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Jun 09 2014
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Stunning, funny drama in Ross Valley — ‘Other Desert Cities’ — skewers hypocrites

By Woody Weingarten

Woody’s [rating:5] 

Brooke (Jennifer Gregory, left) is stunned by revelations from her parents, Lyman (Dick Martin) and Polly (Ellen Brooks) in “Other Desert Cities.” Photo: Robin Jackson.

Kristine Ann Lowry plays the flamboyant, messed up Silda Grauman in “Other Desert Cities.” Photo: Robin Jackson.

It felt like a heavyweight champ had whacked me in the solar plexus.

Without gloves.

As intended by playwright Jon Robin Baitz, the startling, climactic secret revealed in “Other Desert Cities” inverted my view of two main characters — plus another who never appears onstage.

But there’s more than one secret in motion at any given time in this complex Ross Valley Players’ production.

Raw nerves, raw feelings and hypocrites are exposed.

Christmas Eve, 2004.

Brooke (portrayed nimbly, from heaving anger to poignant stunned silence, by Jennifer Gregory) comes home shortly before publication of her tell-all memoir that skewers her parents.

Those elders (Polly, depicted in chameleon-like, regal and repugnant glory by Ellen Brooks, and Lyman, ex-movie star and ex-ambassador underplayed expertly by Dick Martin) are ex-members of the Reagan inner circle who live in yesteryear, hiding out in their staid Palm Springs home in the desert.

Also in attendance during an uncomfortable reunion are Polly’s liberal sister, Silda Grauman (with Kristine Ann Lowry excelling at being manic, bitchy and loving as a woman just out of alcohol rehab who harbors a giant secret of her own), and Brooke’s other brother, Trip (Peter Warden being exquisitely inelegant as the producer of a lowbrow Maury Povich-like reality TV show).

All five are believable.

Never theatrical cardboard figures, always fleshed out beings that could be part of your own family.

Or down-the-street neighbors.

Up close and personal, director Phoebe Moyer is an intelligent, articulate, warm human being. And she’s managed to apply all those traits to her stage-work, ensuring that the five-member cast forcefully drives the 140-minute drama while balancing laugh-aloud comedy with family torment.

Her playbill notes indicate she wanted to showcase Baitz’s desire to “find the humor and the humanity within the conflict and pain.”

She succeeded.

Despite having to rein in the prodigal daughter character who, post-hospitalization, is still fighting depression over a broken marriage and internal anguish about Henry, her suicidal anti-war brother/best friend.

Moyer’s proficient direction let me buy Brooke drawing a line in the desert sand and daring the others to cross it.

And it let Brooke, who consistently refers to her estranged parents by their first names rather than mom or dad, ignore the fact that she’s triggering a thermonuclear time bomb by airing family secrets that could blow the holiday off the Wyeth calendar and destroy her nuclear family.

The playwright, meanwhile, allows Polly to counter-attack Brooke, accusing her of having “lots of secrets in her dollhouse.”

He also sneaks in thematic tip-offs with lines such as, “Most people go through their lives pretending.”

Baitz, creator of television’s “Brothers & Sisters,” also introduces the idea that acting and reality “are hardly mutually exclusive in this family.”

Considering all the purposeful camouflage in “Other Desert Cities,” I presumed the title had multiple interpretations, not the least of which was a reference to locales and manifold deaths and the search for weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.

But it concretely refers to a sign on eastbound Interstate 10 that indicates the freeway is heading toward “other Desert Cities” — the rest of the Coachella Valley.

In the play, which debuted off-Broadway and then became a Pulitzer Prize-nominated show on the Great White Way in 2011, the environment almost becomes a character. The appropriately genteel set by Ronald Krempetz, in fact, is lighted as brightly as any I’ve ever seen — a not-so-subtle hint of the desert sun?

And everything’s precisely in place, including lined up photos of Barry Goldwater, Frank Sinatra and, of course, the Wyeth buddies, Nancy and Ronnie Reagan.

Only the costumes by Michael A. Berg expose the differences in the people we’re looking at: the elders don fashionable dress-up garb, their adult kids sport insouciant dress-downs.

Although some skeptics might find the play’s O’Henry-like denouement inconsistent with its build-up, I see it as totally in keeping with what’s gone before.

As for that blow to my solar plexus, I forgot to mention “Other Desert Cities” also left indelible marks on my heart and brain.

