Put a Little Drama in your Life
Posted at TimesofSanDiego.com on 12/30/17 In this singular year of turmoil, theater was a welcome escape. But it also served as a reflecting mirror, or a cautionary tale. And it urged us sit up and take notice. To stay sharp. Keep well informed. Get involved.. Avoid complacency. Our democracy and our way of life depend on it. In 2017, I saw nearly 200 performances, and that included a lot of very strong – and more important, very Read More →
Aired on KSDS-FM on 6/15/18 RUN DATES: 6/1/18 - 7/1/18 VENUE: The Old Globe “Native Gardens” touches on a ton of hot-button topics: racism, classism, sexism, ageism, colonialism, entitlement, land ownership, territoriality, stereotyping, and the risks and benefits of fences or border walls. And yet, the play manages to make a molehill out of this mountain of issues. The setup is potentially intriguing: a young couple and an older couple, with adjacent yards, and a dispute about the property line Read More →
Aired on KSDS-FM on 7/6/18 RUN DATES: 6/17/18 - 7/22/18 VENUE: The Old Globe Many scholars believe that “The Tempest” was Shakespeare’s swan song—his poetic farewell to the stage, relinquishing the power of his pen just as his “Tempest” stand-in, Prospero, abandons his magic and returns to his former life. Some have interpreted the play through the lens of colonialism, with the exiled Prospero as imperialist and the island residents, Ariel and Caliban, as his minions. Seizing power Read More →
Posted at TimesofSanDiego.com on 5/28/18 RUN DATES: 5/18/18 - 7/1/18 VENUE: New Village Arts There’s a funny thing about “Avenue Q.” (Well, actually, there are lots of funny things about “Avenue Q,” but we’ll get to that in a moment). The show is billed as an X-rated puppet musical, with foul language, puppet sex and full puppet nudity. It is all of those (parental advisory included). But it’s also very poignant—and it really is about something: the hard facts of Read More →
Posted at TimesofSanDiego.com on 7/14/18 RUN DATES: 7/13/18 - 8/18/18 VENUE: OnStage Playhouse Just how cheesy can you get? “Xanadu” has the ostentatious answer to that musical question. The 2007 musical (a parody of the airheaded, feather-light film of the same name) boasts a wacky book by playwright Douglas Carter Beane, and original direction by our own Christopher Ashley, artistic director of the La Jolla Playhouse, where he brought it, direct from Broadway, to launch the national tour in Read More →
Posted at TimesofSanDiego.com on 8/17/18 RUN DATES: 8/15/18 - 9/1/18 VENUE: Moonlight Stage Productions Not every musical can create a good story. And not every good story makes a good musical. Case in point: “The Hunchback of Notre Dame,” Victor Hugo’s 1831 romantic/Gothic novel about faith and love, outsiders and acceptance. Noble themes all, especially at this moment in our own history. But when Disney gets into the act, the depth and darkness are typically sheared off. The 1996 animated film, Read More →
“San Diego is a hotbed of theater. Every year, I see 200-250 productions. This is fertile ground for new work. In addition to the prodigious local talent, theatermakers from around the country come here to premiere their latest creations. San Diego sends more shows to Broadway than nearly any other city in the U.S.”
-Pat Launer