The Country HouseDonald MarguliesTheatreWorks Silicon ValleyPhoto by Kevin BerneAll the needed cast is arriving in the wooded Berkshires to ensure that Donald Margulies’ play about theatre people, The Country House, covers the bases in poking loving jabs at all possible roles in this regional premiere by TheatreWorks Silicon Valley. Here enters (with a flair of course) … [Read more...] about “Country House”
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“Champagne White and the Temple of Poon”
Champagne White and the Temple of PoonD’Arcy DrollingerOasis Welcome to the Sha Boom Boom Room where the fabulously blonde Champagne Horowitz Jones Dickerson White (she’s been married a lot … and they’re all dead) is about to grind her big, sexy body to audience howls and delight. Only tonight, our action heroine from Oasis’s previous hit show S—t and Champagne has lost … [Read more...] about “Champagne White and the Temple of Poon”
“Hay Fever”
Hay FeverNoël CowardStanford Repertory Theater Photo by Stanford Repertory TheaterWhile most plays an audience ventures to see usually have within them serious messages and deep meanings of the playwright to convey, Noël Coward's Hay Fever clearly exits and continues to be popular in performance for one and only one reason: for sheer enjoyment and a chance to forget … [Read more...] about “Hay Fever”
“Life Is a Dream”
Life Is a DreamPedro Calderón de la BarcaTranslated & Adapted by Nilo CruzCalifornia Shakespeare Company The Full Cast of Life Is a Dream; Photo by Kevin BerneBetrayal of love. Sought revenge. Family conflicts. Royal rivalries. Cross-dressing. The differences between dream and reality a blur. The loyal servant with a sharp, … [Read more...] about “Life Is a Dream”
“Each and Every Thing”
Photo by Peter Prado Each and EverythingWritten and Performed by Dan HoyleDeveloped with Charlie Varon & Marueen Towey; Origianl Music by Mars TodayThe MarshSpanning several decades and landing in cities around the globe, Dan Hoyle’s latest one-person show, Each and Everything, is a virtual romp through disconnected scenes of many ethnicities, beginning with the … [Read more...] about “Each and Every Thing”
“Freedomland”
FreedomlandMichael Gene Sullivan (Book); Ira Marlowe (Music & Lyrics); Michael Bello (Additional Lyrics)San Francisco Mime Troupe Photo by David Allen StudioFor 56 summers, the parks of San Francisco Bay Area have been the stages for the political satire dreamed up by the San Francisco Mime Troupe. Once again, the San Francisco Mime Troupe has produced an … [Read more...] about “Freedomland”
“Black Virgins Are Not for Hipsters”
Black Virgins Are Not for HipstersWritten & Performed by Echo BrownDeveloped with David FordThe Marsh, San FranciscoPhoto by Alexis Keenan Echo Brown lures us in with funny stories and interesting characters; and once we are fully engaged, then shatters many of our preconceptions and stereotypes that both Whites and Blacks have about women of color. … [Read more...] about “Black Virgins Are Not for Hipsters”
“The Addams Family”
The Addams Family: A New Musical ComedyMarshall Brickman & Rick Elice (Book); Andrew Lippa (Music & Lyrics); Based on Characters Created by Charles AddamsThe Stage Guided to our seats by a giant, grunting Lurch with the help of his friend Thing (literally a boxed-in hand with perky personality), we as audience are more than ready to see our favorite ghoulish family … [Read more...] about “The Addams Family”
“Chinglish”
ChinglishDavid Henry HwangPalo Alto PlayersPhoto credit: Joyce GoldschmidChris Mahle as Daniel Cavanaugh and Joyce F. Liu as Xi YanLanguage mix-ups and cultural misunderstandings abound, romance unexpectedly heats up, and hilarity permeates Palo Alto Players' current Chinglish. Presented with a superb ensemble, six of whom speak fluent Mandarin, Chinglish continues … [Read more...] about “Chinglish”
“A Little Night Music”
A Little Night MusicStephen Sondheim (Music & Lyrics); Hugh Wheeler (Book)American Conservatory Theatre“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times” not only applies to Dickens’ Paris but unfortunately also describes the American Conservatory Theatre production of the Sondheim and Wheeler modern classic of A Little Night Music. So much of the evening at A.C.T. … [Read more...] about “A Little Night Music”
“This Golden State, Part One: Delano”
This Golden StatePart One: DelanoLuis AlfaroMagic TheatreBoth churches and theatres involve people (often strangers) sitting close together in an auditorium, sharing emotional experiences, and then exiting somehow more closely knit than when entering. Luis Alfaro has heightened those similarities in dramatic form in his This Golden State, Part One: Delano, now in its … [Read more...] about “This Golden State, Part One: Delano”
“Trouble Cometh”
Trouble ComethRichard DresserSan Francisco PlayhouseIntense. Frenetic. Fun(ny). Eye-popping. Richard Dresser’s Trouble Cometh in its world premiere at San Francisco Playhouse delivers this and more in its wham-bam, take-no-prisoners, seventy-five minutes. A white-walled, windowless room with a plain worktable and eye-hurting bright lights is maxed … [Read more...] about “Trouble Cometh”
“Talley’s Folly”
Talley’s FollyLanford WilsonAurora Theatre CompanyHarry’s Upstage TheatreWalking in to visit an old friend not seen in years, I always wonder if our reunion will be as good as I remember our first meeting. Such is my feeling as I enter the small, intimate Harry’s Upstage at the Aurora and see the somewhat familiar “folly” before me – a latticed, gazebo-looking boat … [Read more...] about “Talley’s Folly”
“Where’s Charley?”
Where’s Charley?Frank Loesser (Music & Lyrics); George Abbott (Book)42nd Street MoonEureka Theatre, San FranciscoThere is something about a man cross-dressing as a woman that has left audiences howling in laughter through the ages, from Falstaff to Daphne & Josephine to Mrs. Doubtfire and Tootsie. Surely one of the all-time favorites of audiences the world over is … [Read more...] about “Where’s Charley?”
“The Grand Duke, or The Statutory Duel”
“The Grand Duke, or The Statutory Duel”William S. Gilbert (Lyrics) and Arthur Sullivan (Music)Lamplighters Musical TheatreLittle wonder that Gilbert and Sullivan’s The Grand Duke, or the Statutory Duel has been rarely produced since its premiere in 1896 at the Savory Opera. This final and least successful collaboration by the famed duo pushes three hours in length; has an … [Read more...] about “The Grand Duke, or The Statutory Duel”
