Jay Irwin - Page 24

Hang with me here, Dear Readers, as there are only a few things I can tell you about Seattle Public Theater's current production of 'On Clover Road' lest I give away any surprises. In fact when I arrived to the theater the management asked me not to open the press packet they gave me to keep the secrets from me before I saw it. But I'll do my best. Let's see, I can say that the show is a one act with a run time of about 75 minutes. I can say this blistering thriller is written by the amazing Steven Dietz, author of 'Lonely Planet', 'Becky's New Car', 'Yankee Tavern' and 'Bloomsday' to name just a few. And most importantly I can say that you do not want to miss this one because if you do you'll be missing an incredibly thrilling ride with some of the finest performances I've seen all year.

Fantastic Z Theatre is closing out their season of gay comedy with the campy take on 50's sci-fi, Buddy Thomas and Kenneth Elliott's 'Devil Boys From Beyond'. And while this crazy romp certainly has the fun of their previous shows, at times the camp gets to be a bit much to the point of lacking focus and it's there where the play suffers.

It would be fairly difficult to not know what's going on with the political campaign these days especially all the asinine things a certain candidate keeps saying which have been fodder for every news cycle and comedian for months. So I guess it was just a matter of time before we get a bit of theater about him which we have with Theater Schmeater's world premiere play of Nick Edwards' "TRUMP The KING or POTUS DRUMPH: Another Sh**ty Adaptation of Alfred Jarry's Ubu Roi which May or May Not Resonate with a Contemporary American Audience". And while the show offered up a few laughs I mostly walked away with two major problems with the piece, one structural and one personal (which others may well encounter too) but we'll get to those.

I've never been a fan of performance art as it tends to lose its message amidst the blur of being odd. I mean I'll never forget the piece I saw where a woman gave birth to herself only to be followed by a group of men beating her with pillows. Having said that, Washington Ensemble Theatre's current production of Alice Birch's play "Revolt. She Said. Revolt Again." is not completely performance art but there were a few moments where the outrageousness of the performance got in the way of the message. But we'll get to that in a minute.

There's nothing wrong with a bit of mindless fun at the theater. Some of my happiest memories are sitting in a darkened theater laughing hysterically at Mormons or man eating plants or oversexed puppets. But while the fun in those instances may be base and mindless they were all still backed up by a well crafted and well put together show and that's where "The Toxic Avenger Musical", currently being offered from STAGEright, falls flat. Sure, it's goofy, in your face, over the top fun but appealing to our love of things a little bit gross and repeatedly calling someone a slut cannot replace good writing and pacing.

Even if you are familiar with the seldom produced country musical "Pump Boys and Dinettes" you're reaction to it probably isn't a wild one. In fact when I heard it was opening Village Theatre's season I thought, "Well, this will be cute" but my excitement didn't go much further beyond "cute". I'd seen the show once years ago and have had the cast album forever but it's not what you might call one of my "go to" shows. But with this new production out at Village Theatre that may all change. This is not the production from the 80's or really any production you're likely to have seen. With this level of talent and new orchestrations this could revive this old chestnut. But I'll get to that in a minute.

Let me start, Dear Readers, by saying I have never had an appreciation for boxing. I've just never understood why it's important to find out who can beat up someone else the best or, alternatively, who can take a beating the best. Having said that, the current production of Marco Ramirez's stirring play "The Royale" at ACT is not about boxing. Sure the backdrop of the story is boxing but moreover it's about the choice to take personal groundbreaking victories even in the shadow of danger to your friends and family. And that is a much more interesting fight than who can punch who the hardest.

There are some productions of Shakespeare which need all the flashy costumes and sets and transplanting to non-traditional times and places in order to make the show shine. And then there are productions like the outstanding production of "The Winter's Tale" currently being offered from Seattle Shakespeare Company where they've assembled such a talented cast and crew, innately fluent with the meaning of the show, who only require a few chairs and platforms and where the flash would just get in the way. It's those shows that remind us why we love theater when a group of actors can mesmerize us with their words.

Are there any taboo subjects for musicals anymore? I mean we've had shows about serial killers and assassins, drug addicts and prisoners, demons and super powered psychotic teens, and even oversexed puppets. So I don't know why anyone should be surprised by the new musical at ACT in conjunction with ArtsWest and Circle X Theatre Co., 'Bad Apples' which takes a look at one of our countries most disgraceful moments, the Abu Ghraib prison scandal. This in your face rock musical will definitely not be everyone's cup of tea and especially not for the kids. But if you can get past all the language, sex, and horrific images then what you're left with is a killer show that looks at how easily people in power can justify appalling acts.

