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The ideas for musicals come from the many places. Books. Movies. More movies. Far too many movies.  Grey Gardens came from a documentary about a crazy heiress.  [title of show] came from a festival application. Then there is the show we saw last night from Backyard Renaissance Theatre Company (FB) at the Diversionary Theatre (FB) in San Diego: Gutenberg, The Musical! It came from, well, a slush pile of bad musical submissions.

Perhaps I should explain this a bit more. Scott Brown and Anthony King (FB), who wrote the show, were Junior High School friends who were working as interns at theatre companies. They were tasked with attending new musicals, and reading through the slush pile of submitted musicals and unsolicited demo recordings of musicals. They were seeing bad musicals. Really bad musicals. They began to wonder how the authors of those musicals didn’t realize they were so bad. So, they decided to write their own intentionally bad musical. They would figure out the absolute worse subject for a musical and go for it. As Hitler was already taken, they went with Johannes Gutenberg, the inventor of the Printing Press.  It died. They reworked it for Upright Citizens Brigade. It lived. They expanded it to 45 minutes, then to a full-length off-Broadway show. They recorded a cast album.

I should say upfront that this show is bad. But bad in a good sense. Think about Batman in the 1960s. The show was bad but in an intentional way, in a way that played up the knowledge that you were in on the joke that it was bad, and so you went along for the ride, and it ended up being good, and in fact making a positive and deep commentary on a number of things. Well, perhaps not that far. But it was bad in an intentionally funny way, and that made it good.

Here’s an example that perhaps illustrates this. Early in this show, one character is secretly in love with another character, and offers to make him some lamb stew. He replies, “I love ewe.”. She hears “I love you.”  Yup. Do we go out on that joke? No, we do reprise of song, that help. But not much.

In any case, Gutenberg, The Musical! is presented as a musical about Gutenberg. But it is not presented as a traditional musical. Rather, it is presented as a backer’s audition, with the two ostensible authors playing all the roles (in the spirit of Murder for Two). How do you tell the myriad of characters apart? Each character has their own hat. A baseball cap. With their character stenciled on it.

As the story of Gutenberg himself doesn’t cry out for musicalization, the authors go the historical fiction route. They set the story in the fictional berg of Schlimmer, Germany. That should be a clue right there. They invent a fictional love interest, a buxom blond wench named Helvetica. They invent an antagonist, an evil (or should that be eeeeevil bwah ha ha) monk named, well, Monk. They invent a deep and meaningful commentary they want to make — since this is Germany, they must mention the holocaust. And they come up with a story: Gutenberg wants to make people read, and so invents the Printing Press. Monk wants to keep people stupid so he can tell them what is right and wrong without them knowing (and remember, boys and girls, that Monk almost rhymes with Trump). Helvetica loves Gutenberg, but is afraid of losing her wine-pressing job and him after he invents the printing press, and so falls under Monk’s spell (after listening to Trump’s, I mean, Monk’s, lies) and destroys the press. You can take it from there.

So the story is campy. Intentionally campy. Aside from the hats, there is continual breaking of the fourth wall, continually skewering of musical conventions and existing musicals, inspired sillyness (such as the water schprizting bottle), and, well, everything you would expect at a bad backers audition. In doing so, Gutenberg does something similar to [title of show] — it exposes the side of theatre that is rarely seen: the developmental side. What Gutenberg is demonstrating is what many musicals go through, and what many potential producers have to suffer through: the backers audition that can be both great and horrifying at the same time. The badness of the musical proposal combines with the earnestness of the authors to create something bigger than itself. You might say that it becomes a monster in its own right, but I wouldn’t go that far … and here’s why.

When you scrape off the veneer of bad backers audition, and think about what it being said, there is a deeper valid commentary being made (just as the wine press presses out the good juice from the grapes). The commentary has nothing to do with the holocaust, but with the importance of reading, knowledge, and independent thinking over just listening to the platitudes of misguided leaders. In the story, Monk intentionally wants to keep the village and the villagers stupid, so that he can exert his power over them by telling them what he wants them to think their books of authority say. Does that sound familiar? I’ve alluded to Trump before, because I think it is a clear analogy. We get political leaders who want to tell us what the Constitution says, what they believe our laws say, what they think we should do. Another example: I’ve recently been in some discussions with anti-Vaxxers (which will be my next blog post). They’ve been brainwashed by leaders who tell them what the science says, what the statistics means. Never mind whether it is true or not — these people tell them what they want them to hear to serve their own ends. Gutenberg, on the other hand, wants transparency and critical thinking. He doesn’t want to tell the people how to think — he wants them to be able to read and think about it on their own, to come up with their own opinions and understanding. He knows that what will make the true technological revolution is not a piece of machinery, but what that machinery enables. Beneath all of the camp of this musical is a deep message about the power of independent critical reading and analysis over the tyranny of ignorance. And that, friends, is a wonderful and true message.

Now, a story is nothing if it isn’t performed well. Our two erstwhile authors, Scott and Anthony, well, Doug and Bud (as the characters are named) are played by Anthony Methvin (FB) [Doug] and Tom Zohar (FB) [Bud]. These two young men bring the right amount of earnestness, sillyness, and talent to the role, believably coming the authors of the musical. They handle all the different hats they have to wear well, rapidly becoming all the different characters. Including rats and dead babies. Also notable is the cat, Biscuit, whose bio is hilarious. I figure he has a big future on Broadway.

The scenic design is understandably…. nothing. A piano. A folding table covered in hats, with a few props underneath it. This design, together with the simplistic props, comes from the Executive and Artistic directors of BRT — Jessica John Gerke (FB) and Francis Gerke (FB). The real “set” comes from the wide variety of hats, which serve as the “costumes” — which were also designed by Jessica John Gerke (FB). I’d say they were an inventive idea, but considering the cover of the cast album, my guess is that they were at least inspired by the original UCB design. Nevertheless, they were executed well and worked great for the story — and were incorporated well into the staging of director Kim Strassburger (FB) and the dance/movement of choreographer Katie Whalley Banville (FB). A little elaboration on that: although these were just two guys wearing hats, they were doing so in extremely inventive ways: such as a line of hats on a string for a chorus line, or literally wearing many hats at one time. There were commentaries on large dance numbers in musicals, on pointless charm songs, and much more — all executed in a humorous and entertaining fashion that wasn’t necessarily part of the script. That, I believe, is what the director and choreographer brought to this show.

On to the piano. There is no explicit credit for the on-stage pianist, so presumably it was the music director Lyndon Pugeda (FB). It looks like him at least (although he needs to update his official website — it dates to 2012 and references (heaven forfend) Myspace). Although not a formal character, he played with the actors and provided quite a few humorous moments of his own. Plus he played the keys well.

Back to the production credits. There was no credit for sound design; as there were no sound effects, there might not have been any sound design. Lighting design was by Curtis Mueller (FB), and worked within the restrictions of the space — a few lekos, a few scrollers, and what looked like a moving mirror spot. Then again, this was a backers audition — you don’t need a lot of lighting effects. Anthony Methvin (FB) was the producing director, and Taylor Todd (FB) was the stage manager. Backyard Renaissance Theatre Company (FB) is under the artistic direction of Jessica John Gerke (FB) and the executive direction of  Francis Gerke (FB).

Gutenberg! The Musical! continues at the Diversionary Theatre (FB) in San Diego’s University Park community through September 4th. Tickets are available through the BRT website; discount tickets may be available through Goldstar. It is worth seeing.

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Ob. Disclaimer: I am not a trained theatre critic; I am, however, a regular theatre audience member. I’ve been attending live theatre and concerts in Los Angeles since 1972; I’ve been writing up my thoughts on theatre (and the shows I see) since 2004. I do not have theatre training (I’m a computer security specialist), but have learned a lot about theatre over my many years of attending theatre and talking to talented professionals. I pay for all my tickets unless otherwise noted. I am not compensated by anyone for doing these writeups in any way, shape, or form. I currently subscribe at Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB), the  Hollywood Pantages (FB), Actors Co-op (FB), and I plan to renew my mini-subscription at the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC) (FB). Past subscriptions have included  The Colony Theatre (FB) (which went dormant in 2016), and Repertory East Playhouse (“REP”) (FB) in Newhall (which entered radio silence in 2016). Through my theatre attendance I have made friends with cast, crew, and producers, but I do strive to not let those relationships color my writing (with one exception: when writing up children’s production, I focus on the positive — one gains nothing except bad karma by raking a child over the coals).  I believe in telling you about the shows I see to help you form your opinion; it is up to you to determine the weight you give my writeups.

Upcoming Shows:  September returns to conventional theatre. The second weekend sees us back at Muse/ique (FB) for Summer/Time, a reimagined retelling of Porgy and Bess. The third weekend brings I Love You Because at the Grove Theatre in Burbank. The last weekend is The Hunchback of Notre Dame at The La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts (FB).

Continuing the look ahead: October is a bit more booked. The first weekend brings Dear World at the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC) (FB) and Our Town at Actors Co-op (FB), as well as the start of the High Holy Days. The second weekend has another Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC) (FB) event: this time for Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis. The third weekend has yet another VPAC event: An Evening with Kelli O’Hara on Friday, as well as tickets for Evita at Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB) on Saturday. The following weekend brings Turn of the Screw at Actors Co-op (FB) on October 22 and the new Tumbleweed Festival (FB) on October 23. The last weekend of October brings Linden Waddell’s Hello Again, The Songs of Allen Sherman at Temple Ahavat Shalom (a joint fundraiser for MoTAS and Sisterhood). Oh, and if that wasn’t enough, October is also the North Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB), and it looks like a theatre in Pasadena will be presenting the musical Funny Girl. November is still in the planning stages, but we know it will include Hedwig and the Angry Inch at  the Hollywood Pantages (FB); a Day Out With Thomas at Orange Empire Railway Museum (FB) [excuse me, “Southern California Railway Museum”]; the Nottingham Festival (FB); and possibly Little Women at the Chance Theatre (FB) in Anaheim. As always, I’m keeping my eyes open for interesting productions mentioned on sites such as Bitter-Lemons, and Musicals in LA, as well as productions I see on Goldstar, LA Stage Tix, Plays411 or that are sent to me by publicists or the venues themselves.

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This entry was originally posted on Observations Along The Road (on cahighways.org) as this entry by cahwyguy. Although you can comment on DW, please make comments on original post at the Wordpress blog using the link below; you can sign in with your LJ, FB, or a myriad of other accounts. There are currently comments on the Wordpress blog. PS: If you see share buttons above, note that they do not work outside of the Wordpress blog.

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Did you hear about how Donald Trump, two Sunday’s ago, took pictures of his private parts and sent them to his gay lover while at a campaign rally? I know, I was there. Evidence, yet again, that Trump had actually sold his soul to the Devil.

(waits for a pause)

OK, it wasn’t really Donald Trump. It was Donald Trump as seen through the eyes of opera singers. Perhaps I should explain.

One of our treats every summer is attending the performance component of the Advanced Artists Program of Operaworks (FB). The Advanced Artist Program is for operatic performers in graduate school or beyond, who want to work in-depth on their repertoire – dramatically, musically, and physically. It’s goal is to teach the performers the “other” side of opera beyond singing. In particular, the not only learn how to address the business and marketing side, but they learn how to act and move on stage as actors and actresses — how to relate to other characters as characters, not just stand in front of a piano and sing. The program culminates with two performance shows of improvised opera. The show consists of three acts, not necessarily related. For each act, the students pick a location and come up with one paragraph bios of their characters and their relationship to the other characters in their act. They then pick arias, from both operas and other musical theatre, for each character to relate to another character. Improvising dialogue, they now put these characters and arias into a show. Here’s an example bio or two from this year’s program:

• Ivanka Trump (Zeledón) is an American businesswoman, who is dedicated to making America great again, one shoe at a time. She is a staunch supporter of her father, whenever iti s most convenient to her.
• A dental hygienist, Stephanie Hollenberg has been working for Daughters & Sons Dentistry for six years, where she instigated the increasingly popular “Tooth Fairy Tuesdays.” In her free time, she enjoys frequenting wine bars and shopping at the Container Store.

This year, the three locations chosen were a Subway Station in New York at 4am, an Art Museum, and a Trump Rally at said art museum. There was a connected story line. In Act I, they were getting the area ready for a Trump rally, when some Trump workers indicated they had something on the Donald. Act II focused on how the Devil was controlling the art in the art museum. Act III was the aforementioned Trump rally, where the aforementioned sexting occurred.

