Don Grigware - Page 60

Actor/singer Douglas Sills began his Broadway career in the 90s essaying the role of infamous Sir Percy in Frank Wildhorn's musical of The Scarlet Pimpernel for which he won critical acclaim and a Tony Award nomination. Since then, he has been in, among many others, the revival of Little Shop of Horrors, Into the Woods, The Secret Garden, all on Broadway, as well as the rarely seen concert of the 1930s Jerome Kern/Oscar Hammerstein Music in the Air with Kristin Chenoweth and a slew of musical roles in LA including Mack Sennett in Reprise's Mack and Mabel and Ravenal in the Hollywood Bowl's production of Showboat. He has just started the tour of The Addams Family starring as Gomez and will open at the Pantages Theatre on June 5. In our chat, he talks at length about playing Gomez, the changes since New York in the road version of Addams Family and chooses some of his favorite all-time roles.

Don Grigware's Top 5 Summer Theatre Recommendations in LA!

Doug Haverty has a talent for creating good roles for women. There are no finer examples than in his current West coast premiere Aftershocks now playing at the Lyric Theatre. With fine direction from JC Gafford and a tight cast of three superlative actresses, Aftershocks reverberates with joyous affirmation.

Tony Award winning actress/singer Victoria Clark is currently co-starring in Follies at the Ahmanson in the complex role of Sally Durant Plummer. In our chat, she talks about Follies, Sondheim and some of her other favorite roles.

After years of popularity with innovative 'realism-plus' theatre, Murray Mednick's work stands tall, and surprisingly this is my first taste of a Mednick play. I hope it's not my last! My first being The Fool and the Red Queen, now receiving its world premiere production at the Lounge Theatre in Hollywood. With fine direction by Mednick and Guy Zimmerman and a noteworthy cast, the play is an intriguingly magical odyssey that may not suit everyone's tastebuds, but which will certainly compel, entertain, and maybe even enlighten.

Do you like the music of the 50s, 60s and 70s? I should say, do you love it? Love it in fact, so much, that it has become an addiction? How can you tell? Well, has your vinyl collection become such a clutter that you find yourself tripping over it wherever you take a step? Do you find yourself constantly flipping channels on your car radio to find that oldies but goodies station? Or preferring reruns on TV Land of The Partridge Family or Donnie and Marie over American Idol, Glee or Smash? Sounds to me like you're hooked. You need to come to a BGA Meeting - only one left - on Sunday May 27 at 2 pm at Peter Mac's Supper Club inside the French Market Place on Santa Monica Blvd in WeHo. FYI, BGA stands for Bubble Gums Anonymous with the slogan The more you pop, the better it gets. It's all part and parcel of a nifty little show called Chew On This which has in spades the genre of music that any bubble gum addict could ever possibly wish for.

The phenomenally successful 1977 Broadway musical Annie took America by storm and has been filmed twice. After 35 years, and especially now during our country's - what seems to be unending - economic slump, its Depression era optimism holds up better than ever, and in GCT's current well-staged production, there's much to savor.

By the time you leave Darrin Hagen's Bitchslap! you'll either hate or adore two of Hollywood's legendary divas, namely Bette Davis - the actress and Joan Crawford - the movie star. Both left a trail of indelible marks by which to be judged. They were bitchy, glamorous - well, at least Crawford - fiercely prepared - well, at least Davis - overbearing, and always clamored for good press. Ta da! In comes Hedda Hopper, one of the bitchiest, most well-dressed, most obsessively efficient and most overbearing reporters old Hollywood had to offer. Not two, but three queens! Hagen's campy piece is not without its flaws, but will surely entertain you and actually make you perk up your ears to hear a thing or two about Davis and Crawford that you may not have known. That's right, Darrin Hagen has done his homework and very well researched his stars, so movie buffs should be more than pleased. Now onstage through June 17 at the Macha Theatre, ladies and gentlemen, Bitchslap!

Judy and Company with Judy Garland, Liza Minnelli, Peggy Lee, Tallulah Bankhead and Katie Hepburn, ladies of screen, theatre and TV all sharing top billing, as usual is a joyous Peter Mac show. At the all new Peter Mac Supper Club in Hollywood, Garland opens and closes with a bevy of her hits including, 'Almost Like Being in Love', 'This Can't Be Love', 'The Man That Got Away', 'The Trolley Song' and 'By Myself' from the film I Could Go On Singing. Garland is in rare form, never missing a beat, even getting in a dig about losing the Oscar for Star to Grace Kelly. Next comes Miss Tallulah Bankhead SINGING an outrageous 'Everybody's F------But Me' and 'Como te gusta mi pinga...', with Spanish making the obscenity sound acceptable, actually quite delicious. Jokes fly out of her trashy mouth, and there's even a raunchy Snow White fable. Following Tallu comes a hilariously, talk about stoned, Peggy Lee who gives her all to 'Is That All There Is?' and the politically incorrect 'Manana'. Lee's synthetic blonde wig gives Mac some great dish lines. Then, like a tornado from QVC, in flies the one and only Liza Minnelli - ablaze in red sequins - giving us not two but three numbers 'Say Yes', 'Liza with a Z' and 'Maybe This Time' with quite an interesting anecdote about how the former was actually written for Kaye Ballard but became a big hit in theCabaret film for Liza. The final guest is Kate Hepburn who treats us to her inimitable rendition of 'Coco' and 'The Glory of Love' echoing her unusual 27 year extra-marital relationship with Spencer Tracy.

