Jim Munson - Page 10

Ah, just when we need it the most, here is the perfect tonic for our troubled times! The Marsh is bringing back comedic legend Geoff Hoyle in his latest work 'What Will I Be When You Grow Up?' Presented for one night only on Saturday, March 20th at 7:00PM PDT, this filmic version of Hoyle's show will be followed by a live post-performance Q&A with The Marsh Founder/Artistic Director Stephanie Weisman. Visit The www.themarsh.org for more information. Born and raised in England before coming to America in the 1970a??s, Hoyle has had a fascinating career and at this point has become a veritable Bay Area institution. After first coming to local attention as part of the Pickle Family Circus, he went on to perform with Cirque du Soleil, create the role of Zazu in the original Broadway company of The Lion King, act in plays at virtually all the major Bay Area theater companies, and create numerous solo shows, many of them at The Marsh. BroadwayWorld recently caught up with Hoyle by phone from his home in Inverness, California.

As the San Francisco Bay Area reaches six months of sheltering-in-place, the implications of the COVID-19 pandemic for mental health have become more prevalent than ever. In response, The Marsh is bringing back virtual LIVE performances (with post-event discussions) of Brian Copelanda??s captivating drama a?oeThe Waiting Period.a?? This deeply moving and surprisingly funny work that outlines his own struggles with depression and suicidal thought has been shown to literally save lives. The first performance will be Saturday, September 5th at 7:30pm PDT, with 5 subsequent performances on alternate Sundays at 5:00pm from September 13th through November 8th. All performances are offered free of charge. Please visit The Marsh website for additional information. As people around the world continue to navigate the potential health and financial impacts of the ongoing pandemic, Copeland knew that offering performances of a?oeThe Waiting Perioda?? would provide a safe space and support system for those in need during these trying times. BroadwayWorld had the pleasure of speaking with Copeland twice in recent months about the show and his long, fascinating career. In two decades as a successful standup comedian, he opened for musical icons such as Smokey Robinson and Aretha Franklin. He has also hosted popular, long-running talk shows on KGO radio and TV. He is perhaps best known as creator and star of numerous of solo shows, including a?oeNot a Genuine Black Mana?? which he developed at The Marsh and remains the longest-running solo show in Bay Area history.

In celebration of Womena??s Equality Day and the Centennial of the 19th Amendment, TheatreWorks Silicon Valley and The Womana??s Club of Palo Alto will present a virtual performance of excerpts and songs from the dynamic musical Perfect 36, with lyrics and book by Laura Harrington, music by Mel Marvin, and direction by Mac Pirkle. Set in 1920, Perfect 36 honors the indomitable spirit of the suffragettes as they battle to secure a 36-state majority to ratify the 19th Amendment. The online event will take place at 5:30pm PDT on Wednesday, August 26th. Giovanna Sardelli, TheatreWorksa?? Artistic Associate and Director of New Works, will host the event and engage in a conversation with Laura Harrington, the showa??s book writer and lyricist. A link to stream the show will be available at TheatreWorks.org for no charge, although donations are encouraged to support TheatreWorks and The Womana??s Club of Palo Alto. BroadwayWorld recently spoke with Giovanna Sardelli from her hometown of Las Vegas where shea??s been sheltering in place with family until she can safely return to her actual home base in New York City. In addition to her role at TheatreWorks, Sardelli is enjoying quite a remarkable career as a director at theaters across the U.S., and has built a track record of developing close working relationships with notable playwrights such as Pulitzer Prize finalist Rajiv Joseph and Olivier Award winner Matthew Lopez. Talking to Sardelli, ita??s clear why she is so constantly in demand. She is naturally engaging, inherently upbeat without being saccharine, and passionate about expanding the possibilities of theater. Her excitement about the chance to work closely with TheatreWorksa?? new Artistic Director Tim Bond to tackle new challenges is palpable.

Emmy and Sundance Film Festival Award-winning writer and director Jacob Kornbluth will chat with Stephanie Weisman, Founder/Artistic Director of the Marsh this Thursday August 20th at 7:30pm PDT as part of the ongoing a?oeStephaniea??s MarshStreama?? series. Kornbluth will discuss his entertaining and informative new animated series, a?oeTalk Boring to Me,a?? created in collaboration with sociopolitical comedian W. Kamau Bell, host and executive producer of CNNa??s Emmy-winning docu-series a?oeUnited Shades of America.a?? In light of current social issues facing the U.S., Bell and Kornbluth teamed up to make a?oeTalk Boring to Me,a?? which examines topics such as the gig economy, asylum and homelessness in short videos that capture Bella??s trademark humor intertwined with teachable moments. While Kornblutha??s recent work has focused mainly on film and video, he is perhaps equally well-known for his theater work, including collaborating on and directing three successful solo shows in San Francisco (The Moisture Seekers, Pumping Copy, Face by the Door). BroadwayWorld caught up with Kornbluth recently to talk about the genesis for the series and his history with The Marsh. In conversation, he is much like his new series a?" plainly smart and thoughtful, easily approachable, and prone to find cheeky humor in even the most serious of subjects. Speaking with him leaves you feeling better informed and somehow more hopeful, even as he himself would never claim to have all the answers.

