Jay Irwin - Page 19

Arthur Miller's classic The Crucible remains a kind of mainstay of theater across the country from professional productions down to the myriad high school productions. But for it to ring true it must resonate with society's repeated history with mob mentality whether that be the literal Salem witch trials of the story or McCarthyism or even more recent moments in our history where truth is over shadowed by fear. And while ACT's current production of the classic nails those themes it also manages to make the production all about the stellar performances and the brilliant script than about any set or costumes or flashy presentation.

Life is hard for female children and for women in general in China. This is the basic message from Frances Ya-Chu Cowhig's play The World of Extreme Happiness currently playing at Seattle Public Theater. The big problem with this is that we all know this and so beyond that, what story do they want to tell with this play and why are they telling it? For the life of me, I was never really certain.

Back in 2011 many of us here in Seattle were subjected to a very different version of Disney's Aladdin than what you might see currently playing at the Paramount Theatre. Also for many of us that previous version left a bad taste in our mouths for the property. A property that we loved in its original movie form 25 years ago (wow, was it that long ago). But this new version on tour now from the Broadway incarnation seems to have grown up from its shaky beginnings and now delivers a fun ride for kids and adults alike.

There's a general rule of thumb in any theatrical production that if the cast is enjoying what they are doing then that will translate into audience connection and enjoyment. Of course, good source material like Jane Austen's classic Pride and Prejudice doesn't hurt the issue nor does a wonderfully quirky adaptation by Kate Hamill. But it's those two elements combined with the fact that the kick-ass ensemble cast, currently performing the piece at Seattle Repertory Theatre, appears to be big kids having two and a half hours of play-time on stage every night and having the times of their lives that makes this a winner. And that energy is certainly infectious creating uproarious laughter from the audience (and even sometimes from their fellow cast members as well).

There are two things, Dear Readers, that drive me crazy in watching any theatrical endeavor, shmacting and not listening, we'll dive into the meanings of those more in a bit, but what they accomplish is sapping the emotional core from a show. Fantastic Z's current production of Next Fall partially suffers from these dilemmas in that half of the cast is guilty of it. And in a show like this, only half an emotional core is just not enough.

Let me assure you that you need not have seen Neighborhood 1 or Neighborhood 2 in order to understand Theater Schmeater's current show Neighborhood 3: Requisition of Doom for two reasons. First, there are no such things as Neighborhood 1 or Neighborhood 2 as the title does not refer to any kind of play trilogy. And second, I don't think even two prequels would be enough to make this show make sense.

The Last Five Years , that Jason Robert Brown quirky two hander gets put up quite a bit and it stands to reason, it's a fun show filled with rich songs, it's only two actors, it typically has little to no set and so everyone and their dog puts it on. I've seen it multiple times since it came on the scene. I've seen basic, traditional productions. I've seen productions with multiple rotating casts. I've even seen a production where they reimagined why the relationship ends. So while I was leery of yet another production with the word reimagined in the description it also had two local powerhouses in the roles so I had faith. Well that faith was paid off in spades as not only did they present a killer rendition of this incredible show but their reimagining only served to showcase how insanely talented these two are. But we'll get to that.

First and foremost, this is not a typo. The current show from Washington Ensemble Theatre is titled Teh Internet is Serious Business no matter how many times spell check tries to auto correct it for me. And with a title like that you might assume that this will just be a series of computer jokes like having incarnations of grumpy cat or sarcastic Willy Wonka Memes live trolling during the show and while all of that happens, what also happens is a fascinating look at a key part of internet history as well as a highly inventive show with some innovative staging.

Easily one of the most influential American writers of our time, Maya Angelou beyond being an amazing poet an author was also an outspoken civil rights activist and icon for our age. Book-It Repertory has done honor to this fine woman with their current production of her autobiography I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings .

I'll admit, Dear Readers, that when I saw the cast list for Village Theatre's current production of Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine's classic Into the Woods I was quite excited. It was (and is) quite a list of powerhouse talent and not the usual suspects for a Village show. But Sondheim's show, as much as it's done by every professional house, community theater, or school is by no means a bulletproof show and something egregious must have happened (or didn't happen) between then and now as the production I saw last night, while technically good with well sung songs lacked any kind of emotional resonance, heart, stakes, or even connection between the characters. And for a show like this, pretty singing is not enough.

