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As I wrote yesterday, 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 touching dramatic one-person shows (our fourth Saturday show). But wait…. there’s more. And we saw it on Sunday.

Having been reintroduced to the comedic possibilities of Shakespeare through his timeless classic Bard Fiction, and having seen even more comedic possibilities in Four Clowns Presents Hamlet, I was eager for more Shakespeare in the schedule. No, Titus Andronicus Jr. didn’t satisfy my appetite.  I wanted more. I wanted parody (before the real thing, which will be our last HFF16 show). Reading through the schedule, my eyes set upon Sweet Love Adieu (which had not acquired its subtitle yet). From an established company. A production that had gotten rave reviews in the past. Something a bit bawdy (because I was not going to this). Plus, there was free chocolate.  The description in the catalog was short but intriguing:

Verse * tights * codpiece * lights. Romeo and Juliet meets Monty Python in this hilarious comedy of errors from multiple award-winning British verse playwright phenomenon, Ryan J-W Smith. Smith’s first acclaimed verse play – completely rewritten and updated for 2016!

Coming out of the production, my basic impression was: Ren-Faire theatre done long. That’s not necessarily a bad thing (in fact, I still believe that one of the other shows in Fringe was a production I saw at Nottingham Festival last year (hmmm, it appears it was)). But typical Ren-Faire Shakespeare uses the rhyming couplets and combines it with the bawdy humor and risque word play of Faire (without really showing anything at all). This was all that, extended to 80 minutes or so. If you go in expecting that, you won’t be disappointed.

The plot? Yes, I guess there was one. Here’s a summary of a version  from 2007; the 2016 version was a bit longer but similar:

The plot of Sweet Love Adieu revolves around a love-sick William who instantly falls for Anne Beaumont, who is the ward of the stereotyped villain Lord Edmund. When Edmund decides that he will have Anne as his bride, William and Anne become secret lovers as they plot with their friends, cousins, mothers, and friars to outwit the nefarious Edmund and his feckless manservant Sidney. Homage is paid to Shakespeare’s comedies through cross-dressing, period music, marginal swordplay, and a happy ending.

Yup. Ren-Faire Shakespeare.

The free verse was quite good, and there were numerous references to modern technology that were quite clever. There were times where the fourth wall was broken, and that too was great fun.

I think my basic point here is one of managing expectations. This piece is quite fun to watch. It is well performed and cleverly written. But it is, at its heart, a Renaissance Faire stage show with the level of bawdy humor and depth of plot one would expect from such a piece. It would do great at Southern Faire or Nottingham or any of the Northern brethren. But deep theatre it is not; particularly fringey it is not.  But you do get chocolate. Good chocolate. Chocolate that made it clear that they spent the money on chocolate instead of a program (you had to find the players online)

One additional note: Given the recent kerfuffle over the abuse at the Profile Theatre in Chicago, and the resultant collateral damage at Bitter Lemons, the issues of sexual harassment and non-consensual sex were heavily on my mind. Watching this sex farce, where the men were constantly treating the women like objects and attempting to (essentially) sexually force themselves on them, was quite uncomfortable. I’m well aware of how this was the style of those days. Still, it goes to show how even historical drama (or comedy) can raise questions for today, and why we must remember to view things in the light of their times — and think about how far we have come.

As I said before, the company putting it on performed it well and handled the language quite well. Let’s start with the folks that attracted my attention whenever they were on stage: the ladies:  Faith Kearns (FB) as Audrey, Katey Zouck (FB) as Anne, and Megan Barker (FB) as Faith. All three exhibited a wonderful sexy spunk that was just fun to watch — and the sex didn’t come from exposing skin but from a great assertive attitude that was just projected out to the audience. These were no-nonsense gals; all great.

The three guys — William and his two friends, who also handled multiple roles, were portrayed by Jason Linforth (FB) [William], Lance Frantzich (FB) [Ridley / Doctor / Magistrate / Priest], and Ryan Stiffelman (FB) [Latimer]. Linforth’s William was a suitably handsome and clueless young lad, and Frantzich was a hoot in his multiple roles — particularly as the priest with his non-priestly inclinations.

The remaining characters: Lord Edmond and his aide, Sidney, were played by Roger Carvalho (FB) and the author, Ryan J-W Smith (FB),  respectively. Carvalho’s Edmond was suitably sinister, and was fun to watch when his, umm, member was damaged. Smith’s Sidney captured the plotting quite well.

On the technical side, the production was written and directed by Ryan J-W Smith (FB). Lisa Lynn is the company manager. Because they spent all their money on chocolate, they must have pulled random people off the street to handle lights, costumes, and the like because no one is credited on their website. 🙂

There are two more productions of Sweet Love Adieu — June 24th at 5:30PM and June 25th at 2:30PM. Tickets are available through the Fringe website. It is essentially running in repertory with Macdeth! (MacBeth Done Wrong), which also has two more performances: June 23 at 7:00 PM and June 25th at 8:00 PM. Again, visit the Fringe website for tickets. Oh, and go see a show at your local RenFaire — tickets to Nottingham in Simi Valley are on sale now.

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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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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Our third show on Saturday was perhaps the weakest of the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB) shows that we’ve seen so far — this is not to say that it wasn’t funny at points, but it was also much more improvised and disorganized.

The show was Mr. Mark Twain Answers All Your Questions, and the premise as described was: “Fresh off his award-winning performance at last year’s Poe Show,* Mr. Mark Twain is back with his one man show! This June at the new Sacred Fools space, Mr. Mark Twain will be shooting out the lights with stories, observations, and general nonsense (with extra nonsense on the side). If he fools around long enough, he may even say something worth repeating.”

As executed, it was a little different. The conceit was somehow that the Federal Bureau of One Person Shows was forcing Twain to do this show for some reason. The show involved Twain telling a few stories of his life, trying to tell some bad jokes, and the reacting and answering a number of questions from the audience in the Twain character. There was some level of audience participation, but in many ways the biggest question was whether Twain’s mustache would stay attached to his face. At our show, it didn’t and he eventually gave up.

Twain was played by a fellow named S. Clemens, who in reality was Ed Goodman (FB). Goodman was reasonably funny and quick on his feet, but I’m not sure he captured the Mark Twain character as the audience might expect.