“Other Desert Cities” will run at The Barn, Marin Art & Garden Center, 30 Sir Francis Drake Blvd., Ross, through June 15. Night performances, Thursdays at 7:30, Fridays and Saturdays at 8; matinees, Sundays at 2. Tickets: $13-$26. Informtion: www.rossvalleyplayers.com or (415) 456-9555.

Jun 09 2014
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Bernstein featured in ‘Maestro’ at Berkeley Rep

By Judy Richter

 

Hershey Felder makes a welcome return to Berkeley Repertory Theatre with another one-man show, “Maestro,” focusing on 20th century musical genius Leonard Bernstein.

Felder previously delighted audiences with his “George Gershwin Alone.” As he did in that show, Felder talks,  sings and plays the Steinway to illustrate his story.

This time he examines the influences in Bernstein’s illustrious career, starting with his pious Jewish immigrant father. He initially discouraged his son’s musical inclinations, but unwittingly caused young Leonard to see connections between traditional Jewish songs and themes by composers like Beethoven.

Indeed, Beethoven was one of Bernstein’s compositional inspirations, starting a line that continued through later composers like Mahler, Wagner, Copland and Gershwin, whom he wanted to succeed.

Bernstein is perhaps best remembered for his musicals, especially “West Side Story” and “Candide.” Several musical highlights of the show come from “West Side Story”:  “Somewhere,” “Maria,” “Tonight” and “One Hand, One Heart.”

He also composed piano and orchestral works and was an accomplished conductor, eventually becoming leader of the esteemed New York Philharmonic. Furthermore, he was a musical educator featured on such TV series as “Omnibus” in the ’50s and ’60s. One of those broadcasts is seen on a backdrop of the score for Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 as the audience enters the theater. (Set by François-Pierre Couture, lighting by Couture and Christopher Rynne, projections by Couture and Andrew Wilder.)

Felder speaks as if he were Bernstein at his final concert and recreates conversations with and opinions of people in his life.

During the 100-minute, intermissionless show, Felder points to conductors who influenced Bernstein. And he talks about Bernstein’s wife, Felicia, with whom he had three children. He loved her and appreciated the way she helped him with some of his writing, yet he also had affairs with men.

Because Bernstein had such a full life during his 72 years, it’s not easy to encapsulate everything, but Felder does a good job of keeping the focus on his musical career, contributions and influences. It’s an absorbing theatrical work.

“Maestro” continues through July 3 at Berkeley Repertory Theatre’s Thrust Stage, 2025 Addison St., Berkeley. For tickets and information, call (510) 647-2949 or visit www.berkeleyrep.org.

 

Jun 09 2014
Love0

“Marry Me a Little” only mildly enjoyable

By Uncategorized

There’s no doubt that Stephen Sondheim is the reigning genius of American musical theater. With his complex melodies and intricate lyrics, he has entertained audiences for several decades.

TheatreWorks is giving its audiences a look at a relatively early Sondheim revue, the 1980 “Marry Me a Little,” which features songs written for other shows like “A Little Night Music,” “Follies,” “Company” and others. Some were kept, some discarded from those shows.  Craig Lucas and Norman René wove them into a story about two lonely young people who live in the same building but don’t know each other.

Simply called Him and Her, they sing about their feelings as they spend another Saturday night alone.

Director Robert Kelley has updated it to the present and moved it from New York to San Francisco, where Him (A.J. Shively) returns from work on a bicycle and Her (Sharon Rietkerk) returns with a Whole Foods bag of groceries.

Him lives in the apartment above Her, but Kelley has the actors sharing the same space, often side by side, but as if they were in those separate units. Musical director William Liberatore accompanies the actors on piano from a neighboring building.

Both actors are youthfully appealing and dance well. Shivelyalso sings well. However,  Rietkerk has a shrill voice and sometimes goes sharp, detracting from the show.

Lit by Steven B. Mannshardt, the set by Bruce McLeod has an authentic San Francisco feel, complete with a downtown skyline. Costumes by Jill Bowers and sound by Brendan Aanes complement the show.

Running about 70 minutes without intermission, the show feels longer, perhaps because it seems disjointed despite everyone’s best efforts.

“Marry Me a Little” continues at the Mountain ViewCenter for the Performing Arts, Castro & Mercy streets, through June 29. For tickets and information, call (650) 463-1960 or visit www.theatreworks.org.