It is hard to relate the full details of the story, but here’s a summary of the singers, characters, and arias, in order:

Act One: An Abandoned NYC Subway Station at 4 A.M.

Act Two: An Art Museum above the Subway Station at 4 A.M.

Act Three: The Next Morning at the Art Museum

Overall, the event was very entertaining, and the singers not only performed well, but they interacted with other players well. This was especially true in the first act.

Technical Credits: Stage Direction: Zeffin Quinn Hollis (FB). Movement Coach: Dr. Paula Thomson. Improvisation Coach: Laura Parker. Artistic Director: Ann Baltz (FB). Additional faculty and Operaworks staff is listed on the Operaworks site.

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Ob. Disclaimer: I am not a trained theatre critic; I am, however, a regular theatre audience member. I’ve been attending live theatre and concerts in Los Angeles since 1972; I’ve been writing up my thoughts on theatre (and the shows I see) since 2004. I do not have theatre training (I’m a computer security specialist), but have learned a lot about theatre over my many years of attending theatre and talking to talented professionals. I pay for all my tickets unless otherwise noted. I am not compensated by anyone for doing these writeups in any way, shape, or form. I currently subscribe at Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB), the  Hollywood Pantages (FB), Actors Co-op (FB), and I plan to renew my mini-subscription at the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC) (FB). Past subscriptions have included  The Colony Theatre (FB) (which went dormant in 2016), and Repertory East Playhouse (“REP”) (FB) in Newhall (which entered radio silence in 2016). Through my theatre attendance I have made friends with cast, crew, and producers, but I do strive to not let those relationships color my writing (with one exception: when writing up children’s production, I focus on the positive — one gains nothing except bad karma by raking a child over the coals).  I believe in telling you about the shows I see to help you form your opinion; it is up to you to determine the weight you give my writeups.

Upcoming Shows:  August is a bit more open in terms of theatre. The first weekend just has a Jethawks game on Sunday; the second weekend has a Bar Mitzvah.  The third weekend brings another event from the wonderful counter-cultural orchestra, Muse/ique (FB) — American/Rhapsody — a celebration of George Gershwin. Late August sees us looking at shows down San Diego/Escondido for one weekend. The best of the shows available — or at least the most interesting — is Titanic from Moonlight Stages. September returns to conventional theatre. The first weekend has a HOLD for Calendar Girls at The Group Rep (FB). The second weekend may be another Muse/ique (FB) event — Summer/Time, a reimagined retelling of Porgy and Bess. The third weekend has a HOLD for Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom at the Mark Taper Forum (FB). The last weekend is The Hunchback of Notre Dame at The La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts (FB).

Continuing the look ahead: October is a bit more booked. The first weekend brings Dear World at the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC) (FB) and Our Town at Actors Co-op (FB), as well as the start of the High Holy Days. The second weekend has another Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC) (FB) event: this time for Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis. The third weekend has yet another VPAC event: An Evening with Kelli O’Hara on Friday, as well as tickets for Evita at Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB) on Saturday. The following weekend brings Turn of the Screw at Actors Co-op (FB) on October 22 and the new Tumbleweed Festival (FB) on October 23. The last weekend of October brings Linden Waddell’s Hello Again, The Songs of Allen Sherman at Temple Ahavat Shalom (a joint fundraiser for MoTAS and Sisterhood). Oh, and if that wasn’t enough, October is also the North Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB), and it looks like a theatre in Pasadena will be presenting the musical Funny Girl. November is still in the planning stages, but we know it will include Hedwig and the Angry Inch at  the Hollywood Pantages (FB); a Day Out With Thomas at Orange Empire Railway Museum (FB) [excuse me, “Southern California Railway Museum”]; the Nottingham Festival (FB); and possibly Little Women at the Chance Theatre (FB) in Anaheim. As always, I’m keeping my eyes open for interesting productions mentioned on sites such as Bitter-Lemons, and Musicals in LA, as well as productions I see on Goldstar, LA Stage Tix, Plays411 or that are sent to me by publicists or the venues themselves.

Share/Bookmark

This entry was originally posted on Observations Along The Road (on cahighways.org) as this entry by cahwyguy. Although you can comment on DW, please make comments on original post at the Wordpress blog using the link below; you can sign in with your LJ, FB, or a myriad of other accounts. There are currently comments on the Wordpress blog. PS: If you see share buttons above, note that they do not work outside of the Wordpress blog.

(Click Here to Comment)

This season at Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB) has been a great one. All four of the season’s show have been “firsts” for me — in that the Cabrillo production has been the first time I have seen the adult version of the show done by a professional company. Their first show, Damn Yankees, I’d only seen Van Nuys HS do. Their second show, A Funny Thing Happened … Forum I had only seen the movie version. Their third show, Children of Eden, I’d only seen a church group do. Last night’s show, Disney’s The Little Mermaid, I’d only seen the Jr. version from Nobel Middle School.

In lacking the ability to see a professional version of these shows, I wasn’t alone. Damn Yankees is rarely done on the large stage, and Funny Thing is so complex you don’t often see it (although it had a recent 99-seat revival at Crown City). Children of Eden has never been on the big stage in LA.  All three of those are older musicals, so perhaps that’s not a surprise.

But The Little Mermaid? After it closed on Broadway in 2009 after a mixed run on 685 performances and tepid reviews, a tour was announced but never materialized. Unlike other Disney musicals — Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King and Newsies have played the Hollywood Pantages (FB) multiple times; Aida has been at the Ahmanson Theatre (FB) — The Little Mermaid has never been on a main Los Angeles stage. Even the recent Hollywood Bowl production was actors singing along to the animated film, not the musical. The only place to see it has been school productions… until this year.

After the tepid reception of the show on Broadway, professional productions were limited… until Glenn Casale came along. Glenn reworked and redesigned the production from the problematic Broadway version for a 2012 Dutch production. He then reworked it again for Sacramento in the round later that year. It hit the Paper Mill Playhouse in 2013, and then the Pittsburgh CLO (remember those names, you’ll see them later). This year, a mini-tour of the revised version materialized, hitting cities such as Houston’s Theatre under the Stars, Sacramento, Dallas, and La Mirada. That would have been an interesting version to see, as it had both Tracy Lore (of CMT’s Once Upon a Mattress) and Devon Hadsell (FB) (of Chance’s Lysistrata Jones) in it. But that wasn’t Cabrillo’s version.

Cabrillo Music Theatre is Broadway in Your Backyard, and they pride themselves in not booking tours. They cast using a mix of local and new-to-local top talent. They pride themselves on finding newcomers (such as Katharine McPhee (FB), who was in CMT’s Annie Get Your Gun) who excel. They do this all in an environment of community outreach and giving back. They had an existential scare earlier this year, but they survived and are going strong into next year.

This is a long way of saying that last night we were at CMT’s second performance of Disney’s The Little Mermaid, and it was our first time seeing the show in a fully professional version. It was our first time seeing the reworked Glenn Casale envisioning, reworked and reimagined just a little bit more by director Larry Raben (FB) and choreographer Heather Castillo (FB). I should note that I also came into the show with no preconceived notions from the original animated movie as — and you’re probably shocked — I’ve never watched the entire animated version. I’m also pleased to say (BLUF as it were), that we were blown away by the imagination and inventiveness of the CMT version, and it continued their standard of theatrical excellence for which they are known.

You, on the other hand… you have likely seen the 1989 animated film, based on the Hans Christian Andersen story, and produced by Howard Ashman and John Musker, written and directed by John Musker and Ron Clements, with music and lyrics by Alan Menkin and Howard Ashman. You may have even heard (as had I) the score of the stage version, which had added songs by Howard Ashman and Glenn Slater and book by Doug Wright. So you probably know the story well.

So…. I’m not going to detail it for you. However, I will note that there have been significant changes from the animated movie, especially in Ariel’s motivation, and significant changes from the 2009 Original Broadway version, especially in the nature of the relationship between Triton and Ariel, and even more pointedly between Triton and Ursula. They are detailed somewhat in the Wikipedia synopsis of the stage version, and even more so in the summary of how Glenn Casale reworked the stage version in 2012.  However, do be warned: this is, at its heart, a children’s fairy tale. Don’t expect depth, angst, bathos, or truly adult themes. This isn’t The Lion King, and it’s not based on Hamlet. It is based on a Disney animated movie. It improves on it some, but can only go so far.

Cabrillo’s version of the show brought the undersea world to life in a creative and imaginative way.  This is not to say that feet were never visible on the fish — during some of the dance numbers they were wearing colorful sneakers. But rather, for the main mer-folk, their costumes covered the feet; this was combined with flying affects to allow them to swim across the stage as if they had fins. Other characters glided across the stage on hoverboards or skate-shoes. There were giant puppets of jellyfish. There was undulating seaweed. There was loads of black lighting and iridescence. This contrasted with the human world, which was sunlit in a normal spectrum, with normal costumes.

The performances, as with all Cabrillo productions, were excellent. In the lead position was Alison Bagli (FB) as Ariel. Bagli brought a wonderful youthful enthusiasm and a lovely voice to what could be a saccharine role. In particular, she made the role seem, well, as realistic as a mermaid could be — both in capturing the late teenage rebellion against the strictures of a parent refusing to see the child as an adult, and in capturing the joy of discovering something new…. like feet. But she was somehow more… adult. She didn’t play the role as the typical 14-year old; she was 19 with glimpses of 15. She did a spectacular job with signature numbers such as “The World Above” and “Part of Your World”.

In the featured role as the crab mentor, crab advisor, and composer was Lawrence Cummings^æ (FB) as Sebastian. Cummings was an accomplished singer and dancer, doing wonderful in Sebastian’s key songs of “Kiss the Girl” and the ear-worm “Under the Sea”. He was able to capture the exasperated nature of the character well, and provided wonderful comic relief.  [^æ denotes members of Actors Equity]

Featured actors with a more understandable relationship to Ariel were Conor Guzmán^æ (FB) as Ariel’s love interest, Prince Eric, and David Engel^æ (FB) as Ariel’s father, King Triton. Guzman’s Eric was the typical Disney prince, whom the story imbued with a problem similar to Ariel’s: having a nature different from what their parent wanted them to be. He captured that aspect well, and had a wonderful singing voice to boot. He also exhibited a great chemistry with Bagli’s Ariel, especially  in numbers like “One Step Closer”.  Engel’s Triton was suitably parental, although his kingly presence was a bit light until supported by sound effects and bass vibrations. He had a wonderful number in “If Only”, especially in the second act’s quartet, but was lightly used by the story.

In featured roles as Ariel’s friends were Pablo Rossil (FB) as Scuttle, the seagull, and Michael C. Kennedy (FB) as Flounder, the tropical fish. Kennedy’s Flounder, who we meet first, does a great job of capturing a boy with teen affection for Ariel, who never seems to quite notice him. He’s one of the three actors who use hoverboards heavily in the show, and he handles it quite well. He brought a great youthful enthusiasm to the role.  Rossil’s Scuttle is much more comic relief, although he does get a great number in “Positoovity”. He does a reasonable job of making the character his own, as opposed to channeling the animated version’s Buddy Hackett.  As one would expect, he does a lot of flying in the role, which he handles quite well.

The requisite evil side of the story was represented by Triton’s sister, the octopus Ursula (Debbie Prutsman) in the main position, and electric-eels Flotsam and Jetsam (Eric Stanton Betts (FB) and Alex Levy/FB, respectively) as the supporting minions.  Prutsman was strong as Ursula, capturing the evil nature of the character well, especially in songs like “Daddy’s Little Angel” and her signature number, “Poor Unfortunate Soul”. Flotsam and Jetsam were more supporting eels, although they did get a little bit of a number in “Sweet Child”, and handled their hoverboards well.

Rounding out the named characters were David Gilchrist (FB) as Grimsby, Tyler Stouffer (FB) as Chef Louis, and the gaggle of girls that made up Ariel’s sisters: Gillian Bozajian (FB) (Atina), Lyrissa Leininger (FB) (Adella), Janaya Mahealani Jones/FB (Arista), Missy Marion (FB) (Andrina), Jamie Mills (Aquata), and Annie Sherman (FB) (Allana). Gilchrist was great as always in a comic supporting role; we’ve seen him in a number of productions over the years. Stouffer really only gets one number –“Les Poissons” — which really has little to do with the plot other than comic relief. He handled the number well, although it was difficult at times to make out his words (which could have been a sound problem). Ariel’s sisters had fun with their few numbers — “Daughters of Triton” and particularly “She’s in Love” — but were otherwise not deeply characterized in the story. It was nice to see a bit of diverse casting there.

