Dry LandRuby Rae SpiegelShotgun PlayersGrace Ng & Martha BrighamIf there were ever a play that should come with a few upfront “Warning” signs like those we now see on so many consumer goods, perhaps it is Ruby Rae Spiegel’s Dry Land now in a spellbinding, but often difficult-to-watch production at Shotgun Players. --> Warning:- Anyone who may faint at the sight of … [Read more...] about “Dry Land”
Shotgun Players
“Black Rider: The Casting of the Magic Bullets”
Black Rider: The Casting of the Magic BulletsWilliam S. Burroughs (Book); Tom Waits (Music & Lyrics)Shotgun PlayersThe Cast of Black RiderWhat kind of play will be penned by a writer who, as a young man, shoots and kills his wife while playing with her a drinking game of “William Tell”? Imagine his then discovering an old German folktale where an unsuccessful suitor makes a … [Read more...] about “Black Rider: The Casting of the Magic Bullets”
“brownsville song (b-side for tray)”
brownsville song (b-side for tray)Kimber LeeShotgun PlayersCathleen Riddley & Davied MoralesWith sleepy eyes, we peruse the morning paper or slide through the IPhone news updates; and a too-familiar headline catches our eye. Another family mourns the shooting death of a teen or 20-something, a kid struck down by a random bullet or one meant for someone else. We … [Read more...] about “brownsville song (b-side for tray)”
“The Events”
The EventsDavid GreigShotgun PlayersJulia McNeal & Caleb Cabrera“Everything I thought was solid is un-solid.What’s the root of this unraveling?Events, dear Boy, events.”In small clumps of chatting friends, they gather around the coffee and tea station (complete with its Costco-size Coffee-mate), music in hand and with of course women far outnumbering men, as is usually the … [Read more...] about “The Events”
“Nora”
NoraIngmar BergmanShotgun Players The Cast of NoraWhen Ibsen premiered A Doll’s House in 1879, controversy immediately erupted when his banker’s wife and mother of three challenges the society’s definition of marriage and walks defiantly away from hers, seeking to discover who she really is beyond those two, domestic titles. At the time, Ibsen said he was inspired by … [Read more...] about “Nora”
“Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?”
Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?Edward Albee Shotgun PlayersDavid Sinaiko, Josh Schell, Megan Trout & Beth WilmurtTruth or illusion? A marriage based on some sort of perverted but still very real love or one condemned to be a no-exit hell of gotcha games and daily battles? For over fifty years, audiences have returned time and again to see if the latest … [Read more...] about “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?”
“Caught”
CaughtChristopher ChenShotgun PlayersJomar Tagatac as Lin BoThe “program” audience members are handed as they enter reads more like an exhibition guide to an art exhibit, “Made in China,” a phrase each person also has stamped upon the wrist by the ticket-taker at the door. The Ashby Stage has been converted, it seems, into a pop-up art gallery installation, created, the … [Read more...] about “Caught”
“Grand Concourse”
Grand ConcourseHeidi SchreckShotgun PlayersKevin Clarke, Cathleen Riddley, Megan Trout & Caleb Cabrera The soup slowly simmers as more and more cut veggies are added to the large pot in the squeaky clean, industrial kitchen. While the actual brew in this neighborhood soup kitchen never boils over, the metaphorical soup that is stirring in the kitchen run by a … [Read more...] about “Grand Concourse”
“The Village Bike”
The Village BikePenelope SkinnerShotgun PlayersEliss Stebbins as Becky & Nick Medina as JohnWhen one spouse makes amorous moves in bed for some late-night hanky-panky and the other spouse responds to each approach, “Not tonight ... I’ve got an early start... I’ve got to make lasagna tomorrow... It’s a bit hot ... It’s the weather,” a natural inclination would be to assume … [Read more...] about “The Village Bike”
“Hamlet”
HamletWilliam ShakespeareShotgun PlayersThe Cast of "Hamlet" Awaits Their Roles for the NightOne definition of “shotgun” is, “Aimed at a wide range of things, with no particular target.” Shotgun Players, a company that played in forty-four different venues before landing in its permanent spot on Ashby Avenue in Berkeley in 2004, once again lives up to its name by opening … [Read more...] about “Hamlet”
“The Mousetrap”
The MousetrapAgatha ChristieShotgun PlayersThe Cast of "The Mousetrap"For as much as any one of us decries the awful acts of gun violence we hear about on a near-daily basis, who among us does not like a juicy, suspenseful murder mystery? And who is better to tell such a tale than the master herself, Agatha Christie, the most-published novelist in history and the … [Read more...] about “The Mousetrap”
“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”
“Eurydice”
EurydiceSarah RuhlShotgun PlayersMegan Trout & Kenny TollSeveral dozen metal water buckets stacked to form a wall facing us a dozen feet tall. More buckets lined up on the floor and others hanging in the air on the opposite side, all connected to ropes and pulleys. Curved, brackish-green, metallic walls with a metal-fenced walkway running along halfway up the … [Read more...] about “Eurydice”
“Top Girls”
Top GirlsCaryl ChurchillShotgun Players Rosie Hallett as Angie. Photo by Pak Han.Marlene has just been promoted to Managing Director of an employment agency, and she decides to give herself a celebratory dinner – at least in her dreams. The dinner that consumes Act One of Caryl Churhill’s Obie-winning Top Girls is a feast like none most has ever seen, on stage or … [Read more...] about “Top Girls”
“Our Town”
Our TownThornton WilderShotgun PlayersPerformed every day somewhere in the world, Our Town to me is the quintessential American play, is the play I have seen performed the most times in my life, and is the play that still moves me to tears each time I see it. I try not to miss a chance to see it performed, especially when done so by a group as consistently excellent and … [Read more...] about “Our Town”
