stars performing these songs. There is one exception, however: the song “Play”, which is one of the ones very theatrical in its nature.

Irrespective of any story issues, the execution and presentation of the story were great (not surprising for a Broadway Equity tour). As directed by Diane Paulus, with choreography by Mia Michaels (FB), the characters come to life — in particular, the leads — with playfulness and movement as befits the story.

In the lead positions were Billy Harrigan Tighe (FB) as J. M. Barrie and Christine Dwyer (FB) as Sylvia Llewelyn Davis. Both gave great performances, with displays of the impishness and childishness needed for the characters. They also had very pleasant and strong singing voices — in particular, Dwyer at times reminded me of Allison Fraser with the touch of a really interesting vocal nuance to her voice. Tighe did a beautiful job on numbers such as “When Your Feet Don’t Touch The Ground”, with Dwyer excelling in numbers like “What You Mean to Me”.

As Charles Frohman, Barrie’s producer, Tom Hewitt was strong and very funny. He came into his own, however, when portraying Barrie’s alter-ego, Captain Hook. Playful and maniacal, he was just a joy to watch. In terms of singing, I found him very strong in songs such as “Circus of Your Mind”, “Hook”, and in particular, “Play”.

The Llewelyn Davies children are portrayed by multiple actors; the actors we saw at this performance are italicized: George – Finn Faulconer, Ben Krieger, Colin Wheeler; Peter – Ben Krieger, Colin Wheeler, Mitchell Wray; Jack: Tyler Patrick Hennessy, Colin Wheeler, Mitchell Wray; and Michael – Jordan Cole, Tyler Patrick Hennessy. All were cute and fun to watch and sang well. I was particularly impressed with them in the second act where one plays ukulele (and considering they rotate, this means that most play uke).

Although there was no formal bio in the program, stealing the hearts of the audience as Porthos was Sammy, in what appears to be his debut performance. Seriously, this dog was very cute and very well behaved — especially notable for his reaction to the other “dog” in the second act. Surprisingly, Sammy has an understudy, Bailey. Note: There is no connection to the other famous dog named Porthos.

Rounding out the cast in other smaller named roles and ensemble positions were: Karen Murphy [Mrs. du Maurier]; Christina Belinsky (FB) [Ensemble, Peter Pan u/s]; Cameron Bond (FB) [Ensemble, Mr. Turpin, Acting Troupe Captain Hook, u/s J. M. Barre]; Sarah Marie Charles (FB) [Ensemble, u/s Sylvia, u/s Mary]; Adrianne Chu (FB) [Ensemble, Acting Troupe Wendy]; Calvin L. Cooper (FB) [Ensemble]; Dwelvan David (FB) [Ensemble, Mr. Henshaw]; Nathan Duszny (FB) [Ensemble]; Victoria Huston-Elem (FB) [Ensemble; Miss Bassett, u/s Mrs. du Maurier]; Crystal Kellogg (FB) [Mary Barrie, u/s Sylvia]; Thomas Miller (FB) [Ensemble, Elliot]; Noah Plomgren (FB) [Ensemble, Lord Cannan, u/s J. M. Barrie]; Corey Rives (FB) [Ensemble, Albert]; Dee Tomasetta (FB) [Ensemble, Peter Pan]; Lael Van Keuren (FB) [Ensemble, Miss Jones, Emily, u/s Mrs. du Maurier, u/s Mary]; and Matt Wolpe (FB) [Ensemble, Mr. Cromer, u/s Frohman/Hook]. I particularly enjoyed Dwelvan David’s ensemble performance — very expressive. Somebody cast this guy as the Genie in Aladdin — he has the right look and fun. Swings were Melissa Hunter McCann (FB) [Swing]; Connor McRory (FB) [Swing]; and Matthew Quinn (FB) [Swing, u/s Frohman/Hook].

The music was under the direction of Ryan Cantwell (FB), with music supervision by Fred Lassen (FB) and Orchestrations by Simon Hale (FB). The orchestra consisted of Ryan Cantwell (FB) (Conductor / Keyboard), Valerie Gebert (FB) (Associate Conductor / Keyboard), Greg Germann (FB) (Drums), Laraine Kaizer (FB) (Violin), Ryan Claus/FB (Reeds), Sean Murphy (FB) (Bass), Nicholas Difabbio (FB) (Guitar), David Manning (FB) (Synth / Acoustic Guitar / Mandolin), Kathleen Robertson (FB) (Violin), Ken Wild (Bass / Electric Bass), John Yoakum (FB) (Flute / Piccolo / Clarinet / F# Wood Flute). The keyboard sub was David Witham (FB), and the orchestra contractor was Brian Miller. The orchestra had a good sound to it, but beware there is loads of bass at the end of Act I. The original music supervisor and dance and incidental music arranger was David Chase.

Lastly, the production creative team: The scenic design by Scott Pask was relatively simple with a framing scrim (that blocked the view from the side, but narrowed the stage to a standard size for the tour 😞 ). The bulk of the scenic aspects were provided by the projection design of Jon Driscoll. This worked with the lighting design of Kenneth Posner to create most of the magic. I was particularly taken by a scene in the second act that made wonderful use of shadow effects of the actors on stage created by a single white light projecting on the actors from upstage. Speaking of magic, the real magic in this show came from the illusions of Paul Kieve, the air sculpture of Daniel Wurtzel, and the flying effects of Production Resource Group.  The effects these folks created near the finale are spectacular. The sound design by Jonathan Deans was reasonably good, but shows need to remember when booking the Pantages that all the lovely art deco flourishes in the auditorium, while great to look at, bounce the sound everywhere (and require special tuning). The costumes by Suttirat Anne Larlarb and the hair and makeup by Richard Mawbey looked good and worked well. Rounding out the production credits are: AnnMarie Milazzo – Vocal Designer; William Berloni – Animal Trainer; Stewart/Whitley – Casting; The Booking Group – Tour Booking; Mia Walker – Associate Director; Gregory Vander Ploeg – General Manager; Jose Solivan – Company Manager; Seth F. Barker – Production Stage Manager.

Finding Neverland continues at the Hollywood Pantages (FB) through March 12. Tickets are available through the Pantages website/box office; discount tickets may be available through Goldstar. Although this isn’t a perfect show, I found it quite enjoyable.

🎩 🎩 🎩

Ob. Disclaimer: I am not a trained theatre (or music) critic; I am, however, a regular theatre and music audience member. I’ve been attending live theatre and concerts in Los Angeles since 1972; I’ve been writing up my thoughts on theatre (and the shows I see) since 2004. I do not have theatre training (I’m a computer security specialist), but have learned a lot about theatre over my many years of attending theatre and talking to talented professionals. I pay for all my tickets unless otherwise noted. I am not compensated by anyone for doing these writeups in any way, shape, or form. I currently subscribe at Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB), the  Hollywood Pantages (FB), Actors Co-op (FB), the Chromolume Theatre (FB) in the West Adams district, and a mini-subscription at the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC) (FB). Through my theatre attendance I have made friends with cast, crew, and producers, but I do strive to not let those relationships color my writing (with one exception: when writing up children’s production, I focus on the positive — one gains nothing except bad karma by raking a child over the coals).  I believe in telling you about the shows I see to help you form your opinion; it is up to you to determine the weight you give my writeups.

Upcoming Shows: March quiets down a bit — at least as currently scheduled — with the MRJ Man of the Year dinner,  Fun Home at the Ahmanson Theatre (FB) at the beginning of the month, Martha, a one-woman play on the life of Martha Graham (a good preparation for our May VPAC show of her dance group), at the Whitefire Theatre (FB) in the middle, and An American in Paris at the Hollywood Pantages (FB) at the end of the month. April starts with Cats Paw at Actors Co-op (FB) and a concert with Tom Paxton and the DonJuans at McCabes Guitar Shop (FB) (shifting Cats Paws to an afternoon matinee that day). The next day brings the Colburn Orchestra at the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC) (FB). The next weekend is currently open (and will likely stay that way). Mid-April brings Doc Severinsen and his Big Band at Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC) (FB) on April 13, followed by Animaniacs Live at the La Mirada Performing Arts Center (FB) over the weekend. That will be followed on the penultimate weekend of April with Sister Act at Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB). Lastly, looking to May, the schedule shows that it starts with My Bodyguard at the Hollywood Pantages (FB) the first weekend. It continues with Martha Graham Dance and American Music at the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC) (FB). The third weekend brings the last show of the Actors Co-op (FB) season, Lucky Stiff, at Actors Co-op (FB). May concludes with Hello Again at the Chromolume Theatre (FB). As for June? Three words: Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB). That, barring something spectacular cropping up, should be the first half of 2017.

As always, I’m keeping my eyes open for interesting productions mentioned on sites such as Better-Lemons, Musicals in LA, @ This Stage, Footlights, as well as productions I see on Goldstar, LA Stage Tix, Plays411 or that are sent to me by publicists or the venues themselves. Note: Lastly, want to know how to attend lots of live stuff affordably? Take a look at my post on How to attend Live Theatre on a Budget.

P.S.: The Hollywood Pantages (FB) announced their 2017-2018 season (which was the rest of 2018, after Hamilton took over the last 5 months of 2017) on February 7th. You can find my reaction to it here. The Ahmanson Theatre (FB) announcement was this week, and here’s what I thought of it.

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Thoughts on a Theatre Season: The Ahmanson Theatre

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Just before Christmas 2016, I attempted to predict what shows would be presented in the next Pantages and Ahmanson seasons. At the beginning of February, the Pantages made their announcement about their 2017-2018 season (or at least what is left of it after Hamilton presents), and I gave my thoughts on it and assessed my predictions. Today, the Ahmanson Theatre (FB) gave a rough announcement of their season (with more details in the Playbill version), so let’s see what I think and how I did.

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Back in December, I summarized the shows that I thought were going on tour based on the announcements that I had seen, and I predicted the following:

There are numerous other shows currently coming to Broadway that I expect to tour, but I think they would be 2018-2019 at best. So how do I predict the seasons to work out? Here are my predictions:

  • Ahmanson 2017-2018 Season: Deaf West’s Spring Awakening, The Humans, Something Rotten, Waitress, and possibly the Fiddler revival, Allegiance, or a pre-Broadway musical.
  • Pantages 2017-2018 Season: Disney’s Aladdin, School of Rock, Love Never Dies, Bright Star, Matilda, Miss Saigon, Les Miserables, Color Purple, and possibly On Your Feet.

