Observations Along The Road... at Dreamwidth

The penultimate day of the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB) (I do like that word). Three shows, that again show the breadth of Fringe. From clowns playing around on a stage, to an inscrutable one-person show, and finally a well-realized new adaptation of a book. This is Fringe in the full range of strange and glory.

Many years ago we saw an intriguing production of Hamlet, done by the Four Clowns theatre company. Now, when you think clowns, do think of clowns in the noun form, ala Bozo or Chuckles or those numerous TV hosts. Think clown as the verb: people who revel in clowning around and having fun, and you have the basis of Four Clowns. This is an extremely inventive company that like to have fun with everything. You need to like their style (I do), and be in the right mood to be receptive for it (I always am, my wife wasn’t).

So when we learned that Four Clowns was doing a show at Fringe, we were in. Our first show Saturday was that Four Clowns show: Four Clowns Present: Shakedown at the Dusty Spur.

The basic outline of Four Clowns Present: Shakedown at the Dusty Spur is simple, and almost borders on the melodramatic: Papa Maynard has died, and has left the Dusty Spur Saloon to his eldest and only son, Ike Maynard, bypassing the smarter older daughter Marybeth, and leaving only a little to the youngest daughter Maybelline. The villains, Dallas Devereaux and his assistant Logan Lesserman, plot to get the saloon so they can burn it to the ground and fulfill a promise. They do this by swindling Ike, so the children arrange to get “the good buy” Colt “The Corpse” McCoy to fight their battle. But he lives up to his name, and they need to figure out what to do next to get their bar back.

There was plenty of audience participation (if you don’t like that stuff, don’t sit in the first row). There was loads of improvising. The general attitude was that of fun and improvisation — clowning around, as one might say.

Under the direction of Joe DeSoto (FB), artistic director of Four Clowns, all of the performances were strong. The cast consisted of Tommy Fleming (FB) Dallas Devereaux; Turner Frankosky Ike Maynard; Elisabeth Hower Marybeth Maynard; Benji Kaufman (FB) Logan Lesserman; Liz Morgan (FB) Maybelline Maynard; and Jason Poston (FB) Colt “The Corpse” McCoy. Of these, my favorites were Kaufman and Morgan, who were quite a lot of fun to watch.

Other production credits: Harim Sanchez (FB) Asst. Director / Stage Manager; Jax Ball (FB) Set Design; Aaron Lyons Sound Design; Erin Colleran (FB) Costume Design; Sam Schweikert (FB) Poster Design. A whole bunch of people contributed to the script, including most of the cast. Produced by Joe DeSoto (FB), Julia Davis (FB), and Harim Sanchez (FB).

As the official Fringe Festival has ended, you’ll need to check the Fringe Website to see if the show has been extended. Currently, it looks like there are two extension performances: Fri 7/5 at 9pm, and Sun 7/7 at 10:30pm. I found this to be a really funny somewhat improvised show, with lots of clowning around. Depending on your love of clowning (independent of the traditional notion of clowns), YMMV.

The second show we saw on Saturday was A Time Travelers Guide to the Present. This show held such promise. The show description was:

With humanity’s fate on the line, a secret society of astronomers recruits volunteers for the world’s first time travel flight. We follow one traveler as he is catapulted on a journey through the cosmos. What begins as exploration of the mechanics of spacetime travel turns into a desperate hunt for connection. This is a one man show that mixes science, sci-fi, music, and storytelling to explore what it means to be worthy of love.

The show, which was written, performed, produced, and composed by Doug Harvey (FB), turned out to be a bit more incomprehensible. A message is received from the future, and so someone is recruited to go forward in time to stop it. Our intrepid hero is the selectee, and what then follows is the mission, with lots of time travel back and forth, reminiscent of the end of 2001: A Space Odyssey, and about at times as incomprehensible.

On the positive side, the music was great and relaxing.

The production was directed by Jake Elitzer (FB), and Rebecca Schoenberg (FB) was the Production Stage Manager. Other producers were Annie Chang (FB) and Kristina Mueller (FB). Poster art by Estevan Guzman (FB).

As the official Fringe Festival has ended, you’ll need to check the Fringe Website to see if there are any extensions. Right now, there are none shown. We found the show confusing, but the music was great.

The last show we saw on Saturday was one of the best and most humorous shows of all the shows we saw. It was Wigfield, adapted by Pamela Eberhardt (FB) from the satirical novel Wigfield: The Can-Do Town That Just May Not written by Amy Sedaris (FB), Paul Dinello, and Stephen Colbert. The best description I found of the novel was from this site:

Wigfield (officially known as “Proposed Super Fund Site 554”) is an ephemeral hodgepodge of shanties, porno shops, strip clubs, and used auto parts yards. When a state politician, Representative William J. Farber, proposes the demolition of the Senator Alfonse T. Bulkwaller Memorial Dam (constructed in 1931), Wigfield is faced with destruction. The dam is located just up Fresh Springs Creek from this sleepy little, glow-in-the-dark, Podunk burg and it’s the only thing keeping Wigfield from becoming a part of the creek.

In order to prevent the dam’s removal, the residents will have to prove that they’re not just a bunch of itinerant squatters and that Wigfield is indeed an actual town. Fortunately for them, “journalist” Russell Hokes arrives in “town” to get material for a book he’s supposed to be writing about the “brave lives of small-town residents… that celebrates what is best in America by showing the indomitable human spirit in times of crisis”. Hokes unwittingly ends up chronicling the Wigfield citizenry’s last days of living life as they’d known it for so long. He also learns a lot about life, love, and the ecdysiastic arts.

The stage version, as written by Eberhardt, sticks with this pretty closely. We meet Hokes at the beginning, as he gets an advance to chronicle a small town. He discovers Wigfield, and the game (and strangeness) is on. We meet the town inhabitants, each stranger and more off-beat than the next, and begin to learn of the dilemma … and the game, for the notion seems to be that if they can become a town, then they can get relocation payments due to eminent domain. But the resolution becomes more of a “be careful what you wish for”.

In the end, this becomes a cleverly disguised commentary on the weirdness of small towns and how they accept the off-beat; the whole process of eminent domain, and finally, the idiocy of FEMA.

I found the production extremely funny and extremely well done. I originally went to see it because we knew someone in the cast from our days subscribing at REP East in Santa Clarita. I left thoroughly entertained.

The cast consisted of: Joe Hernandez-Kolski (⭐FB; FB) Player A / Hollinger; Pam Quinn (FB) Player B / Cinnamon / Prune; Connor Pratt (FB) Player C / Dillard / Julian; Eric Curtis Johnson (FB) Player D / Udell / Sawyer; Heather Marie Roberts (FB) Player E / Eleanore / Lenare; Meghan Parks (FB) Player F / Hoyt / Dottie; Bedjou Jean (FB) Player G / Farber / Raven; Emily Clark (FB) Player H / Mae Ella / Carla / Judge; Jeff Scot Carey (FB) Player I / Donnie / Halstead; and Scott Golden (FB) Russell Hokes. All were strong. I particularly liked the warm that Golden had, but each was great in their own wacky way.

Understudies were: Jarad Kopciak (FB) Player D / Udell / Sawyer on June 23/30; Pam Quinn (FB) Player E / Eleanore / Lenare on June 30; and Henry Kaiser (FB) Player I / Donnie / Halstead on June 22.

The production staff included: Arlo Sanders (FB) Director, Lighting Design; John Reza Allison Executive Producer. It was produced by The Unknown Artists (FB) and Ruckus Rockwell (FB).

As the official Fringe Festival has ended, you’ll need to check the Fringe Website to see if there are any extensions. Right now, there are none shown.

🎭

Ob. Disclaimer: I am not a trained theatre (or music) critic; I am, however, a regular theatre and music 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 (or I’ll make a donation to the theatre, in lieu of payment). I am not compensated by anyone for doing these writeups in any way, shape, or form. I currently subscribe at 5 Star Theatricals (FB), the Hollywood Pantages (FB), Actors Co-op (FB), the Ahmanson Theatre (FB) [2018-2019 season], and the Musical Theatre Guild (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:

As for July, it is already filling up. The first weekend of the month is still open. The second weekend brings An Intimate Evening with Kristen Chenowith at,The Hollywood Bowl (FB).  The third weekend of July brings Miss Saigon at the Hollywood Pantages (FB), followed by A Comedy of Errors from Shakespeare by the Sea (FB)/Little Fish Theatre(FB). The last weekend of July brings West Side Story at 5 Star Theatricals (FB). August starts with an alumni Shabbat at camp, and The Play That Goes Wrong at the Ahmanson Theatre (FB). August ends with Mother Road and As You Like It at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival (FB). In between those points, August is mostly open.

As always, I’m keeping my eyes open for interesting productions mentioned on sites such as Better-Lemons, Musicals in LA, @ This Stage, Footlights, as well as productions I see on Goldstar, LA Stage Tix, Plays411 or that are sent to me by publicists or the venues themselves. Want to know how to attend lots of live stuff affordably? Take a look at my post on How to attend Live Theatre on a Budget. Want to learn about all the great theatre in Southern California? Read my post on how Los Angeles (and its environs) is the best area for theatre in the Country!

This entry was originally posted on Observations Along the Road as 🎭 HFF19 #16, #17, #18: "Shakedown at the Dusty Spur" / "Time Traveler's Guide" / Wigfield by cahwyguy. Although you can comment on DW, please make comments on original post at the Wordpress blog using the link to the left. You can sign in with your LJ, DW, FB, or a myriad of other accounts. Note: Subsequent changes made to the post on the blog are not propagated by the SNAP Crossposter; please visit the original post to see the latest version. P.S.: If you see share buttons above, note that they do not work outside of the Wordpress blog.

The second set of shows we saw Saturday, as I noted before, also demonstrate the reasons why someone produces a show at the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB). Again, we had a larger-cast drama (A Night Out) and a one-woman show (Neighborhood Watch) . But there were difference this time. The ensemble drama wasn’t new: it was an established play from 1951, being presented to showcase a set of actors from the LACC Theatre Academy. The one-woman show wasn’t an established scripts, but a one-woman comedy telling stories about a neighborhood and its problems.

The third show of the evening was A Night Out, which is an early (1959) less produced play by Harold Pinter. We went to see it because we knew someone in the cast from our days subscribing at the late, great, Repertory East Playhouse in Santa Clarita.

A Night Out is a strange play. Wikipedia summarizes it thusly:

Albert Stokes, a loner in his late twenties lives with his emotionally suffocating mother and works in an office. After being falsely accused of groping a female at an office party, he wanders the streets until he meets a girl, who invites him to her flat, where he responds to her overtures by angrily demeaning her. Then he returns home to his mother.

Another summary I found captures the play a bit better: Alburt Stokes is not only henpecked by his mother, but by his friends. Even though he disdains interest in women, his friends push them on him as a joke. Even though it wasn’t he who groped the woman, his boss believed the accusation. When he gets called a Mother’s Boy, the rage within him outs, and keeps coming out to the end of the play.

That’s the story. But what’s the underlying point of the play? That’s much harder, and I think the answer is different  60 years later from when this play was first done. Back in 1959, the teasing and bullying was normal, and I think the focus was on the impact of the demented mother. But today?  You have a man who is not interested in girls — or boys for that matter — being pressured for it. In the closet asexual? Gay? Those wouldn’t have been notions in the 1960s. Then there’s the groping, which comes across totally different in the #metoo era than it would in 1959. There’s the whole issue of false accusations (Mr. Ryan clearly did the touching), and the reaction of people to it. Then there’s the behavior of the mother, who in the 1960s would appear to be the henpecker, but today seems to be clearly dealing with dementia and potential Alzheimers, and is just grasping for normalcy, a standard rhythm, and a pattern in life.

Today, this play would be reconsidered, and possibly have those points explored more. But for now, this is just slightly comprehensible early Pinter.

What makes this play standout are the performances, under the direction of Sam Grey (FB), assisted by Michael Macrae (FB). In the lead positions are Georgan George (⭐FB) as Mother, and Troy Rossi (FB) as Albert. We’ve known and seen George for years going back to when we first met her at REP. She’s grown as an actress, and was simply steller in this production, capturing the dementia and the tenderness of the character well, as well as those glimpses of something more. Rossi was very strong as Albert, presenting a wonderful simmering rage under the surface; an anger that just kept growing as people kept pushing and prodding at him. Both were mesmerizing to watch.

As The Girl (also Betty), Amy Kersten (FB) did a great job of portraying the British girl who was just looking for fun, and got more than she expected.

The remainder of the cast had much smaller roles, or selected point interactions. They were all strong, but didn’t have the time to establish lasting characterizations that stuck with you: Sam Grey (FB) Seeley; Tyler Smith (FB) Kedge; Oliver Boon Barman/Horne; Simon James Mr. King; Christelle Baguidy (FB) Joyce; Bree Wernicke (FB) Eileen; Cyrus Palizban (FB) Gidney; and Michael Macrae (FB) Barrow.

There are no credits given for scenic, sound, lighting, etc. The only production credits in the program are Jesse Fiene Stage Manager; and Crescent Hurley Asst. Stage Manager.

If I had one suggestion to make for this show, it would be this: Support your acting team. Find the space to duplicate a full page, double-sided program with short bios, even if it is black and white. Get all your actors to have profiles on the Fringe website, and have them linked on the show pages. Create a page for the show — even a free wordpress site — that has links to the pages on the actors. You’re not doing this show to sell an established play, but to sell and promote the acting talent in the play. Those people who like the talent need to be able to find them again.

A Night Out has two more performances: Fri 6/28 at 630pm and Sat 6/29 at 1030p. The story may be a bit incomprehensible (but, hey, this is Pinter), but the acting is top-notch and the show is worth seeing and trying to figure out. The show just needs to promote the wonderful actors better. Tickets are available through the show’s Fringe website.

The last show we saw on Saturday was another one-woman show: Neighborhood Watch, written and performed by Lisa Pedace (FB). When I was first contacted about this show, I thought it would be something along the lines of Town Brawl, which we saw last week. Perhaps it started that way, but that’s not where it ended up.

Neighborhood Watch is ostensibly about a woman decrying the changes that have happened in her tract home neighborhood of almost 30 years. As President of her Neighborhood Watch, she’s seen the neighborhood changes from a community of like-minded people concerned about each other, to a neighborhood that only cares about itself: from the half-dog half-horse leaving turds on her lawn, the airbnb, the renters, and the people that just don’t care.

So far, so much Next Door territory.

But the story takes a sharp turn to the weird when the chickens move in. And when she starts recording them on her phone, and then starts playing them backwards to find hidden messages … you begin to wonder whether it is the neighborhood that has turned weird, or whether someone else has gone off the deep end.

Overall, the show is a great mix of humor and the weird. It holds your attention throughout, and is really fun to watch. Plus, they sell spices in conjunction with the show. It’s a long story. You’ll need to go to the show to see it, but I understand that the special spice is great on Chicken.

