Jay Irwin - Page 48

Look out! The aliens are coming! … or the monsters … or the mysterious virus … or the woodchucks? Well which is it? That's one of the questions Wing-It productions is attempting to answer with their latest improv show "Project: B-Movie". And while it seemed to be a bit of an off night for the gifted performers the night I attended, there were still some hilarious touches, innovative staging and lots of laughs.

Last night the incredible talent from Contemporary Classics stepped up to the mic once more for the 11th installment of their wildly popular "New Voices" series, spotlighting new works from composers around the country. Some local composers and some abroad, some new-ish pieces and some brand spankin' new for this show, Host Brandon Ivie and Music director R.J. Tancioco gathered together some of the most obscenely talented performers in the area to blow the doors off ACT Theatre and there was not a door standing when they were done.

There's really nothing like the first time you see one of your favorite shows. The first time I saw "Hairspray" I leapt to my feet on the final note. The first time I saw "West Side Story" I was on the edge of my seat for these tragic lovers. And the first time I saw "Les Miserables" I wept through the entire thing. There really is nothing like the first time. And the 5th Avenue's current touring production of "Les Miserables" is really nothing like my first time. With its complete lack of subtlety and heart, the only thing it has going for it is the amazing voices singing these wonderful songs.

Right off the bat let's just get out there what Sarah Ruhl's "In the Next Room, or the Vibrator Play" is about. It's in the title for Pete's sake. Yes, the show is about vibrators and their use in the 1880's. Yes, THOSE kinds of devices and activities that usually are not discussed in polite society. So I'll try and be as delicate as I can for my more sensitive readers. But beyond the obvious, the show deals with a small group of people as they come to grips with … er … I mean … get in touch with their … um … DAMN, this is harder than I … uh … well, they discover more about their true feelings. Yes the show is slightly naughty but in a delightful way with depth and humor and ACT's production is presented with beauty and skill.

Right from the first few notes of the overture, whether you're familiar with the show or not, a musical theater lover's ears will register the familiar lilt of a Gershwin melody reminiscent of "Rhapsody in Blue" and cause you to settle in your seat a little more with a contended sigh. At least that's what happened to this musical theater lover as he ventured just a little outside his normal realm and into the world of opera to catch Seattle Opera's breathtaking production of "Porgy and Bess".

If there's one thing that irritates me more than anything else it's someone else's therapy on stage. If it's wrapped up in an engaging story then I'm willing to overlook a lot but when it's just an author working out their issues for all to see, then don't waste my time. And while Annex Theatre's current show "The Strange Misadventures of Patty, Patty's Dad, Patty's Friend Jen, and a Whole Bunch of Other People" isn't completely camped out on the psychologists couch and has some really wonderful performances and moments, at times it felt a little forced and self indulgent.

Do you remember those Choose Your Own Adventure books like "The Cave of Time" from when you were a kid? The kind that would give you choices on how the story would continue like, "If you continue toward the ranch, turn to page 8. If you go back into the cave, turn to page 10." Well, Theater Schmeater's current production of "Adventures in Mating" by Joseph Scrimshaw has taken that formula and amped it up into a hilarious and rollicking evening where the audience decides the fate of two lonely people on a blind date.

Take a much beloved Disney hit animated musical written by the incomparable Alan Menken, Howard Ashman and Tim Rice and turn it into a big flashy Broadway musical directed by recent Tony award winner Casey Nicholaw fresh off 'The Book of Mormon'. Sounds like a no brainer, right? What can go wrong? Well, plenty as is evidenced by the 5th Avenue Theatre's most recent pre-Broadway tryout, 'Aladdin' which more resembles a Disney park show than a legit stage musical.

One of Seattle's younger theater companies is really starting to show its maturity. At only two years old STAGEright Theatre has shown it can consistently put on quirky, engaging and underdone pieces, with a minimal production budget and do them well. And their latest endeavor, "Melancholy Play" by Sarah Ruhl, is no exception.

Look out! The aliens are coming! … or the monsters … or the mysterious virus … or the woodchucks? Well which is it? That's one of the questions Wing-It productions is attempting to answer with their latest improv show "Project: B-Movie". And while it seemed to be a bit of an off night for the gifted performers the night I attended, there were still some hilarious touches, innovative staging and lots of laughs.

