Put a Little Drama in your Life
KPBS AIRDATE: January 2, 1992 Standing on the threshold of a new year, I don't know whether to look forward or behind. I'm haunted by the spectres of Orpheus, Cassandra, Pandora and Pollyanna. Do I look back at the past year of theater with some longing for what was? Or with some paralytic realization of what really was? Read More →
KPBS AIRDATE: January 2, 1992 Fish gotta swim, birds gotta fly. And Lawrence Welk hadda do "Show Boat" sooner or later. Actually, it's surprising that it's so much later, since the ground-breaking musical opened on Broadway in 1927, and the Welk has a penchant for multiple recyclings of its musical hits. "Show Boat" is based on Read More →
KPBS AIRDATE: December 19, 1991 Garrison Keillor knows that good radio is fun to watch. So does Blackfriars Theatre. They're back with an all new, improved version of last year's runaway fund-raising hit, "More of the Laughing Buddha Wholistik Radio Theatre." A door slams. We hear footsteps approaching. And we see Read More →
KPBS AIRDATE: December 12, 1991 Forget the huge, festive tree with the bright presents underneath. Forget the velvety Victorian costumes. This is Sledgehammer's take on "A Christmas Carol," so nothing will be anything like what you'd expect. There are yard-high hats and loincloths, dancing food and a giant clock with no numbers that glides above the stage. Read More →
KPBS AIRDATE: December 5, 1991 You always have to read between the lines. Otherwise, you'd be absolutely flabbergasted to learn that Ken Ludwig's silly little trifle, "Lend Me a Tenor," was a winner of two Tony Awards. At its Broadway debut two years ago, the play did indeed garner two Tonys -- but they were for the director and Read More →
KPBS AIRDATE: November 21, 1991 I don't know if this is a far, far better thing than Ron Campbell has ever done, but I'm sure it's far, far more characters than he's ever played at one time. Almost twenty, to be sort of precise. And if the evening were a little shorter, it'd definitely be the best of 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