Shari Barrett - Page 14

Energetic, urban and contemporary, Cirque du Soleil's VOLTA, written and directed by Bastien Alexandre, with Jean Guibert as the director of creation, is a captivating voyage of discovery that showcases never-before-seen under the Big Top acrobatics in a visually striking world. Driven by a stirring melodic score and inspired in part by the adventurous spirit that fuels the culture of street sports, VOLTA is a story of transformation, being true to oneself, fulfilling one's true potential, and recognizing one's own power to make it possible. The production is perhaps the most acrobatic show ever staged by Cirque du Soleil, with acts from around the world offering amazing displays of roller skating, balance, trampoline leaps through windows to rooftop, Double Dutch rope skipping, tumbling, rings, and BMX bicycle flips that challenge gravity.

The playwright nervously awaiting the make-or-break review on opening night has been the setting of many stage and movie scenes. But in this play, McNally runs with the idea, taking no prisoners across two acts boasting almost as many Broadway name-drops as punch lines, all delivered with perfect comic timing by a cast of talented actors who know how important it is to both give and take with each other as the wide range of human emotions overcomes the a?oestarsa?? who hope and pray this play will revive their struggling careers. And all the while, the laughs abound non-stop.

Here is your first look at onstage photos from THE GIVER, adapted for the stage by Eric Coble, based on the Newberry Award-winning book by Lois Lowry, directed by Harold Dershimer for Kentwood Players at the Westchester Playhouse. Featured is Jack Heath as Jonas for performances on Jan 17-18-19, Jan 31-Feb1-Feb 2, Feb 21-Feb 22. On alternating weekends, Elliott Plunkett portrays Jonas. Photos by Gloria Plunkett

Directed by Hollace Starr, an associate professor of theatre at Pepperdine University, a designated Linklater Voice teacher, and a lifetime member of the Actors Studio, with an innate understanding of feminine emotional turmoil, and John Perrin Flynn's keen eye for multimedia effects, EARTHQUAKES IN LONDON tackles our chronic inability to act in the interest of our future generations. At the center are three very different sisters who are left to raise and care for one another after their mother dies and their father abandons them. Now adults, the sisters find themselves navigating a 21st century London that is at the precipice of both an existential and an all-too-real environmental crisis.

With the topic of illegal immigration so prevalent in today's news, now is the perfect time to take a very personal look at the trials and tribulations of those who immigrated, both legally and illegally, to our country in THE NEW COLOSSUS, a new play co-written by The Actors' Gang ensemble and its Artistic Director Tim Robbins, who also directs the production. In it, twelve of the acting troupe's members tell their ancestors' stories, reflecting their great diversity, struggles and journeys from oppression to freedom, a real personal testament celebrating the courage and great character of the refugees who came to this country throughout the last 200 years.

The five-time Tony Award-nominated hit classic has returned to its roots on Hollywood Blvd. with an immersive theatrical and dining experience at a specially built performance venue and nightlife destination named after the venue at the center of the show, The Bourbon Room. And with 6 years on Broadway and over 2,350 performances, 5 Tony nominations, 20 productions worldwide and 30 hit songs from the 80s, ROCK OF AGES is the best-reviewed, most-nominated, hair band musical of all time and not to be missed this time around as the cast and creative team are filled with Tony Nominees, Rock of Ages Alums, Broadway talent and fresh faces who generate enough energy to light up the city!

Arthur Miller's electrifying family drama ALL MY SONS won the New York Drama Critics Circle Award for Best New Play and Miller his first Pulitzer Prize when it first opened in 1947, and went on to be a recipient of numerous Tony Awards. Inspired by a story from an Ohio Newspaper on an aircraft factory's troubled contracts during WWII, the tale remains as timely as it is timeless about pointing your finger at someone else rather than soil your own reputation by taking responsibility for your own actions, a personality trait all too evident in today's society.

Playwright Robert Harling based the STEEL MAGNOLIAS story on his experience with the death of his diabetic sister. As her best friend and closest sibling, Harling found it difficult to cope with losing her, and his friends advised him to write about his feelings as a coping method. What began as a short story then evolved into a full-length play due to the complexity of the relationships and emotions that existed among the female characters who are a?oeas delicate as magnolias but as tough as steela?? who utilize humor and lighthearted conversations to cope with the seriousness of life's underlying situations.