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So how did I do? The Pantages announced a six show season. Five of the six were on my Pantages list, one was on my Ahmanson list: Aladdin, School of Rock, Love Never Dies, The Color Purple, On Your Feet, and Waitress. So lets see how I did for the Ahmanson, based on what the Times has as their announcement:

  • Matthew Bourne’s The Red Shoes. September 15 – October 1, 2017.  An American premiere. Based on the Hans Christian Andersen tale that was adapted into the 1948 film and best picture Oscar nominee of the same name, “The Red Shoes” will be Bourne’s ninth project to come to the Ahmanson. Not on my list at all. I’m not a big ballet fan, nor a fan of Matthew Bourne.
  • Bright Star. October 11–November 19, 2017.  The folksy Steve Martin and Edie Brickell musical. I predicted this for the Pantages, but it balances Waitress which I predicted for the Ahmanson. This is something I want to see.
  • Something Rotten! November 21–December 31, 2017. The witty, giddy backstage crowd-pleaser set in Shakespeare’s time earned 10 Tony nominations in 2015, including best musical. Predicted for the Ahmanson. This is something I want to see.
  • Soft Power. May 3–June 10, 2018. A world premiere David Henry Hwang that work takes the form of a Chinese musical about present-day America. Originally commissioned for the Mark Taper Forum. Jeanine Tesori will join the creative team for this production, which starts as a contemporary play and time-shifts into a musical 100 years in the future.  I predicted a pre-Broadway musical. This may be it. Unsure based on the subject, but Tesori’s involvement makes it interesting.
  • The Humans. June 19–July 29, 2018. Stephen Karam’s one-act that won four Tony Awards last year including best play. I correctly predicted this for the Ahmanson. Not sure yet if I want to see it.

One production will be announced later (obviously, in the January 1, 2018 through April 30, 2018 time period, although that period could easily support two shows — so why it is dark for so long is unknown and uncharacteristic of the Ahmanson. I am disappointed that the Ahmanson is not mounting Allegiance, but perhaps they are in negotiation for the TBA slot. Spring Awakening is less likely for that slot, given it was at the Wallis Annenberg just before Broadway.

 

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The Best Reparation Is Not Doing It Again | Allegiance Musical Broadcast

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Allegiance Musical BroadcastAs you may recall, I’ve been trying to predict shows that will be going on tour. One show I’ve really been interested in is Allegiance (FB), the Broadway musical that George Takei (FB) has been involved with about the Japanese Internment during WWII. The trade papers said a tour would materialize; but the show’s website doesn’t indicate one. I’ve always expected that a tour, if it materialized, would show up at the Ahmanson Theatre (FB) — or that the Ahmanson, recognizing the Japanese community in Los Angeles, might mount a local production. But the Ahmanson hasn’t announced their season yet, and the good folks behind the Broadway show felt the message was important enough to rebroadcast the musical. You see, these producers did something very intelligent. They recorded the musical about a month after it opened, and arranged to have it broadcast around the country, one time, a number of months after it closed. Through my various Broadway RSS and other feeds, I learned that they were arranging a rebroadcast this weekend — and so to hedge my bets in case it didn’t materialize on the stage, I got tickets.

What I didn’t realize, of course, was the significance of the day of the rebroadcast. Today is the 75th anniversary of the signing of the order that sent Japanese Americans to the internment camps. It is also in a time where there is an intense fear that a segment of our current population is dangerous just because of their religion, even when that segment are longtime American citizens. That makes the message of this show even more timely. Franklin Roosevelt, who was the President who signed the order, said the only thing we had to fear was fear itself. Then he gave into the fear, put US citizens into internment camps, tore away their livelihoods and homes, and regarded them as suspicious just because of their looks or their origins. It was wrong. It was unconstitutional. It was unthinkable. It must never never never happen again. And yet…. we have a large segment of our population living in fear of people because of their looks, their religion or their origin.

I’m an Engineer, but I have a confession to make. A good, compelling story does make my eyes water. Many deep Broadway shows do that — I love theatre because of its ability to tell a story and draw out the emotion. By the end of Allegiance, my jaw was quivering and I was find it hard to hold it together. That is a measure of how powerful this story is; how important it is to tell it. I can’t say to go see the show at your local theatre — alas Allegiance closed after a very short run on Broadway for whatever reason (well, the critics hated it, but what do they know). I can say to friend Allegiance‘s Facebook page so that you can find out if they ever broadcast it again. I can say you must encourage local theatres to do it, but I’m not sure it is licensed yet. We can clamor for a small tour, or push the Ahmanson or East/West to mount it. But I personally feel that this is something that must be seen, and that the critics often have problems with dark, different, and difficult material, only to appreciate it later. Remember: they hate Carrie when it first came out; now it is a great parable about bullying.

I left Allegiance appreciating the power of theatre. That is a good thing.

I guess I should tell you the story of Allegiance, which has a book by Marc Acito (FB),  Jay Kuo (FB), and Lorenzo Thione (FB), and music and lyrics by Jay Kuo (FB). According to Wikipedia, the genesis of the show was a chance meeting in the fall of 2008 of George Takei and his husband, Brad, who were seated next to Jay Kuo and Lorenzo Thione. They met again at another show, had some conversations, and this led to the notion of a musical based roughly on George’s experiences as a child in the internment camps.  I’ll also note you can find a more detailed version on the show webpage or wikipedia. In short, the show tells the story of the Kimura family from Salinas: the grandfather (Ojii-chan), the father (Tatsuo Kimura), and the two children: Sam and Kei. It starts with Sam, who is a WWII veteran, learning that his sister Kei has died. This opens us into the story and how the rift between them was created. We see the family running a farm and having an American life, and then the Japanese bombing Pearl Harbor. In short order, based on an agreement between the government and the Japanese American Citizens League, led by Mike Masaoka, internment orders go out, and Japanese on the Pacific coast are ordered to camps. The Kimura family has to sell all but what they can carry, and they are taken by force to a camp, Heart Mountain, in the wilds of Wyoming. We learn of life in the camp through a series of scenes, and get to meet two characters in particular: Lt. Hannah Campbell, a nurse at the camp, and Frankie Suzuki, another internee at the camp. Campbell is drawn to Sammy; Frankie to Kei. As time passes, the JACL convinces the government to let Japanese Americans serve in the armed force, in a segregated unit, for suicide missions. A questionnaire goes out that includes loyalty questions so that only loyal Japanese Americans can serve. Tatsuo refuses to answer yes to those questions, and gets hauled away to Tule Mountain. Sammy volunteers to serve (against his father’s wishes), and goes on to be one of the few survivors from that batallion. Frankie, on the other hand, resists; when drafted, he organizes resistance in the camp and is arrested. The creates the wedge that drives the story to its conclusion. I’ll let you read the synopsis for more, but you get the drift.

Given we’re in the era of identifying “fake news”, I’ll note that Wikipedia relates that the show does conflate experiences across different camps for dramatic effect, and adds a bit more military oversight than existed at Heart Mountain.

At this point in a writeup, I’d normally move into a discussion of the direction and performance. But this was a broadcast of a Broadway show, and I’d like to digress to explore that for a graph or two. Going in, I was torn. Recording a Broadway show can have some distinct advantages: it can preserve a performance for posterity; it can also make a show available in many places where this level of theater does not occur — and thus can spread the word about the power of theatre. On the other hand, it could supplant the live production, result in the undercompensation of the actors performing in the recording, and deny work to actors who might work in the local versions of the show. Coming out, I had a different view: the recording allowed on to see the performances up close and personal, in a way that wouldn’t be possible even from the orchestra seats. But it also disconnected the audience from the “big picture”; you never got the scope of the breadth of the stage or the grandeur of the choreography and movement.  The audience feedback was also very different, due to the awareness that there were no actors on stage. Unlike a show, where there is constant applause and feedback, this audience was silent, even at the end. Audience reaction is vital not only for the show but for other audience members, and I felt the different. I also felt the difference with the lack of an intermission and a playbill. In the end, I think seeing the broadcast only made me want to see it live even more.

Next: The Theatre. We saw this at the AMC Promenade theatre in Woodland Hills, which is one of the few survivors in a dying mall. The original auditorium had significant projection problems (double images) that they couldn’t correct before the show. They moved us to a different auditorium (same size, but different arrangement), which created some seating confusion but fixed most projection problems. There was still the problem of bleed-over bass from the auditorium next to us, and there was a sound synchronization problem during much of the first act. Some of this was beyond the theatre’s control, and despite the problems, they managed it well (plus they gave us passes as compensation for the problems). I think we’ll try them again. I’ll note that our show was sold out (130-some-odd seats).

Now, on to the performances, under the direction of Stafford Arima (FB). As you can tell, I was moved and astounded by all the lead performers — the projection allowed us to see things up close that we might never see from the audience. As it is hard to single them out (especially without a Playbill — if you want the Broadway experience, Fathom Events (FB) you should provide that!), let me just start by listing the leads:  George Takei (FB) [Sam Kimura (older), Ojii-chan]; Telly Leung (FB) [Sammy Kimura]; Lea Salonga (FB) [Kei Kimura]; Katie Rose Clarke  [Hannah Campbell]; Michael K. Lee  (FB) [Frankie Suzuki]; Christòpheren Nomura (FB) [Tatsuo Kimura]; and Greg Watanabe (FB) [Mike Masaoka]. With respect to their performances, I was particularly taken with the facial expressions of both Clarke and Salonga, who were just spectacular. I’d only seen Takei perform where everyone else has seen him before, and his performance here just blew me away. He was wasted at the navagation console :-). I’m always impressed by Salonga’s voice, but both Leung and Lee did great jobs as well. All and all, spectacular performances.

In small roles and ensemble parts were: Aaron J. Albano (FB) [Tom Maruyama, Ensemble]; Marcus Choi (FB) [Johnny Goto, Ensemble]; Janelle Toyomi Dote (FB) [Mrs. Maruyama, Executor, Ensemble]; Dan Horn (FB) [Recruiting Officer, Private Evans, Big Band Singer, The Victory Trio, Ensemble]; Darren Lee (FB) [Dr. Tanaka, Ben Masaoka, Ensemble]; Kevin Munhall [Federal Agent, Private Knight, Tule Lake Guard, The Victory Trio, Ensemble]; Rumi Oyama (FB) [Mrs. Tanaka; Ensemble]; Shea Renne [Betsy Tanaka, Ensemble]; Momoko Sugai (FB) [Peggy Maruyama, Ensemble]; Autumn Ogawa [Ensemble]; Elena Wang (FB) [Nan Goto, Ensemble]; Scott Watanabe (FB) [Mr. Maruyama, Ensemble]; Cary Tedder [Ensemble]; and Scott Wise (FB) [Grocer, Director Dillon, Photographer, The Victory Trio, Ensemble].  With the way this was filmed, it was harder to single out particular ensemble members and smaller characters, but I enjoyed the characters overall. Particularly notable was the actress playing the older Japanese woman — I’m guessing it was Rumi Oyama, but it could have been Janelle Dote.

