Shari Barrett - Page 21

Every January I look forward to attending THE MANOR by Katherine Bates, presented by Theatre 40 inside the historic Greystone Mansion in Beverly Hills where the story upon which it is based actually took place. Now celebrating its 17th year, the annual production has become a Los Angeles/Beverly Hills institution with several performances selling out even before tickets go on sale to the public. Its popularity, no doubt, is due to the scandalous true story as told by the talented actors, costumed to time-period perfection, as well as the chance to be inside the grand and glorious architectural landmark in which the events of 90 years ago actually took place, performed in two acts taking place 10 years apart. The names of all characters in the Doheny saga have been changed, of course, "to protect the guilty" as we are told before the play begins by the mansion's loyal butler, James (Daniel Lench who has masterfully played the part for 6 years).

Rod Serling's television anthology series The Twilight Zone was a popular and critical success when it ran on CBS for five seasons from 1959 to 1964, shot entirely in black and white. The series introduced many Americans to appreciate stories in various genres including fantasy, science fiction, suspense, horror and psychological thrillers, often concluding with a macabre or unexpected twist, usually ending with a moral explained by the writer himself. It has remained so popular that you can often find The Twilight Zone marathons running on various television stations, especially on holidays. As a fan of the show, I often watch episodes when they are shown, keeping my The Twilight Zone Companion handbook close by to check on facts and cast information from each episode. So I made plans to attend when I heard Theatre 40 was going to be presenting ROD SERLING'S STORIES FROM THE ZONE adapted and co-directed by multiple Ovation Award winning set designer Jeff G. Rack and Charlie Mount.

The Ghost Road Company is one of Los Angeles' premiere theatre ensembles dedicated to the creation of new work for the stage. The company is unique in its approach, having developed its own methods of collaborative development over many years. So when I heard they were reimagining the story of Oedipus, calling it JOCASTA: A MOTHERF**ING TRAGEDY conceived and directed by Brian Weir, I was intrigued to say the least. But after seeing the show, I am not quite sure how to write about it other than to say it was visually stunning to watch but confusing to the point of distraction.

Now being presented by Center Theatre Group at the Mark Taper Forum, directed by Dexter Bullard who also helmed the Steppenwolf production, LINDA VISTA features actor Ian Barford who has originated four roles in Letts' canon of plays, and has remained friends with the playwright for 30 years. But no doubt Letts' very contemporary and biting social commentary on the immaturity of men when it comes to dealing with women and adult life will no doubt upset many in the audience when it becomes apparent Wheeler will never be ready to grow up. After all, it seems the older he gets, the younger he wants to become even when his body won't go along with the idea. It's comically unsettling and all too real when it comes to the contemporary dating scene.

Those of us old enough to remember the excitement of buying a new vinyl record album and devouring every song's liner notes shared on the back or inner sleeve will certainly understand the appeal of RITA WILSON'S LINER NOTES, which enjoyed its fourth tour at the Geffen's Audrey Skirball Kenis Theater in Westwood from January 10-13 as part of the Geffen Playhouse Spotlight Entertainment Series. The evening offered not only great entertainment but lots of insider information on what went into the creation of many favorite songs from the actual songwriters themselves.

Born and raised in Suburban Philadelphia, playwright Mark Wesley Curran admits he has only been to Brooklyn once in his life while driving through the town to get somewhere else. And yet he chose to write the World Premiere play FOREVER BROOKLYN! about Melvin Kaplofkis, a young Jewish man growing up in Brooklyn in the 1950s who, as a kid, entertained his family and friends by telling jokes and stories, longing for success as a comic in the 1960s. Fans of Neil Simon will point to Brighton Beach Memoirs and Broadway Bound, two plays which I assume Mr. Curran used as source material, along with a few early films by Woody Allen, to develop the play's characters and setting rather than writing from his own personal experience.