Corey Rittmaster (FB) providedthe sound and voice, and served as the representative of the FBOPS when Twain broke the rules. Jeremy Aldridge (FB) helped develop the show and served as director. Suz Curtis was the Brainstorm Trooper. Mark Twain was partially funded by an Indiegogo Effort.

There is one more performance of Mark Twain Answers All Your Questions, Saturday June 25 at 11:30pm. 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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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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Saturday was our four-show day at the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB). Whew! Luckily, all but one of them were one-person shows, making the write-ups easier. The first dealt with a subject that is really out in front, something that calls and hold your attention, something that … oh well, just pretend I’ve inserted all  the gratuitous jokes about large breasts. Guys like to joke about large breasts; certainly, in Western society, they are what’s in for most people*. But for those that have them, dealing with them is no fun. A hot day like Saturday means you’re swimming in boob sweat. There are back problems, knee problems, self-esteem problems, … the list goes on and on. Anyone who thinks that large breasts are a blessing doesn’t have to live with them.
(*: as you are probably dying to ask: I’ll enjoy them whatever size they are, just keep ’em natural)

That, precisely, was the subject of our first show Saturday: “30JJ or Bust: The World is My Underwire“. The artist, Joan Afton (FB), shares her experiences living with “the girls” (use whatever term you want), framing the discussion with a call to her insurance company about getting breast reduction surgery — and the angst it creates when she thinks about changing something that is so much part of her identity.

During the show, Afton explores society’s relationship and view about breasts, as well as what large chested girls have to go through to deal with the chest. From learning how to camouflage and distract attention, to finding appropriate size bras and being measured properly, and exploring both the physical and emotions damage that large size breast can create.

Now, I’m a guy, and I found the show quite enjoyable. I also found it interesting to hear and explore the reaction of the audience to the stories. I never found myself wondering when the show would be over, and found myself caught up in Afton’s story.

But I’m not the best judge. My wife was in a similar position to Afton: When we met, she was in a KK cup; she had reduction surgery many many years ago — and she’ll tell you it was the best decision she ever made. She absolutely loved this show: she said it captured the experience of every large breasted girl growing up. It captured the concerns that leads one to have surgery, and also captured the questions that go through one’s mind. She thought it was the best show we saw on Saturday.

So, if the boobs that are giving you the greatest problems in life are not your partner and your co-workers, but your large breasts; if you really want to get something off your chest… you should really see this show. It’s also great for those guys who either live with or want to live with someone with large breasts: you’ll discover that your fantasy does not trump your partner’s pain.

30JJ was directed by Deana Barone (FB), who worked with Afton to help her transform her story into what you see on stage. Evidently, they are long-time friends, and that close relationship showed in how well the story presented itself. Barone has another show at the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB) — MetaFam. She also hostied a workshop (well, it has just started) called Unleash Your Story, also at Fringe.

30JJ has one more performance:  Saturday June 25 2016 at 11:30 PM at  Asylum @ Studio C (Mainstage). 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.

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)

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.

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I’ve known many a librarian in my life. One of my dearest friends (Z”L) was a librarian, and she had an inner something that made you not want to cross her… or you would pay the price. I’ve got corporate librarians on my van; again, don’t let their exteriors fool you about their toughness. I even know librarians that can dance people until they drop. So, when I saw a show in the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB) catalog that was described as “In this action-packed comedy, a shy librarian is recruited into the thrilling world of professional assassinations, international intrigue, and forbidden romance”, well, I was sold. That show was All The Best Killers are Librarians (FB, TW), and it was the second show we saw last Sunday.

Before I go into the show itself, I’ll note that this show was the winner of Season Ten of “Serial Killers” at Sacred Fools Theater. 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!

All The Best Killers are Librarians (written by Bob DeRosa (FB)) tells the story of Margo, a shy librarian, content to hide out at the research assistance desk in the back of her library. But then she meets Lancaster, a man who hires and trains the best assassins in the world. Lancaster is convinced she is a natural born killer, and he proves this by sending in three trained assassins to kill her. She dispatches them quickly, for she has the gift to instinctively kill when her life is threatened. Lancaster then recruits Margo into his action-packed world of professional assassinations, international intrigue, and forbidden romance. There’s only one problem: Margo doesn’t really like to kill, and she has started to fall in love with the cleaning man. You know, the cleaning man. The man who disposes of the bodies. Before the show is done, Margo’s hands will be stained with blood and she will know the truth: all the best killers are librarians!

The acting ensemble, who I’m presuming are drawn from the Serial Killers regulars, are aptly directed by Alicia Conway Rock (FB), who keeps the pace brisk and the action non-stop. She takes advantage of blackouts and sound effects to have stage violence that isn’t too violent, focusing instead on the fun of the story. I think this is one part of why this show is so successful.

Another part of the show’s success is the acting ensemble itself, led by Lauren Van Kurin (FB) as Margo, the librarian. Van Kurin’s Margo is sexy, smart, and damn good with a throwing knife. She’s playing this show for fun, and it is clear she enjoys this very physical role. That enjoyment comes across to the audience, who is rapidly drawn into to her dilemma and adventure. She’s just a hoot to watch, and I truly could not take my eyes off of her.

Paired with her as her recruiter and mentor is Eric Giancoli (FB) as Lancaster. Giancoli’s Lancaster is the classic handsome strong silent type, who gives the great impression that there’s something more there that (say it slow) he (pause) is (pause) not (pause) telling. Nice deep voice, very well played.

Margo’s love interest, Henry, is portrayed by Pete Caslavka. Caslavka seems to be having fun with the role, although I think he missed a spot up to the right :-).

Rounding out the performing ensemble were Jennifer C. DeRosa (FB) as Eleanor, Carrie Keranen (FB) as Crane / Mrs. White, Mike Mahaffey (FB) as Belinda / Numerous Killers, and Monica Greene (FB) as Sally / Numerous Killers. All of them were great and it is hard to single out specific supporting roles (especially as the two sacrificial killees are killed so many many times). DeRosa was fun to watch as Eleanor, Margo’s supervisor. In general, the amount of physical work that these cast members go through must be exhausting!

