ONE NIGHT STANDS
Sunday, April 6th, 2008RECOMMENDED
One Night Stands, The Sex Comedies began as the second half of a program of one acts last June. Nearly a year later it continues in expanded form as a sort of “late night” entry playing during “prime time” hours (sans the two musicals which completed the original program).
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THE HISTORY OF BOWLING
Monday, March 24th, 2008RECOMMENDED
You know you’re in for something different at the theater when a quartet of
pom-pom bearing cheerleaders provide the pre-show announcements … as a
cheer. Follow that with a leading man who’s a real-life quadriplegic (Danny
Murphy of Farrely Brothers movies fame) and a quirky girl meets older boy plot
and you have The History Of Bowling, now playing at the NoHo Arts Center.
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THE VIOLET HOUR
Friday, March 14th, 2008
Richard Greenberg’s The Violet Hour seems throughout Act 1 (at least
superficially) to be a light and semi-absurd (albeit very intelligent) comedy.
However with the blackout line which concludes the act, it transforms itself in
Act 2 into a far more provocative (and intellectually stimulating) drama. The
two acts together form a funny and thought-provoking evening of theater.
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GREATER TUNA
Sunday, March 2nd, 2008RECOMMENDED
The residents of Tuna, Texas are alive and well and currently sojourning at
Metropolitan Community Church of the Valley in North Hollywood. Since MCC
of the Valley happens to have a largely gay and lesbian congregation, this
might come as a shock to some of the Tuna folks, as their hometown is not the
most forward-thinking spot in the nation. Not by a long shot.
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A GOOD SMOKE
Friday, February 22nd, 2008RECOMMENDED
Don Cummings’ darkly funny A Good Smoke could just as easily be titled Life
With The Mother From Hell, but that might just be the teensiest bit off-putting.
After all, how many of us would choose to spend an hour and a half with one
of the most unrelentingly angry women ever put on a stage? But rest assured,
on opening night the Chandler Theatre was filled with uproarious laughter,
and I was among those who laughed the loudest. Black as the comedy in as
A Good Smoke is, this is a very funny comedy indeed.
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DEPARTURES
Friday, February 1st, 2008RECOMMMENDED
Departures is a theatrical experiment that works. Seven playwrights each
independently wrote a 10-15 minute one-act about an airline passenger or
group of passengers gathered in an airport waiting area. Open At The Top’s
artistic director James L. Mellon then compiled and condensed the playlets,
“composing” them into a fluid hour and twenty minutes of intertwining stories.
The result is an entertaining and often moving dramedy that feels for the most
part like the work of a single writer. We meet, in order of appearance:
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KERR PACKAGE
Sunday, January 13th, 2008NOT RECOMMENDED
Kerr Package is a program of one-acts by Kerr Seth Lordygan, the best of which is
entitled List, directed by Kevin Fabian. In it, a married couple, Georgie and
Rendell, make a list of celebrities they give each other permission to sleep with.
Georgie’s list includes Steve Carell and George Clooney, while Rendell selects
Catherine Zeta-Jones, Charlize Theron, and a fictitious rock star named Lana
Lenore. When Rendell happens to meet the sexy (and available) Lana, he
makes good on their agreement, only to find that Georgie cannot forgive him.
List moves quickly and cinematically from scene to scene, makes good points
about the differences between the ways men and women regard love and sex,
and could easily be expanded into a full-length one act or even two act play.
Kylie Delre and Kevin Blake are excellent actors who give believable
performances as Rendell and Georgie, and Rachel Castillo has the right sexy
looks and “whatever” attitude to bring Lana to sultry life. Mason Halberg and
Bob Simpson also score in supporting roles, and share a great “surprise!” moment.
(read more)
WIT
Friday, January 11th, 2008
Margaret Edson’s Pulitzer Prize winning Wit is a play one approaches with a certain
trepidation. Its subject matter is, after all, illness and death. Not a likely candidate
for an “entertaining” evening of theater. Yet somehow, miraculously, Wit is indeed
an entertaining, unexpectedly funny (it has more laughs than many a comedy),
and ultimately transformative evening of theater.
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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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