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Personal Exploration of People, Personalities and Meaning
Browsing All posts tagged under »Reviews«
The Producers (Village Theatre)
The Fourth of July may be over but the fireworks are just beginning at The Village Theatre of Everett, as on July 6th it kicked off its run of the farcical musical “The Producers” adapted from the book and film written by Mel Brooks and Tony Sheehan. The powerhouse show started out in Issaquah back in May to rave reviews and does not show any signs of stopping or letting down as it continues its entertainment dominance northward, initiating its blitzkrieg assault on your funny bone in Everett. From this reviewer’s perspective the musical farce extraordinaire has not lost a step as it continues its over-the-top, unabashedly shameless and nothing-is-sacred dominance which kept the audience rolling with laughter all night long.
A show about two dubious Broadway producers played by Richard Gray and Brian Earp, putting on an apparently doomed musical extolling the virtues of Hitler and the Nazi Party, paid for by overly amorous grandmothers looking for love in all the wrong places, seems an unlikely evening’s entertainment but thank heavens for unexpected pleasures. Regardless of your mindset prior to the show, “The Producers” is still able to produce a theatrical victory in the heart of audiences faster than the surrender of France in World War II.
The Screwtape Letters (The Paramount Theatre)
March 14, 2012
When the word reached me that Max McLean would be in town for one day, doing two performances of “The Screwtape Letters” at the Paramount Theatre in downtown Seattle, I knew that I had to be in attendance. “The Screwtape Letters” was adapted by Jeffrey Fiske and Max McLean from the book of the same name written by C.S. Lewis. It stars Max McLean, who also co-directs with Fisk. McLean has been performing the play since the opening run in New York, Chicago and D.C.; having successfully completed well over 700 performances of TSL.
As a longtime admirer of C.S. Lewis and his writings, I was skeptical that one could effectively convey the nuances of the book on stage, as it’s not your typical fare. It was hard enough for some to read the relatively short book completely through. The book records the mail correspondence between Screwtape, a demon of the highest order, and his fledgling tempter nephew, Wormwood. In their exchanges, Wormwood, a recent graduate of the “Tempters' Training College” describes his first assignment with a human affectionately referred to as the “Patient”. It is Wormwood’s mission to ensure that the Patient is tempted off of the narrow path. In return, good ol’ Uncle Screwtape, reminiscent of an unholy ‘Dear Abby’ or ‘Dr. Phil’ manner, dispenses his malevolent wisdom and insights concerning Christianity, faith and the human condition, in hopes of guiding Wormwood into nefarious maturity and bringing about the eternal damnation of the Patient.
My momentary uneasiness was allayed by the choice of music played while waiting for the curtains to open. My attention was initially seized by Bob Dylan’s “Gotta Serve Somebody” and The Rolling Stones’ “Sympathy for the Devil” and I am delighted to say that the performance to follow was wickedly riveting, entertaining and thought-provoking. Max McLean, dressed up like Alistair Cooke’s evil cousin doing a Masterpiece Theatre vignette, held me spellbound throughout. The show, unlike Wormwood, does not disappoint in the end.
Red (Seattle Repertory)
March 1, 2012
I am struggling with where to start in my review of Red at the Seattle Repertory. I attended the packed house opening night of Red last evening and this morning my mind is still racing, trying to distill the essence of Red; to quantify the take away as it were, but it is just not that simple. You see writer John Logan, director Richard E. T. White and the extremely talented acting duo of Denis Arndt and Connor Toms have conspired with foresight and malicious intent to make anything that I say, good or bad about the play, more indicative of my qualifications as a witnesser of their art, than the quality of the art itself.
Even as the words begin to form in my head, I hear the commanding voice of Denis’ rendition of abstract painter, Mark Rothko bellowing at me, “What do you see?” I am left to question my own understanding, like Connor Toms portrayal of Rothko’s apprentice Ken. Am I human enough to get it? To feel it? I sit here and find myself reminiscing about an earlier time in my own life. A period when time itself seemed limitless and the thought of hanging out at the local IHOP drinking coffee with friends until 4am, wrestling with deep philosophical quandaries, seemed the most important of activities to attend to. I have to wonder; am I just starved for deep and meaningful conversation or is John Logan's writing compelling enough to instill in me a renewed hunger for those college days and to engage in meaningful dialogue with others?
