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StageSceneLA.com's
RECOMMENDATIONS AND WOW!'S
(Click on the title to read the full length review.)
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Click here to find out why so many productions get a WOW!
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IN THE MOOD FOR A DRAMA?
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WOW!
THE BROWNING VERSION
Terrence Rattigan’s The Browning Version packs every bit the emotional wallop now as it did when it was first staged in 1948, especially as performed by an all-around stellar cast in Pacific Resident Theater’s pitch-perfect revival under the impeccable direction of Marilyn Fox. Bruce French is absolutely believable as stodgy, stiff-shirted classics teacher Andrew Crocker-Harris. Sally Smythe wisely resists the temptation to play Millie Crocker-Harris as a villainess. Justin Preston gives high school student Taplow sweetness, sincerity, and good-natured sense of humor. For a play written over sixty years ago, The Browning Version seems not a tad dated, especially in a production as perfectly staged as this one. In the gifted hands of its cast and director, this subtly acidic take on Goodbye Mr. Chips is contemporary-classic theater at its finest.
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Recommended
THE DIVINERS
The first act of The Diviners is so good, so real, and so unique in its depiction of a time and place that its second act ends up a letdown. Still, there are ample reasons to see this well acted, beautifully designed, and sensitively and skillfully directed (by T.L. Kolman) production, the greatest of which is Rob Herring’s absolutely stunning work as Buddy, the diviner of the play’s title. Among the excellent cast, Nathan Graham Smith makes an impressive Los Angeles theater debut as ex-preacher C.C. and Reed Armstrong does memorable work as Buddy’s father. Act One had me loving The Diviners, Act Two had me still liking it, but wishing the first act’s promise had been fulfilled. Still, this production is worth seeing for Herring’s devastating work, its solid supporting performances, and for the glimpse back in time that it offers.
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WOW!
OEDIPUS EL REY
Luis Alfaro’s Oedipus El Rey is out-and-out brilliant theater, even for theatergoers whose tastes run, as mine do, more toward the traditional. Though Alfaro has taken the ancient Greek legend and transported it to present day Latino L.A., Oedipus El Rey is still very much a Greek tragedy. With Alfaro’s often poetic words spoken by an absolutely superb ensemble under the brilliant direction of Jon Lawrence Rivera, Oedipus El Rey is simply theater at its finest, “experimental” or not. Justin Huen is an absolutely stunning Oedipus and Marlene Forte matches him every step of the way as his mother/lover. The play’s five-inmate coro greco’s work together is a marvel of precision and power. As for Robert Oriol’s sound design (which includes his pulsating original music), it is truly in a class by itself, upping the drama and suspense at every turn.
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WOW!
SIDHE
Ann Noble’s gripping psychological-political-supernatural suspense drama gets its world premiere at The Road Theatre. The more Sidhe’s mysteries deepen, the more the audience is drawn into the world playwright Noble has created. Sidhe is never anything less than spellbinding, directed masterfully by Darin Anthony and performed by a masterful cast in a world created by a masterful design team. Sidhe’s four actors (Rob Nagle, Noble, Patrick Joseph Rieger, Jeanne Syquia) couldn’t be better. Scenic designer Stephen Gifford once again outdoes himself with one of the most deliberately grubby sets in memory, run-down bar on the left and even seedier apartment on the right. Lighting designer Christie Wright and designer David B. Marling join forces to make the invisible sidhe seem very real and present. This is theater at its most original and riveting.
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WOW!
WIT
Margaret Edson’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play Wit returns to L.A. in a production that simply could not be better. Over the course of her aggressive eight-month cancer treatment, Vivian Bearing experiences a hell most of us can scarcely imagine, nor would we want to. If Wit forces us to do just that, it does so with so much humor, heart, and yes, wit, proving to be a truly inspirational, and often laugh-out-loud funny ninety minutes of theater. Marianne Savell has directed with the sensitivity and attention to character development that only an actor can bring to the role of director, and it shows in the rich, textured performances she has elicited, most especially from Nan McNamara as Vivian. Supporting performances couldn’t be better. !n hands as gifted as those who have put together this Actors Co-op production, Wit once again triumphs.
