THE NIGHT IS A CHILD
Wednesday, September 9th, 2009
Who wouldn’t want to escape the winter cold of Massachusetts for the beaches of Rio De Janeiro? Certainly not 50ish widow-housewife-mother-grandmother Harriet Easton, who’s just arrived in the land of sun and samba. Harriet’s face lights up with joy at the simple fact of being in Brazil, but her smile hides a pain almost too excruciating to live with, the grisly reason for which is revealed pouco a pouco in Charles Randolph-Wright’s magical new play The Night Is A Child, now getting a stunning staging at the Pasadena Playhouse under the nuanced direction of Sheldon Epps.
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GROSS INDECENCY
Friday, September 4th, 2009RECOMMENDED
When contemporary theatergoers hear the name Oscar Wilde, probably the first thing that pops into most of their heads is Wilde’s oft-performed classic comedy The Importance Of Being Earnest, or perhaps one of his many famous sayings. (“Always forgive your enemies; nothing annoys them so much.” “Anyone who lives within their means suffers from a lack of imagination.” “One should always play fairly when one has the winning cards.”) The Oscar we meet in Moisés Kaufman’s Gross Indecency (subtitled The Three Trials Of Oscar Wilde) is quite a different one.
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BREAKING AND ENTERING
Wednesday, August 19th, 2009RECOMMENDED
A legendary one-hit-wonder novelist receives an unwelcome late night visit from his “biggest fan” in Colin Mitchell’s Breaking And Entering, a very dark comedy now in its world premiere production at Beverly Hills’ Theatre 40 under the able direction of Mark L. Taylor.
TREEFALL
Thursday, August 13th, 2009
At some time in the perhaps not so distant future, after a series of “ecological events” has altered civilization as we know it, a trio of teenage boys have set up house in a primitive one-room mountain cabin somewhere in the Pacific Northwest. Despite the cataclysms that have befallen society, the “family unit” has somehow found a way to survive in Henry Murray’s Treefall, now in its world premiere engagement by Rogue Machine. Though a post-apocalyptic nightmare fairy tale would not be my usual theatrical cup of tea, the performances of its talented, charismatic young cast, the contributions of a superb design team, and some ultimately moving, thought-provoking writing make Treefall an absorbing piece of theater.
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STOP KISS
Monday, August 3rd, 2009RECOMMENDED
The recent rash of gay bashings throughout the U.S. makes Rogue Machine’s Los Angeles premiere of Diana Son’s GLAAD Award-winning Stop Kiss timely indeed. Though its movie screenplay-like structure presents staging challenges not always overcome by directors Elina de Santos and Matthew Elkins, a provocative storyline and excellent performances make the production a largely engrossing experience.
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BEGGARS IN THE HOUSE OF PLENTY
Wednesday, July 29th, 2009
What a difference a director and cast can make!
When I saw a production of John Patrick Shanley’s Beggars In The House Of Plenty about four years ago, I found myself squirming in my seat waiting for it to end. I couldn’t make head nor tail of what was going on as the play got more and more bizarre and heavy-handed. My guest and I looked at each other when the lights went back up and said almost simultaneously, “Now what was that about?” Arriving home, I did some googling and saw that at least one reviewer had raved about the production, leading me to wonder what she had seen in it that my friend and I had not.
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TERMINUS AMERICANA
Saturday, July 25th, 2009NOT RECOMMENDED
Publicity materials for Terminus Americana provide the following synopsis for Matt Pelfrey’s play: “After barely surviving an office rampage, Mac Winchell is thrust into a nightmare landscape populated by lost Marlboro Men, psychotic vagabonds, sinister corporate thugs and a strange cult known as a ‘The Church of Christ, Office Shooter’. Mac attempts to escape this twisted reality by undertaking a quest that ultimately leads him into the darkest corners of the American Dream. Terminus Americana is a surreal, visceral and challenging examination of our violence-saturated culture.”
CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF
Wednesday, July 15th, 2009
The Tennessee Williams estate is very particular about whom it grants right to Mr. Williams’ plays. Justly concerned about protecting the two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright’s reputation, the estate won’t let just any theater company stage the Williams oeuvre, particularly the two plays which won him the Pulitzer—A Streetcar Named Desire and Cat On A Hot Tin Roof. Other than A Noise Within’s 2000 production and the Geffen’s in 2005, I can’t recall a local staging of Cat, nor can I recall its being produced by a 99-seat theater. Thus, The Neighborhood Playhouse’s just-opened revival of the 1955 classic is a major Southland theatrical event.
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