That leads us to the production and creative credits, and at the top of the list must be Mike Mahaffey (FB)’s fight choreography. Knives were popping out everywhere, and I just couldn’t see how it was done; there were loads of physical fighting moves and punches, and yet no one got hurt. Remarkable choreography, especially when you realize that Mahaffey was there in the middle of it. Also noticeable was Ben Rock (FB)’s sound design — a significant part of what made this production work were the sound effects, perfectly selected and timed. Matthew Richter (FB)’s was very effective (especially considering that one cannot always get the lighting one wants or needs at a Fringe venue), making maximum use of blackouts to create the illusion of extra violence. Rounding out the production credits: Jennifer C. DeRosa (FB)  — Producer; Rachel Manheimer (FB) — Stage Manager; Blake Gardner (FB) — Photographer.

There are four remaining performances of All the Best Killers are Librarians (although some may already be sold out, including this Friday): Friday 6/10 at 8:30 pm; Wednesday 6/15 at 10:30pm; Saturday 6/18 at 4:00 pm; and Saturday 6/25 at 3:30 pm. I’ve been telling all my librarian friends about this. You can learn about the show and get tickets at http://www.hollywoodfringe.org/projects/3510. You’ll enjoy this show quite a bit.

I should note that the Serial Killers team that is behind this show is also behind two other Fringe shows: Lamprey: Weekend of Violence and Serial Killers at the Fringe. We already have tickets to the former; and don’t have room in our schedule for the latter. You might, and you should probably go to those as well.

* * *

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.

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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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OK, I have this thing for off-beat, quirky, what might be called “Off Broadway” musicals. Be it Brain from Planet X, Evil Dead: The Musical, It Came From Beyond, Zombies from the Beyond, Zanna Don’t, or even The Rocky Horror Show (yes, it was a stage musical — and Off-Broadway at that, before the movie) — these little musicals are just a hell of a lot of fun. I also like to find musicals for which I’ve heard the music but never seen them on stage. Good People Theatre (FB)’s The Toxic Avenger Musical at the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB) is a two-fer: a wonderful quirky musical that I’ve never seen before.  It is a spectacular production that you are sure to enjoy.

The Toxic Avenger Musical is based on Lloyd Kaufman (FB)’s The Toxic Avenger. It was adapted for the stage by Joe DiPietro (Book and Lyrics) and David Bryan (Music and Lyrics) — the same team that did Memphis – The Musical. I guess I should say, following my conceit, that Kaufman did a wonderful job of adapting the stage show.

In any case, The Toxic Avenger Musical tells the story of a nerd, Melvin Ferd the Third, who secretly loves the town’s blind librarian, Sarah. Melvin also hates how his town of New Jersey has become a toxic waste pit. He investigates with a lead from Sarah, and discovers that the Mayor is behind the dumping of the toxic waste. He threatens to destroy her, and she sends her goons to take care of him. They dump him in a vat of toxic waste, and he emerges mean and green… and out to return New Jersey to the garden spot it is meant to be. After rescuing Sarah from attackers, she falls in love with him, believing him to be French (explaining the stench). So does the now christened Toxie save Tromaville, or does the Mayor win?

Yes, a comic story. Yes, a silly story. But one surprisingly relevant, based on concerns about toxic waste and global warming. The songs are infectious and upbeat, and I challenge you not to come out of this musical smiling. It is just great green toxic fun.

Of course, it is helped by spot on performances, under the direction of GPT’s Janet Miller (FB). Every time we’ve seen something Janet has done or directed, we have walked out impressed. Be it Fringe shows like Marry Me a Little or A Man of No Importance, or CSUN shows like Bat Boy, her direction guarantees a quality show. I’m not saying that to be nice. There are a few musical directors in Los Angeles who consistently do quality work in small theatres, folks like Richard Israel (FB) or Roger Bean (FB). Janet is part of that small group. If you see her name, go see her show.

Back to the performances, the cast in this was outstanding. Before I get to the mean green man himself, I want to highlight my favorite: Kim Dalton (FB). We saw Kim earlier this year in Chance’s Dogfight, and we were impressed. This time, we were blown away. Kristen Chenowith better watch out: this tiny package has a set of pipes on her that are astounding. I’m still thinking about “My Big French Boyfriend” , “Hot Toxic Love”, or “Choose Me, Oprah”. Further, her acting was great. In this show, she is playing a blind librarian. This could have degenerated quickly into caricature or farce, but she did it realistically, reminding me of a blind friend of mine. She was touching, funny, sexy, and just remarkable. I look forward to seeing her in more Southern California productions.

As for our mean green man, Melvin Ferd the Third, who become The Toxic Avenger, he was played by Jared Reed (FB). Reed projected a wonderful mix of meekness and strength — a combination that made him accessible and friendly and distinctly not a monster. Except when you cross him. Here’s a hint: You don’t want to cross big green men. Just ask Bruce Banner. Reed also had a lovely singing voice, which he ably demonstrated in sochs such as “You Tore My Heart Out”, “Kick Your Ass”, and “Hot Toxic Love” (a lovely duet with Dalton).

All of the other actors in the show play multiple characters. A particular standout is Shirley Anne Hatton (FB), who we first saw in GPT’s A Man of No Importance. Hatton plays the Mayer, Ma Ferd, and a nun, and just nails all three performances. From her solos in the opening number, “Who Will Save New Jersey?”, her performance with the girls in “All Men are Freaks”, to her over the top duet, “Bitch/Slut/Liar/Whore” — she is just spectacular.

This leaves us with the men and women of all trades: Danny Fetter (FB) and Wesley Tunison (FB). Fetter, the generically titled “Black Dude”, plays Sluggo, Professor Ken, Sinequa, Fred, Lamas, and a number of other unnamed roles. Tunison, the generically titled “White Dude”, plays Bozo, Sal the Cop, Diane, the Folk Singer, Lorenzo, and other roles. This is one of the amazing things about this show: that these two guys play so many characters and constantly switch between them. They work really well together in “Big French Boyfriend”, and Fetter does a wonderful song on “The Legend of the Toxic Avenger”.

