THE GAYEST CHRISTMAS PAGEANT EVER
Tuesday, January 1st, 2013
Though it’s now too late for L.A. theatergoers to catch this holiday season’s return engagement of Joe Marshall’s The Gayest Christmas Pageant Ever!, this reviewer did manage to squeeze in the final performance of this hilarious (and much improved for 2012) December gem.
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SHERLOCK’S LAST CASE
Monday, December 24th, 2012
The world’s most famous detective pays North Hollywood a visit as The Group Rep presents Charles Marowitz’s delightful Sherlock’s Last Case as their end-of-year offering. Though not the inspired staging Actor’s Co-op gave us a few years back, director Larry Eisenberg and a talented cast offer Angelinos a crowd-pleasing comedy at a time when most L.A. stages are dark for the holidays.
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DIRTY FILTHY LOVE STORY
Saturday, December 22nd, 2012
The dirt and filth in Rob Mersola’s hilarious World Premiere comedy Dirty Filthy Love Story isn’t what its title may lead you to expect, though there is indeed plenty of R-rated raunch once the sexual sparks ignite between its in-love-&-lust protagonists.
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THE ADDAMS FAMILY
Wednesday, December 19th, 2012
Talk about The Addams Family and the oldest among us will recall the darkly humorous single-panel cartoons that appeared in the New Yorker from 1938 on. Boomers will instantly flash back to the black-and-white mid-1960s sitcom of the same name, and their children will remember either the ‘73 or ‘92 animated Addams Family series, or the ’91 film adaptation (or either of its two sequels). And that’s not counting The New Addams Family (the late ‘90s remake of the original TV series) or an Addams family video game and even an Addams family pinball machine.
Still, it wasn’t until two years ago that Gomez, Morticia, Uncle Fester, Lurch, Grandma, Wednesday, Pugsley, and Cousin It made their Broadway debut in the 725-performance The Addams Family, and it is that Drama Desk and Drama League Award-winning musical that has arrived at Costa Mesa’s Segerstrom Center For The Arts in its hilarious, crowd-pleasingly revised First National Tour.
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IRVING BERLIN’S WHITE CHRISTMAS
Monday, December 17th, 2012
There may not be snow on the ground in San Diego this (or any) year, but this Christmas will indeed be White—for the next week at least—thanks to the folks at San Diego Musical Theatre, who are bringing the live stage adaptation of Irving Berlin’s White Christmas to L.A.’s neighbor to the South. With ever imaginative director Todd Nielson at the helm, and a quartet of stellar triple-threats in the leading roles, SDMT’s Irving Berlin’s White Christmas delivers plenty of holiday entertainment.
SCROOGE IN ROUGE
Sunday, December 16th, 2012
Ebenezer Scrooge is back for another Christmas in San Diego, and should this news provoke a “Seen that, done that” groan from A Christmas Caroled-out holiday theatergoers, let me clarify. The Scrooge in question is the leading lady of Diversionary Theatre’s musical comedy smash Scrooge In Rouge, returning to Diversionary for the first time since its Scenie-winning 2008 debut, once again the holiday season’s campiest, craziest, most laugh-out-loud Christmas show—and not just for LGBT audiences.
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CHRISTMAS MY WAY – A SINATRA HOLIDAY BASH!
Sunday, December 16th, 2012
Memories of holidays spent listening to the song stylings of Ol’ Blue Eyes come back to life in Christmas My Way – A Sinatra Holiday Bash!, now entertaining audiences at North Hollywood’s historic El Portal Theater.
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JACOB MARLEY’S CHRISTMAS CAROL
Saturday, December 15th, 2012
Just when you think there’s no new way to tell Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, along comes an approach so fresh and an execution so spectacular, it makes you ignore the “I’ve seen enough Christmas Carols to last me a lifetime” voice inside your head and be exceedingly glad you did.
The Dickens adaptation in question is Tom Mula’s Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol, whose brilliant L.A Premiere staging by producer-director Casey Kringlen makes it must-see holiday entertainment for anyone who loves great theater, be it grand or intimate, or in this case a bit of both.
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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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