 

Jun 09 2014
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Celebrate ‘The Birthday Party’ at Dragon Theatre

By Uncategorized

 

Harold Pinter’s “The Birthday Party” is still confounding and entertaining audiences some 56 years after it was written. Dragon Theatre’s production does nothing to shed more light on this three-act drama, yet it holds the audience spellbound.

Set in a boarding house on an English beach in the 1950s, the play starts quietly enough with the taciturn Petey (Tom Bleecker) coming home for breakfast with his morning paper and being served corn flakes by his ditzy but well meaning wife, Meg (Celia Maurice).

Soon they’re joined by their only boarder, the nasty, loutish Stanley (Paul Stout).

Later, two men in business suits, the smooth-talking Goldberg (Avi Jacobson) and the menacing McCann (Brian Levi), arrange for a room. When he hears about them, Stanleybecomes fearful.

That night, there’s a birthday party for Stanley, who insists it’s not his birthday. The celebrants are Meg, Goldberg, McCann and LuLu (Monica Ammerman), a sexy young neighbor. Petey is away at his weekly chess game.

With the alcohol flowing freely, the party evolves into an intense interrogation of Stanley by Goldberg and McCann. The next morning, he has been reduced to a catatonic state as the two men take him away.

That’s the crux of the plot, but what is and isn’t said is fascinating. What do Goldberg and McCann represent? What’s their connection toStanley? Why does Goldberg change details about his life? Those are just some of the questions that arise. More come from nuances in the characters’ reactions and interactions.

Thanks to astute direction by Jenny Hollingworth and her well chosen cast, there’s always an element of tension with some relief from humor.

Running about two hours and 10 minutes with two 10-minute intermissions, this Dragon production is endlessly enjoyable and engrossing.

“The Birthday Party” will continue at Dragon Productions Theatre, 2120 Broadway St., Redwood City, through June 15. For tickets and information, call (650) 493-2006 or visit www.dragonproductions.net.

 

Jun 08 2014
Love0

Marry Me a Little is charming recycled Sondheim at TheatreWorks

By Kedar K. Adour, Uncategorized

Sharon Rietkerk stars as “Her” and A.J. Shively stars as “Him” in the intimate Sondheim
musical MARRY ME A LITTLE, playing June 4-29 at TheatreWorks at the Mountain View Center
for the Performing Arts. Photo credit: Tracy Martin

Marry Me a Little: Musical Revue. Music & Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim
Conceived and developed by Craig Lucas & Norman René. Directed by Robert Kelley
Musical Director William Liberatore. TheatreWorks, Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts, 500 Castro Street, Mountain View.  (650) 463-1960 or visit www.theatreworks.org.

June 4—June 29, 2014

Marry Me a Little is charming recycled Sondheim at TheatreWorks [rating:3]

On opening night there were maybe half a dozen audience members who gave standing ovations at the end of TheatreWorks’ production of Marry Me a Little. They were rewarded with an encore of the title song but that was not enough to stimulate more than appreciative applause from the rest of the audience. It is a show for Sondheim aficionados.

As usual the production values of TheatreWorks were superlative with a marvelous set (Bruce McLeod), musical accompaniment by the talented on stage William Liberatore and clever directorial conceits by Robert Kelley. Those conceits were perfected by the prolific multitalented Alan Ayckbourn in his 1969 How the Other Half Loves.  In that play two separate families simultaneously perform on the same set with each story separate but related.

In the storyline of Marry Me a Little the only two characters Her (Sharon Rietkerk) and Him (A.J. Shively) live in separate walkup apartments, one above the other but do not know each other. Kelley has elected to have both characters share the same physical space being oblivious to the actions of the other even when they are singing duets. The conceit holds up very well for the entire show and allows the pair to share physical contact for two of the 19 songs without breaking the concept of two separate living spaces.

Six of the 19 songs were originally written for Follies, three for A Little Night Music and the others from lesser known shows. There is no spoken dialog but the story is embellished in the lyrics that mostly are extremely clever and typical of Sondheim’s signature style(s).

It is Saturday night and Him rides his bicycle down the right aisle and enters the set. Shortly thereafter Her walks down left aisle with an armful of packages entering the set. Their plaintive duet of “Saturday Night” sets the tone of two unattached young people lamenting being home alone and wishing for companionship. As they perform routine chores of preparing mundane food, he opening champagne and she a bottle of wine they contemplate a bit of fantasy with “Two Fairy Tales.” As they perform their routine activities Kelley moves them about adding some physicality to make the storyline flow and to keep audience interested.

