Bittersweet, Funny, Resonant, Entertaining, Absorbing See it if You're up for an exuberant retelling and celebration of George Rose, theatre and life in the 70's, and a deep friendship turned dark. Don't see it if You're homophobic, have an aversion to theatre gossip, one-person autobiographical monologues or disliked George Rose to begin with Also Ed Dixon's bravura solo performance, channeling the late George Rose as well as instantly morphing into the likes of Gielgud, Olivier, Hepburn and Burton, among others, is a great example of a successful, well-placed and positive use of personal experience, pain and anger. In a spellbinding performance recounting his 20 year friendship with the extremely talented and influential Rose, Dixon not only displays a virtuoso technique, but shows – and shares – the therapeutic value of the word; the healing that comes from the telling. It's a great, perhaps inadvertent lesson for audience as well as performer, a reminder that laughter binds and unites us, and in time can help put things in perspective and maybe even right. I suspect that Mr. Dixon and we learn more & more each night, each performance, about ourselves, about art, about what happened. Every performance helping make some sense of senseless acts that so tragically ended such a vivid, sentient life. Vivid & bittersweet, go. Resonant, Edgy, Great cast, Inventive, Clever See it if You'd like an evening of quick-paced purely theatrical storytelling that attempts the difficult double duty of quirky Saki stories plus bio. Don't see it if Dry British wit of a certain era's not your thing, or you need an absolutely linear plot or you're not open to the imagination of your youth Yet one more terrific production to come out of the Edinburgh FestivalFringe, this production is quick-witted & intelligent; its creative, inventive staging filled with unexpected visual & aural delights, brilliantly & smoothly executed by a terrific cast. It attempts & mostly succeeds as an introduction to Saki & his works, though purists will rightly note that the voice & edge, the hinted danger isn't quite right. A slight pause before the lights dim at the start might have helped the audience settle into that world & language, at least at the Feb 13th performance. Still, a small complaint. Each member of this great ensemble cast is individually memorable in their many characters, bits & changes, creating a quite distinct other world with ease & a minimum of props & lights. Paisley is winning & personable as Saki, ultimately quite inspiring in his fine exhortation for each of us to "release your inner ferret, squelch your inner Auntie, live life gloriously to the fullest." Amen. Thought-provoking, Resonant, Relevant, Ambitious, Absorbing See it if You'd like to feel some hope for our political present & future by looking at our political past thru a remarkable & inspiring life. Don't see it if You dislike historical monologues, civil rights issues, history, or doubt that theatre can influence or change lives for the better. The distance between spirit & substance may well be measured by inspiration; so it was with Adam Clayton Powell & so it is with Peter DeAnda's one-person biography of Adam, & this production at the Castillo Theatre. Although the tech problems will likely iron out quickly, & Timothy Simonson’s voice will no doubt find its more centered strength as he relaxes into the role, the script is unfortunately more lecture than drama; missing is a strong dramatic arc or tension, & more of the elegance of its subject would be welcome. Still, all of this is quibbling, because the flaws here pale in comparison to the importance & timely contribution of this play—especially in our present here and now—to remind us of the possible; of the fact that giants once roamed our politics, & could again. Larger than life, flawed, to be sure, but passionate, caring & effective, caring for more than their own egos, or at least using those egos to facilitate positive societal change. Adam inspires & unites; go. Funny, Relevant, Entertaining, Great set, Great cast See it if You'd like a sense of how far gay rights & identity have come in the last 60 yrs; a funny if flawed play that attempts much, mostly succeeds Don't see it if You're closed-minded to the point of homophobia/intolerance: 'good bet you won't enjoy or get the jokes—'less you've been closeted: then go! A good, well balanced ensemble cast; a deceivingly simple, ingenious set and lighting; very smooth and nimble direction; a quick-paced and mostly witty script — all make for an entertaining, if at times heavy-handed experience that could be much more affecting and more haunting. The dramatically necessary ripped-from-the-headlines immediacy at times becomes political screed, sounding more like author-venting than character. Similarly, a long scene about books and authors and others about parenting and the wayward Bryan seem a bit much. In all, restraint could better balance & focus these two sets of "boys" at their “certain ages,” surviving the past and present respectively, and all looking towards an uncertain future. Boys succeeds more than it doesn't. It's entertaining, funny, and certainly touches anyone who survived those heady times; but there’s a tighter, more moving & rewarding play for everyone else in there, trying to get out. Hopefully this run will help; meantime, go.
See it if you'd appreciate an up close, modern & wonderfully staged and realized production of the Scottish Play, with fine if uneven performances. Don't see it if you need period costumes, sets & prosceniums, don't like actors too close to you or like your Shakespeare with needless British accents. Remarkably well staged & directed by its founders, The Seeing Place Theatre's Macbeth Is proof of how much can be accomplished with little more than bodies, light & space, in this case a very intimate space which never feels tight. With gorgeous lighting by Duane Pagano that helps propel the action, great design & even signage, it's the essence of how theatre can transport and engage. There's even something of Grotowski's Poor Theatre here; not the intense physicality, but in the attempt of stripping away all surface to truth. That said, the company might consider Grotowski's exploration of voice & projection. Shakespeare is too often exclamatory & rushed rather than conversational, so that meaning gets lost. The production is well cast, and the warhorse speeches (Spot/Tomorrow) seem underplayed to avoid cliché; interesting choices, but they lose their punch. The 100 minute run time is a great goal, but the pre-battle McDuff/Malcom speeches should be trimmed for a restless audience. See it if You're open to experience & a piece of theatre that might be transcendent but for its length despite an intense tour de force performance. Don't see it if You like neither technology nor radio theatre or expect any sort of traditional linear play or simple minded entertainment. Too long by a third, it can be easy to dismiss this show as mere spectacle, or reduce it to a technical, state-of-the-art Wow, a very sophisticated bag of audio tricks. Each member of the audience wearing earphones, it’s actually pretty thrilling to have a real-time demonstration of how sound affects the brain—specifically, your brain—& how much our senses of place, time & reality depend on & are affected by sound. McBurney’s a charming, engaging host with no curtain to hide behind, guiding the audience through the different acoustic means that will create the evening’s story and reality. There’s a collective intake of breath when he says that he’ll blow in your left ear & you’ll feel the warmth of breath — and you do. Within this setup, The Encounter dives quickly into questions of existence, truth, & place; of our sense of living in an arguably mistaken or false reality of time & objects & of individual self. Earphones on, disoriented from sounds all around, it all instinctively makes sense; but the brain stops just short of transcendence as the Story begins and we're transported to the Amazon. It's an amazing, impressive performance; were it only a bit shorter. See it if you can deal with musical theatre stripped down to its essentials: terrific material, a talented cast & Sutton's pitch perfect technique. Don't see it if You're expecting Fosse or his Rich Man's Frug, a large orchestra or the usual bells and whistles that so often make the Bway musical go. The New Group’s Sweet Charity is a big show in an intimate space with a big sound amazingly played by an all female band of only six musicians placed high above the stage facing the audience. A lot has been made of this being a stripped down version of the show, but there's nothing stripped down when talent is paired with good material. While the space may be intimate, the performances are full on, leaving the impression of what it might feel like to be sitting on the stage of the Winter Garden watching the show. The actors are that close. Considering source & subject, Sweet Charity has always been bittersweet, & Sutton Foster's Charity is an earthier, goofier, darker Charity, perfect for the darker times we live in. Her incredible timing and performing technique combine with an infectious joy shared by the terrific cast of singers & dancers. The new choreography would be fine if not for the Fosse factor, but the excellent dancers shine with what they have. All in all, go; it's a fun evening. |
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June 2021
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