110 in the ShadeN. Richard Nash (Book); Harvey Schmidt (Music); Tom Jones (Lyrics)Based on the Play, The Rainmaker, by N. Richard Nash42nd Street MoonElliot Hanson, James Schott, Andrea Dennison-Laufer & Jesse CaldwellEven in the best of productions – like the outstanding 2007 Roundabout revival in New York starring the incomparable Audra McDonald along with Steve Kazee and … [Read more...] about “110 in the Shade”
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“Adiós Mamá Carlota”
Adiós Mamá CarlotaLuis ValdezThe Stage in association with El Teatro CampesinoAlison F. Rich and Will Springhorn, Jr.Luis Valdez and El Teatro Campesino partner with The Stage to premiere a play about a short, little known period of Mexican history when the younger brother, Maximilian I, of Austrian Emperor Franz Joseph was named in 1864 by Napoleon III to be Emperor of Mexico, … [Read more...] about “Adiós Mamá Carlota”
“KILL THE DEBBIE DOWNERS! KILL THEM! KILL THEM! KILL THEM OFF!”
KILL THE DEBBIE DOWNERS! KILL THEM! KILL THEM! KILL THEM OFF!Mark Jackson & Beth WilmurtShotgun PlayersNathaniel Andalis, Erin Mei-Ling Stuart, Gabby Battista, Sam Jackson & Billy RaphealFirst, I must make an upfront confession. Either I missed all the particular “Saturday Night Live” shows between 2004 and 2010 when various versions of Rachel Datch’s character, … [Read more...] about “KILL THE DEBBIE DOWNERS! KILL THEM! KILL THEM! KILL THEM OFF!”
“Steve”
SteveMark GerrardNew Conservatory Theatre CenterGreg Ayers, Clove Galilee, Joey Alvarado, Shawnj West & Daniel RedmondFive long-term friends – two gay couples and their mutual lesbian BFF, Carrie – are meeting for drinks to celebrate Steven’s birthday. Steven arrives in a grouchy mood, snapping with a snarl every time his partner of sixteen years opens his mouth and … [Read more...] about “Steve”
“Spending the End of the World on OK Cupid”
Spending the End of the World on OK CupidJeffrey LoPear Theatre Michelle Skinner and Tasi AlabastroA modern day prophet for the last six months has been screaming his prediction that the world would end last night; and in fact, half the world’s population suddenly evaporated. He now says that tonight at midnight, everyone else on earth will complete “The … [Read more...] about “Spending the End of the World on OK Cupid”
“Hedda Gabler”
Hedda GablerHenrik IbsenPear TheatreTroy Johnson and Elizabeth Kruse Craig Continuing its tradition of periodically staging important classics on its small stage, Pear Theatre presents Henrik Ibsen’s 1891 Hedda Gabler in a modern-set adaptation by former Artistic Director and Founder, Diane Tasca. Starring current Artistic Director Elizabeth Kruse Craig as … [Read more...] about “Hedda Gabler”
“Jane Austen’s Northanger Abbey”
Jane Austen’s Northanger AbbeyAdapted by Diane TascaPear TheatreLeslie Ivy & the Cast of Northanger AbbeyIn her first novel written for publication in 1803 but not published until after her death, Jane Austen satirizes in Northanger Abbey the then-popular Gothic novels which overflow with dark, stormy nights in damp, spooky castles and where murder and romance often go … [Read more...] about “Jane Austen’s Northanger Abbey”
“Sense and Sensibility”: Day 2, Play 2, Theatre Eddys at the 2018 Oregon Shakespeare Festival
Sense and SensibilityKate HamillOregon Shakespeare FestivalEmily Ota & Nancy RodriguezThe beloved books of Jane Austen have found their way onto the British and American stages over and again in the past twenty or so years. Palo Alto’s TheatreWorks Silicon Valley alone has twice staged Paul Gordon’s Emma,each time to huge acclaim and record audiences, and is featuring … [Read more...] about “Sense and Sensibility”: Day 2, Play 2, Theatre Eddys at the 2018 Oregon Shakespeare Festival
“Good. Better. Best. Bested.”
Good. Better. Best. BestedJonathan SpectorCustom Made Theatre Company and Just TheaterThe Cast of Good. Better. Best. Bested.It’s a typical day in Vegas. Tourists dressed in red, white, and blue roam about drinking and being totally obnoxious – even belligerent – to the gold painted, “frozen statue” of a man. A Roman gladiator and a foot soldier kibbutz in a quick … [Read more...] about “Good. Better. Best. Bested.”
“Priscilla, Queen of the Desert”
Priscilla, Queen of the DesertStephen Elliott & Allan ScottTheatre RhinocerosCharles Peoples III, Rudy Guerrero & Kim LarsenOnce again as Pride Month begins, the wonderfully garish Priscilla bus has pulled into Gateway Theatre full of its fabulously attired drag queens, shirtless twinks, and proudly prancing divas in sparkly wigs. Yes, Theatre Rhinoceros has … [Read more...] about “Priscilla, Queen of the Desert”
“What the Constitution Means to Me”
What the Constitution Means to MeHeidi SchreckBerkeley Repertory TheatreHeidi SchreckAt the age of fifteen, Heidi Schreck remembers “in addition to being terrifically turned on,” to also being enthralled by “witch trials, theatre, and Patrick Swayze.” As then a high school sophomore in Weeatache, Washington, young Heidi traveled in a circuit around the U.S. to the … [Read more...] about “What the Constitution Means to Me”
“Tinderella: The Modern Musical”
Tinderella: The Modern MusicalRose Oser (Book), Weston Scott (Lyrics) & Christian B. Schmidt (Music) CustomMade Theatre Company & Faultline TheaterThe Cast of TinderellaTwo years ago, I raved in a review about a world premiere musical that I described as “a modern fairy tale with no happy ending guaranteed but a lot of sex and excitement getting there.” The tight, … [Read more...] about “Tinderella: The Modern Musical”
“The Mystery of Love and Sex”
The Mystery of Love and SexBathsheba DoranNew Conservatory Theatre CenterKenny Scott & Linda Maria GirónCharlotte and Jonny, who have been pals since they were nine, now are dormie buddies in college and about to host her parents for a ‘heatless’ dinner (aka salad and French bread sans the butter they forgot to buy). That she is white and Jewish and he is black and … [Read more...] about “The Mystery of Love and Sex”
“Love Never Dies”
Love Never DiesAndrew Lloyd Webber (Music); Glenn Slater (Lyrics); Ben Elton (Book)Charles Hart (Additional Lyrics); David Cullen & Andrew Lloyd Webber (Orchestration)Broadway San JoseGarder Thor Cortes & Meghan PicernoSince the longest running show in Broadway history opened in 1988 and after its six-year, record-breaking run in San Francisco (1993-1999), I must admit … [Read more...] about “Love Never Dies”
“La Muerte Baila”
La Muerte BailaRebecca Martinez Teatro Visíon There is palpable excitement stirring as the curtain rises on a darkened underworld as all skeletal souls wait to hear the bells on earth begin to chime to announce el día de los muertos (the Day of the Dead). Those bells are their invitation to cross over for one day and re-enact a favorite memory, to visit a missed … [Read more...] about “La Muerte Baila”
