ALTAR BOYZ
Friday, April 2nd, 2010
I have a confession to make. I’m in love with Altar Boyz. The Boyz themselves and the musical that bears their name. Since discovering the Original Off-Broadway Cast Recording in 2005 (which I’ve listened to more times that I could possibly count), I’ve had the thrill of seeing the show’s First National Tour, two regional productions, Altar Boyz’ first L.A. intimate theater staging, and now, a sensational Altar Boyz #5 at Santa Ana’s OC Pavilion, a production which puts the Boyz back on the big stage where the shows probably fits best.
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VIOLET
Friday, March 26th, 2010
Besides offering audiences some of the finest musical theater productions around, Los Angeles and its environs house some of the country’s finest university level musical theater programs. Just check the performers’ bios the next time you see a show at a local CLO and you’ll find ample proof of the caliber of triple-threats UCLA, USC, Cal State Fullerton, and UC Irvine (to name just four) are turning out.
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THE SECOND CITY: CAN YOU BE MORE PACIFIC?
Wednesday, March 24th, 2010RECOMMENDED
For the past fifty years, Chicago’s The Second City has been a launching pad for comedians, actors, and directors, including such luminaries as Bill Murray, John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd, and more recently Tina Fey, Steve Carell and Mike Myers. The Second City now brings its trademark brand of sketch and improvisational comedy to Orange County’s The Laguna Playhouse in a mostly fresh new concoction cleverly entitled The Second City: Can You Be More Pacific?
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IN A GARDEN
Tuesday, March 16th, 2010
Middle East Meets West in Howard Korder’s thought-provoking culture clash dramatic comedy In A Garden, now playing to considerable acclaim at South Coast Repertory.
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BACKWARDS IN HIGH HEELS
Friday, February 19th, 2010RECOMMENDED
Screen legend Ginger Rogers takes to the floor again in Lynnette Barkley and Christopher McGovern’s lightweight musical biography Backwards In High Heels, now getting its first big-cast production by Fullerton’s FCLO Musical Theatre. Though not as dance-heavy as 42nd Street or Crazy For You or as meaty as Gypsy, Backwards (subtitled The Ginger Rogers Story) nonetheless provides two hours of fancy footwork, classic 1920s and 30s songs, and Broadway/Hollywood nostalgia.
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THE MUSIC OF ANDREW LLOYD WEBBER
Tuesday, February 16th, 2010
For Andrew Lloyd Webber fans, there’s no better place to be this week than at the Orange County Performing Arts Center. A sextet of Broadway stars and a full onstage symphony orchestra join forces to perform thirty of Sir Andrew’s most famous compositions, making for a spectacular two hours of song.
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MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG
Sunday, February 14th, 2010
Some productions belong to the actors, some to the writer, some even to the designers. Then there are Sondheim shows directed by Oanh Nguyen. These productions belong to the director, and the latest Sondheim/Nguyen collaboration, the composer’s 1981 Merrily We Roll Along, is no exception. That’s not to say that Nguyen’s cast aren’t delivering fine performances. They are. That’s not to say that his design team haven’t produced some brilliant work here. They have. But what sets this Merrily apart from others is Nguyen’s vision. You may have seen Merrily We Roll Along before, but you haven’t seen this Merrily We Roll Along.
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ALL SHOOK UP
Friday, February 5th, 2010
Ask me to name my favorite musicals of the past decade and All Shook Up (the “Elvis Musical”) is sure to make the Top Ten. With its hit-filled score made up of over two dozen Elvis hits, a clever, funny book by Joe DiPietro, a cast of delicious characters that make this one of the best triple-threat ensemble shows around, and opportunities aplenty for a choreographer to strut his or her stuff, All Shook Up is a non-stop crowd-pleasing delight. Having seen it on Broadway, in its National Tour, and at Musical Theatre West (twice), I can state without reservations that 3-D Theatricals’ production is as exciting as it gets.
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