Whereas the original story was set in New York City, Kelley has change the venue to the Bay Area with a silhouette of San Francisco under a full moon on the rear wall. This allows for local references that are really not necessary but do work. Pianist Liberatore has been placed in a separate apartment on stage left where he is visible behind a scrim. His presence is unobtrusive and his deft piano playing never overpowers the singing. 

The limber and buff Shively is by far the better singer to handle Sondheim’s lyrics and phrasing. Attractive Sharon Rieterk has an excellent soprano voice but her enunciations of the tricky lyrics are difficult to decipher.

All in all, it is a charming 70 minute without intermission revue that is beautifully staged and a must see for Sondheim devotees. 

 Song list: “Saturday Night” (from Saturday Night), “Two Fairy Tales” (cut from A Little Night Music), “Can That Boy Foxtrot!” (cut from Follies), “All Things Bright and Beautiful” (cut from Follies), “Bang!” (cut from A Little Night Music), “All Things Bright and Beautiful (Part 2)” (cut from Follies),  “The Girls of Summer” (from The Girls of Summer),  “Uptown, Downtown” (cut from Follies), “So Many People” (from Saturday Night), “Your Eyes Are Blue” (cut from A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum), “A Moment With You” (from Saturday Night), “Marry Me a Little” (Company), “Happily Ever After” (cut from Company), “Pour Le Sport”, (from The Last Resorts, unproduced), “Silly People” (cut from A Little Night Music), “There Won’t Be Trumpets” (cut from Anyone Can Whistle), “It Wasn’t Meant to Happen” (cut from Follies), “Who Could Be Blue?” (cut from Follies) and  “Little White House” (cut from Follies)

Cast: Sharon Rietkerk as Her and A.J. Shively as Him

Production Staff: Scenic Design by Bruce McLeod; Costume Design by Jill Bowers; Lighting Design by Steven B. Mannshardt; Sound Design by Brendan Aanes

Kedar K. Adour, MD

Courtesy of  www.theatreworldinternetmagazine.com.


Jun 07 2014
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“The Marriage of Figaro” by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Cinnabar Theater, Petaluma CA

By Greg & Suzanne Angeo

Reviewed by Suzanne and Greg Angeo

Members, San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle

 

Photos by Eric Chazankin

 

“Figaro” Sparkles With Joy and Jubilation

Miguel Evangelista, Bill Neely, Christiaan Smith-Kotlaret (seated), Krista Wigle

For openers, Cinnabar Theater’s staging of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s iconic comic opera is a pretty show, from the costumes to the set pieces to the performers, and above all, the music. The award-winning Cinnabar is the perfect venue for this production. The theater space is intimate, so you are close enough to the singers, and the orchestra, to really see their faces and know that this is the real deal. No digital effects, no lip-syncing. This is breathing, moving, living talent. The voices and orchestra are superb. But the icing on the cake is that it’s in English, using the 1991 translation by Jeremy Sams, from the original 18th-Century libretto by Mozart’s frequent collaborator Lorenzo Da Ponte. You can fully understand and enjoy all the romantic escapades and sly saucy wit. Mozart’s ecstatic music gives the story wings.

Kelly Britt, Cary Ann Rosko, Bharati Soman

If Figaro had been a movie in the 1930s, it never would have made it past the Production Code. It nearly didn’t get presented in 1786 due to all the salacious goings-on, but thankfully it did, and this “opera buffa” was immediately declared a masterpiece. The story takes place near Seville, in the palace of a beautiful young couple, the Count and Countess Almaviva. They appear to be having servant trouble, due in no small part to the Count’s roving eye.  The Count’s faithful valet, Figaro, and the Countess’ winsome maid, Susanna, are madly in love and are to marry this very day. There are many spicy twists and turns in the romantic plot that conspire to put a halt to their plans for wedded bliss.