Playwright Dale Griffiths Stamos has conceived an intriguing world premiere evening of short one-acts, 10 -15 minutes each, called Lovestruck, all dealing with the theme of love: parental love, love based purely on sexual attraction, marital love, love for those over 70, homosexual love and even abusive love. Some are funny; some, exceedingly serious. With an outstanding company of 15 actors and 7 out of 8 directed by Maggie Grant (who also acts in two of them ) - the 8th is helmed by Barbara Bain - the play is in residence at the Beverly Hills Playhouse through May 27, which means you have only two more weekends to get lovestruck.

Actress/singer Elaine Paige, having originated Evita, Chess, Piaf and Anything Goes in London, is unquestionably the queen of the West End, and with a Drama Desk nomination securely in place for her Broadway performance in the new Kennedy Center production of Stephen Sondheim's Follies, which opened at the Ahmanson May 9, Paige is fast becoming a theatrical sensation in the US as well. In our chat, she says what she thinks about Stephen Sondheim, Follies, Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber, Barbara Cook, her favorite career highlights including her leading men, as well as her popular radio talk show for the BBC entitled Elaine Paige on Sunday.

Upon seeing The Heiress, based on Henry James' novel Washington Square, one is transported to a distant world. If middle-class values existed, they were certainly not recognized by the inhabitants of 1850 Washington Square, where members of the elitist branch of society insisted on being surrounded by only wealth and privilege. When poor Morris Townsend (Steve Coombs) asks for the hand in marriage of plain, rich Catherine Sloper (Heather Tom), he is branded a fortune hunter and shunned by her uncontrollably cruel father Dr. Austin Sloper (Richard Chamberlain). Now in a most stunning revival at the Pasadena Playhouse under the elaborate direction of Damaso Rodriguez, a stellar cast deliver the goods and bring fresh meaning to The Heiress.

Receiving its long overdue west coast premiere is The Fix, which premiered at the Donmar Warehouse in London in 1997 and then made its way finally to the US playing in Virginia, but never landing on Broadway. It's pure political satire with music, in the style of a rock opera, but, unlike pure rock opera, with spoken dialogue as well as the music to move the plot along. Reminding one of a vaudeville at times with its broad playing mood, it is an intensely dark, hard-hitting, gritty drama that socks a big wallop. Its one major drawback is its lack of comedic flair; it is so serious and razor sharp, it forgets to lighten up at times to let its audience digest it properly. Now in a finely staged engagement through May 20 at ICT, Long Beach, The Fix boasts above all else... a splendiferous cast.

On Sunday May 6 Kritzerland presented its monthly show, May's entitled Broadway Bound: Unsung Songwriters at Sterling's Upstairs at the Federal. Bruce Kimmel and Adryan Russ produce a terrific evening of entertainment with an emphasis on tunes rarely if ever heard and featuring a bevy of top-notch musical theatre talent. This show proved no exception with Damon Kirsche, Melody Hollis, Jane Noseworthy, Beth Malone, John Massey and special guest star Daisy Eagan, the youngest person to ever win a Tony Award for The Secret Garden. First-time with Kritzerland, musical director Tom Griep accompanied beautifully on piano throughout the 75 minute set. Featured songwriters included among others: the amazing Marcy Heisler and Zina Goldrich, Alan Chapman (in attendance), Larry Grossman, Hal Hackady and Ira Levin, who as a familiar writer brought us on film and stage: Rosemary's Baby and Deathtrap.

The Scottsboro Boys book by David Thompson music & lyrics by John Kander & Fred Ebb directed & choreographed by Susan Stroman Old Globe, San Diego through June 10

During the first half hour of Richard Raskind's world premiere The Bridge Club, I was genuinely engaged by its unusual set of circumstances, its believable dialogue and two main characters Jack (Christopher Franciosa) and Sue (Nancy Dobbs Owen). I really got to like both of them and so wanted the play to go in a linear direction. Alas, Raskind veered 100% away from that, and to some, who like their dramas akin to TV's Touched by an Angel, that will bring pleasure. I wanted more. Now under Mike Sabatino's steady direction and fine cast, The Bridge Club, despite its theatrical letdown, is still entertaining fare...and don't let its title deceive you, it's not about a group of oldsters playing cards.

Few musicals capture the flavor of the early Cole Porter revues and Busby Berkeley musical films quite as well as Dames at Sea. Its constant silliness, instantaneous breaks - for no apparent reason - into song and dance... and parody of just about every musical show, especially 42nd Street, make it delicious, frothy and lots of fun. Now onstage at the Colony Theatre, under the smooth direction of Todd Nielsen, Dames at Sea starts out a tad slow, but builds momentum and gives its audience what they came for: a rollicking good time.