Jay Irwin - Page 29

When you go to see a Tom Stoppard play such as "Indian Ink", currently playing at Center Theatre from Sound Theatre Company and Pratidhwani, you can expect to be immersed in whatever subject Stoppard has chosen, whether that be literature, history, math, music or landscape architecture, along with a fascinating interpersonal story with the characters. And while I usually appreciate the interpersonal stories of his plays, his chosen subject of interest is usually lost on me (mostly due to the feeling that you need to take a Masters class in whatever the subject is before you see the play to totally get it). Stoppard's "Indian Ink" is no exception although the love story at its heart certainly outweighed any gaps of historical knowledge I felt.

I'm going to confess that I am in love with 'Matilda, The Musical'. I have been ever since I first heard the cast album. What I feared would be another bland attempt at putting a beloved children's classic on stage turned out to be a treasure trove of clever lyrics and great storytelling. And so with my love and familiarity of the show I was able to overlook some of the technical issues I saw with the current production at the 5th Avenue Theatre for my own personal enjoyment of the evening. But looking back on the evening I cannot deny that those issues were there, not only technical but who this show is intended for. But we'll get to all that in a minute.

If you're going to tell a story, especially one based on a real event, you need to decide who the story is about, what you are trying to tell and why are you trying to tell it. And those are just a few of the downfalls with the new play from Ana Brown and Andrew Russell "John Baxter is a Switch Hitter" currently from Intiman Theatre.

Stephen Schwartz's "Pippin" is one of those under appreciated musicals. It definitely has its problems but if done well it can deliver the goods. Well, the current tour of the recent Broadway run certainly delivers those goods. Not only does it retain the dark edginess of the story but it's also infused with thrilling circus routines that make it a crowd pleaser on many levels.

Two years ago, if you were lucky enough to catch it, we were introduced to the Wild West, steampunk world of 'The Clockwork Professor', a delightful melodrama from the mind of Maggie Lee. Well the denizens of that world continued to have adventures in Lee's mind and now we can all climb on board to 'The Tumbleweed Zephyr' for another thrilling escapade.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, if you have a story to tell then tell it. Existentialism is fine but don't pack in a bunch of superfluous seemingly non sequitur dialog and lose your meaning as a result. Such is the problem with Fantastic Z's current production of "Sidewinders" over at Richard Hugo House. They may have wanted to discuss gender issues but the story got lost.

The trouble with one man shows is that it's difficult to make them engaging no matter the subject. Such is the pitfall that Jeanne Sakata's "Hold These Truths", currently playing at ACT Theatre, falls into. This may be an incredibly horrifying thing that happened to this man but unless you have an engaging way to tell it you might as well be trapped with someone at a party as they recount (in detail) their life story. And while that conversation might be ok for a little while, after 90 minutes it becomes wearing.

Sound Theatre Company has never shied away from difficult plays and now in conjunction with Brownbox Theatre they've taken on Marcus Gardley's moving civil war fable "… And Jesus Moonwalks the Mississippi". To be blunt, this play is not going to be for everyone with its deeply poetic nature and complex imagery. And while certain elements of the piece I found confusing or missing the mark; I was able to come away from it with an admiration of its lyric beauty and gripping story.

Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey's musical "Grease" is so much more than just a collection of doo wop numbers. It's a group of teens finding their own identities at a time when teens were finding identities much different from those of their parents. Or at least it should be. Unfortunately the current production at the 5th Avenue Theatre has been scrubbed clean and is so devoid of any individual or realistic characters that any emotion or meaning that might have been elicited from the story is now gone. But they sing pretty.

When you see as many shows as I do as a theater reviewer there are shows that, on the surface, make you concerned as to what you're about to see. Such a show was "Orpheus Descending" developed and performed by the Williams Project at 12th Avenue Arts as part of the Intiman Theatre Festival. I mean we're talking about a 3 hour Tennessee Williams play put on by a brand new to Seattle theatre company. But it's moments like this that make being a theater reviewer worth all the time spent when that trepidation turns into absolute awe-inspired elation at seeing a beautifully simple, well thought out and brilliantly portrayed production such as this that ranks up there with one of the best things I've seen all year.