Kelly Britt

In the Cinnabar production, the setting is advanced to the 1920s, in that lull between the World Wars that saw the decline of the era of aristocracy and servitude, and the rise of the commoner.  During scene changes, recorded jazz-age music underscores the period. (The Metropolitan Opera in New York will open its 2014-2015 season this September with their own staging of Figaro, also set in the 1920s.) The period costumes are correct right down to the undergarments, and the gowns are downright breathtaking. Earlier, costume designer Lisa Eldredge explained the great care taken in her adventure in designing and creating a wardrobe for the entire cast, in many cases from scratch.

There is a vast difference between musical theatre and opera, which requires absolute perfection in technique from the singers and musicians. Cinnabar’s Figaro hits the mark with great beauty and honesty. Innovative staging is by Elly Lichenstein , whose own operatic background as a singer-actor gives her special insight into the unique challenges of such a demanding production.  Her direction and attention to detail is artful and inspired.

It’s not often these days that you can watch a North Bay musical performance and find the orchestra completely in tune. Even with the most beautiful musical score, if one musician or singer is off-key, it’s like having a pebble in your shoe when you’re hiking Yosemite. The scenery’s still nice, but it’s spoiled by that little distraction. Cinnabar is the one North Bay theatre company that has the chops to take on music’s greatest challenge – opera. Recent successes include Tobias Picker’s Emmaline from a few seasons back, and last season’s Carmen, both impeccably directed by Lichenstein. Figaro is destined to join her list of remarkable achievements.

Krista Wigle, Eugene Walden, Kelly Britt

Baritone Eugene Walden is extraordinary as Figaro. He’s the quintessential everyman who longs for happiness and justice, and he’s willing to challenge those in power to get it. The captivating soprano Kelly Britt plays the role of his intended Susanna, who apparently has bewitched her boss as well. Mezzo-soprano Cary Ann Rosko plays it for slapstick laughs in the traditional “trouser” role as the goofy, girl-crazy Cherubino, the Count’s page boy. Bharati Soman in the soprano role of the Countess is a tiny wonder, commanding the stage with grace despite her small stature. Christiaan Smith-Kotlarek as the scheming Count Almaviva has a sophisticated baritone and a polished, effective stage presence. Each singer, in turn, performs an aria during the course of the show that would be wonderful even if heard on its own. An example that showcases the ensemble talent is a sextet performed in Act III.  “Darling Boy, Let Me Embrace You” weaves a tapestry of notes that mesmerizes the audience. From the lead role to the smallest, the entire cast, including the chorus, is outstanding. The small orchestra is first-class, energetically and flawlessly conducted by Cinnabar Music Director Mary Chun.

His work may have been commissioned by royalty, but in his heart Mozart composed music to delight the common people. This Marriage is loaded with giddy charm and magic, and is a wonderful way to spend a very special evening.

 

When: Now through June 15, 2014

8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays

2 p.m. Sundays

Added performance Wednesday, June 11 at 7:30 p.m.

Tickets: $25 to $40

Location: Cinnabar Theater

3333 Petaluma Blvd North, Petaluma CA
Phone: 707-763-8920

Website: www.cinnabartheater.org

Jun 07 2014
Love0

The Homosexuals a reverse Candide type journey at NCTC

By Kedar K. Adour

The cast of The Homosexuals at NCTC: (l-r) Robert Rushin, Gabriel Ross, Alyssa Stone, Scott Cox, Daniel Redmond, Matt Weimer, Keith Marshall. Photos by Lois Tema

THE HOMOSEXUALS: COMEDY.  By Phillip Dawkins. Directed by Arturo Catricala. New Conservatory Theatre Center, 25 Van Ness Ave, San Francisco, CA. 415-864-8972 or www.nctcsf.org     May 16 – June 28, 2016

The Homosexuals a reverse Candide type journey at NCTC [rating:3]

New Conservatory Theatre Center’s (NCTC) production of Phillip Dawkins’ The Homosexuals brought to mind three previous plays that may have had more than a superficial influence on the plays structure and purpose. One of those plays is the 1934 Merrily We Roll Along by George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart and the musical of the same name with book by George Furth and lyrics and music by Stephen Sondheim. The structure of that played moves backward in time as does The Homosexuals that begins in 2010 ending the year 2000.

The other play is David Hare’s 1998 The Blue Room that was based on the French translation of La Ronde written by Arthur Schnitzler (1862–1931). Schnitzler’s play examines sexual mores and class ideology through a series of encounters between different pairs of players. Hare’s play is written in 10 scenes each with two characters with A meeting B and B meeting C etc. with A ending up in the final scene.