I am not listing the standbys, understudies, and swings as I normally do, because the show has closed and we had the cast on the film. You can find the full list here, together with the list of musicians.

The choreography was by Andrew Palermo (FB), who did an excellent job. I particularly enjoyed not only the large dance numbers but the Japanese movement as well. The movement during the Hiroshima scene was particularly chilling. The Playbill page does not give credit for the musical direction or the conducting. Orchestrations were by Lynne Shankel. Check the Playbill page for information on the dance captains, assistant dance captains, and all the associate and assistant choreographers and directors.

One disadvantage of the theatrical projection is that one cannot get the full impact of the scenic design and other production aspects. Yet another reason to go see it live. In general, the scenic design and projections worked well to establish a sense of place; given the broadcast aspects, it was hard to get a sense of sound and lights. Costumes, makeup, and hair was excellent. Here are the production credits: Donyale Werle [Scenic Design]; Alejo Vietti (FB) [Costume Design]; Howell Binkley (FB) [Lighting Design]; Darrel Maloney [Projection Design]; Kai Harada [Sound Designer]; Charles G. LaPointe [Wig and Hair Design]; Joe Dulude II [Make-up Design];  Peter Wolf  [Production Stage Manager]; and Brian Bogin [Stage Manager].

One last closing note: The production was also notable for the attention to casting asians in asian roles. I’ve commented on this before with shows like Waterfall and The King and I. I still bemoan the fact that there were sufficient Japanese actors to be able to cast closer to role-appropriate (a common problem), and I also bemoan the fact that many asian actors can only find roles in things like this, or onsie-twosie in shows. We need to remember that unless the story requires a particular ethnicity, cast color and race blind.

For the theatrical credits, I must turn to IMDB, so look here for all the cinematography credits and such.

We can only hope that Fathom Events (FB) broadcasts this again.

🎩 🎩 🎩

Ob. Disclaimer: I am not a trained theatre (or music) critic; I am, however, a regular theatre and music audience member. I’ve been attending live theatre and concerts in Los Angeles since 1972; I’ve been writing up my thoughts on theatre (and the shows I see) since 2004. I do not have theatre training (I’m a computer security specialist), but have learned a lot about theatre over my many years of attending theatre and talking to talented professionals. I pay for all my tickets unless otherwise noted. I am not compensated by anyone for doing these writeups in any way, shape, or form. I currently subscribe at Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB), the  Hollywood Pantages (FB), Actors Co-op (FB), the Chromolume Theatre (FB) in the West Adams district, and a mini-subscription at the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC) (FB). Through my theatre attendance I have made friends with cast, crew, and producers, but I do strive to not let those relationships color my writing (with one exception: when writing up children’s production, I focus on the positive — one gains nothing except bad karma by raking a child over the coals).  I believe in telling you about the shows I see to help you form your opinion; it is up to you to determine the weight you give my writeups.

Upcoming Shows: The last weekend in February brings Finding Neverland at the Hollywood Pantages (FB). March quiets down a bit — at least as currently scheduled — with the MRJ Man of the Year dinner,  Fun Home at the Ahmanson Theatre (FB) at the beginning of the month, Martha, a one-woman play on the life of Martha Graham (a good preparation for our May VPAC show of her dance group), at the Whitefire Theatre (FB) in the middle, and An American in Paris at the Hollywood Pantages (FB) at the end of the month. April starts with Cats Paw at Actors Co-op (FB) and a concert with Tom Paxton and the DonJuans at McCabes Guitar Shop (FB) (shifting Cats Paws to an afternoon matinee that day). The next day brings the Colburn Orchestra at the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC) (FB). The next weekend is currently open (and will likely stay that way). Mid-April brings Doc Severinsen and his Big Band at Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC) (FB) on April 13, followed by Animaniacs Live at the La Mirada Performing Arts Center (FB) over the weekend. That will be followed on the penultimate weekend of April with Sister Act at Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB). Lastly, looking to May, the schedule shows that it starts with My Bodyguard at the Hollywood Pantages (FB) the first weekend. It continues with Martha Graham Dance and American Music at the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC) (FB). The third weekend brings the last show of the Actors Co-op (FB) season, Lucky Stiff, at Actors Co-op (FB). May concludes with Hello Again at the Chromolume Theatre (FB). As for June? Three words: Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB). That, barring something spectacular cropping up, should be the first half of 2017.

As always, I’m keeping my eyes open for interesting productions mentioned on sites such as Better-Lemons, Musicals in LA, @ This Stage, Footlights, as well as productions I see on Goldstar, LA Stage Tix, Plays411 or that are sent to me by publicists or the venues themselves. Note: Lastly, want to know how to attend lots of live stuff affordably? Take a look at my post on How to attend Live Theatre on a Budget.

P.S.: Mostly so I can find it later, here’s my predictions of what will go on tour and where they will end up. The Hollywood Pantages (FB) announced their 2017-2018 season (which was the rest of 2018, after Hamilton took over the last 5 months of 2017) on February 7th. You can find my reaction to it here. Now we just need to see what the Ahmanson Theatre (FB) will do.

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Thoughts on a Theatre/Concert Season: Hollywood Bowl, Segerstrom Center, Theatreworks

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Today was a day for a number of season announcements. I thought I would share my thoughts on them with you.

The Hollywood Bowl

I’m not going to go through the entire list of the Bowl season. But I am going to mention the shows of possible interest to me:

Segerstrom Center, Costa Mesa

This theatre is a bit far for us to travel to and subscribe, but for those in Orange County, it looks like a great season:

Broadway Series

  • “Something Rotten!” Nov. 7-19, 2017. Set in the late 1500s, two brother playwrights are trying to write a hit play but their rival, the rock star writer Shakespeare, keeps getting all the attention. Thus, the concept of a musical was born.
    🎩 This hasn’t been in LA yet; given the Pantages has announced their season, I expect this at the Ahmanson.
  • Rodgers and Hammerstein’s “The King and I,” Feb. 27-March 11, 2018: The Tony Award-winning musical presents some of Broadway’s greatest numbers, including “Getting to Know You,” “I Whistle a Happy Tune,” and “Something Wonderful.”
    🎩 This played the Pantages in December 2016
  • “Love Never Dies,” April 24 – May 5, 2018: Andrew Lloyd Webber’s sequel to the iconic “The Phantom of the Opera” tells the story of the Phantom and his new life in New York City.
    🎩 This is in the Pantages’ 2017-2018 Season, playing April 3-22, 2018
  • “Hamilton,” May 8 – 27, 2018: Based on Ron Chernow’s biography of founding father Alexander Hamilton, the musical provides insight into the life of the West Indies immigrant who became George Washington’s right-hand man during the Revolutionary War. The hip-hop, jazz, and R&B score gives the musical a modern twist.
    🎩  This plays the Pantages from August 11 – December 30, 2017
  • “School of Rock,” July 24 – Aug. 5, 2018: Featuring 14 songs by Andrew Lloyd Webber, the rock-and-roll musical tells the story of a wannabe rock star who poses as a substitute teacher and creates a band of his own with the music prodigies in his class.
    🎩 This is in the Pantages 2017-2018 Season, playing May 3 – 27, 2018
  • “On Your Feet,” Aug. 21 – Sept. 2, 2018: From Cuba to America, Gloria and Emilio Estefan broke through barriers in the pop music world with hits songs like “Rhythm is Gonna Get You,” “Conga” and “Don’t Wanna Lose You Now.” The musical tells the story of the groundbreaking couple’s musical sensation journey.
    🎩 This is in the Pantages 2017-2018 Season, playing July 6 – 29, 2018

Curtain Call Series

  • “Motown,” Dec. 19 – 24, 2017: The true American story about Motown founder Berry Gordy and his journey in the music world as he launched the careers of music sensations Diana Ross, Michael Jackson, Smokey Robinson and more. The pop musical features hits like “My Girl,” “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” and “Dancing in the Street.”
    🎩 This played the Pantages January 31 – February 12, 2017
  • “Kinky Boots,” Feb. 6 – 11, 2018: The multi-Tony Award-winning musical tells the story of Charlie Price, the owner of a small shoe factory, who meets Lola, an extraordinary performer who introduces him to new, creative ideas in the world of fashion and shoes.
    🎩 This played the Pantages April 13 – 24, 2016
  • “The Color Purple,” June 19 – 24, 2018: The Tony Award-winning musical presents a soul, jazz, ragtime and blues score to the story of a young woman’s journey in love and triumph in the American South.
    🎩 This is in the Pantages 2017-2018 Season, playing May 29 – June 17, 2018

Bonus events

  • “Jersey Boys,” Jan. 19-21, 2018: The Tony, Grammy and Olivier Award-winning musical about rock and roll hall of famers The Four Seasons and their rise in pop music history. The show presents hits like “Big Girls Don’t Cry,” “Rag Doll,” “Oh What a Night” and “Can’t Take My Eyes Off of You.”
    🎩 This plays the Ahmanson May 16 – June 24, 2017
  • “The Book of Mormon,” March 20-25, 2018: South Park creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker’s Tony Award-winning musical comedy tells the story about two mismatched missionaries sent across the seas to share their scriptures with a Ugandan village.
    🎩 This plays the Pantages May 30 – July 9, 2017

All in all, a very good season. More information is on the Segerstrom website.