We Stand Together, a one-night virtual benefit in support of justice for Black lives, will premiere at 7:00pm PDT on Thursday, July 23rd on both Youtube and Facebook. It will include appearances by Sheila E., Mahershala Ali, Misty Copeland, Ledisi and a host of other top artists, activists and community figures. While event is free of charge, donations are encouraged. Funds raised will benefit three organizations: Elevate Oakland, YR Media and Black Lives Matter Global Network [Arts & Culture]. For additional information, please visit www.elevateoakland.org/standtogether. BroadwayWorld spoke recently with Sheila E. while she was in the midst of final preparations for the event.

Tony Award winner Karen Ziemba and Tony Award nominee Patrick Page head the dynamic cast of TheatreWorks Silicon Valley's benefit online reading of Shakespeare in Vegas, a rollicking comedy by Suzanne Bradbeer. Presented by TheatreWorks' New Works from Home program in partnership with Vegas Theatre Company, this fizzy comedy features the unlikely pairing of a Vegas impresario with a dream and a despondent New York actor who join forces to bring the Bard of Avon to Sin City. Directed by Las Vegas native and TheatreWorks' Artistic Associate and Director of New Works Giovanna Sardelli, Shakespeare in Vegas will be offered via video streaming from Thursday, July 23rd at 6PM (PT) until Monday, July 27th at 6PM (PT). A link to stream the show will be available at TheatreWorks.org for no charge, although donations are encouraged to support the 2019 Regional Theatre Tony-winning TheatreWorks Silicon ValleyBroadwayWorld recently caught up with Karen Ziemba from her home in New York. Her remarkable career includes 11 Broadways shows, countless Off-Broadway and regional theater appearances, and a few national tours for good measure.

What better way to spend a summer evening than in the company of artistic genius in the form of iconic composer Ludwig van Beethoven as interpreted by renowned musical theater artist Hershey Felder? On Sunday July 12th at 5pm PDT, TheatreWorks Silicon Valley will present a livestream of the hit show Hershey Felder: Beethoven, an intimate and theatrical portrait of the legendary composer. Tickets to the livestream are available on TheatreWorks Silicon Valley's website (www.theatreworks.org) with proceeds to benefit TheatreWorks while the Tony-winning regional theatre remains dark due to the Covid pandemic. Inspired by an account of a Viennese doctor who spent his boyhood by the Beethoven's side, this enchanting musical features masterful performances of some of the composer's greatest works, from a?oeMoonlight Sonataa?? to the a?oeNinth Symphonya?? and the a?oeEmperor Concerto.a?? The enormously popular show's 2017 World Premiere still holds TheatreWorks Silicon Valley's box office record to date. BroadwayWorld recently had the pleasure of speaking with Felder from his home in Florence, Italy where he will be performing the livestream. As cicadas whirred in the background (really!), we had a wide-ranging discussion about Beethoven, Felder's relationship with TheatreWorks, the pandemic and the wonders of Florence. In conversation, Felder is an engaging amalgam of seemingly contradictory qualities, at once erudite and folksy, brainy and empathetic, quick with an arcane cultural factoid or a self-deprecating remark, equally expressive of joy and sorrow.

It is time for Robert Kelley to take a richly-deserved curtain call. June 30th will be his last day as Artistic Director of TheatreWorks Silicon Valley after a mind-blowing 50 years in that role. It is not hyperbole to state there isn't another individual who has had a more profound influence on the Bay Area theatre landscape. Kelley founded TheatreWorks as a scrappy, community theater company in April, 1970 and guided its transformation over the years into a Tony-winning powerhouse and nationally-recognized incubator of new works. BroadwayWorld had the pleasure of speaking with Kelley earlier this spring to discuss his half-century history with TheatreWorks.