Phillip Dawkins has replaced the generalized “class ideology” with what may called the “homosexual ideology and mores.” He uses only six scenes, one each to introduce six gay characters and one straight female needed for completeness of the social class he is depicting.

It all begins in 2010 in New York City where semi-straight-laced Evan (Robert Rushin) is breaking up with his older lover, a flamboyant theater aficionado Peter (Matt Weimer). Evan refuses to accept the label of ‘homosexual” preferring instead to be known as “gay.” The verbal duel is quite bitchy and continues in scenes to come. The discussion of what defines “friends” outside of the sexual relationship begins here and is introduced in every scene.

In the next scene it is 2008 and Evan who is living with Peter has met British Mark (Daniel Redmond) who is Black, is in a sham marriage to obtain citizenship and is HIV positive but still engages in sex. . . only safe sex. That sexual relationship between protagonist Evan and British Mark is not to be since both are “top” men but they remain “friends.”

In Scene three it is 2006 and we meet the nerdy, insecure  Michael (Gabriel Ross) who has problems getting laid, is in love with Evan but they only are platonic friends.  This scene is not very well written, acted nor directed being a dreary uninteresting monolog by Ross ending act one on an ambiguous note. The comments at intermission were not complimentary.

Act two, with three top-notch scenes makes up for the doldrums of the first act curtain. It 2004 and we meet the most interesting female Tam(Alyssa Stone) who has given up a dull job teaching college students to take a position in an inner city High School. She is engaged to British Mark of scene two. Alyssa Stone gives a great performance as the proverbially fag-hag but in doing so shows a great deal of empathy and humor.

In 2002 Evan is working in an uptight job where being homosexual is not fully accepted and he has conformed to the heterosexual code of silence. In this terrific scene we meet macho Mark (Keith Marshall) who is living with up-and-coming theatre director Peter. Mark, a college professor of Art, is totally out of the closet and has won awards for his stance on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) issues.  His verbal confrontation with young Evan (“Heterosexuals hate you!”) leads to physical altercation after which Evan storms out.

In the final scene (the year 2000) many of the loose ends depicted earlier are pulled together with a very satisfying ending with the entire cast on stage. Throughout the play there is the mention of Collin (Scott Cox) being a friend/lover of the protagonist Evan whose life we having seeing in reverse order.  A 21 year old Evan has been picked up by Michael and brought along to a party given by the so far unseen, but oft mentioned, Collin. It is the beginning of Evan’s reverse Candide type journey.

With the one exception, the cast is excellent and convey specificity in their characterizations while at the same time projecting the generalities of the homosexual community during the 10 year span of the play from 2000 to 2010. Running time 2 hours and 30 minutes with a 15 minute intermission.

Kedar K. Adour, MD

Courtesy of www.theatreworldinternetmagazine.com

Robert Rushin, Gabriel Ross, Alyssa Stone, Scott Cox, Daniel Redmond, Matt Weimer, Keith Marshall. Photos by Lois Tema

Jun 05 2014
Love0

‘Show Boat’ sails onto operatic stage

By Judy Richter

Although “Show Boat” has generally been considered a pioneering work of the American musical theater, it has an operatic scope. The San Francisco Opera makes that point in its lavish company premiere of the 1927 work that composer Jerome Kern and lyricist-author Oscar Hammerstein II based on a novel by American Edna Ferber.

Many of its songs are familiar to American audiences, but they sound better with operatic voices. As soon as sonorous bass Morris Robinson starts singing one of those songs, “Ol’ Man River,” early in the show,  it takes on a new resonance. Robinson plays Joe, a black worker on the Cotton Blossom, the titular show boat on theMississippi.

Another outstanding singer is baritone Michael Todd Simpson as Gaylord Ravenal, a debonair gambler who happens upon the boat and immediately falls in love with the owner’s daughter, Magnolia Hawks, played by soprano Heidi Stober. Their “Make Believe” upon meeting is another of the show’s many highlights. Stober also is a talented dancer and even plays guitar in one scene.

Joe’s wife, the no-nonsense Queenie, the boat’s cook, is played by soprano Angela Renée Simpson.

The final singer from operatic ranks is longtime SFO and worldwide favorite, soprano Patricia Racette, who plays Julie, leading lady of the Cotton Blossom show and a close friend of Magnolia. She enlivens the stage with “Can’t Help Lovin’ DatMan.”