Palo Alto/Mountain View TheatreWorks

For those up in the Bay Area, I just received the TheatreWorks Season Announcement:

  • The Four Immigrants: An American Musical Manga. Jul 12–Aug 6, 2017, Lucie Stern Theatre, Palo Alto. Book, Music, & Lyrics by Min Kahng. Based on Manga Yonin Shosei by Henry Yoshitaka Kiyama. Translated as The Four Immigrants by Frederik L. Schodt. Directed by Leslie Martinson. WORLD PREMIERE. From a tumultuous earthquake to an exhilarating world’s fair, this broadly comic new musical chronicles the adventures of four endearing Japanese immigrants in a world of possibility and prejudice: turn-of-the-twentieth-century San Francisco. Driven by an infectious vaudeville and ragtime score, the quartet pursues their American Dream despite limited options in the land of opportunity. Don’t miss this runaway hit of our 2016 New Works Festival.
    🎩 This sounds potentially interesting — if I was up there, I’d go see it.
  • Constellations. Aug 23–Sept 17, 2017, Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts. By Nick Payne. Directed by Robert Kelley. London Evening Standard Award Best Play 2012. REGIONAL PREMIERE. A time-bending romantic drama spun out of string theory, this unconventional Broadway and West End sensation explores the infinite possibilities of “boy meets girl” with intelligence, heart, and humor. A charming beekeeper and a Cambridge cosmologist are nerds in love, for better and for worse, their relationship an ever-changing mystery of “what ifs.” Who knew that honey and higher physics could be so touching—or so sexy?
    🎩 C’mon, string theory in a play. Sounds good.
  • The Prince of Egypt. Oct 6–Nov 5, 2017, Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts. Music and Lyrics by Stephen Schwartz. Book by Philip LaZebnik. Directed by Scott Schwartz. WORLD PREMIERE in collaboration with Fredericia Teater, Denmark. A soaring celebration of the human spirit, The Prince of Egypt features a dazzling, multi-ethnic cast in one of the greatest stories ever told: the saga of Moses and Ramses, his Pharaoh brother, and the indomitable people who changed them both forever. Inspired by the beloved DreamWorks Animation film and featuring a score that includes the Academy Award-winning “When You Believe” by the composer and lyricist of Wicked, this breathtaking journey of faith and family is the must-see event of the season.
    🎩 A new Stephen Schwartz musical — could be good, although I’d be curious how he expanded the score.
  • Around the World in 80 Days. Nov 29–Dec 23, 2017, Lucie Stern Theatre, Palo Alto. Adapted by Mark Brown. From the novel by Jules Verne. Directed by Robert Kelley. Stampeding elephants! Raging typhoons! Runaway trains! Join fearless adventurer Phileas Fogg and his faithful valet in the original “Great Race,” circling the globe in an 1870s alive with danger, romance, and comic surprises at every turn. In the hilariously theatrical style of The 39 Steps, five actors portray dozens of characters in a thrilling race against time and treachery. Grab your family, and your passport, for an ingenious, imaginative expedition around the world!
    🎩 This is an oldie, but should be good.
  • Our Great Tchaikovsky. Jan 10–Feb 4, 2018, Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts. Music by Piotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. Written and Performed by Hershey Felder. Directed by Trevor Hay. REGIONAL PREMIERE. Brilliant composer Piotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky springs to life through the hands and insight of piano virtuoso Hershey Felder, whose time-bending tale of culture and repression explores the mystery surrounding some of the greatest music ever written. From the unforgettable ballets Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty, and The Nutcracker, to the outrageous 1812 Overture and the brilliant symphonic works, this powerful musical tribute travels to Czarist times to ponder the inevitable enigma of genius. From the creator and performer of Hershey Felder as Irving Berlin and Beethoven.
    🎩 Others might like this; I haven’t gotten into all the Hershey Felder shows.
  • Skeleton Crew. Mar 7–Apr 1, 2018, Lucie Stern Theatre, Palo Alto. By Dominique Morisseau. Directed by Giovanna Sardelli. A Coproduction with Marin Theatre Company. CALIFORNIA PREMIERE. A makeshift family of autoworkers navigates the recession in this funny, tough, and tender American drama. Will their Detroit plant survive? Ambitious dreams and corporate deception interweave, pushing friendships to the limit. When the line between blue collar and white begins to blur, how far over the lines is each of them willing to step?
    🎩 Sounds somewhat interesting.
  • The Bridges of Madison County. Apr 4–29, 2018, Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts. Book by Marsha Norman. Music and Lyrics by Jason Robert Brown. Based on the novel by Robert James Waller. Directed by Robert Kelley. 2014 Tony Award Best Score. REGIONAL PREMIERE. This sweeping musical romance about the roads we travel and the bridges we dare to cross recalls the unexpected affair of a devoted Italian-born housewife and a roving National Geographic photographer—four sensual, heart-stirring days that would never be forgotten. Set amidst the cornfields of Iowa in 1965, it is an intimate remembrance of love both lost and found, brilliantly adapted by a Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright and Tony Award-winning composer from one of America’s favorite novels.
    🎩 I saw the tour of this when it was at the Ahmanson, and I was very surprised at how much I liked it. TheatreWorks should do a good job with it.
  • FINKS. Jun 6–Jul 1, 2018, Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts. By Joe Gilford. Directed by Giovanna Sardelli. Drama Desk Award Best Play Nominee. CALIFORNIA PREMIERE. With the 1950s Red Scare in full swing, the House Un-American Activities Committee attacks “subversion” in the arts. When a romance blossoms between a rising comic and a firebrand actress, they face being blacklisted along with their friends and fellow artists. Will they lose their careers or betray each other and be branded forever as “finks”? Based on the true story of comedian/actor Jack Gilford, this stunning comic drama is written by his son.
    🎩 The story of Jack Gilford — should be interesting.

The season sounds interesting enough that if I was in the area, I might subscribe. Subscription information is on the TheatreWorks website.

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Relationships in the Spaces | “33 Variations” at Actors Co-Op

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

33 Variations (Actors Co-Op)Almost exactly six years ago, we saw Jane Fonda (FB) in the Los Angeles premier of Moisés Kaufman’s  33 Variations. Last night, we saw the play again, this time in a much smaller venue than the cavernous Ahmanson Theatre (FB) — the intimate Actors Co-op (FB) theatre in Hollywood. In the six years between the productions, changes in our life have caused the play to resonate in a different way.

Back in February 2011, I wrote the following description of the play (actor names have been updated to reference the current production):

“33 Variations” is, at its heart, a story of obsession, deterioration, and family. On its surface, this is the story of Dr. Katherine Brandt (Nan McNamara (FB)) and her obsession to figure out why Ludwig van Beethoven (Bruce Ladd (FB)) wrote 33 variations of an inconsequential waltz written by Anton Diabelli (Stephen Rockwell (FB)). This wouldn’t be a problem if Dr. Brandt was healthy; however, she is suffering from ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease). Dr. Brandt wants to go to Bonn, Germany, to study Beethoven’s folios in the Beethoven Archives, but her daughter, Clara Brandt (Greyson Chadwick (FB)), wants her to stay, afraid that her condition will deteriorate. Katherine, being headstrong, goes, and becomes immersed in the world of Beethoven, Diabelli, and Beethoven’s friend and assitant, Anton Schindler (John Allee (FB)). She’s aided in this research by Dr. Gertrude Ladenburger (Treva Tegtmeier (FB)). As the play progresses, we see Dr. Brandt’s condition worsen, as she moves from a cane to a walker to a wheelchair. Her daughter, together with the Mike Clark (Brandon Parrish (FB)), a nurse who once treated her mother and has fallen in love with Clara, travel to Bonn to take care of her mother. As the story progresses, we keep flashing back and forth between the present day—where Dr. Brandt’s condition is deteriorating—and the past—where Beethoven is steadily going deaf. This brings forward a number of themes: the effects of a need to be more dependent on others, how the progression of a disease can can bring focus, Ultimately, the theme of the play moves from the surface obsession to the power of transformation: how a study of the littlest pieces can bring out beauty, and how we need to treasure each of those little pieces.

That’s what I wrote then, and it truly is the surface emphasis of the play: noticing the little things, the things that are often expressed in the shadows. For example, Diabelli’s Waltz is originally believed to be inconsequential because it was in the style of popular music of the time — a “beer hall” waltz. The play makes the point that Beethoven was able to see majestic music even in the common popular music of the day, sending the message that there is beauty in everything if one takes the time to look.

Yet something struck me different about the play in this viewing. Since 2011, we’ve had the experience of dealing with a relative (my wife’s mother) who is undergoing another type of deterioration — not neuromuscular as one sees with ALS, but the mental impairment that comes with old age. As such, the relationship portrayed in the show between Clara and her mother (which is paralleled in the relationship between Schindler and Beethoven) touched a different nerve. At the beginning of the play, the relationship was built on old patterns and old expectations. Incidents and expectations colored everything. But by the end of the show the focus had changed to seeing each other for what they really were: for seeing the little things and treasuring the little moments. It also provided insight to the frustrations of the person deteriorating: there is so much they still want to do, so much that time is taking away from them.

Viewing a play is a process of developing variations. The first time you see it, you pick up the surface meaning — the basic enjoyment and message that the playwright wanted you to pick up. You are, in essence, picking up the beer hall waltz. But as you revisit a play, and see it again and again, and study the moments and scenes within the play, you discover the deeper beauty within. You discover hidden meanings and hidden melodies — sometimes, even melodies that the author might not have intended to have in there. The play and its words (which are a form of music) find multiple resonances with us.

Resonances. Multiple messages, multiple voices. A fugue. Near the end of the play, especially as Beethoven is composing a fugue variation, I recalled that there had been a discussion of this play as a fugue. The play takes multiple voices and multiple messages and stories: the relationships between the various characters — Schindler and Beethoven, Schindler and Diabelli, Diabelli and Beethoven, Clara and Katherine, Clara and Mike, Mike and Katherine, Katherine and Gertie, Clara and Gertie, etc. — and harmonizes them together into a fugue of messages, of seeing things in the others. It makes the point of how our lives are a fugue of voices that shape our experiences, and sometimes the deepest message can come from the smallest four notes.

And that’s just the story side. I noticed things on the performance side this time that I hadn’t noticed (or don’t recall noticing) from the Ahmanson days. Partly, this may be due to the size of the venue. Many people believe the best way to see is show is in a gigantic Broadway-size venue, but often that is the worst way — even for those in the Orchestra. Larger venues require large staging and performance, and while that might be good for a large cast musical, it is often poor for a small cast play. As an example of this, I note that the Ahmanson staging included a 4-person non-speaking ensemble. That wasn’t there in this production, which allowed a greater focus on the actors.