Rounding out the production was one of the few luxuries that CMT has: a large ensemble and a large kids ensemble, which they used to great effect (especially the kids in quite a few numbers). The ensemble consisted of: Jeni Baker (FB), John Paul Batista (FB), Alex Choate (FB), Rodd Farhadi (FB), Kevin Gilmond (FB), Scott Hendrickson (FB), Jenny Hoffman (FB), Kurt Kemper (FB), Julia Kreinces (FB), Joey Langford (FB), Janelle Loren (FB), Kenneth Mosley (FB), Brittney Nevison (FB), Jordan Schneider/FB, and Ryan Schultze/FB. The kids ensemble consisted of Baylee Fogelmanis, Calista Loter, Mia Nelson, Drew Rosen, Marcello Silva/FB, Taylor Lynda Thomas/FB, and Hattie Ugoretz/FB. Kenneth Mosley (FB) was also the understudy for Sebastian.

As is pointed out at every CMT show: Live musical theatre needs live music. The CMT Orchestra, under the music direction of Colin Freeman (FB), was excellent. The orchestra consisted of: Colin Freeman (FB) (Conductor), Gary Rautenberg (FB) (Flute, Alto Flute, Piccolo, Clarinet); Kimaree Gilad (Oboe, English Horn); Darryl Tanikawa (FB) (Clarinet, Bass Clarinet, Soprano Sax, Alto Sax); Bill Barrett (Trumpet, Flugelhorn); Melissa Hendrickson (FB) (Horn); Sharon Cooper (Violin I – Concertmaster); Sally Berman (Violin 2); Rachel Coosaia (FB) (Cello); Cassie Nickols (FB) (Keyboard I); Lloyd Cooper (FB) (Keyboard II); Tom Griffin (Keyboard III); Colin Freeman (FB) (Keyboard IV); Shane Harry/FB (Electric and Double String Bass); Alan Peck (Set Drums); and Tyler Smith/FB (Percussion). Darryl Tanikawa (FB) was the Orchestra Contractor. The orchestra was produced by Tanikawa Artists Management LLC.

Turning to the remaining creative and production credits. The scenery design was by Kenneth Foy, with the scenery, props, and costumes having been created by a partnership with the aforementioned Paper Mill Playhouse (FB), Pittsburgh CLO (FB), Kansas City Starlight Theatre (FB), Theatre Under the Stars in Houston, and Dallas Summer Musicals (FB). Costume Design was by Amy Clark and Mark Koss. Christine Gibson (FB) was the costume supervisor. Stephanie Fenner/FB and Cassie Russek (FB) did the hair and makeup design, and Alex Choate (FB) designed additional props. I mention these all in virtually one breath because they all combined to create magic: an undersea delight, and believable and identifiable characters.  The magic was additionally created by the flying effects of ZFX, Inc.; the sound design of Jonathan Burke (FB), and the lighting design of Christina L. Munich (FB). I’ll note there were a few times where the spots were a little off; this was the second performance, so presumably that will be corrected. Rounding out the production credits: John W. Calder III (FB) (Stage Manager); David Elzer/Demand PR (Press Representative); C. Raul Espinoza (FB) (Marketing Consultant); Jack Allaway (Technical Director). Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB) is under the artistic direction of Lewis Wilkenfeld (FB).

There is one more weekend for you to catch this excellent production of Disney’s The Little Mermaid,  with shows from July 20 – 24, 2016. Tickets are available through Ticketmaster. Discount tickets may be available through Goldstar.

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Ob. Disclaimer: I am not a trained theatre critic; I am, however, a regular theatre audience member. I’ve been attending live theatre and concerts in Los Angeles since 1972; I’ve been writing up my thoughts on theatre (and the shows I see) since 2004. I do not have theatre training (I’m a computer security specialist), but have learned a lot about theatre over my many years of attending theatre and talking to talented professionals. I pay for all my tickets unless otherwise noted. I am not compensated by anyone for doing these writeups in any way, shape, or form. I currently subscribe at Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB), the  Hollywood Pantages (FB), Actors Co-op (FB), and I plan to renew my mini-subscription at the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC) (FB). Past subscriptions have included  The Colony Theatre (FB) (which went dormant in 2016), and Repertory East Playhouse (“REP”) (FB) in Newhall (which entered radio silence in 2016). Through my theatre attendance I have made friends with cast, crew, and producers, but I do strive to not let those relationships color my writing (with one exception: when writing up children’s production, I focus on the positive — one gains nothing except bad karma by raking a child over the coals).  I believe in telling you about the shows I see to help you form your opinion; it is up to you to determine the weight you give my writeups.

Upcoming Shows:  The end of July gets busy, with Weird Al Yankovic at the Hollywood Bowl (FB) on July 23, Operaworks (FB) Opera Re-Constructed at CSUN on July 24, and a mid-week Hollywood Bowl (FB) concert of Wynton Marsalis and Aaron Copeland on July 28, and … currently nothing for the weekend. August is a bit more open in terms of theatre. The first weekend just has a Jethawks game on Sunday; the second weekend has a Bar Mitzvah.  The third weekend brings another event from the wonderful counter-cultural orchestra, Muse/ique (FB) — American/Rhapsody — a celebration of George Gershwin. Late August sees us looking at shows down San Diego/Escondido for one weekend. The best of the shows available — or at least the most interesting — is Titanic from Moonlight Stages. September returns to conventional theatre. The first weekend has a HOLD for Calendar Girls at The Group Rep (FB). The second weekend may be another Muse/ique (FB) event — Summer/Time, a reimagined retelling of Porgy and Bess. The third weekend has a HOLD for Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom at the Mark Taper Forum (FB). The last weekend is The Hunchback of Notre Dame at The La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts (FB).

Continuing the look ahead: October is a bit more booked. The first weekend brings Dear World at the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC) (FB) and Our Town at Actors Co-op (FB), as well as the start of the High Holy Days. The second weekend has another Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC) (FB) event: this time for Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis. The third weekend has yet another VPAC event: An Evening with Kelli O’Hara on Friday, as well as tickets for Evita at Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB) on Saturday. The following weekend brings Turn of the Screw at Actors Co-op (FB) on October 22 and the new Tumbleweed Festival (FB) on October 23. The last weekend of October brings Linden Waddell’s Hello Again, The Songs of Allen Sherman at Temple Ahavat Shalom (a joint fundraiser for MoTAS and Sisterhood). Oh, and if that wasn’t enough, October is also the North Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB), and it looks like a theatre in Pasadena will be presenting the musical Funny Girl. November is still in the planning stages, but we know it will include Hedwig and the Angry Inch at  the Hollywood Pantages (FB); a Day Out With Thomas at Orange Empire Railway Museum (FB) [excuse me, “Southern California Railway Museum”]; the Nottingham Festival (FB); and possibly Little Women at the Chance Theatre (FB) in Anaheim. As always, I’m keeping my eyes open for interesting productions mentioned on sites such as Bitter-Lemons, and Musicals in LA, as well as productions I see on Goldstar, LA Stage Tix, Plays411 or that are sent to me by publicists or the venues themselves.

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This entry was originally posted on Observations Along The Road (on cahighways.org) as this entry by cahwyguy. Although you can comment on DW, please make comments on original post at the Wordpress blog using the link below; you can sign in with your LJ, FB, or a myriad of other accounts. There are currently comments on the Wordpress blog. PS: If you see share buttons above, note that they do not work outside of the Wordpress blog.

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Sometimes, you see a show and wonder what was going through the instigator’s mind. What prompted Stephen Sondheim to see a musical in the story of Sweeney Todd? What led Kander and Ebb to see a musical in the story of the Scottsboro Boys? Why did Merrill and Styne see a musical in the story of Prettybelle? Why, oh why, was there a notion to musicalize “The Madwoman of Chaillot” as Dear World? Musicalize Carrie? What are you smoking?

Then, surprisingly, the ideas sometimes work out. Sweeney Todd is a masterpiece. History is showing that there was more to Carrie – The Musical than originally seen. Scottsboro Boys may eventually find its place as well.

There’s no hope, however, for Dear World or Prettybelle.

Then there is last night’s show at the Ahmanson Theatre (FB): Grey Gardens, the Musical. One wonders what possessed book writer Doug Wright, composer Scott Frankel, and lyricist Michael Korie, to see a musical in the documentary film “Grey Gardens” by David  and Albert Maysles, Ellen Hovde and Muffie Meyer, and Susan Froemke, is beyond me. The result — which tells of the dysfunctional mother-daughter relationship of Edith Ewing Bouvier Beale and her daughter Edith Bouvier Beal (“Little Evie”) — may have great performances, but the story leaves you shaking your head and asking “Why?”

Let me elaborate. The title, Grey Gardens, refers to an estate in East Hampton, NY, that was purchased in the mid-1920s by the Phelan Beale. Beale was a Wall Street banker, and his with, Edith, was socialite and singer, whose primary claim to fame was as the aunt of Jackie Kennedy Onassis. Jackie, and her sister Lee, used to spend their summers with their aunt during the 1940s at Grey Gardens. Edith and Phelan’s daughter, also named Edith, was another aspiring actress. Any chance she had for marriage with thwarted by her mother, and eventually both Ediths ended up living in squalor in Grey Gardens with a collection of over 50 cats and feral raccoons. The situation was so bad they were threatened by the East Hampton health department. A documentary film was made of their story, and it became a cult classic.

The musical, Grey Gardens, attempts to tell the story in the documentary. The first half occurs in the 1940s, and centers on the engagement party for Little Edie and Joseph Kennedy Jr. (Jack Kennedy’s older brother). Big Edie sabotages the engagement to bring attention to herself, and Little Edie storms off to New York. This act takes some liberties with the story: there is no confirmation of the Kennedy-Beale engagement or this party; the actual party was a coming out party for Edie’s brother and took place earlier, with the divorce telegram actually arriving in 1946. The second half occurs in the early 1970s, and is essentially the documentary brought to life. It shows what Big and Little Evie’s life had degenerated into, their self-delusions, their dysfunctional relationship.

Ultimately, however, the show is a picture of a dysfunctional mother, and how she screwed up her daughter. Why we would want to see this — when there is no ultimate redemption — is beyond me. So you’re probably asking why I bought tickets? That’s easier to answer: I had seen the performance on the Tonys (they did the opening number from Act II), and had heard the music, and wanted to see how they handled the story. My conclusion was that there were some very good numbers, some excellent performances, but the story was one of those train wrecks that make you wonder afterwords why you found it so interesting.

My wife identified the problem well: both she and I grew up with mothers who were easily like this. We escaped. So why would we want to see a story that shows what could have been? It didn’t leave us with a great feeling.

That’s not to say there were not redeeming aspects. This wasn’t a complete train wreck like I Caligula, The Musical. A number of the songs are very entertaining, such as “The Five-Fifteen” (a dangerous ear worm), “Marry Well”, “The Revolutionary Costume for Today” (the number I saw on the Tonys) and “The House We Live In”. But I think the most poignant number is the penultimate one, “Another Winter in a Summer Town”, which could easily be a sad standard. It captures well the sadness of Little Evie’s life, what happens in the Winter for a Summer Town girl.

The performances were much stronger than the story itself. The trick conceit of this show is that the actress playing “Big Evie” in the first act becomes the Little Evie of the second act. This Edith was portrayed by Rachel York, who gave a remarkable performance. According to two of the orchestra members we spoke to after the show at the Metro station, her performance perfectly captured the Little Edie of the documentary. I haven’t seen the documentary, but it was a strong performance both in characterization and vocalization. She was just mesmerizing on stage.

Playing against York’s Little Edie in the second act, as Big Edie, was Betty Buckley (FB). Again, this was a great performance of a controlling woman, who achieved the control in various passive aggressive ways. Another example of strong characterization and vocalization. The two played well against each other — you could believe they were mother and daughter fighting.

At this point, I’ll interject to credit the director, Michael Wilson. I can never tell what comes from the director and what comes from the actor, but Wilson clearly worked with this cast to make the portrayals realistic, and it worked.

Playing against York’s Big Edie in the first act was Sarah Hunt (FB). I quite enjoyed Hunt’s performance — I thought she captured the spunk and the scheming of Little Edie quite well, and was extremely cute in “Two Peas in a Pod”.