Playing in two acts with a 25-minute intermission, “Show Boat” spans more than 40 years, starting in the 1880s and continuing through 1927. Paul Tazewell’s colorful costumes and Michele Lynch’s dynamic choreography for nearly everyone in the cast reflect the changing times and styles. Sets by Peter J. Davison take the action to Natchez, Miss., Chicago and New York City.

Others featured in the cast are rubber-legged comic actor Bill Irwin as Cap’n Andy Hawks, the boat’s owner; and Harriet Harris as his dour wife, Parthy Ann. Patrick Cummings plays Julie’s husband and co-star, Steve. The secondary actors in the boat’s show are Ellie May Chipley (Kirsten Wyatt) and Frank Schultz (John Bolton).

John DeMain conducts the excellent orchestra and Ian Robertson’s always wonderful chorus.

“Show Boat” not only examines a facet of American show business history but also looks at the toll taken by racism at the time. It’s also a love story for several characters through the years.

The San Francisco Opera proves that it rightfully belongs on the operatic stage and deserves this outstanding production.

It continues at the San Francisco War Memorial Opera House through July 2. For tickets and information, call (415) 864-3330 or visit www.sfopera.com.

 

Jun 01 2014
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Triassic Parq an energetic, slightly risqué fun filled show by Ray of Light Theatre

By Kedar K. Adour

 TRIASSIC PARQ: Musical.  Music by Marshall Pailet;  Book by Marshall Pailet, Bryce Norbitz and Steve Wargo. Directed by Alex Kirschner; Musical Direction by Robbie Cowan. Ray of Light Theatre, The Eureka Theatre, 215 Jackson St. (at Battery), San Francisco, CA, 9411. For tickets, visit www.rayoflighttheatre.com.   May 30 – June 28, 2014

Triassic Parq an energetic, slightly risqué fun filled show by Ray of Light Theatre [rating:5]

After accepting an invitation to Ray of Light’s  (ROL) opening night of Triassic Parq plans to were made for a gala evening. A dear friend agreed to be my guest and a call was made to the nearby “Le Olivier”, a fine French restaurant, for dinner before the theatre.  It was not to be. “Le Olivier” was booked for a private party. Then my date twisted her knee and had to decline. Those ominous premonitions were completely forgotten since Ray of Lights’ hilarious production of Triasic Parq was an unqualified success. It is 90 minutes of pure anthropomorphic fun that received a well-deserved standing ovation.

Anthropomorphic? Yes, since all the “characters” with one exception are dinosaurs living on the fictional island of Isla Nublar off the coast of Costa Rica. That island and storyline were spawned in the fertile imagination of Michael Crichton. It’s the place where a billionaire created an amusement park called Jurassic Park that was made more famous in the Spielberg movie.  In the opening number sung by a talented 6 member cast we are told that the name had to be changed to “Triasic” to avoid a law suit.

Fertility may be in the mind of Crichton but alas, all the dinosaurs created by DNA cloning (??) are female. They may be fertile but there is no fertility without males. The confines of the jungle amusement park is surrounded by high electrified fences. The inhabitants are cared for by a higher authority, “The Lab.” That higher authority showers the island with goats thus there is never a food shortage.

Within the community of raptors there is a hierarchy with Velociraptor of Faith (willowy David Naughton) in charge keeping them all in line with platitudes and philosophy. There is a lot of PR nonsense about the meaning of community, religion, gender, science and being unique humans (dinosaurs) bonding with other humans. Forget the PR stuff and just have as much fun as the opening night audience did enjoying the energetic dancing, spot on singing and the risqué behavior/shenanigans of the human-like animals. If you are lucky you may be selected to sit in one of the comfortable seats on stage right reserved for audience members.

ROL did not stint on cost, fashioning a fantastic jungle set that fills the entire stage with the fore mentioned high electric fences that are adroitly moved by the cast as needed. The have even built a separate cage on stage left to contain/protect the four member band: Pianosaurus (Robbie Cowan), Guitarydactyl (Nahuel Bronzini), Bassceratops (Eugene Theriault)  and Percussadon (Geneva Harrison) but Robbie Cowen elicits laughs when ‘escapes’ to take part in the physical stage action.