Red compels us to enter and spend an evening treading deep into the forgotten places, Socratic dialogues, rhetoric, discourse and of course, Nietzsche’s profound but fragile balance between Apollonian (reason and logic) and Dionysian (emotion and experience) elements required to create dramatic Art. Before you let that scare you away from attending the show, know that while the show is about Art, it does so through real visceral human interactions, touching upon many of life’s themes. What is Art? Is it truly in the eye of the beholder or is there a more ethereal quality to it? Do we judge it, or does it judge us, the viewer of it?
Chicago (SecondStory Repertory)
February 29, 2012
SecondStory Repertory brazenly reaches for the neon stars with its powerhouse performance of Chicago, bringing the sardonic and torrid tale of egos, gin joints, gams, corruption and big town dreams to Redmond. Complete with live cabaret band and elaborate choreographed song and dance routines, Director Chris Nardine pulls off his own sleight of hand by efficaciously tackling the hugely ambitious Chicago and successfully transforming it to the intimate setting of SecondStory’s main stage. SSR's production of Chicago hooks you and keeps hitting on all sixes until the very end.
Set in the mid-1920s, Chicago tells the story of an amoral chorus dancer Roxie Hart, deliciously brought to life by the talented Erika Zabelle. Watching Zabelle perform conjured up images of a young Bernadette Peters, as she brings forth surprising intensity and strength. In her undeterred self-centered ambition to ascend to stardom, Roxie proves that there is no depth of human depravity that she will not descend to. Nor is there any sordid character that she would not willingly partner with to achieve her dreams and keep her name in the headlines. From the cold murder of her adulterous partner to her serpentine lies and manipulation of others, no one is exempt from her exploitation. She even convinces her rube of a husband, Amos to initially take responsibility for the murder until the truth comes out and she is arrested.
I Am My Own Wife (Seattle Repertory)
February 14, 2012
February 8, 2012 marked the opening night for Seattle Repertory’s provocative yet compelling production of I Am My Own Wife written by Doug Wright and directed by Jerry Manning. I Am My Own Wife presents the fascinating real life story of Charlotte von Mahlsdorf, an East German transvestite who lived openly through two of the most oppressive regimes the world has known, Nazi Germany and East Germany Communism.
It is an intriguing yet complex multilayered tale, at times self-indulgently shocking; yet also surprisingly emotive; even tender at moments. Irrespective of one’s feelings regarding homosexuality and transvestism, audiences cannot help but be moved by the all too real and fundamentally human plight of Charlotte von Mahlsdorf as she unflinchingly confronts decades of ignorance and misunderstanding with unapologetic pride. One may be startled to discover at some point in the play just how taken they have become with this enigmatic figure which Nick Garrison’s portrayal brilliantly brings to life.
How to Write a New Book for the Bible (Seattle Repertory)
January 25, 2012
The Seattle Repertory presents the world premiere of Bill Cain’s latest work, How to Write a New Book for the Bible – a moving and candid personal exploration of parent-child relationships and finding peace in the midst of suffering and death. “How to” invites you into the most familiar of places, the family home; yet does so in a fresh, deeply poignant and humorous manner. Bill describes the play as “joyous” and celebrates the fullness of humanity, its peaks and valleys, while discovering sacred moments even within the remembrances of the minutest of acts. It is a wild emotional rollercoaster ride, through the heart, drama and faith of the Cain family; honestly portrayed, complete with imperfections, quirks and an unalterable love for one another.
Unabashed, Bill Cain treks boldly into the arena of drama which is the family, draws us into the frustration, joy and absurdity which is family life and makes us care. It cannot be any easy thing to write such a deeply personal revealing play, but I was pleasantly surprised by how he masterfully integrated faith and family, in such a manner that is so accessible to all. He successfully navigates the razor’s edge between religion and entertainment, the joys and heartbreaks of family life, and the reality of aging and facing death. He does so without backing away from the edge, overly sanitizing it or becoming preachy. He delightfully portrays a family of faith not as stoic automatons, whitewashed saints or joyless ascetics, but full on flesh and blood, wonderfully flawed emotional beings, who at moments are angered, frustrated and make mistakes, while laughing, crying and even cursing without losing sight that God is found in midst of their family story.
Scripta Manent 
July 10, 2012
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