Before I go to the other adult characters, I want to mention two who stole the show whenever they were onstage: Katie Silverman (FB) as Jacqueline Bouvier and Payton Ella (FB) as Lee Bouvier. These two little girls were cute as proverbial buttons, strong singers and dancers, and just fun to watch. Did I mention they were cute as buttons?

Turning to the main male characters. Simon Jones was very strong as J. V. “Major” Bouvier and Norman Vincent Peale — I particularly enjoyed him in “Marry Well”. The book doesn’t quite capture what he did in real life, but the performance was a hoot none-the-less. Josh Young (FB) demonstrated his strong singing and performance skills as both Joseph P. Kennedy Jr and Jerry, especially in “Going Places”.

Rounding out the male performers in named roles were Bryan Batt (FB) as George “Gould” Strong and Davon Williams (FB) as Brooks Sr. and Brooks Jr.  Both were very strong; Batt was wonderful in his facial expressions and playfulness.  I also noticed he was actually playing the piano.

Rounding out the cast as the ensemble players — choir members in some scenes, the camera and sound operators, asst. townspeople — were…. well, the ensemble isn’t explicitly credited as ensemble. Understudies are credited, so I’ll presume that the ensemble consisted of some subset of the understudies. The “understudies” were: Olivia Curry (u/s Jackie Bouvier, u/s Lee Bouvier), Rogelio Douglas Jr (FB) (u/s Brooks Jr, u/s Brooks Sr.), Steven Good (FB) (u/s George “Gould” Strong, u/s Kennedy Jr/Jerry, u/s Major Bouvier), Melina Kalomas (FB) (u/s Little Evie), Michelle London (FB) (u/s Young “Little” Evie, Dance Captain), and Rebecca Spencer (FB) (u/s Edith Bouvier Beale).

This was not your typical show, with large dance numbers with long-legged chorines. There was some dance, and there was definitely movement, and it was under the choreography of Hope Clarke. Still, some numbers exhibited great movement — in particular, “Marry Well”, “Two Peas in a Pod”, and “The House We Live In”.  Charles Swan (FB) served as Associate Director/Choreographer.

The music was under the music direction of Kevin Stites, who served as the conductor and lead keyboard for the hidden orchestra. The other orchestra members were: Gerald Sternbach (FB) (Associate Conductor, Keyboard); Sal Lozano (Reed 1); Jeff Driskill (Reed 2); Laura Brenes (French Horn); John Fumo (FB) (Trumpet); Jen Choi Fischer (Violin); David Mergin (Cello); Ken Wild (Bass); and Cliff Hulling (Percussion). Robert Payne was the Music Contractor.

Turning to the other creative aspects: The scenic design was by Jeff Cowie; the lighting design was by Howell Binkley; and the projection design was by Jason H. Thompson (FB). I mention these three in one breath because they all integrated together. The scenic design was a combination of a decayed shingle house (which reflected the pictures I’ve seen of the real Grey Gardens), but built upon projections to establish the time of day and to provide background for various songs. More significantly, the projections included documentary style film output that was seemingly real-time, yet I couldn’t always find the camera. All three integrated with the lighting to focus attention and provide mood impacts. The sound design of Jon Weston was clear and didn’t overpower, although at times you could tell you were listening to the speaker instead of the person speaking. The costume design of Ilona Somogyi combined with Paul Huntly‘s wig design to bring the characters to life.  I particularly noted how the costuming reflected the real quirky sensibilities of the real Little Evie, as well as the style of the clothes that the little girls wore.  Rounding out the production credits: Original Casting – Stewart/Whitley (FB); L.A. Casting – Beth Lipari, CSA (FB); Production Stage Management – Robert Bennett; Assistant Stage Manager – Denise Yaney. This production was “inspired” by the Bay Street Theatre production with the same leads and the same director (and, not surprisingly, many of the same costumes).

Grey Gardens continues at the Ahmanson Theatre (FB) through August 14th. Tickets are available through the Ahmanson Box Office. Discount tickets may be available through Goldstar, and $25 HotTix may be available by calling the Ahmanson at 213.628.2772. Should you go see it? If you liked the documentary, or want to see an odd musical about a dysfunctional mother/daughter relationship, go. If that’s not your bag, or you want a traditional musical, skip it.

Regarding the HotTix comment. As we walked into the show, the subscription sales pushing critter stated that HotTix will not be available next season. I haven’t been able to confirm that online; I have a question into to CTG Customer Service. Looking at their subscription packages raises a number of question, especially as they have gone to a seating plan that divides up the orchestra (which could be the rationale for eliminating HotTix). This is a plan similar to the Pantages, and it is what drove us to subscriptions. However, their pricing makes no sense: (a) they do not offer subscription seats in either the Premium or the back Mezzanine or Balcony (which both contradicts their claim of subscriptions getting the best seats, as well as providing affordable subscriptions in the back as they used to do); (b) their pricing for the full subscriptions (6 shows) tends to have higher prices than the design-your-package with a minimum of 4 shows (the “design your package”, for Saturday Night, has $23 for D, $38 for C, $65 for B, and $90 for D, whereas the full subscription is $33, $48, $75, and no option for A; and (c) the “Passport” has only a single price, making its use for the lower price tickets non-sensical (they should offer a tier of Passports that tie to the seating areas, with discounts in other areas). Again, I have a query into CTG Customer Service.

* * *

Ob. Disclaimer: I am not a trained theatre critic; I am, however, a regular theatre audience member. I’ve been attending live theatre and concerts in Los Angeles since 1972; I’ve been writing up my thoughts on theatre (and the shows I see) since 2004. I do not have theatre training (I’m a computer security specialist), but have learned a lot about theatre over my many years of attending theatre and talking to talented professionals. I pay for all my tickets unless otherwise noted. I am not compensated by anyone for doing these writeups in any way, shape, or form. I currently subscribe at Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB), the  Hollywood Pantages (FB), Actors Co-op (FB), and I plan to renew my mini-subscription at the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC) (FB). Past subscriptions have included  The Colony Theatre (FB) (which went dormant in 2016), and Repertory East Playhouse (“REP”) (FB) in Newhall (which entered radio silence in 2016). Through my theatre attendance I have made friends with cast, crew, and producers, but I do strive to not let those relationships color my writing (with one exception: when writing up children’s production, I focus on the positive — one gains nothing except bad karma by raking a child over the coals).  I believe in telling you about the shows I see to help you form your opinion; it is up to you to determine the weight you give my writeups.

Upcoming Shows:  July brings us back to conventional theatre and performance. Next weekend brings a Fringe encore performance of Thirteen’s Spring, as well as The Little Mermaid at  Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB). The end of July gets busy, with Weird Al Yankovic at the Hollywood Bowl (FB) on July 23, Operaworks (FB) Opera Re-Constructed at CSUN on July 24 (pending ticketing), and a mid-week Hollywood Bowl (FB) concert of Wynton Marsalis and Aaron Copeland on July 28, and … currently nothing for the weekend. August is a bit more open in terms of theatre. The first weekend just has a Jethawks game on Sunday; the second weekend has a hold for a Bar Mitzvah.  The third weekend brings another event from the wonderful counter-cultural orchestra, Muse/ique (FB) — American/Rhapsody — a celebration of George Gershwin. Late August sees us looking at shows down San Diego/Escondido for one weekend. The best of the shows available — or at least the most interesting — is Titanic from Moonlight Stages. September returns to conventional theatre. The first weekend has a HOLD for Calendar Girls at The Group Rep (FB). The second weekend may be another Muse/ique (FB) event — Summer/Time, a reimagined retelling of Porgy and Bess. The third weekend has a HOLD for Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom at the Mark Taper Forum (FB). The last weekend is yet another HOLD; this time, for The Hunchback of Notre Dame at The La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts (FB).

Continuing the look ahead: October is a bit more booked. The first weekend has a HOLD for Dear World at the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC) (FB) and Our Town at Actors Co-op (FB), as well as the start of the High Holy Days. The second weekend has another Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC) (FB) HOLD: this time for Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis. The third weekend has yet another VPAC HOLD for An Evening with Kelli O’Hara on Friday, as well as tickets for Evita at Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB) on Saturday. The following weekend brings Turn of the Screw at Actors Co-op (FB) on October 22 and the new Tumbleweed Festival (FB) on October 23. The last weekend of October brings Linden Waddell’s Hello Again, The Songs of Allen Sherman at Temple Ahavat Shalom (a joint fundraiser for MoTAS and Sisterhood). Oh, and if that wasn’t enough, October is also the North Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB). November is still in the planning stages, but we know it will include Hedwig and the Angry Inch at  the Hollywood Pantages (FB); a Day Out With Thomas at Orange Empire Railway Museum (FB) [excuse me, “Southern California Railway Museum”]; the Nottingham Festival (FB); and possibly Little Women at the Chance Theatre (FB) in Anaheim. As always, I’m keeping my eyes open for interesting productions mentioned on sites such as Bitter-Lemons, and Musicals in LA, as well as productions I see on Goldstar, LA Stage Tix, Plays411 or that are sent to me by publicists or the venues themselves.

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This entry was originally posted on Observations Along The Road (on cahighways.org) as this entry by cahwyguy. Although you can comment on DW, please make comments on original post at the Wordpress blog using the link below; you can sign in with your LJ, FB, or a myriad of other accounts. There are currently comments on the Wordpress blog. PS: If you see share buttons above, note that they do not work outside of the Wordpress blog.

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When reading through the list of shows at the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB), shows catch my eyes for various reasons. For example, yesterday’s show, Hamlet, was written up thusly:

Hamlet is set in the 1940s of Las Vegas and the Royal Family is the mob. Having a struggling desert town working its way towards greatness as a parallel for the turmoil that Denmark was going through connects modern audiences to a time they never experienced before. With a script cut to emphasize the story’s moral and original language to emphasize the depth of the story, this retelling of a classic will wow audiences.

Reading this, I thought: “Wow! Ever since I saw the Four Clowns presents Hamlet, I’ve been wanting to see another take on Hamlet. Plus, I’m a student of the history of Las Vegas (especially the mob era in Vegas), and this blend sounds fascinating. I’m in”. So we booked our tickets, and last night we worked our way to West Hollywood for our last show of the Fringe Festival: Hamlet, from the Boundless Artists Theatre Company/FB.

Alas, the description was better than the execution. This is not to say that the performance was bad — it wasn’t (although it had some problems). Rather, it simply didn’t match the expectation created from the catalog description. Let’s analyze why, and what could have been done to fix it.

Let’s start with that first line: “Hamlet is set in the 1940s of Las Vegas and the Royal Family is the mob.” Great, great idea. So we walk into the theatre, and it is a black box with no set, no projections. The only intimation that we are dealing with the mob is that everyone is in black suits and dark shirts and carry guns, and the ladies are in heels with black hose. Yup. Damon Runyon (think “Guys and Dolls”) mobsters. That’s it. The language still refers to Kings and Queens and Princes and Denmark and France, but with a light New York accent. That’s all that gives us the sense of place. Doesn’t work. Nothing in this execution said “Vegas” at all.

So, what could they have done? First, move it up about 8-10 years. In the early 40s, the only resorts on the strip were El Rancho Vegas and The Last Frontier, both started before the war and both without heavy mob involvement. The Flamingo opened in 1946, and the era that is desired is the 10 year era after that, probably best between 1954 and 1956 when you had a number of mob-owned “union pension fund funded” resorts opening. 1954 is particularly good: you’ve got the El Rancho, Last Frontier, Flamingo, Sahara, Sands, Desert Inn, and Thunderbird operating. Go to 1958 and you can add about 5 more, including the Stardust and Riviera. Make Claude (Claudius) the general manager of the hotel, who bumped off the previous general manager and married his wife, Gertrude. Hamlet could remain Gertrude’s son, and perhaps be something like the Casino Director who doesn’t like the situation, perhaps because Claude was the general manager at a competing resort (and, yes, this happened at the time — look up folks like Gus Greenbaum, who was brought in to manage the Riviera in 1955, after successfully managing the Flamingo Hotel after the death (some would say mob hit) of Bugsy Siegel. In December 1958, Greenbaum and his wife were murdered in their Phoenix, Arizona home, reportedly on the orders of either Meyer Lansky or Tony Accardo. Make the other characters have similar changes: Ophelia as Hamlet’s girlfriend who works in the hotel; Laertes in another position and connected to his father, Polonius, who perhaps works with one of the union pension funds. The key point is that if you are going to set it in Vegas and the mob-controlled strip, you have to adjust the story to that context and mileau. Tweak the characters and names. As this is Fringe, use projections to establish the places: the hotel, offices, on the casino floor, in the desert burying a body. Make the costumes era appropriate and not caricatures of what you think the era is.

