Jay Irwin - Page 38

Sir Alan Ayckbourn certainly knows how to bring rich and complex characters to life and then set them spinning to hilarious ends and his current production of "Sugar Daddies", making it's American Premiere at ACT, is no exception. And while it could use some trimming, he gives us a sobering yet funny look at how nothing comes without a price.

There are some classics you just don't mess with. "Casablanca", "Lawrence of Arabia" and yes, "The Wizard of Oz". OK, so there have been a number of sequels or prequels and complete rewrites (such as "The Wiz", which I love) but up to now no one has felt they could make the original better. That is until the ego that is Andrew Lloyd Webber came along and said, "Sure it's good but it needs my special flair." Well Sir Andrew, keep your special flair to yourself as what you have done is to jam in utterly forgettable new songs and horrifying jokes into the show and created a bastardized version of a classic.

New Century Theatre Company's track record for putting on stunning shows remains brilliantly intact as they present another absolute winner with Enda Walsh's "The Walworth Farce". It's actually getting a little scary how they keep consistently putting up the goods show after show. It's almost like they've discovered some theatrical genie or wishing stone that magically turns their shows into gold. Or it could be that they just have the cream of the crop of Seattle theatrical talent on their team who not only know how to pick the slightly obscure shows but also how to produce and perform them. And "The Walworth Farce" is no exception as this four member cast goes from the raucously funny to the sublimely terrifying at the drop of a hat and takes you on a ride you won't soon forget.

If you're going to have a play espousing rhetoric on politics and the state of our Government let it have something new (or at least clever) to say, otherwise it's the same old stuff we've heard droning on for years. Well as edgy and topical as Lauren Gunderson's play "The Taming", currently playing at ArtsWest, thinks it is, what it amounts to is stereotypes pontificating through a story with so many holes in it that you'd think it had gone hunting with Dick Cheney.

(Sputter, gasp wheeze) There, I can breathe again. So you know when you go to a show and there's that one actor on stage who is so good, so funny, that the show and the other actors just kind of revolve around them like some theatrical sun warming all in its orbit? OK, now imagine an entire stage filled with that actor and you'll have the Seattle Rep's current production of "The Servant of Two Masters" which kicks off their 51st season not with a bang but with a hearty belly laugh that lasts for two and a half hours.

Imagine you go to see a comedienne. She talks about sex and drugs and racial issues and being a lesbian and any number of taboo subjects. Pretty fun night, right? Now imagine she's in her 50's, 60's or even 70's. Even more fun. Now imagine it's the 1970's or even earlier. And there we have the career of one of the funniest and most groundbreaking African American women of the last century, Jackie "Moms" Mabley. And in a tribute to this pioneer, writer Dan Owens and director Jacqueline Moscou and the folks at the Langston Hughes Performing Arts Institute have come up with the world premiere of "Hello Darlin's: Mom's got something to tell you!" And while there may have been a few rough moments in the evening, it amounts to a hilarious and touching look back at a trailblazer of comedy whose career spanned over 50 years and who needs to be remembered.

OK, so we're all sick of the trend of movies turned into musicals but, Dear Readers, just as movies have to keep remaking themselves, Broadway will keep culling from film vaults for new musicals. Let's face it, it ain't going anywhere. But if they're going to do it, such as with the current production of 'Secondhand Lions' being tried out on the stages of the 5th Avenue Theatre, let's make sure it can be done on a stage and still make sense. Yes, the fanciful stories and budding and heartfelt relationship between the two old curmudgeons and their young nephew are still there and done quite well in moments. But the attempt to jam that title down our throats without even the slightest hint of the actual lion storyline feels a bit insulting to anyone who saw the film. But we'll get to that in a minute.

We've all had those fleeting thoughts in our heads every now and again of doing something completely outrageous like blowing something up or offing someone just because we don't like their face. We have right? No? Just me? Uh oh. Well anyway, MAP Theatre's latest offering of Carter W. Lewis' "Soft Click of a Switch" explores what happens when two loners give in to those impulses. The result is a darkly comic and fascinating look inside the minds of volatile yet sympathetic characters.

