Altar Boyz
Civic Theater

Broadway San Diego has brought Altar Boyz to San Diego for a short run. From the audience reactions opening night, it could play to sold-out houses. The show debuted over two years ago at the New York Music Theatre Festival, opened Off Broadway March 1, 2005, and has several road productions running. Talk about striking while the iron is hot! Altar Boyz, a struggling Christian boy band, is trying to ride the current religion wave.

Robert Hitchcox
Date Reviewed:
March 2007
Batch
Actors Theater of Louisville

After seeing Batch: An American Bachelor/ette Party Spectacular, the sixth play in the 31st annual Humana Festival of New American Plays at Actors Theater of Louisville, you're likely to have second thoughts about taking part in one of those pre-nuptial rituals. But do, by all means, see Batch, performed in an arena in The Connection nightclub downtown by an incredible Philadelphia group called New Paradise Laboratories, who created it. New Paradise director Whit MacLaughlin conceived the piece with Los Angeles playwright Alice Tuan, who did the text.

Charles Whaley
Date Reviewed:
March 2007
Company
Poway Performing Arts Company

Company, which began as a series of one-act plays by George Furth, became the highly successful musical of 1970 with the addition of Stephen Sondheim's music and lyrics. It ran just over 700 performances, then moved on to London. The story is just as topical today as it was 37 years ago. Under Rick Shaffer's direction, Company is running on PowPAC's stage in Poway.

Robert Hitchcox
Date Reviewed:
March 2007
Dark Play Or Stories for Boys
Actors Theater of Louisville

Fourteen-year-old Nick (Matthew Stadelmann) in Carlos Murillo's stunning Dark Play, Or Stories for Boys, the second offering in this year's Humana Festival of New American Plays at Actors Theater of Louisville, believes he can wriggle out of any sticky situation that arises from his Internet addiction. That's because he has "the dexterity of a sharp-thinking, comic-book hero," he boasts. But the online stories he concocts to manipulate the lives of others and satisfy his burgeoning sexual appetite lead him into dark and dangerous territory.

Charles Whaley
Date Reviewed:
March 2007
Dreamgirls
Asolo Theater

Why see onstage the musical Dreamgirls that can be seen in local cinemas? Why see it again if you've already attended the Westcoast Black Theater Troupe's previous productions not long ago? Two reasons: Teresa Stanley and Chadwick. The woman reaches thrilling operatic heights at the end of Act I with both vocal and emotional output. The man doesn't have to act the part of a legendary singer: he personifies a confident, preening man with ravishing soprano tones and manner that would be over the top if his own top -- not just head but attitude -- weren't so high.

Marie J. Kilker
Date Reviewed:
March 2007
Desire in the Suburbs
Workshop Theater

Eugene O'Neill's powerful drama of love, jealousy, betrayal, passion, Desire Under the Elms, is looked at with a contemporary comedic sideways skew by Frederic Glover in his Desire in the Suburbs now at The Workshop Theater on West 36th Street.

Richmond Shepard
Date Reviewed:
March 2007
Journey's End
Belasco Theater

Journey's End, R.C. Sheriff's vivid, 1928 anti-war slice of World War I trench life slams home the stupidity and brutality of war, and the basic innocence of the soldiers sent to the front to fight in a hopeless situation. It is beautifully performed by a first rate English-accented cast, well directed by David Grindley, and underlighted by Jason Taylor. I know, I know- they want us to experience the half-light of a real trench, but it's a very long play with little respite from the gloom, and there were some nod-outs sitting near me.

Richmond Shepard
Date Reviewed:
March 2007
Gutenberg! The Musical
Actors' Playhouse

Gutenberg! The Musical! by Scott Brown and Anthony King gives us two wonderful comedians, Jeremy Shamos and David Turner, in a hilarious, absurdist interpretation of the adventures of the inventor of the printing press in 1450. Turner is a comedy star who can sing and dance and has the clean movements of a mime. Shamos is a perfect foil for him.