The mob Vegas aspect is a wonderful place to set the Hamlet story and to modernize it (doing so could be a great start at a fun screenplay). However, the execution of this version just failed miserably on that count. It was less visible than the Royal Nevada. The director, Rachel Lynn Walker (FB), who was also responsible for the adaptation and adjustments, needed to study and understand the era before attempting to do this.

Independent of screwing up the theme, how was this production as Hamlet itself? What would Billy Shakespeare think? By the way, if you aren’t familiar with Hamlet, either read the Wikipedia entry, the sparknotes, or the play itself.

On this aspect, the show was a bit better, but was still flawed (but see the note at the end). The adaptation did a lot of work to preserve the key lines that everyone expects from Hamlet. That was the good part. The bad part was that many of the actors spoke their lines far too fast, and without clear enunciation, which made it difficult for the audience to follow the story (which is already difficult given the unfamiliarity with Shakespeare’s language and language patterns). This was evidence from the moment when Bernardo steps on the stage and speaks his first lines (the actor playing Bernardo was one of the worst — but far from the only — offender). This problem I blame squarely on the director, Rachel Lynn Walker (FB), who has the responsibility to guide her actors to ensure they can be heard and understood by the audience. I have to tell technical students this all the time: slow down and speak clearly. This is certainly true for actors, who must add projection on top of that (and is doubly true when you are adding an accent).

So, we set aside the theme, and we set aside hearing many of the actors, and what do we have left? The performances. I’m pleased here to say there were some strong performances that offset the weak and worked to carry the story. We’ll do it in the usual tiers, with highlights.

At the time, of course, there is Evan Garcia (FB)’s Hamlet. For the most part, Garcia spoke clear but perhaps a little fast, and captured the emotions well (although he might need to a bit of work to convey the madness of Hamlet a little better). He also didn’t appear to have the strong connection required with Cynthia Asmar/FB‘s Ophelia, who is supposedly his love. Asmar’s Ophelia was fun to watch — kudos for casting diverse body shapes — and handled most of her lines well.

As the King and Queen, Richard Lozoya (FB) and Lauren Sanatra (FB), respectively, performed reasonably well. My wife thought Lozoya spoke a little fast; I thought he was OK. More importantly, other than the words there was nothing to convey a good sense of what the relationship was between Hamlet and these folks, and why he cared about them at all.

Polonius was played by Sergio Venegas (FB), and he had one of the best performances of the team. He spoke clear and loud, and did a great job of conveying his meaning. Shannon Walker (FB)’s Horatio worked well sometimes and at other times spoke too fast. In any case, she performed well and was fun to watch. However, there were a few points where it was clear she was struggling on the next line; by the 5th Fringe show that problem should have gone away. Her partner-in-crime, Daniel Verdugo/FB‘s Bernardo, was more of a problem. He always spoke too fast and too softly, and it was often difficult to figure out what he was saying or doing.

Rounding out the cast were Andrew Cercedes (FB) as Guildenstern, Joy Ann-Marie Horn/FB as Rosencranz, and Ryan Jones/FB as the ghost. Rosencranz and Guildenstern needed to work on their projection and slow down a bit more.

Turning to the production side again, there was no credit provided for set design, because there was no set. Costume and Prop design was by the director, Rachel Lynn Walker (FB), and here again there were some distracting fails. My wife noted that the shoes were wrong for the era. At one point Joy Ann-Marie Horn/FB was an a dress with a large opening in the back, and a bra strap was clearly visible. This did not fit the era in question — either the 1940s or 1950s. In the final scenes, Shannon Walker (FB) needs to watch out as she was about falling out of her top when she was leaning forward. Again — that’s a costuming problem that should have been caught by the director.  Actors seemingly kept dropping their props, and the variety of guns was off. On the plus side, the fight and dance choreography by Richard Lozoya (FB) was quite good. No credit was provided for stage management or lighting design. Justin Huen operated the board, and the production was presented by the Boundless Artists Theatre Company/FB.

Note: Writing this up uncovered the fact that most of the actors, as well as the director, of this production are relatively new to the industry. I do not want this writeup to seem harsher than it should — they were very good for their skill level. The problem is: the audience (especially an audience at Fringe) doesn’t know the actor’s skill level. As a result, the actors and production team need to up their game. There are things one overlooks because it is Fringe: fancy sets, fancy costumes, lots of rehearsal time in the space. But other things are space independent: learning to speak at a speed where the audience can understand, speaking with sufficient projection and enunciation to convey the story. Exhibiting emotions and relating is one thing, but what makes something a play over a pantomime is the writing. I encourage these young actors to keep practicing and working at the craft, and hope to see them much improved next year. This is where a skilled director can come in; they can educate and teach while molding and shaping. I fear the director in this case was overextended: not enough time to research for the writing, not enough time to rehearse with the actors, and not enough time to research to get the costumes to convey the message. In any case, this company still has a skill I don’t have — inhabiting another character. I’m just an engineer who knows how to write.

We saw the last performance of Hamlet, and it looks like it wasn’t extended for the Fringe Encore Awards.

Attention Programmers! Take the Fringe Programming Challenge! Scheduling your shows at the Fringe can be a pain in the …. I’m trying to solve the problem for next year, so take a look at my specs for a Fringe scheduling app. Can you write it?

* * *

Ob. Disclaimer: I am not a trained theatre critic; I am, however, a regular theatre audience member. I’ve been attending live theatre and concerts in Los Angeles since 1972; I’ve been writing up my thoughts on theatre (and the shows I see) since 2004. I do not have theatre training (I’m a computer security specialist), but have learned a lot about theatre over my many years of attending theatre and talking to talented professionals. I pay for all my tickets unless otherwise noted. I am not compensated by anyone for doing these writeups in any way, shape, or form. I currently subscribe at Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB) and the  Hollywood Pantages (FB); my subscription at  The Colony Theatre (FB) has gone dormant, and REP East (FB) has seemingly gone dark for 2016. Through my theatre attendance I have made friends with cast, crew, and producers, but I do strive to not let those relationships color my writing (with one exception: when writing up children’s production, I focus on the positive — one gains nothing except bad karma by raking a child over the coals).  I believe in telling you about the shows I see to help you form your opinion; it is up to you to determine the weight you give my writeups.

Upcoming Shows: Ah, June. Wonderful June. June is the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB), and I’ve already written about the shows I plan to see, as well as suggestions to the Fringe regarding viewing the audience as a customer. Our Fringe/June schedule is as follows (for shows in the past, ✍ indicates writeup is in progress; ✒ indicates writeup is complete and links to the writeup):

• ✓ Sat, 6/4:  Alien vs. Musical (230p) (✒) •  Code 197 DWB (Driving While Blewish) (400p) (✒) •  Toxic Avenger: The Musical  (600p) (✒)
• ✓ Sun, 6/5:  Tell Me On A Sunday (600p) (✒) •  All The Best Killers are Librarians (800p) (✒)
• ✓ Sat, 6/11: Pali Hi All Year Picnic • Einstein (400p)  (✒) • The Boy from Oz – the Celebration Theatre (FB) (800p) (✒)
• ✓ Sun, 6/12: Titus Andronicus Jr. (700p) (✒); and then the Tony Awards when I get home.
• ✓ Sat, 6/18: 30JJ or Bust: The World is My Underwire (1130a) (✒) • Lamprey: Weekend of Vengeance (200p) (✒) • Mark Twain Answers All Your Questions (600p) (✒) • The Old Woman (800p) (✒)
• ✓ Sun, 6/19: Sweet Love Adieu (100p) (✒) • All Aboard the Marriage Hearse (400p) (✒)
• ✓ Sat, 6/27: Squeeze My Cans (400p) (✒) • Taming of the Show (600p) (✒) • My Big Fat Blond Musical (830p) (✒)
• ✓ Sun, 6/28: Temple Israel Reunion • Hamlet (Las Vegas Style) (630p) (✒)

Whew. July brings us back to conventional theatre, with Beautiful at the  Hollywood Pantages (FB) and the Western Corps Connection (FB) the first weekend, Grey Gardens at the Ahmanson Theatre (FB); the second weekend, The Little Mermaid at  Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB); the third weekend, Weird Al Yankovic at the Hollywood Bowl (FB) and Operaworks (FB) Opera Re-Constructed at CSUN; the fourth weekend, a mid-week Hollywood Bowl (FB) concert of Wynton Marsalis and Aaron Copeland, and … currently nothing for the weekend. As of right now, August is completely open. One weekend has a bar mitzvah, and there are a few holds for show, but nothing is booked. Late August may see us looking at shows down San Diego/Escondido for one weekend. The best of the shows available — or at least the most interesting — is Titanic from Moonlight Stages. September is similarly mostly hold dates at this point. As always, I’m keeping my eyes open for interesting productions mentioned on sites such as Bitter-Lemons, and Musicals in LA, as well as productions I see on Goldstar, LA Stage Tix, Plays411 or that are sent to me by publicists or the venues themselves.

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Those who have been paying attention this month may be wondering where this show came from? After all, it wasn’t on our original schedule of 15 shows; it wasn’t even on the list of shows of interest for the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB). Those wondering would be correct. This show was added at the last minute, when we realized we had a three hour break between our two Saturday days, which were at the same theatre. This looked interesting, and it was at the same theatre — and so, for the first time, we had three consecutive shows in the Sacred Fools (FB) Black Box space: Squeeze My Cans at 4pm, Taming of the Show at 6pm, and My Big Fat Blond Musical at 8:30pm.

In the manner of productions like Kiss Me Kate, the focus of Taming of the Show is less the Shakespeare production itself than the meta-story of the making of the production. And, as in KMK, that “making” is going all wrong. In the case of Taming/Show, you have a maniacal director (Montana Stanislavski) who has a conception of the show as a time-travel story: an astronaut goes back to pre-historic times where mankind is living with dinosaurs. Think Flintstones, but with more grunting and less technology. OK, don’t think Flintstones; think It’s About Time. You have a lead actor (Brayden Stryker) who has an over-inflated sense of self, whose peak was being on the CW, and who uses drugs and sex to get by and a lead actress (Annie) who doesn’t want to have anything to do with the lead actor. You have one additional actor (Ronald Jeremy — and yes, they called him that) who played most of remaining male roles (and some female ones), and one additional actor (Betty Turnipseed) who played most of the remaining female roles (and some of the male ones). You have an aged stage manager Hilary Nikademus, and a former student of his drawn into being assistant stage manager, Eddie Littlejeans. Oh, and this ASM is recovering from theatrical tourettes, where he breaks out in song at any inconvenient moment.

What could go wrong?

Oh, and I forgot: there is a strong theme of forbidden love — the love that must not speak its name. That’s right: the love between someone in the crew and someone in the cast. Naturally, in this case, the tension isn’t just created with the show: Eddie falls in love with Annie, who is also the object of lust of the lead, Brayden. Annie wants nothing to do with either of them.

Now wind it up and let it go.

This isn’t Broadway-caliber writing folks. This isn’t even Colony-caliber writing. That’s not to say the show was bad. It was just not deep; it wasn’t complex. The characters were lightly drawn and boxed into particular tropes and roles. The humor was broad and broadcast. The show was funny and made you laugh, but then you felt guilty for laughing at such an obvious and broad joke. These problems can be laid squarely at the feet of the author, Blake Walker (FB) — and it appears they were intentional. The show notes indicate that the original production (this started when Walker was in college at SMU) was intended as a comment on the state of the theatre department there, and has been refined to embrace the tropes, cliches, frustrations and experiences found in the real world. Translating that, it means that this show was intended more as a parody and less as a real show — and parody is by its nature broad and cliched.

The performances were reasonably good and fit the materials — that is, the stereotypes and tropes — well. In the lead positions (at least from my point of view) was Jeff DeCrosta (FB) as Eddie and Chineze Enekwechi (FB) as Annie. DeCrosta gave a very affable and friendly performance; just a nice guy you wanted to succeed. I don’t judge these things, but my wife thought he was good looking.  He also had a very nice singing voice with only the occasional overreach. Enekwechi’s Annie was similarly accessible and friendly, and the actress just had a lovely face that was a delight to watch. I also kept detecting a slight sense of a lovely accent to her voice.

