Early February Theatre Offerings on the Central Coast of California

As we arrive at the beginning of February, I trust you will want to make plans to see a couple of shows at some of our various Central Coast live performance and theatre venues!

The Santa Maria Civic Theatre's (www.smct.org) current production, Rabbit Hole, will run through February 25.

Rabbit Hole is David Lindsay-Abaire’s raw and earnest portrait of a family caught in the wake of wrenching tragedy.  Winner of the 2007 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, Rabbit Hole offers an intimate, witty and unvarnished glimpse into the world of a family balanced precariously between despair, isolation and hope.

"Rabbit Hole is an engaging slice-of-life story for audiences and an emotionally satisfying challenge for the five actors involved," said Stuart Wenger, the show’s director and veteran Central Coast actor.  "There is much depth and heart here."

Rabbit Hole centers on Becca (Angi Herrick) and her husband Howie (Joshua Cornell), who lose their young son Danny in a senseless accident.  As the months pass, Becca and Howie - joined by Becca's mother Nat (Patty Beckman), sister Izzy (Sarah Leavenworth), and Jason (Paul Chavez), the teenager who blames himself for Danny's death - each wage their own deeply personal battle against the forces that have brought them together by turning their world upside down.

For Herrick, playing Rabbit Hole's emotional focal point, and bringing to life the journey Becca takes through Lindsay-Abaire’s poignant script, is a challenge she relishes.

"There are dangers that [Becca] may be paralyzed by her grief and unable to move forward, or that she will lose relationships with her family or friends," said Herrick. "But there are opportunities as well that she may strengthen those ties and that she could find not a better but new identity on the other side of her loss."

Wenger notes that Rabbit Hole is an honest, complex and often humorous examination not of grief and tragedy, but of how each character learns to live again in the face of loss.

"While the plot of Rabbit Hole revolves around a family in the aftermath of the death of their four-year-old son, this is not a play about death or mourning," said Wenger. "This is a play about how people deal with the aftermath, how they resume with day-to-day living, and most important, how they communicate - or fail to communicate - with each other."

"I am glad that the playwright chose to set the play several months after the death of her son, as so many other pieces have focused on the initial shock of a loss," added Herrick.  "[Lindsay-Abaire] takes an honest look at what it means for a family to try and find their new 'normal' without their child.  Is it a sad story?  At times it is. However, there are moments of humor and honesty that are not to be missed."

Rabbit Hole is not related to any children's stories, and features adult themes and language.  It is recommended for mature audiences only.  Doors open nightly at7:30 p.m.  Tickets are $15.  For more information or to contact the box office, call 805-922-4442.  [PHOTO L-R: Angela Herrick, Josh Cornell, Patty Beckman, Paul Chavez, Sarah Leavenworth]

The Pacific Conservatory of the Performing Arts (www.pcpa.org), the Central Coast's Resident Professional Theatre Company, located on the Allan Hancock College Campus in Santa Maria, will present Little Women, the Broadway Musical, February 16 – March 11.

The Lompoc Civic Theatre (www.lompoccivictheatre.com) is currently presenting a dinner theatre production of The Outrageous Adventures of Sheldon and Mrs Levine at D'Vine Wine Bar (performances: February 12, March 4, April 15, May 6), with reservations required.  Additionally, Almost, Maine will be performed at the Lompoc Civic Auditorium March 16 - April 1. 

The Great American Melodrama (www.americanmelodrama.com) in Oceano is pleased to present Greater Tuna, followed by a Rat Pack Vaudeville Revue, running through March 4.

The Spot (https://www.facebook.com/#!/hit.the.spot) in Arroyo Grande will present Songwriters at Play music showcase on February 6, White Elephant Productions’ Vagina Monologues February 10-14, SOPA’s The Wizard of Oz February 17, 18, 24, 25, and Chris Lopez’s Family Comedy Magic Show on February 19.

Sorcerer Productions’ (https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Sorcerer-Productions/105954829426281) Cat on a Hot Tin Roof will run February 10-26 at the Studio Theatre at the Clark Center in Arroyo Grande.

Other upcoming performances at the Clark Center (www.clarkcenter.org) include Peter Yarrow on February 10, Riders In The Sky on February 11, and Best of Doo Wop on February 24.

Murder In Mind Productions (www.murderinmind.com) will present SLO Legal, April 1 - May 6 at Spyglass Inn in Shell Beach.

SLO Little Theatre's (www.slolittletheatre.org) next mainstage theatrical offering will be My Generation, running February 17 - March 25.  In SLOLT's Ubu's Other Shoe readers' theatre series, next up is Opus, February 3 & 4.

Kelrik Productions (www.kelrikproductions.com) is pleased to present the first 2 productions of their 2012 BEYOND Season - a remount of the children's favorite Pinkalicious (matinee performances through February 5) and Avenue Q (evening performances through February 4) at Unity (1490 Southwood Dr in San Luis Obispo).  Auditions for the LIVE performance of The Rocky Horror Show (NO movie behind the actors) will be on February 8 (performances March 30 - April 14).  Registrations are now being accepted for Winter Semester acting & improv classes (ages 4 1/2 - 9th grade) that begin in mid February.  Next up in the Family Theatre Series is Once Upon A Mattress, February 25 - March 11.   

Mission College Prep Drama Department (http://www.missionprep.org) presents Godspell February 3-5 at 682 Palm St inSan Luis Obispo.  Call 805-543-2131 for reservations and more information. 

The God Is Still Speaking Players (https://www.facebook.com/#!/groups/92718528887) will be holding auditions soon for a readers’ theatre production of Our Town, with performances in mid March - stay tuned for additional details!

Upcoming performances at the Cal Poly Performing Arts Center (www.pacslo.org) include Orchesis Dance Company’s Immersion through February 4, Suite Serenades by the SLO Symphony on February 4, Direct From Ireland – Celtic Nights: Journey of Hope on February 9, The MET Live in HD: Wagner’s Gotterdammerung on February 11, and Young Frankenstein on February 18.      

The Pewter Plough Playhouse (www.pewterploughplayhouse.org) in Cambria is proud to present Wait Until Dark February 10 – March 25.

The Theatre at the Old Grammar School in Cambria (TOGS) (http://artistsofcambria.com/cambriapac/id4.html) and Allied Arts Theatre's current production is the romantic comedy Almost, Maine, running through February 19.

So, whatever else you have on your calendar over the course of the next couple of weeks, I hope you will include attending a production at any one of the several theatre and live entertainment establishments here on the California Central Coast!

Curt Miner ... your BroadwayWorld.com guy on the ground with the California Central Coast theatre "news & views" 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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