There are no other production credits given, and there were no programs handed out.

There are two more performances of Neighborhood Watch: Sat 6/29 at 300pm, and Sun 6/30 at 530pm. It’s a funny show, and worth seeing. Haven’t tried the spices yet. TIckets are available through the Fringe website.

🎭

Ob. Disclaimer: I am not a trained theatre (or music) critic; I am, however, a regular theatre and music 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 (or I’ll make a donation to the theatre, in lieu of payment). I am not compensated by anyone for doing these writeups in any way, shape, or form. I currently subscribe at 5 Star Theatricals (FB), the Hollywood Pantages (FB), Actors Co-op (FB), the Ahmanson Theatre (FB) [2018-2019 season], and the Musical Theatre Guild (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 the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB) has started. If you are unfamilar with Fringe, there are around 380 shows taking place over the month of June, mostly in the stretch of Santa Monica Blvd between 1 bl W of La Brea to 1 bl E of Vine, but all generally in Hollywood. On a first pass, there were lots I was interested in, 30 I could fit on a calendar, but even less that I could afford. Here is my current Fringe schedule as of the date of this writeup. [Here’s my post with all shows of interest — which also shows my most current HFF19 schedule. Note: unlike my normal policy, offers of comps or discounts are entertained, but I have to be able to work them into the schedule with the limitations noted in my HFF19 post]:

• ✔ Sat, June 8: 10a-3p ✔ ^⊕Gluten Free Expo (Pasadena Convention Center) 🍪 ✔ 8p She Kills Monsters (Hobgoblin) 🎭 ✔ 10pm The 2nd Annual Trump Family Special (Hobgoblin)
• ✔ Sun, June 9: ✔ 4p Hamilkong (Complex/OMR) 🎭 ✔ 530p Supportive White Parents (Broadwater/2nd)  🎭 ✔630p °2 for 1(Complex/OMR)  🎭 ✔ 830p °Moral Fixation (Studio C)
• ✔ Sat, Jun 15: ✔ 330p °Gunfight at the Not-So-OK Saloon (McCadden) 🎭 ✔ 830p ^⊕Bronco Billy – The Musical (Skylight Theatre (FB))
• ✔ Sun, June 16: ✔ 345p °Johnny ’81 (Complex/Ruby) 🎭 ✔ 6p Town Brawl (Thymele Arts)
• ✔ Sat, June 22: ✔ 200p °Silver Bullet (Underground Annex) 🎭 ✔ 330p Shirley Valentine (Underground Annex) 🎭 ✔ 630p A Night Out by Harold Pinter (Complex/Flight)  🎭 ✔ 830p °Neighborhood Watch (Underground Annex)
• Sun, June 23: 430p °Chrysalis (Thymele Arts) 🎭  8p Public Domain: The Musical (Actors Company/LLT)
• Fri, June 28: 8p ^⊕Indecent (Ahmanson Theatre (FB))
• Sat, June 29: 130p Four Clowns Present: Shakedown at the Dusty Spur (Broadwater/BB) 🎭 3p A Time Travelers Guide to the Present (Broadwater/BB) 🎭 630p Wigfield (Hudson/Backstage)
  🛑 Note: The LA Cultural Festival is today. Do not attempt to cross Hollywood Blvd, in either direction, until the early evening.
• Sun, June 30: 1p [Title of Show] (Actors Company/LLT) 🎭 3p Earth to Karen (Broadwater/BB)

Key: ^⊕: Non-Fringe Show/Event; °: Producer/Publicist Arranged Comp or Discount

As for July, it is already filling up. The first weekend of the month is still open. The second weekend brings An Intimate Evening with Kristen Chenowith at,The Hollywood Bowl (FB).  The third weekend of July brings Miss Saigon at the Hollywood Pantages (FB), followed by A Comedy of Errors from Shakespeare by the Sea (FB)/Little Fish Theatre(FB). The last weekend of July brings West Side Story at 5 Star Theatricals (FB). August starts with an alumni Shabbat at camp, and The Play That Goes Wrong at the Ahmanson Theatre (FB). August ends with Mother Road at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival (FB), and we might do rush tickets for Alice in Wonderland as well. In between those points, August is mostly open.

As always, I’m keeping my eyes open for interesting productions mentioned on sites such as Better-Lemons, Musicals in LA, @ This Stage, Footlights, as well as productions I see on Goldstar, LA Stage Tix, Plays411 or that are sent to me by publicists or the venues themselves. Want to know how to attend lots of live stuff affordably? Take a look at my post on How to attend Live Theatre on a Budget. Want to learn about all the great theatre in Southern California? Read my post on how Los Angeles (and its environs) is the best area for theatre in the Country!

This entry was originally posted on Observations Along the Road as 🎭 HFF19 #12/#13: "A Night Out" / "Neighborhood Watch" by cahwyguy. Although you can comment on DW, please make comments on original post at the Wordpress blog using the link to the left. You can sign in with your LJ, DW, FB, or a myriad of other accounts. Note: Subsequent changes made to the post on the blog are not propagated by the SNAP Crossposter; please visit the original post to see the latest version. P.S.: If you see share buttons above, note that they do not work outside of the Wordpress blog.

Fathers’ Day (and the end of the first formal weekend of the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB)) brought two more shows: Johnny ’81 at the Complex/Ruby), and Town Brawl at Thymele Arts (although for the latter, I put it on my Google calendar wrong, and we got there 15 minutes late).

The first show, Johnny ’81 (HFF, WWW, FB) was not what I expected at all. Consider the description in the Fringe program:

It’s 1981! The corpse of DISCO, the flames of PUNK, the plastic smell of NEW WAVE, and the balls of ROCK ‘N’ ROLL, all converge and merge on a seemingly peaceful street in WEST HOLLYWOOD, CA, along with the stories of a 12-YEAR-OLD BOY raised by a PILL-POPPING SINGLE MOTHER and the many GAY MEN in their life.

I was expecting loud music, hard rock, and a pulse pounding story. What I got was… The Moth. And that’s a good thing, because I had a proto-headache and was worried.

Johnny ’81 was 90 minutes of storyteller John Gonzales (FB) telling a series of stories about his 12 year-old self growing up in West Hollywood, and the characters that inhabited his neighborhood and whose paths intersected with his life. That’s it. No more, no less. They showed a kid who was forced to grow up sooner perhaps than he should, but one where a wide variety of people demonstrated that they cared about him. It was proof about it taking a village to raise a child, especially when one’s parents weren’t always there.

The show was written by John Gonzalez, and produced by Denise McCrory (FB). Hannah McDonald was the stage manager. Monica Martin was the venue manager.

Johnny ’81 has two more performances: Sat 6/22 at 1:45 pm and 6/29 at 8:15pm. Give it a try; it is very different than the Fringe program implies, and well worth seeing. Tickets are available through their fringe page.

For Town Brawl, I must be upfront: due to my putting the show into my Google Calendar wrong, we arrived 15 minutes late. I’m not sure that made much of a difference. Town Brawl advertised itself as:

Inspired by the outrageous stories found on Nextdoor.com, Town Brawl is your chance to witness petty and absurd neighborly drama being settled in a no holds barred town hall meeting. If you hate your neighbors, you’ll love our show.

That really is what is was. When we arrived, we walked into a meeting in progress, with some guy complaining about the NextDoor posts with complaints about firecrackers and gunshots. He then made clear that it was he who was shooting off the offending items, and it got stranger from there. If you have ever read Nextdoor, then you know what I mean. There were neighbors complaining about everything: people snooping, people drawing penii around potholes (and badly drawn penii at that), people selling stuff. I’m just surprises there were no complaints about street vendors.

The show seemed to be a combination of scripted material and plants in the audience. It did a great job of making its points about how petty some of the discussions on Nextdoor are, and was funny in that aspect.

Credited performers were: Maura McCarthy (FB) Vicky Cook; Derrick Parker (FB) Dennis; Chuck Ramage (FB) Mike; Marjorie “MJ” Scott (FB) Carol; Max Banta (FB) Hunter; BK Phillips (FB) Ron Jones; Christina Thomas (FB) Ruby; and James Ferrero (FB) Larry. The show was written by JR Mallon (FB). There were no other production credits.

This was interesting immersive theatre. It was good, but had a very improvy sense to it. I don’t think walking in 15 minutes late hurt things in the slightest bit.

Town Brawl has two more performances: Thu 6/20 at 730pm, and Wed 6/26 at 900pm. Tickets are available through their fringe page.

🎭

Ob. Disclaimer: I am not a trained theatre (or music) critic; I am, however, a regular theatre and music 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 (or I’ll make a donation to the theatre, in lieu of payment). I am not compensated by anyone for doing these writeups in any way, shape, or form. I currently subscribe at 5 Star Theatricals (FB), the Hollywood Pantages (FB), Actors Co-op (FB), the Ahmanson Theatre (FB) [2018-2019 season], and the Musical Theatre Guild (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 the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB) has started. If you are unfamilar with Fringe, there are around 380 shows taking place over the month of June, mostly in the stretch of Santa Monica Blvd between 1 bl W of La Brea to 1 bl E of Vine, but all generally in Hollywood. On a first pass, there were lots I was interested in, 30 I could fit on a calendar, but even less that I could afford. Here is my current Fringe schedule as of the date of this writeup. [Here’s my post with all shows of interest — which also shows my most current HFF19 schedule. Note: unlike my normal policy, offers of comps or discounts are entertained, but I have to be able to work them into the schedule with the limitations noted in my HFF19 post]:

• ✔ Sat, June 8: 10a-3p ✔ ^⊕Gluten Free Expo (Pasadena Convention Center) 🍪 ✔ 8p She Kills Monsters (Hobgoblin) 🎭 ✔ 10pm The 2nd Annual Trump Family Special (Hobgoblin)
• ✔ Sun, June 9: ✔ 4p Hamilkong (Complex/OMR) 🎭 ✔ 530p Supportive White Parents (Broadwater/2nd)  🎭 ✔630p °2 for 1(Complex/OMR)  🎭 ✔ 830p °Moral Fixation (Studio C)
• Sat, Jun 15: ✔ 330p °Gunfight at the Not-So-OK Saloon (McCadden) 🎭 ✔ 830p ^⊕Bronco Billy – The Musical (Skylight Theatre (FB))
• Sun, June 16: ✔ 345p °Johnny ’81 (Complex/Ruby) 🎭 ✔ 6p Town Brawl (Thymele Arts)
• Sat, June 22: 200p °Silver Bullet (Underground Annex) 🎭 330p Shirley Valentine (Underground Annex) 🎭 630p A Night Out by Harold Pinter (Complex/Flight)  🎭 830p °Neighborhood Watch (Underground Annex)
• Sun, June 23: 430p °Chrysalis (Thymele Arts) 🎭  8p Public Domain: The Musical (Actors Company/LLT)
• Fri, June 28: 8p ^⊕Indecent (Ahmanson Theatre (FB))
• Sat, June 29: 130p Four Clowns Present: Shakedown at the Dusty Spur (Broadwater/BB) 🎭 3p A Time Travelers Guide to the Present (Broadwater/BB) 🎭 630p Wigfield (Hudson/Backstage)
  🛑 Note: The LA Cultural Festival is today. Do not attempt to cross Hollywood Blvd, in either direction, until the early evening.
• Sun, June 30: 1p [Title of Show] (Actors Company/LLT) 🎭 3p Earth to Karen (Broadwater/BB)

Key: ^⊕: Non-Fringe Show/Event; °: Producer/Publicist Arranged Comp or Discount

As for July, it is already filling up. The first weekend of the month is still open. The second weekend brings An Intimate Evening with Kristen Chenowith at,The Hollywood Bowl (FB).  The third weekend of July brings Miss Saigon at the Hollywood Pantages (FB), followed by A Comedy of Errors from Shakespeare by the Sea (FB)/Little Fish Theatre(FB). The last weekend of July brings West Side Story at 5 Star Theatricals (FB). August starts with an alumni Shabbat at camp, and The Play That Goes Wrong at the Ahmanson Theatre (FB). August ends with Mother Road at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival (FB), and we might do rush tickets for Alice in Wonderland as well. In between those points, August is mostly open.

As always, I’m keeping my eyes open for interesting productions mentioned on sites such as Better-Lemons, Musicals in LA, @ This Stage, Footlights, as well as productions I see on Goldstar, LA Stage Tix, Plays411 or that are sent to me by publicists or the venues themselves. Want to know how to attend lots of live stuff affordably? Take a look at my post on How to attend Live Theatre on a Budget. Want to learn about all the great theatre in Southern California? Read my post on how Los Angeles (and its environs) is the best area for theatre in the Country!

This entry was originally posted on Observations Along the Road as 🎭 HFF19 #8/#9: "Johnny '81" / "Town Brawl" by cahwyguy. Although you can comment on DW, please make comments on original post at the Wordpress blog using the link to the left. You can sign in with your LJ, DW, FB, or a myriad of other accounts. Note: Subsequent changes made to the post on the blog are not propagated by the SNAP Crossposter; please visit the original post to see the latest version. P.S.: If you see share buttons above, note that they do not work outside of the Wordpress blog.

Our second set of Fringe shows Sunday night turned from the comedy of the first two shows into the dramatic. The 6:30 pm show, 2 for 1, consisted of two solo-performance shows on seemingly unrelated subjects. The second, Moral Fixation (originally titled Boys Will Be Boys) explored a really interesting relationship question.

2 for 1 (HFF19, WWW) was, in some ways, theatrical whiplash. The performance consisted of two one-woman shows that were very distinct from each other, with no program to provide any context or background.

The first, Simulakra, performed by Alyssa Virker (FB), was much like the performer: an enigma. As a modern dance piece, it was wonderful. As a story, however, I’m less sure. Perhaps if I had the underlying assumed context, it would have helped.

The story appeared to be about a simulation of a human that was being loaded with a personality. There were four to choose from: Catwoman, Amalie, Mary, and some female animated dog. Of those three, I had only seen the movie basis for one (Amalie), and was aware only peripherally of Catwoman. So the context was clearly lost.

In any case Simulakra decides to have all four personalities, and then proceeds to keep switching between them. It showed off the performer’s range well … but as a story it was hard to follow.

The second show, however, was great: My Dead Mom’s Funeral by Angela Beevers (FB). Just like the catharsis of Supportive White Parents, this show explored Angela dealing with the death of her mother of brain cancer, and having to write a eulogy. She goes to an online  eulogy assistant, and starts trying to follow their advice to tell the story of the relationship with her mother. In doing so, we not only learn about Angela, we get a heartfelt tribute to her mother. It is at times funny, at times sad, at times angry, and always touching. Plus it ends with a belly dance.

Throughout the performance, we get Beevers donning wigs and becoming characters, and demonstrating her versatility and storying telling skills.