BLIND TALENT is a heartfelt dramedy about coming to grips with challenging conformity and social hierarchy to find the beauty in the struggle to achieve your dreams. The story centers on Adrian (Kenny Lee), an actor on the cusp of stardom who has been an employee for the least-reputable studio in Hollywood. Now at the end of a five-year player contract, his recent diagnosis of macular degeneration threatens to abruptly end his budding career. In an attempt to keep his job, Adrian turns to his Aunt Kay (Sheila Walker), a former manager in her own right, and the two work out a day-to-day routine and system to maintain normal appearances. But as Adrian begins to lose more and more of his sight, he must be honest with those around him, and ultimately, himself, proving there is no blind lucka?? only blind talent.

Rogue Machine is presenting the world premiere of DISPOSABLE NECESSITIES, written by Neil McGowan and directed by Guillermo Cienfuegos, at the Electric Lodge in Venice through February 23. The play's title refers to the physical body we all live with, a cage of meat and bones that signals the end of life as we know it when it breaks down and stops functioning. This new comedic fantasy examines what life might be like in Maryland in the year 2095 when those wealthy enough have the ability to live forever exactly as they choose to be, creating a future where our physical bodies have become disposable, something to be tossed aside and replaced with another model which is better functioning. But what does that mean to our personal relationships when anyone can completely change their physical appearance on a whim?

Attendees will enter a nightclub in 1963 Germany just under the shadow of the Berlin Wall where everyone is a spy and no one can be trusted. During the evening, CRIMSON CABARET guests will engage with secret agents and be slipped notes with assigned missions to complete throughout the evening. All guests are required to dress in 1960s appropriate cocktail party attire and assume a character of their choosing, then bring that character into the space and be ready to do what is asked of you and find the right person who can lead you in the direction where your skills are required during this multi-sensory, immersive theatrical experience. But you see, since everyone is dressed appropriately, how can you possibly know who to trust and who is really playing for the wrong team on this side of the wall?

The Troubies continues its 25th Silver anniversary season (bringing Los Angeles audiences a quarter century of mayhem!), with their 18th annual holiday offering of A CHRISTMAS CAROLE KING adapted & directed by Matt Walker with musical direction by Derrick Finely, in which the soulful sounds of songstress Carole King are combined with one of the most enduring stories of our time, and the result is 'So Far Away' from what you'd expect! The nine cast members who play a multitude of characters and change costumes more frequently than seems humanly possible, are (in alphabetical order): Rick Batalla, Chelle Denton, Beth Kennedy, Janelle Lillian, Luis a?oeL.T.a?? Martinez, Mike Sulprizio, Cloie Wyatt Taylor, Matt Walker and David C. Wright. And you could not ask for a more talented, off-the-wall group of entertainers to bring this holiday laugh fest back every December to appreciative local audiences!

Taking the film and its music to the next level, The Wallis and For The Record are presenting a holiday season encore of last year's LOVE, ACTUALLY LIVE world premiere in the Bram Stoker Theater at the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts in Beverly Hills through December 29. The multimedia presentation, adapted and directed by Anderson Davis with musical supervision by Jesse Vargas, turns the theater into a giant, immersive, cinema in a three-dimensional world where the film and live action seamlessly intertwine throughout the London setting. Each scene is a festival of excellent characterizations, extraordinary lighting effects and costumes, brilliant and fast-paced direction and choreography, and the joy of great music that perfectly expresses the mood and themes of the movie and jukebox musical LOVE ACTUALLY LIVE. No doubt this suburb holiday musical will be making its return to The Wallis each December!

In the fifth incarnation of POP's trademark production, a new batch of hand-crafted, vegan, organically-sourced hipsters take the stage for what is quickly becoming an annual Los Angeles holiday tradition. In it, Puccini's 19th Century Parisian garret becomes a present-day Highland Park loft apartment in the hills between downtown Los Angeles and Pasadena during a particularly cold SoCal winter. LA's housing crisis comes to life on stage as the artist, poet, philosopher, musician, and seamstress become a graphic designer, screenplay writer, English major, indie-rocker, and fashion designer dealing with the timeless issues of life, love, jealousy, illness, and overdue bills.

