SDtheatre.com

San Diego Theatre Scene
The Most Extensive Arts Reporting in San Diego
Columnist's viewpoints are not necessarily those of San Diego Theatre Scene, Inc.

SAN DIEGO THEATRE SCENE

"CURTAIN CALLS" #269

By Pat Launer
www.sdtheatrescene.com

12/19/08

Lyrics, Beats and Bricks are danced around
While a new play, Walls, gets Off the Ground.

Off the Ground

Lyrics, Beats & Bricks

Walls

News & Views

Pat's Picks

Family Feud

THE SHOW: Off the Ground, reprise production (more or less) of the dysfunctional family comedy penned by local actor Tom Zohar and designer Amy Chini that premiered last December at New Village Arts. Much of the creative and design team remains the same.

THE STORY: This is a fun antidote to all the unrelievedly upbeat holiday fare. It has a relatively happy ending (more or less), but it’s all about the holiday nightmare of family get-togethers and the well-meaning horrors our families heap upon us. The person everyone seems to be trying to get ‘off the ground’ is Joel, whose divorce a year ago has crippled him socially and emotionally. He’s taken refuge in the Pennsylvania home of his still-grieving grandfather, whose wife of 62 years died four years ago. The two men live a scruffy and generally hermetic existence. Compounding Joel’s internal problems, his ex is already remarried and he can’t see his beloved young daughter for the holidays. Now the bachelor arrangement is being turned upside down by the onslaught of family, boisterously and aggressively converging for the holidays (a reunion that hasn’t occurred in more than a year – for good reason!). Turmoil, conflict, distress, unhappiness, door-slamming and screaming ensue, as Joel’s sister Susan tries to heal him, his mother tries to fix him up, and his father tries to save him tax-money when Susan and Mom give him a surprise piece of real estate for Christmas. Only pragmatic Grandpa Dick stays out of the fray, but he seems to have the best sense of what might be right for Joel in the long run.

Read Pat's Full Column

READ ROB'S COLUMN

BEHIND THE SCENES
With Jenni Prisk

Hello Everyone.

It's that time of year, again, when we reflect on the past and ready ourselves for the future. Many of us may be glad to kiss 2008 goodbye, because of loss or sadness or hard times. Others may see a continuation of the same setbacks. For all of you, I hope there will be a ray of good fortune and happiness. Our theatres and performance spaces, no matter the odds, will continue to produce and promote the essence of the human condition. For thousands of years, thousands of performers have shown us the power and possibility of human nature. We have seen ourselves in a character's eyes, we have heard our family's feuds in a frenzied scene, we have escaped life for a moment in the lift of a dancer or the swelling sound of a soulful song. Actors and performers are connectors. They transcend cultures by showing us who we are, and sometimes, why we exist. As a theatre darkens and the magic begins, the performers on the stage become a storytelling ensemble. We in the audience sit shoulder to shoulder, sharing the same experience, yet shaping it to our perspectives. For a moment in time, we are all changed. When the performance concludes, our conversations are different, our convictions often changed, and our sense of community is clearer.

I want to express enormous gratitude to our theatre talent. Whether you are a playwright, director, choreographer, sound technician, lighting designer, singer, dancer, actor or audience member, or one of the other amazing people who bring theatre to life, you are the centre of our community and I salute you. Happy, healthy, harmonious holidays to you all. Love, Jenni

Email Jenni Jenni's Website www.voicesofwomen.org

Community Theatre Beat
by Hitch

All in one at OnStage’s Every Christmas Story Ever Told and then some

Onstage Playhouse’s presentation of Every Christmas Story Ever Told And Then Some is a little bit like the famous fruitcake everyone, including the cast, makes fun of. It has a little bit of everything, some things in it you are not quite certain of, it’s all jumbled together and at times you don’t know what to make of it. It’s very bright and colorful, and when you finally taste it…it tastes good! No matter what anybody says, it tastes good. Definitely has lots of fruits and nuts. Just like the cast.

Daniel Zisko is part of a triad of actors wanting to put on a three-man “The Christmas Carol” for the audience. From the beginning we see he is going to have some trouble. His two other cast mates Brian P. Evans, who goes on like the energizer bunny for half the show, and Nathan Plummer, obviously very comfortable in wigs and has a natural charm with female audience members, would rather do other Christmas stories. In fact, they want to do as many Christmas stories as can possibly be crammed in a ninety minute show. Disappointed and insistent Zisko agrees only if the last part of the show is devoted to A Christmas Carol. So, audience and cast starts out on a merry journey that will visit Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer, although this time his nose is green. Frosty the Snowman, Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, grim anecdotes about gory Christmas traditions in Holland, Spain, and The Netherlands (most of them made up), and game shows with audience members included. Zisko, Plummer, and Evans interact with the facility of The Marx Brothers, mixing perfect comedic timing with over the top physical comedy. Their train of thoughts often leading to the ridiculous “A Very Brady Kwaanza” and hilarious “Kermit the Frog as Scrooge with be a perfect anthropomorphic example” and never stopping to take a breath.