The songs and patter are clever, and it's directed and choreographed with flair and great comic timing by Alex Timbers. Innovative costumes by Emily Rebholz expand the concept of the two men playing multiple characters.

Richmond Shepard
Date Reviewed:
March 2007
Howard Katz
Laura Pels Theater

In the gripping poker games of Dealer's Choice and the frayed relationships of Closer, Patrick Marber keenly mapped the emotional toll of compulsive behavior and casual cruelty. At his frequent best, he wedded the fluid, seriocomic dialogue of Donald Margulies to the crisp tension of David Mamet.

So why doesn't it work in Howard Katz? Certainly, Marber's created a larger-than-life protagonist and given him a clear trajectory to follow: hollow career success becomes across-the-board failure, all in an intermissionless 90 minutes.

David Lefkowitz
Date Reviewed:
March 2007
Apple Tree, The
Studio 54

After ascending to bankability in Wicked, Kristin Chenoweth isn't reinventing Broadway musicals so much as reinventing the Broadway musical star. The triptych of short tuneful comedies by Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick will interrupt its limited run this week (Jan. 19-20) as Chenoweth makes a concert appearance, "Live at the Met," this Friday. A little further down the road -- would you believe 2010? -- Chenoweth is slated to make her Metropolitan Opera stage debut in John Corigliano's Ghosts of Versailles.

Perry Tannenbaum
Date Reviewed:
February 2007
Adrift in Macao
59E59 Theater

Mystery! Adventure on dark streets! Beautiful bad women in slinky costumes! Suave good-looking men! Adrift in Macao, the new film noir musical with book and lyrics by Christopher Durang and music by Peter Melnick now at 59E59, gives us Durang at the top of his satirical creativity, with sparkling, imaginative innovation from director Sheryl Kaller and choreographer Christopher Gattelli. The music is as profoundly enjoyable as the lyrics, and it's a kick from start to finish.

Richmond Shepard
Date Reviewed:
February 2007
Brooklyn Boy
Lyceum

Donald Margulies has given us some really great theater. My two favorites are Dinner with Friends and Collected Stories. The current offering of San Diego Repertory Theater is his Brooklyn Boy, under the direction of Todd Salovey. The latter's direction is flawless. He uses pauses—sometimes very, very long pauses—much better than most playwrights use words. His grasp of the material: the humor, the pathos, and the high emotions, is intuitive.

Robert Hitchcox
Date Reviewed:
February 2007
Carnival
Golden Apple Dinner Theater

"Love Makes the World Go 'Round" -- as the lead song of Carnival insists. Love -- by director, cast, and crew for this musical -- also comes through in a joyous, colorful production. Sarah Farnam not only looks perfect as the childlike young woman Lili who talks to puppets she believes real. Her sweet soprano hits both notes and emotional highs too. Brian Minyard's voice soars as well, while he tempers his characterization of the bitter, lame former dancer who manipulates the puppets who'll express the love he can't.

Marie J. Kilker
Date Reviewed:
February 2007
Crime and Punishment
Broadway Theater Center - Studio Theater

What could be more daunting than a theatrical "deconstruction" of a famous Russian novel? That was the thought going through this reviewer's mind before the opening-night curtain rose on Crime and Punishment. The famous book is considered by many to be the first novel to probe the psychological underpinnings of its characters' actions.

For those who failed to read Crime and Punishment in college, the noted author, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, sets the novel in Russia in the 1860s.

Anne Siegel
Date Reviewed:
February 2007
Crimes of the Heart
Village Arts Theater

Dropping by Old Granddaddy's home in Hazelhurst, Mississippi, is quite an experience. The time is the early 1980s in Beth Henley's Crimes of the Heart. Lenny McGrath, 30 years old today, has been taking care of her ailing grandfather while her sisters, Meg and Babe, pursued other adventures. Granddaddy, hospitalized in serious condition, has inadvertently brought the three together.

