ABOVE THE LINE

posted on March 20th, 2010 at 5:50 PM by Steven Stanley


a•bove-the-line: (ə-bŭv’-THə-līn’)  adj.  the part of a film’s budget that covers the costs associated with major creative talent: the stars, the director, the producer(s) and the writer(s)
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posted in Comedy, Los Angeles, WOW!

A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO THE FORUM

posted on March 20th, 2010 at 5:47 PM by Steven Stanley


What a difference a director, a cast, and an orchestra can make! The Reprise! Theatre Company production of A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum is the third I’ve reviewed in less than two years, and though numbers one and two were each excellent in their own way, David Lee’s direction, an all-Equity cast, and a 22-piece orchestra elevate this Forum to a whole new level of brilliance.
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posted in Musical, West Side/Beverly HIlls, WOW!

RENT

posted on March 19th, 2010 at 5:43 PM by Steven Stanley


Following their outstanding 2009 revival of Stephen Sondheim’s Sweeney Todd, The El Camino College Theatre Department has made Jonathan Larson’s Rent this year’s annual musical theater production, and the result is a thoroughly professional, often exciting staging of the 1996 Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning hit.
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posted in Musical, South Bay, WOW!

A GIANT ARC IN THE SKYCAPE OF DIRECTIONS

posted on March 18th, 2010 at 5:37 PM by Steven Stanley


Playwright Michael Vukadinovich takes a half dozen or so Biblical characters and stands them on their ear in his lyrical, fantastical new play A Giant Arc In The Skyspace Of Directions Or The Story Of Miracles. 
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posted in Comedy-Drama, West Side/Beverly HIlls, WOW!

CRIME AND PUNISHMENT

posted on March 16th, 2010 at 11:30 AM by Steven Stanley

RECOMMENDED
Actors Co-op is attempting pretty much the impossible—a 90 minute version
of Fyodor Dostoevsky’s Crime And Punishment, featuring a cast of three.  The
adaptation, written by Marilyn Campbell and Curt Columbus, debuted
several years ago in Chicago, where it won the Jefferson Award for “Best New
Adaptation.” The playwrights deserve high marks for condensing a mammoth
novel into a one-act play without sacrificing cohesion.  Its message of
redemption is particularly appropriate for the Christian-based Co-op.  Director
Ken Sawyer is a master of the visual, and the production looks great.  
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posted in Drama, Hollywood/West Hollywood, Recommended

IN A GARDEN

posted on March 16th, 2010 at 12:44 AM by Steven Stanley


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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posted in Drama, Orange County, WOW!

SWEENEY TODD

posted on March 14th, 2010 at 12:42 AM by Steven Stanley


Anyone who’s seen only Tim Burton’s film adaptation of Stephen Sondheim’s Sweeney Todd or the “high-concept” production at the Ahmanson last year is hereby advised to head down (or up or over) to Torrance and catch the absolutely phenomenal revival being staged at El Camino College.
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posted in Musical, South Bay, WOW!

SIDE BY SIDE BY SONDHEIM

posted on March 14th, 2010 at 12:35 AM by Steven Stanley


Yes, Virginia, there was a Stephen Sondheim before Sweeney Todd, Merrily We Roll Along, Sunday In The Park with George, Into The Woods, Assassins, Dick Tracy, and Passion—as the 1976 musical revue Side By Side By Sondheim makes perfectly clear. 
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posted in Los Angeles, Musical Revue, WOW!

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