CYMBELINE
Friday, December 14th, 2012
William Shakespeare’s Cymbeline has the reputation of being one of the Bard’s “problem” plays, but you’d never guess that from Fiasco Theater’s astonishingly accessible, amazingly inventive six-actor production, now arriving intact at Santa Monica’s The Broad Stage from an off-Broadway run that won over even the toughest New York critics.
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THE CHRISTMAS PRESENT
Wednesday, December 12th, 2012
The deadly-looking knife Colin hides under the queen-size bed he’s about to share with prostitute Salome in The Christmas Present clues us in from the get-go that Guy Picot’s dark holiday comedy isn’t going to be the sort of warm-hearted fare that usually fills our theaters each December.
Following four UK productions and a raved-about American debut last year at one of L.A.’s theater gems, The Christmas Present returns for another holiday-go-round at Sacred Fools, directed by its playwright and with its trio of 2011 stars intact.
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IRVING BERLIN’S WHITE CHRISTMAS
Tuesday, December 11th, 2012
For many Americans, it simply wouldn’t be December without an annual viewing of the Bing Crosby/Danny Kaye holiday movie classic White Christmas, and for the past eight years, theatergoers have been able to experience this seasonal favorite live and in person in its delightful stage adaptation, retitled Irving Berlin’s White Christmas and now playing at Rolling Hills Estates’ Norris Theatre.
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WINTER WONDERETTES
Monday, December 10th, 2012
The marvelous Winter Wonderettes are back, and spending the holidays at the La Mirada Theatre For The Performing Arts, bringing their delightful, tuneful blend of comedy, harmony, nostalgia, and seasonal melodies to old and young alike for yet another Christmas season.
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CAROUSEL
Monday, December 10th, 2012
Rodgers and Hammerstein may have had their first (and longest-running) Broadway smash with Oklahoma! The Sound Of Music may well be their best-loved hit, thanks in large measure to the big-screen Julie Andrews movie classic. South Pacific and The King And I may each have their passionate fans, among which this reviewer counts himself. Be that as it may, in my humble opinion, none of the above quite match the overall brilliance and innovation of the extraordinary Carousel, R&H’s second Broadway hit.
It is this 1945 Rodgers and Hammerstein classic that the enormously talented students o“Ballet.” Cal State Fullerton’s illustrious Musical Theatre BFA program now bring back to powerful, gorgeous life for 21st Century audiences.
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RUDOLPH THE RED-NOSED REINDOORS
Saturday, December 8th, 2012
It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas, and for Los Angeles theatergoers that means the latest annual Troubies Christmas show at Burbank’s Falcon Theatre.
Last year’s A Christmas Westside Story mixed the music of West Side Story with the plot of the family film classic A Christmas Story. 2010’s The First Jo-el recounted that starry Bethlehem December with the music of Billy Joel. And 2009’s Frosty The Snow Manilow recreated the stop-motion animated TV classic with the music of Barry M—all of the above with the audacious flair, plethora of adlibs (or apparent adlibs), and sensational triple-threat performances that have become The Troubadour Theater Company’s stock in trade.
This year’s Rudolph The Red-Nosed ReinDOORS is no exception.
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THE SANTALAND DIARIES (UNDERSTUDY PERFORMANCE)
Wednesday, December 5th, 2012
That practice makes perfect was proven on Wednesday by the multitalented Matt Crabtree in the last of his Guaranteed Understudy Performances in David Sedaris’s The SantaLand Diaries, the true story of the writer’s humiliating (but hilarious-in-retrospect) stint as a Christmas elf at New York City Macy’s “SantaLand.” With two performances under his belt last year, and another two this holiday season (including a last-minute step-in for Paulo Andino the previous Thursday), this fifth and (possibly) final understudy performance turned out just about as fabulous as fabulous can be.
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LEGS DIAMOND
Tuesday, December 4th, 2012
Legs Diamond died twice, the first time in a mob shootout on December 18, 1931, and then a second time on February 19, 1989, when the musical bearing the Prohibition-era gangster’s name died an ignominious death inside the soon-to-be-defunct-itself Mark Hellinger Theatre, the victim of too much hurried rewriting and a leading man who wasn’t quite the triple-threat the role of Legs required.
End of story, right?
Wrong, though it would have been without Michael Betts, co-producer of Musical Theatre West’s Reiner Reading Series, who fell in love with the musical’s Original Broadway Cast recording and refused to let go of a dream to bring Legs back to life, even if for One Night Only, a dream which came miraculously true on Sunday, December 2, 2012.
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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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