A VERY BRADY MUSICAL

posted on June 6th, 2008 at 11:57 AM by Steven Stanley

The Brady Bunch is (are?) alive and well and on stage at Theatre West in the brand new A Very Brady Musical.  With music and lyrics by Hope and Laurence Juber and book by Lloyd J. Schwartz and Hope Juber, A Very Brady Musical mixes multiple plots with catchy songs to create a mostly entertaining evening of tuneful entertainment.
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posted in Los Angeles, Musical, Recommended

shAme

posted on June 4th, 2008 at 11:53 AM by Steven Stanley


When reminiscing about their high school years, most adults can probably recall having studied Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter at some point or other.  An imdb check shows over a dozen film or TV adaptations including 1995’s, which starred an improbably cast Demi Moore as Puritan adulteress Hester Prynne. The classic melodrama even made it to Broadway a century ago.  Never before, however, has it been set to music, or at least not until composer songwriter Mark Governor decided to turn it into a rock opera now making its Hollywood club  debut.
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posted in Hollywood/West Hollywood, Musical, WOW!

TRACERS

posted on June 3rd, 2008 at 11:49 AM by Steven Stanley


With over 4000 Americans killed in Iraq since the United States declared its “war on terror” in the Middle East, now seems a particularly appropriate time to remember the Vietnam War and its more than 47,000 American casualties (not to mention the over 300,000 wounded in action). 

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posted in Drama, South Bay, WOW!

THE BLOWIN OF BAILE GALL

posted on June 1st, 2008 at 11:40 AM by Steven Stanley


Ronan Noone’s The Blowin Of Baile Gall deals with racism and xenophobia in Ireland, but it could just as easily be set anyplace in the United States where people frustrated with their own failures and inadequacies find it necessary to stereotype and demonize those who are “the other.” It could be about African Americans angry at Korean grocers taking over businesses in “their”  neighborhoods, or Latinos detesting the gentrification of their neighborhoods by upscale gays, or Caucasians complaining about “illegal immigrants.”  Sound familiar?
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posted in Drama, Los Angeles, WOW!

A NEW BRAIN

posted on May 31st, 2008 at 2:00 AM by Steven Stanley


Patrick’s Pearson breathtakingly conceived production of William Finn’s A New Brain is the most dazzling display of young talent you’re likely to see this year.
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posted in Musical, Orange County, WOW!

A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO THE FORUM

posted on May 30th, 2008 at 9:47 PM by Steven Stanley


“Something familiar, something peculiar, something for everybody: Comedy tonight!”

Those who associate the name of Stephen Sondheim with something  sophisticated, something subtle, something dour even (as in Passion) may not recognize the master of complex, reputedly un-hummable melodies and adult angst in Sondheim’s very first show as lyricist AND composer.
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posted in Downey/La Mirada, Musical, WOW!

TEEN GIRL

posted on May 29th, 2008 at 9:40 PM by Steven Stanley

RECOMMENDED
Though Justin Tanner’s Teen Girl features some of the wackiness of his Space Therapy and Oklahomo, it is at heart the story of a teen girl’s awakening to the possibilities of love.
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posted in Comedy, Hollywood/West Hollywood, Recommended

TAKING STEPS

posted on May 25th, 2008 at 9:36 PM by Steven Stanley


British master of comedy Alan Ayckbourn turns his hand to farce in the hilarious Taking Steps, onstage now in an absolutely crackerjack production at South Coast Repertory.
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posted in Comedy, Orange County, WOW!

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