Shari Barrett - Page 57

Those of us well versed in Broadway musicals and Hollywood films will certainly catch lots of references in RUTHLESS! And with its off-the-wall, farcical humor and schmaltzy songs, this musical comedy will definitely have you laughing in the aisles!

Directed with a keen vision by Alistair Hunter and featuring talented actors Gil Hagen-Hill, Daniel Houston-Davila, Belinda Howell, Susan Kussman and Gregg Lawrence, BRECHT ON BRECHT will take you on an extraordinary journey via a multimedia revue focusing on the work of the prolific playwright, poet, lyricist, screenwriter, and theatre director Bertolt Brecht. This is thought-provoking theater at its best.

The West Coast Jewish Theatre is presenting a comedy not seen in Los Angeles in many years, Herb Gardner's Tony Award-winning Best Play 'I'm Not Rappaport' which was inspired by two elderly men Gardner met in New York City's Central Park, sharing their strength and courage to live life to the fullest.

This new, adult musical comedy about men is a madcap and hilarious romp through all the many stages of manhood, featuring 29 original songs all paying homage to all things male, lampooning such issues as fatherhood, mid-life crisis, dating, marriage, aging, and sex (or the lack of it), giving an inside glimpse of what it takes to be a man in a modern world shared with women, children, and parents.

Playwright Neil Simon's CALIFORNIA SUITE is a comedy consisting of four playlets whose action takes place in rooms 203 and 204 at the Beverly Hills Hotel in 1976. This is Neil Simon at his best - a humorous confection that will definitely make you laugh and warm your heart!

The Lee Strasberg Center is hosting the world premiere of a very timely new theatrical work by Jack Betts at The Marilyn Monroe Theatre in West Hollywood entitled IT GOES LIKE THIS which has a message that Americans, Congress and the Supreme Court need to hear as the subject of gay marriage is being put to the vote. Most importantly, it brings awareness to the discrimination and hatred faced by so many individuals in the world today.

In Allen Barton's world premiere play YEARS TO THE DAY at the Beverly Hills Playhouse, two 40-something men, who have been friends for decades but only cursorily in touch via social media over the past four years, finally get together for coffee. But their long anticipated "face to face" meeting reaps surprising consequences when truthful and dramatic changes in each of their lives are revealed.

Following the model of the original Broadway production, four people were pulled from the Theatre Palisades audience and asked to participate in the contest. These visiting spellers were thrown into the mix, led into musical numbers by the cast, and asked to spell words until disqualified and sent back to their seats.

William Gibson's oft-done play THE MIRACLE WORKER opened Friday, April 12 at the Actors Co-op in Hollywood. The innovative staging by Director Thom Babbes and outstanding talent in this production deserve to play to full houses throughout the run!

Here are photos from Sustaining Sound Theatre Company's champagne reception following the spectacular opening night performance of LITTLE WOMEN, THE BROADWAY MUSICAL at Stage 52 in Los Angeles on April 4, 2013.

BELZ! THE JEWISH VAUDEVILLE MUSICAL is the story of a movement that ultimately had a profound effect on American popular culture as Jewish performers from Eastern Europe and their immediate descendants took their acts from the shtetls to the rest of the world.

ORANGE FLOWER WATER by Craig Wright tells the story of two married couples who live with their children in the relatively peaceful town of Pine City, Minnesota. David is a pharmacist and Cathy is a teacher, while Brad runs a video store and Beth is a stay-at-home Mom. But David and Beth, after years of maintaining a platonic friendship, begin an adulterous affair which leads to disastrous consequences for both marriages.

Sustaining Sound Theatre Company proudly presents LITTLE WOMEN, THE BROADWAY MUSICAL from April 4 to April 21, 2013 on Thursday-Saturday at 8:00pm and Sunday at 2:00pm at Stage52LA, located at 5299 Washington Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90016. A champagne and appetizer reception will follow the opening night performance on Thursday, April 4.

THE TROUBLE WITH WORDS is a song cycle that explores the relationship people have with words, as well as with each other, as they struggle to connect. In examining how human beings are brought together and pulled apart by words, the songs range from devastating to laugh-out-loud funny. I strongly encourage every musical theatre aficionado in Los Angeles to see this show as I cannot offer enough praise for the entire production.

Due to overwhelming popularity, David Bertolino's new play THE DEEP THROAT SEX SCANDAL about the making of the famed, groundbreaking, 1970s pornographic film "Deep Throat" and the subsequent controversy surrounding the film, is extending its West Coast Premiere run at the Zephyr Theatre through Sunday, April 14 with performances on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m., and Sundays at 7 p.m.

Kentwood Players presents RAGTIME - the quintessential American musical - through Saturday, April 20 on Fri/Sat at 8pm, Sun at 2pm at the Westchester Playhouse, located at 8301 Hindry Avenue, Westchester, CA 90045.The production is directed by Susan Goldman Weisbarth, with Musical Director Bill Wolfe, Choreographer Victoria Miller, and produced by Margie Bates and Gail Bernardi.

Sustaining Sound Theatre Company, a new professional theater company, presents LITTLE WOMEN, THE BROADWAY MUSICAL from April 4 to April 21, 2013 on Thursday-Friday-Saturday at 8:00pm and Sunday at 2:00pm at Stage52LA, located at 5299 Washington Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90016.

THE BABY DANCE centers on two couples: Rachel and Richard Lieberman, a successful Los Angeles couple who have everything but can't have children, and Wanda and Al, a poor, pregnant Louisiana couple who already have four kids but can barely support them. Both couples' desperate choices lead to an insightful, poignant drama that challenges the audience's views on poverty, adoption, religion, and the disparity between the classes.

It is always said that a parent should never have to deal with the death of their child. In 1988 in Belfast, Northern Ireland, both Catholic and Protestant parents were dealing with the death of their children on a daily basis for no other reason than their religion, political affiliation, or just being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Such is the setting in "Remembrance" by Graham Reid, directed by Tim Byron Owen and produced by David Hunt Stafford, presented by Theatre 40.

L.A. Contemporary Dance Company (LACDC) presents their Spring Repertory Concert THEN. NOW. ONWARD! April 4-7, 2013 on Thursday - Saturday at 8pm and Sunday at 7pm at the Diavolo Dance Space in the Brewery in downtown L.A., located at 616 Moulton Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90031. The concert features new work by L.A. choreographers Arianne MacBean, Lindsey Lollie, and Artistic Director, Kate Hutter. The performance will also feature live performance of original music by composers Peter Gonzales and Austin Wintory. Tickets are $20 online or $25 at the door. More info and tickets: onward.brownpaperticket.com