If there is one drawback to the show, it is the lack of a program: and thus, a lack of credits for stage manager and other supporting staff. Both of the performers are assistants in real life; they should understand the importance of crediting the people who help them.

2 for 1 has four more performances: Thu 6/13 @ 630p; Thu 6/20 @ 830p; Thu 6/27 @ 1030p; and Sun 6/30 @ 400p. I wasn’t that crazy about the first one-woman show, but the second was great. Tickets are available through the Fringe website.

I was unsure what to make of our last show of the evening, Moral Fixation, when I read the description:

Morality isn’t necessarily logical. Watch Caleb and Claire, fiancès wildly in love with a bit of a hooker problem. When a (maybe not so) sordid detail from Caleb’s past comes to light, Claire’s (over the top) reaction has them, and a few close friends, talking a lot about sex and morals. A dark comedy with (a wounded) heart.

It turns out, however that the show — written by Cara Loften (FB) and Gabriel A. Berkovich (FB) — is much deeper than dark, and that it does what theatre should do: raises questions. In this case, it is the nature of our past when we go into a relationship. After Caleb’s uncle makes it know that he has bought a hooker for an employee, Claire asks Caleb if he has ever been with a hooker. Never ask a question you don’t want the answer to, because he has. It turns out to be quite upsetting to her. The play then explores her reaction to Caleb’s past — and why. It also raises the question about Claire’s past, when she slept around like crazy while she was drinking. Does whether you’re sober make a difference? Does whether it is for money make a difference? Does whether you enjoyed it make a difference? These are the questions explored in this play.

Good dramas leave an audience with questions to discuss on the car ride home. This play did that. The performances — under the direction of John Coppola (FB) — came across as realistic, and the leads had a chemistry that made you believe in the relationship.

Speaking of leads: Unsurprisingly for Fringe, the authors played the leads: Cara Loften (FB) as Claire and Gabriel A. Berkovich (FB) as Caleb. They clearly were strong in their performances. Supporting them were Veronica Alicino (FB) Joan; Bil Dwyer (FB) Ted; and Kate Robertson (FB) Beth.

Moral Fixation was produced by Cara Loften (FB) and stage managed by Pam Noles.

Moral Fixation has two more performances: Fri 6/14 @ 830p, and Sat 6/29 @ 230p. The show raises some great questions in the context of some wonderful performances. It is well worth seeing. Tickets are available through the Fringe website.

🎭

Ob. Disclaimer: I am not a trained theatre (or music) critic; I am, however, a regular theatre and music 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 (or I’ll make a donation to the theatre, in lieu of payment). I am not compensated by anyone for doing these writeups in any way, shape, or form. I currently subscribe at 5 Star Theatricals (FB), the Hollywood Pantages (FB), Actors Co-op (FB), the Ahmanson Theatre (FB) [2018-2019 season], and the Musical Theatre Guild (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 the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB) has started. If you are unfamilar with Fringe, there are around 380 shows taking place over the month of June, mostly in the stretch of Santa Monica Blvd between 1 bl W of La Brea to 1 bl E of Vine, but all generally in Hollywood. On a first pass, there were lots I was interested in, 30 I could fit on a calendar, but even less that I could afford. Here is my current Fringe schedule as of the date of this writeup. [Here’s my post with all shows of interest — which also shows my most current HFF19 schedule. Note: unlike my normal policy, offers of comps or discounts are entertained, but I have to be able to work them into the schedule with the limitations noted in my HFF19 post]:

• ✔ Sat, June 8: 10a-3p ✔ ^⊕Gluten Free Expo (Pasadena Convention Center) 🍪 ✔ 8p She Kills Monsters (Hobgoblin) 🎭 ✔ 10pm The 2nd Annual Trump Family Special (Hobgoblin)
• ✔ Sun, June 9: ✔ 4p Hamilkong (Complex/OMR) 🎭 ✔ 530p Supportive White Parents (Broadwater/2nd)  🎭 ✔ 630p °2 for 1(Complex/OMR)  🎭 ✔ 830p °Moral Fixation (Studio C)
• Sat, Jun 15: 330p °Gunfight at the Not-So-OK Saloon (McCadden) 🎭 830p ^⊕Bronco Billy – The Musical (Skylight Theatre (FB))
• Sun, June 16: 345p °Johnny ’81 (Complex/Ruby) 🎭 6p Town Brawl (Thymele Arts)
• Sat, June 22: 200p °Silver Bullet (Underground Annex) 🎭 330p Shirley Valentine (Underground Annex) 🎭 630p A Night Out by Harold Pinter (Complex/Flight)  🎭 830p °Neighborhood Watch (Underground Annex)
• Sun, June 23: 430p °Chrysalis (Thymele Arts) 🎭  8p Public Domain: The Musical (Actors Company/LLT)
• Fri, June 28: 8p ^⊕Indecent (Ahmanson Theatre (FB))
• Sat, June 29: 130p Four Clowns Present: Shakedown at the Dusty Spur (Broadwater/BB) 🎭 3p A Time Travelers Guide to the Present (Broadwater/BB) 🎭 630p Wigfield (Hudson/Backstage)
  🛑 Note: The LA Cultural Festival is today. Do not attempt to cross Hollywood Blvd, in either direction, until the early evening.
• Sun, June 30: 1p [Title of Show] (Actors Company/LLT) 🎭 3p Earth to Karen (Broadwater/BB)

Key: ^⊕: Non-Fringe Show/Event; °: Producer/Publicist Arranged Comp or Discount

As for July, it is already filling up. The first weekend of the month is still open. The second weekend brings An Intimate Evening with Kristen Chenowith at,The Hollywood Bowl (FB).  The third weekend of July brings Miss Saigon at the Hollywood Pantages (FB), followed by A Comedy of Errors from Shakespeare by the Sea (FB)/Little Fish Theatre(FB). The last weekend of July brings West Side Story at 5 Star Theatricals (FB). August starts with an alumni Shabbat at camp, and The Play That Goes Wrong at the Ahmanson Theatre (FB). August ends with Mother Road at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival (FB), and we might do rush tickets for Alice in Wonderland as well. In between those points, August is mostly open.

As always, I’m keeping my eyes open for interesting productions mentioned on sites such as Better-Lemons, Musicals in LA, @ This Stage, Footlights, as well as productions I see on Goldstar, LA Stage Tix, Plays411 or that are sent to me by publicists or the venues themselves. Want to know how to attend lots of live stuff affordably? Take a look at my post on How to attend Live Theatre on a Budget. Want to learn about all the great theatre in Southern California? Read my post on how Los Angeles (and its environs) is the best area for theatre in the Country!

This entry was originally posted on Observations Along the Road as 🎭 HFF19: #5/#6: "2 for 1" / "Moral Fixation" by cahwyguy. Although you can comment on DW, please make comments on original post at the Wordpress blog using the link to the left. You can sign in with your LJ, DW, FB, or a myriad of other accounts. Note: Subsequent changes made to the post on the blog are not propagated by the SNAP Crossposter; please visit the original post to see the latest version. P.S.: If you see share buttons above, note that they do not work outside of the Wordpress blog.

Saturday night was our first night “Fringing” for 2019. Translating that for the uninitiated: that means the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB) has started. The Fringe Festival consists of around 385 live performance shows taking place over the month of June, mostly in the stretch of Santa Monica Blvd between 1 bl W of La Brea to 1 bl E of Vine, but all generally in Hollywood. Comedies, dramas, and variety shows. One person to large cast. All taking place in the smaller intimate theatres (99 seats and under, as opposed to the thousands of seats at the big boys). Some shows work, and some are duds. But that’s how a festival is.

Both of our shows Saturday night were at the Hobgoblin Playhouse (FB), a pop-up venue that appears during Fringe, operated by the team behind Studio/Stage and Theatre Unleashed. The first was to have been a revue of Tom Lehrer music, but the producer had to withdraw due to a death in the family. Together we say “Awww” because that was a show we really wanted to see, but given the circumstances, condolences to the producer. As a result, our first show was a traditional play, a show that has been mounted at venues large and small across the country: She Kills Monsters (HFF19, WWW, FB) by Qui Nguyen.

Nguyen, on her webpage, describes the show thusly: “Average Agnes is finally leaving her childhood home following the death of her sister Tilly. However when she stumbles upon Tilly’s Dungeons & Dragons notebook, Agnes embarks on an action-packed adventure to discover more about her geeky sibling than she previously cared to know. A heartwarming comedy about loss, bullies, and dragons!”

She Kills Monsters was a great start to the 2019 Fringe. In terms of story, not Fringy at all. The well constructed story focuses on Agnes, an admitted average high school teacher, who lost the rest of her family in a car crash. She finds her younger sister’s D&D notebook, and decides to go on the adventure that she wrote to learn more about her. Through battles in the role playing world, she gets to truly know and understand her sister, as well as her sister’s high-school friends and what role playing games can do for people. More importantly, she learns about herself and how to transcend her average life.

It is worth noting that the venue, Hobgoblin Playhouse, is D&D central: in addition to She Kills Monsters, the venue is host to a celebrity D&D game, as well as Tabletop the Musical, a new musical that is focused on D&D and its impact on a group of friends (which is well worth seeing). The production itself started as a staged reading at Stuart Roger’s acting studio.

Getting back to She Kills Monsters: We just loved the story of She Kills Monsters, and the message it sends on female empowerment and the positive aspects of role playing games. I never got into RPGs for the same reason that I’m a professional audience, and not either on stage or writing the stories: I can’t inhabit characters, or imagine their stories. But I know D&D players well; I knew folks who were deep in that community when I was in the UCLA Computer Club in the late 1970s. This captured that community, and the freedom that RPGs bring to their players.

The execution of She Kills Monsters was more fringy: minimal sets and costumes, as befits a kickstarted fringe show. Performances were generally strong, but at our preview performance there were a few line mishaps, and the cast was a bit less polished than might be seen in an established company’s fully realized production. That doesn’t make one difference at all to me; this is Fringe, after all. But the Fringe environment forces creativity on a low budget, and this show definitely had both.

In the lead positions were Susannah Snowden-Ifft (FB) as Tilly, and Vivi Thai (FB) as Agnes. This duo was also the producing team, serving as Executive Producer and Producer, respectively. Snowden-Ifft brought a wonderful nerdy-ness and vulnerability to Tilly, a high-schooler who repressed her personality in life, but found expression in the fantasy world of D&D where she could live the life she wanted. Snowden-Ifft did a great job of making the two personalities distinct. Thai’s Agnes was different. What I remember most was her reaction during the opening exposition, recoiling in horror at being characterized as being notable only in her average status. That wasn’t what she wanted in life: to be average. Thai captured the transformation of her character from average teenager and sister to a bad-ass warrior well. Both of them were a joy to watch, and you could see their passion for telling this story.

The remaining characters in the story all served to help Agnes and Tilly in their transformations, starting with the members of the RPG party: Harry Owen (FB) — Dungeonmaster (DM) Chuck; Reyneen Pedro (FB) — Kaliope / Kelly; Kristin Walker (FB) — Lilith / Lilly; and John Yang Li (FB) — Orcus / Ronnie. Most of these were drawn broadly, as D&D characters are: the warrior, the elf, the DM, the demon. But each performer brought a little something to those characterizations — a good sense of fun and playfulness. More importantly for the actual party characters was the characterizations they brought to those people outside the game, as the high school friends of Tilly. Of not here was Pedro’s transformation from the strong and sexy elf to the real-life person behind the elf. Great acting.

Also serving to help Agnes find herself were Zach Summers (FB) — Miles (6/8, 6/14; Andres Paul Ramacho (FB) for the last three performances in June); and Brad Milison (FB) — Steve. Summers was the clueless boyfriend of Agnes who misunderstood what Agnes was doing with this high school kid, and Millson was the red-shirt of the story: another D&D adventurer who kept being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Both captured these broad stereotypes well.

Rounding out the cast in smaller and more various roles were Shikira Saul (FB) — Vera / Farrah / Evil Tina / The Beholder; and Blair Allison (FB) — Narrator / Evil Gabbi. Saul got to play the most varied roles, from jaded best friend of Agnes to high school cheerleader to various demons and monsters. She was best in her portrayal of Vera, Agnes’ friend, where she delivered some wonderfully sardonic lines that I’m sure most high school guidance counselors would love to say. Allison’s parts were smaller, although she did well with the narration and its tone.

Lastly, turning to the production side: The production was directed by Genny Wilson (FB), with no real credits for scenic design, costumes or those traditional departments. This isn’t surprising for Fringe, where you load in and out in 15 minutes. The sets were either non-existent or minimal — perhaps a few square boxes. There were projections used, as well as shadow puppets to show events like the car crash. Props and costumes were used to create characters and provide weapons as such, although there were no explicit credits for prop or costume design. Elliott Beltran (FB) did the sound design (mostly sound effects and establishing music), and Greg Crafts (FB) did the lighting design. The effective fight choreography was by Masa Kanome (FB) and Tadahiro Nakamura. Incidental music was composed by Darrin Stafford (FB). Beth Wallan (FB) was the stage manager. She Kills Monsters was produced by Vivi Thai (FB), with Susannah Snowden-Ifft (FB) as Executive Producer.

She Kills Monsters has four more performances during Fringe: Fri 6/14 @ 11pm; Sat 6/22 @ 9pm; Sun 6/23 @ 9:30pm; and Sat 6/29 @ 2:00pm. Tickets are available at their Fringe Page.

The second show we saw last night, The 2nd Annual Trump Family Special, was both much more Fringe-y and more professional. On the professional side of the equation, this particular production had been mounted before: off-Broadway in New York, as well as previously in Hollywood. It had many cast members that were AEA and who had performed on Broadway and/or in National Tours. But the execution itself was on the Fringe side: improvisation at times, quick adaptation, improvised costumes and props at times, and a general playfulness that comes with the nature of a live variety show vs. a more scripted play such as She Kills Monsters.

The basic conceit of the show is that the Trump family — Melania, Ivanka, Eric, and Don Jr. — are putting on an annual variety show, hoping that their dad (the POTUS) will show up. Making special guest appearances are the earlier Trump wives — Marla Maples, Ivana Trump, as well as Jared Kushner. Missing in action, just as in real life, are Barron and Tiffany. Trump never shows, of course, but contributes to the proceedings through tweets. The content of the show is a both a politically incorrect appeal to their base, but much more a parody of their situation and personalities.

The show featured book and lyrics by Daniel Salles (FB), with music and additional lyrics by Tor Hyams (FB) and Lisa St. Lou (FB) / Tor and Lisa (FB). The book and songs generally poked at the well known images of the first family: Melania as the airhead model who hates her husband, Donald and Eric as generally stupid and sixest, the nature of Trump’s relationships to his ex-wifes, Ikanka as the power behind the throne, Jared Kushner as a puppet, etc. As such, it is both silly and plays to the LA audience well (as well as to the gay audience in particular, based on the attendance at our show). Examples of this are songs such as “Win, Win, Win”, “Look Gorgeous”, “Three Trophy Wives”, and perhaps the best political commentary, “It’s a Circus”, which presented the White House as a three-ring circus, with Donald as the ring-leader.