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IN THE MOOD FOR A COMEDY/DRAMA?
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WOW!
COUSIN BETTE
Who would ever have thought that a 164-year-old French novel would provide the basis for the juiciest, funniest, most twisted 3-act, 3-hour family saga since August Osage County? But that’s precisely what Jeffrey Hatcher’s delicious adaptation of Balzac’s Cousin Bette has turned out to be, particularly under the brilliant direction of Jeanie Hackett and as performed by her superb troupe of actors. Where Hatcher adds his own touches to Balzac’s original is in the sly humor that makes Cousin Bette one of the funniest melodramas ever, not one of its laughs unintentional. It helps that Hackett has directed her sensational cast to play it absolutely straight, with nary a hint of overacting. There’s not a weak link in the ensemble reviewed here (with the ever surprising Nike Doukas as Bette), nor would I imagine, are there in the alternate cast.
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WOW!
A GIANT ARC IN THE SKYSPACE OF DIRECTIONS OR THE STORY OF MIRACLES
Playwright Michael Vukadinovich takes a half dozen or so Biblical characters and stands them on their ear in his lyrical, fantastical new play. Directed with supreme imagination by Efrain Schunior, performed by an oh-so-talented cast, and brought with ingenuity and whimsy to visual/auditory life by Schunior’s resident design team, Vukadinovich’s allegorical comedy is a delight from start to finish, and pretty darn moving to boot. All five lead actors (Coco Kleppinger, Kevin Broberg, Ryan Bergmann, Eric Marig, and Dee Amerio Sudik) possess just the right blend of the serious and the tongue-in-cheek to make Vukadinovich’s words all the more real (and funny). Michael Cooper’s imaginative sound design and idiosyncratic original music set the show’s quirky tone to perfection. A Giant Arc is certainly different … in the best sort of way.
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WOW!
IN A GARDEN
Middle East Meets West in Howard Korder’s thought-provoking culture clash dramatic comedy, a fascinating examination of the culture gulf that separates America from its Middle Eastern allies and adversaries. Director David Warren helms In A Garden with sensitivity and assurance, eliciting rich and multi-layered performances from his two leads. Matt Letscher’s skill at both comedy and drama serves him well here. This is some of his best work ever. Mark Harelik’s Fawaz combines warmth and impenetrability, and when an unexplained malady affects his character late in the play, his performance ascends to a whole new level. A pair of supporting actors (Jarion Monroe and Phillip Vaden) also do excellent work. In A Garden is that rarity—a play that entertains and elucidates in equal measure. You’ll be talking about this one on the ride home from the theater.
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WOW!
JUST 45 MINUTES FROM BROADWAY
Start with quite possibly the most gorgeous set ever designed for a 99-seat theater, add to that an intelligent, witty script which reads like a 21st Century version of Kaufman and Ferber’s The Royal Family, cast it with some of L.A.’s finest stage and screen talent—and the result is Henry Jaglom’s Just 45 Minutes From Broadway, one of the best new plays I’ve reviewed here. Jaglom’s characters are three-dimensional, flawed, noble, and both loveable and mildly irritating the way real families are. There are laughs aplenty, but just as many moments of dramatic conflict, the kind no family is without and especially not one in the business called show. Each and every cast member does memorable work here under Gary Imhoff’s excellent, nuanced direction … and the production’s amazing set is surely one of the most magnificent ever designed by Joel Daavid.
