BAND FAGS!: Comedy. Written by Frank Anthony Polito.  Directed  by Stephanie Temple.  New Conservatory Theatre Center Walker Theatre, 25 Van Ness Ave @Market, San Francisco, CA. 415-861-8972 or www.boxoffice@nctcsf.org.  

September 13 – October 13, 2013

BAND FAGS! is a coming of age play at the New Conservatory Theatre Center

Coming of age stories are almost always personal reminiscences and can be charming, bitter-sweet or dark. Since playwright Frank Anthony Polito sets the place of Band FAGS! in his home town of Hazel Park, a Detroit superb known as “Hazeltucky” one can assume it is at least semi-autobiographical. The time is October 1984 to October 1988 when he would have been a pre-teen.

His characters in this two-hander grow from age 13 to 17 and from junior high-schoolers to seniors.  It is a time when sexual hormones begin and in that four year span can rage. So it is with best friends Jack Paterno and Brad Dayton, who is black. They developed a close friendship when they became members of Varsity Band and they often need to reassure themselves that they are best friends.

Sadly the male members of the band are derogatorily called “Fags” hence the title of the play. As the 20 plus scene play progresses there is no subject off limits for the boys and director Temple allows them to excessively horse around taking the sting out of some hurtful observations. They constantly deny that they are fags but often the dialog suggests otherwise. Author Polito does not put forth nor explore any new observations about the hardships of growing up gay and his two characters lack distinctive qualities.

Whereas Brad is the dominant more masculine one of the two and has secretly accepted his homosexuality, it is Jack who is in denial and filled with angst. Polito has written the angst into the dialog but neither Paterno nor Dayton has sufficient acting ability to covey that angst. This is very apparent in one of the final scenes where Brad has been elected as one of the “Top 25 Personalities” in the Senior Class and Jack who has coveted that honor for years has not. As staged by Temple the poignancy is absent. Similarly, when Jack has received a valentine from Joey his heartthrob and “other friend”, Brad’s confrontation lacks depth.

(L-R)James Arthur M as Brad shows off his Top 25 award to a disappointed Jack (Blake Dorris)

Further, the multiple scenes lack fluidity and are demarcated by the boys changing a sweater, a trouser or both on stage with an occasional reference to the date such as when Brad is writing a letter he begins with “October 6”, Dear Jack.

Paterno and Dayton are to be commended for their enthusiasm and apparently never missing a line but the arduous task of aging from age 13 to 17 would stymie an Equity actor. Knowing that actors have an aversion to “line direction” director Temple who has successfully helmed other shows would have better served by doing so creating what could have been a charming, heartwarming evening.

Kedar K. Adour, MD

Courtesy of www.theatreworldinternetmagazine.com.

Jarrod Zimmerman (Edward Rutledge) and the cast of the West Coast premiere of Tony Award-winning director Frank Galati’s triumphant new staging of the musical 1776, now playing at A.C.T.’s Geary Theater through October 6, 2013. Photo by Kevin Berne

1776: A Musical Play. Music and lyrics by Sherman Edwards and book Peter Stone.Directed by Frank Galati. American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.), 415 Geary Street, San Francisco.  415.749.2228 or www.act-sf.org  September 11 – October 6, 2013.

1776: A mesmerizing musical look at the creation of the Declaration of Independence

A block-buster production of the musical play 1776 opened American Conservatory Theater’s (ACT) 2013-14 season with a superb 26 member cast bringing an entertaining yet realistic look at American history, specifically the adoption of the Declaration of Independence.  For this production ACT has imported the brilliant director Frank Galati who helmed its run at the Asolo Repertory Theatre in Florida. He has brought along seven of that cast and integrated them with local talent to create a memorable evening.

In 1969 during 1776’s out-of-town tryouts major changes were made and its 1969 Broadway run was a smashing success earning three Tony Award nominations winning as Best Musical. It starred Williams Daniels, Howard de Silva, Betty Buckley and Ken Howard and ran for 1217 performances. Similar success was attained in its London run and on the road. Although ACT’s staging is listed as a West Coast premiere; Willows Theatre mounted an excellent production in 2000.

The physical action takes place during the Second Continental Congress from May 8 and July 4, 1776 on hot and humid days in the main chamber of the Pennsylvania State house in Philadelphia. Irrepressible, obnoxious and disliked John Adams (John Hickok) of Massachusetts is spearheading a resolution to disavow English rule and seek independence for the 13 colonies. The separate factions and infighting are harbingers of what is happening in our present Congress. The inability to reach any consensus is rather ridiculously apparent when no decision could be made whether to open a window. With the lines drawn between the North and South colonies, John Dickinson of Pennsylvanian (Jeff Parker) posits a resolution that any decision must be unanimous.  It is passed.