Under the direction of Thomas James O’Leary (FB), the performances were top notch. I particularly recall a scene in the first act with Clara (Greyson Chadwick (FB) and Mike (Brandon Parrish (FB)), attending a concert. Their voices were provided by recorded voiceovers, presenting their inner thoughts on a first date. All the meaning was conveyed by the movement and facial expressions of the actors, which were remarkable for their ability to convey the emotion and meaning. There was a similar emoting via facial expression in the scene where Katherine (Nan McNamara (FB)) undergoes some form of scan. There are a series of flashes, each with a different facial expression truly showing the impact of the disease.

I also noticed one other difference from the Ahmanson: sexuality. In my writeup of the Ahmanson production, I noted: “The bravery is also on stage—both in a 74-year old actress having the confidence to do partial nudity onstage, and having the confidence to take on the acting challenge of portrying the deterioration that ALS can do to a body.” Reading that brought the scene back to me: some of the exam scenes had Fonda topless. For whatever reason — the fact that Actors Co-op is a church-based group, the size of the theatre, the desires of the actors — that level of physical exposure was not done. There were certainly points where it could have been done, but the choice was made not to do it. Guess what: It didn’t hurt the play one bit, raising the question of whether Fonda’s partial nudity was truly necessary in that production, or was just gratuitous titillation to bring in an audience. We are conditioned to expect gratuitous sex and violence in movies and TV; has it reached the level of the Broadway stage? Much as I enjoy the display of flesh, it should serve the story and not be there just to be there. I applaud the director for finding a way to tell the story in a more sensitive but equally moving fashion.

The performances from the entire cast were excellent. McNamara did a great job of portraying her relationship with her daughter, and even better portraying the deterioration that came with ALS. Ladd did similarly with Beethoven’s deterioration with his hearing. As one who suffers from Tinnitus, I could well appreciate Beethoven’s frustration at the bouts of the same. The chemistry between Clara and Mike was good, and you could see an equal chemistry form between Beethoven and his friend Schinder, and between Katherine and the archivist Gertrude. Great performances all around.

Music was provided by the on-stage pianist Dylan Price (FB). Understudies for the production are Christian Edsall (FB) [u/s Anton Schindler] and Tannis Hanson (FB) [u/s Clara]. It looks like the understudies will be on the first weekend in March.

33 Variations SetThe production was elegantly adapted for the small stage. Of the Ahmanson production, I wrote: “The primary motif was that of an archival room with shelves and shelves of archive boxes, together with movable screens made up of pages of music. Upon these were occasionally projected movements, scenery, and movements.” This production was unable to do that; instead they used the design of the set you see to the right: four windowed panels with doors between them. These panels could be translucent; the could show archival books. The doors could house projections. On the side were brick walls that slid open to expose archival books; there was also a Murphy bed for one scene behind the books. Credit for this design goes to Nicholas Acciani (FB), who did both the scenic design and the projection design. It was supported by the lighting design of Andrew Schmedake (FB), who used fixtures above to create medical devices and specialized archival lighting. Lori Berg (FB) was the property designer; I particularly noted the actual walkers and powered wheelchairs, as well as all the hand-sewn books. David B. Marling‘s sound design was less focused on amplification and more focused on effects — this was particularly noteworthy during the medical scenes where the illusion of the scanning machinery was created entirely by sound. Vicki Conrad (FB)’s costume design seemed period appropriate to this novice, and (when appropriate) were suitably revealing without being too revealing. Michelle Parrish (FB)’s choreography worked well in the few dance scenes. E. K. Dagenfield (FB)’s efforts as dialect coach were primarily notable in the Tegtmeier’s portrayal of Dr. Gerturde Ladenburger and her clipped accent. Rounding out the credits are: Josie Austin/FB – Assistant Stage Manager, Heather Chesley (FB) – Artistic Chairwoman; David Elzer/Demand PR (FB) – Publicity; Selah Victor (FB) – Production Manager; and Shawna Voragen (FB) – Production Stage Manager. 33 Variations was produced by Thomas Chavira (FB).

33 Variations continues at Actors Co-op (FB) theatre in Hollywood until March 19. Tickets are available through the Actors Co-op Website; discount tickets may be available on Goldstar.

🎩 🎩 🎩

Ob. Disclaimer: I am not a trained theatre (or music) critic; I am, however, a regular theatre and music audience member. I’ve been attending live theatre and concerts in Los Angeles since 1972; I’ve been writing up my thoughts on theatre (and the shows I see) since 2004. I do not have theatre training (I’m a computer security specialist), but have learned a lot about theatre over my many years of attending theatre and talking to talented professionals. I pay for all my tickets unless otherwise noted. I am not compensated by anyone for doing these writeups in any way, shape, or form. I currently subscribe at Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB), the  Hollywood Pantages (FB), Actors Co-op (FB), the Chromolume Theatre (FB) in the West Adams district, and a mini-subscription at the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC) (FB). Through my theatre attendance I have made friends with cast, crew, and producers, but I do strive to not let those relationships color my writing (with one exception: when writing up children’s production, I focus on the positive — one gains nothing except bad karma by raking a child over the coals).  I believe in telling you about the shows I see to help you form your opinion; it is up to you to determine the weight you give my writeups.

Upcoming Shows: The third weekend of February brings Peter Yarrow and Noel Paul Stookey at the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza (FB) on Friday, February 17, with seeing Allegiance – A New Musical (recorded on Broadway) at the AMC Promenade on Sun 2/19. The last weekend in February brings Finding Neverland at the Hollywood Pantages (FB). March quiets down a bit — at least as currently scheduled — with the MRJ Man of the Year dinner,  Fun Home at the Ahmanson Theatre (FB) at the beginning of the month, and An American in Paris at the Hollywood Pantages (FB) at the end of the month. We may go see Martha, a one-woman play on the life of Martha Graham (a good preparation for our May VPAC show of her dance group), at the Whitefire Theatre (FB) on March 18 — we’re still planning that. April starts with Cats Paw at Actors Co-op (FB) and a concert with Tom Paxton and the DonJuans at McCabes Guitar Shop (FB) (shifting Cats Paws to an afternoon matinee that day). The next day brings the Colburn Orchestra at the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC) (FB). The next weekend is currently open (and will likely stay that way). Mid-April bringsDoc Severinsen and his Big Band at Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC) (FB) on April 13, followed by Animaniacs Live at the La Mirada Performing Arts Center (FB) over the weekend. That will be followed on the penultimate weekend of April with Sister Act at Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB). Lastly, looking to May, the schedule shows that it starts with My Bodyguard at the Hollywood Pantages (FB) the first weekend. It continues with Martha Graham Dance and American Music at the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC) (FB). The third weekend brings the last show of the Actors Co-op (FB) season, Lucky Stiff, at Actors Co-op (FB). May concludes with Hello Again at the Chromolume Theatre (FB). As for June? Three words: Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB). That, barring something spectacular cropping up, should be the first half of 2017.

As always, I’m keeping my eyes open for interesting productions mentioned on sites such as Better-Lemons, Musicals in LA, @ This Stage, Footlights, as well as productions I see on Goldstar, LA Stage Tix, Plays411 or that are sent to me by publicists or the venues themselves. Note: Lastly, want to know how to attend lots of live stuff affordably? Take a look at my post on How to attend Live Theatre on a Budget.

P.S.: Mostly so I can find it later, here’s my predictions of what will go on tour and where they will end up. The Hollywood Pantages (FB) announced their 2017-2018 season (which was the rest of 2018, after Hamilton took over the last 5 months of 2017) on February 7th. You can find my reaction to it here. Now we just need to see what the Ahmanson Theatre (FB) will do.

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Thoughts on a Theatre Season: Pantages Theatre | Tabard Theatre Company

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

Just before Christmas 2016, I attempted to predict what shows would be presented in the next Pantages and Ahmanson seasons. Today, the Pantages made the announcement about its 2018 season (or most of it; there were no shows announced after September 2018). Curious about how I did? Read on! Additionally, I’d like to share some thoughts on a season announcement for a great Northern California theatre.

☛ 🎱 ☚

Back in December, I summarized the shows that I thought were going on tour based on the announcements that I had seen, and I predicted the following:

There are numerous other shows currently coming to Broadway that I expect to tour, but I think they would be 2018-2019 at best. So how do I predict the seasons to work out? Here are my predictions:

  • Ahmanson 2017-2018 Season: Deaf West’s Spring Awakening, The Humans, Something Rotten, Waitress, and possibly the Fiddler revival, Allegiance, or a pre-Broadway musical.
  • Pantages 2017-2018 Season: Disney’s Aladdin, School of Rock, Love Never Dies, Bright Star, Matilda, Miss Saigon, Les Miserables, Color Purple, and possibly On Your Feet.

So how did I do? The Pantages announced a six show season. Five of the six were on my Pantages list, one was on my Ahmanson list. So I think I did pretty good. Here’s what was announced for the Pantages season. I’m sure they will have some fill-in shows to announce, but those might be more retreads:

  • Disney’s Aladdin, The Musical. January 10 – March 31, 2018. What is there to say? This is the upsized full-Broadway version. It is clearly a Pantages show that they expect to be a hit, given a 3 month run.
  • Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Love Never Dies. April 3-22, 2018. This is the sequel to Phantom of the Opera, which I wasn’t that crazy about. It has not played Broadway yet. I will admit I’m curious on this one, so I’ll give it a try. I was expecting they might program the long running tour of Phantom before this production, but they barely have time to do the load-out/load-in after Aladdin. They can’t even squeeze it in before Aladdin, as Hamilton ends on December 30, 2017, and Aladdin starts January 10.
  • School of Rock: The Musical. May 3 – 27, 2018. Currently on Broadway, and I enjoy the music quite a bit (and that is even with the knowledge that this is an Andrew Lloyd Webber show).
  • The Color Purple: The Musical. May 29 – June 17, 2018. This is the deconstructed and re-conceived revival that received such good reviews on Broadway; I haven’t listened to the album of this version yet. I’m looking forward to this.
  • On Your Feet: The Emilio and Gloria Estefan Musical. July 6 – 29, 2018. Surely to be a crowd-pleaser in Los Angeles. I’ve heard the music, and this should be good.
  • Waitress. August 2-26, 2018. This is the one show I had predicted for the Ahamanson instead, but I can see why the Pantages grabbed it — given it is the first musical by Sara Bareilles, it will bring in the kids. I’ve heard the music, and I’m looking forward to it.