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Recommended
MEN OF TORTUGA
Men Of Tortuga gets its West Coast Premiere production by Pasadena’s Furious Theatre Company. Jason Wells’ comedic thriller scores points for its crackling dialog and darkly comedic moments. As with every Furious production I’ve seen, acting, direction (by Alexis Chamow), and production design are top-drawer. Wells’ script too has many exciting, amusing moments, but its apparently intentional ambiguity proves its biggest enemy. On the plus side, Alan Brooks, Dana J. Kelly, Jr., Michael Matthys, Robert Pescovitz, and William Salyers all deliver rich, juicy performances. Sound designer Doug Newell’s background score is a dramatic blend of martial and suspense themes. Confused I may have been, but not bored. All in all, I’d give the play a B+. If I’d been able to explain to my guest what had been going on, or he to me, it would have scored a solid A.
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WOW!
TRYING
There are times when all it takes is two actors to fill a stage, to fill it with humor and drama and heart. Trying, Joanna McClelland Glass’s much-loved two-hander, provides a pair of actors with just such an opportunity to shine. As former U.S. Attorney General Francis Biddle, Robin Gammell reveals a complex man of intellect and gentility whose gradual transformation from still somewhat sprightly senior citizen to near invalid is heartbreakingly real. As Sarah Schorr, Glass’s alter ego, Gammell’s daughter Winslow Corbett illuminates the stage from her first entrance with loveliness, intelligence, and spunk. Jenny Sullivan again proves herself an actor’s director par excellence. Whether you are eighteen or eighty, you are hereby advised to give Trying a try. I guarantee you will leave the theater both entertained and enriched.
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IN THE MOOD FOR A COMEDY?
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WOW!
A BIG GAY NORTH HOLLYWOOD WEDDING
Run, don't walk, to see A Big Gay North Hollywood Wedding! With ceremony held at NoHo's Saint Matthews Church followed by a reception at the theater next door, this Big Gay Wedding is two hours of interactive hilarity and a show not to be missed! Trust me. You'll be wanting to go back again and again with friends in tow. A gifted band of actors/improv whizzes get into character from the moment the first guests/audience members arrive, greeting them in front of the church, escorting them to their seats, and treating them to a myriad of dramatic/comedic vignettes before, during, and after the ceremony and throughout the reception. Expect to play your own part in this interactive celebration, and don’t be shy about getting up and boogying. You might even catch the wedding boutonniere! A Big Gay North Hollywood Wedding is a smashing good time!
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WOW!
ESCANABA IN DA MOONLIGHT
Jeff Daniels affectionately skewers the natives of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula (aka the Yoopers) in his hit comedy Escanaba In Da Moonlight. As an authentic Yooper might put it, “Dis is some funny show, and dat’s da trute.” Under Gia Jordahl’s sparkling direction, a comedically gifted cast make Daniel’s quirky script come to life in surprisingly coherent (and hilarious) fashion. Dan Adams, Rendon Ramsey, Chris Mock, and Geoffrey Varga disappear completely into their Yooper personas. The same can be said for the wonderful John Charles Meyer as Jimmer, with an extra pat on the back for simply being able to say lines like “Shush shrivin’ m’shelf upsha shamp, swhen alla sha shudden, m’shevyshookashi” and sound as if it were the most natural, intelligible thing on earth. In Yooper dialect, this production gets a “WAH!” Does that mean WOW!? Youbetcha!
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WOW!
THE GLASS MENDACITY
The Glass Mendacity is a hilarious, spot-on Tennessee Williams spoof which combines the characters and plot threads of Cat On A Hot Tin Roof, A Streetcar Named Desire, and The Glass Menagerie into one outrageous soufflé. Those completely unfamiliar with the Williams oeuvre may miss a good number of the jokes, but for Tennessee aficionados like this reviewer, The Glass Mendacity is likely to prove irresistible. The cast assembled by the Ark Theatre Company is all-around terrific, and the straighter they play it, the more laughs they get. Credit director Andrew Crusse for keeping his actors on the same page, and hilarious as all get-out. Mendacity may be a sin, but The Glass Mendacity is sinful only in the number of laughs it provokes. Way up in Dead Gay Playwrights’ Heaven, Tennessee Williams is surely doubled over in mirth.