But I think the most telling song of the show was “MAGA/And Then He Tweets”. In the middle of a song about how great Trump is, there are asides from the Music Director talking about the reality of the world of Trump for gays and other minorities. This, I believe, was the true heart of the show.

Over the years at Fringe, I’ve seen numerous shows dealing with Trump. These have ranged from the totally warped Zombie Clown Trump, the Star-Trek mashup Trump in Space, and the quite good The Dangerous Cures of Dr. B, which uses the demagogue John Brinkley as an analogue for the pedagogy of Donald Trump. The 2nd Annual Trump Family Special does a great job of skewering the first family, their foibles and personalities, and how Trump relates to them. But does it make a strong cases or have a deeper meaning? Does it provide a particular insight into Donald Trump, his machinations, or the motivation behind his forms of evil. No. You get more of that from Planet Money. The 2nd Annual Trump Family Special is entertaining, but ultimately light on substance — reflecting perfectly the first family and the absence of substance and depth therein.

Under the direction of show creator Daniel Salles (FB), the show moves briskly and is entertaining. At our preview performance, the cast had to improvise around various problems, such as lights not being where expected and wardrobe malfunctions of various forms. They coped well, as trained actors do. Benji Schwimmer (FB)’s choreography was appropriate for the style of variety show — low budget — that the book made this show out to be.

The performances were strong. Perhaps the strongest — certainly the strongest and clearest voice — was that of Lisa St. Lou (FB) as Ivanka Trump and Ivana Trump. She had the bulk of the stage time, and was extremely strong in her songs and characterizations.

Playing her step-mother and first lady was Mary Birdsong (FB) as Melania. She was clearly having fun with the characterization, sang strongly, and dealt well with the preview issues.

Rounding out the cast were Ryan Murray (FB) as Eric, and John Shartzer (FB) as Donald Jr. Shartzer got double-duty as Marla Maples, and I believe it was Murray doing double duty as Mike Pence.  Both handled the comedy and the songs well.

Tor Hyams (FB) served as music director, and provided commentary and “directed” the variety show from behind the parameter. It was Hyams that provided the input on “And Then He Tweets” aspect I liked so well.

The NY scenic designer was David Goldstein; as there is no LA credit for this, presumably his design was transferred. The design was simple: some boxes, a fancy backdrop, a few props, and a Jared Kushner puppet that looked a lot like Jerry Mahoney. The NY costume design was by Vanessa Leuck (FB), with LA costumes credited to Wendell Carmichael (FB). Modulo a few costume malfunctions, the costumes generally worked. Johnnie Carmichael was the Sound Engineer; Greg Crafts (FB) did the lights. Tanya Nancy Telson (FB) was the stage manager, and Hannah Carroll (FB) and Sharon Logan are credited as “Backstage Superstars”, whatever that means. The lead LA producer was Victoria Watson Winkler (FB); there are numerous other producers and associate producers.

The 2nd Annual Trump Family Special has 6 more performances: Sun 6/9 @ 8pm; Thu 6/13 @ 830p; Fri 6/14 @ 7pm; Sat 6/15 @ 1030pm; and Sun 6/16 at 3pm and 10pm. Tickets are available through their Fringe site; through the show website; and discount tickets may be available on Goldstar.

🎭

Ob. Disclaimer: I am not a trained theatre (or music) critic; I am, however, a regular theatre and music 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 (or I’ll make a donation to the theatre, in lieu of payment). I am not compensated by anyone for doing these writeups in any way, shape, or form. I currently subscribe at 5 Star Theatricals (FB), the Hollywood Pantages (FB), Actors Co-op (FB), the Ahmanson Theatre (FB) [2018-2019 season], and the Musical Theatre Guild (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 the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB) has started. If you are unfamilar with Fringe, there are around 380 shows taking place over the month of June, mostly in the stretch of Santa Monica Blvd between 1 bl W of La Brea to 1 bl E of Vine, but all generally in Hollywood. On a first pass, there were lots I was interested in, 30 I could fit on a calendar, but even less that I could afford. Here is my current Fringe schedule as of the date of this writeup. [Here’s my post with all shows of interest — which also shows my most current HFF19 schedule. Note: unlike my normal policy, offers of comps or discounts are entertained, but I have to be able to work them into the schedule with the limitations noted in my HFF19 post]:

• ✔ Sat, June 8: 10a-3p ✔ ^⊕Gluten Free Expo (Pasadena Convention Center) 🍪 ✔ 8p She Kills Monsters (Hobgoblin) 🎭 ✔ 10pm The 2nd Annual Trump Family Special (Hobgoblin)
• Sun, June 9: 4p Hamilkong (Complex/OMR) 🎭 530p Supportive White Parents (Broadwater/2nd)  🎭 630p °2 for 1(Complex/OMR)  🎭 830p °Moral Fixation (Studio C)
  🛑 Note: LA Pride Festival is this weekend in WeHo. Avoid Santa Monica W of Fairfax.
• Sat, Jun 15: 330p °Gunfight at the Not-So-OK Saloon (McCadden) 🎭 830p ^⊕Bronco Billy – The Musical (Skylight Theatre (FB))
• Sun, June 16: 345p °Johnny ’81 (Complex/Ruby) 🎭 6p Town Brawl (Thymele Arts)
• Sat, June 22: 200p °Silver Bullet (Underground Annex) 🎭 330p Shirley Valentine (Underground Annex) 🎭 630p A Night Out by Harold Pinter (Complex/Flight)  🎭 830p °Neighborhood Watch (Underground Annex)
• Sun, June 23: 430p °Chrysalis (Thymele Arts) 🎭  8p Public Domain: The Musical (Actors Company/LLT)
• Fri, June 28: 8p ^⊕Indecent (Ahmanson Theatre (FB))
• Sat, June 29: 130p Four Clowns Present: Shakedown at the Dusty Spur (Broadwater/BB) 🎭 3p A Time Travelers Guide to the Present (Broadwater/BB) 🎭 630p Wigfield (Hudson/Backstage)
  🛑 Note: The LA Cultural Festival is today. Do not attempt to cross Hollywood Blvd, in either direction, until the early evening.
• Sun, June 30: 1p [Title of Show] (Actors Company/LLT) 🎭 3p Earth to Karen (Broadwater/BB)

Key: ^⊕: Non-Fringe Show/Event; °: Producer/Publicist Arranged Comp or Discount

As for July, it is already filling up. The first weekend of the month is still open. The second weekend brings An Intimate Evening with Kristen Chenowith at,The Hollywood Bowl (FB).  The third weekend of July brings Miss Saigon at the Hollywood Pantages (FB), followed by A Comedy of Errors from Shakespeare by the Sea (FB)/Little Fish Theatre(FB). The last weekend of July brings West Side Story at 5 Star Theatricals (FB). August starts with an alumni Shabbat at camp, and The Play That Goes Wrong at the Ahmanson Theatre (FB). August ends with Mother Road at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival (FB), and we might do rush tickets for Alice in Wonderland as well. In between those points, August is mostly open.

As always, I’m keeping my eyes open for interesting productions mentioned on sites such as Better-Lemons, Musicals in LA, @ This Stage, Footlights, as well as productions I see on Goldstar, LA Stage Tix, Plays411 or that are sent to me by publicists or the venues themselves. Want to know how to attend lots of live stuff affordably? Take a look at my post on How to attend Live Theatre on a Budget. Want to learn about all the great theatre in Southern California? Read my post on how Los Angeles (and its environs) is the best area for theatre in the Country!

This entry was originally posted on Observations Along the Road as 🎭 HFF19: And it starts... #1 "She Kills Monsters" | #2 "Trump Family Special" by cahwyguy. Although you can comment on DW, please make comments on original post at the Wordpress blog using the link to the left. You can sign in with your LJ, DW, FB, or a myriad of other accounts. Note: Subsequent changes made to the post on the blog are not propagated by the SNAP Crossposter; please visit the original post to see the latest version. P.S.: If you see share buttons above, note that they do not work outside of the Wordpress blog.

Whew. For me, the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB) for 2018 is over. Sunday I saw my last two shows, and as with Saturday’s shows, they were prime examples of what Fringe is: a well-done solo biographical piece, an a workshop of a very good new musical that hopefully is on its way for a longer life. But first, for one last time, my explanation of what Fringe is:

^* For those unfamiliar with  Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB), there are over 390 different shows occurring in the heart of Hollywood, with most along the stretch of Santa Monica Blvd from Western to W of LaBrea, and between Hollywood Blvd and Melrose. The shows run from 5 minutes to 2 hours, from one person shows to gigantic casts, from mimes to musicals. They have one — and only one — thing in common: they have to be able to load into a theatre in 15 minutes or less, and get out afterwards in the same time. You never know what you will see: it could be complete crap, it could be the start of a major new show. The shows and scheduling thereof are a nightmare to coordinate, but you could easily end up seeing four to five shows in a day. However, you can be guaranteed of a good time.

And now, on to Sunday’s shows. By the way, don’t worry if you missed some Fringe shows. Some of the best of the best of the Fringe will be extended into July; check the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB) website for extension information.

I’ve noted before that a common characteristic of almost any Fringe festival is the solo show. Sometimes, this is a show where a single actor portrays a single character, as I saw in the excellent Ingersoll Speaks Again! early in the Festival. Often, however, the solo show is biographical, where the performer wants to impart a particular message or lesson based on their experience to the audience. Over the years, we’ve seen a wide variety of show shows; I recall one last year my wife just loved. This year, we’ve seen a broad range. In one, the performer came across as unprepared, and her message was muddled as a result (luckily, I’ve heard that although she was upset at my review, she’s taken my comments to heart and is improving her show — which makes me happy). The second solo show of this type was a bit muddled and needed some tightening, but did get its message across. The third was simply spectacular, although was a bit less autobiographical. I’m pleased to say that the last show of this type I saw, A Reasonable Fear of Tubas, hit that sweet spot: a well-done autobiographical show that got its message across well but didn’t overstay its welcome.

In A Reasonable Fear of Tubas, author and performer Stacy Patterson (FB) tells us the story of her life, presenting numerous entertaining incidents that provide the basis for her assertion that she was reasonably fearless. She tells stories of situations where friends would have flinched, of not being afraid of heights, not being afraid of this and that. All these stories provide the basis for her exposure of her crippling fear, that came across in 1975 when she saw (insert music cue), the movie Jaws. That awakened her fear of sharks, and that fear began to cripple her near any body of water — first at the coast, then inland, and then even on TV, because — well, you know — cartoon sharks. But she then turns to the facts on sharks, and how so many of them are just killed for their fins, and then tossed to die and suffocate in the water. She doesn’t indicate whether she can now accept sharks, but she does note that she is no longer crippled by them. She then goes on to explain the title: what made sharks extra scary in the movie was not the shark itself, but the music — intentionally played by tubas out of key to amplify the fear.

Throughout the production, she is presenting slides from her childhood, which come up when she expects them to come up. More over, she’s not using the slides to tell the story (as I would with a Powerpoint); rather, the slides just illustrate the incident she has just told (for example, her at the top of a tall tall tree). She’s entertaining, energetic, and most importantly, knows her story and tells it without reference to anything else. It was just an entertaining show.

About the only drawback to the show was the lack of any program. The “program” such as it was, was the show’s advertising postcard. That tells me nothing about the experience of Ms. Patterson; I only know what I learned from the show (and what I have learned subsequently writing up this post).

The show was directed by Christian Davis (FB). There were no other credits provided; in particular, no stage manager or technical support credits were provided.

Sunday was the last performance of Tubas; I have no idea if it is being extended by the venue.

My last Fringe show for the 2018 Fringe Festival was a new musical, Beatniks. The musical, with book, lyrics, and music by Davia Schendel (FB, IG), was ostensibly about the “beat generation“, which Wikipedia describes as: “a literary movement started by a group of authors whose work explored and influenced American culture and politics in the post-World War II era. The bulk of their work was published and popularized throughout the 1950s. Central elements of Beat culture are rejection of standard narrative values, spiritual quest, exploration of American and Eastern religions, rejection of materialism, explicit portrayals of the human condition, experimentation with psychedelic drugs, and sexual liberation and exploration.” It was also, at least based on the title, about “beakniks” themselves, which Wikipedia describes as “a media stereotype prevalent throughout the 1950s to mid-1960s that displayed the more superficial aspects of the Beat Generation literary movement of the 1950s. Elements of the beatnik trope included pseudo-intellectualism, drug use, and a cartoonish depiction of real-life people along with the spiritual quest of Jack Kerouac’s autobiographical fiction.”

I’m not sure how all of those particular aspects of beat culture came across in the musical itself; certainly, most of the stereotypical aspects of beatniks and beak culture weren’t there (i.e., dressing in all black, turtlenecks, etc.), except for the heavy smoking. In the musical, the beat generation came across as one obsessed more with poetry and writing (back when you could earn as much as a folk singer by being a poet), and with the exploration of life and feelings.

At this point, I would normally attempt a synopsis of the story. That’s difficult, as there was a bit of convolution to it; further, the program itself provides little after-the-fact memory jogs such as a song or scene list. That could be intentional, as the story still still in development. The story appears to start off with two friends, Audre and Diane, who are heavily into the poetry scene, discussing life in college as they are about to head off to different college. Each has different literary aspirations. Once the story moves to college, the story centers around two main groups of characters attempting to find their way in the beat generation, make a living, get published, and pay the bills. One revolves around friends Joyce and Elise, which Joyce being the main point of interest. Joyce becomes friends with publishers LeRoi and Hettie; they introduce her to Jack. Jack swiftly hooks up with Joyce, before going off on the road for a long distance romance. Meanwhile, Elise has started to hook up with another beat poet, Allen. Allen has been serving as muse to Diane, encouraging her career while’s hooking up with a fellow beat poet, Peter. Diane becomes pregnant, has the baby, but attempt to keep writing poetry while balance motherhood along the way, still getting published and keeping in touch with Audre. They all come back together at the end.