The music was under the direction of Corey Hirsch (FB), who also played keyboard on stage. He was joined by Mike Lindsey on drums, Brenton Kossak (FB) on bass, Jeff Askew on guitar, and Dave Thomasson on reed. Orchestrations and arrangements were by David Bryan and Christopher Jahnke.

Turning to the remaining production and creative credits. The scenic design was by Zorro J. Susel (FB), who came up with a very clever design given the limitations of Fringe (load in and out in 10 minutes or so). The scenic design was supplemented by Emma Hatton‘s props. The clever costume design was by Mary Reilly, who did an outstanding job on Toxie’s creative costume, as well as those worn by other characters, which supported rapid quick changes. This was supported by  Zorro J. Susel (FB)’s makeup. Wigs are uncredited. The lighting design was by Katherine Barrett (FB) and the sound design was by Robert Schroeder (FB). We were at a preview performance, and both had problems — which wasn’t surprising — this was their first time being exercised. Both showed the potential of being excellent, so under the fringe-preview-benefit-of-the-doubt, I’m expecting the other performances to be excellent. Katherine Barrett (FB) was also the stage manager, who I’m guessing got the double-duty of holding up the signs and interacting with the characters and generally having a huff when they just expected props to magically go off-stage.Then again, it might have been Rebecca Schroeder (FB), the assistant stage manager. [ETA: GPT clarified on Facebook: “Our sign girl is, indeed, our lovely Assistant Stage Manager, Rebecca Schroeder. Her mother, our illustrious Stage Manager, Kate Barrett, is in the booth!“] Remaining production credits: Logan Allison/FB [Assistant Director], Emma Hatton [Production Assistant];  Kimberly Fox [Marketing Director]; Michael P. Wallot (FB) [Casting Director]; and Oliver Lan [Graphic Designer].

This is a must see at the Fringe. Really. Visit the show’s Fringe Page to book tickets. Remaining performances are: Friday June 10 2016, 9:00 PM; Saturday June 11 2016, 6:00 PM; Monday June 13 2016, 11:00 PM; Wednesday June 15 2016, 11:00 PM; Thursday June 16 2016, 7:00 PM; Saturday June 18 2016, 6:00 PM; Wednesday June 22 2016, 10:00 PM; Friday June 24 2016, 8:00 PM; Saturday June 25 2016, 5:00 PM; and  Sunday June 26 2016, 1:00 PM. Performances are at the Sacred Fools Theater (Main Stage) at  1076 Lillian Way.

* * *

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):

• ✓ 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.

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Well, it has begin. The Hollywood Fringe Festival (HFF) (FB). Over 275 live performance shows spread over 30 or so venues over the month of June.

We have also begun to Fringe (which, yes, is a verb). 15 Fringe shows (plus one regular show and two reunions) during the month of June. Possibly more, depending on if we had to the schedule. We may be sane, but that doesn’t mean we’re not crazy.

Our first Fringe show, Alien vs. Musical (FB),  was nominated for 10 HFF awards in 2015, winning Best World Premiere Production, Outstanding Songwriting, and The Encore! Producers Award. I had wanted to fit it in last year, but just couldn’t rejigger the schedule. Luckily, the show’s producers brought it back this year in a longer version.

How to describe the show? Let’s do it as a theatrical trailer….

In a world where musical theatre characters are real.

In a world where these characters share the same context and are friends.

In a world used to happy endings and tap-dancing dreams.

In such a world, an innocent gift of a pod found at a crash site sets into play a chain of events that reeks bloody havoc on the carefully coiffed character, but introduces a performer the likes of which hasn’t been seen on stage since Little Shop of Horrors.

Yup, that just about says it. The basic conceit of this show is that a bunch of musical theatre characters — Effie (from Dreamgirls), Danny (from Grease), Annie (from Annie), Harold (from The Music Man), Elder (from Book of Mormon), Tracy (from Hairspray), Valjean (from Les Miserables), Elphaba (from Wicked), Maria (from The Sound of Music), and Mark (from Rent) are having a birthday party for Effie. Annie finds a pod at a crash site, but before she can give it to Effie, it attacks Elder. From there the show is off: the Alien (from the titular movie of the same name) is off and bringing chaos to musical theatre land. If you know parody musical, I think you can take it from there.

The show, with book by Erik Przytulski (FB) and Steve Troop (FB), and music and lyrics by Erik Przytulski (FB), falls clearly into the parody musical genre. It cleanly skewers the style, songs, and characterizations of Broadway musicals such as those associated with the characters above, in addition to others such as Hamilton and West Side Story. It provides an opportunity for the audience to see well known theatrical protagonists get skewered — sometimes literally — in front of the audience. It also, in a sense, skewers shows such as Little Shop, with singing and dancing aliens with motivations very different from what a typical human might expect. But then again, we’re not talking normal humans. We’re talking actors and Broadway.

Under the direction of Matthew Tyler (FB), Alien vs. Musical (FB) clearly goes for the fun and the playfulness in the characters. It is clear that he loves these characters, and is having fun bring out there archetypes in the performances. The performances themselves are pretty good for Fringe: there are some strong players, and some that perform well be need stronger voice. There is loads of enthusiasm, channeled into a package that is clearly audience pleasing. The producer (Erik Przytulski (FB)) built upon last year’s successful 60 minute show to create a full 90 minutes that skewers even more musicals.

Lengthing the show permitted inclusion of new material, such as  wonderful rap battle between Harold Hill of The Music Man, and Alexander Hamilton of Hamilton.

The performances from the acting team are good. Some arise from good to the very good to the excellent, others can use a little work. We saw the first performance during preview week, so understand that any problems we may have seen will likely be corrected in subsquent performance.