NEWS FLASH: The evil Hoard of Four under the command of the Eric the Evil Overlord is out to steal the special beer that has crash landed from outer space. Who can the Mayor call in to rescue us all? The Jet City Superheroes of course! Yes Teatro ZinZanni has dusted off their spandex and capes to thrill us with a superhero adventure with “The Return of Chaos” and the thrills, humor and fun must have been hit with some gamma radiation because it's all at the level of The Hulk (but with better grammar).

Dreams are there for our brains to work things out when we can't and the more incapacitated we are the weirder those dreams become. I mean Dorothy dreamt about flying monkeys. Well in "Wizzer Pizzer: Getting Over the Rainbow", currently from Theatre22 as part of their Pride Series, the dream is just the latest in an attempt to tell someone else's message utilizing a trip to Oz. And while I loathe someone working out their therapy on stage, Amy Wheeler's play comes across as more what she felt would have been the resulting mindset from therapy without actually going through it and that's even worse as it's cliche joke after cliche joke ultimately amounting to no real resolution or message.

I don't think many theater nerds need to argue the virtues of Stephen Schwartz's hit show "Wicked" currently playing at the Paramount Theatre. It's one of those shows that's widely and verbally loved by aficionados and general theatergoers alike. So when the tour comes through town it's bound to have the rich and powerful voices needed to blast those wonderful songs into the rafters. And this tour is no exception. But while this tour also boasts two wonderful leads who also manage some brilliant and layered storytelling in their characters, some of the supporting players felt lacking and flat in that aspect making this go around with the show not as awe-inspiring as past viewings.

Dear readers, it had been about a year since my previous trip back to the Mothership (a.k.a. New York) and I felt it was time for a recharge of my Broadway batteries, even if it could only be a quickie. Well let me tell you there is plenty of awesome happening out there to catch. Now I only caught five of them but they were all amazing. Granted, I did pick from the cream of the crop of recent award winners and high profile shows but that only means that I can give a collective WOW to them all with my three letter rating system. Let's take a look at my whirlwind journey.

How do you come out with an anti-war novel without it becoming preachy or scolding? You let Kurt Vonnegut handle it. His tale of the life of a soldier through his time in war and beyond is so shrouded in other elements that the lessons learned just slide on into your brain along with the rest of the story. And Book-It's presentation of this gripping work is just as seemingly effortless in its message and manages to engage and entertain rather than lecture and scold.

Most of us in some way still want to believe that magic is real. I know I do. I mean how many of us tried some of those Harry Potter spells just to see what would happen? Just me? Well anyway, some true magicians are visiting Seattle at the moment with the big flashy show "The Illusionists - Witness the Impossible" over at the 5th Avenue Theatre. But this is not the magic shows of old as they've infused it with a cool, rockin' vibe and enough variation that it's bound to thrill anyone.

If you want to ensure that people come to see your play then make sure you have well advertised nudity and sex in it. This is not a condemnation of "Threesome", the current play over at ACT, but a simple fact of the business of theater. But once you've lured those butts into the seats with the titillating title and promise of skin make sure you've got a story to keep the audience engaged once the actors put their clothes on. And while Yussef El Guindi's play does manage some interesting, hot button moments and topics the show feels somewhat forced at times and obscured by the gimmick that got the audience there.

There may not be a ton of plot going on with Theater Schmeater's current production of "Four Dogs and a Bone". I mean there's no real message or over-arching moral other than "people in Hollywood are awful". But what it does have going for it is some very funny dialog and an ensemble that, while playing self-centered and back stabbing, are completely together in this piece which makes for a highly engaging and fun night.

With the sun out more and more (amidst all the rain, of course) the theatrical choices in the area tend to dwindle a bit. But not to worry, there's still plenty to take in. From Shakespeare to Schwartz, greasers to gay baseball players, classics to camp and Karen Carpenter there's something for everyone. After you spend your day in the sun check out what's happening indoors (or in some cases combine the sun and the shows).

I have to say that when it comes to Kander and Ebb's "Cabaret" I prefer my Kit Kat Club dirty, my Sally Bowles damaged and my Berlin dangerous. And while the current production at Village Theatre has all of those elements, they're all very safe versions of those elements. And while director Brian Yorkey attempted a very thoughtful telling of the story, often times the pacing was so deliberately slow as to lose any urgency of the moment.