Steve Peterson (FB)’s Hilary Nikademus had an odd creepy cryptkeeper vibe to him, which was likely due to his makeup. This made the ending of the show a little hard to visualize, but then again, it takes all types. Peterson’s Nikademus had this aura of “been there, seen this, I don’t need another T-shirt” that was quite interesting.

The two “professionals” (at least in terms of the story) were Marc Forget (FB) as Montana Stanislavski and Greg Steinbrecher (FB) as Brayden Stryker. Both captured their stereotypes well: Forget as the overboard director more obsessed with his ego than the production, and Stryker as the celebrity actor more obsessed with his ego that …. well, you get it.

Rounding out the cast were Paula Deming (FB)’s Betty Turnipseed and Anthony Pappastrat (FB)’s (Ronald Jeremy). First and foremost, I should note that Pappastrat’s portrayal of Jeremy was nothing like that other Ronald Jeremy. Pappastrat had the character with the most physical comedy of the ensemble, and he handled it well. I liked Deming, but I was confused as to what age she was portraying. She seemed to have both young and old aspects. Still, she was quite fun to watch.

The music was by Blake Walker (FB) and Michael Turner, and was provided by an on-stage upright piano — which must be a pain to load in/out for Fringe. Some notes were off, and there were times where the cast that sung (i.e., “Eddie”) had trouble reaching the notes of the lyrics.

The production was directed by Blake Walker (FB), assisted by Karissa McKinney (FB). Rebecca Schoenberg (FB) [any relation to Larry?] was the stage manager. Billy Gill (FB) was the onstage accompanist, with Todd Collins (FB) providing the fight choreography. Props and costumes were by Lynn Downey Braswell (FB). In general, the props and costumes worked well, modulo the cryptkeeper hair. Taming of the Show was presented by Little Candle Productions (FB).

We caught the last performance of Taming of the Show. If encore performances get added, they will be listed (and available to ticket) through the show’s ticketing page. This was a silly show, not deep, but situationally funny and enjoyable.

Attention Programmers! Take the Fringe Programming Challenge! Scheduling your shows at the Fringe can be a pain in the …. I’m trying to solve the problem for next year, so take a look at my specs for a Fringe scheduling app. Can you write it?

* * *

Ob. Disclaimer: I am not a trained theatre critic; I am, however, a regular theatre audience member. I’ve been attending live theatre and concerts in Los Angeles since 1972; I’ve been writing up my thoughts on theatre (and the shows I see) since 2004. I do not have theatre training (I’m a computer security specialist), but have learned a lot about theatre over my many years of attending theatre and talking to talented professionals. I pay for all my tickets unless otherwise noted. I am not compensated by anyone for doing these writeups in any way, shape, or form. I currently subscribe at Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB) and the  Hollywood Pantages (FB); my subscription at  The Colony Theatre (FB) has gone dormant, and REP East (FB) has seemingly gone dark for 2016. Through my theatre attendance I have made friends with cast, crew, and producers, but I do strive to not let those relationships color my writing (with one exception: when writing up children’s production, I focus on the positive — one gains nothing except bad karma by raking a child over the coals).  I believe in telling you about the shows I see to help you form your opinion; it is up to you to determine the weight you give my writeups.

Upcoming Shows: Ah, June. Wonderful June. June is the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB), and I’ve already written about the shows I plan to see, as well as suggestions to the Fringe regarding viewing the audience as a customer. Our Fringe/June schedule is as follows (for shows in the past, ✍ indicates writeup is in progress; ✒ indicates writeup is complete and links to the writeup):

• ✓ Sat, 6/4:  Alien vs. Musical (230p) (✒) •  Code 197 DWB (Driving While Blewish) (400p) (✒) •  Toxic Avenger: The Musical  (600p) (✒)
• ✓ Sun, 6/5:  Tell Me On A Sunday (600p) (✒) •  All The Best Killers are Librarians (800p) (✒)
• ✓ Sat, 6/11: Pali Hi All Year Picnic • Einstein (400p)  (✒) • The Boy from Oz – the Celebration Theatre (FB) (800p) (✒)
• ✓ Sun, 6/12: Titus Andronicus Jr. (700p) (✒); and then the Tony Awards when I get home.
• ✓ Sat, 6/18: 30JJ or Bust: The World is My Underwire (1130a) (✒) • Lamprey: Weekend of Vengeance (200p) (✒) • Mark Twain Answers All Your Questions (600p) (✒) • The Old Woman (800p) (✒)
• ✓ Sun, 6/19: Sweet Love Adieu (100p) (✒) • All Aboard the Marriage Hearse (400p) (✒)
• ✓ Sat, 6/27: Squeeze My Cans (400p) (✒) • Taming of the Show (600p) (✒) • My Big Fat Blond Musical (830p) (✍)
• Sun, 6/28: Temple Israel Reunion • Hamlet (Las Vegas Style) (630p) (✍)

Whew. July brings us back to conventional theatre, with Beautiful at the  Hollywood Pantages (FB) and the Western Corps Connection (FB) the first weekend, Grey Gardens at the Ahmanson Theatre (FB); the second weekend, The Little Mermaid at  Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB); the third weekend, Weird Al Yankovic at the Hollywood Bowl (FB) and Operaworks (FB) Opera Re-Constructed at CSUN; the fourth weekend, a mid-week Hollywood Bowl (FB) concert of Wynton Marsalis and Aaron Copeland, and … currently nothing for the weekend. As of right now, August is completely open. One weekend has a bar mitzvah, and there are a few holds for show, but nothing is booked. Late August may see us looking at shows down San Diego/Escondido for one weekend. The best of the shows available — or at least the most interesting — is Titanic from Moonlight Stages. September is similarly mostly hold dates at this point. As always, I’m keeping my eyes open for interesting productions mentioned on sites such as Bitter-Lemons, and Musicals in LA, as well as productions I see on Goldstar, LA Stage Tix, Plays411 or that are sent to me by publicists or the venues themselves.

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This entry was originally posted on Observations Along The Road (on cahighways.org) as this entry by cahwyguy. Although you can comment on DW, please make comments on original post at the Wordpress blog using the link below; you can sign in with your LJ, FB, or a myriad of other accounts. There are currently comments on the Wordpress blog. PS: If you see share buttons above, note that they do not work outside of the Wordpress blog.

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Closing out our third weekend of the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB) was yet another demonstration of the range that is Fringe. This time, it was a fully realized one-act play — All Aboard the Marriage Hearse — about the institution of marriage. The quality was definitely not Fringe — this was a play that could work on any intimate stage in town.

Here’s the description from the Fringe catalog, which is as good a synopsis as any:

Sean and Amy are your typical co-habitating, Catholic/Jewish, thirty-something couple living in Manhattan. They work hard, love each other and share common goals in life. Well, sort of. After nearly four years together, Amy wants to get married but Sean does not believe in the institution. The game is on!!! Tonight is the night when they will settle the marriage question once and for all. They will both bring their “A” game and the gloves will come off. Sean will try to talk her out of it. Amy will try to talk him into it. Will they break up? Will they keep going on the path they’re on? Will they climb aboard the “Marriage Hearse?”

Author Matt Morillo (FB) uses the play to discuss the value of marriage. Sean strongly does not believe in the institution: he feels it is artificial life support for a relationship, a historic construct with no meaning. He’s willing to commit, for today, for a long term relationship. But make it official in the eyes of the world — nope. Amy, on the other hand, was raised to believe in the value of marriage, and she believes the relationship is at the point where Sean needs to, essentially, put up or shut up.

The resulting argument brings up many interesting points about relationships, and how any why we commit to each other.

If I had any suggestion for the author, it would be that I would want a bit more. To me, the conclusion leaves me dangling. I’d love to see a short second act with the same characters that explores where they are in relation to each other 20 years down the road. What it is the long term impact of their decision: was it the right one or the wrong one. It could be just the thing to flesh this into something fuller and deeper.

The performances were excellent. Tom Pilutik (FB) as Sean, and Jessica Moreno (FB) as Amy have a natural chemistry together; it is easy to believe them as a long-term couple. They just have a comfort with these roles and characters that comes across in their performances. There’s fire when required, but there’s also softness and playfullness. They are just fun to watch.

Tom and Jessica’s performances are augmented by the direction of the author, Matt Morillo (FB), who uses his familiarity with the piece to add to the comfort. There are no real credits for lighting or sound; the lighting in general is naturalistic. Costumes, again, are relatively simple (and now I know what Spanx look like 🙂 ). Erica Lawrence (FB) was the stage manager.  All Aboard the Marriage Hearse was presented by KADM Productions (FB) and produced by Joanne Hartstone (FB).

Alas, we saw the last Fringe presentation of All Aboard The Marriage Hearse. You can vote for the show for awards, and perhaps it will come back for an encore performance.

Attention Programmers! Take the Fringe Programming Challenge! Scheduling your shows at the Fringe can be a pain in the …. I’m trying to solve the problem for next year, so take a look at my specs for a Fringe scheduling app. Can you write it?

* * *

Ob. Disclaimer: I am not a trained theatre critic; I am, however, a regular theatre audience member. I’ve been attending live theatre and concerts in Los Angeles since 1972; I’ve been writing up my thoughts on theatre (and the shows I see) since 2004. I do not have theatre training (I’m a computer security specialist), but have learned a lot about theatre over my many years of attending theatre and talking to talented professionals. I pay for all my tickets unless otherwise noted. I am not compensated by anyone for doing these writeups in any way, shape, or form. I currently subscribe at Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB) and the  Hollywood Pantages (FB); my subscription at  The Colony Theatre (FB) has gone dormant, and REP East (FB) has seemingly gone dark for 2016. Through my theatre attendance I have made friends with cast, crew, and producers, but I do strive to not let those relationships color my writing (with one exception: when writing up children’s production, I focus on the positive — one gains nothing except bad karma by raking a child over the coals).  I believe in telling you about the shows I see to help you form your opinion; it is up to you to determine the weight you give my writeups.

Upcoming Shows: Ah, June. Wonderful June. June is the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB), and I’ve already written about the shows I plan to see, as well as suggestions to the Fringe regarding viewing the audience as a customer. Our Fringe/June schedule is as follows (for shows in the past, ✍ indicates writeup is in progress; ✒ indicates writeup is complete and links to the writeup):

• ✓ Sat, 6/4:  Alien vs. Musical (230p) (✒) •  Code 197 DWB (Driving While Blewish) (400p) (✒) •  Toxic Avenger: The Musical  (600p) (✒)
• ✓ Sun, 6/5:  Tell Me On A Sunday (600p) (✒) •  All The Best Killers are Librarians (800p) (✒)
• ✓ Sat, 6/11: Pali Hi All Year Picnic • Einstein (400p)  (✒) • The Boy from Oz – the Celebration Theatre (FB) (800p) (✒)
• ✓ Sun, 6/12: Titus Andronicus Jr. (700p) (✒); and then the Tony Awards when I get home.
• ✓ Sat, 6/18: 30JJ or Bust: The World is My Underwire (1130a) (✒) • Lamprey: Weekend of Vengeance (200p) (✒) • Mark Twain Answers All Your Questions (600p) (✒) • The Old Woman (800p) (✒)
• ✓ Sun, 6/19: Sweet Love Adieu (100p) (✒) • All Aboard the Marriage Hearse (400p) (✒)
• Sat, 6/27: Squeeze My Cans (400p) • My Big Fat Blond Musical (830p)
• Sun, 6/28: Temple Israel Reunion • Hamlet (Las Vegas Style) (630p)

Whew. July brings us back to conventional theatre, with Beautiful at the  Hollywood Pantages (FB) and the Western Corps Connection (FB) the first weekend, Grey Gardens at the Ahmanson Theatre (FB); the second weekend, The Little Mermaid at  Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB); the third weekend, Weird Al Yankovic at the Hollywood Bowl (FB) and Operaworks (FB) Opera Re-Constructed at CSUN; the fourth weekend, a mid-week Hollywood Bowl (FB) concert of Wynton Marsalis and Aaron Copeland, and … currently nothing for the weekend. As of right now, August is completely open. One weekend has a bar mitzvah, and there are a few holds for show, but nothing is booked. Late August may see us looking at shows down San Diego/Escondido for one weekend. The best of the shows available — or at least the most interesting — is Titanic from Moonlight Stages. September is similarly mostly hold dates at this point. As always, I’m keeping my eyes open for interesting productions mentioned on sites such as Bitter-Lemons, and Musicals in LA, as well as productions I see on Goldstar, LA Stage Tix, Plays411 or that are sent to me by publicists or the venues themselves.