In an attempt to break the deadlock Benjamin Franklin (Andrew Boyer) proposes that a written document (declaration) would be needed to clarify what independence means. Thomas Jefferson (Brandon Dahlquist) is maneuvered into writing it. Jefferson who misses his bride of six months Martha (Andrea Prestinario) is unable to complete the task. Franklin sends for her and after a night of delight he is able to finish the task.

When the declaration is submitted to the Congress changes are insisted upon and mostly accepted by Jefferson with the exception of the one stating slavery be abolished.  Rutledge of South Carolina (Jarrod Zimmerman) being the most vocal in a devastating song with singing “Molasses to Rum” forcefully telling the hypocrisy of the North whose ships bring in the slaves in exchange for the rum trade. Zimmerman controls the stage and received thunderous applause for his scathing satirical presentation.

Although the major characters who individually add great class to this well constructed play, it is a true ensemble performance with the minor characters adding depth to the action. John Hickok’s booming voice is commanding but he has to share accolades with the fore mentioned Jarrod Zimmerman, the avuncular Andrew Boyer, and Jeff Parker who nails the song “Cool, Cool Considerate Man” as he leads the conservatives in a dance.

The only two ladies in the show are absolutely perfect in their rolls. In the sequences between John Adams and his wife Abigail (“Yours, Yours, Yours”), Abby Mueller is a shining gem with a personality to match her flawless voice. Andrea Prestinario as Martha Jefferson in her turn in the spotlight with Hickok and Boyer is sheer delight with “He Plays the Violin.”

The most poignant moment of the evening belongs to the beautiful rendition of “Momma, Look Sharp” sung by Zach Kenny as the courier describing a mother looking for her wounded son on the battlefield.

There is a great deal of necessary humor throughout the play beginning the rousing “Sit Down John” and “Piddle, Twiddle” and continuing to a “battle of canes” between the members of congress. There might be unintentional humor injected into scene 2 when Ryan Drummond as Richard Henry Lee performs an energetic foppish song and dance “The Lees of Old Virginia” as he is off to get a proclamation approving independence from the Governor of Virginia.

Frank Galati’s direction is brilliant utilizing every member of the cast bringing them forward to the step-down apron that covers the hidden ten piece orchestra directed by Michael Rice and back into the framework of Russell Metheny’s set. Add to this are the fantastic costumes created by Mara Blumenfeld.

All in all it is an unforgettable stirring history lesson with a running time of 2 hours and 30 minutes including the 15 minute intermission.

Kedar K. Adour, MD

Courtesy of www.theatreworldinternetmagazine.com

Vince (Patrick Alparone, standing) comes to terms with his family legacy with his grandfather Dodge (Rod Gnapp) in Sam Shepard’s Buried Child at Magic Theatre through October 6. Photo: Jennifer Reiley

EXTENED THROUGH OCTOBER 19, 2013 

Buried Child by Sam Shepard. Directed by Loretta Greco. Magic Theatre, Fort Mason Center, 2 Marina Boulevard, Building D, 3rd Floor, San Francisco, 93123.  415-441-8822 OR or www.magictheatre.org.   September 11 – October 6, 2013

BURIED CHILD rivets the audience to their seats

Opening night audiences at the Magic Theatre are very loyal and appreciative often times giving spontaneous standing ovations to a great or near great performance. Last night at the return of Buried Child to the Magic stage the applause was thunderous but nary a person standing.  The entire evening was mesmerizing thus riveting the audience to their seats.

To inaugurate their 47^th season the Magic has reached back into its archive for a revival of Sam Shepard’s Buried Child that he wrote when he was play-wright-in- residence in 1978. During the 12 years in that position the Magic also produced his True West (1980) and Fools for Love (1983). When Buried Child moved to New York in 1979 it won the Pulitzer Prize and Sam Shepard became a theatrical personage to reckon with. In the year 2000 he received a  performance by the Magic of a new play, The Late Henry Moss with an all-star cast, including Sean Penn, Nick Nolte, Woody Harrelson and Cheech Marin at the Theatre on the Square in downtown San Francisco.

Shepard revised the Buried Child script for the Steppenwolf Company for their 1995 Broadway production. Using that script  The Magic have gathered a superb cast, used every inch of the three sided stage with a fantastic set (Andrew Boyce) and as helmed by director Lorreta Greco it is an evening not to be missed. Even with all those accolades the entire play defies description and might be called abstruse realism. It certainly is a family play involving three generations living in an unnamed rural mid-west locale.

It is a thoroughly dysfunctional family with a deep dark secret tearing them apart and at the same time binding them together for emotional and culpable reasons. It begins with Dodge (Rod Gnapp) the alcoholic and dying septuagenarian patriarch sitting on an exceedingly worn sofa watching an ancient TV without sound with a light flickering on his face. He is having an extended conversation with his younger wife Halie (Denise Balthrop Cassidy) off-stage at the top of a two story staircase that is symbolic of the emotional as well as physical distance between them.