The month marks the start of my 7th year as a reviewer for Broadway World Los Angeles. With awards season in full bloom each January, many people ask me what my favorite shows were for the previous year. Since I see 3-5 shows per week, that is a difficult and time-consuming task for me to accomplish. But for 2018, I decided to go back through all the 188 reviews/articles I wrote for every show I saw and selected my top shows month-by-month. And what fun it was to go back and select one photo from each of the top 39 shows I selected.

The Long Beach Ballet's THE NUTCRACKER has been seen by millions of people worldwide, including live audiences totaling more than 400,000 in Long Beach, 70,000 in Pasadena, hundreds of thousands throughout Asia (as performed by the Chinese Guangzhou Ballet), and millions more on television. And now that I can count myself among those entertained by the talented troupe of dancers, I can assure you LAB's overall production is so magnificent on all levels that even those who think they do not like ballet will certainly enjoy it, along with Tchaikovsky's beautiful score conducted by Dr. Roger Hickman.

Thornton Wilder's Pulitzer Prize winning classic play OUR TOWN comes to the Kentwood Players stage with a dramatic restaging, directed by Stanley Brown and produced by Kathy Dershimer, opening Friday, January 11 through Saturday, February 16, 2019 on Fri/Sat 8pm, Sun 2pm at the Westchester Playhouse, 8301 Hindry Avenue, LA 90045. Featured in the cast, in alphabetical order, are Dan Adams, Stephen Anthony Bailey, Shari Barrett, Jenny Boone, Allison Cunningham, Harold Dershimer, Aly Etienne, Sadie Fisher, Eddie Ed O'Brien, Shawn Plunkett, Judy Rosenfeld, Michele Selin, Gabrielle Sigrist and Ethan Trejo.

The hilarious angel doo-wop quartet of Frankie, Sparky, Jinx and Smudge (Craig Sherman, Philip McBride, Augusto Guardado and Andrew Allen) again return to Earth to get a second chance at 'making it big' after missing out on the opportunity when a freak accident caused their demise on the night of February 9, 1964 while the Beatles appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show. Believing their mission is to find the purpose for their return, the spirited guys set out to recall past show-stopping performances, finally realizing how much it meant to bring joy and music to their fans.

The World Premiere comedy SPECIAL commemorates the 40th Anniversary of the worst variety show in television history with a behind-the-scenes imagined look of how The Star Wars Holiday Special came to be. And from the outrageous imagination of playwright Andrew Osborne and a hard-working multi-role cast directed by Kerr Seth Lordygan (who also appears as a Special Guest Star in the production), laughs abound from start to finish as we witness how the ridiculous nature of the script, backstage politics and out-of-control spending doomed it to go down in history as being the most horrible Holiday Special that nobody talks about, notorious known for its extremely negative reception by Star Wars fans, the general public, and critics.

While Sandra Bernhard may not be the greatest singer to ever take the stage, her raw enthusiasm and oversized personality enveloped each of her songs, especially her opening revival-style meeting rendition of Neil Diamond's 'Brother Love's Traveling Salvation Show' in which she celebrated spiritual freedom with each clang of her tambourine. Her own brand of Self Love is apparent in everything she does, accepting her differences with such aplomb you cannot help but love her exactly as she is.

The head of the Saban Theatre in Beverly Hills came to see DREAMGIRLS, produced by Michael Pettenato and directed/choreographed by Tor Campbell at the 180-seat Cupcake Theater in North Hollywood earlier this year, and believed they absolutely could not let the brilliant show end without giving people on the Westside a chance to see it. And who were they to say no? Under Pettenato's care, the group packed up 450 costumes and boxes of wigs, and headed to Beverly Hills for a one-night only show on Thursday, December 6, 2018.