All you need to know about the plot is that a frog gene has ‘polluted’ the purity of T-Rex 2 (Chelsea  Holifield) and she grows a functioning male appendage. Then there is Velociraptor of Innocence (Lewis Rawlinson) whose curiosity takes him beyond the fence in search of the unknown where he meets the banished T-Rex 2 with her/his “appendage’ attached and you can guess what happens during that “meeting.”

The entire production team earn accolades but Wendy Ross Kaufman deserves individual praise for the fantastic costumes.

Crisis after crisis unfolds with the rest of the cast (Alex Rodriguez  as Velociraptor of Science/Morgan Freeman and Monica Turner as T Rex 1/Kaitlyn) having a riotous time singing and dancing (Dane Paul Andres, Choreographer) up a storm.  The music is always upbeat even when a love song appears and includes hip-hop (think Spring Awakening), and power ballads. The ingenious creators of this show throw in a non-speaking part of Mime-a-saurus (limber-limbed Javi Harnly) who earns his laughs even when abused by the raptors.

Every member of the cast have their star turn on the stage but Alex Rodriguez’s  powerful presence gets more than his share. Director Alex Kirschner does a magnificent job balancing his ensemble cast that are always in non-stop motion. Final Note: Triasic Parq is another winner for ROL and is a ‘do not miss’ production.

Triassic Parq Cast:  Javi Harnly (Mime-a-saurus);  Chelsea Holifield (T Rex 2);  David Naughton (Velociraptor of Faith);  Lewis Rawlinson (Velociraptor of Innocence);  Alex Rodriguez (Velociraptor of Science/Morgan Freeman);  Monica Turner (T Rex 1/Kaitlyn).

Triassic Parq Production Team: Alex Kirschner, Director;  Robbie Cowan, Music Director;  Dane Paul Andres, Choreographer;  Erik Scanlon, Assistant Director;  Annie Dauber, Set Designer;  Joe D’Emilio, Lighting Designer;  Anton Hedman, Sound Designer;  Wendy Ross Kaufman, Costume Design; Kevin Pong, Props Design;Erick Scanlon, Assistant Director;Daniel Cadigan, Technical Director and Ilona Herbert, Stage Manager.

Kedar K. Adour, MD

Courtesy of www.theatreworldinternetmagazine.com

May 31 2014
Love0

Un-tranquil voyage in ‘pen/man/ship’

By Judy Richter

It’s 1896, and a former whaling ship is sailing from the United States to Liberia with an all-black crew in Christina Anderson’s “pen/man/ship,” being given its world premiere by Magic Theatre.

The only characters the audience meets are the three black passengers and a crew member. Chief among the passengers is Charles (Adrian Roberts), a land surveyor who has chartered the ship and hired the crew because he has a project awaiting him in the African nation. At first, he’s the only one who knows the true nature of the mission.

He is accompanied by his adult son, Jacob (Eddie Ray Jackson), who has brought along a woman friend, Ruby (Tangela Large). The crew member who befriends Charles is the accordion-playing Cecil (Tyee Tilghman).

Part of this psychological drama focuses on the love-hate relationship that Jacob has for his imperious, elitist father, who imbibes regularly in gin. The other part focuses on the astute Ruby and her increasingly contentious relationship with Charles and closer relationship to the crew, who are growing to dislike him.

The passage of time in this two-act play is depicted by the journal kept by the widowed Charles. Many scenes take place on the sabbath, which father and son have regularly observed with hymns and the study of Bible verses. Ruby is invited to join them, but she’s not terribly receptive, especially since Charles doesn’t trust her.

After the death of a crewman who supposedly attacked Charles, he refuses to tell the crew what happened. Consequently, Ruby orders the sailors to lower the sails, leaving the ship adrift on the ocean, until he agrees to talk to them.

Director Ryan Guzzo Purcell keeps the play moving fairly well despite its talkiness and relatively confined quarters (set by Angrette McCloskey). Still, it drags in spots. Likewise, the actors do well, but sometimes the characters reveal key information so off-handedly that some in the audience might not catch its implications.

The often-dark lighting is by Ray Oppenheimer with ocean sounds by Sara Huddleston. Costumes are by Antonia Gunnarson.

The play has undergone a long genesis of workshops at several venues, but it still could benefit from some tightening and clarifying.

It will continue at the Magic Theatre, Building D, FortMasonCenter, San Francisco, through June 15. For tickets and information, call (415) 441-8822 or visit www.magictheatre.org.