Brighton Beach Memoirs - Civic Theater

I've seen this movie, the one from the late 80's/90's a few times. It's a new school american classic.  But i've never seen the stage play. Set in the late 1930's, it seemed to be a long time ago, like things were different. Trade the plasma tv/ xbox for a radio but actually not much else. 

Then and now, siblings have complicated relationships. In tough times parents have to work many jobs. There is worry about war and peace in the world.  Everyone has a drunk uncle and an odd neighbor. And all a nearly-15-year-old boy really wants to do is to see a girl naked.

The boy, also wants to be a writer, is really smart, quick witted, and really can be a pain in the ass. The play is seen through his writing from his "memoirs".  It's reality television before it's time, showing all of the family's business through first person narrative.

The set was convincing and looked really sparse with the various time specific props.
It's packed neatly into a realistic house on the theater stage.

Throughout it becomes clear that everyone has some growing up to do around the interactions and the politics behind them in the family.

God of Carnage - Famers Alley Theatre

God of Carnage seems really to be about whether adults and children are really that different.

One kid whacks another in the face with a stick, knocking out a couple of teeth. The parents decide to meet and from the beginning, there’s the awkward conflict of the obvious differences in parenting styles. Things quickly spiral out of control. The characters align and then realign with one another as parts of their stories unfold. The audience is given glimpses of why the characters are who they are. I all of the carnage they bring upon each other, it seems that there may not be much of a difference between roving gangs of kids or homes stocked with high end espresso and imported rum.  To insult and question how a person raises their kids is asking for strong responses.  The script is tight and the run time felt short. The cast is very strong and they committed fully, making this an explosive passionate production.The vomiting scene was way too believable; 'Veronica' was well played as an arrogant snob; the set design was hip/cosmopolitan and haunting. Go see it!!

In the end I walked away thinking... those people were miserable. They think their intentions are good and are to be rewarded for wanting the 'right' and 'civil' process to work things out... as an example for the children.  Epic fail.

Let Slip the Dogs of Community Theatre

Adam Command
So, as I was begining to write yesterday about my last play, I decided to stop and wait becasue See How They Run is a very confusing, fast comedy that is extremely entertaining and funny but relies heavily on physical effects; therefore, it is hard to blog coherantly about. I decided instead, bieng in Grand Rapids, to go see the Circle Theatre's production of Julius Caesar. It is part of a string of 6 plays by the Bard. Although this is merely the second string of productions in community theatre, next to the actors studio, the acting was better than I expected. In fact, Michael Rissier's performance as Marc Antony was down-right brilliant. This was the second time I have seen this play(last time 8 years) and if there is one area that needs to be really good, it would be the acting. The play relies on gigantic monologues and fierce confrontations and is the most political play Shakespeare has written, in my mind. J.C. is hard to produce because the members of the audience who are not extreme Shakespeare fans are in danger of falling asleep if the long monologues are not passionate. Good thing for this production, it was very passionate. There was so much enthusiasm by the cast and along with Rissier, Hales and Forrester who play Cassius and Brutus were fantastic in their deliveries. Brian Spaulding, who played Caesar was not great but he is only a part for less than half the play. The staging was modest and did not charm the audience with the traditional tricks of staging a Shakespeare play, no doubt because of the budget. But the diction and clarity the Circle Theatre provides suits the structure od J.C. There are two huge speaches and they bring the croud into it. When Antony comes out to speak to his people after Caesar is murdered was awesome. He used the audience and he was really trying to convince us and pumped us up in different ways, including screams and "heys"! "Here lies Caesar, when such comes another!" Honestly, I am a pretty descent judge of the Bard's work, especially on the lower level of community theatre, and I can say this was one of the best performed play I have seen. The back-stabbing, metaphorical and literal was so intriguing and the play moved with a lightning pace, never allowing a dull moment. The actaul murder of Caesar was cool as the senators cirlced him, plotting with each other and trying to manipulate the crowd, again, which we participated in. It was just flat out fun. The political agendas and struggles for power in J.C. was interesting. There are many twists and turns. For instance, Brutus does not original want to go along with the killing of Caesar but goes along with it for the sake of Rome, so he says. But really, he is after power just like anyone else. He and Cassius consistantly get out-smarted by Antony, starting with the debate about the death of Caesar where Antotny sways the crowd (us) back to belief that Caesar was a great man. It was cool how we made the decisions. All and all, I am glad I got a chance to watch Julius Caesar because it had a nice irony to it, especially during election season. All this talk about Romney and Obama lately, it seemed appropriate to put this play on. I had fun! Directed by Andy Vankampen

Wizards of Facebook

Fancy Pants Theatre is doing a production of a new play by local playwright, John Thierwechter, called The Wizards of Facebook.

Follow the yellow bus line with Dot and Frank while they quest after the witch Linda's email address for the Wizard of Facebook. Together with their three new friends, they will repair to Wizard in hopes of restoring Dot's Facebook, getting naked stuff for Frank and something about brains, heart & courage.---From The Wizards of Facebook's Facebook Event Page

What:The Wizards of Facebook
Where: Fancy Pants Theatre, 246 Kalamazoo Mall
When: April 11, 12, 13, 14 8pm and April 15 3pm
$$$: $10
 

Tony N' Tina's Wedding

EVERYONE, I REPEAT - EVERYONE, GO SEE TONY N' TINA'S WEDDING!!!

What a wonderful dinner comedy. You participate in a wedding ceremony and reception - and you get food. A great night of laughs - and, not to mention, a great time. I'm SO going again, if anyone wants to join!!!

The Invisible Hand

I was lucky enough to see the world premier of The Invisible Hand at the St Louis Rep Theatre! What a wonderful show - from the writing and acting to the sets and stagecraft. This show featured John Hickok - whom also originated 3 Broadway rolls. Hickok played Nick, a man who was very skilled in investment banking and was captured and held hostage by an Islamic militant group. He grew close with one of his guards, Dar, who ends up killing himself in a suicide bombing. Another guard, Bashir, forces Nick to make $3million grow to $10million by doing what he does best, investment banking. The two become close, just as Nick and Dar did, although their relationship is, of course, questionable. Throughout the entirety of The Invisible Hand, we examine morality and just how far we will go to get what we want.

What a wonderful play. Ayad Akhtar wrote this play phenomenally, always showing the needs of each character throughout every scene and using dialogue beautifully. I was shocked when 1 hour and 15 minutes flew by before my eyes. The text was portrayed wonderfully by this four person cast, as well. Their believability factor amazed me; believability is something that I look for in a performance, and I never once stopped to question what I was watching. (Funny fact: The man who played Bashir wrote in his bio that he is a physician "in his spare time." A) What actor has "spare time"? And B) What physician has "spare time"? I found that HILARIOUS!)

The Cure for Love

For me this play started out a little slow, as french farses are not quite what I normally go and see.  The jokes here and there through-out the begining were about all that kept me going.  Then about a third of the way into this two act play I started to get into the plot.  I began to realize more of what was going on, what are some of the characters motivations, and where the tensions lie within the story.  Then the jokes became more humorous and play in all just really picked up.  At first I thought that I would have wished they started the play more in the middle of this developing action.  Yet, I soon realized that the bit of lead in at the begining was neccessary and the play was in fact started in the middle of the developing action.  In the end I would definitly say that I liked the play and would enjoy seeing it again, but part of me thinks that it was mainly the actors that really won me over rather than the play itself.  That may just be my taste in play style though, as I said, I don't normally watch french farses.