DominionAlan OlejniczakAt Last TheatreDon Wood as Hammon & Genevieve Perdue as MaraThe cross-shaped, raised, plywood stage with four, single-paned door frames guarding each of its legs sets the stark scene, accentuated by a few background, skeletal trees and sustained, plaintive chords from a string trio in the shadows. With no props save one bucket of black stones … [Read more...] about “Dominion”
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“Buyer and Cellar”
Buyer and CellarJonathan TolinsNew Conservatory Theatre Center J. Conrad FrankIt all begins with a whole slew of animated disclaimers. What we are about to hear is “all fiction,” that “I am just an actor.” (But the part about the fake shopping mall under her house, all true as outlined in her one published book, My Passion for Design.) With flashing hands, he … [Read more...] about “Buyer and Cellar”
“The Boys from Syracuse”
The Boys from SyracuseRichard Rodgers (Music); Lorenz Hart (Lyrics); George Abbott (Book)42nd Street MoonElise Youssef, Lucas Coleman, David Naughton & Abby HaugDon’t feel like tapping your toes, humming along without realizing it, grinning in the dark until your jaws ache, or suddenly guffawing so loudly the person in front of you turns around startled? Then I … [Read more...] about “The Boys from Syracuse”
“Colossal”
ColossalAndrew HinderakerSan Francisco PlayhouseThe Players PrepareA tail-gate picnic table full of all the wrong, but good things to eat (chips, dip, Cheetos, etc.) along side a full bar of tempting drink specials gives the now-crowded theatre lobby a whole new feel from normal. Reverberating beats and crashes of drums and cymbals from an awaiting auditorium begin to draw in … [Read more...] about “Colossal”
“Miss Saigon”
Miss SaigonClaude-Michel Schonberg (Music); Richard Maltby, Jr. & Alain Boubill (Lyrics)Broadway by the Bay Danielle Mendoza & Terrence SullivanThe story originating from Puccini’s much-beloved opera Madame Butterfly is well enough known that most audience members arrive anticipating the tragic ending to its ill-fated love story. … [Read more...] about “Miss Saigon”
“The Unfortunates”
The UnfortunatesJon Beavers, Kristoffer Diaz, Casey Lee Hurt, Ian Merrigan & Ramiz MonsefAmerican Conservatory TheatreChristopher Livingston, Ian Merrigan & Jon BeaversWhat starts as one lone piano player in a barren saloon setting explodes into a kaleidoscope of colors and characters that boggle the senses and imagination. The story is as timeless as The Odyssey … [Read more...] about “The Unfortunates”
“Stories”
Stories“Night Vision” by Emma Donoghue“Silence” by Colm TóibínZ Space Word for WordRosie Hallet as Franny Listens to Rudy Guerrero as Her BrotherThe formative years of two, nineteenth-century, Irish women who will later in life leave legacies for future generations are the subjects of two short stories presented dramatically in a manner unique to Z Space’s Word for Word. … [Read more...] about “Stories”
“Champion: An Opera in Jazz”
Champion: An Opera in JazzTerence Blanchard (Composer); Michael Cristofer (Libretto)SFJAZZ with Opera ParallèleArthur WoodleyA lone boxer slowly and randomly punches his bag, gradually picks up steam and style with gathered strength, and finally begins to punctuate his song in staccato beats on the bag. With that singular, opening composition, Terence Blanchard introduces … [Read more...] about “Champion: An Opera in Jazz”
“Sam and Dede (Or, My Dinner with Andre the Giant)”
Sam and Dede (Or My Dinner with Andre the Giant)Gino DilorioCustom Made Theatre CompanySam (Dave Sikula) Drives Dede (Brendan Averett) to SchoolA writer afraid of words befriends a giant trying to hide. That the former is the Nobel prize-winning, Irish writer Samuel Beckett and the latter is his French, twelve-year-old neighbor, Andre, already over six feet tall and 240 … [Read more...] about “Sam and Dede (Or, My Dinner with Andre the Giant)”
“Valley of the Heart”
Valley of the HeartLuis ValdezSan Jose Stage Company in Partnership with El Teatro Campesino Lakin Vladez & Melanie Arii MahGrand and epic in theme and scope while intensely personal in individual stories, Luis Valdez’s Valley of the Heart receives its world premiere through a partnership between two award-winning companies, San Jose Stage and El Teatro … [Read more...] about “Valley of the Heart”
“Aubergine”
AubergineJulia ChoBerkeley Repertory TheatreSab Shimono & Tim KangA small, homegrown carrot; specially bought bread fried in butter and topped with warmed pastrami; multi-colored eggplants the size of golf balls; a soup of turtle, cabbages, and scallions; even a bowl of cheap ramen or a plate of cold fried chicken: What is it about each that elicits sweet, even … [Read more...] about “Aubergine”
“Satchmo at the Waldorf”
Satchmo at the WaldorfTerry TeachoutAmerican Conservatory TheatreJohn Douglas Thompson as Louis ArmstrongOur first glimpse of him is not what we remember from those bigger-than-life pictures of his sparkling eyes shining through squinted slots, huge smile of ivories that became his trademark, and rounded face always aimed upwards ready to rasp out a familiar tune we so … [Read more...] about “Satchmo at the Waldorf”
“Gem of the Ocean”
Gem of the OceanAugust WilsonMarin Theatre CompanyJuney Smith, Namir Smallwood, David Everett Moore & Margo HallThrough her walled displays that could as easily be in an art gallery as on a theatre’s stage, Kimberlee Koym-Murteira captures the essence of the themes and stories of August Wilson’s Gem of the Ocean. A beautiful liquid prism wall of overlapping squares of … [Read more...] about “Gem of the Ocean”
“The Nether”
The NetherJennifer HaleySan Francisco PlayhouseThe Cast of "The Nether"Already we live in a world where increasingly people are more apt to converse with a colleague in the next-door cube or the date across the dining table online versus in person. Millions escape to imaginary lands to fight battles and kill invaders as well as to plant farms, sell goods, or solve world … [Read more...] about “The Nether”
“Jersey Boys”
Jersey BoysMarshall Brickman & Rick Elice (Book)Bob Gaudio (Music); Bob Crewe (Lyrics)SHN Orpheum TheatreKeith Hines, Matthew Dailey, Aaron De Jesus & Drew SeeleyWhat is it about the 2005, multi-Tony-award-winning Jersey Boys in its third U.S. tour and third visit to San Francisco that still results in a standing ovation, sold-out Opening Night and a beginning of yet … [Read more...] about “Jersey Boys”