In the end, Zisko gets his Christmas Carol, sort of, but Evans insists on enacting It’s a Wonderful Life instead, so both shows went on. And Plummer made for some pretty interesting Christmas Ghosts. All in all, ninety minutes well-spent presenting the usually serious and heart-tugging spirit of Christmas in a comedic format that has a joke for everyone. For anyone who would rather see a non-traditional Christmas show for the entire family Every Christmas Story Ever Told And Then Some is the perfect treat. Onstage Playhouse is on Third Avenue, Chula Vista. For reservations call 619-422-7797.

Reviewer Paola

Tuna, Texas revealed on Compass’ Stage

First there was Greater Tuna, then A Tuna Christmas, followed by Red, White and Tuna and, most recently, Tuna Does Vegas. Fortunately for San Diegans, Compass Theatre is presenting A Tuna Christmas starring Fred Harlow and Don Loper. These two are a dream team for this play, portraying 22 characters in less than two hours.

But it isn’t just these two quick-change artists. It is also costume designer Lisa Burgess, who collected and created a totally outrageous set of costumes for their multiple personalities. Also, a group of fantastic dressers, led by Dressing Room Stage Manager, Julie Farina, and a backstage team of dressers: Jamie Lloyd, Gloria Leggee, Miriam Cuperman, Juan Magallon, Brendon Slater, and Harrison Myers.

Written by Jaston Williams, Joe Sears, and Ed Howard, A Tuna Christmas follows in the tradition of their first play. Opening with radio jocks Thurston Wheelis and Arles Stuvie reporting the yuletide events in that famous tiny village of Tuna, Texas, the play moves through the events and tense moments that make up small-town life where everybody knows everybody else’s most intimate business.

This year Christmas yard displays are plagued by pranks from the Christmas Phantom. Could I be that juvenile delinquent Stanley Bumiller? What does his eccentric Aunt Pearl Burress know? Socialite Vera Carp is intent upon winning the competition for the 15th year. What does used weapons dealer Didi Snavely think?

You’ll also meet the lovely cowboy-lovin’ Tastee Kreme waitresses Inita Goodwin and Helen Bedd. Tuna, Texas also has a little theatre group whose annual production of A Christmas Carol may not go on. It seems that they have an unpaid electric bill from years back and the cantankerous actor playing Ghost of Christmas Past is creating serious problems.

That’s just a taste of this fun piece. Yep, ‘tis filled with down-home, small town humor with a special Texan’s twist. Harlow and Loper have captured the essences of their very special characters. Each of their characterizations has its own special nuances. Excellent performances by both.

Assistant Director Joseph Grienenberger is responsible for much of the diversified sound track. The flying saucer sequence sound track is awesome. No, I’m not gonna describe this scene. You’ll love it. Director Josh Hyatt cast perfectly. He had a great design team. Christian Lopez created the set, with the director dressing the set and Dennis Fox providing props and the Christmas décor.

A Tuna Christmas is delightfully in the holiday spirit in a most jocular way. It plays Wednesday thru Sunday until December 28, 2008 at Compass Theatre, corner of 6^th and Pennsylvania in Hillcrest. For information and reservations call 619 688-9210 or email www.compasstheatre.com.

Reviewer Hitch

Email Hitch

Teen Persepective
by Alice Cash

12-16-08

Considered a “dram-edy,” Crimes of the Heart just closed at Canyon Crest Academy after playing two seasons ago at New Village Arts and revived this year on Broadway with Roundabout Theatre Company. Although often produced, this Pulitzer-Prize winning play written by Beth Henley continues to entrance each audience member with its spellbinding story and prose. Under the helm of recent Patte Award Winner Lisa Berger, the show pushes off with new rhythm meshing the classic and contemporary pieces of the show together.

The play tells the story of a dysfunctional family of three sisters, the oldest, Lenny, an old maid; the failed singer, Meg; and the youngest, Babe, who kills her husband. A challenge for high schoolers yet executed with precision, the actors transformed into their roles, mostly believable in their portrayals. Lenny, played by Hannah Swenson, dealt with her non-existent love life pouting around their home at all hours. Cindy Mersten played the sensual Meg with a strong character arc throughout the play showing many different expressions. Nora King played the youngest sister Babe with a squeaky voice and an endless supply of energy; it was hard to stop watching her bouncing from the ceiling. Eleot Reich played the crazy cousin with a zany and zealous personality. Other members of the cast included James Pratt, the overwrought farmer, and Ryan Sandrew, as the nerdy character.

Canyon Crest Academy’s Black Box Theatre was made to accommodate a thrust (audience on three sides) stage, allowing for a meticulously detailed set. One of the high points came from the lighting, fading slowing and quickly emphasizing what to look at, it almost had a shadow like cast as it pulsed throughout the piece. Quirky southern belle costumes added to the mix.

Director Lisa Berger’s shows are forever astounding and edgy bringing out the fastidious ideals and interests of the play itself. If you ever have a chance to see her work, it comes highly recommended.

Speaking of Berger’s Patte Award… San Diego Theatre Queen, Pat Launer is hosting her 12^th Annual Patte Awards for Theatre Excellence January 19^th downtown at the Westin Hotel. Honoring the best of the San Diego theatre community for this year. Launer is also awarding her second annual Scholarship for a Promising Young Theatre Maker this year. To find out more about the Emmy winning host or the awards event go to www.thepattefoundation.org.

Email Alice

I'Back To Top