The acting team consisted of: Levanna Atkinson-Williams (FB) [Effie], Christopher Bunyi (FB) [Danny]; Allie Costa (FB) [Annie], Nick Emmet McGee (FB) [Harold], Taylor Minckley (FB) [Elder], Ally Mulholland [Tracy], Matthew Noah (FB) [Valjean], Suszanna Petrela [Elphaba], Brianne Sanborn (FB) [Maria], and Brad Simanski (FB) [Mark].  Performance-wise, all captured their characters well, believably bringing forward the mannerisms of whomever’s persona they were assuming. Singing-wise, they were a bit more across the board. Some, such as Sanborn’s Maria or Noah’s Valjean, had a good acting voice but really needed stronger projection.  Others were belting their way through their songs from the get-go, such as Atkinson-Williams’s Effie or Costa’s Annie. Others were squarely in the middle, such as McGee’s Harold or Simanski’s Mark. Given this show is performed without amplification, the actors need to belt and project in order for the audience to hear them over the orchestra. One thing is clear, however — these actors are having fun with these roles, and that fun comes across to the audience.

The program does not credit the additional characters the actors portrayed. Most importantly, it does not credit the actors that portray the alien — in particular, the one that does the final performance of the alien. So, Ms. uncredited actor (I have a feeling it was Petrela), I just want to say you gave a stunning performance at the end, a performance that rivals that poser Audry2. Now there’s an epic battle: Audry 2 vs. Alien.

Music, under the music direction and music arrangements of  Emily Cohn (FB), is provided by an on-stage band consisting of Emily Cohn (FB) [Keyboards], Brenton Kossack (FB) [Bass], Taylor Murphy/FB [Drums], and Kyle Scherrer/FB [Guitar]. The musicians seemed to have fun playing along with the actors when required, particular Cohn.

The choreography by Regina Laughlin/FB worked well.

On the technical side: given this is a Fringe production, there isn’t much required in terms of set. After all, you have to be able to load in within 15 minutes, and out just as quickly. What the show does depend upon is the marvelous creature design of Steve Troop (FB), combined with the costume design of Taylor Moten (FB) and the make-up design of Rachel Tyler/FB. The alien puppets were simply great, and for the humans, the costumes mostly conveyed who they were intended to be. Perhaps the weakest was Valjean, who required the 24601 — perhaps because the costumes in that show are less iconic. Remaining creative and production credits: Steve Troop (FB) – Production Design; Beth Wallan (FB) – Stage Manager; Itzel Mendoza-Nava/FB – Assistant Stage Manager; Adam Earle – Technical Supervisor.

Alien vs. Musical (FB, HFF) has four more Fringe performances: Thursday, June 9th @ 7:00pm, Friday, June 17th @ 11:30pm, Thursday, June 23rd @ 8:30pm, and Sunday, June 26th @ 6:00pm. Alien vs. Musical performs at the former Elephant Stages Lillian space, which is now the Sacred Fools (FB) Main Stage at 1076 Lillian. Tickets are available through the Fringe website; buy a Fringe button and save a buck. For the NYC Folks: It looks like the show will be at FringeNYC in August.

* 🎭 🎭 🎭 *

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):

• ✓ 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.

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Ticketing for the Hollywood Fringe Festival opens Sunday morning. Here are the shows that I’m currently planning to see, if they don’t break the budget. There are additional shows of interest that we couldn’t fit into the schedule. Note: This is just a paste of my favorites from the Fringe Website.

• 30JJ OR BUST: THE WORLD IS MY UNDERWIRE. It’s surprisingly what comes up when you’re living as a 30-double-J in a 34-C world.
• ALIEN VS. MUSICAL. What happens when the world of musical theatre meets the most terrifying alien in cinema history? The award winning ALIEN VS. MUSICAL returns for 2016 and it’s bigger and better than ever!
• ALL ABOARD THE MARRIAGE HEARSE. Sean and Amy are a typical co-habitating, Catholic/Jewish couple who love each other and share common goals…sort of. Now, after four years, Amy wants to get married but Sean does not believe in the institution. The game is on! Don’t miss this acclaimed, international hit romantic comedy!
• ALL THE BEST KILLERS ARE LIBRARIANS. In this action-packed comedy, Lauren Van Kurin (“King of Kong: A Musical Parody”) stars as a shy librarian recruited into the thrilling world of professional assassinations, international intrigue, and forbidden romance. **WINNER** Season Ten of “Serial Killers” at Sacred Fools Theater
• CODE:197 DWB (DRIVING WHILE BLEWISH). Benny Lee Harris Lumpkins Jr, a.k.a. Ben-El David, a.k.a Benny Weinberg, or is it Benny Lee Harris Weinberg-Lumpkins, whatever, he is Blewish, a.k.a. Black and Jewish. Oy Vey! Sababa? Why Judaism? These questions are answered and more at the only Oneg at hff16. Special appearance by Diversidad.
• EINSTEIN! Einstein comes back from the beyond. Upset with the way his image has been cheapened, he tells us the remarkable– sometimes harrowing, story behind relativity and his struggles as a father. Told through humor and heart, Jack Fry breathes life into one of the most intriguing icons of all time.
• HAMLET . Shakespeare’s Hamlet cut and adapted for modern audiences. Set in the 1940s in a struggling Las Vegas with the mob as the Royal Family.
• LAMPREY: WEEKEND OF VENGEANCE. Lamprey is having trouble with her husband at home, her partner was just murdered, Internal Affairs is riding her ass, and a homicidal killer is gunning for her. This might just be the best day of her life! The Lamprey premiered at Serial Killers at Sacred Fools.
• MY BIG FAT BLONDE MUSICAL. It’s not over ’til the fat lady sings. My Big Fat Blonde Musical follows Terri as she fights her insecurities and learns to measure her worth by talent rather than the size of her pants.
• MARK TWAIN ANSWERS ALL YOUR QUESTIONS. Fresh off his award-winning performance at last year’s Poe Show,* Mr. Mark Twain is back with his one man show! This June at the new Sacred Fools space, Mr. Mark Twain will be shooting out the lights with stories, observations, and general nonsense (with extra nonsense on the side). If he fools around long enough, he may even say something worth repeating.
• SQUEEZE MY CANS. The Church of Scientology had actress Cathy Schenkelberg for 14 years; 5 years after leaving them behind, she has the courage to tell us all about it. This hilarious and horrifying story unfolds under the direction of Shirley Anderson.
• SWEET LOVE ADIEU. Romeo and Juliet meets Monty Python in this hilarious comedy of errors from multiple award-winning British verse playwright phenomenon, Ryan J-W Smith. Winner – The International Award – Hollywood Fringe Festival 2015. “The Bard Mark II – Genius!” – BBC. “A damned good romp” – British Theatre Guide
• TELL ME ON A SUNDAY. Directed by the award winning Calvin Remsberg and starring Shannon Nelson (“Drop Dead Gorgeous” and “Absolutely Filthy”), Andrew Lloyd Webber and Don Black’s classic one-woman musical that charts the course of an English hat designer’s romantic misadventures from NYC to LA and back again.
• THE OLD WOMAN. The true life story of his mother’s heartbreaking journey into dementia, confronting the inevitable truth of aging, and coming to terms with his own mortality. A beautifully moving story peppered with moments of absolute joy and humor. “★★★★!” – CBC “Masterful storyteller” – WFP
• THE TOXIC AVENGER MUSICAL. HFF FIRST FOR THIS OFF-BROADWAY HIT! A light-hearted rock musical chemical spill. Good versus evil, love versus murder, nuclear waste versus New Jersey. Based on **that** infamous B Movie, TOXIE is factory-run-off fun, but a bit risqué. (13 and up, please.)
• TITUS ANDRONICUS JR.. Murder…Cannibalism…Kids! Shakespeare’s bloodiest play performed by a cast of middle school students under the direction of a teacher suffering a nervous breakdown… What could go wrong?