It's a world we may not know much about, that of old school Chinatown, with their family associations and insider customs. Hell, Lauren Yee grew up in this world and even she seems to be cut off from it and her Father Larry Yee runs the Yee Family Association. But that's the point of her play King of the Yees currently playing at ACT. Bur before you think this is another one of those dreadful family therapy on stage shows (and you know how I loathe those, Dear Readers) the show, with its quick witty dialog goes to a delightful meta and eventually metaphysical place making it an absolute joy.

Let's set the Way Back Machine to the 2014/2015 season where the 5th Avenue Theatre touted the pre-Broadway tryout of a new musical comedy called Something Rotten! . Many musical theater geeks, myself included, were quite excited at the premise of this new tuner but then the theater Gods frowned upon us and smiled on them as they announced they would go right to Broadway. The show had a respectable run on Broadway despite getting a few tepid reviews from the New York critics but now it's back and the question remains, did we miss out and was the show worth the wait? Well I can say that the show is incredibly stupid and silly, filled with crass and bawdy humor and more musical theater references than you can shake a jazz hand at. But above all, it's FUN! If you're looking for some deep meaning then, by all means look elsewhere but if you want to laugh and don't mind repeated phallic jokes then this could be right up your alley.

Dear Readers, it's my unfortunate job, at this moment, to tell you of a show that you'll probably never get to see. Public Works Seattle's "The Odyssey" at the Seattle Rep kicked off last night and unfortunately for those who don't already have tickets, is only running through Sunday and, I believe, is already sold out.

Playwright Ayad Akhtar is one of the darlings of contemporary theater with his Pulitzer Prize winning play "Disgraced" as well as his acclaimed "The Invisible Hand" (my favorite of his) getting production after production around the world. He manages to take on seriously hot button topics and expose them with rich and engaging characters and his "The Who and the What", currently playing at ArtsWest and co-produced with Pratidhwani, is no exception. But his shows are by no means bulletproof. These characters need to be performed with engagement so they really connect with the issues and each other and as a result with the audience and that's where the ArtsWest production fails. They don't fail completely but enough that what could have been a searing social-political family drama comes across like a tepid sit-com.

Hello, Dear Readers. I recently got the chance to sit down with Seattle Theater staple David Edward Hughes to pick his brain on his career, his views on the state of local theater and, most importantly, his new theater company Sing Out Louise! Theatricals which will be announcing their inaugural season at their gala event on August 26th. An evening guaranteed to be filled to the brim with songs old, new and strange.

Well, Dear Readers, it's my favorite weekend of the year again. The weekend when Village Theatre gathers together all the best musical theater talent and presents readings of five up and coming new musicals. Yes, it's the 17th Annual Village Originals Festival of New Musicals or as I like to call it, Musical Theater Nerd Paradise. They presented us with some really outstanding works and while I can't review them, I can still tell you about the shows themselves.

A few years back I had the great fortune of seeing Simon Stephens' brilliant play, "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time" on Broadway. By intermission I was visibly shaken and by the end I was an emotional mess. But seeing it again last night for its current run at the Paramount Theatre, and having a little bit more familiarity and perspective on it I recognized one key thing. This show is easily not for everyone (an attitude I could not fathom when I first saw it). Personally, I was still affected but with its deliberate in your face staging and off-kilter central character I can see how it might be tough for some to connect to the piece while others will be blown away.

There are certain shows out there that, while being engaging and performed well, make you feel like you're missing something. Many of the plays of Tom Stoppard are that way for me in that, unless you've taken a master class on that particular subject matter, you may not get the full impact. The World Premiere of Moby Pomerance's "Alex & Aris", currently playing at ACT, falls into this category. Stirring performances and crisp dialog but unless you've taken the prerequisite class on Greek history you may fall behind.

Don't let this worry you but it's time to summon the Devil. Well that's the conceit of the current show at Cafe Nordo, "Sundown at the Devil's House". And while they may not summon up THE Devil they do summon up some delicious food, hilarious and touching antics and rockin' music making for a devilishly good time.

There are certain things that spring to mind when thinking of a Jane Austen story. Blistering on again, off again romances. Sweeping emotions. And of course, Colin Firth emerging from a lake. Well the new musical adaptation of Jane Austen's "Persuasion", currently playing at Taproot Theatre, may not have Colin Firth but the romances and emotions are there in spades.