Robert Hitchcox
Date Reviewed:
February 2007
Evil Dead: The Musical
New World Stages

Granted, George Reinblatt's merciless send-up of this Hollywood horror isn't wedded to a musical score of equal distinction. And yes, the late-night cult cachet that Evil Dead aspires to is frankly ripped off from The Rocky Horror Picture Show. But outfitted with its undeniably original Splatter Zone, ED is s-o-o-o-o much fun, a happening with its own twisted identity.

Perry Tannenbaum
Date Reviewed:
February 2007
Fever, The
Acorn Theater

Starting with wry observations on theatregoing, Wallace Shawn is a fine monologist, an observer/commentator whose tales draw us in, while his insights and humor hold us. In The Fever, there is a lot about the lot of the poor and visits to poor countries, some with revolutions, including Karl Marx's analysis of value and the relationship between product and people, and a ramble on terrorism. There are also comments on a nude beach and on Christmas present-wrapping.

Richmond Shepard
Date Reviewed:
February 2007
Madras House, The
Mint Theater

Though the Mint Theater's revival of The Madras House is well played, beautifully costumed, often lively, occasionally provocative and, in rare spots, gripping, at the end of its three hours, really the only question that intrigued me was whether protagonist Philip Madras served as a prototype of sorts for Bobby in the musical Company. Although a constant presence in the four major scenes that constitute Harley Granville-Barker's comedy, Philip's a passive presence, serving as adjudicator and sounding board as he mulls life decisions that are crucial to him but

David Lefkowitz
Date Reviewed:
February 2007
Bacchae, The
Florida State University Center for the Performing Arts - Cook Theater

Almost everything (walls, floor, dress, decoration, curtain separating locales) is black or white. But Agave's dress after she kills her own son is red, and that's how you know her.

Marie J. Kilker
Date Reviewed:
January 2007
Bye Bye Birdie
Patio Playhouse

Bye Bye Birdie is Patio Playhouse's current fare, a production of their Youtheater under the direction of Chris Hall. Youtheater participants range from early grade school to 19 years old. The group is enthusiastic and includes some quite talented people in major roles.

Bye Bye Birdie opened on Broadway April 14, 1960. In 1963 it was made into a film, and in 1995 it was adapted for television.

Robert Hitchcox
Date Reviewed:
January 2007
Coast of Utopia, The: Voyage (part 1)
Lincoln Center - Vivian Beaumont Theater

Tom Stoppard is my favorite contemporary playwright (I played the lead in his Travesties in Los Angeles). His new three-play saga, The Coast of Utopia, about intellectuals in Russia (and Paris) set in the 1840s, is now running at Lincoln Center.

Richmond Shepard
Date Reviewed:
January 2007
Coast of Utopia, The: Shipwreck (part 2)
Lincoln Center - Vivian Beaumont Theater

The second play in The Coast of Utopia trilogy, Shipwreck, in Moscow and Paris, includes the 1848 revolution, and the Paris set is amazing before and during the revolt.The style of the whole production is brilliant, and the stage pictures would be a reason to see it.

Richmond Shepard
Date Reviewed:
January 2007
Critical Case of Murder, A
Pegasus Theater

Kurt Kleinmann, founding artistic director of Pegasus Theater, has been writing his signature black-and-white murder mysteries since 1986. Patterned after the film noir style of 1930s and 40s B movies, the costumes, props, sets and make-up are executed in shades of gray punctuated only by the actors' red tongues and blood-shot eyes.

Rita Faye Smith
Date Reviewed:
January 2007
Don Quixote
Lyceum Theater

Mix 16th-Century music with rap, add in some juggling, liberal doses of puns, combat with various folks including giants claiming to be windmills, and you have a strange mix of entertainment at the Lyceum Stage by San Diego Repertory Theater. Paul Magid's Don Quixote is all of this and much more. It's at times silly, at times serious, with a delightful mix of music.