Some shows that we considered, but couldn’t fit in, included A Little Hamlet, Who Are You Anyway, Doctor in the House, Vintage Box, Charming, The Human Test Subjects, Suckin Injun, Still Got It, The Story of Dick the Pussycat, My Manana Comes, Quaddafi’s Cook—Living in Hell, Cooking for the Devil, and many others. Go to the website and click on shows: there are over 274 to choose from.

Tickets go on sale May 01, 2016

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By now, you’ve probably figured out I’ve tried to participate in the 2015 Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB) as fully as I could, modulo other commitments and general unavailability on weeknights. So, when it came to the last night I could participate in the festival (I have another commitment on closing night), I looked through the Fringe catalog. Most of the shows I wanted to see were not running that night, but there was a show about Dorothy Parker that timed right. Parker was a well-known wit and commentator, and a presentation of some of her stories might be interesting. If you’re unfamiliar with Parker, you might recognize her poem I quoted in the title:

Razors pain you;
Rivers are damp;
Acids stain you;
And drugs cause cramp.
Guns aren’t lawful;
Nooses give;
Gas smells awful;
You might as well live.

Hence, this afternoon saw us at our last Fringe show, Might As Well Live: Stories By Dorothy Parker (FB) at the Acme Theatre at the Complex Theatres (FB).

Might As Well Live presented four vignettes from short stories by Parker: “The Lovely Leave, 1942″; “You Were Perfectly Fine, 1968″, “New York to Detroit, 1997″, and “The Game, Today”. Although I found them entertaining, they were not super engrossing or something that sparked the “Wow” factor. Let me describe the four stories, and then try to figure out why they didn’t hit the nerve they should have:

1. “The Lovely Leave, 1942″. This vignette told the story of Mimi Parker (Bailey Wilson/FB) and Steve Parker (Paul Stanko (FB)). They were evidently someone recently married and then separated by the war (presumably WWI from the uniform, but seemingly WWII from the mention of airfields). Steve called and thought he had a 24 hour pass before going off to the war. Mimi prepped for this, but when he arrived he only had one hour, and they spent most of that hour fighting.
2. “You Were Perfectly Fine, 1968″. This vignette tells the story of Peter (Bret VendenBos (FB)) and Lauren (Aly Fainbarg (FB)). Peter wakes up on Lauren’s couch after a particularly bad drinking bender, and learns the story of how he behaved during that bender.
3. “New York to Detroit, 1997″. This vignette tells the story of Jean (Gabrielle Giraud (FB)) and Jack (Clinton Childress). Jean is in New York, where she’s attempting to have a telephone call with her husband or boyfriend Jack, who is in a hotel room in Detroit. She’s obviously trying to tell him something, but he can’t here her well and appears more self-centered on himself than willing to try. As the vignette ends, we see she’s sitting there with the results of a home pregnancy test, and he’s not alone in the hotel room, The Other Woman (Paget Kagy (FB)) is with him.
4. “The Game, Today”. This vignette was based on a story in the Saturday Evening Post, and appears to have been derived from a Charades game that Parker and her cohorts played at the Algonquin Round Table. In this story, there are a number of couples [Thelma (Paget Kagy (FB)) and Sherm (Paul Stanko (FB)) Chrystie ; Ryan (Bret VendenBos (FB)) and Cassie (Aly Fainbarg (FB)) McDermott; and Jim (Clinton Childress) and Dianne (Gabrielle Giraud (FB)) Bain] celebrating the wedding of Emmy Ford (Bailey Wilson/FB) to Bob Lineham (Kaylon Hunt (FB)). This is Bob’s second marriage; his first wife evidently died by drowning in a lake. They decide to play the game and partner up, but every clue seems to keep bringing up the drowning. This gets Bob more and more upset, until he ends up telling everyone to go jump in a lake. Blackout.

Thinking back over these, I think the reason they didn’t grab is that they were too short. Each of the stories was crying out for more — for a longer treatment, a deeper exploration of the characters, for something deeper than the superficial. Treating the stories as lightly as they were treated did not create the investment in the characters — you didn’t know who they were, and you didn’t really care what happened to them. They were meaningless brief scenes, when they could have been much more.

Further, even if they were to keep the scenes short, they didn’t select the stories to provide some through theme or make some through point from the overall collection. The stories seemed random, unconnected, and it wasn’t clear what point they were trying to make about Dorothy Parker other than, well, she wrote short stories.

Unless you are a Parker fan (and they are out there — after all, this was funded by a Kickstarter with 56 backers), I think this production needs some dramatalurgical work (if that’s a word). Get us more invested in these stories, even if you need to expand them a little. Connect the dots between the stories to make a point about Parker. Were these reflective of some overall attitude towards life? Towards men? Towards women? Towards society at large? What was she trying to say between the lines? Bring out those points, and this work would improve quite a bit.