Tilden (James Wagner), a compellingly mentally crippled son has returned to the homestead under devious unexplained circumstances and is charged by Halie to look after his father. At the same time Dodge is charged with keeping him from going outside. Yet strangely Tilden harvests corn and carrots from the fields that have been barren for 12 years.

An eldest son Bradley (Patrick Kelly Jones) has lost a leg in a chain saw accident and has become maniacal terrorizing Doge and Tilden.   There is reference to a younger deceased son Ansel who was Halie’s favorite and she fantasizes about erecting a bronze statue to his memory enlisting her paramour Father Dewis (Lawrence Radecker)to the effort. All the boys were athletic with competitive jealousy that carries over into their adult life.

Into this mélange enters Tilden’s young son Vince (Patrick Alparone) who has been away for six years and has returned to relive the past. When he is not recognized by the family he quickly learns Thomas Wolff’s truism you can’t go home again. Sanity is introduced by Kevin’s girlfriend Shelly (Elaina Garrity) whose inquisitive personality and understanding nature pries the naked truth from Dodge that leads to a gut wrenching final scene leaving the audience stunned.

With the exception of the rightfully underwritten part of Father Dewis, Shepard has created fully rounded realistic characters while placing them in a mystical family conclave. Rod Gnapp, who never leaves the stage, gives a tremendous performance combining pathos with humor yet blending into the ensemble. James Wagner uses spare full body movements and facial expressions capturing the mental retardation of Tilden. Patrick Kelly James’ realistic anger permeates the stage. Patrick Alparone and Elaina Garrity dominate the second act almost upstaging Rod Gnapp who has a brilliant denouement speech. It seems that Shepard has given short shrift  Halie and Densie Balthrop Cassidy’s performance defies accolades although her off-stage dialog with Rod Gnapp is beautifully timed.

You have the facts but it is neither hardly a full discussion of Shepard’s motivations nor the technical structure of this particular or subsequent plays.  Questions will remain when you leave the theater after seeing this performance. Running time 2 hours and 10 minutes including the intermission.

Kedar K. Adour, MD

Courtesy of www.theatreworldinternetmagazine.com

RANDOM ACTS of LOVE: 3 Dark Comedies by Lee Brady. Directed by Scott Boswell. Company Players at the SF Fringe Festival. Exit Theatre on Eddy, EXIT Stage Left, 156 Eddy Street, San Francisco. Tickets online www.sffringe.org.  

SEPT 7th@1:00, 11th@7:00, 14th@7:30, 15th@4:00
Random Acts of Love a “should see” at SF Fringe Festival
Getting a play or performance piece into the 22nd San Francisco Fringe Festival is completely the luck of the draw. The submissions are not scrutinized in any manner and the result is a mélange, thus selection of what to see is daunting. Luckily for this years audiences local auteur (playwright, songwriter, actor and director) Lee Brady has had her submission Random Acts of Love selected.
Brady’s virtues as a playwright and songwriter are  on display and her selection of a director and actors are equally virtuous. These selections are essential since most of the productions use  minimal props on black box bare bone stages. Director Boswell is a film maker by trade and is adept at keeping a tight rein on the actors and the acting.
The total evening is only 50 minutes long but are diverse and tied together by failings of love. The curtain raiser, Sunday Lovers,  is without plot but a series of verbal vignettes with the five male actors sitting on high stools sharing their thoughts with the audience without reference to each other. Brady’s use of dialog allows each to be distinctive even as they inter cut each other. Boswell adroitly  keeps a sharp tempo and at the same time allows the audience to form a complete picture of the tribulations of each character. It is a bittersweet experience and true ensemble acting by Nathan Brown, Paul Gerrior,  George Duryea,  Austin Nation and Steve Johnson.
Next up is Too Old To Ride a musical interlude about a man and his bike sweetly performed by Tom Shaw with book in hand and an off stage piano accompaniment. San Francisco is probably the city most  populated bicycles. There is a “love affair” between the bicyclists and the city. That is not the only tie in with love. The poor performer sings that he has love problems in the mid west and hops on his bike to San Francisco. All does not go well but his love persists.
The final show is the darkest of the evening and uses violence and strong language to make its point. Although BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) and Antioch exist in the Bay Area, Brady’s play is metaphorical with realistic touches to whet the appetite. The train will never reach Antioch , the ancient city on the Mediterranean, that was torn asunder by battles. Brady throws in the “battle” actors have auditioning for parts. But it is the love (again) of the stage that keeps the actor always striving. So it is with Actor (George Duryea) who thinks he has nailed a part. A macho man called Cowboy (Austin Nation) gets on the train with the oversexed Solange (Danielle O’Dea) and conflict arises as it usually does when there is one woman and two men.  The tension builds slowly and erupts in violence. O’Dea has choreographed the violence and one would hope the actors have medical insurance.
Random Acts of Love most probably one of the better to be “selected” for the Fringe. Try not to miss it. 

Kedar K. Adour, MD
Courtesy of  www.theatreworldinternetmagazine.com