Shari Barrett - Page 58

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

Sustaining Sound Theatre Company, a new professional theater company that seeks to support local and global causes through the creation and presentation of meaningful theatrical experiences, proudly presents a benefit production of "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

Since its bold beginning in 2006, CELEBRATE DANCE has presented 40 dance companies to over 10,000 enthusiastic audience members in the annual event and has served as a platform for artists to enhance their craft, develop a foundation of support and propel their careers locally, nationally and abroad.

AVENUE Q, the zany, adult-themed spoof on Sesame Street, won the Tony "Triple Crown" for Best Musical, Best Score, and Best Book. Now onstage through April 6 at Santa Monica's Morgan-Wixson Theatre, the show is part flesh, part felt and packed with lots of heart. With 2,534 performances, Avenue Q ranks 23rd on the list of longest running shows in Broadway history, and this production does the show proud.

The small coal mining town of Paradise has seen better days and its citizens are facing hard times. Can a charismatic new preacher, Rev. John Cyrus Mountain (the remarkable and versatile Jonathan Root) who has arrived in town with his bombshell sidekick Chastity Jones (Nina Brissey), rescued from the stripper pole at the Innuendo Lounge, save the day?

The West Coast premiere of DIVORCE PARTY THE MUSICAL continues at the El Portal Theatre in North Hollywood through April 14. Whether you have been through a divorce or not, I guarantee you will be swept into the fun created onstage by the very talented cast of five.

Bubble art, science, magic and fun were alive onstage the weekend of March 2-3 at the Edgemar Center for the Arts in Santa Monica when Louis Pearl, "The Amazing Bubble Man," performed unbelievable acts of wonder for kids of all ages.

Originally produced as a live teleplay in 1954,"12 Angry Men" by Reginald Rose is a contemporary classic about a young man on trial for allegedly murdering his father. Although it seems to be an open-and-shut case, there is but one lone juror among the twelve who is not convinced of the defendant's guilt. Through this juror's careful examination of the evidence, he demonstrates to the rest of the jury that there just may be the possibility that this young man is innocent and causes the other jurors to question their preconceived notions. This play's enthralling and controversial debate over this young man's fate will keep you on the edge of your seat in anticipation of its final resolution.

Everyday life is often reduced to a showdown between the 'suits' and the common man struggling to just survive the uphill battle called life. The 4 darkly comic tales in 'Of Bats & Suits' at the Lyric Theatre take us into different variations on this theme, showing us that no matter what, living life to the fullest is the only way to be truly happy.

This year's 'LOVE BITES' is a delicious assortment of short plays that explore love in all its miserable glory with humor and irreverence ... the irresistible passion, the humiliating pitfalls, the euphoria, the anguish, and everything in between. The plays, performed at the Elephant Space in Hollywood, are written by both company members and writers from around the country, performed and directed by members of the Elephant Company. The 11th annual evening of dysfunctional, not-so-romantic short plays includes 8 selections that will make you remember that when it doesn't kiss, suck, or blow - love bites!

'IN MY LIFE - A Musical Theatre Tribute to the Beatles' is the award-winning, smash hit musical biography of the Beatles as seen through the eyes of their manager Brian Epstein, featuring the live music of renowned tribute band, Abbey Road. Since opening in April 2009, the show has played to packed houses, including their latest performance at the Warner Grand Theater in San Pedro on February 23, 2013, produced by Tom Maher and Andy Nagle.

In astrology, the Grand Irrationality is when the planets are all out of alignment and nothing adds up - a pretty fair description of Guy Proud's life in Jemma Kennedy's World Premiere comedy THE GRAND IRRATIONALITY at the Lost Studio.

Kentwood Players presents the 1998 Tony Award-winning musical 'RAGTIME' with book by Terrence McNally, lyrics by Lynn Ahrens, and music by Stephen Flaherty from Friday, March 15 to Saturday, April 20 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 by special arrangement with Music Theatre International. BroadwayWorld brings you a first look at photos from the production below!

Whether you make it a date night or a girls night out, everyone is sure to get a kick out of 'SPANK! The Fifty Shades Parody' at Club Nokia in LA Live on Feb 15, 16 and 17, 2013. This hilarious unauthorized musical satire brings the naughty fun of the saucy best-selling book to life in a laugh-filled high-energy show that's part Chippendales, part Second City, presented in one deliciously sexy package. The show is definitely for mature audiences so leave the kids at home.