Robert Hitchcox
Date Reviewed:
January 2007
Dracula
Coronado Playhouse

John Mattera's adaptation of Bram Stoker's Dracula is a drama, right? If I could only stop laughing or was still in knickers, it would appear to be a drama. Or maybe I've just seen too many horror flicks and stage productions. Either way, director James Gary Byrd has created a delightful, highly interactive production.

Robert Hitchcox
Date Reviewed:
January 2007
High Fidelity
Imperial Theater

Centering on the belated maturation of vinyl record shop owner Rob (Will Chase), David Lindsay-Abaire's script for High Fidelity had the misfortune of sporting a recurring Top 5 theme. The Times critic took aim at this irritating tick and enshrined the show among a makeshift list of Top 5 "All-Time Most Forgettable Musicals."

Perry Tannenbaum
Date Reviewed:
January 2007
Little Dog Laughed, The
Cort Theater

No doubt about it, Julie White gives an exquisitely sharp portrait of Diane, a manipulative Hollywood agent who connives to keep her hottest client, Mitch, safely in the closet -- despite her own lesbian leanings. Otherwise, I found The Little Dog Laughed, a slick Tinseltown satire, to be overpraised.

Perry Tannenbaum
Date Reviewed:
January 2007
Her Song
Birdland

Barry and Brenda Levitt's compilation show at Birdland, Her Song, celebrating women songwriters, gives us a top-notch musical ensemble of five first-class singers with four hues of hair: blonde (Emma Zaks), brown (Casey Erin Clark), black (Heidi Weyhmueller) and red (Kelly McCormick). All are terrific singers and personalities. Her Song also offers one large black woman (which every musical needs) as the heart (and soul) of the show -- the incomparable Broadway star Carol Woods.

Richmond Shepard
Date Reviewed:
January 2007
Spring Awakening
Eugene O'Neill Theater

The hottest Off-Broadway transplant of the season takes as its source an 1891 Franz Wedekind drama that dealt with teens discovering their sexuality without a shred of knowledge from their teachers or preparation from their Teutonic parents. Layered onto this quaint, excavated tragedy in Spring Awakening is a rocking song list that gives no quarter to the repressions of the bygone century, rawer and more defiantly punkish than any score that has hit Broadway before.

Perry Tannenbaum
Date Reviewed:
January 2007
Translations
Biltmore Theater

Translations, Brian Friel, is a play about communication that starts with a lovely mute woman just learning to speak (Morgan Hallett). It is a particularly interesting piece to me since I spend part of each year in Ireland (mostly in Derry and Donegal where the play is set) and have seen the rising use of Gaelic (now called "Irish") in common speech, particularly in the south and east. Here, it's 1833, and the Irish speak Irish.

Richmond Shepard
Date Reviewed:
January 2007
Apple Tree, The
Studio 54

The Broadway revival of Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick's The Apple Tree gives us the pleasure of being in the presence of two of Broadway's most talented, charismatic, entertaining performers: Kristin Chenoweth and Mark Kudisch. She is the definition of adorable, and in the first (and strongest) playlet, based on Mark Twain's story, "The Diary of Adam & Eve," her beauty, personal charm and exquisite timing will melt you. In the second, "The Lady or the Tiger," she is a Lucille Ball filling the stage with comic antics.

Richmond Shepard
Date Reviewed:
December 2006
American Pilot, The
City Center

David Greig's The American Pilot, now at Manhattan Theater Club, pits a bunch of really stupid people -- villagers in an Eastern country where English is not spoken -- against an equally stupid American pilot whom they have discovered with a broken leg and brought to a hut in their village. Would people who don't speak each other's language keep screaming insistently at each other as if the noise alone would communicate the idea? It's not rational, not a survival tactic for villagers or soldier.