A few additional notes: The Pantages has left very few holes for fill-in programming — really only the last week of April, and the latter half of June. There will be perhaps some pop-up concerts there, but a three-week run is unlikely. Expect them to add shows from September 2018 on, but that may be in their next season announcement. Regarding my predictions (which I’ll update), I think Bright Star might go to the Ahmanson. Matilda, Miss Saigon, and Les Miserables will likely wait for the 2018-2019 Pantages season instead — the first because it was already at the Ahmanson; the latter two because they are really more Pantages shows (plus Les Miz was already at the Ahmanson).

More details, and information on subscription packages, is here.

☛ 🎱 ☚

Back in 2014, we saw an excellent production of The Immigrant from Tabard Theatre Company (FB) in San Jose. A few weeks ago, I received their announcement of their 17th season, and all I can say is that if I lived in the area, it would be worthy of subscription. We may even drive up for one of the shows (Adrift in Macao), it’s that good. Here’s their season:

  • PETER AND THE STARCATCHER. September 15 – October 8, 2017. Written by Rick Elice. Music by Wayne Barker. Based on Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson’s novel “Peter and the Starcatchers”. Tony Award-winning play! Featuring a dozen actors portraying more than 100 engaging and unforgettable characters, through this play with music we learn how Peter Pan earned his flight credentials and how a mustachioed pirate became Captain Hook. — We saw the tour of this when it was at the Ahmanson, and it was great. This should be a smaller production, but this is a show well suited to that.
  • MOM’S GIFT. October 27 – November 19, 2017. Written by Phil Olson. Northern California Premiere! In this comedy with a heart, Mom has been dead for 11 months and shows up at her husband’s birthday party as a ghost with a mission. Like Clarence in “It’s A Wonderful Life,” she has to accomplish a task to earn her wings. Only what the task actually is, is a mystery. — We saw the world premiere of this at Group Rep, and it was excellent.
  • HOLIDAY AT THE SAVOY. December 1 – December 17, 2017 Created by Cathy Spielberger Cassetta & Gus Kambeitz. World Premiere! It’s December 1945, New York City — the first post-war holiday season at the famous Savoy ballroom in Harlem where singers, dancers, and musicians put on an exciting floor show filled with the swinging sounds and steps of the day in Savoy style. — I haven’t heard of this, but it sounds quite interesting with good music.
  • EVELYN IN PURGATORY. January 12 – January 28, 2018. Written by Topher Payne. West Coast Premiere! When a complaint is filed against one of the 70,000 teachers in New York’s public schools, they’re sent to a Reassignment Center. There, they sit and wait for their case to be reviewed. Based on real teacher “rubber rooms” in New York City, this surprising and engaging dramatic comedy follows five teachers one school year while they await their hearing. — Sounds like an interesting play. One of the reasons to subscribe to seasons is to see plays you might not normally go to on your own. This sounds like one of those.
  • THE MIRACLE WORKER. February 16 – March 11, 2018. Tony Award winner by William Gibson based on Helen Keller’s biography “The Story of My Life”. 20-year old Annie Sullivan embarked on a journey that would change the life of her charge, Helen Keller, who would, in turn, change the lives of others for generations. The Miracle Worker reveals the power of commitment and strength when the choice is made to reach beyond the understandable and tangible. — This is the play that made Patty Duke’s career. A classic. I haven’t see it in years, but it is a great story.
  • ADRIFT IN MACAO. April 13 – May 6, 2018. Book and Lyrics by Christopher Durang; Music by Peter Melnick. Bay Area Premiere! With a drop-dead funny book and shamefully silly lyrics and lethally catchy music, this fast-paced musical, set in 1952 Macao, China, lovingly parodies the Hollywood film noir classics of the 1940s and ’50s. — I have heard the music from this, and truly want to see the show. It hasn’t been done in LA, at least that I’m aware of. I may work a visit to the Bay Area in my schedule to go see this.

As I noted before, I’d subscribe for this season, it looks that good. They are just too far away for me. But perhaps not for you. Tabard is in San Pedro Square in downtown San Jose. Tabard’s pricing for Early Bird tickets (until May 17, 2017) isn’t that bad: between $69 for students to $205 for their “caberet” seating; $159 is the basic adult ticket, meaning about $26.50 a ticket. Subscription information is here.

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Fearing Who Are Different | “Zoot Suit” at Mark Taper Forum

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

Zoot Suit (Mark Taper Forum)Where were you from mid-August to the beginning of October, 1978? Me? I was in my second year as a Junior Counselor up at Gindling Hilltop Camp (FB), followed by starting my Sophmore year at UCLA. I wasn’t the avid theatre-goer back then, although I do remember seeing another Center Theatre Group (FB) show at the Ahmanson Theatre (FB), They’re Playing Our Song with Robert Klein and Lucie Arnaz (FB). I recall that I knew about a new show called Zoot Suit at the Mark Taper Forum (FB), but I certainly hadn’t been to the Mark Taper Forum, nor was I going to go up to the Mutual Ticketing Window at the Student Union to get full price tickets for it (for there was no notion of discount tickets back then). I even didn’t get tickets after it moved to the Aquarius Theatre. However, I do remember the El Pachuco ads all around the city. I later learned of the significance of the production — for its message, for its impact on Chicano theatre, and for its impact on the œuvre of the Los Angeles centered play. I am still sorry I missed the original production.

So when I learned that Center Theatre Group (FB) was celebrating its 50th anniversary by remounting Zoot Suit, I had to get tickets. We were able to fit one of the preview performances into our schedule, and so last night saw us at the Mark Taper, bookmarked and interspersed with a series of what can be best called “adventures”†.

Zoot Suit is a dramatized retelling of the incidents surrounding the Sleepy Lagoon Murder and the Zoot Suit Riots in Los Angeles in the 1940s. Names were changed, and some events altered slightly, but what strikes me in reading the linked Wikipedia pages is how much of the truth of what happened made it into the show. Note: If you are curious where the Sleepy Lagoon was, wonder no longer — this website has the answer.

A good summary is from the ABC-CLIO website on the show:

A work of historical fiction, Zoot Suit follows two significant stories of racial injustice in Los Angeles from the 1940s. Set in the streets of East Los Angeles, Zoot Suit recounts events of the 1942 Sleepy Lagoon case and the 1943 Zoot Suit Riots. These incidents became symbolic of the racial injustice against Mexican Americans in Los Angeles and across the country during this time period. The play follows Henry Reyna and members of the predominantly Mexican American 38th Street Gang, who were wrongly accused and convicted of murder. The play also treats incidents from the 1943 Zoot Suit Riots, where racial tensions escalated into violent confrontations between zoot suit–wearing pachucos, U.S. servicemen, and Los Angeles law enforcement. The play is set against actual testimony from the Sleepy Lagoon murder trial and press headlines from the 1940s, recounting these historical events through the eyes of a group of Mexican American youth. At the center of Zoot Suit is the character El Pachuco, an idealized zoot suiter played memorably by Olmos during the play’s (original) Los Angeles run.

I think the saddest thing about Zoot Suit is that it is again relevant. The unjustified racial animosity against Mexicans, Filipinos, Blacks, and other non-whites during the 1940s has sadly seen a resurgence today, and the techniques and biases and riots that were seen then, built out of a fear of xenophobia, has infested our society today. Back then, it was the zoot suit that tarred many hard-working men unjustifiably as dangerous; today, it is the hijab, the beard, and the hoodie. Almost 75 years later, and white society is still fearful of the stranger that is coming to attack their privilege. Back then, they registered Japanese and Hispanics; today, it is Muslims. Reading the history, leaders like Ceser Chavez and Malcom X were zoot suiters. Will we ever learn from history? Our leaders today want extreme vetting and bans to keep out muslims, and they want a wall to keep out, yes, the Mexicans.

Back in December, Donald Trump complained that theatre should not make one uncomfortable. He is wrong. Although there are times theatre is an escape, theatre at its heart makes one uncomfortable. It speaks truth to power, it dramatizes messages that must be heard, and be heard, and be heard again until they sink into our thick skulls. What makes our country great is not the top 1% with all the money. What makes our country great are the immigrants, the workers, and those who struggle everyday; they are the ones who work the hardest to make a better life. They don’t want to keep people out to protect the life they have.

So, do I think you should see Zoot Suit? Hell yes. See it. Talk about it. Learn from it.

One other thought related to the overall show. Two weeks ago, we saw another Hispanic production, the Dual Language version of Disney’s Aladdin at Casa 0101 in East LA.  Very different, but very similar. Both tell a story of Love. Both tell a story of class and non-acceptance. Both have elements of intolerance. Both mesmerize, but in different ways. Zoot Suit was the start of Chicano theatre in Los Angeles; looking back at intolerance of Pachuco culture in our city. Aladdin is where Chicano theatre is today, building upon dual language while still demonstrating how lack of understanding between cultural groups can divide. A cartoon going around Facebook this week showed Jasmine and Aladdin on the carpet, noting that “I can show you the world… well, except the United States.” Speaking truth to power, have we come that far and grown. Alas, perhaps not.

The realization of the show by author and director Luis Valdez (FB) had a very newspaper-ish esthetic: stacks of newspapers served as chairs, tables, and beds; there was lots of emphasis on the headlines of the day and newspaper reporters; there was projection on to Venetian blinds. Looking back at some original production photos, however, and it appears this was much like the original conception. It still worked.  Valdez also gave the show a very authentic Chicano and Pachuco feel; one got the impression that the feel of the show was the feel of the original. I’ll note here that the show was co-produced with El Teatro Campesino (FB), Valdez’s theatre company. ETC was also the birthplace of Culture Clash, who we saw at VPAC back in November — in many ways unknowingly preparing us for Zoot Suit and introducing us to the music of Lalo Guerrero, who composed much of Zoot Suit‘s original music. Alas, there is no CD of Zoot Suit, and the movie soundtrack is only available on vinyl. Pity.

Leading us through the Zoot Suit dramatization was El Pachuco, played originally by Edward James Olmos (FB), and here by Demian Bichir (FB). El Pachuco is perhaps the alter-ego of the lead character and “leader” of the gang, Henry Reyna. He eggs Henry on, pushes him in various directions, spreads the Pachuco way, and provides a little clarity to the audience.  Bichir channels the character well, embodying the style and attitude that is so important in the Pachuco culture.

Playing the lead character, Henry Reyna, and his girlfriend Della Barrios were Daniel Valdez (FB) and Rose Portillo (FB), respectively. Wait, strike that. Those were who played those roles in the original 1978 production. In this production, Valdez and Portillo provided interesting continuity with the past by playing the parents of Henry Renya, Enrique Reyna and Dolores Reyna. It was an interesting nod to the original and a passing of the torch; I’m sure it was astoundingly meaningful to the acting ensemble.