Independent of the story, the performances where quiet good. I enjoyed Bailey Wilson in both of her roles — both as the overly anxious wife in “Lovely Leave”, as well as the bride-to-be who was clueless about her husband’s past in “The Game”. I also enjoyed Paget Kagy for her performance in “The Game”, as the silent instigator. It really raised the question — never explored — about why she hated Bob Lineham so much and wanted to cause him pain. Bret VandenBos’ Peter in “You Were Perfectly Fine” was also quite good. Lastly, Gabrielle Giraud was great as Jean, the woman trying to communicate with her husband, in “New York to Detroit”.

The program handed out provides no technical credits (tsk, tsk — they make you look good on stage). I’ll note that Steve Parker’s uniform was distracting — yes, it was correct army, but the insignia was a double chevron, which would have been a corporal — yet he was referred to as a Lt. (which would have been a single bar). I’m picky on this, primarily because I work with the Air Force every day. Otherwise, the costuming was reasonable, and the lighting established the mood without distraction. No credit was given for stage management. Might As Well Live was adapted for the Stage and Directed by Adam Scott Weissman (FB). There were numerous executive producers, associate producers, and special thanks, which referred to Kickstarter bonuses. In a real production sense, Might as Well Live was co-produced by Adam Scott Weissman (FB) and Bailey Wilson/FB.

This was the last performance of Might As Well Live: Stories By Dorothy Parker (FB). There is no mention yet of an extension.

Ob. Disclaimer: I am not a trained theatre critic; I am, however, a regular theatre audience. I’ve been attending live theatre 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 subscribe at three theatres:  REP East (FB), The Colony Theatre (FB), and Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB). 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: Tomorrow, it is time for something different: time to see teams of 130 young adults, ages 16-21, broken into color guard (flags, props), brass, and percussion, performing in the Riverside heat in 15 minutes shows, being judged on musical quality, precision, general effect, and individual captions. That’s right, we’ll be at the Western Corps Connection (if you don’t know what Drum Corps competitions are, read this) in Riverside. July is a month of double-headers, begining with “Murder for Two” at the Geffen Playhouse (FB) on July 3rd, and “Matilda” at the Ahmanson Theatre (FB) on July 4th. The next weekend is another double: On Friday night, July 10th, we’re seeing Colin Mitchell‘s show Madness, Murder Mayhem: Three Classic Grand Guignol Plays Reimagined at Zombie Joes Underground Theatre (FB); Saturday July 11th brings “Jesus Christ Superstar” at REP East (FB). The following weekend is another double header: “The History Boys” at the Stella Adler Theatre (FB) on Saturday (Goldstar), and “Green Grow The Lilacs” at Theatricum Botanicum (FB) on Sunday.  The last weekend of July brings our last double: “Lombardi” at the Lonny Chapman Group Rep (FB) on July 25th, with the annual Operaworks show the next day. August start calming down, with “As You Like It” at Theatricum Botanicum (FB) the first weekend of August, our summer Mus-ique show the second weekend of August, and “The Fabulous Lipitones” at  The Colony Theatre (FB) the third weekend of August. After that we’ll need a vacation … but then again we might squeeze in Evita at the Maui Cultural Center (FB) the last weekend of August. September right now is mostly open, with the only ticketed show being “The Diviners” at REP East (FB) and a hold-the-date for “First Date” at The La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts (FB). October will bring another Fringe Festival: the NoHo Fringe Festival (FB). October also has the following as ticketed or hold-the-dates: Kelrik Production (FB)’s Urinetown at the Monroe Forum Theatre (Hold for Sat 10/3);  “Mrs. A. Lincoln” at The Colony Theatre (FB) (Ticketed for Sat 10/10); and  “Damn Yankees” at Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB) (Ticketed for Sat 10/17). 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.

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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OK, those of you who don’t know who Bob McAllister is or what Wonderama was, I’ll wait while you look it up.

OK, let’s go. As you probably know if you are friends with me on Facebook, I’m a big fan of the children’s programming that used to exist on TV. I’m talking the local stuff — before syndication: Sheriff John, Engineer Bill, Hobo Kelley, Tom Hatten. There were also the better known network shows: the aforementioned Wonderama, Captain Kangeroo, Howdy Doody, and such. These shows declined through the 1970s and 1980s; I doubt that many folks younger than 40 remember watching them live at all. But for those of us who did — they bring back memories.

So, when I was reading the 2015 Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB) show list and saw a show with the following description, I was intrigued:

The original Uncle Impossible was an Imaginary Friend & beloved Children’s Show Host paving the way for those like Captain Kangaroo & The Muppet Show. Later in his life, he became a recluse & a shut-in up until his passing. Upon his passing he left a large inharetance to his only living heir; his estranged and eccentric nephew Rex The Impossible. In his Uncle’s will, it states that Rex would inherit the large fortune only if he continues his beloved uncle’s show “Uncle Impossible’s Funtime Variety & Ice Cream Social”. Rex agreed to the terms, but decides to do it HIS way, making it an Adult Version of a Saturday Morning Kid’s Show.

With the help from his Oddly Sweet Sidekick; Princess Bebop A’Lula, Rex The Impossible brings the new “Uncle Impossible’s Funtime Variety & Ice Cream Social” on stage by blending the Whimsy of Saturday Morning Kids Shows & Cartoons that we all know & love with Zany Adult themed Variety Acts creating an off the wall experience…….possibly with Ice Cream.

An adult version of children’s shows. What an intriguing idea? Think of the possibilities? Think of what Hobo Kelley might see in her magic mirror? Think of the toys her toy machine might produce? And the cartoons they might show? The characters they might invent (in the spirit of the aforementioned Bob McAllister)?

Naturally, I went out and got tickets to Uncle Impossible’s Funtime Variety & Ice Cream Social (HFF) at the Complex Theatres (FB). It was our second show on Sunday. Sad to say, I think the potential of the idea didn’t live up to its execution. But at least we got ice cream.