If you notice, in that description, I left last names out of it. That’s because all of the people in the show are actually named after real-life people. Diane, the main character, is Diane di Prima, who actually did attend Swarthmore (one of the schools at which the musical takes place), and whose first book of poetry, This Kind of Bird Flies Backward, was published in 1958 by Hettie and LeRoi Jones‘ Totem Press. Yes, the Hettie and LeRoi mentioned in the synopsis. Hettie Jones and LeRoi Jones were friends with many of the major beat poets, such as Allen Ginsberg (yes, the Allen in the story) and Jack Kerouac (yes, the Jack in the story); they actually hired di Prima as an editor.  Audre referred to Audre Lorde, although Lorde’s involvement with any of the other beat characters is unclear.  Elise Cowen was another beat generation poet who became friends with Joyce Johnson (then Joyce Glassman — yes, the Joyce in the story). At the same time, Cowen was introduced to Ginsberg by a psychology professor. A romantic involvement followed in the spring and summer of 1953, but Ginsberg soon met and fell in love with Peter Orlovsky (yes, the Peter in the story). In parallel, Joyce Glassman became involved with Jack Kerouac; in fact, Ginsberg arranged for Glassman and Kerouac to meet on a blind date while she was working on her first novel, Come and Join the Dance. Floating in and out of this was Neal Cassady, who is also in the musical, who appeared both in Ginsberg’s poems and Kerouac’s writings,

So here’s the problem; The musical focuses on all these real characters. It pays a lot of attention to real relationships that developed between subsets of the characters in real life, and it is clear all — or most — of the characters knew each other at some point. So is this a real story, based on research? Is it a version of Million Dollar Quartet, where it is an imagined interaction between the characters? To what extent is this fictional; and if it is, where are the fictional characters? Further, being built around real characters makes it much harder to have a protagonist who has a quest or a want for something, and goes on that journey to achieve it, finding something else along the way. None of that is made clear.

However, it doesn’t need to be … yet. This is a Fringe musical, in its second mounting (the first was in the UCLA Botanical Gardens). It still has a substantial gestation period and dramaturgy to go through prior to a major mounting. For what it is, the maturity was remarkable. The music itself was pretty strong, although a few songs sounded similar. I particularly liked the “Land of Cardigans” song about Barnard, and the number sung by Kerouac on the ukulele about the blues. For the most part, the songs seemed not to be novelty numbers; they did what songs in a musical should do — move the story along. I’ll note that the group developing this musical is all out of the UCLA Musical Theatre program; as a UCLA grad myself (BS ’82, MS ’85, School of Engineering), I can confidently say the high quality must be in part from the excellent education they received there 🙂 ).

Another thing that was strong were the performance. In what I would characterize as the lead female positions were Rachel Berman (FB) as Diane di Prima, and Roxy Seven (FB) as Joyce Glassman. Both were remarkable — strong voices, strong performances, strong characterizations. I was particularly taken with the emotion that came through Seven’s voice, and with her facial expressions. Both were delightful to watch.

On the male side in leading positions were Matt Curtin (FB) as Allen Ginsberg and Brady Richards (FB) as Jack Kerouac. Curtin captured the neuroticism of Ginsberg well and gave a strong performance. SImilarly with Richards; I was also impressed with his singing and ukulele playing, which worked very well.

Supporting the female leads were Nola Faye Dodd (FB; IG) as Elise Cowen and Autumn Sylve (FB) as Audre Lorde. Both inhabited their characters well and had strong vocal performances. Rounding out the somewhat larger performances were Scottie Nevil (FB) as Hettie Jones, and Dennis Woullard (FB) as LeRoi Jones. Both gave strong performances and had good voices, although Nevil could use a bit more strength behind hers.

Rounding out the ensemble in smaller roles were Kyle Frattini (FB) as Neal Cassady, and Charles Platt (FB) as Professor Williams / Peter Orlovsky.

Music direction was by Mina Bloom (FB), who also played piano and helped workshop this production in 2017 with her Dually Noted Theatre (FB). Rounding out the band were Austin Chanu (FB) [Saxophone, Clarinet, Flute]; Kyle Lesh (FB) [Guitar]; Marion Meyerson (FB) [Bass]; and JJ Ross (FB) [Drums].

There was no choreography credit; presumably, the dances and movement were developed by the director,  Davia Schendel (FB, IG), as yet another hat.  As this was a Fringe production, the scenic aspects were limited by time and budget (although the Beatniks team can always use your donations).  Costumes were by Jared Davis (FB), and were surprisingly not black or bereted (i.e., stereotypical beatnik). Phoebe Balson (FB) was the stage manager.

This was the last performance of Beatniks at Fringe, unless they get an extension. This is a show that I expect will continue, as it shows quite a bit of promise. I’m sure they can use any donations to help them on the way.

***

Ob. Disclaimer: I am not a trained theatre (or music) critic; I am, however, a regular theatre and music 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 5 Star Theatricals (FB) [the company formerly known as Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB)], the Hollywood Pantages (FB), Actors Co-op (FB), the Chromolume Theatre (FB) ז״ל, a mini-subscription at the Soraya [nee the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC)] (FB), and the Ahmanson 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:

It’s June — ah, June. That, my friends, means only one thing: the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB), Here’s our June schedule:

• ✔ Friday, June 1: 8:00pm Family Schmamily (Eclectic Company Theatre (FB)) [which, alas, is closing]
• ✔ Saturday, June 2: 1:30pm 19 Years Later: A Harry Potter Parody (Hobgoblin); 4pm From Toilet to TInseltown(Hobgoblin); 8pm Billy Porter: The Soul of Richard Rodgers at the Soraya [nee the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC)].
• ✔ Sunday, June 3: 4:00pm Ingersoll Speaks: Again (Studio C); 6:00pm The Universe (101) (Complex/Dorie).
• ✔ Thursday, June 7:  8:30pm They’ll Be Some Changes Made Today (Hobgoblin)
• ✔ Saturday, June 9:  4:30pm The Story of My Life (Hobgoblin); 8:00pm The Color Purple (Hollywood Pantages (FB))
• ✔ Sunday, June 10: 1:30pm How To Be Lazy and Not Feel Guilty (Complex/OMR); 3:00pm Ageless Wonders: A Grown-Up Kids Guide to Growing Newer (Complex/OMR)
• ✔ Friday, June 15: 6:00pm Shabbabaque at TAS
• ✔ Saturday, June 16: 2:00pm Trojan Woman (Lounge/1); 3:45pm Pain in my Aspergers (Lounge/2)
• ✔ Sunday, June 17:  1:00pm Earhart: More Than A F-ing Mystery (McCadden); 2:30pm Attack of the Retro Sci-Fi Futurist (Complex/Ruby); 430p Amanda The Barbarian (Complex/Dorie); 7pm The Bitch is Back: An Elton John Cabaret (Three Clubs)
• ✔ Saturday, June 23 (me only): 2:00pm Mime Time (Complex/Ruby); 4pm Cowboy Mouth (Actors Company/Little Theatre); 530pm Monday Morning/Cheese & Things (Actors Company/Little Theatre); 800p The Dangerous Cures of Dr. B (Los Angeles LGBT Center)
• Sunday, June 24 (me only): ✔ 3:00pm A Reasonable Fear of Tubas (Actors Company/Let Live); ✔ 4:00pm Beatniks (Actors Company/Let Live); 7:00pm Sweet Charity (Reprise/UCLA (FB))

July will be a tad less busy. It starts with the 50th Anniversary of Gindling Hilltop Camp, followed by On Your Feet at the Hollywood Pantages (FB). For the next weekend, as Jane Eyre The Musical from Chromolume Theatre (FB) looks to be a dead parrot ⚰🐦., we’ve replaced it with Tabletop, a reading of a new musical about tabletop RPGs at the Charles Stewart Howard Playhouse (FB). The third weekend in July brings a Bat Mitzvah in Victorville, and Beauty and The Beast at 5 Star Theatricals (FB) that evening on Saturday, and a hold for the OperaWorks (FB) “Opera ReConstructed” at CSUN on Sunday. The last weekend may be a Muse/ique (FB) show. August starts with Waitress at the Hollywood Pantages (FB) on Saturday, and the Actors Co-Op Too! production of Always Andrews: A Musical Tribute to the Andrews Sisters on Sunday at Actors Co-op (FB). The next weekend brings the last Actors Co-Op Too! production, Twelfth Night, or What You Will at Actors Co-op (FB). There may also be a production of The Most Happy Fella at MTW — I’m not sure about it, but the hold date is on the calendar.

As always, I’m keeping my eyes open for interesting productions mentioned on sites such as Better-Lemons, Musicals in LA, @ This Stage, Footlights, as well as productions I see on Goldstar, LA Stage Tix, Plays411 or that are sent to me by publicists or the venues themselves. Note: Lastly, want to know how to attend lots of live stuff affordably? Take a look at my post on How to attend Live Theatre on a Budget.

This entry was originally posted on Observations Along the Road as 🎭 Finishing the Fringe - Tubas and Beatniks at HFF18 by cahwyguy. Although you can comment on DW, please make comments on original post at the Wordpress blog using the link to the left. You can sign in with your LJ, DW, FB, or a myriad of other accounts. Note: Subsequent changes made to the post on the blog are not propagated by the SNAP Crossposter; please visit the original post to see the latest version. P.S.: If you see share buttons above, note that they do not work outside of the Wordpress blog.

We’re coming down to the home stretch of the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB) — the last weekend. Today I had four shows; tomorrow I have two Fringe shows and one traditional musical. The first two Fringe shows — after I got to the theatre after being stuck in the traffic nightmare created by the 7th Annual Hollywood Cultural Festival that completely closed Hollywood Blvd between Highland and points E of US 101 for an hour — truly demonstrated the breadth of the beast that is Fringe. The first was a mime show — yes, a mime show; the second was a traditional short play written by two well known artists. But first, as is traditional, my description of the Fringe Festival:

^* For those unfamiliar with  Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB), there are over 390 different shows occurring in the heart of Hollywood, with most along the stretch of Santa Monica Blvd from Western to W of LaBrea, and between Hollywood Blvd and Melrose. The shows run from 5 minutes to 2 hours, from one person shows to gigantic casts, from mimes to musicals. They have one — and only one — thing in common: they have to be able to load into a theatre in 15 minutes or less, and get out afterwards in the same time. You never know what you will see: it could be complete crap, it could be the start of a major new show. The shows and scheduling thereof are a nightmare to coordinate, but you could easily end up seeing four to five shows in a day. However, you can be guaranteed of a good time.

Now, on to the first show. I should note that, for most of today’s shows, they were shows that I did not pick on my own. I originally left today open, and producers (thinking I was a critic) got in touch with me. If I could work a show into today’s schedule, I did.

As a result of how today was programmed, the first show was a mime show, Mime Time with James Direct Presents: Get Out of Your Head. I’ll start with the good news: it wasn’t the worst show that I saw at Fringe. I’ve written about that before; I understand the artist for some reason is still complaining.

Going into the show, I was in the mood for some humor after the aforementioned traffic jam that was Hollywood Blvd. There were a few good moments in the show, but as the artist, James Direct (FB), noted: (a) this was his return to mime after a while; (b) this was designed as a children’s show; and (c) it was a definite work in progress.

That said, at least he didn’t play the banjo or the accordion :-).

Seriously (and yes, for the record I like banjo music), mime shows can run the gamut. You can have the traditional overdone mime tropes: the mime in the box, the mime pushing the object that doesn’t move, the mime pulling the rope, the mime walking into the wind. You can also have great mime and physical comedy, as the artist Moonie does at the Ren Faire. I think for a mime show to succeed — at any age — they need to play up the sense of the absurd and the childlike nature of things, and move beyond the tried and the true.

Direct’s show was a mix of that. The  tropes were there, and served more to demonstrate his skill as a mime than to be particularly entertaining. But there were wonderfully absurd sketches that worked quite well. The Wedding sequence with the bells was wonderful, as was the Fish Matador sequence. Bringing in the absurdity, the unexpected, the reactions worked well. Potentially, adding some more improvisation could work too. Having the audience write situations that he then had to improvise in mime could lead to the unexpected. His show was certainly entertaining, and he was prepared and knew his material and how to get his point across without words.

I do think that Direct has talent, and with some additional work, I think he could bring this mime show to the next level. The current show is a start on that path. Some sequences (such as the “How To…” bits) can use some trimming, but others show an inventiveness that is nice to see. I look forward to seeing how he matures the work.

As this was the last weekend of Fringe, alas, this was the last performance of this show.

The second Fringe show of the day was at the other end of the spectrum: a traditional play — Cowboy Mouth, written by Sam Shepard and Patti Smith — being mounted as a showcase by some very talented performers.

As playwright Sam Shepard writes on his website, “Cowboy Mouth is a surreal, poetic piece dreamt up by Shepard and Smith in a war of words that lasted for two nights. Every reference in the play is infused with the true character of these two icons and the dynamic of their volatile love affair.” The producers characterized the origin of the play thusly in the program, “In the early 70’s, Sam Shepard and Patti Smith had an ongoing love affair. Cowboy Mouth was birth during a particular two-day tryst, where the two of them spent the days passing drugs, love tequila and a typewriter back and forth in the comfort of the Chelsea Hotel.”

It definitely was poetry, because I’m not quite sure that I understood it.

Summarizing the play is difficult, and so I turn again to Wikipedia:

The play is about Slim and Cavale, two aspiring rock stars living in sin together. Cavale kidnapped Slim at gunpoint and held him captive in her motel room for an unspecified amount of time; the two have fallen in love, in spite of the fact that he has a wife and child in Brooklyn. Unable to move, yet at complete unrest, Slim swings from blaming Cavale for the disaster that is his life to begging her to tell him stories about French poets. Cavale is a former mental patient of some kind. She remembers electric shocks and having to wear metal plates around her club foot when she was younger. She also muses about playing the ugly duckling as a child, being forced into the role without even the satisfaction of emerging as a beautiful swan at the end. The two call on an imaginary Lobster Man for sustenance and entertainment.

I’m not quite sure I picked up on that watching the play, although I do think I got the gist of it. The bigger question, in my mind, was the point that was trying to be made. There was a lot of discussion and a lot of back and forth; there was a lot of drug use and drinking. There were desires discussed, and a few acted upon. And there was a lobster man (who had a fantastic costume). But what sticks with me most is the end of the play, when Slim is allowed to leave and the Lobster Man returns to reality. I think that was the key point of the play — the need to return to normality that was required for Cavale to finally be able to take charge of her long-held dream.

Perhaps. I’m still not sure.

Even if the story was confusing, the performances were strong, under the direction of Sarah-Jean Kruchowski (FB). The leads — Joey Bothwell (FB) as Cavale and Eddie Mills (FB) as Slim — were just spectacular. Strong, emotional, raw, at times dangerous and unhinged. They reflected well the strong personalities and emotions of their characters. Additionally, Bothwell’s singing was beautiful during her one song.

As The Lobster Man, Cameron Barnes (FB), had a smaller and stranger role that was harder to assess. I guess he did it well; his costume, created by Justin Gunn (FB), was remarkable.

Cowboy Mouth was produced by Neely Shamam (FB); Emma Harris was the Associate Producer. There was no credit for the stage manager. The Cowboy Mouth artwork was by Roland LeFox (FB).

This was the last performance of Cowboy Mouth as part of Fringe. I seem to recall the front desk at The Actors Company mentioning an extension (although that could have been a different show), so check the show’s Fringe page for any extension information. I do think it is worth seeing; I was probably not deep enough into that particular rock world to catch all the references.

