BAREFOOT IN THE PARK

posted on January 3rd, 2009 at 1:38 PM by Steven Stanley


Neil Simon’s Barefoot In The Park may be 45 years old, but you’d never know it from the fresh and consistently funny revival it’s getting at Glendale Centre Theatre. Corie Bratter’s powder blue Princess telephone with its rotary dial may be a relic of the sixties, and there’s not a computer or plasma TV in sight, but Simon’s gifts as the master of the one-line gag aren’t even a tad dated in this, only his 2nd Broadway comedy.
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posted in Burbank/Glendale, Comedy, WOW!

LOVE SONG

posted on January 2nd, 2009 at 1:44 PM by Steven Stanley


Rude Guerilla has scored a major coup in gaining the rights to present the Southern California premiere of Love Song, John Kolvenbach’s hilarious, captivating, quirky, one-of-a-kind romantic comedy (with a twist). Following its 2006 world premiere at Chicago’s renowned Steppenwolf and a London premiere (studded with American TV stars) later the same year, Love Song has gone on to regional and international acclaim. Why major L.A. theaters let this remarkable gem of a play slip them by is anyone’s guess, but their loss is Orange County’s gain—and Angelinos are hereby advised to take advantage of low gas prices by heading on down to Santa Ana to see what the rest of the world has been gushing about.
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posted in Comedy, Orange County, WOW!

LOVE’S LABOR’S LOST

posted on December 26th, 2008 at 6:16 PM by Steven Stanley


I have a confession. I’m not the worlds biggest Shakespeare fan.  Yes, I know that as a theater reviewer it’s my “duty” to love the Bard, so sue me for saying that I often get lost in his convoluted plots, whole chunks of dialog whizzing past me or over my head without really sinking in.  Thus, when I tell you that I thoroughly enjoyed (and had very little difficulty following) The Porters of Hellsgate’s production of Love’s Labor’s Lost, this is high praise indeed.
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posted in Comedy, North Hollywood, WOW!

PETER PAN

posted on December 23rd, 2008 at 6:20 PM by Steven Stanley


If asked what songs they associate with Peter Pan, most people would likely answer with “I’m Flying,” “I Won’t Grow Up,” or “I’ve Gotta Crow” from the Broadway/TV musical (music and lyrics by “Moose” Charlap and a quintet of others), or “Second Star To The Right,” “Following The Leader,” or “You Can Fly!” (music and lyrics by the Sammys (Fain and Cahn) among others). Songs that probably don’t pop into folks’ heads are “Who Am I?”, “Build My House,” and “Spring Will Come Again” (music by Leonard Bernstein and lyrics by … Leonard Bernstein).
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posted in Musical, Santa Barbara County, WOW!

JANE AUSTEN UNSCRIPTED

posted on December 19th, 2008 at 6:27 PM by Steven Stanley


Improv is a tricky art form. It requires an actor’s imagination, concentration, quick thinking, and the ability to maintain a straight face no matter what is being said or done.  Imagine now a group of actors improvising an entire two-act play. Quite definitely a daunting task, yet this is precisely the challenge which the sensational talents behind Impro Theatre have undertaken in their smash hit Jane Austen UnScripted.
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posted in Comedy, Hollywood/West Hollywood, WOW!

IT’S A STEVIE WONDERFUL LIFE

posted on December 13th, 2008 at 6:40 PM by Steven Stanley

RECOMMENDED
The Troubadour Theater Company is back with its Christmas season favorite It’s A Stevie Wonderful Life, a spoof of the Hollywood holiday film classic interspersed with Stevie Wonder hits, often with lyrics rewritten to fit the movie’s plot.  Though I found the troupe’s recent As U2 Like It a more entertaining and polished production, Stevie Wonderful does have many bright and funny moments, especially for fans of the original film.
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posted in Burbank/Glendale, Musical, Recommended

SMOKEY JOE’S CAFÉ

posted on December 13th, 2008 at 6:36 PM by Steven Stanley


Fans of 1950s rock and pop will be in Top 40 heaven with the El Portal Theatre’s revival of the 1995 Broadway smash Smokey Joe’s Café, featuring three dozen of the greatest hits of rock-and-roll songwriting legends Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller.
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posted in Musical Revue, North Hollywood, WOW!

BACKSEATS & BATHROOM STALLS

posted on December 12th, 2008 at 6:47 PM by Steven Stanley


Quite simply put, Backseats & Bathroom Stalls is the funniest comedy I’ve seen so far in the 2008-2009 season. Rob Mersola’s pansexual sex farce not only had me laughing out loud (and quite loudly indeed) through its non-stop 80 minutes of hilarious surprises but kept me on the edge of my seat trying to guess what was coming next. It also has one of the best “I didn’t see that one coming” surprises since The Crying Game or The Sixth Sense.
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posted in Comedy, Los Angeles, WOW!

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