More than 30 Bay Area theatres are joining forces to present a reading on Juneteenth, encouraging donations to support a bold Go Fund Me Campaign that aims to fundraise one million dollars for Black theatre projects in America. Spearheaded by PlayGround, Lorraine Hansberry Theatre, and Planet Earth Arts, these Bay Area theatres (including TheatreWorks Silicon Valley, Berkeley Rep, A.C.T, Cal Shakes, and many more) are co-presenting a livestreamed Zoom reading of Vincent Terrell Durham's Polar Bears, Black Boys & Prairie Fringed Orchids at 7pm PT on June 19 as part of the Juneteenth Theatre Justice Project, a national theatre movement to produce this reading of Durham's play to commemorate anniversary of the freeing of enslaved Black people. BroadwayWorld spoke with Aldo Billingslea, the longstanding pillar of the Bay Area theatre community who is producing the livestream and also leads the Juneteenth Theatre Justice Project. Billingslea is well-loved throughout the Bay Area as a man of many talents, including actor, professor, producer, collaborator and mentor.

PlayGround, San Francisco's renowned theatre development lab, is currently in the midst of hosting the nation's largest fully digital new play festival, PlayGround Zoom Fest. Already running and continuing through June 14, 2020, the ambitious five-week online event gathers leading voices in American Theatre including Lauren Yee, Jonathan Spector, Aaron Loeb, Geetha Reddy, Kent Nicholson, acclaimed actors, theatre journalists, designers, and more from across the country, to present and discuss a panoply of new works and celebrate PlayGround's 25th anniversary. BroadwayWorld caught up this week with PlayGround's Artistic Director Jim Kleinmann and the much-in-demand playwright Lauren Yee in separate phone conversations. Yee is just coming off a huge success with the New York run of her newest play, Cambodian Rock Band. She participated in PlayGround's Writers Pool as a young playwright and will be part of the festival's Zoom Town Hall panel on June 8th.

TheatreWorks Silicon Valley has the perfect Mother's Day entertainment for you! On Sunday May 10th at 5pm PDT, they will band together with a number of theaters across the country to present a livestream of the hit show 'Hershey Felder as Irving Berlin,' a tribute to America's greatest songwriter. Tickets to the livestream are available on TheatreWorks Silicon Valley's website (www.theatreworks.org) with proceeds to benefit TheatreWorks while the Tony-winning regional theatre remains dark due to COVID-19. BroadwayWorld recently caught up with TheatreWorks Artistic Director Robert Kelley to chat about the company's ongoing relationship with Felder, and also to check in on how they've been managing to juggle so many unknowns in planning their 2020-21 season. Kelley remains steadfastly upbeat and enthused about future possibilities even as he winds down his astounding 50-year tenure as Artistic Director under decidedly different circumstances than he had originally envisioned.

The Marsh San Francisco has long been known as the city's breeding ground for new performance. Like theater companies the world over, The Marsh is also having to invent new ways of engaging with audiences while in-person performances are suspended due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Their creative solution is called MarshStream, which offers a mind-boggling variety of programming seven days a week, including game nights, live performance readings, performance development classes, and archived performance streams. Content is being offered via Zoom, YouTube, Instagram, Spotify, Google Podcasts and iTunes. For weekly event schedules and additional information, visit www.themarsh.org. BroadwayWorld recently caught up with Stephanie Weisman, The Marsh's Founder/Artistic Director, to learn more about MarshStream and check in on how she and The Marsh are weathering the pandemic.

Theater companies all over the world are rising to the challenge of staying connected to their audiences and continuing to serve them while in-person performances are suspended for an indefinite period. San Franciso's storied Magic Theatre has come up with a creative solution by instituting 'Far Apart Art,' a podcast series composed of brief, daily audio journals from a host of Magic's family of playwrights. BroadwayWorld recently spoke with Loretta Greco, Magic's Artistic Director, about 'Far Apart Art' and how she and Magic are weathering the pandemic.

Good news for musical theater lovers! TheatreWorks Silicon Valley's recent, acclaimed production of Paul Gordon's Pride and Prejudice will now be available to stream. Presented by Streaming Musicals, Pride and Prejudice will receive a a?oevirtual opening nighta?? on Friday, April 10 at 3:30pm PT/ 6:30pm ET, with an encore presentation at 7:00pm PT/10:00pm ET. Tony Award winner Beth Leavel (The Drowsy Chaperone, The Prom) and Julie James, Program Director/ Curator of SiriusXM's a?oeOn Broadwaya?? channel, will host the a?oevirtual opening night,a?? which will include an intermission discussion with the creative team members including TheatreWorks Silicon Valley's Founding Artistic Director Robert Kelley, who directed the new romantic musical comedy. Streaming during the April 10 a?oevirtual opening nighta?? will be free. Pride and Prejudice will then be available to stream on StreamingMusicals.com for a minimal fee. BroadwayWorld recently caught up with Robert Kelley to learn more about his production of Pride and Prejudice and also to touch base with him on how TheatreWorks was weathering the current health and economic crisis.