***

Ob. Disclaimer: I am not a trained theatre (or music) critic; I am, however, a regular theatre and music 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 5 Star Theatricals (FB) [the company formerly known as Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB)], the Hollywood Pantages (FB), Actors Co-op (FB), the Chromolume Theatre (FB) ז״ל, a mini-subscription at the Soraya [nee the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC)] (FB), and the Ahmanson 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:

It’s June — ah, June. That, my friends, means only one thing: the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB), Here’s our June schedule:

• ✔ Friday, June 1: 8:00pm Family Schmamily (Eclectic Company Theatre (FB)) [which, alas, is closing]
• ✔ Saturday, June 2: 1:30pm 19 Years Later: A Harry Potter Parody (Hobgoblin); 4pm From Toilet to TInseltown(Hobgoblin); 8pm Billy Porter: The Soul of Richard Rodgers at the Soraya [nee the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC)].
• ✔ Sunday, June 3: 4:00pm Ingersoll Speaks: Again (Studio C); 6:00pm The Universe (101) (Complex/Dorie).
• ✔ Thursday, June 7:  8:30pm They’ll Be Some Changes Made Today (Hobgoblin)
• ✔ Saturday, June 9:  4:30pm The Story of My Life (Hobgoblin); 8:00pm The Color Purple (Hollywood Pantages (FB))
• ✔ Sunday, June 10: 1:30pm How To Be Lazy and Not Feel Guilty (Complex/OMR); 3:00pm Ageless Wonders: A Grown-Up Kids Guide to Growing Newer (Complex/OMR)
• ✔ Friday, June 15: 6:00pm Shabbabaque at TAS
• ✔ Saturday, June 16: 2:00pm Trojan Woman (Lounge/1); 3:45pm Pain in my Aspergers (Lounge/2)
• ✔ Sunday, June 17:  1:00pm Earhart: More Than A F-ing Mystery (McCadden); 2:30pm Attack of the Retro Sci-Fi Futurist (Complex/Ruby); 430p Amanda The Barbarian (Complex/Dorie); 7pm The Bitch is Back: An Elton John Cabaret (Three Clubs)
• Saturday, June 23 (me only): ✔ 2:00pm Mime Time (Complex/Ruby); ✔ 4pm Cowboy Mouth (Actors Company/Little Theatre); 530pm Monday Morning/Cheese & Things (Actors Company/Little Theatre); 800p The Dangerous Cures of Dr. B (Los Angeles LGBT Center)
• Sunday, June 24 (me only): 3:00pm A Reasonable Fear of Tubas (Actors Company/Let Live); 4:00pm Beatniks (Actors Company/Let Live); 7:00pm Sweet Charity (Reprise/UCLA (FB))

July will be a tad less busy. It starts with the 50th Anniversary of Gindling Hilltop Camp, followed by On Your Feet at the Hollywood Pantages (FB). For the next weekend, as Jane Eyre The Musical from Chromolume Theatre (FB) looks to be a dead parrot ⚰🐦., we’ve replaced it with Tabletop, a reading of a new musical about tabletop RPGs at the Charles Stewart Howard Playhouse (FB). The third weekend in July brings a Bat Mitzvah in Victorville, and Beauty and The Beast at 5 Star Theatricals (FB) that evening on Saturday, and a hold for the OperaWorks (FB) “Opera ReConstructed” at CSUN on Sunday. The last weekend may be a Muse/ique (FB) show. August starts with Waitress at the Hollywood Pantages (FB) on Saturday, and the Actors Co-Op Too! production of Always Andrews: A Musical Tribute to the Andrews Sisters on Sunday at Actors Co-op (FB). The next weekend brings the last Actors Co-Op Too! production, Twelfth Night, or What You Will at Actors Co-op (FB). There may also be a production of The Most Happy Fella at MTW — I’m not sure about it, but the hold date is on the calendar.

As always, I’m keeping my eyes open for interesting productions mentioned on sites such as Better-Lemons, Musicals in LA, @ This Stage, Footlights, as well as productions I see on Goldstar, LA Stage Tix, Plays411 or that are sent to me by publicists or the venues themselves. Note: Lastly, want to know how to attend lots of live stuff affordably? Take a look at my post on How to attend Live Theatre on a Budget.

This entry was originally posted on Observations Along the Road as 🎭 A Mouth that Doesn't Speak, and a Cowboy Mouth That Does @ HFF18 by cahwyguy. Although you can comment on DW, please make comments on original post at the Wordpress blog using the link to the left. You can sign in with your LJ, DW, FB, or a myriad of other accounts. Note: Subsequent changes made to the post on the blog are not propagated by the SNAP Crossposter; please visit the original post to see the latest version. P.S.: If you see share buttons above, note that they do not work outside of the Wordpress blog.

As you’ve probably noted with my news chum posts, I try to find themes. Our first two shows on Sunday had a common theme on exploration: the first looked at Amelia Earhart, a pioneering women aviator; the second looked at how Science Fiction at the time looked forward to the future. But first, my obligatory explanation of the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB):

^* For those unfamiliar with  Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB), there are over 390 different shows occurring in the heart of Hollywood, with most along the stretch of Santa Monica Blvd from Western to W of LaBrea, and between Hollywood Blvd and Melrose. The shows run from 5 minutes to 2 hours, from one person shows to gigantic casts, from mimes to musicals. They have one — and only one — thing in common: they have to be able to load into a theatre in 15 minutes or less, and get out afterwards in the same time. You never know what you will see: it could be complete crap, it could be the start of a major new show. The shows and scheduling thereof are a nightmare to coordinate, but you could easily end up seeing four to five shows in a day. However, you can be guaranteed of a good time.

And now, on to our Sunday shows….

Amelia Earhart has always fascinated me, both because of her odd disappearance, and because of her pioneering work. As someone who now is part of a group actively promoting women in cybersecurity, her pioneering work is even more fascinating. So when I had a slot available and noticed Earhart – More than a F-ing Mystery (A Musical Flight) in the Fringe catalog, I consulted with my wife (a long time member of the Society of Women Engineers (SWE)), and we decided to go. I mean, given our background and the following description, wouldn’t you go? Here’s what was in the catalog:

The story of Amelia Earhart as she breaks the odds, defies stereotypes, and paves the road for anyone to be whatever they dream despite what the rest of the world believes. Like Amelia herself, Earhart is full of strong themes surrounding feminism, equality, and the success of failure, highlighted by an all female cast. For 50 years, Amelia Earhart has been known as only an unexplained mystery, but she was, and is, much more than that – especially today. Earhart delivers the story of a proud, kickass girl, who set out to change the world and to prove once and for all that she is more than a fucking mystery.

Earhart – More than a F-ing Mystery (A Musical Flight) is an interesting show that has quite a bit of promise. In many ways, it reminds me of Gutenberg: The Musical (which we saw in San Diego a few years ago), due to its tongue in cheek attitude and the way that it recognizes that is it a stage show. Right now, the show itself is extremely Fringe-y and at times a bit cheesy, but I think there are some really strong bones that could support taking this forward and making it into something much much more. The basic story combines with a strong set of performances to make this all so.

The show opens with Dana and Mandy, the “author” and “composer” (who are not the real author and composer), talking about this show they had written about Amelia Earhart, but how it just ends with an unresolved mystery because, well, Amelia’s life ended with an unresolved mystery. At this point, two audience members protest. Claiming to be Earhart’s granddaughters, they point out that her story is much more than just an unresolved mystery: it is an inspiration. At this point, the story transitions to the early days of flight, where the existing guard of men are insisting that women simply cannot fly or be aviators. Earhart is meeting with her promoter and admirer, George Putnam, about her being the first woman to fly across the Atlantic. She’s proud of the achievement, until it is pointed out that she was only a passenger. It is at this point she gets the idea to do it the right way — as the pilot. She works with Putnam (who is also interested in marrying her, while she continually rebuffs him), who helps her find sponsors for the trip. Once the money is raised, she does the flight… and agrees to marry George. However, her flight has one glitch: she lands in Ireland, not Paris. Still, it’s Europe.  But she has also realized that she has fallen in love with the sky — that it, flight itself. She begins to draw away from George, and plan to circumnavigate the globe. She meets her navigator — a noted drunk, Fred Noonhan — and takes off on the fateful flight. At this point, the story ends, but the grandchildren come back out. They point out that the flight wasn’t a failure, for look at all the women that were inspired. More importantly, success is built on the bones of failure.

As I said, great message, right?

Throughout the story, there is a gaggle (that’s a technical term) of beautiful young women who are inspired by Earhart in various ways. We also get to meet the 99s, a pioneering women flying group.

Note: I discovered while writing this you can get a sample of the show, as many of the folks were on a podcast about it.

The performances were top-notch — and for some parts of the show, a bit gender-switching. In the lead position was Heather Woodward (Resume, FB) as Amelia Earhart. She had a large number of the songs, and handled them with a lovely strong voice. She also brought quite a bit of humor to the role, and was fun to watch. I particularly liked her “I Wanna Do The Impossible”.

Playing off her for much of the show was Muriel Montgomery (FB) as George Putnam [also Grumpy Old Man #1]. Montgomery also had a nice singing voice and had a good chemistry with Woodward’s Earhart.

The remaining women formed an ensemble that provided the narrator/author, as well as numerous other characters. Dahlya Glick (FB) [Dana, 99s, others]; Alexandria McCale (★FB, FB) [Mandy, 99s, others]; Richelle Meiss (FB) [99s, Grumpy Old Man #2, others];  and Kristen Rozanski (FB) [99s, Grumpy Old Man #3, George Reflection, others]. Alas, we didn’t get a program that told us who was who, but I believe that Glick was the narrator. All were great, fun to watch, and had lovely voices, especially together in songs like “The Ninety-Nines”. I particularly enjoyed listening to Glick and Rozanski; I hope I’ll be able to pick them out on the CD that was available.

The remaining “women” in the cast were the two granddaughters, played by two excellent drag performers, Pocket Turlington (FB, RL)  and Damiana Garcia (FB, RL/FB). My only comment for these two was a costuming one: Garcia needs to do a little better job on keeping her shirt tucked in to that the illusion isn’t broken.

The show featured music and lyrics by Manny Hagopian (FB). The songs were relatively simple but good; I particularly liked the last song about failure being important to success. I didn’t think too much about it at the time, but if the show is to move forward, there may need to be some reexamination of the songs to ensure they do not stand apart, but move to work the plot forward as well as being entertaining.

The show was directed by Greg Smith (FB), who presumably did the movement as well. I always have trouble separating what the director brings from what the actors bring, especially in shows that have good performers and are not over or under directed. This was one of those: the director handled the movement and realism. There were no credits provided for scenery (which wasn’t much), costumes, or hair — but hey, this is Fringe, right? There was also no credit for the fellow at the keyboard in the back.

We found this an enjoyable show. There are two performances during the last weekend of Fringe, and I think it is worth seeing.

As for our second show of the day, Attack of the Retro Sci-Fi Futurist, it was the description that sold these two long-time science fiction aficionados:

He’s the singer of the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles TV theme song. And now James Mandell has turned the story of sci-fi futurism into an eye-candy multimedia event. Performing live with original music videos, infernal electronics and comic flare, he chronicles the development of this amazing genre in a show spanning 200 years of incredible imagery.

• SEE! Rare footage from the sci-fi’s first filmmakers.
• HEAR! Gripping historic radio recordings from the 1930’s.
• THRILL! To space operas, secret decoder rings and sputtering rocket ships.

It’s a ramp-up to the brilliant future coming for us all – and you’re gonna wanna be there for that!

Yes, this was another one-man show. As I’ve noted before, one man shows can scrape the bottom, they can work well at a pedestrian level, and they can soar to fantastic heights. This show, performed by James Mandell (FB), the man behind the iconic voice of the original “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” theme song, was an exploration of all things Science Fiction. Using a mixture of videos, props, and his own music, Mandell told the story of the evolution of science fiction. He started with the earliest artists such as Mary Shelly, and moved on to folks like H.G. Wells and Jules Verne, Edgar Rice Burroughs, and much more. All the while, he was illustrating the evolution of the genre — and its predictions — with films and media of the era. His focus was on the origins through the late 1970s.

Mandell had a wonderfully entertaining show. His focus was rarely telling his story (unlike two of our early one-performer shows); his story was that of the evolution of the genre. More importantly, he talked about how the genre was predicting wonderful technology that didn’t always make it out to the public. After all, we’re all still waiting for our flying cars.

The show was filled with cute and inventive music, which isn’t a surprise given that Mandell has four solo albums, and has worked studio sessions as a keyboardist and singer. The songs in the show were drawn from music he had written dealing with a distant retro future.

Attack of the Retro Sci-Fi Futurist was written, directed, and performed by James Mandell (FB). Technical assistance by Joe Tagnipes (FB). Eric Bridges (FB) was the stage manager. Isis Nocturne (FB) served as social wranger, with Collin Pelton (FB) handling press relations.

We just found this to be a delightful and fun show, with extra fun for those who are actually into science fiction as well are. It is well worth seeing. There is one more performance during the last weekend of Fringe.

Lastly, I’ll note it was between this show and the next that I was ambushed by Princess “Wow”, which I’ve written about earlier.

