Roy Berko - Page 34

C. Denby Swanson's 'The Norwegians,' now on stage at Dobama Theatre, centers on Tor and Gus, two Minnesota Norwegians, who are hit men who offer to 'whack' individuals who have 'done others wrong.' Olive, a former Texan, has been mistreated by her boyfriend. She meets Betty, who has hired Tor and Gus in the past to rid her of an ex- boyfriend. She is out to 'do in' another guy, but, for reasons which roll out later in the story, she doesn't hire Tor and Gus to do the job. Betty shares the Norwegian Mafia's information with Olive, who hires them, and the tale is off and running.

Families can be interesting to observe. Take for example, the family who is the subject of Sean Grennan's 'Making God Laugh,' the 125th main stage production of Actors' Summit.

Truth, well maybe the truth, can be stranger than fiction. According to the show, itself, the musical '[title of show],' yes, that's the title of the show, which is now appearing on stage at Beck Center's Studio Theater, was conceived when one of the script's authors received an announcement about a musical festival. The New York Musical Festival, to be exact. The NYMF was in search of new musical scripts.

'LES MISERABLES' is a classic historical novel by Victor Hugo. It is probably one of the most noted literary pieces of the 19th century. 'LES MISERABLES,' Alain Boublil and Jean-Marc Natel's musical adaptation of the novel has become an epic of the musical theatre stage.

The State Theatre in PlayhouseSquare is rocking. Rocking with sounds of the likes of Diana Ross, The Supremes, The Jackson Five, Smokey Robinson, Marvin Gaye and Stevie Wonder. Rocking with a full orchestra, a visually stimulating electronically enhanced production, and the story of Berry Gordy.

Dance Cleveland opened its 59th season in spectacular style with a performance of the Aspen Santa Fe Ballet at E. J. Thomas Hall, on the University of Akron Campus. The company, which was founded in 1996, has two official schools, one in Aspen, one in Santa Fe, and a year-round Mexican outreach program.

'The Merry Wives of Windsor,' a version of which is now on stage at Great Lakes Theatre, is considered by many literary critics to be one of Shakespeare's 'lesser' plays. Not bad, just not up to the dramatic level of the great writer, though its farcical nature is often praised.

Clyde Simon, Artistic Director of convergence continuum, has a knack for finding off-beat, provocative plays that incite discussion and strong reactions from the theatre's loyal following. That group, and probably many more, will find themselves entranced by Martin McDonagh's black comedy, 'The Pillowman.'

The Westons of Pawhuska, Oklahoma, in Tracy Letts' Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award winning, AUGUST: OSAGE COUNTY, gives new meaning to the phrase dysfunctional family.

Lillian Hellman, author of 'The Little Foxes,' which is now in production at the Cleveland Playhouse, was a rebel with many causes. An independent woman in an era before the women's rights and liberation movements, she had strong political and societal opinions. Because of her liberal affiliations she was blacklisted by the House Un-American Activities Committee. She was 'a smoker, a drinker, a lover, and a fighter, who took stands against and placed a negative spotlight on greed, ambition and misguided principles.' She was an advocate for the downtrodden. These principles are at the foundation of 'The Little Foxes.'

When the tour of 'So You Think You Can Dance' comes to the Connor Palace Theatre in Cleveland on October 20, it will expose the local community to the top ten contestants and some of the other dancers who got the attention of the judges.

Cormac McCarthy, the author of 'The Sunset Limited,' which is now on stage at none too fragile theatre, probes, in his script, the topics: Why would someone want to commit suicide? Why does one person turn to religion when angst-filled, while another rejects the concept of a deity? Is traditional education a negative or positive influence in dealing with problems? What is the meaning of life? Can a person change from killer to saint? It probes the decisions to end one's life, as well as human suffering.

Do you like close-harmonic singing? Are you harking back to experience the 'good' old days? Do you like to escape from the stressful world and just 'yak' at comedy shticks and revel in the ridiculous? Then the place for you to be is Beck Center where Cleveland's multi-award winning choreographer, Martin Cespedes, has added 'creative director' to his resume.

There's a new couple in town. The musical Theatre Project and Kent State's Musical Theatre program are joining forces to do a staged reading/sing-through of the musical 'Babes in Arms.'

Dobama may be entering its 55th year (I was present the moment founding artistic director Don Bianchi declared its existence), but it is actually in its first season. What? Late last season, the Dobama board voted to change the status of venue to that of a full professional theatre. This makes Dobama, like Great Lakes Theatre and Cleveland Play House, a stage where all actors are paid by equity standards and the production staff are members of the appropriate staging unions.

Theatre is representative of the era from which it comes. Seeing a play that reflects a specific time period can reveal the cultural attitudes of the people and society of that period.