It's a sad scenario that has been playing out in theaters all over the world for the past several weeks. How to reach the heart-breaking decision to cancel a show, knowing that you're about to put a team of people out of work and deprive your audience of some much-needed solace at this critical time? BroadwayWorld spoke with Robert Kelley, Artistic Director of the Tony-winning TheatreWorks Silicon Valley on March 13th, the morning after the company had decided to postpone their much-anticipated production of RAGTIME until Spring 2021 and prematurely end the run of THEY PROMISED HER THE MOON. The good news, at least for now, is that TheatreWorks is still moving ahead with its final play of the season, Lauren Gunderson's THE BOOK OF WILL, set to open in early June. Kelley describes it as a love letter to the theater.

Opening night of San Francisco Ballet's triumphant production of George Balanchine's a?oeA Midsummer Night's Dreama?? was both a thrilling and heartbreaking occasion. Thrilling because SFB gave a masterful performance of this Balanchine classic that has gone missing from its repertoire for far too long. Heartbreaking because mere moments after the final curtain came down, a notice was issued that all subsequent performances of a?oeMidsummer'sa?? scheduled run had been cancelled due the Mayor's efforts to prevent the spread of the corona virus. Of course, health concerns must take precedence, but it was still incredibly sad to think that others would not be able to experience this glorious production, at least for the time being. I also couldn't help feeling for the dancers and artistic staff who had clearly poured their hearts and souls into this huge endeavor. In the meantime, though, let's not let current events dim the glowing memories of opening night.

Sherry Glaser is bringing her one-woman a?oeOh My Goddess!  A Comedy of Biblical Proportionsa?? to The Marsh Berkeley for a 6-week run. To say she has had an unorthodox career would be an understatement. After spending her formative years in the early 80's San Diego improv scene alongside other young upstarts like Whoopi Goldberg and Kathy Najimy, she shot to prominence with a?oeFamily Secretsa?? which remains the longest-running female solo show in Off-Broadway history. Shortly thereafter, tragedy struck with the disappearance of her husband and creative partner. Stunned by that turn of events, Glaser focused on raising her two daughters while also developing new works and playing smaller venues close to her northern California home. She is now back, feisty and funny and political as ever.

There are some plays, even enjoyable ones, that you forget almost instantly after seeing them. There are others you find yourself thinking of for days afterwards, still mulling them over, savoring their certain moments from them, revisiting their ambiguities and unlocking their mysteries. a?oeDon't Eat the Mangosa?? by Ricardo Pérez González is just that kind of play. In its gorgeous world premiere production at the Magic Theatre, a?oeMangosa?? slowly and subtly grabs hold of you, and has you constantly rethinking your assumptions about the characters and even the nature of the play itself. It is definitely a comedy, but it is also a kitchen sink drama, complete with an actual kitchen sink upstage center. It is grounded in the mundane details of family life, yet there are also occasional flights of poetry and imagery that are more akin to magic realism. It is sometimes tender and lyrical, yet there are startling flashes of darkness and violence as well. Family secrets are unearthed that make you re-evaluate relationships you thought you already knew, but it's never about the surprise factor of those secrets so much as it is about how the characters choose to act on their newfound knowledge. In the end, it's about transcending the effects of an ugly legacy that's been passed from one generation to the next.

Sometimes it IS enough just to be entertained, ya know? I don't care how socio-politically engaged you are, I think everyone needs at least an occasional break from all the angst and mishegas out there, and that's exactly what Foothill Music Theatre provides with its antic musical comedy 'The Mystery of Edwin Drood.' With book, music and lyrics by Rupert Holmes (yes, he of 'The Pina Colada Song' infamy. Apologies for implanting that deathless ear worm in your head for the rest of the day!), 'Drood' is truly sui generis. Based on an unfinished Charles Dickens novel of the same name, the show reimagines it as performed by a veteran troupe of British Music Hall performers circa 1895. When they reach the point in the story where Dickens left off, the audience is asked to vote on how it ends - who the murderer and secret detective are and - since this is a musical comedy a?' the pair they'd most like to see end up as lovers. The cast then plays out the concluding scenes and songs accordingly. Apparently, there are close to a mind-bogglingly thousand possible combinations, which just adds to the fun and unpredictability of the whole endeavor.

Judith C. is an inveterate health care provider, even if her methods of practice have changed dramatically after being diagnosed several years ago with Multiple Myeloma, an incurable blood cancer. Working as a PT Clinical Specialist in Chronic Pain, Judith never imagined being on the other side of the provider-patient relationship. She now shares her journey in the hilarious and heartbreaking solo show a?oeWelcome to the Cancer Caféa?? at The Marsh Berkeley. Her goal is to share the profound lessons she has learned along the way to educate and hopefully bring some healing to others. Proceeds from each performance will be donated to a local cancer organization chosen by Judith.