GOD’S FAVORITE

posted on October 23rd, 2010 at 10:21 AM by Steven Stanley


A messenger from God arrives at the Long Island mansion of multimillionaire business tycoon Joe Benjamin and informs him, “If you cherish your children and wife, the house that shelters you, the clothes that warm you and the flesh that covers you, if pain, calamity and disaster do not in any manner whatsoever appeal to you, then renounce your God!” Joe refuses, and is soon afflicted by a series of calamities that would test the patience of Job. Does this sound like a Neil Simon comedy to you?
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posted in Comedy, Hollywood/West Hollywood, WOW!

HAPPY DAYS

posted on October 22nd, 2010 at 10:25 AM by Steven Stanley


Happy Days (and nights) have arrived at the Thousand Oaks Performing Arts Center as Cabrillo Music Theatre presents Happy Days, the popular new(ish) musical based on Garry Marshall’s TV favorite.
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posted in Musical, Ventura County, WOW!

THE TRAIN DRIVER

posted on October 21st, 2010 at 10:07 AM by Steven Stanley

RECOMMENDED
The partnership of Athol Fugard and The Fountain Theatre has possibly led to more awards and award nominations than any ongoing collaboration between writer and theater in the Los Angeles area. Fountain productions of Fugard’s The Road To Mecca, Exits And Entrances, Victory, and Coming Home have won raves from local reviewers and numerous Ovations and LADCC awards, among others. The arrival of Fugard’s latest, The Train Driver, a work the playwright describes as “the most important play I’ve written” therefore seemed a good opportunity to see what all the kudos have been about.
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posted in Drama, Los Angeles, Recommended

DIVING NORMAL

posted on October 20th, 2010 at 10:06 AM by Steven Stanley


The lives of three 20something New Yorkers intersect in Diving Normal, Ashlin Halfnight’s smart, funny, engrossing comedy-drama now getting its West Coast Premiere at the SFS Theatre under Neil H. Weiss’s astute direction.
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posted in Comedy, Los Angeles, WOW!

FDR

posted on October 19th, 2010 at 10:10 AM by Steven Stanley

NOT RECOMMENDED

The Pasadena Playhouse has reopened only nine months after the sad announcement that it was closing its doors for good, news worth celebrating in the streets with fireworks to light up the sky. If only FDR, the production chosen to welcome back Playhouse subscribers and friends, were equally deserving of a celebration.
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posted in Drama, Not Recommended, Pasadena

THE ACCIDENTAL BLONDE

posted on October 17th, 2010 at 9:23 PM by Steven Stanley


She’s done Lust, Gluttony, Greed, Sloth, and Wrath. Now playwright Leslye Headland turns her deliciously acerbic pen to Envy in The Accidental Blonde, the sixth and latest of her Seven Deadly Plays, a dark comedy that’s one of her best and easily the most unique.
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posted in Comedy-Drama, Hollywood/West Hollywood, WOW!

I LOVED LUCY

posted on October 16th, 2010 at 7:49 AM by Steven Stanley


There’s hardly an American of TV viewing age who hasn’t seen at least one episode of I Love Lucy, but only a comparative few can claim to have known its iconic star Lucille Ball, and of those, even fewer knew her as well as Lee Tannen, author of the affectionate memoir I Loved Lucy. Tannen’s popular book now makes a smooth and satisfying transition from the printed page to the legitimate stage in his play of the same name, currently in its World Premiere production at the Laguna Playhouse.
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posted in Comedy-Drama, Orange County, WOW!

BOYS WILL BE BOYS

posted on October 16th, 2010 at 12:07 AM by Steven Stanley


Boys Will Be Boys is Naked Boys Singing with a cast about half the size (no pun intended), a girl among the boys—and not a trace of nudity. If that sounds not at all like NBS, then think again. Both are musical revues filled with plenty of R-rated double entendre lyrics, both shows feature a young, attractive cast, both include a same sex love song (and a serious song or two thrown in for depth), and like Naked Boys Singing, Boys Will Be Boys is a heck of a lot of fun, even with clothes on.
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posted in Musical Revue, Orange County, WOW!

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