Let’s try this again, in this production, playing the lead character, Henry Reyna, and his girlfriend Della Barrios were Matias Ponce (FB) and Jeanine Mason (FB), respectively. Ponce is on-stage for almost the entire show and he has the presence to carry it off. His portrayal captures well the opposing natures of Henry: leadership and violence, family and love, the tormented conflict of one under constant attack by “the man”. Mason’s role is smaller, yet she is still quite fun to watch and shines in her scenes at the conclusion of the story.

The remainder of the Sleepy Lagoon defendants and the key gang members we see are Ismael “Smiley’ Torres (Raul Cardona (FB), also: u/s El Pachuco), Joey Castro (Oscar Camacho), and Tommy Roberts (Caleb Foote (FB)). They embodied their characters well, bringing distinct personalities to what could have been cookie-cutter portrayals. Their individual moments during the jail sequences were great.

Rounding out the Reyes family were Stephani Candelaria (FB) as Lupe Reyna and Andres Ortiz (FB) as Rudy Reyna. Candelaria’s Lupe was fun to watch, especially in her initial scenes with the family before the first dance. Ortiz’s Rudy showed the power of drink to change a personality, with the actor handily capturing the transformation from kid wannabe to dangerously hot-tempered drinker.

Rounding out the lead characters were Brian Abraham (FB) as Henry’s attorney, George Shearer, and Tiffany Dupont (FB) as Alice Bloomfield, head of the committee that was arranging for the legal defense of the Sleepy Lagoon defendants.  Abraham’s Shearer was a typical grizzled attorney who cared about his clients deeply, and came across well. Dupont’s Bloomfield captured the style of the era well and had great chemistry and humor with all four of the Sleepy Lagoon defendants, but especially with Ponce’s Henry.

Rounding out the cast in various roles were: Mariela Arteaga [La Pachuca Hoba, u/s Bertha Villareal]; Melinna Bobadilla (FB) [Bertha Villareal, u/s Dolores Reyna]; Fiona Cheung (FB) [La Pachuca Manchuka]; Holly Hyman (FB) [La Pachuca Lil Blue]; Kimberlee Kidd [Dance Captain, Guera, u/s Alice Bloomfield]; Rocío López (FB) [Elena Tores, u/s Della Barios / Lupe Reyna]; Tom G. McMahon [Press]; Michael Naydoe Pinedo (FB) [Ragman / Cub Reporter / Sailor , u/s Rafas / Marine , u/s Joey Castro , u/s Sergeant Smith / Baliff / Bosun’s Mate]; Gilbert Saldivar (FB) [Rafas / Marine, u/s Enrique Reyna / Ismael ‘Smiley’ Torres]; Richard Steinmetz (FB) [Lt. Edwards / Judge F.W. Charles / Prison Guard]; Evan Strand (FB) [Swabbie, u/s Tommy Roberts / Cub Reporter]; Bradford Tatum (FB) [Sergeant Smith / Boson’s Mate / Baliff, u/s George Shearer / Press / Lt. Edwards / Judge F.W. Charles / Prison Guard]; and Raphael Thomas (FB) [Dance Captain / Newsboy, u/s Swabbie]. All were strong dancers and performers. I want to highlight Bobadilla’s Bertha Villareal, who was a standout in her scenes.

Turning to the music and movement side: Daniel Valdez (FB) was the music director, with choreography by Maria Torres (FB). The movement and dance was strong, with what seemed to be (at least to me) period appropriate dance. Hand in hand with the movement was the fight direction of Steve Rankin (FB). With respect to music, it appears to have been pre-recorded, as there are no credits for musicians.

The scenic design, which I mentioned previously and worked quite well, was by Christopher Acebo. It was complemented by the projection design of David Murakami (FB) and the lighting design of Pablo Santiago. I particularly appreciated the latter’s use of red lighting in a few scenes to create a very ominous tone. Murakami’s projections provided the news backdrop, especially when projected against the Venetian blinds. The sound design was by Philip G. Allen. At the preview performance there were numerous sound problems, including some very bad computer-created static in Act I and some very low microphones — all of which I presume will be ironed out by opening, as will some overly loud sound effects. <rant> What won’t be ironed out was the static caused by cellphones!!! People — please — put your phones in airplane mode or turn them off during a show. You can focus your attention for something live for three hours instead of your silly screens! </rant> The costume design of Ann Closs-Farley and the wig design of Jessica Mills (FB) worked together to recreate the 1940s — the costumers were just fantastic for both the ladies and the gents (credit also goes to El Pachuco Zoot Suits in Fullerton for the wonderful suits). Rounding out the credits were David S. Franklin – Production Stage Manager; Neel Keller – Associate Artistic Director; and Phillip Esparza — Executive Producer / El Teatro Campesino. Michelle Blair and Susie Walsh were the stage managers.

Zoot Suit continues at the Mark Taper Forum (FB) through March 19. Tickets are available through the CTG website. Discount tickets may be available through Goldstar. Don’t miss this show this time.

†: Such as, you ask: We had a relatively bad dinner at Black Bottom Southern Cuisine at Vineland and Cabrillo in NoHo: it may have been takeout hipster, but it wasn’t great Q (the BarBeQue Bar up the street is much better) or good Southern, and they used too much MSG. My wife left her purse on the Metro when we got off at Civic Center; luckily Metro security nabbed it and had it at Union Station for pickup, but we had to go back in and ride one stop to Union Station and back to pick it up before the show (this left my wife’s knee in pain); the preview audience was poor — arriving late (stand up to let them in) both for the show and after intermission (ouch! that was my toe!), leaving early, and using their cell phones; coming back the Metro accelerated harder than usual throwing us across the train because we hadn’t sat down yet; and then driving back we drove through a cloud of burning rubber on the freeway. Good show around a bad evening.

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Ob. Disclaimer: I am not a trained theatre critic; I am, however, a regular theatre audience member. I’ve been attending live theatre and concerts in Los Angeles since 1972; I’ve been writing up my thoughts on theatre (and the shows I see) since 2004. I do not have theatre training (I’m a computer security specialist), but have learned a lot about theatre over my many years of attending theatre and talking to talented professionals. I pay for all my tickets unless otherwise noted. I am not compensated by anyone for doing these writeups in any way, shape, or form. I currently subscribe at Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB), the  Hollywood Pantages (FB), Actors Co-op (FB), the Chromolume Theatre (FB) in the West Adams district, and a mini-subscription at the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC) (FB). Through my theatre attendance I have made friends with cast, crew, and producers, but I do strive to not let those relationships color my writing (with one exception: when writing up children’s production, I focus on the positive — one gains nothing except bad karma by raking a child over the coals).  I believe in telling you about the shows I see to help you form your opinion; it is up to you to determine the weight you give my writeups.

Upcoming Shows: February 2017 continues with the Manhattan Transfer at the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC) (FB) on February 9th, followed by 33 Variations at Actors Co-op (FB) over the weekend. The third weekend brings Peter Yarrow and Noel Paul Stookey at the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza (FB) on Friday, February 17, with seeing Allegiance – A New Musical (recorded on Broadway) at the AMC Promenade on Sun 2/19. The last weekend in February brings Finding Neverland at the Hollywood Pantages (FB). March quiets down a bit — at least as currently scheduled — with the MRJ Man of the Year dinner,  Fun Home at the Ahmanson Theatre (FB) at the beginning of the month, and An American in Paris at the Hollywood Pantages (FB) at the end of the month. April starts with Cats Paw at Actors Co-op (FB) and a concert with Tom Paxton and the DonJuans at McCabes Guitar Shop (FB) (shifting Cats Paws to an afternoon matinee that day, or the Sunday matinee the weekend before). The next day brings the Colburn Orchestra at the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC) (FB). The next weekend is currently open (and will likely stay that way). Mid-April brings Animaniacs Live at the La Mirada Performing Arts Center (FB). That will be followed on the penultimate weekend of April with Sister Act at Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB). Lastly, looking to May, the schedule shows that it starts with My Bodyguard at the Hollywood Pantages (FB) the first weekend. It continues with Martha Graham Dance and American Music at the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC) (FB). The third weekend brings the last show of the Actors Co-op (FB) season, Lucky Stiff, at Actors Co-op (FB). May concludes with Hello Again at the Chromolume Theatre (FB). As for June? Three words: Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB). That, barring something spectacular cropping up, should be the first half of 2017.

As always, I’m keeping my eyes open for interesting productions mentioned on sites such as Better-Lemons, Musicals in LA, @ This Stage, Footlights, as well as productions I see on Goldstar, LA Stage Tix, Plays411 or that are sent to me by publicists or the venues themselves. Note: Lastly, want to know how to attend lots of live stuff affordably? Take a look at my post on How to attend Live Theatre on a Budget.

P.S.: Mostly so I can find it later, here’s my predictions of what will go on tour and where they will end up. The Hollywood Pantages (FB) announces February 7th.

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A 4-Bit Player in an 8-Bit World | “Claudio Quest” at Chance Theatre

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

Claudio Quest (Chance)I have a confession to make: I’m not a video gamer. Although at times I have played games on the computer, they have all been text-based, starting with the lunar landing game on the HP 3000C. I’ve played Adventure and Zork, and my level of dungeon games are things like nethack and larn. But those video games? Perhaps Pong?

So I went into the new musical Claudio Quest, opening this week at the Chance Theatre (FB), with the same sense of disconnection I felt when I saw Bard Fiction when I had never seen Pulp Fiction. Claudio Quest, featuring music, lyrics, and book by Drew Fornarola (FB) and Marshall Pailet (FB), tells the story of a video game roughly analagous (so I’m told) to Super Mario Brothers. The rough conceit of the bulk of this musical is that we are in the game itself: the characters have come to life, and we are seeing their doubts, fears, and questioning of their motives. In particular, and to put it in Mario terms, it is the story not of Mario (Claudio) but of Player 2 — Luigi (Luis) — and how does he face his position of being second banana and having to become a hero.

I’ll note that figuring out that aspect of the story didn’t come clearly: I found myself wondering for much of the first act where the story was going: who were we rooting for, what was the ultimate goal. As this was a preview performance of a developing musical, perhaps that is something worth improving: having the goal and motivation be a little clearer in the first few establishing songs.