***

Ob. Disclaimer: I am not a trained theatre (or music) critic; I am, however, a regular theatre and music 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 5 Star Theatricals (FB) [the company formerly known as Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB)], the Hollywood Pantages (FB), Actors Co-op (FB), the Chromolume Theatre (FB) ז״ל, a mini-subscription at the Soraya [nee the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC)] (FB), and the Ahmanson 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:

It’s June — ah, June. That, my friends, means only one thing: the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB), Here’s our June schedule:

• ✔ Friday, June 1: 8:00pm Family Schmamily (Eclectic Company Theatre (FB)) [which, alas, is closing]
• ✔ Saturday, June 2: 1:30pm 19 Years Later: A Harry Potter Parody (Hobgoblin); 4pm From Toilet to TInseltown(Hobgoblin); 8pm Billy Porter: The Soul of Richard Rodgers at the Soraya [nee the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC)].
• ✔ Sunday, June 3: 4:00pm Ingersoll Speaks: Again (Studio C); 6:00pm The Universe (101) (Complex/Dorie).
• ✔ Thursday, June 7:  8:30pm They’ll Be Some Changes Made Today (Hobgoblin)
• ✔ Saturday, June 9:  4:30pm The Story of My Life (Hobgoblin); 8:00pm The Color Purple (Hollywood Pantages (FB))
• ✔ Sunday, June 10: 1:30pm How To Be Lazy and Not Feel Guilty (Complex/OMR); 3:00pm Ageless Wonders: A Grown-Up Kids Guide to Growing Newer (Complex/OMR)
• ✔ Friday, June 15: 6:00pm Shabbabaque at TAS
• ✔ Saturday, June 16: 2:00pm Trojan Woman (Lounge/1); 3:45pm Pain in my Aspergers (Lounge/2)
• Sunday, June 17: ✔ 1:00pm Earhart: More Than A F-ing Mystery (McCadden); ✔ 2:30pm Attack of the Retro Sci-Fi Futurist (Complex/Ruby); 430p Amanda The Barbarian (Complex/Dorie); 7pm The Bitch is Back: An Elton John Cabaret (Three Clubs)
• Saturday, June 23 (me only): 2:00pm Mime Time (Complex/Ruby); 4pm Cowboy Mouth (Actors Company/Little Theatre); 530pm Monday Morning/Cheese & Things (Actors Company/Little Theatre); 800p Meanwhile, Back at the Super Lair (New American Theatre)
• Sunday, June 24 (me only): 3:00pm A Reasonable Fear of Tubas (Actors Company/Let Live); 4:00pm Beatniks (Actors Company/Let Live); 7:00pm Sweet Charity (Reprise/UCLA (FB))

July will be a tad less busy. It starts with the 50th Anniversary of Gindling Hilltop Camp, followed by On Your Feet at the Hollywood Pantages (FB). For the next weekend, as Jane Eyre The Musical from Chromolume Theatre (FB) looks to be a dead parrot ⚰🐦., we’ve replaced it with Tabletop, a reading of a new musical about tabletop RPGs at the Charles Stewart Howard Playhouse (FB). The third weekend in July brings a Bat Mitzvah in Victorville, and Beauty and The Beast at 5 Star Theatricals (FB) that evening on Saturday, and a hold for the OperaWorks (FB) “Opera ReConstructed” at CSUN on Sunday. The last weekend may be a Muse/ique (FB) show. August starts with Waitress at the Hollywood Pantages (FB) on Saturday, and the Actors Co-Op Too! production of Always Andrews: A Musical Tribute to the Andrews Sisters on Sunday at Actors Co-op (FB). The next weekend brings the last Actors Co-Op Too! production, Twelfth Night, or What You Will at Actors Co-op (FB). There may also be a production of The Most Happy Fella at MTW — I’m not sure about it, but the hold date is on the calendar.

As always, I’m keeping my eyes open for interesting productions mentioned on sites such as Better-Lemons, Musicals in LA, @ This Stage, Footlights, as well as productions I see on Goldstar, LA Stage Tix, Plays411 or that are sent to me by publicists or the venues themselves. Note: Lastly, want to know how to attend lots of live stuff affordably? Take a look at my post on How to attend Live Theatre on a Budget.

This entry was originally posted on Observations Along the Road as 🎭 Exploring and Pushing the Boundaries | "Earhart" and "Retro SciFi Futurist" @ HFF18 by cahwyguy. Although you can comment on DW, please make comments on original post at the Wordpress blog using the link to the left. You can sign in with your LJ, DW, FB, or a myriad of other accounts. Note: Subsequent changes made to the post on the blog are not propagated by the SNAP Crossposter; please visit the original post to see the latest version. P.S.: If you see share buttons above, note that they do not work outside of the Wordpress blog.

Both of our Saturday Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB) dealt with pain, coming at it from two different angles. But that doesn’t mean the shows were pains: once was excellent, the other was pretty good. But first, however, my stock description of what the Fringe Festival is:

^* For those unfamiliar with  Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB), there are over 390 different shows occurring in the heart of Hollywood, with most along the stretch of Santa Monica Blvd from Western to W of LaBrea, and between Hollywood Blvd and Melrose. The shows run from 5 minutes to 2 hours, from one person shows to gigantic casts, from mimes to musicals. They have one — and only one — thing in common: they have to be able to load into a theatre in 15 minutes or less, and get out afterwards in the same time. You never know what you will see: it could be complete crap, it could be the start of a major new show. The shows and scheduling thereof are a nightmare to coordinate, but you could easily end up seeing four to five shows in a day. However, you can be guaranteed of a good time.

And now, on to our Saturday shows:

Our first show, Trojan Women, was billed as follows in the Hollywood Fringe online catalog:

In perhaps one of the first recorded pieces of theater in the Western canon that passes the Bechdel test, Euripides’ Trojan Women tells a story of women who are stronger than gods. Trojan Women offers an unapologetic and powerful look at the act of community-building during times of grief, the gendered violence of war, and the messy aftermath of both real and mythic Greek conquests. Written circa 415 BCE and set immediately after the Trojan War, Trojan Women follows in real time the lives of nine remaining Trojan women (and two Greek men) as their city is captured.

For those unfamiliar, the “Bechdel Test” refers to a test was popularized by Alison Bechdel’s comic Dykes to Watch Out For, in a 1985 strip called The Rule.  It is used to evaluate how women are protrayed in fiction. It consists of three simple requirements: (1) It has to have at least two [named] women in it; (2) Who talk to each other; (3) About something besides a man. I’d say this is mostly true, although there are a fair references to men — both as part of the conquering force, the Greeks, and references to children lost. But first, I should perhaps describe the story to you. That, in turn, requires some background for those unfamiliar with ancient Greek myths. Here’s how the program described it, edited a little:

Well before the story in the play started, the Gods had a party on Mt. Olympus. They chose to not invite Eris, the Goddess of Discord, perhaps because they felt she would ruin the vibe. Angered by this slight, Eris devised a way to ensure that she ruined their night. She threw a golden apple (known always after as The Apple of Discord) on which she had inscribed “to the fairest” into the party. Naturally, Hera (Goddess of Women), Aphrodite (Goddess of Love) and Athena (Goddess of Wisdom and War) each assumed the apple was for them. A fight ensued, and the three goddesses demanded that Zeus determine which of them was the fairest and deserved the apple. Knowing better than to get in the middle of this argument, Zeus suggested that Paris of Troy, a mortal he knew to have good judgement, should make the call. Each Goddess promised something different to Paris if he chose her: Hera promised immense power, Athena promised incredible strength, and Aphrodite promised the love of the most beautiful woman in the world. Paris chose Aphrodite, and thus, the love of Helen was promised to him.

The events that followed, and why they occurred, are still up to interpretation. We know Paris visited Greece while Greece and Troy were on good terms, and we know that Helen left her husband, Menelaus, and got on Paris’ boat headed back to Troy. Upon hearing that Helen was gone, Menelaus approached his brother Agamemnon, and they decided to wage war on Troy. This war lasted for ten years, and ended with Odysseus’ Trojan Horse. Greek soldiers hid inside a giant steel steed, which they had presented as a “Congrats on winning the war” present. In the middle of the night, while the Trojans celebrated what they thought was a victory, the Greek soldiers crept out of the horse, unlocked the gates of Troy for the rest of the soldiers who were waiting, and sacked the city. During that night, Paris died. Priam, King of Troy, died. Hector, Troy’s most steady and masterful warrior, had died days earlier. Almost all of the city is killed or enslaved. Left behind are only the Trojan Women. And Helen.

This play, which was the third part of a trilogy about the Trojan War by the Greek playwright Euripides, opens on a war camp in Troy after the Trojans have already lost to the Greeks. What follows is detailed well in the Wikipedia synopsis; you may find the story harder to follow on stage (I did) due to unfamiliarity with the backstory and the style of language used.  Here’s the essence: The play follows the fates of the women of Troy after their city has been sacked, their husbands killed, and as they and their remaining families are about to be taken away as slaves. The focus is on how much the Trojan women have suffered as their grief is compounded when the Greeks dole out additional deaths and divide their shares of women. Through out play, a Greek herald, Talthybius, arrives to tell the women their fates. This includes the fact that the dethroned queen Hecuba will be taken away with the Greek general Odysseus, and Cassandra is destined to become the conquering general Agamemnon’s concubine. Cassandra, who can see the future, is morbidly delighted by this news: she sees that when they arrive in Argos, her new master’s embittered wife Clytemnestra will kill both her and her new master. However, Cassandra is also cursed so that her visions of the future are never believed, and she is carried off. From the widowed princess Andromache, wife of Hecuba’s late son Hector, Hecuba learns from her that her youngest daughter, Polyxena, has been killed as a sacrifice at the tomb of the Greek warrior Achilles.  Andromache’s lot is to be the concubine of Achilles’ son Neoptolemus, and Andromache’s her baby son, Astyanax, has been condemned to die. Helen, who started this mess although not one of the Trojan women, is supposed to suffer greatly as well: Menelaus arrives to take her back to Greece with him where a death sentence awaits her. Helen begs and tries to seduce her husband into sparing her life. Menelaus remains resolved to kill her. Near the end of the play, Talthybius returns, carrying with him the body of little Astyanax on Hector’s shield. Andromache’s wish had been to bury her child herself, performing the proper rituals according to Trojan ways, but her ship had already departed. Talthybius gives the corpse to Hecuba, who prepares the body of her grandson for burial before they are finally taken off with Odysseus. Much of the play is the women bemoaning what they have lost.

This is an ambitious play for a Fringe company to mount; I know the Santa Clarita Shakespeare Company is doing it for one weekend in July at the site formerly known as REP East. Luckily, Project Nongenue succeeded: the production was excellent. Even if you can’t follow the specifics of the story well, you can get the gist of the performances. And those performances? Just “wow”. Moving and beautiful, clearly demonstrating the anguish that these women were going through. Director Olivia Buntaine (FB), assisted by Elizabeth Jane Birmingham (FB), with movement direction by Christine Breihan (FB), have worked with the performance ensemble to create nothing less than a work of art.

Leading the performance team, at least in my book were Kay Capasso (FB) as Eris, who narrated the events, and Taylor Jackson Ross (FB) as the former queen, Hecuba. Ross draws your eyes; I found myself unable to keep my focus off of her when she was involved in the main action. Capasso, on the other hand, is always swooping around, narrating the action and providing sardonic commentary. Both were great.

The main cohort of women in the camp with Hecuba were Liz Eldridge (FB) as Leader; Elizabeth Jane Birmingham (FB) as Iris, and Avrielle Corti (FB) as Zosime.  All gave strong performance, although the version of the story didn’t allow the audience to learn that much about them individually and as characters.

Popping in and out of the proceedings, either as Talthybius the messenger, or as Menelaus, Helen’s husband, was Cameron Rose (FB). He had the unenviable job of (a) being the only man in the company, and (b) being the bearer of bad news. He handled both well.

The remaining characters generally came in for a scene or two, advanced their storylines, and departed: Kyra Morling as Cassandra, Celia Mandela (FB) as Andromarche, and Daphne Gabriel (FB) as Helen. All had strong performances; I particularly likes Gabriel’s Helen, and Morling’s Cassandra.

The production design of the show was simple: essentially clotheslines with cloth screens and some ladders, with a few props and use of fabric to represent the baby Astyanax. This design was by Cameron Rose (FB). It was supported by Leslie Rose (FB)’s lighting design, and Rich Rose (FB)’s scenic consultation. Costumes were by Elizabeth Jane Birmingham (FB). Robert Arthur Angell (FB) provided Dramaturgy. Al Washburn (FB) did the graphic/web design. Backstage drums by Robert Arthur Angell (FB) and Al Washburn (FB). The production was produced by Robert Arthur Angell (FB). No credit was provided with respect to the translation of the Greek playwright Euripides, or who adapted it for the Fringe stage and time limits.

As I write this, there is one more performance of Trojan Women: June 22 at 8pm.

A staple at any Fringe Festival is the one person show. Sometimes they are painful and self indulgent; sometimes they soar to wonderful places — but you can be guaranteed that if you go to a Fringe Festival, you’ll have a fair number from which to choose. HFF18 was no exception. We chose  Pain in my Asperger’s based on the subject matter; here’s the description from the Fringe guide:

Actor/musician, Jeremy Ebenstein, through story and song, takes audiences through his humorous, inspiring, yet often heartbreaking story of living a life with Asperger’s Syndrome. With eight original songs and compositions, Ebenstein chronicles his journey from childhood to adulthood, addressing universal issues like childhood bullying, hopeful romance, and overcoming depression, to his unique take on the struggles of everyday life, from relationships, to being able to hold down the simplest of jobs, yet always striving towards his dreams of being accepted and living a successful life. It’s a story of hope and love, not only for those suffering with Asperger’s Syndrome, who need to overcome the additional challenges that Asperger’s presents, but for all who have ever hoped and dreamed about making something of themselves.

Given that we work with engineers every day, are engineers ourselves, and know numerous folks on the spectrum, this show seemed to hit home. So we decided to see it.

In general, Jeremy Ebenstein (FB) does a good job. His story is moving, and it takes a lot of courage — especially for an Aspie — to get up on stage and tell it. It could use with a bit of editing — at times, it seemed to drag and one had to fight the urge to look at the cell phone for the time. But I view that as a side effect of the Aspie desire to tell too much information; I urge the directing and advising team to see if perhaps ten minutes might be cut — some repetitive examples, perhaps some of the approaches.

However, overall, the ultimate story told by Ebenstein was good. It captured well the difficulties for someone on the spectrum to achieve in the dramatic field. The stories of him in school, and his attempts at forming relationships, were quite good. Luckily, Ebenstein found his music — music is a wonderful too to help people get through so much. His rendition of “Over The Rainbow” during the show was astounding; his other songs were good, although a bit less memorable.

The script for the show was developed by Ebenstein with Jack Fry (FB) in the Jack Fry Solo Workshops. Direction was by Jack Fry (FB) . I’ll note that we’ve seen Fry on stage before, at HFF16, as EInstein. Debra Ehrhardt (FB) served as producer and creative consultant.

There is one more performance of Pain in my Asperger’s : 6/20 at 7:45PM.