From Coco Chanel's 1926 Ford dress, Audrey's Breakfast at Tiffany's, Lady Di's revenge dress to Liz Hurley's jaw dropping, safety-pinned Versace, the little black dress' silhouette has changed over the years. And given how often and in so many difference circumstances a LITTLE BLACK DRESS can be worn, most likely there are many important life-changing moments during which the memory of wearing it at that time opened up the capacity for limitless personal reinvention. No doubt every woman, and probably a few men, have a little black dress in their closet just waiting for the next moment when the right wrap, jacket or string of white pearls to adorn it will create another life-long remembrance. That LBD is the inspiration behind LITTLE BLACK DRESS The Musical, a world premiere production at the Kirk Douglas Theatre in Culver City through December 15.

We all know how unintentionally funny nuns can be as they go about their daily lessons, ruler in hand, trying to get children to behave or do their lessons. Or perhaps not. But just imagine if you could be a fly on the wall in the early morning hours, listening in as they get together over coffee or while baking bread in their small kitchen and blissfully make fun of not only their students but each other, as well as their local Bishop who holds all the money needed to keep their beloved St. Cyril's convent and school from closing down. They smoke and swear while complaining about being old, jaded and stupid, but realize that just like their building and the entire neighborhood around them, we're just a?oeall dirt poor.a?? And incredibly funny!

'Tis the season for the popular Christmas-themed ballet THE NUTCRACKER to fill stages around the world offering families the chance to experience the emotionally engaging story of Clara and the dreamlike journey she takes to the Land of Sweets with the Nutcracker as her guide. During the December 7 and 8 weekend, The Soraya's resident dance company, Aspen Santa Fe Ballet, perhaps best known for edgy programs featuring the most notable contemporary choreography, kicked off the troupe's fifth Soraya season at Cal State Northridge with something different: the most traditional of story ballets. With Tchaikovsky's original music, this storybook production, choreographed by ASFB executive director Jean-Phillippe Malaty and artistic director Tom Mossbrucker, set THE NUTCRACKER in the Victorian era, beginning with the resplendent holiday party and concluding with the fantastical scenes in the second act centered around a bright and colorful carousel.

A fan of the romantic but put-upon-by-tradition women in Jane Austen novels and the witty men created by Oscar Wilde, Kathryn Farren has successfully woven those elements together in Victorian-era England with a modern perspective on female equality, the importance of family, standing in one's own truth, and the power of love to overcome fear and hatred in her World Premiere play EMBRIDGE at Little Fish Theatre in San Pedro.

The dynamic story shared through comedy skits and songs deals with the journeys many women face from admiring their mother's chests (a?oeOne day I'll be like Mommy or Barbie!a??), to training bras and cup sizes, dating while dealing with wandering eyes (a?oeCleavage'), to pumping at work and breastfeeding in public (a?oeDon't Blame Me, My Baby is Hungrya??), to facing breast cancer. The energetic songs incorporate humorous pieces like a?oeLife in Boobs,a?? a?oeWife Beater Tank Top,a?? and a?oeSuck It, Cancera?? to the inspirational a?oeI'm Dianea?? which will tug at your heartstrings and inspire you to accept yourself exactly the way you are.

This brilliantly written romantic farce takes place in an upscale Manhattan penthouse owned by the Maestro Vito De Angelis and his wife, the opera diva Raquel De Angelis, each convinced they are the best in the world at what they do. And pity the fool who attempts to convince either one otherwise! Continuously at odds about a?oewho is better at what,a?? it takes two comedically competent actors who can beautifully sing opera and walk the thin line between character and caricature to make these two self-centered talents come to life onstage. And without a doubt, director Perry Shields found them in Daniel Tennant and Allison McGuire who not only enchant with their amazing voices but fabulously demonstrate the true meaning of being a a?oedivaa?? to the utmost heights.