If you're going to put your personal problems up on stage then, please, have a reason for telling them, some kind of journey or growth, and/or make them interesting. Unfortunately the issues put forth in Sheila Callaghan's play "Scab", currently playing as the inaugural Seattle production from Many Hats Theatre, have none of those elements. Instead, the main character rambles on and waxes poetic about how depressed and confused she is for two hours and ultimately learns nothing resulting in one of my biggest pet peeves in theater, someone else's therapy on stage.

Do you have an allergy or aversion to laughter? If so, my condolences and this show might not be for you. But if not then you should get yourself down to the Center House Theatre to catch Sound Theatre Company's current production of "One Man, Two Guvnors". Get ready for two and a half hours gut busting laughter and some of the best psychical comedy around.

Tennessee Williams' 'The Glass Menagerie' is a tough piece to pull off with all its emotion and meaning in tact but luckily new to town company The Williams Project is more than up to the task. Add into that some down home cookin' from the folks at Cafe Nordo and you've got yourself an evening to satisfy all your senses.

Well it may have been hotter than blazes this past weekend but I managed to spend the weekend inside at one of my favorite events of the year, The Village Theatre Village Originals Festival of New Musicals. They presented concert stagings of five musicals still in the works. It's a great opportunity for the authors to get to see their shows in front of an audience and for us to get a sneak peak at amazing musical theater to come. Now as they are still being workshopped I can't really review any of them but I can tell you what I saw.

Dear Readers, I have some really great news for you. The Williams Project, the incredible company that gave us the scintillating 'Orpheus Descending' last year, is back in Seattle and their latest offering, 'Blues for Mister Charlie' by James Baldwin just provides further proof that this is a top notch company of theater professionals at the top of their game.

I'm seriously starting to believe that Annie Baker thinks she gets paid for her plays based on how long they are. Furthermore she finds the banal conversations of random people fascinating. She must as once again we have a play from Ms. Baker, this time from ReAct Theatre with "The Aliens", with little to no story and jam packed with lengthy pauses.

It's tough when you see a play that has some really amazing moments but also sits there and screams, "My God I need an editor!" Such is the case with Stephen Adly Gurgis' "The Last Days of Judas Iscariot" currently performing at the Center Theatre from Sound Theatre Company. Not only could Gurgis do with trimming down this piece that tends to ramble but the folks at SCT could do with tightening their performances as well. But we'll get to that in a minute.

In our current political climate where candidates regularly hurl insults at each other on things such as penis size it's hard to remember that politics used to be about the candidate's stand on issues as well. So when did that change? When did we go from building up our own candidate in an ad to tearing down the other candidate with scandal, derision and fear? ACT might have the answer to that with their world premiere play "Daisy" that takes a look into the creation of one of the most infamous political ads and one of the first attack ads ever created.

When you're catching the touring production of a show you saw with it's original cast on Broadway, you hope that the folks on tour will be up to par at least somewhat. Such was my fear catching the touring company of the Tony Award winning Best Musical "A Gentleman's Guide to Love & Murder" currently playing at the 5th Avenue Theatre especially for one quite daunting role where the actor must play nine different people. Well, luckily the touring company was completely up to the task especially in that one role making for a hilarious and rousing evening that only did honor to my memory of the original.

Back in 2013 Andrew Lippa sent his latest work off to Broadway. "Big Fish", based on the movie of the same name, was sure to be a big hit. But for some reason this sweet little tuner failed to catch fire and closed in just under 4 months. Sadly with such a tepid reception no tour of the show was ever planned so the only way anyone would see this lovely show would be a regional production. Fortunately we currently have one of those for "Big Fish" at Taproot Theatre. Unfortunately, while there's plenty of talent in the show, one of the leads wasn't quite up to the task vocally and for a big, ballad laden musical that can be deadly.

There's nothing like a well done David Mamet play with its verbal sparring, clever dialog and constant exchange of power. But in order to be great the performances need to be so laser focused and on point you could cut glass with them. And while the current production from Theatre9/12 of "Speed the Plow" is on its way to that level, they still need a bit more settling into the roles in order to be fully committed.