Richmond Shepard
Date Reviewed:
December 2006
Company
Ethel Barrymore Theater

Stephen Sondheim and George Furth's Company, now on Broadway, is another brilliant conception by John Doyle who takes a great, old, ground-breaking musical to another dimension (as he did with Sweeney Todd last season). The actor/singers are the orchestra, and we can see and hear them as they play. It is fascinating, crazy, delightful as performed on David Gallo's simple (perfect for the conceit of this production) set and Thomas C. Hase's great lighting design.

Richmond Shepard
Date Reviewed:
December 2006
Down the Road
Main Street Playhouse

Lee Blessing's one-act play, Down the Road, exploring the ethical interplay of the news media -- the writers and publishers, the readers, the violent subjects -- gets a relatively tepid production by Alliance Theater Lab in its Miami Lakes storefront. The production comes alive, though, when Daniel Lugo, playing an imprisoned rapist and serial killer, toys with the husband-and-wife reporters who have a book contract for his story. They're interviewing him for the details of his crimes. He enjoys the telling. Do they? And will he tell all for their tell-all book?

Julie Calsi
Date Reviewed:
December 2006
High Fidelity
Imperial Theater

The musical, High Fidelity, based on Nick Hornby's novel, has closed. I liked it. Even though the problems and concerns of the record store owner, played by a charismatic, charming leading man, Will Chase, are naive and simplistic, the show, a mixture of 70's and contemporary sensibility, was a lot of fun. Amanda Green has the gift, and I found her lyrics to be clever and full of humor.

Richmond Shepard
Date Reviewed:
December 2006
High Fidelity
Imperial Theater

Top five reasons why High Fidelity closed on Broadway after only 18 previews and 14 regular performances:

#5: Who's the audience?

David Lefkowitz
Date Reviewed:
December 2006
Mary Poppins
New Amsterdam Theater

An old-fashioned musical with some memorable songs by Richard M. and Robert B. Sherman, especially "Supercali..." -- you know. Echo-ey, muddy sound and awful, shrieking, often incomprehensible kids, but there's good magic and a great three-level set and fantastic visual images by best-in-the-world designer Bob Crowley. Little dramatic tension here, but Ashley Brown charms as Mary; she's as close to Julie Andrews as you can get. Agile Gavin Lee is fine as Bert.

Richmond Shepard
Date Reviewed:
December 2006
Spring Awakening
Eugene O'Neill Theater

Spring Awakening is a rock musical that gives us teenagers, hormones raging, trying to find out about sex in a repressive society. This youthful view of sexuality, based on an 1890s play by Frank Wedekind, deals with awkward young men (except for charismatic leading man Jonathan Groff) and pretty little nubile teenage girls. Directed with lots of energy by Michael Mayer, and filled with very odd, angular, eccentric choreography by Bill T. Jones, it is interesting in movement and action.

Richmond Shepard
Date Reviewed:
December 2006
Annie Get Your Gun
Prince Music Theater

Andrea McArdle and Jeff Coon dominate the show, which essentially is the love story of Annie Oakley and Frank Butler. Historical trappings, the Indians and show biz behind-the-scenes are welcome embellishments -- side shows, if you will -- but what drives <I>Annie Get Your Gun</I> is the plot about a woman winning a man only by allowing him to think that he's the dominant one. <BR>Coon stresses his assertive and domineering character, and he sometimes neglects the romantic legato that's in his music.

Steve Cohen
Date Reviewed:
December 2006
Amadeus
Florida State University Center for the Performing Arts - Mertz Theater

Although this fictionalized drama of 18th-Century Viennese court composer Salieri bringing down young genius Mozart seems a jealousy-inspired revenge tragedy, director Michael Edwards emphasizes its theme of a struggle with God. Music, as Salieri confesses, is "God's art," and He bestowed the most sublime gift of producing it on His darling Amadeus (whose name signifies "Beloved of God"). This, despite Salieri's prayers and difficulties in leading a virtuous life. This, despite the young Mozart's profane grossness and sexy silliness.

Marie J. Kilker
Date Reviewed:
November 2006

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