***

Ob. Disclaimer: I am not a trained theatre (or music) critic; I am, however, a regular theatre and music 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 5 Star Theatricals (FB) [the company formerly known as Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB)], the Hollywood Pantages (FB), Actors Co-op (FB), the Chromolume Theatre (FB) ז״ל, a mini-subscription at the Soraya [nee the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC)] (FB), and the Ahmanson 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:

It’s June — ah, June. That, my friends, means only one thing: the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB), Here’s our June schedule:

• ✔ Friday, June 1: 8:00pm Family Schmamily (Eclectic Company Theatre (FB)) [which, alas, is closing]
• ✔ Saturday, June 2: 1:30pm 19 Years Later: A Harry Potter Parody (Hobgoblin); 4pm From Toilet to TInseltown(Hobgoblin); 8pm Billy Porter: The Soul of Richard Rodgers at the Soraya [nee the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC)].
• ✔ Sunday, June 3: 4:00pm Ingersoll Speaks: Again (Studio C); 6:00pm The Universe (101) (Complex/Dorie).
• ✔ Thursday, June 7:  8:30pm They’ll Be Some Changes Made Today (Hobgoblin)
• ✔ Saturday, June 9:  4:30pm The Story of My Life (Hobgoblin); 8:00pm The Color Purple (Hollywood Pantages (FB))
• ✔ Sunday, June 10: 1:30pm How To Be Lazy and Not Feel Guilty (Complex/OMR); 3:00pm Ageless Wonders: A Grown-Up Kids Guide to Growing Newer (Complex/OMR)
• ✔ Friday, June 15: 6:00pm Shabbabaque at TAS
• ✔ Saturday, June 16: 2:00pm Trojan Woman (Lounge/1); 3:45pm Pain in my Aspergers (Lounge/2)
• Sunday, June 17: 1:00pm Earhart: More Than A F-ing Mystery (McCadden); 2:30pm Attack of the Retro Sci-Fi Futurist (Complex/Ruby); 430p Amanda The Barbarian (Complex/Dorie); 7pm The Bitch is Back: An Elton John Cabaret (Three Clubs)
• Saturday, June 23 (me only): 2:00pm Mime Time (Complex/Ruby); 4pm Cowboy Mouth (Actors Company/Little Theatre); 530pm Monday Morning/Cheese & Things (Actors Company/Little Theatre); 800p Meanwhile, Back at the Super Lair (New American Theatre)
• Sunday, June 24 (me only): 3:00pm A Reasonable Fear of Tubas (Actors Company/Let Live); 4:00pm Beatniks (Actors Company/Let Live); 7:00pm Sweet Charity (Reprise/UCLA (FB))

July will be a tad less busy. It starts with the 50th Anniversary of Gindling Hilltop Camp, followed by On Your Feet at the Hollywood Pantages (FB). For the next weekend, as Jane Eyre The Musical from Chromolume Theatre (FB) looks to be a dead parrot ⚰🐦., we’ve replaced it with Tabletop, a reading of a new musical about tabletop RPGs at the Charles Stewart Howard Playhouse (FB). The third weekend in July brings a Bat Mitzvah in Victorville, and Beauty and The Beast at 5 Star Theatricals (FB) that evening on Saturday, and a hold for the OperaWorks (FB) “Opera ReConstructed” at CSUN on Sunday. The last weekend may be a Muse/ique (FB) show. August starts with Waitress at the Hollywood Pantages (FB) on Saturday, and the Actors Co-Op Too! production of Always Andrews: A Musical Tribute to the Andrews Sisters on Sunday at Actors Co-op (FB). The next weekend brings the last Actors Co-Op Too! production, Twelfth Night, or What You Will at Actors Co-op (FB). There may also be a production of The Most Happy Fella at MTW — I’m not sure about it, but the hold date is on the calendar.

As always, I’m keeping my eyes open for interesting productions mentioned on sites such as Better-Lemons, Musicals in LA, @ This Stage, Footlights, as well as productions I see on Goldstar, LA Stage Tix, Plays411 or that are sent to me by publicists or the venues themselves. Note: Lastly, want to know how to attend lots of live stuff affordably? Take a look at my post on How to attend Live Theatre on a Budget.

This entry was originally posted on Observations Along the Road as Oh, the Pain! | Trojan Women and Asperger's @HFF18 by cahwyguy. Although you can comment on DW, please make comments on original post at the Wordpress blog using the link to the left. You can sign in with your LJ, DW, FB, or a myriad of other accounts. Note: Subsequent changes made to the post on the blog are not propagated by the SNAP Crossposter; please visit the original post to see the latest version. P.S.: If you see share buttons above, note that they do not work outside of the Wordpress blog.

As I wrote about our Saturday shows, the reaction of audiences to theatre can range the gamut from “Wow! What was that!” to “Ugh. What was that?”. Saturday had the “Wows”. Sunday was different: there was a “Hmmm” and an “Ugh”. But first, however, my stock description of what the Fringe Festival is:

^* For those unfamiliar with  Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB), there are over 390 different shows occurring in the heart of Hollywood, with most along the stretch of Santa Monica Blvd from Western to W of LaBrea, and between Hollywood Blvd and Melrose. The shows run from 5 minutes to 2 hours, from one person shows to gigantic casts, from mimes to musicals. They have one — and only one — thing in common: they have to be able to load into a theatre in 15 minutes or less, and get out afterwards in the same time. You never know what you will see: it could be complete crap, it could be the start of a major new show. The shows and scheduling thereof are a nightmare to coordinate, but you could easily end up seeing four to five shows in a day. However, you can be guaranteed of a good time.

And now, on to our Sunday shows:

As we were reading through the Fringe schedule back in May to decide what shows we should see, we came across the following description for How to Be Lazy and Not Feel Guilty:

A hilarious social satire about a woman who overworks herself until she goes mad! …yay?

Follow Jenine and a psychotic ensemble of characters – including her boss, family, Sponsors™, Satan and coworkers – as they collectively run her into the ground! Watch her sacrifice everything for her ambition: her time, her health… maybe even… her relationship?! To find out if she makes it out alive or is completely consumed by the pressures of productivity, you’ll have to watch for yourself. An absurdist, style-bending, ensemble-based satire guaranteed to make you take a long hard look at your own life – what more could you want?

Being the types that want to be lazy, and being Jewish so we understand guilt, this sounded like the perfect show.

As the summary indicated, the story presented centered around Janine, an employee at some generic company where, presumably, she did critical but generic things. The company was pressuring her to get these generic things — and creating loads of guilt around her getting these things done. There was so much pressure, in fact, that she was giving up other things in her life: sleep, her boyfriend, sleep, sex, sleep, friendships. Did I mention that she was working so hard she was constantly fighting not to fall asleep, and feeling even more guilty when she did.

The execution of the show was humorous and frenetic, silly and overdone at times, earnest at others. What impressed me most about the show was the point that it was making: that far too often we place far too much importance in the things that we have to do, as opposed to the people we care about around us. That’s a message that resonates with someone who is going crazy doing updates to the Highway pages, attempting to attend 20 HFF18 shows and write up every one, doing stuff for my synagogue’s Men’s Club, all without ignoring my wife who has criticized me before for spending too much time on the computer.

Translation: Yes, this show hit home. Yes, this show incited some deep thought and internal conversations. Yes, this show did exactly what theatre should do.

The execution of the show wasn’t perfect. It was Fringe, after all. It was a bit overdone, the freneticism distracted at times from the story. If it is to move and expand into a longer piece with a longer life for traditional venues, it needs expansion, deeper fleshing out of the characters and relationships, and better understanding of the drives and changes. It also needs to show stronger motivation, and perhaps some false starts at moving in the right direction. But I think the notion and underlying message would make that effort worth it: this show says something that needs to be said.

As Janine, Sarah Richards (FB) captured the overworked and overwhelmed nature of her character well. She was fun to watch. Duncan Kinzie (FB) was her boyfriend Thomas, and he embodied an interesting character contrast. The remaining actors (Emerson Harris (FB), Drew Petriello (FB), and Addison Turner (FB)) formed an ensemble of various characters: bosses, parents, co-workers, the Devil, and such.  I do have to complement Addison Turner (FB), just because she was just so much fun to watch, with a great energy and humor that radiated to the audience.

The show was written by Drew Petriello (FB), and directed by Natasha Gualy (★FB, FB) [who was also the producer, and “designer of all things”]. Sound design by Emerson Harris (FB). It was a Leaky Faucet & Sons (FB) production.

In summary, I think How To Be Lazy and Not Feel Guilty was worth seeing.

Alas, I can’t say the same thing for Ageless Wonders: A Grown Up Kids Guide to Growing Newer. It fell into the “Ugh. What was that?” category, and did not meet our expectations.

The show was described on the Fringe website as:

Mindy is fascinating. All she has to do is get up and talk. She muses on entering this new “senior club” and enlightens on the benefits ( and discounts!). Fradkin aka Princess Wow gives a fresh perspective on aging and that we truly are “ageless wonders”. She speaks directly to the audience, takes you into her world, and you gladly go. This one hour performance promises to evoke some tears, guarantee smiles and even laughter. The play has a catchy original score written by Grammy Award winner Roland Mousaa & Mindy Fradkin, both of whom had the privilege of working and befriending the late great Pete Seeger, folk icon/activist.

We went in expecting to have a one-person exploration of the aspects of aging, and how one can age without gaining the “Get Off My Lawn” attitude. We expected a performer that had the material down pat, that was able to engage and tell the story and keep the audience entranced. That view would be reinforced by all the rave reviews on the performers website. One would expect a highly entertaining, well-organized, one-person show.

I don’t know what show those people were seeing (or what they were smoking). Perhaps she was having a bad day, but what we got was something different. What we got was the author, Mindy Fradkin (FB), also known as “Princess Wow“, rambling and telling the story of her life, constantly putting on her glasses and reading from her notes, and then taking them off again. Incidents were told multiple times. There was disorganization on the slides shown, and they often didn’t seem to convey anything useful.  It came across as a self-indulgent rental of a theatre space.

Here’s another way of looking at it: I’m not an actor. I’m a cybersecurity expert, and I often get up and give talks and tutorials using Powerpoint. I know my material down pat — not as a script, but I intimately know the subject. I use my Powerpoint slides as a reference, just as an actor would use a prompt. I can do an engaging talk and finish on time. But I’ve been in many a presentation where the presenter just reads off their slides, and it is a painful process. This show struck me as the latter.

The nature of the show was reflected in the program that was handed out. Not only does it have bios of the actors, authors, and production team, but there are detailed photo credits and graphic credits, details on the video editing, links of referrals from the Powerpoint slides, links of additional resources, book references, and links to other references. Perhaps we should have received a copy of the slides.

I could have done better just giving my tutorial on the Cybersecurity Acquisition Process. Perhaps at the next Fringe. 🙂 But that’s the subject of tomorrow’s post.^{*
(*: The link will work, well, tomorrow)}

I think the show oversold itself, and needed significantly better preparation. I expect a Fringe show, unless advertised otherwise, to be “off book”. If you must have a trigger, put it on the Powerpoint slide, have your laptop screen facing you, and keep your eyes on the audience (except for the occasional quick glance). Don’t keep looking in your book of notes.  Most important: know your material, know what you want to say, and clearly make the points you want to make. Don’t ramble.

The production was directed by Jessica Lynn Johnson (FB), who seemed to be directing a large number of other Fringe shows as well. Jessica: Please get your performer to listen to you and learn her material; I’m sure you tried. It featured a few songs — with questionable singing — with lyrics by Roland Mousaa (FB) and Mindy Fradkin (FB) (Roland & Mindy FB), and music by Roland Mousaa (FB).

Luckily, the listed performances have all taken place, although I seem to recall mention of a performance being added. Avoid it. This has evidently been submitted to other Fringe festivals; I’d wait for word of mouth to see if she was better prepared and had improved the show before trying it again. We weren’t that impressed.

***

Ob. Disclaimer: I am not a trained theatre (or music) critic; I am, however, a regular theatre and music 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 5 Star Theatricals (FB) [the company formerly known as Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB)], the Hollywood Pantages (FB), Actors Co-op (FB), the Chromolume Theatre (FB) ז״ל, a mini-subscription at the Soraya [nee the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC)] (FB), and the Ahmanson 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:

It’s June — ah, June. That, my friends, means only one thing: the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB), Here’s our June schedule:

• ✔ Friday, June 1: 8:00pm Family Schmamily (Eclectic Company Theatre (FB)) [which, alas, is closing]
• ✔ Saturday, June 2: 1:30pm 19 Years Later: A Harry Potter Parody (Hobgoblin); 4pm From Toilet to TInseltown(Hobgoblin); 8pm Billy Porter: The Soul of Richard Rodgers at the Soraya [nee the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC)].
• ✔ Sunday, June 3: 4:00pm Ingersoll Speaks: Again (Studio C); 6:00pm The Universe (101) (Complex/Dorie).
• ✔ Thursday, June 7:  8:30pm They’ll Be Some Changes Made Today (Hobgoblin)
• ✔ Saturday, June 9:  4:30pm The Story of My Life (Hobgoblin); 8:00pm The Color Purple (Hollywood Pantages (FB))
• ✔ Sunday, June 10: 1:30pm How To Be Lazy and Not Feel Guilty (Complex/OMR); 3:00pm Ageless Wonders: A Grown-Up Kids Guide to Growing Newer (Complex/OMR)
• Friday, June 15: 6:00pm Shabbabaque at TAS
• Saturday, June 16: 2:00pm Trojan Woman (Lounge/1); 3:45pm Pain in my Aspergers (Lounge/2)
• Sunday, June 17: 1:00pm Earhart: More Than A F-ing Mystery (McCadden); 2:30pm Attack of the Retro Sci-Fi Futurist (Complex/Ruby); 430p Amanda The Barbarian (Complex/Dorie); 7pm The Bitch is Back: An Elton John Cabaret (Three Clubs)
• Saturday, June 23 (me only): 2:00pm Mime Time (Complex/Ruby); 4pm Cowboy Mouth (Actors Company/Little Theatre); 530pm Monday Morning/Cheese & Things (Actors Company/Little Theatre); 800p Meanwhile, Back at the Super Lair (New American Theatre)
• Sunday, June 24 (me only): 3:00pm A Reasonable Fear of Tubas (Actors Company/Let Live); 4:00pm Beatniks (Actors Company/Let Live)

July will get busier again. It starts with the 50th Anniversary of Gindling Hilltop Camp, followed by On Your Feet at the Hollywood Pantages (FB). The next weekend appears to be open, as Jane Eyre The Musical from Chromolume Theatre (FB) looks to be a dead parrot ⚰🐦. The third weekend in July brings a Bat Mitzvah in Victorville, and Beauty and The Beast at 5 Star Theatricals (FB) that evening on Saturday, and a hold for the OperaWorks (FB) “Opera ReConstructed” at CSUN on Sunday. The last weekend may be a Muse/ique (FB) show. August starts with Waitress at the Hollywood Pantages (FB) on Saturday, and the Actors Co-Op Too! production of Always Andrews: A Musical Tribute to the Andrews Sisters on Sunday at Actors Co-op (FB). The next weekend brings the last Actors Co-Op Too! production, Twelfth Night, or What You Will at Actors Co-op (FB). There may also be a production of The Most Happy Fella at MTW — I’m not sure about it, but the hold date is on the calendar.

As always, I’m keeping my eyes open for interesting productions mentioned on sites such as Better-Lemons, Musicals in LA, @ This Stage, Footlights, as well as productions I see on Goldstar, LA Stage Tix, Plays411 or that are sent to me by publicists or the venues themselves. Note: Lastly, want to know how to attend lots of live stuff affordably? Take a look at my post on How to attend Live Theatre on a Budget.

This entry was originally posted on Observations Along the Road as Lazy and Ageless - A Perfect Description | Sunday 6/10 Shows @ HFF18 by cahwyguy. Although you can comment on DW, please make comments on original post at the Wordpress blog using the link to the left. You can sign in with your LJ, DW, FB, or a myriad of other accounts. Note: Subsequent changes made to the post on the blog are not propagated by the SNAP Crossposter; please visit the original post to see the latest version. P.S.: If you see share buttons above, note that they do not work outside of the Wordpress blog.