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IN THE MOOD FOR A MUSICAL?
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WOW!
BACKWARDS IN HIGH HEELS THE GINGER MUSICAL
It’s hard to imagine a better production of “The Ginger Musical” than the one just opened at International City Theatre. ICT has opted for the original six-actor version, and for a number of reasons, smaller makes for a better show than its big-cast big-stage counterpart. For one thing, the ICT production gives the four-member ensemble supporting Anna Aimee White’s Ginger and Heather Lee as Ginger’s mother Lela the chance to show off their triple threats in a variety of contexts and roles. For another, since Backwards In High Heels is a “memory musical,” told as the reminiscences of its star, a single, gorgeous art deco set by Stephen Gifford is all that’s needed here, lit to showy perfection by Jared A. Sayeg. All this has been brought together with imagination and flair by director caryn desai to make for two hours of Hollywood glamour and magic.
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WOW!
BROADS! THE MUSICAL
Life begins at 65 for Elaine, Louise, Myra and Nilda, aka The Broads, of South Florida’s Millennium Manor. Joe Symon and Jennie Fahn’s original musical imagines one of their glitzy annual variety shows, and audiences at the El Portal are the invited guests. Jules Aaron directs with affection and grace, bringing out the best in his four stellar performers, and if the gals find themselves the butt of jokes, these ladies (Ivonne Coll, Leslie Easterbrook, June Gable, and Barbara Niles) still have life aplenty inside them, and can serve as inspirations to audience members half their age. With luck and positive word-of-mouth, The Broads could turn out to be the El Portal’s biggest hit since The Marvelous Wonderettes. Performed with panache and pizazze, it’s easily the best show in town for the over-65 set, and for Golden Girls fans of any age.
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WOW!
DIRTY ROTTEN SCOUNDRELS
Director Richard Israel works his magic on Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, and the result is a production which comes miraculously close to matching the Broadway original in every way but size. Stellar lead performances, standout supporting turns, an all-around splendid ensemble, spiffy choreography, top-notch musical direction, and a first-rate design make the arrival of an intimate Dirty Rotten Scoundrels a great big theatrical event. As Laurence, Chip Phillips makes an auspicious Los Angeles theater debut, Matt Wolpe is simply phenomenal as Freddy, and Kelly Lohman is an all-around terrific Christine. This is must-see theater, and not only for musical comedy aficionados. With its cheeky tone and outrageously funny dialog, lyrics, and plot twists, DRS is likely to appeal even to those who claim to hate musicals. This one may well make them eat their hats.
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WOW!
KISS ME KATE
Under Tom Robinson’s snappy direction, and with choreography by Tom Knowles performed by an all-around terrific cast, Kiss Me Kate proves yet another winner for America’s oldest continuously running theater-in-the-round. All this comes magically together on the GCT stage, beginning with some terrific work by Dink O’Neal and Donna Cherry. Joey Elrose is a song-and-dance charmer and Alli McGinnis is a treat from start to finish. Dean Ricca and Shawn Cahill milk every laugh from their Guys And Dolls-ready gangsters. Kate Ponzio and Clayton Farris both get their center-stage moments to shine. Kudos to musical director Steven Applegate. Once again, Glendale Centre Theatre has come up with a musical comedy winner, one certain to please both its older subscribers as well as younger audience members who’ve come to cheer on family and friends.
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WOW!
LIFE COULD BE A DREAM
(Several of the roles have been recast since this review.)