There are very few new and original stories in the world today. Most things are just a rehash or new take on the familiar formula. Boy meets girl and complications arise. This is the standard romantic comedy premise that's been around since Tarzan met Jane or Tracy met Hepburn. Such is the case with the culture clash romantic comedy from Yussef El Guindi, "Pilgrims Musa and Sheri in the New World" currently at Seattle's ACT. With crisp and engaging dialog, El Guindi has taken an interesting new spin on the same old formula.

In this world that we call theater, there are three main things devotees look for. First, you need a good script. Well, as anyone familiar with the musical "Little Shop of Horrors" by Howard Ashman and Alan Menken knows, this show has one of the best scripts around. Plus you want a good cast and the performers at the Boxcar have shown they are beyond simply good. And finally you want a director that can take that script and those performers and guide and stage them in such a way that it makes the whole thing come alive and if they can do that in a way that no one has done before and still stay true to the piece, then all the better. So with those elements you at least want one of them. If you have two, you're in for a good night. But when you have all three, as is the case with Boxcar's production, all you can do is hold on and brace yourself for an experience that will stay with you for years to come.

It's very hard to stay objective when a favorite story of yours is taken to a new medium and not used to its fullest potential. Unfortunately, dear readers, such was the case of my latest journey outside of Seattle to see some things that the rest of the country has to offer theatrically. But I'll try to remain objective while discussing American Conservatory Theater's production of "Tales of the City: A New Musical" that I witnessed in San Francisco.

I love a good drag show. There, I've said it. When all the elements of good music, glitzy costumes and performers with well thought out characters and storylines hit the stage, you cannot ask for a better evening. This is why bad drag shows are all the more painful to me. Unfortunately my attendance at the Season Finale of "The All-New Anita Goodman Experience" fell more into the latter category.

In these ever changing days of what it is to be a family, we are seeing more and more portrayals in entertainment of same sex couples raising children. Such is the case with the latest endeavor from fledgling theater company Arouet with Christi Stewart-Brown's "The Gene Pool". And while the play itself doesn't really have anything groundbreaking or even new to say about families, same sex or otherwise, the production here infuses it with an engaging pace and contains some truly natural and honest performances.

Guns, blood, torture and all the f-bombs you'd expect from a Quentin Tarantino film. But this heist isn't on screen; it's on the stages of Theater Schmeater as they present the Seattle premiere of Erika Anne Soerensen's gender bending parody of Tarantino's first film with "Reservoir Dolls". Beyond being an interesting take on juxtaposed gender roles, it's also an opportunity to see some local Seattle actresses sink their teeth into some iconic male roles and inhabit themselves with these violent characters.

There are some shows that are done to death, nevertheless we love them anyway. This is probably why they are done to death. Frank Loesser's "Guys and Dolls" is definitely one of those shows. I've seen it several times (including one production I consider the quintessential one, but we'll get to that in a minute) but I always find something to love. Well, the 5th Avenue has dusted off the old girl and while it was one of the most technically proficient productions I've seen, it seemed to lack some of the heart and sass it demands.

It's not often that a touring show comes to town that surprises me, especially a Disney one. So when "Mary Poppins" popped up on the marquee I thought, "Well, this will be cute," but I didn't hold out for more than that. I mean I love the movie but what more can they do with that? Who could have guessed that I would be in for a truly magical and exhilarating ride that left me with tears streaming down my face and perma-grin for the ride home?

I'm not always the biggest fan of transplanting established shows to another time or place. "Hamlet" doesn't need to be set in space and "Our Town" without that old time Grover's Corners feel would just be wrong. And don't even get me started on the thought of moving "Oklahoma". But sometimes, when it's well thought out and well executed, it works. Such is the case for the modern reimagining of Andrew Lloyd Webber's rock opera, "Jesus Christ Superstar" currently at Village Theatre. But while I appreciated the concept and approach, some of the cast left me wanting.

Wing-It Productions is presenting their latest bit of improvised hilarity with "Quiz Show". And the performers may not know the answers to the questions, but they certainly know how to keep the audience laughing.