Death Takes a HolidayMaury Yeston (Music & Lyrics)Peter Stone & Thomas Meehan (Book)The Tabard Theatre Company Jessica Whittemore and Stephen BoisvertPhoto by Edmond KwongFor one weekend in Summer, 1922, Death decides to take a vacation, choosing a lovely villa in Italy and multiple Tony Award winners Maury Yeston, Peter Stone, and Thomas … [Read more...] about “Death Takes a Holiday”
“Mother’s Milk: A Blues Riff in Three Acts”
Mother’s Milk: A Blues Riff in Three ActsWayne Harris (Book); Randy Craig (Music)The MarshWayne HarrisInterspersed with soulful snippets of blues and gospel, Wayne Harris lovingly and humorously tells the life story of his mother, Ruth, a woman “when she smiled, her cheeks rose up like pop-up biscuits.” With his own dimpled cheeks, winning smile, and eyes that pop and … [Read more...] about “Mother’s Milk: A Blues Riff in Three Acts”
“The Kid Thing”
The Kid ThingSarah GubbinsNew Conservatory Theatre CenterDesiree Rogers, Sarah Coykendall, Jaq Nguyen Victor & Kimberley RidgewaySometimes it is the unsaid more than the said that speaks the loudest. We arrive in the midst of an increasingly heated, even vicious argument between two African American women -- one chugging alternatively Scotch and wine and the … [Read more...] about “The Kid Thing”
“Tribes”
TribesNina RainePear TheatreMorgan Dayley & Greg AndersonA returning adult son is welcomed at the dinner table by his Dad: “Welcome back … Join in and have an argument.” So starts Pear Theatre’s current production of the 2012 Drams Desk Outstanding Play winner, Tribes, by Nina Raine; and so begins an often riveting, sometimes hilarious, always … [Read more...] about “Tribes”
“Shakespeare Goes to War”
"Shakespeare Goes to War"John FisherTheatre RhinocerosJesse F. Vaughn, Gabriel A. Ross, John Fisher & Sean KeehanSubtitled “Everything I needed to know about Shakespeare I learned from my high school English teacher,” John Fisher’s latest play, "Shakespeare Goes to War," is clearly his personal homage to one or more teachers who pointed him toward his career in … [Read more...] about “Shakespeare Goes to War”
“My Mañana Comes”
"My Mañana Comes"Elizabeth IrwinMarin Theatre CompanyThe Cast of My Mañana ComesThey are all around us, silently hustling and bustling, every time we go to our favorite eatery. Water appears, hot bread is replenished, and plates are delivered to the right person while we continue our conversations (or flip through our IPhone messages). What does happen behind … [Read more...] about “My Mañana Comes”
“Awake and Sing”
Awake and SingClifford OdetsSanta Clara University Theatre DepartmentThree generations of a working-class Jewish family are crammed into a Bronx flat where a suitcase can serve as a combined bureau and closet, Yiddish-rich accents from Eastern Europe fill the air, and escape from Depression-era struggles is variously sought via Caruso recordings, frequent visits to the silver … [Read more...] about “Awake and Sing”
“Clybourne Park”
Clybourne ParkBruce NorrisPalo Alto Players The Cast of Clybourne ParkClybourne Park lands on the suburban stage of Palo Alto Players, where its story line of ethnically changing neighborhoods, disputes over remodels, and petitions over historical significance of vintage buildings quickly hits home in this tony town. Add its underlying themes of racial … [Read more...] about “Clybourne Park”
“Kiss Me, Kate”
Kiss Me, KateCole Porter (Music & Lyrics); Sam & Bella Spewack (Book)Broadway by the BayThe Cast of Kiss Me, KateFor anyone with even a mild interest in American Musical Theatre, walking into a production of Kiss Me, Kate has to be close to a dream come true. Broadway by the Bay ends their 50th anniversary year reviving Cole Porter’s … [Read more...] about “Kiss Me, Kate”
“Sail Away”
Sail AwayNoel Coward42nd Street Moon Theatre Nathaniel Rothrock, Khalia Davis, Allison F. Rich, Jordan Martin & Darlene PopovicLooking for love in the next ten days? Or, do you just want to have a merry ol’ time with people you’ll probably never want to see again? Got your bags all packed? Then head to 42nd … [Read more...] about “Sail Away”
“Ah Wilderness”
Ah, Wilderness!Eugene O’NeillAmerican Conservatory TheatreCan a coming-of-age story of a sixteen-year-old boy in 1906 Waterbury, Connecticut still speak to a 21st Century audience? When it is Ah, Wilderness, the only comedy and still most-widely produced and loved of all Eugene O’Neill’s plays, as being currently excellently and imaginatively revived by American … [Read more...] about “Ah Wilderness”
“The Rocky Horror Show”
The Rocky Horror ShowRichard O’Brien (Book, Music, Lyrics)Ray of LightD'Arcy Drollinger as Frank-n-FurterHot men and women in sensuous, black corsets of lace and leather who are raised on high by spiked stilettos, all singing and dancing in rock numbers that are precursors of later musicals like Grease or Hairspray can mean only one thing: The Rocky Horror Show is yet … [Read more...] about “The Rocky Horror Show”
The Hypocrites’ “Pirates of Penzance”
The Hypocrites’ Pirates of PenzanceW.S. Gilbert (Book); Arthur Sullivan (Music)Adapted by Sean Graney; co-adapted by Kevin O’DonnellBerkeley Repertory Theatre Matt Kahler as Major-General with Other Hypocrites CastDodging flying beach balls, stepping over ice chests and around kid’s swimming pools full of rubber duckies, and often stopping by the straw-roofed tiki-hut for … [Read more...] about The Hypocrites’ “Pirates of Penzance”
“The Rover”
The RoverAphra BehnShotgun Players Justin Gillman, Dan Saski, Jeremy Kahn & Alex LydonShotgun Players boldly brings a pioneering playwright’s play of yesteryear to a 21stCentury audience where we discover her writing about our own current issues of sexual assaults against college coeds, difficulties of women to be given deserved equality in the workplace, … [Read more...] about “The Rover”
“Ghost Quartet”
Ghost QuartetDave Malloy (Composer & Writer)Curran: Under Construction Brittain Ashford, Gelsey Bell, Dave Malloy, and Brent ArnoldPhoto by Jim Norrena Ghost Quartet -- a 90-minute song cycle by Dave Malloy now playing as part of the "Curran: Under Construction" series -- is an intermingling of quirky, eerie, captivating stories covering several centuries that … [Read more...] about “Ghost Quartet”