Life Could Be A Dream’s cute, nostalgic plotline exists mainly to introduce some of the late-50s’ biggest “Doo-Wop” hits (including “Sh-Boom,” “The Wanderer,” “The Great Pretender,” and “Duke Of Earl,” to name just a few) and to spotlight five of the most talented and charismatic triple threats in town. Doug Carpenter, Ryan Castellino, Jim Holdridge, Daniel Tatar, and Jessica Keenan Wynn all give sensational performances in roles cleverly written and adroitly directed by The Marvelous Wonderettes creator Roger Bean. Credit the cast’s gorgeous four and five-part harmonies to master musical director Michael Paternostro and their suave (and sometimes deliberately not-so-suave) moves to master choreographer Lee Martino. Rave reviews and enthusiastic word-of-mouth should guarantee full houses and standing ovations for months to come.
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WOW!
RENT
The El Camino College Theatre Department has made Rent this year’s annual musical theater production, and the result is a thoroughly professional, often exciting staging. Of the numerous local productions of Rent which have been staged so far this year, none has benefitted from the level of technical resources available on a college campus like El Camino’s. Marcelo Cacciagioni’s lighting and Kenny Lefort’s sound design are each as exciting as it gets. A number of cast members deliver truly standout performances, particularly Aliya Stuart (Mimi), Tony Melson (Angel), Lauren Ashley Durant (Joanne), and Neil Moutrey (Mark). El Camino’s production proves a fine introduction to Rent for teens and 20somethings who’ve never had the chance to see the show. At the same time, it provides a fresh new look at the show for seasoned Rentheads of any age.
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WOW!
THE STORY OF MY LIFE
The Story Of My Life makes it four hits in a row for Chad Borden, Nick DeGruccio, and Havok Theatre Company. Since the show’s seventeen songs occupy about three-quarters of its funny, touching, thought-provoking ninety minutes, it’s fortunate indeed that Neil Bartram has written a melodic, even memorable score. Whatever qualms I may have about Brian Hill’s book’s seeming desire to “play to Peoria” cannot prevent me from raving about the show’s Los Angeles Premiere. DeGruccio draws pitch-perfect performances from his two leads—all in all, another stellar job from one of L.A.’s true theater gems. Borden and Robert J. Townsend harmonize to perfection and make it easy to believe that Alvin and Thomas have been friends for life. Bring Kleenex to wipe your eyes, and a cell phone to call your loved ones with. You’ll likely find yourself needing both.
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Recommended
THE WILD PARTY
Just like the kids who pooled their talents to “put on a show” in 1939’s Mickey Rooney-Judy Garland flick Babes In Arms, so the young 21st Century performers of Still Hungry Theatre have banded together to stage Andrew Lippa’s The Wild Party on a shoestring—with commendable results. under Sam Cavanaugh’s solid directionL the best (though far from the only) reason to see this production is Laura Thatcher’s Queenie. Gorgeous, statuesque, and with a voice that can belt out effortless high notes, Thatcher doesn’t even need a spotlight to shine. Keith Barletta is in fine form as Burrs, both menacing and tragic, and Cari Satre is quirky and winning as Kate. Dan Watt has choreographed quite a few lively numbers which the cast execute commendably. Prerecorded tracks often overpower the cast’s unmiked voices in solo numbers however ensemble numbers sound great.
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IN THE MOOD FOR A MUSICAL REVUE?
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WOW!
SIDE BY SIDE BY SONDHEIM
The Attic Theater showcases “early Sondheim” in this tip-top intimate stage revival. Under Dane Whitlock’s imaginative direction, a cast of up-and-coming young musical theater talents bring 50s, 60s, and 70s Sondheim to vibrant, exciting life, backed by the impeccable onstage piano accompaniment of music director Richard Berent. Jenny Ashman, Jennifer Blake, Joe Donohoe, Morgan Duke, and Nick Sarando bring their unique gifts to the production, and since each is in his or her own way so very terrific, I will refrain from playing favorites. In truth, there’s not a weak link in the cast, each of whom gets moment after moment to shine. The Attic’s Side By Side By Sondheim is a sure bet to please longtime Sondheim enthusiasts and ts dynamic young cast will make this production equally appealing to a more youthful crowd as well.
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