THE TAMING OF THE SHREW

posted on March 8th, 2009 at 1:19 AM by Steven Stanley


Director Geoff Elliott re-envisions Shakespeare’s The Taming Of The Shrew as a 1950s movie set in Italy and succeeds at the challenge with flying colors, making A Noise Within’s production a veritable treat for Shakespeare lovers and classic film buffs alike.
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posted in Burbank/Glendale, Comedy, WOW!

BAREFOOT IN THE PARK

posted on March 6th, 2009 at 1:15 AM by Steven Stanley


One of my favorite things about being a theatergoer is having the chance to see new productions of favorite plays. Unlike the movies, where the word “remake” usually spells artistic disaster, revivals of popular theater favorites give directors and actors the opportunity to put their own stamp on iconic productions and roles, and playgoers the chance to revisit favorite characters and situations—with a fresh new twist.
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posted in Comedy, San Gabriel Valley, WOW!

THE TAMING OF THE SHREW

posted on March 4th, 2009 at 1:12 AM by Steven Stanley


I’ve been known to say that I’m not the world’s biggest Shakespeare fan. In last December’s review of Love’s Labor’s Lost, I confessed that “I often get lost in his convoluted plots, whole chunks of dialog whizzing past me or over my head without really sinking in.”  Well, just as I thoroughly enjoyed Love’s Labor’s Lost last December, I’m happy to report that I absolutely loved The Odyssey Theatre Ensemble and Circus Theatrical’s new production of The Taming Of The Shrew.  It only took the first lines of dialog for me to have that “Eureka!” moment of thinking, “Wow, I’m actually understanding everything they’re saying, and it’s funny to boot!”  Precisely what audiences in Shakespeare’s time must have been thinking when Shakespeare’s verse was not that far removed from actual contemporary speech.
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posted in Comedy, West Side/Beverly HIlls, WOW!

TENNESSEE IN THE SUMMER

posted on March 3rd, 2009 at 1:27 AM by Steven Stanley


Tennessee Williams was a complicated man, to say the least.  Not the nicest person to be around. Putting it mildly, he was a screwed-up mess, or at least that’s how he comes across in Joe Besecker’s Tennessee In The Summer.  Still, there are far less interesting people to spend an hour and a half with than the multi-award-winning playwright, especially as brought to vivid and complex life by Dan Alemshah in the ”member-initiated production” currently playing Tuesdays through Thursdays at West Coast Ensemble under Justin French’s assured direction. 
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posted in Drama, Hollywood/West Hollywood, WOW!

THE SCARLET PIMPERNEL

posted on March 1st, 2009 at 1:28 AM by Steven Stanley


Long before Bruce Wayne concocted a secret identity for himself in order to fight evil and wrongdoers as Batman, an 18th Century English baronet named Sir Percy Blakeney disguised himself as The Scarlet Pimpernel. His goal—to rescue French aristocrats from the blade of the dreaded guillotine.
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posted in Burbank/Glendale, Musical, WOW!

DOUBLE INDEMNITY

posted on February 28th, 2009 at 11:28 AM by Steven Stanley


Adapting Double Indemnity for a 99-seat theater could easily prove disastrous. Make the wrong directorial, acting, or design choices and the enterprise could easily turn into an unintentional sequel to Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid, Steve Martin’s brilliant parody of film noir.
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posted in Drama, West Side/Beverly HIlls, WOW!

MAKIN’ HAY

posted on February 27th, 2009 at 11:36 AM by Steven Stanley

RECOMMENDED
There’s no 99-seat theater company with a better track record for musicals than Actor’s Co-op.  Past productions of She Loves Me, Damn Yankees, Into The Woods, The Most Happy Fella, and last season’s brilliant 1776 are textbook examples of how to shrink a big stage, big cast Broadway show down to intimate theater dimensions without losing any of the original’s magic and allure.  This season, the Co-op has taken on the challenge of presenting a world premiere musical.
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posted in Hollywood/West Hollywood, Musical, Recommended

THE THREEPENNY OPERA

posted on February 26th, 2009 at 11:42 AM by Steven Stanley


Fans of The Threepenny Opera will be hard-pressed to find a better production of the Kurt Weill-Bertolt Brecht classic than International City Theatre’s current revival. Directed with consummate vision and artistry by Jules Aaron, beautifully choreographed by Broadway’s Kay Cole, performed by a sensational cast accompanied by a masterful quintet of musicians, and designed by a SoCal “dream team,” this Threepenny Opera may well be ICT’s all-around best musical production in years.
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posted in Musical, WOW!

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