Sometimes goofy is all you really need. Sure, it's nice to have a deeply heartfelt and affecting show but sometimes you just want candy. Well look no further as Village has taken the candy coated no brainer that is "Xanadu" and amped the joy and humor up to 11. And while yes, the performances are all top notch, the real joy of the production comes from the obvious fun the cast is having with the material (and I don't just mean those skimpy togas).

I must be honest here; Balagan Theatre putting on a production of Les Mis already has two hurdles to overcome before I even set foot in the door. First that it's Les Mis. It's a monumental undertaking and one of my favorite shows and I'm incredibly picky about it. And two, it's Balagan and with their recent track record I expect great things. So before I even enter the theater I already have some impossibly high standards for the production. And while there were definitely some superb moments on that stage (many in fact) there were also some glaring drawbacks that kept the show from meeting or even exceeding those standards.

We don't live in Grover's Corners anymore and a lot has changed in the century since that time. So it stands to reason that a slice of life play like 'Middletown', currently playing at ACT would be a darker and grittier ride than its 'Our Town' predecessor. And while at times it seems like just a series of platitudes on how to live your life, what makes this production what it is are the stirring and heartfelt performances from the ensemble cast.

There's an old show business adage that if you give the audience a strong ending, they'll forgive most anything that came before. And it's a good thing that still holds true for "Sister Act" currently playing at the Paramount Theatre as the top of the show was filled with painfully forced dialog and exposition but the show managed to break that habit (pun intended) and end on a much stronger note. Not brilliant but stronger.

Balagan Theatre continues their effort to get new musicals a place to be heard with their New Works Summer Series and their offering of the new musical “Island Song”, a show exploring the lives of the young and ambitious in a city that can at the same time foster and crush such ambition.

It's a really good thing the air conditioning is working in the Seattle Center Armory because something has to cool the audience down after Sound Theatre Company's current production of "The Wild Party". Not only is it a sultry good time but the fear, love, lust, anger and danger coming off the cast is palpable.

Wagner's 'Ring' is back in town at Seattle Opera. Some say for the last time (at least as it is now) as Speight Jenkins is stepping down from the organization. So it's only fitting that the abridged twangy retelling the cycle, 'Das Barbecu' make it's way back again. But unlike the productions in the past (like the most recent at ACT) this one is a bit trimmed down into a concert version (music in hand). But not to worry as the three night only run is still filled with hilarity and heart as the performers shine like some magic gold.

It's one of my favorite weekends of the year. The weekend I get to spend three days listening to exciting new works as presented by some of the best performers Seattle has to offer. And this year Village Theatre did not disappoint as they invited members, performers, staff and press to partake of their Village Originals 13th Annual Festival of New Musicals. Some good, some maybe not so, some needing a little more work than others but all showing a deep love for the art and presented by some of the best voices in town. Now, I can't review them as they're still works in progress but I can tell you about the shows presented over the weekend and let you know about the one show that while still in development is still running one more weekend and can have tickets purchased to by non-members (that would be you, Dear Readers).

I like absurdist farce, raucous hijinks and Italian commedia as much as the next guy and Dario Fo is certainly a master of all three. However when a production of one of his plays such as the Intiman's current production of "We Won't Pay, We Won't Pay" starts off going 100 miles an hour and stays there for the entire show, it becomes old and wearing and really not all that funny.

Balagan Theatre continued its Summer New Works program the other night with their reading of the Anton Chekov and Kurt Cobain inspired, 'Nirvanov'. And Broadway World was given exclusive access to bring you photos from the reading of this fascinating look into one of Seattle's biggest and most tragic citizens.

When melodrama is done right, it can be a ton of fun. Maniacal cackling villains, stalwart heroes, and everyone gets what they deserve. And while the current steampunk production from Pork Filled Productions, "The Clockwork Professor", playing at Theatre Off Jackson has much of that melodramatic style going for it, they could use a bit more of a focused over the top tone to make it sing. But what they do have going for them is an original story by Maggie Lee that is at the same time funny and fascinating.

This is not your Grandfather's "Lysistrata". It's not even your Great great great great (you get the idea) Grandfather's version. The Intiman has taken this classic Anti-War story and amped it up to 11 making it resonate with modern sensibilities and given it a hard hitting ending that you won't soon forget.