Uncle Impossible’s show, run by his nephew Rex Impossible (FB)* , assisted by Princess Bebop A’lua was strictly a low-budget affair — and they knew it. In that, it had the appropriate air of a local TV show where things could (and often did) go wrong. But the show was less about the hosts, and more about the variety acts they booked to fill the time. In many ways, they could make (or in our case, break) the show. Let’s look at the various pieces in our production (every performance has different acts):

• Openings, Closings, and Interstitials. These were run by the aforemented Rex and Princess A’Lula. They were moderately funny, and the Princess was really fun to watch. The two had a strong working chemistry, and had they expanded their portion of the show they could have been great — that is, moving on to playing characters, pretending to be the acts, and so forth.
• Boylesque by Captain Jack Heartless. Captain Jack Heartless (FB) is a male burlesque (read: stripper) entertainer. In this case, he was in the form of Woody from Toy Story. When the adults left the room, guess what Woody did. That’s right. At least we didn’t see wood. I don’t think I’ll ever look at Toy Story the same again (but then I never did after reading The Pixar Theory)
• 30 Second Songs by Brady Spindel. Brady Spindel (FB) is a local musician who plays short songs (such as “I wore a red shirt in the hood”) and then ends with a sing along. Being a folk music person — and one familiar with short humerous songs (as well as satirical bluegrass), I found him very amateurish. He needs to take a lesson from the short songs of Tom Paxton and the humor of the Austin Lounge Lizards. Now, if the singalong could have been “When I’m Cleaning Windows“….
• Clown Comedy by Johnathan Cripple. Cripple played a professor who interrupted the show, sat in the audience, read a paper, and primarily provided someone for Rex Impossible to have a back and forth with. It was more annoying than particularly funny.
• Burlesque by Ra Ra Sis Bomba. In this skit, the Princess got a pet — Chilly Willy, the penguin. When the music changed, Chilly Willy (who was really the burlesque artist Ra Ra Sis Bomba (FB)), stripped down to her frilly undies, pasties, and wings. She was cute to watch, but … OK, her butt was cute to but… while fun to watch, it just didn’t seem to gel right.
• Hypnosis by Cathy Kay: Mystic-A-Muse. In this Mister Rogers type number, Cathy Kay does a hypnosis act on someone in the audience. No implanted suggestions, just a fall relaxed, wake up, think you see things in a book. I didn’t find it that impressive, although it was fun to watch.

At least the ice cream was good. Well, OK for commercial ice cream.

In short, the show appeared to be low budget in intent and it knew it, and it went for it. In that, it was good, plus there was ice cream. Perhaps that was the intent. Perhaps it was the burlesque style. I know that burlesque and the clown arts are their own distinct community, and perhaps that style didn’t mesh with the theatrical approach I’m used to. This, after all, is Fringe, which includes everything under the sun.

But I can only judge based on my impressions and my tastes. The problem, I’ll note, wasn’t prudishness. I can handle a good adult show. It was more that I was disappointed because it could just have been so much more. Looking at the pages for many of the acts, I got the sense that there was real talent there, but that talent didn’t come across as presented. That was a loss. Further, the notion of an adult children’s show — especially one that wasn’t blatant about it but used double entendre to reach the adult audience could have been great. Even the strippers could have worked — had the host stayed and reacted to the stripper. It is the reactions that make the funny, not the stripping. Think about Pee Wee Herman. What makes the show work is that Pee Wee is always that child at heart. Even if Rex Impossible was going for the adult humor of Pee Wee Herman, the Princess could have been representing the shocked child. But as it was, it just quite didn’t hit the mark for me. This is too bad, because the concept — executed correctly — could have been brilliant. I will give them points for effort.

I’ll note that one factor — which Rex can’t control, might be age. Not the lower bound of the audience age, but the upper. I’m 55. I was a child in the era of the kid’s TV shows. I remember Sheriff John; I watched Wonderama. I also watched Pee Wee Herman. There were other, younger folks in the audience that found this uproariously funny — and I won’t fault them for that. Humor is intensely personal. To use a baseball metaphor: This was a base hit or a double; it wasn’t a home run. I was hoping for the excitement of the home run, but I’m happy that it wasn’t an error.

On the technical side: according to Rex The Impossible, Brad Bentz was the Sound Tech & Stage Manager. Rex the Impossible was the Creator, Director & Producer of the show. He indicated that although the names are strange, that’s what they go by in the Burlesque, Variety, Cabaret and Circus Performance world.

There is one more performance of Uncle Impossible on Thursday, June 25 at 11:15 PM. Tickets are available through the Fringe website. If this is your style — especially if you like burlesque — go for it. It was enjoyable for me, but could have been so much more.

Ob. Disclaimer: I am not a trained theatre critic; I am, however, a regular theatre audience. I’ve been attending live theatre 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 subscribe at three theatres:  REP East (FB), The Colony Theatre (FB), and Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB). 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 Fringe craziness ends with Medium Size Me, (HFF) at the Complex Theatres (FB) on Thursday 6/25 and Might As Well Live: Stories By Dorothy Parker (HFF) at the Complex Theatres (FB) on Saturday. June ends with our annual drum corps show in Riverside on Sunday. July begins with “Murder for Two” at the Geffen Playhouse (FB) on July 3rd, and “Matilda” at the Ahmanson Theatre (FB) on July 4th. July 11th brings “Jesus Christ Superstar” at REP East (FB). The following weekend brings “The History Boys” at the Stella Adler Theatre (FB) on Saturday (Goldstar), and “Green Grow The Lilacs” at Theatricum Botanicum (FB) on Sunday.  July 25th brings “Lombardi” at the Lonny Chapman Group Rep (FB), with the annual Operaworks show the next day. August starts with “As You Like It” at Theatricum Botanicum (FB), and is followed by the summer Mus-ique show, and “The Fabulous Lipitones” at  The Colony Theatre (FB). After that we’ll need a vacation! September right now is mostly open, with the only ticketed show being “The Diviners” at REP East (FB) and a hold-the-date for “First Date” at The La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts (FB). October will bring another Fringe Festival: the NoHo Fringe Festival (FB). October also has the following as ticketed or hold-the-dates: Kelrik Production (FB)’s Urinetown at the Monroe Forum Theatre (Hold for Sat 10/3);  “Mrs. A. Lincoln” at The Colony Theatre (FB) (Ticketed for Sat 10/10); and  “Damn Yankees” at Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB) (Ticketed for Sat 10/17). 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.

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