Rogue Machine, known for its mission to present original and provocative programming, is now presenting the West Coast premiere production of FINKS, a New York Times Critic's Pick which was nominated for a Drama Desk Award. The play brings together writer Joe Gilford and director Michael Pressman, friends since childhood and both children of Blacklisted artists. In it, Gilford documents the struggle his parents, entertainers Jack Gilford and Madeline Lee Gilford, endured when they were called to testify, with actual testimony or published statements by those who appeared before the House Un-American Activities Committee used in the play.

For those of us around in the days before the internet took over the shopping world, we can certainly remember the glorious gatherings we attended which were hosted by family or friends in order to sell the newly-invented hard plastic and practically indestructible storage items forever known as Tupperware. Perhaps, like me, you remember how much fun it was to make popsicles out of whatever liquid you wanted by using the Tupperware Popsicle Maker. But even better, how much fun it was at the hosted parties where you could chat and gossip while learning how to use each item properly, then decide on what you wanted and order it. For those of you who have no idea what I am talking about, or those who want to go back to those fun days, rush over to the Kirk Douglas Theatre in Culver City to be a part of DIXIE'S TUPPERWARE PARTY, the hilarious off-Broadway one-woman comedy written by Kris Andersson starring Dixie Longate which took the theater world by storm and garnered a prestigious Drama Desk Award nomination.

For playwright, director and El Teatro Campesino founder Luis Valdez, who was born in Delano, CA as the second of ten children born to migrant farm worker parents who made a living picking whatever crop was in season, Cupertino will always be known for the rich land that once grew an abundance of crops and fruits trees during the time he lived in the area shortly after World War II. His latest play, the phenomenal VALLEY OF THE HEART at the Mark Taper Forum through December 9, 2018, uses California history as a jumping-off point to tell an important story about the fight to maintain dignity, identity, family and faith in the once-fertile farmland that is now known as the Silicon Valley.

Both one-acts in this masterful and memorable double-billing, directed by Steven Robman, are reflective and confessional in nature, with each of the main characters portrayed by masterful actor Brian Dennehy sharing tales of their lives in an attempt to make sense of the way it has turned out for them, especially since the present does not seem to have lived up to the excitement of the past. Perhaps that universal truth is what united these two one acts, with O'Neill and Beckett asking audiences to take a look back at our own lives and realize that even when things seem hopeless and/or meaningless, memories of times past may be the thing to break your downward spiral.

It is Bo's hard-learned lesson about romance and respect that keeps BUS STOP in the forefront as one of the great classic American romance stories. And thanks to the talented cast and director Ann Hearn Tobolowsky's attention to detail and effective use of freeze framing cast members while others speak, these well known characters will reach out and grab you by the heart, stirring your emotions as lessons are learned, partnerships are formed, and everyone gets exactly what they want by the time the road re-opens, especially a naive cowboy and a 19-year old hick singer from the Ozarks determined to make a better life for herself.

SAFEHOUSE '77 is a site-specific interactive show with a mixture of historical and pop-cultural influences in the exciting world of spy movies. The evening begins after parking in a Bank of America lot a few blocks away from the party house where Connie (Ashley Jones, decked out in high-waisted bell bottom jeans), the sister of our party host, Sharon (Katie Rediger), meets us and goes over a few rules for the evening before escorting us to the party. Just prior to entering, each guest is given an ERA YES badge, every one different in color with an animal sticker in its center. Of course, there is a purpose which soon becomes apparent once the party begins.

I cannot even think of enough accolades to share about the current production being staged by Greenway Arts Alliance (Whitney Weston and Pierson Blaetz, Co-Founders and Co-Artistic Directors) at the Greenway Court Theatre (544 N. Fairfax Avenue, Los Angeles) through December 9. The totally entertaining and artistically brilliant production, directed and choreographed by NAACP Theater Award-winner Jeffrey Polk, pulled me in from the moment it started until the end, given the amazingly talented cast who bring the characters so realistically to life that you can actually feel all the emotions each is going through from moment to moment. You will laugh, be fearful, cry and celebrate with all of them by the time the show ends.