Share/Bookmark

This entry was originally posted on Observations Along The Road (on cahighways.org) as this entry by cahwyguy. Although you can comment on DW, please make comments on original post at the Wordpress blog using the link below; you can sign in with your LJ, FB, or a myriad of other accounts. There are currently comments on the Wordpress blog. PS: If you see share buttons above, note that they do not work outside of the Wordpress blog.

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As I’ve said before, the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB) has a wide range of projects, from first person narratives (our first Saturday show) to ensemble comedies (our second Saturday show) to improvised history (our third Saturday show) to… our last Saturday show: The Old Woman.  This show was another one-person show, but in a very different vein. Instead of going for the laughs (which it had), it went for the pathos and the emotion. It told the story of a son’s relationship with his aging mother, who is dealing with increasing dementia — combined with the worry that he might be facing the same fate.

In The Old Woman, John Grady (FB) starts with the simple: a walk with the dogs in Griffith Park. Through this, he introduces us to his mother, his family, and the questions of his own mental status. The story then moves into a visit with his mother, as he sees how she is becoming increasingly detached from the world. The production ends with a wordless dance — a ballet of sorts — that, well, left me thinking about what it was trying to say. My conclusion was that the dance was a tribute to his mother, her life, and her spiral down.

Saturday was a day for shows that hit home. Our first resonated with my wife, for she had also dealt with the issue of growing up with large breasts. The last resonated as well with both of us, as we’re dealing with dementia in her mom. We’re seeing everything that John portrayed: the short loop time, the argumentative nature, the refusal to do physical therapy, that intense desire to be someplace — any place else (and the realization from us, the children, that there is no other place else).

I think, of all the shows we’ve seen at the Fringe, this was perhaps was the most moving and touching of them all.

This was a true one person show; no credit was provided for director (so presumably John directed) or the technical (presumably arranged by John). That makes this even more powerful.

Sorry, I now need to go read my Shel Silverstein.

Alas, I think we saw the last production, but it might show up at the Fringe Encore in July. Watch  the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB) pages for more information.

Attention Programmers! Take the Fringe Programming Challenge! Scheduling your shows at the Fringe can be a pain in the …. I’m trying to solve the problem for next year, so take a look at my specs for a Fringe scheduling app. Can you write it?

* * *

Ob. Disclaimer: I am not a trained theatre critic; I am, however, a regular theatre audience member. I’ve been attending live theatre and concerts in Los Angeles since 1972; I’ve been writing up my thoughts on theatre (and the shows I see) since 2004. I do not have theatre training (I’m a computer security specialist), but have learned a lot about theatre over my many years of attending theatre and talking to talented professionals. I pay for all my tickets unless otherwise noted. I am not compensated by anyone for doing these writeups in any way, shape, or form. I currently subscribe at Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB) and the  Hollywood Pantages (FB); my subscription at  The Colony Theatre (FB) has gone dormant, and REP East (FB) has seemingly gone dark for 2016. Through my theatre attendance I have made friends with cast, crew, and producers, but I do strive to not let those relationships color my writing (with one exception: when writing up children’s production, I focus on the positive — one gains nothing except bad karma by raking a child over the coals).  I believe in telling you about the shows I see to help you form your opinion; it is up to you to determine the weight you give my writeups.

Upcoming Shows: Ah, June. Wonderful June. June is the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB), and I’ve already written about the shows I plan to see, as well as suggestions to the Fringe regarding viewing the audience as a customer. Our Fringe/June schedule is as follows (for shows in the past, ✍ indicates writeup is in progress; ✒ indicates writeup is complete and links to the writeup):

• ✓ Sat, 6/4:  Alien vs. Musical (230p) (✒) •  Code 197 DWB (Driving While Blewish) (400p) (✒) •  Toxic Avenger: The Musical  (600p) (✒)
• ✓ Sun, 6/5:  Tell Me On A Sunday (600p) (✒) •  All The Best Killers are Librarians (800p) (✒)
• ✓ Sat, 6/11: Pali Hi All Year Picnic • Einstein (400p)  (✒) • The Boy from Oz – the Celebration Theatre (FB) (800p) (✒)
• ✓ Sun, 6/12: Titus Andronicus Jr. (700p) (✒); and then the Tony Awards when I get home.
• ✓ Sat, 6/18: 30JJ or Bust: The World is My Underwire (1130a) (✒) • Lamprey: Weekend of Vengeance (200p) (✒) • Mark Twain Answers All Your Questions (600p) (✒) • The Old Woman (800p) (✒)
• ✓ Sun, 6/19: Sweet Love Adieu (100p) (✍) • All Aboard the Marriage Hearse (400p) (✍)
• Sat, 6/27: Squeeze My Cans (400p) • My Big Fat Blond Musical (830p)
• Sun, 6/28: Temple Israel Reunion • Hamlet (Las Vegas Style) (630p)

Whew. July brings us back to conventional theatre, with Beautiful at the  Hollywood Pantages (FB) and the Western Corps Connection (FB) the first weekend, Grey Gardens at the Ahmanson Theatre (FB); the second weekend, The Little Mermaid at  Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB); the third weekend, Weird Al Yankovic at the Hollywood Bowl (FB) and Operaworks (FB) Opera Re-Constructed at CSUN; the fourth weekend, a mid-week Hollywood Bowl (FB) concert of Wynton Marsalis and Aaron Copeland, and … currently nothing for the weekend. As of right now, August is completely open. One weekend has a bar mitzvah, and there are a few holds for show, but nothing is booked. Late August may see us looking at shows down San Diego/Escondido for one weekend. The best of the shows available — or at least the most interesting — is Titanic from Moonlight Stages. September is similarly mostly hold dates at this point. As always, I’m keeping my eyes open for interesting productions mentioned on sites such as Bitter-Lemons, and Musicals in LA, as well as productions I see on Goldstar, LA Stage Tix, Plays411 or that are sent to me by publicists or the venues themselves.

Share/Bookmark

This entry was originally posted on Observations Along The Road (on cahighways.org) as this entry by cahwyguy. Although you can comment on DW, please make comments on original post at the Wordpress blog using the link below; you can sign in with your LJ, FB, or a myriad of other accounts. There are currently comments on the Wordpress blog. PS: If you see share buttons above, note that they do not work outside of the Wordpress blog.

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The sort of shows that you find at the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB) run the full range, from one person shows to fully executed musicals, from deep dramas to comedies, to families shows to shows where both the audience and the actors are naked. Don’t expect a writeup from that last one. Some are shows from first time groups, and some are from established groups. Our second show on Saturday, Lamprey: Weekend of Vengence (FB) was one of the latter; another show from the folks that gave us the excellent All The Best Killers Are Librarians (which we saw during the preview weekend of Fringe) — the Serial Killers (FB) team.

Serial Killers (FB) is a Sacred Fools (FB) late night production where each week, three continuing stories face off against two new tales. At the end of the show, the audience votes for the three stories that will continue on to the next Saturday night, where their subsequent episodes will then be pitted against two completely new storylines. The season culminates in a head-to-head battle royale between the sixteen top serials, including the eight longest-running serials plus audience-choice selections!

Just as Librarians was a successful serial made into a full-length Fringe show, Lamprey was a successful serial made into a Fringe show. There are some who believe that it is funnier; I tended to prefer Librarians slightly, but it is a matter of taste. Both exhibited a strong sense of earnestness, of going for the comedy jugular no matter what it takes. One also got a sense that the actors were having so much fun they were attempting to make the other actors break their role from laughing. This worked extremely well on the Carol Burnett Show to amplify the humor. I think it worked well here as well. I can say that both of these productions made me want to explore Serial Killers (FB) more (if it wasn’t past my bedtime 🙂 ).

Here’s the description of the show from the Fringe writeup:

The Lamprey is a cop named Lynn Alvarado who is trying to get people to call her the Lamprey. She also has to solve the murder of her partner, but only has one weekend to do it! Her family has gotten non-refundable tickets for a Disney Cruise that leaves on Monday morning, and she like, HAS to be on it. The Lamprey must navigate the criminal world of Los Angeles, some by-the-book internal affairs agents, a masked killer looking to take her out and the to do list that her husband gave her. SOMEONE must get vengeance for her partner and also get the kids to Romp and Roll, and that someone is the Lamprey. Can one woman really have it all, when everyone is trying to kill her?

You can see why this description just pulled me in. The production, under the direction of Victor Isaac (FB), played (and some might say over-played) it for the laughs. I’ll note it was nice to see Victor again, albeit briefly. We last saw him at ACSAC 16 when he was part of the conference presentation of The Nigerian Spam Scam Scam. Victor kept the story moving along briskly, a rapid-fire sequence of scenes that were very funny, yet demonstrated the serial origin of the show.

As the Lamprey, Carrie Keranen (FB) was vibrating with vengeance, umm, intensity. Unlike her small role in Librarians, this role allowed her to play the comedy to the hilt, and she put all her energy into the effort.  She was a lot of fun to watch.

In primary supporting roles were Pete Caslavka as Chris Alvarado, the Lamprey’s husband and Maya Imani Estephanos (FB) as Jen Murphy, the Lamprey’s partner. Caslavka’s character here was nothing like his character in Librarians; here, he was one of the few people that could stand up to the Lamprey and call her on her shit. Another person who didn’t want to deal with the Lamprey’s shit was Estephanos as her (late) partner, Jen. With both actors, you could see well the exasperation they felt from dealing with this over the top character.

Playing secondary supporting roles (i.e., playing multiple characters) were Peter Fluet (FB) [Chief / James], Amanda Blake Davis (FB) [Agent Calhoune / Graci], Glenn  Stanton (FB) [Agent Corrigan / Barrick], Derek Mehn (FB) [Tony / Clint], Dana DeRuyck (FB) [Alexis / Coroner], and Marshall Givens (FB) [Cop / Priest / Killer / Doug].  Of these folks, the performances that remain stuck in my head are Fluet’s wonderful Chief, whose interactions with the Lamprey reminded me of the screaming on Moonlighting, and DeRuyck’s Coroner, who just had this wonderful look about her. The rest all gave great performances; it was those two that stood out in my mind above the rest.

Lamprey: Weekend of Vengeance was written by Peter Fluet (FB), who appears to have done a number of productions at Serial Killers. Scott Golden (FB) was the assistant director. HeatherLynn Gonzales (FB) was the Stage Manager. Sondra Mayer (FB) did the fight choreography, which was very good (although I still prefered the fight choreography on Librarians). Music Composition was by Zachary Bernstein (FB). Erik Engman was an associate producers and made a special appearance somewhere.

There are two more presentations of Lamprey: Weekend of Vengeance: Monday, June 20th at 7:00PM, and Friday, June 24th at 11:00 PM. It is quite funny and worth seeing. Tickets are available through the Fringe Website.

Attention Programmers! Take the Fringe Programming Challenge! Scheduling your shows at the Fringe can be a pain in the …. I’m trying to solve the problem for next year, so take a look at my specs for a Fringe scheduling app. Can you write it?

* * *

Ob. Disclaimer: I am not a trained theatre critic; I am, however, a regular theatre audience member. I’ve been attending live theatre and concerts in Los Angeles since 1972; I’ve been writing up my thoughts on theatre (and the shows I see) since 2004. I do not have theatre training (I’m a computer security specialist), but have learned a lot about theatre over my many years of attending theatre and talking to talented professionals. I pay for all my tickets unless otherwise noted. I am not compensated by anyone for doing these writeups in any way, shape, or form. I currently subscribe at Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB) and the  Hollywood Pantages (FB); my subscription at  The Colony Theatre (FB) has gone dormant, and REP East (FB) has seemingly gone dark for 2016. Through my theatre attendance I have made friends with cast, crew, and producers, but I do strive to not let those relationships color my writing (with one exception: when writing up children’s production, I focus on the positive — one gains nothing except bad karma by raking a child over the coals).  I believe in telling you about the shows I see to help you form your opinion; it is up to you to determine the weight you give my writeups.

