YOU CAN’T TAKE IT WITH YOU
Saturday, November 17th, 2007
Kaufman and Hart’s 1930s You Can’t Take It With You is probably my all-time
favorite comedy classic, and any chance to see a production of it is one I can’t
pass up. In years past I’ve seen excellent revivals by (among others) the Colony,
Actors Co-Op, and the Geffen, and I’ve watched the video of the 1983 Broadway
revival more times than I can count. I even got to fulfill an actor’s dream by
portraying Mr. Kolenkhov at the Center Theater in Whittier earlier this year. Thus,
you can imagine what a treat it was for me to see the Rubicon Theatre
Company’s production of this screwball gem.
(read more)
ATTEMPTS ON HER LIFE
Friday, November 16th, 2007NOT RECOMMENDED
Imagine a play without a plot or assigned speaking roles. Imagine a script which
does not specify particular locations, simply lines of spoken dialog which the
director can assign to whichever actor he chooses and scenes which take place
wherever the director’s imagination take him. Imagine this kind of play and
you’ve got British playwright Martin Crimp’s Attempts on her Life, the first joint
undertaking of Chris Covics’ Unknown Theater and Bart DeLorenzo’s Evidence
Room.
(read more)
TONIGHT AT 8:30 PARTS 1 & 2
Sunday, November 11th, 2007
Q: Where can you see 4 dozen of the finest actors in the country performing live and
on stage 8 one-act plays by legendary playwright/song writer Noel Coward?
A: At Antaeus Company’s twin productions of Tonight At 8:30 Parts 1 and 2.
(read more)
SYLVIA
Tuesday, November 6th, 2007
Olympic gymnast. Broadway musical theater star. Dog. A strange trajectory to
be sure, but that’s the path which has brought Cathy Rigby to her starring role
in Sylvia, A.R. Gurney’s comic tribute to “Man’s Best Friend.” Rigby plays the title
role, that of an adorable mutt who finds herself a new master in a Manhattan
park and a new home in a New York city brownstone. Given Rigby’s marvelously
winning performance, it comes as somewhat of a surprise that this is her first
straight play. Hopefully it will lead to many more.
(read more)
EXPLOIT THIS
Friday, November 2nd, 2007RECOMMENDED
Fans of sketch comedy will find much to enjoy in Exploit This!, presented by the
Easily Distracted Sketch Comedy troupe, and now playing at the Space Theater
late night Fridays. Written and performed by a young, attractive, and funny
quintet of comic actors and directed at a fast pace by Rick Ferguson, Exploit
This! is 60 minutes of frenetic fun.
(read more)
SCREWBALLS
Thursday, November 1st, 2007RECOMMENDED
Screwballs is a mostly very entertaining and often hilarious blend of wacky
characters and situations and the body swapping premise of such films as Freaky
Friday and Like Father, Like Son.
(read more)
COME BACK TO THE FIVE & DIME JIMMY DEAN, JIMMY DEAN
Tuesday, October 30th, 2007
In the tradition of Steel Magnolias and Crimes of the Heart comes the current
offering at the Hermosa Beach Playhouse, Ed Graczyk’s down-home comedy
Come Back to the Five & Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean. Like SM and COTH,
CBTTF&DJDJD features a cast of feisty and fabulous Southern (in this case Texas)
women, loads of laughs, and a surprise or two.
(read more)
TOM, DICK, AND HARRY
Friday, October 19th, 2007
Nobody writes farce better than the UK’s Ray Cooney, whose plays are a staple
of regional and community theaters across the U.S. His most recent comedy,
Tom, Dick and Harry (written with son Ray Cooney) is getting its West Coast
Premiere at International City Theatre in Long Beach, and thanks to Cooney’s
brand of nonstop mayhem, crackerjack direction by Todd Neilsen and a
sensational cast, this is a chance to see Cooney farce at its best.
(read more)
Since 2007, Steven Stanley's StageSceneLA.com has spotlighted the best in Southern California theater via reviews, interviews, and its annual StageSceneLA Scenies.
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