The video game story constituted the bulk of the musical; it was wrapped and interspersed with a real-world wordless story of two brothers: one who continually played the game Claudio Quest and kept winning, and his younger brother who seemingly longed to play with him. The message and relationship between these two worlds came through by the end, but I found myself wanted to know more about these two other than just seeing them with cartridges, controllers, and a screen.

The game story itself supposedly paralleled Super Mario Bros, but veered just enough to avoid a trademark violation. The heroic older brother Claudio, in a blue jumpsuit, was on a continual quest to rescue Princess Poinsettia of the Eggplant Kingdom, who had been kidnapped by the evil Fire-Breathing Platypus Bruiser. Claudio was Player 1, and wore the golden eggplant, which allowed him to jump upon and destroy the various creatures set to attack him.  He was aided by his younger Brother  and the dinosaur Y. The Younger Brother, Luis, was Player 2 and wore an orange jumpsuit; he carried Claudio’s backpack and was able to transfer extra lives to Claudio. The Princess’s sister, Princess Fish, also wanted to be a player but the game wasn’t designed that way.

As the show went on, self-awareness of the characters increased, and Luis and Fish increasingly were able to play and introduce new ideas into the Eggplant Kingdom. Basically, they added a dimension to their two-dimensional lives. When this existential crisis resulting in Claudio losing his last life, it remained for Luis and Fish to figure out how to rescue the Princess and save the kingdom.

OK, OK. I’m sure by now you’re going: A musical about a video game? That’s as stupid as a movie about a board game., or a musical about a kid’s cartoon. But as this show went on, there was a surprising depth to the questions raised. What particularly comes to mind is near the end of the first act where the two main videogame characters are arguing about self-will and self-determination? Do they have it? Is there the ability to do what they can do preordained or controlled by some outside higher power, or do they have the ability to take control of their own lives? In facing such a question, they are asking themselves something that has been a question for religious folks for years: does God direct our actions and pre-ordain our destiny, or are we free to do whatever we want to do with our lives. In many ways, this is a similar question to that raised in Pailet’s earlier musical, Triassic Parq, which explored the world of Jurassic Park from the point of view of the dinosaurs, and their becoming self-aware and wanting to take control of their lives.

The musical also explored the question of what makes a hero? A heroes only the people who constantly win, and win in the same way everytime? Can one be a hero and still have doubts and fears? Are heroes the people who come up with new ways to do things, of new solutions? Most importantly, are heroes the people that appreciate the diversity around them, and who use that diversity to learn new ways to attack problems and survive, which changing their world along the way.

For an 8-bit videogame, it had surprising depth.

Under Pailet (FB)’s direction, the actors made a similar transformation in directionality. Initally, in the videogame world, actors moved very two-dimensionally: jerky, up and down, never forward and back. As the game and story progressed, their movement became three dimensional. They could turn and face, they could kick and rotate. This was also reflected in the staging — more on that later.

I’ll note that there was a similar transformation in the music itself. I recently listened to a fascinating episode of the 20 KHz podcast on 8-bit sounds. This was a unique world, very different than our sounds of today. Chips were designed to work independent of the CPU; they weren’t playing prerecorded songs but generating songs based on chords supported by the chips in a very limited fashion. This uniqueness was paralleled in the score. Songs, under the orchestration and musical direction of Ryan O’Connell (FB), went from being primarily 8-bit to more fully realised. The songs themselves were of a quality similar to Triassic or Loch Ness. Some had surprising depth, some were quite funny (in particular, the Platypus Song, and a number were quite cute. Unfortunately — and this could be a side-effect of only seeing the show once — I didn’t walk out humming any of them.

Turning to the performances: the cast consisted of a number of folks we’d seen before at other Chance musicals and elsewhere around the Southern California stages. The performances overall were good, with a few interesting quirks and looks that caught the eye and stuck in the head.

Our heroes — Claudio and Luis — were played by Beau Brians (FB) and Andrew Puente (FB), respectively. Both brought quite a bit of character to the show, and both had wonderful singing voices. Brians’ Claudio had the correct amount of bravado and swagger, while Puente’s Luis had the right hesitancy one would expect from a Player 2.

The heroines, Princess Poinsettia and Princess Fish, were played by Kim Dalton (FB) and Monika Pena (FB), respectively. We have seen Kim in a number of shows now (Dogfight, Toxic Avenger), and she always brings a strong performance and a great voice to any role. Her role gets the chance to shine in the latter half of Act II; the writing has her role more two dimensional earlier in the show. Her number with Bruiser and the scene in the dungeon are great. Pena’s Fish, in contrast, breaks out of the gate running demanding to be herself on her own term. The actress brings a spunk and vitality to the character that is quite a bit of fun to watch. Both sang and moved very well.

The villain, Bruiser the Platypus, was portrayed by Miguel Cardenas/FB. In the first act, Cardenas’s character was mostly bluster. However, in the second act, his number with Poinsettia, “The Platypus Song”, was just hilarious. He was also great in his interactions with his therapist.

All of the other characters (with two exceptions) were played by members of the ensemble: Kellie Spill (FB) (Engafink / Ensemble); Amy Rebecca King/FB (King Eggplant / Ensemble); Elise Borgfeldt (FB) (Kevin the Turtle / Ensemble); Ashley Arlene Nelson (FB) (Boof / Ensemble); Joseph Ott/FB (Big Brother / Gary / Ensemble); and Jimmy Saiz (FB) (Steve the Turtle / Ensemble). I would like to single out a few performers here. First, Ashley Arlene Nelson (FB). Ms. Nelson has been the lead in Dogfight and the lead in the recent Little Woman; she’s in the ensemble here and also serves as what I guess would be the narrator in the game. In that latter role, she is hilarious. As always, she is a singing and dancing and comedic joy to watch. Next, Amy Rebecca King/FB.  When featured as King Eggplant, Ms. King is extremely funny and a joy to watch. Lastly, there are the two turtles, who get a very funny scene in the second act.

Rounding out the cast were Jack Reid, alternating with Dylan Shuba as Little Brother. I’m not sure which one we saw, but whichever it was, there were some wonderful facial expressions. Lastly, there was Y, who played himself. I regretfully must comment that his performance was a bit wooden.

The choreography was by Maxx Reed (FB), and the Scenic Design was by Fred Kinney. Chris Baab and Jalen Morgan were the welders. There’s a reason I lump all of these together for this show. Although there was dancing — and excellent dancing — choreography is also movement. That’s where the scenic design came in, with a design reminscent of Loch Ness with multiple moving platforms. These were used to give the suggestion of levels in the video screen, and were constantly moving in and out. This meant that the characters were also moving on top of moving platforms and from platform to platform. That’s choreography, my friends: lots of well-executed movement that created magic without anyone getting hurt.

The sound design was by Ryan Brodkin (FB), with lighting design by Matt Schleicher (FB). Both were executed well with clear sound. The lighting was particularly interesting, using a type of moving light that I hadn’t seen before. Animation was by Justin Melillo (FB), and primarily consisted of a great video game opening for the show. The costume design by Rachael Lorenzetti was suitably 8-bit appropriate and entertaining. Makeup and hair design was by Marci Alberti/FB and was character appropriate (especially Princess Fish’s stache). Courtny Greenough/FB  was the Stage Manager.

Claudio Quest continues at the Chance Theatre (FB) through February 26, 2017. It’s a cute musical, well worth seeing for the performances, the creativity, and if you are in to video games and Super Mario Brothers. Tickets are available through the Chance website; discount tickets may be available through Goldstar.

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Ob. Disclaimer: I am not a trained theatre critic; I am, however, a regular theatre audience member. I’ve been attending live theatre and concerts in Los Angeles since 1972; I’ve been writing up my thoughts on theatre (and the shows I see) since 2004. I do not have theatre training (I’m a computer security specialist), but have learned a lot about theatre over my many years of attending theatre and talking to talented professionals. I pay for all my tickets unless otherwise noted. I am not compensated by anyone for doing these writeups in any way, shape, or form. I currently subscribe at Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB), the  Hollywood Pantages (FB), Actors Co-op (FB), the Chromolume Theatre (FB) in the West Adams district, and a mini-subscription at the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC) (FB). Through my theatre attendance I have made friends with cast, crew, and producers, but I do strive to not let those relationships color my writing (with one exception: when writing up children’s production, I focus on the positive — one gains nothing except bad karma by raking a child over the coals).  I believe in telling you about the shows I see to help you form your opinion; it is up to you to determine the weight you give my writeups.

Upcoming Shows: February 2017 starts with Zoot Suit at the Mark Taper Forum (FB) the first weekend. The second weekend brings 33 Variations at Actors Co-op (FB). The third weekend has a hold for the WGI Winter Regionals.; we’re also seeing Allegiance – A New Musical (recorded on Broadway) at the AMC Promenade on Sun 2/19. The last weekend in February brings Finding Neverland at the Hollywood Pantages (FB). March quiets down a bit — at least as currently scheduled — with the MRJ Man of the Year dinner,  Fun Home at the Ahmanson Theatre (FB) at the beginning of the month, and An American in Paris at the Hollywood Pantages (FB) at the end of the month. April starts with Cats Paw at Actors Co-op (FB) and a concert with Tom Paxton and the DonJuans at McCabes Guitar Shop (FB) (shifting Cats Paws to an afternoon matinee that day, or the Sunday matinee the weekend before). The next day brings the Colburn Orchestra at the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC) (FB). The next weekend is currently open (and will likely stay that way). Mid-April brings Animaniacs Live at the La Mirada Performing Arts Center (FB). That will be followed on the penultimate weekend of April with Sister Act at Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB). Lastly, looking to May, the schedule shows that it starts with My Bodyguard at the Hollywood Pantages (FB) the first weekend. It continues with Martha Graham Dance and American Music at the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC) (FB). The third weekend brings the last show of the Actors Co-op (FB) season, Lucky Stiff, at Actors Co-op (FB). May concludes with Hello Again at the Chromolume Theatre (FB). As for June? Three words: Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB). That, barring something spectacular cropping up, should be the first half of 2017.

As always, I’m keeping my eyes open for interesting productions mentioned on sites such as Better-Lemons, Musicals in LA, @ This Stage, Footlights, as well as productions I see on Goldstar, LA Stage Tix, Plays411 or that are sent to me by publicists or the venues themselves. Note: Lastly, want to know how to attend lots of live stuff affordably? Take a look at my post on How to attend Live Theatre on a Budget.

P.S.: Mostly so I can find it later, here’s my predictions of what will go on tour and where they will end up. The Hollywood Pantages (FB) announces February 7th.

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