Upcoming Shows: Ah, June. Wonderful June. June is the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB), and I’ve already written about the shows I plan to see, as well as suggestions to the Fringe regarding viewing the audience as a customer. Our Fringe/June schedule is as follows (for shows in the past, ✍ indicates writeup is in progress; ✒ indicates writeup is complete and links to the writeup):

• ✓ Sat, 6/4:  Alien vs. Musical (230p) (✒) •  Code 197 DWB (Driving While Blewish) (400p) (✒) •  Toxic Avenger: The Musical  (600p) (✒)
• ✓ Sun, 6/5:  Tell Me On A Sunday (600p) (✒) •  All The Best Killers are Librarians (800p) (✒)
• ✓ Sat, 6/11: Pali Hi All Year Picnic • Einstein (400p)  (✒) • The Boy from Oz – the Celebration Theatre (FB) (800p) (✒)
• ✓ Sun, 6/12: Titus Andronicus Jr. (700p) (✒); and then the Tony Awards when I get home.
• ✓ Sat, 6/18: 30JJ or Bust: The World is My Underwire (1130a) (✒) • Lamprey: Weekend of Vengeance (200p) (✒) • Mark Twain Answers All Your Questions (600p) (✍) • The Old Woman (800p) (✍)
• ✓ Sun, 6/19: Sweet Love Adieu (100p) • All Aboard the Marriage Hearse (400p)
• Sat, 6/27: Squeeze My Cans (400p) • My Big Fat Blond Musical (830p)
• Sun, 6/28: Temple Israel Reunion • Hamlet (Las Vegas Style) (630p)

Whew. July brings us back to conventional theatre, with Beautiful at the  Hollywood Pantages (FB) and the Western Corps Connection (FB) the first weekend, Grey Gardens at the Ahmanson Theatre (FB); the second weekend, The Little Mermaid at  Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB); the third weekend, Weird Al Yankovic at the Hollywood Bowl (FB) and Operaworks (FB) Opera Re-Constructed at CSUN; the fourth weekend, a mid-week Hollywood Bowl (FB) concert of Wynton Marsalis and Aaron Copeland, and … currently nothing for the weekend. As of right now, August is completely open. One weekend has a bar mitzvah, and there are a few holds for show, but nothing is booked. Late August may see us looking at shows down San Diego/Escondido for one weekend. The best of the shows available — or at least the most interesting — is Titanic from Moonlight Stages. September is similarly mostly hold dates at this point. As always, I’m keeping my eyes open for interesting productions mentioned on sites such as Bitter-Lemons, and Musicals in LA, as well as productions I see on Goldstar, LA Stage Tix, Plays411 or that are sent to me by publicists or the venues themselves.

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Now, I know middle school theatre, and I’ve grown spoiled by good middle school theatre. My daughter was at Nobel Middle School (FB) when their drama program was reborn about 10  years ago, and we’ve seen a large number of excellent productions since then. So, when I heard that Dawson Middle School from Las Vegas was doing a Fringe show, I just had to go. Then I heard they were doing Shakespeare. That cemented it. It was a must see.

So last night, I went into the Black Box theatre at Sacred Fools (FB) to see the show. There was the usual cheesy set. They could really take a lesson from Nobel, believe you me. Then the drama instructor, Mr. Benjamin, gets up to introduce the play:

This year, Ms. Pennington, our school principal, asked if I would direct the Spring Play. And although I’ve never directed a play before, I’ve heard the commentary track on the Pulp Fiction DVD like a thousand times, so I figured it shouldn’t be too hard, right?

And since kids needs to be nourished by studying the classics, I chose William Shakespeare’s Titus Andronicus. I mean, it was his first play, so it shouldn’t be too difficult to put on.

Anyhow, we’ve had auditions and the cast is pretty good. They’re learning their lines and helping out with the set.

He then introduces the leads, and notes about one of them:

This is Noa. Noa plays Tamora.

Coincidentally my wife’s name is Tamra. Yeah…you probably know her. She makes herself pretty well known everywhere she goes….

We then come to realize that he is in the middle of a massive breakup, and this instructor is being a little passive aggressive… OK, sometimes really aggressive, about his wife.  And the show begins….

Being serious for a moment: What you see above is the setup for Titus Andronicus Jr., a comedic play really being done by middle school students from various schools in the Las Vegas area, and funded by a GoFundMe to come to the Hollywood Fringe. The description in the Fringe catalog said: “After a divorce leaves him suffering a nervous breakdown, a teacher at the posh Dawson Middle School receives the final insult when he is tasked with directing the school’s spring play. Reeling from his personal collapse, Mr. Benjamin chooses to lead the kids in Shakespeare’s bloodiest tragedy: Titus Andronicus.”

This show, written by Troy Heard (FB), was invited to be part of the Organic and Homegrown Playwrights Festival (FB) at UNLV where it was presented as a staged reading in March 2016. The World Premiere staging was at the Onyx Theatre (FB) during May 2016. The Onyx is one of the small professional theatres — I don’t know its size, but think of a Sacred-Fool-ish to something perhaps larger — in Las Vegas. Yes, Vegas has a theatre scene beyond what is done on the Strip (although I do recommend Evil Dead: The Musical (FB) on the Strip). The GoFundMe provided the funds to bring the show to HFF, although it wasn’t good enough to get them into the opening night party.

Reading the Fringe schedule I found the description of the show, and put it on my short list of shows to see because it just sounded so warped. It lived up to my expections. If you read the intro (which I grabbed from their GoFundMe), you know the setup: mentally distraught teacher is having to do the spring show: a group of middle schoolers of varying talents putting on a version of Titus Andronicus. Yes, they do the Shakespeare, blood, gore, guts and all, modulo some trigger warnings. As the show goes on, the drama teacher Mr. Benjamin gets drawn into the action more and more, partially because the fellow playing Aaron has a tremendous case of stage fright. Combine this with alcohol, and you get the picture. I don’t want to spoil the end or the middle, but let’s just say that this play lives up to its name, with perhaps a little Lord of the Flies thrown in.

Given the nature of this show, it is difficult to assess. Watching the show, I began to wonder why I always approach Shakespeare from a warped direction. Moonlighting‘s “Atomic Shakespeare” was my intro to  The Taming of the Shrew. The Four Clowns Presents Hamlet was my introduction to the Prince of Denmark (if it wasn’t the Lion King). Bard Fiction was my introduction to that Shakespeare classic Pulp Fiction. This was my first exposure to Titus. Looking at the wikipedia pages today, I see they got the story mostly correct, although it was a little hard to follow. The drama teacher might have been part of that.

Essentially, the kids got Titus right — or at least what you might expect a middle school production to do. The descent into madness that was the Junior version was also well done — it drew you into the descent and was hilarious in its bloody incongruities and defying of expectations of what a kid show was.

As Mr. Benjamin, Thomas Chrastka (who happens to be the Sound Designer of Evil Dead) captures the descent and desparation of a drama teacher quite well. I know drama teachers like that. As for the kids, it is harder to judge because not only are they kids, but they are playing kids doing Shakespeare. At that, they were all remarkable. The kid cast consisted of Ken Haley (Titus Andronicus), Gary Easton/FB (Saturninus), Noa Agatstein/FB (Tamora), Joshua Smithline (Marcus), Joelie Mountain (Lavinia), Maxwell Claydon (Aaron), Cash Freeman (Bassianus / Quintus / Messenger), Ashlee Grubbs (Mutius / Demetrius), and Will Haley (Lucius / Chiron). They were all very funny — I particularly liked Agatstein’s Tamora, Mountain’s Lavinia (especially after losing her hands), Haley’s Titus, Claydon’s Aaron, and watching Easton come on and off stage with Saturninus’ walk was hilarious.

The production was directed by Troy Heard (FB), with music provided by Mr. Benjamin… I mean Thomas Chrastka. The sets were by Mr. Benamin’s third period (in reality, the production design was by Troy Heard (FB)), the lights were by Mr. Jenkins shop class (in reality, Cory Covell/FB and Coral Benedetti/FB), with sound design by Sam Murphy/FB. Costumes were by Maxwell’s mom, Mrs. Claydon. Cassidy Bonifacio/FB was the assistant stage manager.

There are two more performances of Titus Andronicus Jr. at the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB) [June 17 @ 5pm, June 18 @ 8pm], and you should really go see it. Tickets are available off of the show’s Fringe page. Be prepared for trigger warnings, blood, violence, and adult themes. This is not your typical middle school production.

As a PS: I fear this is what will happen at Nobel now that its founders have moved on: Fanny to run the performing arts magnet at Van Nuys HS, and Jean to do Drama and English at the Porter Ranch Community School.

* * *

Ob. Disclaimer: I am not a trained theatre critic; I am, however, a regular theatre audience member. I’ve been attending live theatre and concerts in Los Angeles since 1972; I’ve been writing up my thoughts on theatre (and the shows I see) since 2004. I do not have theatre training (I’m a computer security specialist), but have learned a lot about theatre over my many years of attending theatre and talking to talented professionals. I pay for all my tickets unless otherwise noted. I am not compensated by anyone for doing these writeups in any way, shape, or form. I currently subscribe at Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB) and the  Hollywood Pantages (FB); my subscription at  The Colony Theatre (FB) has gone dormant, and REP East (FB) has seemingly gone dark for 2016. Through my theatre attendance I have made friends with cast, crew, and producers, but I do strive to not let those relationships color my writing (with one exception: when writing up children’s production, I focus on the positive — one gains nothing except bad karma by raking a child over the coals).  I believe in telling you about the shows I see to help you form your opinion; it is up to you to determine the weight you give my writeups.

Upcoming Shows: Ah, June. Wonderful June. June is the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB), and I’ve already written about the shows I plan to see, as well as suggestions to the Fringe regarding viewing the audience as a customer. Our Fringe/June schedule is as follows (for shows in the past, ✍ indicates writeup is in progress; ✒ indicates writeup is complete and links to the writeup):

• ✓ Sat, 6/4:  Alien vs. Musical (230p) (✒) •  Code 197 DWB (Driving While Blewish) (400p) (✒) •  Toxic Avenger: The Musical  (600p) (✒)
• ✓ Sun, 6/5:  Tell Me On A Sunday (600p) (✒) •  All The Best Killers are Librarians (800p) (✒)
• ✓ Sat, 6/11: Pali Hi All Year Picnic • Einstein (400p)  (✒) • The Boy from Oz – the Celebration Theatre (FB) (800p) (✒)
• ✓ Sun, 6/12: Titus Andronicus Jr. (700p) (✒); and then the Tony Awards when I get home.
• Sat, 6/18: 30JJ or Bust: The World is My Underwire (1130a) • Lamprey: Weekend of Vengeance (200p) • Mark Twain Answers All Your Questions (600p) • The Old Woman (800p)
• Sun, 6/19: Sweet Love Adieu (100p) • All Aboard the Marriage Hearse (400p)
• Sat, 6/27: Squeeze My Cans (400p) • My Big Fat Blond Musical (830p)
• Sun, 6/28: Temple Israel Reunion • Hamlet (Las Vegas Style) (630p)

Whew. July brings us back to conventional theatre, with Beautiful at the  Hollywood Pantages (FB) and the Western Corps Connection (FB) the first weekend, a HOLD for Grey Gardens at the Ahmanson Theatre (FB); the second weekend, The Little Mermaid at  Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB); the third weekend, Weird Al Yankovic at the Hollywood Bowl (FB) and Operaworks (FB) Opera Re-Constructed at CSUN; the fourth weekend, a mid-week Hollywood Bowl (FB) concert of Wynton Marsalis and Aaron Copeland, and … currently nothing for the weekend. As of right now, August is completely open. One weekend has a bar mitzvah, and there are a few holds for show, but nothing is booked. Late August may see us looking at shows down San Diego/Escondido for one weekend. The best of the shows available — or at least the most interesting — is Titanic from Moonlight Stages. As always, I’m keeping my eyes open for interesting productions mentioned on sites such as Bitter-Lemons, and Musicals in LA, as well as productions I see on Goldstar, LA Stage Tix, Plays411 or that are sent to me by publicists or the venues themselves.

Share/Bookmark

This entry was originally posted on Observations Along The Road (on cahighways.org) as this entry by cahwyguy. Although you can comment on DW, please make comments on original post at the Wordpress blog using the link below; you can sign in with your LJ, FB, or a myriad of other accounts. There are currently comments on the Wordpress blog. PS: If you see share buttons above, note that they do not work outside of the Wordpress blog.

(Click Here to Comment)